It was a very rainy morning, so after we got back from grocery shopping I went up to the studio and started quilting on my Improv Daisy. It's coming along (other than it's not really flat).
The progress on Opening Night came to a screeching halt when I realized I was short about 18 sashings, I think I misread the directions (or they were misprinted).
I got them made and a few of them sewn on.
I started on the Solstice quilt from Bryan House. Here's block one.
More free-motion quilting on the Improv Daisy. More to come, I'm closing in on the center of the quilt.
Been working on the Improv Daisy free-motion quilting. Every part is getting a different quilting design and threads to match. I'm actually enjoying this.
I started on the quilting of the Improv Daisy. I'm going to do custom free-motion quilting, changing designs in each section.
I was rolling the quilt back and forth to complete the sections that were too big to fit in the quilting area. I've never done that before, hope it works.
I've been working a bit on the Opening Night Tula Pink quilt blocks. I finished them off today while chatting on Brave Patch Monday Sew-In. I started sewing them into rows. I still have to cut the big setting triangles for the outside - I don't know how I'm going to do that, they're over 29" square to begin with. It's so difficult to be accurate at that size.
Darrell needed to get some special wood for the desk he's making for his daughter, Nicole. So, we headed out for Port Townsend this morning. We got breakfast at the co-op, coffee at Starbucks and headed downtown to the ferry terminal. We caught the ferry for Bainbridge Island and drove north to PT. It was a nice morning.
While he was shopping for the Bubinga I sketched.
Then we went to Fort Worden for a nice walk around.
We picked up lunch at the Food Co-op there - they have the best chicken salad sandwiches. Then we drove to the Hood Canal Bridge lookout to sit and eat before we headed back home.
I loaded up the backing and batting for the Improv Daisy, then rolled the top onto it's bar. It wasn't happy trying to be straight, flat and square - mainly because its not!
I've got it all ready to go, now I just have to work up the courage and confidence to just do it.
I made a backing with a label for the Floating Stairs quilt, which I've now named Suspended.
I made a strip using leftover fabrics from the 'stairs'.
I finished up the quilting on Ursus Abstinere, the bear paw quilt today. It turned out great.
I'm taking a Sketchbook Design workshop with Liz Steele.
Here's a sketch I started yesterday and finished today.
I'm quilting stitch-in-the-ditch around each Bear Paw block with a circle in the 'palm'. It's almost fun. I love this Hobbs Tuscany 80/20 cotton/wool batting. It's making this quilt look really good.
This Shattered pattern has 480 HST squares, 960 triangles. What was I thinking when I started this? Oh well, persevere.
I got more trimmed and pressed and put one block together while attending a Brave Patch sew-in.
I got a lot of quilting work done on my Ursus quilt.
But, at 9am it was time for the monthly get-together with Joe Cunningham on zoom with his Quilt Freedom Workshop. I opted to not make this month's project, but instead, to just watch and learn. But, while that was going on, I managed to cut up the 'eight-at-a-time' squares and press open the half-square-triangle squares for Shattered. I'm not done though. Still more to go.
Look at all of that trimming I need to do.
Making 8 at a time Half Square Triangles, I sewed all of the pairs together today. It took about 2-1/2 hours. My neck was sore, but I got them all done.
I've got dozens of projects in progress, so what do I do? I start another one, of course.
Kona just published this pattern, Shattered, which was included with my monthly shipment of Kona cuts with the Aurifil threads, the last of the year. I received a group of half yard pieces of greys. It didn't include all of the greys needed, but I have the rest in my stash.
I cut up the parts needed today.
I got a little bit more quilting done on the Ursus quilt.
I took down a storage box from a closet that has been there, unopened, since we moved into this house. Inside are unfinished quilt tops. It was a treasure trove of things I had forgotten about.
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| This quilt uses William Morris print fabrics in muted purple, silver and greys with metallic. |
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| A needle-turned hand appliqued folkart quilt from a pattern. It uses mostly plaids and and some flannels. The border is a cotton print. The pattern is by Jan Patek and Alma Allen called Millennium Garden. |
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| The photo doesn't do this justice - it's a deep rich burgundy with tan, and black with gold metallics. What's very interesting is the variety of fabrics. There is that border print, African fabrics, a novelty print, some Smithsonian fabric and even a Debbie Mumm fabric. |
I loaded Ursus onto my longarm, Eduard, and started quilting it. I love it!
I've started a new course with Liz Steele - "Sketchbook Design".
I sketched my breakfast this morning as a beginning.
I got those last two seams sewn to finish the backing for the Improv Daisy quilt. Since I don't have a big enough batting for it (I have some ordered, it will be here in a week or so) I thought I'd find a small project to occupy me until I can get back to the Daisy.
I found the Layered Curves top all ready with a back and label and a small batting.
I got it loaded and quilted free-motion wavy lines horizontally across the whole thing.
It only took a few hours and it was done.
I thought I was going to get the backing for the Improv Daisy quilt done, but I had only two seams left when I noticed it was 3:00pm and I had to put things away so I could go make dinner.
But I did get the label made and put in.
I've started making a backing for the Improv Daisy quilt. It's really big and the backing needs to be even bigger. I've been squaring up some of my old paisleys that are close to the right colors. There's been lots of partial seams. I'm having fun.
I don't want a center seam to go all the way down, so I need to switch some things up.
