Studio weekend

Last weekend, Tom helped me switch my studio to a larger room, trading with a bedroom.  Now there is room for Bella and me.

Bella's corner of the new studio - or at least part of it.

My corner of the new studio.  The design wall stayed in the other room, but I am now in with all the fabric and there is much more room for both of us. That is very important on Wednesdays when we have our shared studio day.

The first thing I did this weekend was finish up my addition to the April Improvirobin block that came my way.  It started out like this.  I am the third person to add to the original.  As you can see, there have been big changes.  When I first saw the original, I fell in love with the rich reds, oranges, and golds in the center.  When it came to me, I decided to make some fabric of those same rich colors to add to two of the sides.  It will go to three more people before it goes back to the originator.  If you are interested to watch the progress of all seven quilts, take a few minutes to look through the Flickr site.  This year's group starts with this one.

I also worked on one of my H2H quilts for this year.  You can read more about that project over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.  These blocks are going to make a D9P.  I do like that pattern.

Last, but really not least, I participated in a scrap swap over at 15 Minutes Play.  Margaret from New Jersey, and I decided to fill the small flat rate boxes from the post office.  I think she got more fabric stuffed in the box she sent me than I did for her.  These are just a few that I pulled to play with today.

This New York City scrap was my inspiration.  Don't you just love it!

After fun sewing, cutting, then sewing again, I came up with this 24" x 24" beauty.  The amazing thing about the box of scraps is that there was only one very small piece of fabric that I actually had in my stash.  Everything else was totally new to me.  What fun it is to improve together something from new scraps.

My new job is keeping me very busy, so I probably won't post again until next Sunday.  Have a great week, everyone, and joyful quilting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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?

The Redesigned Studio

I have been working in different mediums in my wonderful studio over the past couple of years. For each, I have changed things around. During each change, my sewing machine stayed in a small dark corner. Not so, now. Quilting has taken over. Everything is easily reached. I have my big cutting mat, that my wonderful sister-in-law got for me, on my big table. I moved my sewing machine to the small table where I can simple turn in my chair and stitch. I have my stash in my bedroom just waiting for a shelving unit for the studio. In the meantime, I am having a great time in my redesigned studio.

I have started working on a preemie quilt for my quilt guild's charity project. The group, Cedar River Quilters, makes and donates 250+ preemie quilts to the NICU at a local hospital. I am excited to be making my first one. You can see the progress in the photo above. I am going to focus and star blocks this year, and this is my first one. One of my goals is to create a star sampler quilt. I have loads to learn, but am really enjoying it all.