Almost Across the Fields and other thoughts

Well, I really can't believe one month has gone by since my last post, as you can see from the post today I was very much overly optimistic then as to what I could achieve and when I would posting again! Life happens and things don't always go to plan, but I am back once again.

Almost there with Across the Fields, I have six rows stitched two together right now, I decided I should find it easier to put together this way. The bottom two rows are works in progress but I feel happy with them.

The quilt, as you can see, is square - not feeling the love for this and would prefer rectangular but that would mean another two more rows, I really would like this off the wall to begin something new. Some thought needed tomorrow.

I've had to re-evaluate my quilting progress due to my back problems. Quilts using simple designs, easy to cut shapes with my GO or designs which mean I can work through slowly,  30 minutes standing is my limit. There will be some serious thought given to designs for quilts already intended to make, I am gathering ideas on which are more important to me and have meaning and memories, which I treasure dearly.

The fabric above is a vintage piece bought from a store here in NZ, over two metres square and is a Sanderson fabric from the 1950's era. It has a soft feel and was obviously a curtain at one time(probably lined given the faint stitching lines). I loved it soon as I spotted it. First thought was a new curtain for my sewing rom but I can see perhaps a lovely loose long summer dress or skirt and top - plenty of time to think!

So given the purchase above and having said in a previous post that I had more than enough fabric and wouldn't be buying anymore I have slipped off the wagon, especially as AnnaMaria Parry has brought out her new range Good Gracious. If you haven't seen any information about this range it's based on her trip through England and Scotland with her now husband. The colors and designs take me right back home!! Her pattern which goes along with the fabric has no applique, just simple shapes, long borders, there would be a little fussy cutting, that I can handle a little at one time. Photo of four pieces below

Just look at the colour here!! Ponies in the New Forest take me back to living by a farm and helping with the shire horses - much larger than the ones pictured here.

Many of us love to see posts of quilters gardens, I certainly do, especially in the Northern Summer  whilst we're in Winter. Wanda, Linda and Cathy have beautiful garden photos,  always a joy to see. Below is what I see presently from the window! A bare oak tree but a beautiful sky.

Sometimes I find a spot of colour, camellias are out and a few others quietly lingering. Our Japanese Maple is bare, apart from a very few crinkled brown leaves but walking around yesterday I saw this in the grass, how this leaf has kept its colour I'm not sure.

Staying with bright red here's a camellia

not fully open yet but when it is it's quite a size.

Something a little quieter - another camellia

and here a vireya

So there we have it, hooray I've actually written a post at last!

The next one will truly be much sooner - I now feel more organised and energised.

Happy stitching

Maureen

A New Year 2023

 Wishing you all a belated Happy New Year.

Both husband and I have taken turns at being unwell since Christmas Day, hence no quilting, at least not until yesterday when I was finally able to head to the machine to finish up stitching Willy Nilly.  Headed off to the garden to photograph, by the time I was trying to do this inside the light in my studio wasn't the best - light in here comes from the East so only good for the morning really. Willy Nilly measures 48" x 60".

Underneath the Japanese Maple, this is such a good spot for photographing quilts, just that you can't see a flat photo on the wall, I need to carry out some detective work to find a better place inside.  Another shot with hydrangeas.

We're waiting for Cyclone Hale to hit us here in New Zealand, this latest cyclone was formed in the Coral Sea and will probably hit fully tomorrow. We've had only two or three days of Summer weather in Auckland and elsewhere in New Zealand, the rest of the time rain, rain and more rain. The ground in places is sodden, campers and holiday makers have had to abandon their plans and most have returned home.

Here's a Met Service shot of the likely scenario late tomorrow, the top of the North Island  just peeping out of the blue,  here in Auckland we're well and truly underneath the blue.

The air is cooling slightly and the wind picking up slowly, I hopped outside to cut a few flowers because inevitable the roses, dahlias - in fact anything in bloom will end up flat on the ground or still semi upright but as clumps of brown wetness!

One bright spot has been the delivery of a small number of new fabrics, a few from the Kaffe Fassett 85 and Fabulous collection, here is the black colourway of Sprays

another arrival was Belle Epoque by Stacy Peterson for Free Spirit, I fell for the rich deep blue in this one and could see it as a border fabric.

Another favourite fabric designer is Anna Maria Horner and I bought yardage of her new line Vivacious, this is not the usual weight quilting cotton but beautiful butter soft lawn, I have a blouse/shirt pattern which would be ideal for this fabric.

I'm looking forward to being at the machine for a while tomorrow, provided that the power doesn't cut out and hoping and praying that 2023 will have me free of accidents and broken bones!

Maureen

Liquorice Allsorts - a flimsy

 My last post  HERE I had the centre portion of Liquorice Allsorts -  let's just shorten to LA - sewn up.
The earlier post HERE showed two photos of the original quilt and also one made
by Kaffe Fassett.

For those who thought the dark squares were black, not so,  here's a close up  before
I go further of the Orchid colour way, the base colour is black the dotty patterning
is purple but admittedly difficult to see.

As usual I veered off course a little and progress made is below, you can see I added
 another thin border of Aboriginal Dot in Orchid to the Guinea Flower strip and then moved on to
 the rectangular pieces 8 and 1/2" by 2 and 1/2"cut from scraps. When I came to a corner and
the fabric piece was too long I just lopped it off, turned the corner with another piece, see the photo below.

I wanted to go with lighter fabrics - lighter for me anyways, and just two rounds.
Had I kept with the original pattern I would have been adding many more
rounds and ending up with a 74" square piece. Didn't want to go down that path, so stopped 
with the two rounds and then added two more border strips
but reversing the placement of Guinea Flower and Orchid, see below.

Here I stopped to ponder my next move, should I just add a couple more
rounds and repeat the whole process, should I just add a wide border, should
I bring in one of the fabrics used in the rectangles - answer was a no for me.
LA was telling me to stop faffing around and follow my instincts, I loved it and
the main focus for me was the central block of squares, so

I just added another 1 and 1/2" strip border and called it done!!
48" square, nice size for a wall quilt.

Here's a quick photo in the garden

 

excuse the weeds in the background!

Tomorrow is set aside for dealing with the backing for the quilt for eldest son,
as I am currently being dosed daily with 40mg of steroids my mind is racing
and I am really having to try and slow down when sewing.
Reduction to 20mg tomorrow - hooray!!

A purchase made last week was this Anna Maria Horner fabric

to be used in a column strip quilt, should cut up beautifully into wide strips, adding this to
my squirrel collection!

Time for dinner - see you soon.

Happy Quilting 

Maureen

Back to sewing - slowly

 I'd like to say a big thank you here to everyone who sent me their best wishes,

following my last post, I was really in a bad place with the pain in my arm and hand

 so your good wishes helped raise my spirits.

Before I continue I have reverted back to Legacy blogger because trying to write this post I

seem to be having double line spacing with the new interface and can find no way to change to single,

is anyone else having this problem, have blogger changed the setting?

Last post I was here

with my Medallion quilt.

All quilting and typing came to a stop as a hook shape bone spur on 

the very tip of my R elbow hooked up my ulnar nerve going down to

the inside of my arm and hand. Apparently I screamed as it happened!

Tendon is very inflamed, pinkie and ring finger are affected, weakened and with

grip problems

and also my wrist.

Wearing a brace now, told to use

it all the time for up to 3 months and over the past four days I have been able to

get to the machine for a little time each day.

So two days ago  I was here

and you will see that the points on four sides are chopped off,

this is the pattern!! Actually I quite like the look but I was surprised when

I read that they were to be 'sacrificed'.

The first narrow border should have been black following the pattern instructions

but I did my own thing and went with some AMH fabric.

My stitching leaves a little to be desired here and there but
it's so awkward with my right hand braced.

Yesterday I worked a little more on the quilt and again this

morning and now I am here

and once again I've gone my own way because the top and bottom borders

were supposed to be small HSTs and I knew that was a no go right now so

I just used two simple strips. The colours are showing darker again, I'll try and figure out what

the problem is by next post.

The inner border is 1" finished and the outer ones 2" finished and the

present measurement is 24 and 1/2" square. 

I'm going to have to re-think the next few borders as I can't take on lots

of stitching with small pieces.

Something tells me my Postage Stamp blocks may be on hold for a while!

Let's see if the two close-ups I took are true to colour

and no, they are too dark!!

I've been reading a lot, having after lunch naps, swallowing

pain meds and watching favourite videos!

 I haven't read any blogs, but I'll get back into my routine tomorrow.

I've also enjoyed daily wanderings in the garden to see what's coming into early 

Spring like bloom.

Here's a favourite daylily

and two beautiful camellias

taken after a rain shower.

That's all from me right now, it has taken me

for ever to produce this post, hopefully the next one will

be a speedier process.

Keep safe and well.

Maureen

Crossroads!!!!

I'm not referring here to the Anna Maria Horner quilt, although

I have bought the pattern, but I feel as though I am stuck

at a crossroad with my quilting!

Too many ideas, books, scrolling through Instagram and thinking

"oh yes, I'd like to make that" and adding to my

mental list.

I want to make traditional, I want to make improv,

I want to use my patterns designed a number of years ago,

there just doesn't seem to be enough time

to achieve what I should like to achieve.

Is this just me or does anyone else get totally frustrated?

Whichever, I need a big re-think.

Rant over, sorry about that,  been a bad week.

On a positive note I have made a start with my new

Hindsight fabrics.

Cutting into strips using the method demonstrated by

Kathy Doughty at

Material Obsession

a while ago on

The Quilt Show

Usually I would have two 24" rulers, I iron the fabric first off and

then I can adjust the meet up of the selvedges to make sure

the fabric hangs correctly  ( always have done this). Kathy gets a straight RH edge

and lines up the edge of

a ruler on it, as you can see here I'm using the full width

of the ruler for a 6" wide length.

I bring the LH ruler up to the edge of the RH, remove the RH

and then cut - a a beautifully straight, equal 6" all the way along.

Thanks to Kathy!

I  can then cut into other widths using the same method.

So this is the start of a new piece using 2 and 1/2" strips and

cut into 14" lengths

this was one seen on Instagram - Scrap Buster Quilt -

more sections to come and I'm doing things a little differently.

One of the reasons I love to cut these multi-coloured, bright and

bold fabrics into strips is that sometimes little surprises come along

Example - four strips not yet sewn and randomly picked

and placed on the wall, second strip

see how the large butterfly wings sort of meet up with the half of a flower

in the next strip down? I like that.

Similar thing in the next few strips, third strip down, large pink

flower with limey yellow leaves meets up with a strip of

Echinacea, same colour and I see a little surprise.

Fluttery eyelashes!

Now, remember my little wall quilt top made for the

Red is a Neutral prompt with

adhocimprovquilts.blogspot.com

this is next up for machine quilting and

there will  be kiwis on the back

and KF Spot black with purple for the binding

it blends pretty well (perhaps too well) which is what was hoping for.

Feeling somewhat more cheery now for having written this post and here

is a photo of the last of my

white camellias

this is one of my favourites, I love the

symmetry, all those petals whirling around.

We're heading to Level 2 tomorrow here in New Zealand, hopefully

everyone makes a huge effort to stick to the rules!

See you soon.

Maureen

What happened to April???

Turned over the calendar page yesterday!

April, for me at least, was not very productive at all.

First project begun was Wintersweet and block photos were

shown HERE and HERE

and whilst I enjoyed making the blocks they did nothing for me

when I had them together on the design wall.

Placing on the diagonal, testing to see how they would look

with sashing and so on - nope, didn't like them and now

they live in my spare parts box!

I was having difficulty getting motivated, tried something else

but still no joy with the next project - spare parts box addition.

So - tidying fabric baskets began

green and blue were the first ones. and I found it quite

a revelation to discover there were fabrics I had forgotten about tucked away

in my stash.

Something quick and easy was needed and having long admired the Postage Stamp

quilts in blog land and on Instagram I made a start

using soft lilac as the solid.

A little starching needed for my some of my tiny KF

scraps to hold shape better, but I really enjoyed the process

and can't wait to make more. This is a definite ongoing project!

I hauled out my Accuquilt GO BIG electric cutter (my best purchase

ever in relation to my quilting, next to the fabric of course)

and finished off all the pieces for 

Green Diamonds 

from

 Quilts in Ireland

by Kaffe Fassett

seen below

going here with what I think of as

the 'plate method' for keeping pieces tidy, seen over the years on

Julie's blog

https://quiltdivajulie.blogspot.com

a brilliant idea Julie!!

Thursday a package arrived which really had me fired up and

ready to go

'Hindsight'

from Anna Maria Horner

the colours are more glorious than shown here in these photos,

I have yardage of the two other large prints and they'll be in my next post.

As you can seen not a lot has been achieved in my cosy little studio

but I'm feeling more motivated now and ready to get on with some serious sewing.

Project list presently being compiled.

More colour from the garden before I sign off, photo taken at 6.30am

Thursday just on dawn using the flash on my iPhone

pink Hibiscus bloom.