Saturday 3 December 2011

All hearts quilt

It's done, bound and delivered and raffle tickets will be available at Blooms garden center this weekend. Interesting to work with stretch fabric in places and a lot of embelishment, there were lessons learnt too about over quilting or perhaps over tension.
One more quilt to quilt, loaded and SID done already, then I think I need to get serious about christmas shopping Bleugh :-(

Happy quilting

Liz

Thursday 17 November 2011

A charity quilt, a baby quilt and a quilt for Doreen

I put spiky flowers all over this quilt which is going to Africa.


I have completed a brushed cotton quilt (which looks a bit odd in this light) for the baby of my dental nurse who was one of my students many years ago.



This is what Doreen gave me last month, it is a UFO from her stash.


I am not sure why she did not fall in love with this and complete it and I think there must be more fabric somewhere but I suspect it may be unfinnished because it is a bit busy. I thought it needed some consistancy in the sashing and stars. I think this picture is a bit dark but the stars stand out nicely. I do hope she likes what I have done for her.

Till next time

Liz









7 X 24 = 168

I have been busy, just not busy blogging. My friend is raising money to go to Africa with the girl guides so I have been busy helping. She acquired 7 advent calenders panels which I made up and gift bags and shopping bags. Here is just a small sample.

My family think I am bonkers!



Well they may have a point. I have been saving loo rolls, a harmless activity you may think and I do have a good reason. When generous people donate fat quarters and I spend what feels like ages pressing and folding, rolling, arranging and pinning then you end up with a lovely raffle prise that my friend Muriel is admiring.



The show was well attended and everyone enjoyed the quilts, sales table and cake. I showed Master Chaos union jack quilt but faied to get a picture. Doh!

Till next time,

Liz













Monday 26 September 2011

A Quilty kind of week

On Wednesday evening Lutterworth Piecemakers enjoyed a talk / discussion with Barbara Weeks and the following day we had a workshop. I have done a bit of felting before, this was the mornings activity, but not really done any silk painting and this was covered in the afternoon. I love it when a tutor goes round a room admiring students work and then stands in front of you and Hmmm's.

I probably should have gone home after lunch, or perhaps even before because it was me who put the chairs and tables outside to enjoy the warm weather and then the sun went in!

I just don't get painting, the more paint I put on the more dilute the red paint looked , then she said dark colours were achieved by drying and layering paint. I had already mentally given up by then. I still went home reasonably pleased with my little bit of felt but mostly the joy was the company of the other ladies, you know who you are. X

On Friday I went to Weedon to St Peters Church to a quilt show with Jane where she tried out her new camera. I have to say lighting in this church is not brilliant but it is a pretty and clearly very old church. I don't think the middle of the quilt is the best place for a quilt label but the quilts were nicely displayed over the pews. We had to stop off for a little retail therapy in two shops on the way home and thank you Jane for help choosing the purple, it looks great.



In case you can't recognise her this is Mary Maine, she was speaker at Rocheberrie Schoolhouse Quilters on Saturday and this is the quilt which made me do a double take, the quilting lines are on the diagional and it has a distorting effect on the piecing, very clever. She was a very good speaker but for me the best bit was when she introduced her last piece which I had seen at festival, it was of ladies at a quilt show she said she had taken pictures at a previous show to use and one of the ladies that made it into Marys work was our own Mo who was in the room. Very funny I do hope Mo was pleased.

I was able to return most of the block swaps and got lots of signatures for the group quilt and I really enjoyed a chat and a giggle with Sylvia and Chris and Marie and Jan.

The next event, I think, will be Lutterworth Piecemakers Exhibition. I have no idea what to show if at all but I will be helping out on both afternoons so I hope to see lots of visitors.

Till next time Liz X



Thursday 22 September 2011

I got to get me one of these

http://www.lulu.com/product/calendar/qsmasbc/17164277
I think I will be ordering one of these, when I tried to explain to someone today she said
"Do you mean a quilters version of the calender girls?" Exactly!
And the profits go to support a family who have a member with a brain tumour, a win, win situation.

Tuesday 23 August 2011

Lost the plot, made a list, lost that too.



I really need to tidy up but having made a start (and more of a mess) then I find things I like the look of and get distracted and start working on something else.


Ahhhh STOP.


Make a list, prioritise, get a grip, breathe, loose my list and give up.


Not called quilting in chaos for no good reason.


I could show the blocks I made from my jelly roll but I pressed them when I did the ironing early Sunday morning and now they have vanished, they will turn up eventually with ... Have just had an idea ..... no not there. Oh well they will turn up eventually.



So what do you do when you are feeling swamped... pick blackberries in the rain. No? Well that is what I did this morning, now I have to decide what to do with them but first I have to clear up in the kitchen.






Friday 19 August 2011

I need another project like I need a hole in the head but....




This fabric is scrummy


and it was talking to me and demanding my attention. I normally have a really hard time using yellow but no such problem here. It is too cute.


I have just had another delivery of swap blocks, thank you Carole nice to see you if only briefly. I really should be sighning mine but cute fabric is shouting louder.


Liz

Saturday 23 July 2011

Block swap

I have been very busy sewing but not much patchwork, I have made several dresses to take away on holiday but I have made all my blocks for Rocheberie block swap they are not yet signed but here are a couple of possible arrangements I was playing with this morning. This is the most odvious one. It would make a nice wall hanging at 24 x 30 inches or a bit bigger with borders.Or how about making a frame for something else? This is my favourite arrangement of blocks but it will depend on how blocks are signed as to whether this will work or not and how I expect it to be viewed, it may not be a wall hanging at this arrangement. It now measures 36 inches square.Or how about this as a frame, it is square so could take a mariners compass in the center and have lots of borders added.

I will have to wait to see them all before making a decision.


Gaynor wins the prize for getting her blocks to me first and June the first in the post so thank you both. Please remember if you are posting to remove the word "Lower" from my address that you were given I hope I phoned or left messages for you all.


Have a good summer


Liz


Thank you Nic and Lynda your blocks are added to the box. 5 in 16 to go.

Thank you Jacqiue andPauline your blocks were waiting for me when I got back from holiday.


But I still can't decide how to sign mine.


Wednesday 22 June 2011

Kathleen Laural Sage

Lutterworth Piecemakers had a visit from Kathleen Laural Sage this month, which was interesting because I had bought a copy of Stitch magazine which I do not normally do, because there had been a project by her. I met her at a show many years ago and loved her work, bought a kit, had a go but my machine hated it (feelings were mutual and I have a better machine now) I did not sew for quite some time.
I have tried and failed to find that piece of work but found some organza and had bought some more, so had plenty to play with.

Kathleen makes a sandwich of soluble stabilizer, organza snippets layered, a top layer of organza and a layer of soluble stabilizer with the design drawn onto.

I found the soluble stabilizer behaves like cling film and wants to stick to the machine bed and the free motion foot. I found this frustrating and pinned an additional layer of organza underneath and found everything moved more easily.

Next time I will also try to put the stabilizer with the design on underneath the top layer of organza and leave out the other bottom layer of stabilizer then the clinging stabilizer will be encased.
On Saturday evening I attended the memorial concert for my Dad which was organised by my Uncle Edward. I was not looking forward to this event as I suspected it would be very emotional and it was, but it was a great night full of fabulous music he would have loved and to a church packed full of people, many of them his friends. A very generous audience gave over £1200 in his memory to be divided between 3 ccancer charities.

On the night I asked if I could say a few words to tell people about the 'boob' project. I stood up infront of a full house including all my family and the Minister and said

"Can I show you my boobs?
"I don't suppose that has been said in Church before"

After that I really don't know what I said I was terrified but I think I said about the blog I came across and getting in touch with Nina Lise, that I was making a boob for the people I loved and what was special about each boob and inviting other people to do the same. I had a couple of people enquire about them which is what it is all about.
Thank you to everyone who took part and to those who attended and gave so generously. There have been several suggestions that this should become an annual event so watch this space.

Till next time

Liz

Tuesday 14 June 2011

Do you want to see my boobs? I have 5 so far!

What were you expecting?
Did you miss this post? http://makeaboob.blogspot.com/
Nina Lise in Norway is making a collection of textile pieces the size of a CD she is hoping to collect 1000 for an exhibition to raise awareness of breast cancer. I thought at the very least I should make one for everyone I have loved whose life has been touched by this cancer.
So far I have made 5 boobs.
The one in the center is for my Dad, it is made from his shirt fabric and is folded fabric, sort of origami, which he enjoyed. Dad was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001 so if a man you are close to has any changes in the nipple area please get him to the doctor. At that time 300 men a year were being diagnosed. Intersting fact is that a man has the same number of cells in that area just not the hormones to make them grow. Well I thought it was interesting.
The funky one with bra fabric is for my cousin who was daignosed in her early 20's, she went to the doctor with a lump and was told not to be silly, girls of her age don't get breast cancer and was sent away without being examined. Today she is fit and well and although I see her rarely I think of her with great affection.
The paisly one above is for her Mother, my Dads cousin and my Godmother. She was diagnosed at about the same time as my Dad but her treatment was not a long term success and she too is loved and missed.
The pink silk one is for the wife of a friend who passed away earlier this year, she was a well known potter and artist so I hope she would have liked the texture.
The brown silk one was the one I made first but now I don't like it as much as I did and the women remaining I wish to honour deserve something I am happy with and is my best work.
I will be posting these and more to Nina Lise before the end of July I think, so if you would like to add to my collection I would be happy to post together or her address can be found on her blog.
till next time
Liz

Friday 10 June 2011

A catch up on last week

Here is the photo I took of the Union Jack quilt that I took to the park on National Quilting Day You can see the band stand in the distance and my bike propped up on the bench. I had a lovely time sewing in threads in the sunshine and I will do it again next year.

Here it is a bit closer up but perspective or camera angle or something makes it look a bit shorter and fatter somehow, I don't understand. I quilted vermichelli in the blue and red areas and left the white without quilting. I would probably do straight line quilting down the stripes if I could load it again. It will go on a table at the back of church for concert thet my uncle is organising next weekend and then my son can have it.

If anyone is in Rugby on 18th June and would like to support local cancer charities the Geoff Old memorial concert is at St Andrews Church at 7.30

On Tuesday I drove to the other side of Basingstoke to meet up with other longarm quilters. I had a lovely day and came home with some new tools to play with. A longer stitch in the ditch ruler, a couple of clamshell rulers and some sashiko rulers, I have a quilt on the frame at the moment and several more to do but I am looking forward to having time to play with these.

On Thursday I met up with some friends at the Bramble Patch for their exhibition. We enjoyed looking at the quilts very much.

The first quilt I saw I said"Ooh that is striking I like that."

"Good."said Mo "Thats mine." well Mo, you got my vote.

We enjoyed the coffee, scone with cream and jam, lots of chatting and laughing and the sandwich bag competition. There were lots of entries, hand bag style ones, foodie ones and a clever one made from food wrappers. I wish I had taken my camera out of my bag and taken a photo but I forgot. They spent ages trying to guess which one was mine and I am rubbish at lying, I would be totally pants at poker.

Then Mo came back to Rugby to play with my Millie I think she was quite smitten and would like one if she had the room but as I reminded her, her son cooks her tea for her sometimes but the millie sadly won't.
Ladies, I had a really nice day, thank you for your company.

Till next time

Liz




Wednesday 8 June 2011

DON'T GO THERE....

unless you have made a cup of coffee and have plenty of time to kill
http://www.quiltershomemag.com/content_downloads/WEBposse.pdf
You have been warned!

I found this link on the website of Leah Day and was pleased at how many I already followed but perhaps even more pleased to find new sites to explore.

I shall be visiting the Bramble Patch exhibition with Jane, Rebecca and meeting Mo there today so I have another quilty day this week.
Back later
Liz

Saturday 4 June 2011

Happy national quilting day!

To bind on the longarm or not bind on the longarm, that is the question!


This has been my secret project. Can you tell what it is yet?


Young Master Chaos turned 14 this week and this is a gift for him. It is a little difficult to hide a project once it is loaded. I saw a photo on Flickr Brit Quilt group and wanted to make one.


I wish I could say it was simple to get it right, it wasn't, but it is right enough.


The Union Jack is significant in our family because last year when my Dad was in Myton hospice they were preparing for their summer fete and had put up the flag, but upside down. Dad was having a good day and had to rectify the situation. A sudden surge of energy had him climb on the table to try to sort it out luckly the nurses called for the groundsmen to assist.


Anyhow I shall be in the park this afternoon from 2 pm to celebrate National Quilting Day hand stitching the binding if anyone would like to join me it would be great to have some company.


Till next time


Liz

Sunday 29 May 2011

National quilting day and boobs

My secret project is fighting me so I am looking for a distraction and look what I found!




Would anyone like to have a boob making session with me? Who doesn't know someone affected by breast cancer?

I lost my Gran when I was 16, My Dad, in 2001 was one of about 300 men a year diagnosed with breast cancer at about the same time as my Godmother, sadly she did not recover as my Dad did so this cause and raising of awareness is very dear to my heart.


It is national quilting day on the 4th June, if and it is a big IF the weather is fine would anyone like to have a meet up in the park, say 2pm or Blooms coffee shop if the weather is wet. It would be an opportunity to look at my Dear Jane blocks again. Who am I kidding, ice cream in the park or tea and cake at Blooms amd chatting to other quilters.



Unfortunately I need to go shopping (I hate shopping) for a new bigger handbag as I need to make room for these



I have known for some time I needed them but have been putting it off. Now I realise what I have been missing and why headaches have become a feature of my life.


Mr Chaos and Maser Chaos number 1 literally cried with laughter at the thought of me being the sort of old lady that has her glasses round her neck, dangling on a string and spends all morning looking for them. I failed to see the funny side especially when I could not find them at bed time and they were on the top of my head!


Till next time


Liz

Wednesday 25 May 2011

Holly's quilt

A very colourful quilt pieced by my friend Holly, I SID round the blocks, stipple quilted the purple border and sashing and put a flower in the pieced blocks.
I hope she likes it !

Well I am glad to say she collected it last night and does like it, I can breathe a huge sigh of relief and eat all the chocolates she bought me. Thank you Holly.
I was persuaded by my family some time ago to try Google Chrome, I usually use Explorer, and have had a right game signing in to blogger today, while reading some help pages they mentioned chrome and fire fox. It seems if you have signed in with one of these, blogger wont let you go back to whatever you usually use. I don't know if that makes any sense to anyone with more technical know how than me I only know that it has taken me an age to log on today and I was only able to do it through Chrome.
Till next time


Liz



Friday 20 May 2011

Lutterworth Piecemakers workshop and Malvern Show

This is a picture of my group trying out their free motion quilting skills. I volounteered to do this a few months ago without realising of course how busy I would be with the Japan quilts. Perhaps just as well as I didn't have too much time to get too nervous.


Workshops are a really difficult thing to plan when you don't know how many ladies will be there, what their level of experience is, how long activities will take but mostly what they expect of you.


I was joined by Gill, Jane, Rosemary, Paula and Margaret. In the photo we are joined by Chris and Dorothy.A shot from the other end of the room shows other groups busy too! I hope I didn't bombard them with too much information they certainly didn't have much time to chat. I spoke about machine set up, which can be a bit of trial and error, needles, thread, helpful gagets, batting choice, especially on a bigger project with an example of a poor choice which resulted in difficulty with quilting and a stiff quilt and a good choice which was easier to quilt and is lovely and snuggly, even density of quilting across a quilt. My ladies were lovely and hopefully went away with a few ideas as well as a bit more confidence to give it a go and practice.






My last picture shows what I came back with from my visit to Malvern quilt show, thread nets that I wanted to try out on troublesome thread, a chalk marker for my friend, a chalk pounce for me, a cutting board which swivels which was reduced quite a lot, but if it does not work well I have the ability (Mr Chaos ) to get it sorted out, some fabric samples which are great for little projects like bag making, some other fabric to complete a baby quilt, fabric in the paper bag is for a secret project, and some thread, well quite a bit of thread actually. I will let you know if Wonderfil is wonderful, it certainly looks it compared to another thread.




I had a really lovely day at Malvern, I met Trish on the coach and chatted all the way there, having found a person to take all my quilts for Japan from me( thank you Stitch Witch they were getting heavy!) I then was free to enjoy looking at lovely quilts and shop for quilting goodies. Sadly while we were permitted to photograph quilts we are not permitted to upload them to any web sites so I wont be able to share my favourites with you.

I hope to share my secret project with you soon.

Till next time Liz


Today I shall be cleaning the house it has been sadly neglected the last few weeks and I need to rediscover the surfaces that lie beneath the dust and carpets that are hidden bya layer of threads. I have already done the dining room, damp dusted, hoovered and everything. One down several more to go.






Wednesday 18 May 2011

The last of the Quilts for Japan

There are few benefits of waking up at 2 am with a sore throat and runny nose but blogging about all the quilty activity in my life this week is one of them (seeing a beautiful almost full moon is another, I am trying to be positive)
This is Gaynors quilt she dropped it off saying just meander it so I SID to stabalise and meandered round the flowers in the white blocks which actually was a bit tricky because the petals are quite small, then I thought about changing thread colour and meandering with blue in the blue blocks but decided to make a flame flower instead.

I hope Gayner and the recipient will both be pleased.

Flame flower in the blue blocks.
Quite a tight meander in the white flower blocks.
I took all the quilts out to photograph them all together including one from Sue then got home and found the green and yellow one sitting on the sofa Grrrr. Never mind I may not have a photo of all the Rugby donations together but I am happy with our contribution, Thank you Jane, Muriel, Sue and Gayner. The quilts will be delivered to Malvern later today.
The next post will be all about free motion quilting at Lutterworth last night and Malvern quilt show, I have not been before but everyone I have spoken to says I am in for a good day providing I can stay awake.

Till next time Liz


Monday 16 May 2011

Jane's quilts are done!

I am quite pleased with how this quilt quilted. I love Jane's colour and fabric choices.





Is this my favourite block?

Or this?

Lastly an oriental sampler quilt. Did you know I love red?

I feathered this pineapple block

and made petals of this star. I hope both Jane and the recipients like what I have done.

One more quilt to finish before Thursday and our visit to Malvern and prep for taking a session at Lutterworth quilters on Wednesday evening. Aghhh, Good job I am busy or I would really be having the colly wobbles about doing this.





Till next time X





Wednesday 11 May 2011

A bit of catching up to do

I went to Rocheberrie quilters on Saturday and had a really nice day, as usual, but was berrated for being a bad blogger (guilty as charged) so I had better show those who are interested what I have been up to. Here is the quilt that I took from our last meeting. The block with small triangles is probably the one I am most happy with in terms of quilting but I had no idea where to gift it too as it didn't seem to be a quilt for Linus or quite right for Quilts for Heros. but sadly for the people of Japan they have become the latest in need of our help. My husbands interest in Koi keeping has taken him to their country on two occasions so it is a cause near to our hearts.






Having completed this I was asking a friend where I could find more tops to finish as I don't have a stash of UFO's and the next thing I know she has a clear out and I have 4 more to complete. Thank you Jane. A shopping trip for batting and backing with my friend Muriel lead to Muriel donating the backing fabric. Thank you ladies what a great team we make.

Here is a lovely kaleidoscope quilt. I quilted flowers in the patterned parts but they don't show up well but the feathered border does. I bought a lovely dark green thread but my machine kept shredding the thread which was very frustrating.



Next up was this row by row quilt and a picture of my favourite block in terms of quilting which was the flower, quilting round the applique at the top was a challenge and just when I thought I was getting the hang of it I vered off a bit.



I am doing the binding on another and loaded what I thought would be the last one and another friend gave me a pretty blue and white quilt with flowers appliqued on, Thank you Gaynor. I have to get them all done by next wednesday because I will be going to Malvern and dropping them off there, so if I am a bit quiet and not blogging you know what I will be doing.

I have also started my Dear Jane quilt I was feeling a bit under the weather and these little blocks are perfect for just doing a bit at a time.

I have also completed my ciggy quilt top (at long last and after a bit of a performance with setting triangles) it caused quite a bit of interest at Rocheberrie and I only really took it to show Jane who got me into the block swap, I promised to post pictures but I will have to wait till next time.
I will try not to leave it so long till next time

Liz