Hand Quilting.

Back to my week away at Summer School.
Friday was spent quietly stitching away- handquilting the Crib Quilt. 
Many years ago, I took a class with Liuxin Newman (the Thimblelady).  Such a lovely person and a great teacher.  I learnt to handquilt with my thumb.  On Friday, I tried quilting with my middle finger, but it just didn't feel right.  So back to my thumb, I guess.  Works for me, anyway.
Well, it was supposed to be stitching.  The weather that day wasn't at all conducive to hand quilting, we managed to get to 38 C.  Apparently this is unheard of in the mountains.  No airconditioning.  Need I say more??

It's very meditative, but soooo slow.
I've found the trick for me, is to leave the quilt in the hoop in my sewing room.  I can stitch a block whenever I just wander in for a while.

Orphans and Scraps.

I'm almost up to date with these cute little blocks.

This is the second little 4 1/2" block.

The first block- microscopic flying geese.

Third block-

There's just one little problem, Houston.

Have you heard the song-"One of these things is not like the other one?"
Hmmmm, I think I may have misread the instructions!
Back to make a block the right size.  I was going to pull this one apart, but I just can't bring myself to do that.  Too much unpicking with the Crib Quilt I think!

Back From Summer School.

Another successful week away doing nothing other than socialising and sewing.  Summer School is a much needed battery re-charge.
I took a 2 day class with Susan Smith - a lovely basket quilt called "Sweet William".

My blocks don't look quite as good as the original, but I've got a way to go.

 I started some of the applique, but then decided that I'm just going to get a lot of the baskets stitched first.
The applique is quite easy, so won't take very long.
The original quilt has a lovely buttery yellow for the setting blocks.  Originally, I was thinking that I would look for a similar fabric.   However,  I found a sweet pale blue fabric which might just fit the bill.

I'm sewing along with Pam Buda of Heartspun Quiltson her new quiltalong- Orphans and Scraps.
It's a sweet little 4 1/2"block per week for 5 weeks. 
Here's my 2nd block, a gorgeous little 4 patch on point finishing at 2".

So tiny.
Now to stitch some microscopic flying geese!

A little quilt

Just before Christmas, I purchased this pattern and some fabric.  Only now have I got time to start to put it together.

Starting with some beautiful cheddar and red fabric.      

 
 I've never appliqued with wool  before.  These pieces feel so gorgeous.  
Many 4 patches stitched.
    

A lovely little pile of 2" Patches.

So sweet. 

And borders.  I love sewing these little quilts.  This one finished at 16 1/2" by 19".  Just need to applique the wool border now.

That Crib Quilt.....

Good news on the piecing front.
I think my simple piecing ability has found its way back home to me.
So, the blocks have been pieced back into the quilt- all orientated the way they're meant to be!

Then the borders...

It wasn't all bad, either, the centre actually measured the correct size.
Then lots of little half square triangles to make a sawtooth border.

And lastly, little teeth all around.

Done.  Ready in time for Summer School next week.

Easy Street .

Well, after unpicking those 6 blocks, turning the offending part around and restitching, I've finished all the blocks.

Here's the quilt- it's very green!

At the moment, it's only blocks laid out on the floor.  Sewing is next.
Please have a look at all the other Easy Street quilts  over at Quiltville.com.
So far there are over 185 people linked up to show how they're going with this quilt.

Not the best of days...

I've been machine sewing up a storm the last couple of days.  I really wanted to get the Easy Street top together, and finish the Crib Quilt.
Here are my 9 B blocks for Easy Street.  I was very pleased to get these done.
UNTIL I looked closely at the blocks after taking this pic.  I usually show pics of things I'm happy with.  Not so here.  SIX blocks not pieced correctly.  SIX!
I hate unpicking.
These blocks are now waiting in a pile until next week.  I'm sulking.

I have, however, finished my 25 16 A blocks.  Eeek, 25 blocks total, not 25 A blocks, no thankyou.

Back to sulking.  The Crib Quilt just wasn't sitting right. Lost points, wiggly blocks.   This is for a hand-quilting class, so I want it to be nice and flat.
Last night I unpicked the 30 blocks and re-ironed, starched, and re-trimmed.  Hopefully now they're nice and square.  Sigh.  I hate unpicking.  I feel like I'm an expert at the moment.

Sewing along merrily- only to find this...
More unpicking.

So many seams, I've pressed the main seams open.  The seam intersection were very bulky.  Any ideas- is pressing open OK?  I tried twirling them at the intersections but it didn't want to work.

Sometimes I feel like nothing will go right.
Hopefully I've finished with the frog-stitching for now.

Summer School crib quilt.

I'm off to Blackheath in the Blue Mountains for Summer School next week.
This has become a very enjoyable yearly week away for classes with some very experienced teachers.
This year, I'm taking a one day hand quilting class with Karen Cunningham.  We have an 18th Century Crib Quilt to sew together as our class project.

 I've chosen this as my focus fabric, paired with a cream solid.  I've been tidying up the sewing room these last few weeks and found this piece in the bottom of a box, it's a gorgeous Barbara Brackman from 2000.  A vintage piece  for a vintage project!
 Cutting, cutting, cutting....

Sewing, sewing,sewing...

Blocks!

Twelve triangles down...

Setting triangles finished.
But still a long way to go.  I've started the "A"blocks.  One down, fifteen to go.

Two more blocks for my Grandmother's Choice quilt.

Yikes, I'm so behind on posts, can't believe I haven't written a word since mid-December.
Time goes so fast in a busy house.
Bonnies's mystery quilt finished up with the last clue yesterday.
Just to catch up with the clues-
Step 5-
"Sitting Turkeys!"

Step 6-
"Double Bricks and triangles"

Step 7 New Years Eve.
Four pieced corner triangles.

I'm currently working on the twelve pieced setting triangles.  More to come.....!