A little of this, a little of that, and a finish - finally

First, the finish.

Ta da . . .

I have been working on this Hawaiian applique for over five years.  After I got it cut and basted, I put it away, thinking I was never going to have the patience or skills to finish it.  I finally decided I would never develop the skills unless I tried, so I got it out a few months ago and did the needle turn applique.  Then I hand quilted it.  I put the binding on today from an old Hawaiian shirt of Tom's.  It isn't perfect, but I am really happy it is done and somewhat presentable.

It is amazing, but I actually got this done in this mess of a studio.

As you can see, I have projects everywhere.  My design wall is off to the left.  The board to the right holds all my inspirational bits and pieces.  The table to the left holds quite a few orphan blocks and UFOs.  The stacks of fabric and books on the end of the table in the middle are waiting for me to put them away in the other room.  I try and keep everything for one project in a separate basket, so you can see them stacked around.  One of these days, I will have to clean up a bit.  Unfortunately, I would rather use studio time to create, not clean.

Today, I also tried something new to me.  I wanted to try string quilting.

I got a 12" and a couple of 4" blocks put together before I decided to put this away for another day.  I did this by creating a largish strata and cutting the block units from that.  There was much too much waste for me.  When I get back to it, I am going to try a different approach.  Besides, I also discovered that the greens, teals, and turquoise fabrics I want to use are all very different sizes, most much to small to make good strata.  At least I like the results.  Tom likes these and hopes I continue.

Here are the JL blocks I made (2 each).

 

And last but not least is the final block for my BOM quilt.

This is the last you will see of this until it is finished and ready to enter in the contest over at 15 Minutes Play on December 1.

I can't wait to see what I get done tomorrow.  I hope it goes as well as it did today.

What are your plans for the weekend?

Needle turn applique - what was I thinking?

Several years ago, when we were living in Hawaii, I was smitten by the Hawaiian quilts that I saw throughout the islands.  I was totally intrigued by the designs and the amazing work involved.  There are so many shops that sell small pseudo Hawaiian quilts that are made in China.  Tourists eat these up because they are really beautiful and they are affordable.  I was given one of these pieces, and I like it for what it is, but I know it is not the real thing.  Since I could never afford a locally made treasure, I decided I could try to make a small one, just to have the experience.  I started this so long ago, I forget the name of the pattern.  I do remember that I folded the fabric into quarters, then diagonally to create a triangle.  I carefully made my cuts.  Then, I opened the cut piece, laid it out on the background fabric, and basted it in the traditional way, starting in the center and going out and around each stem, flower, and leaf.  Then, I started my needle turn applique.  This was almost my downfall.   I say almost because I soon realized that I was in over my head and put this project away for the future.  The future arrived about a month ago when I put it on my UFO list at guild.  Today, I finished my last applique stitch.  Woohoo!  Now, I have to figure out what next.  This piece is about 30" square.  I do know that I am going to hand quilt it in the traditional style, echoing the pattern.  I was in such a hurry to post this, I didn't even take time to press it.

Will you look at that!  Blue sky.  The ferry was coming from Seattle, and I couldn't resist the photo.  Of course, within five minutes, black clouds rolled in, the wind whipped up, and the rain came down.  You have to love the Pacific Northwest.
I probably won't be posting for a few days since I will be really busy.  I will be back in the studio on Friday.
Joyful quilting, my friends.