The Piecemakers by the Bay 2016 Quilt Show is in the books. As always, there were many beautiful quilts. One part of the show is the guild challenge. This year it was titled Texas Two Step with the following guidelines. Two sides had to be …
January 30 and 31, 2016 will be a showing of quilts sponsored by the Piecemakers by the Bay Quilt Guild in Rockport, Texas. The show is 10-5 on Saturday and 11-4 on Sunday. I am in charge of the guild challenge, “Texas Two-Step”. While the …
A new color combo for me. Much brighter than the soft, subdued colors I usually choose. It has been fun and stimulating to make the selection. this is actually being made for a presentation on using vintage linens in our quilting projects. Presentation will be at the January 30-31, 2016 Quilt Show in Rockport, TExas.
I have wanted to make a quilt with the Rose of Sharon applique pattern for many years. Hand applique has always been the reason I have not accomplished that aspiration. The time seems right. Using a design program I have drafted a pattern based on …
Dec 18, 2015 Sewing has stopped for the time being so work can continue on the sewing room. The mini kitchenette area is being worked on by my husband with “help” from me. The sewing machine is covered by it’s carrying case and a sheet …
If you haven’t tried bobbin work it is done by winding a thicker decorative thread by hand in your bobbin and then making tension and stitch length adjustments. I used size 8 decorative yarn, set my tension from a normal 4.4 down to 3.0 and stitch length from a normal of 2.5 to 4.0. Then sew on the wrong side of the fabric so the decorative stitch is on the right side. My settings gave me a textural stitch that I liked on the linen fabric.
The improv tucks were made just as if making tucks only I paid no attention to grain or even width for tuck. Cutting extra width is again necessary so the finished work can be trimmed to correct size after stitching.
What fun on a rainy day.
Dec 11, 2015 The last of the monthly wall hangings to brighten my mother’s care center room has been received. A year of projects that brightened her room seemed easy as an idea in December of 2014 but did take some time to figure out …
Dec 10, 2015 We went into town this morning to get haircuts and groceries, mundane errands, huh? But we drove by a garage sale just getting started so made a side stop. I still need to find some items to re-purpose into sewing room storage …
Snowflakes also remind me of the winter games we played as kids—fox and goose, snow angels, snowmen and just playing on the snow drifts, hoping they would hold us up as we climbed around and about on them. Snow was fun as kids, not so fun when, as an adult, there is work associated with it–scooping, shoveling, driving,etc. Perhaps we should take some time to enjoy the beauty of it and recall the simplicity of it as seen through the eyes of children.
Hoffman fabric, Anita Goodesign embroidery pattern (Snowflakes of Rohan)
As I am finishing the Texas sewing room I am beginning to think about the “décor”. I prefer plain and simple, letting the clutter and color be the fabric and projects in progress. Yesterday, as the temperature dropped and the winds blew in colder air, …