Sweat Shirt Quilt

 A long time friend of my husband, also a friend of mine, presented me with 3 bags of sporting event souvenir t-shirt and sweat shirts.
How big were the bags..."the see thru blue" recycle garbage size, big.
A clear slate for creativity, only size and number of quilts was specified. Also no "hurry".

This happened in February, lots of dark and stormy nights or mornings to wash and prep shirts. The shirts were clean, and scented with after wash products.  To clarify adhesives work better, as do I without these products.

Sweatshirt quilt first. I have talked about memory quilts. I made one from my Dad's dress shirts. Perhaps JS admired the product, still I was a little startled.

To get the required size lots of blank space to quilt.

I enjoyed researching the various sporting events, and found sporting quotes to fill the open space, fun times choosing for these empty spots. 

Easy Street.

I have not had the time or perhaps the energy to blog of late.  ( I haveaberybadcold.)

So...this is Easy Street via Bay St.

This picture was taken outside and shows the lovely colours a lot better than the picture below which is indoors.... the colours look dull.
The centre is an all over feathery fern, the border is a veined leafy feathery bit as well.

The back is a white and black print.  I used a variegated thread on the top and white in the bobbin.
Looks great!!
gudrun

Orca Bay Mystery Quilt

I have a new sewing machine so I need a new project (ROTFL)    I don't care for mystery quilts, but I do like this gal's quilts.    Bonnie Hunter's latest mystery Quilt instructions and pictures are here.  I am not using the same colour palette,   I am using blue for most of the red and using greens for blues.  I have the blue bits done! Undecided what will replace all the red as yet.  I also have a few prints that speak to me of  Orcsa and west coast and such  sew.....  quilting mojo is up.  YES!

I did my first 'string' piecing.  I talked with a 'string piecer' in my guild,  I know she uses fabric foundation, and that's what I am going with....hate dealing with the removal of paper.  It just ain't going to happen.
Happy Monday,


gudrun

With Purpose

I was given a couple of needlepoint projects that needed to be re-purposed. I don't know how long they languished in my Tante Gundi's closet. She had many lovely pieces framed and hung in her home, and used as cushions. Short version of the story follows with a couple of pictures. I then gifted this bag to my cuz, Moe. Ha she said the straps were too functional...she's going to come up with something funkier..me thinks...good girl. Anything to give

this piece 15 minutes of fame. I hope I didn't nail those straps down too hard.  There is lots of quilting thru batting, needlepoint canvas and backing...quilting was like slogging thru mud in flipflops. :))

I quilted at home and built the the bag while visiting my Mom.  I wasn't able to do this on my sewing machine.  As I thought about that I realized that I haven't done any sewing/piecing this year except when visiting my Mom.  It's because my sewing machine sucks. It won't hold the tension, no longer repairable (well it is but it is constantly requiring repairs....like old cars when do you stop feeding it money and get a
different one) Stay tuned....
Happy Wednesday,
gudrun

Hockey

I am working on what I think of as a Boston Bruins quilt. I am quilting hockey players on it. I got this little image, and reproduced it on tracing paper, tried stitching through a printer image but there was ink transfer. Pencil seemed the better choice.

The yellow fabric is not the usual quilting cotton and requires a little caution but it's coming along. Of course there will be some paper bits to clean.
Happy Quilting,
gudrun

A bit more about the "Attic".

(In answer to Teresa's comment)
Discovering this space was the best! I realize I have been blessed.

My sweetie calls it the 'Quiltorium'. This space would not work for anyone taller, 
there are a couple of spots where I feel the 'ceiling. I am 5'4",
The slant walls or knee walls in the 'alley' where I have the Beast fit me well enough, and 
it is big enough on the far end to get around without wacking myself on something :)
I am not the most graceful of creatures :))
The alley width is also more generous then it appears, I have a small shelf in one corner
and and old sheet music cupboard for pantos in the other corner. I am 
guess-timating the alley is about 8 ft. wide, and I have a 14' frame.

The first consideration I had was getting the poles for the frame up into the attic. We thought of hoisting them through a window, but luckily it wasn't required.

We did not do much to make this space serviceable mostly organization and elbow grease
It is a work in progress. I am keen on it :)

gudrun

Some Days are Diamonds....

I recently quilted this large quilt called "I had a Dream".  I am unaware who is the pattern designer. This was fun to quilt till I got to the borders. My my.... 

If you look closely you will see the wee pleats I made to gather in the fullness. They haven't been appliqued down, so they are not flat and neat, yet! But looking decent already...lots of spray starch to help.

Fullness in Border.

I 've arrived in the season of fullness, here's another quilt with fullness in the centre.

This one of three 'same' quilts in different colour ways. The piecing is lovely except for what ever happened in the centre??  There was some fullness that I ended up carrying along to the border.  When I got  to this point on the first quilt, I re-examination of the other two quilts...same thing.  The piecer took them home and worked on the problem.  The next one I worked on  was substancially
 flatter,  a hit of spray starch, and of course tape on the tiny loose border,  it finished off well. The last one is not as well behaved :)) However, spray starch, extra batting and careful stitching should keep the fullness from traveling to the borders. Stay tuned.
Hope your Monday is a good one,
gudrun

Georgian Quilters

The Guild I belong to now has a website.
Okay you guessed correctly, I am the author.
But just for now. This is a great group of ladies and I know they will assist.
gudrun

Canadian Grade School Reader Quilt

Do you remember Dick and Jane? Here's  2009  quilted version





Oh oh what fun! Sorry about the soft focus...I will get better with the camera I promise.

Happy Tuesday!

Gudrun

New York Beauty

Check out this lovely little quilt. Wahoo wild and wonderful oranges and brown. The right now kinda colours!





Of course George came outside to help me photograph this lovely...the wind was up and the photographer is an amateur.


It's a small piece 46 x 68 and is not rectangular...as you can see.

What all ya 'all think?  Love to hear from you.  Leave a comment.

Gudrun

Little Lily & Oriental with Metallic Fabrics

I am a lucky gal....

I found this top for sale at a local quilt store. I quilted and bound it, now I am going to 'highlight' it.

I am starting with some trapunto and beading.

More to come....

I also worked this week, (tsk tsk...ya' ll thought I vacation all summer eh!) quilted this Oriental fabrics quilt, with a simple Gingko leaf.  The backing is a gold metallic fabric, as well lots of metallic fabrics on the front.  I found lots of 'metallic gunk' ( a specially specific name for a new to me phenomena ) in the bobbin race.  I am thinking this stuff is what gave the long arm tension headaches. sigh. I did all the tricks and tips I have learned over the past 5 years (yikes already!) of long arming to deal with tension.   I ended up blowing a fuse and having to make a trip to purchase a replacement and spares, in a near but still away hardware store  blah blah not the way I planned that day.  The good  news is Client is coming over this am so that means payday..Yeah!  I hope she likes it.  

It is a gift from the bride to a sister that  is 'standing' up with her on the big day. The pictures here do it little justice many large scale prints where left in large pieces to get a 'picture' of the fabric,  some are large portions of panels...of which I own one. 

wishing you all a happy Thursday,

gudrun

Summer Quilt Projects

I am going to say the usual...I can't believe how long its been since I posted.

I have been up to my ass in crocodiles trying to drain this swamp.

Nah... it's summer I like to be outside, so that really limits the amount of time left over

for screen play.   

 Our summer spot. 

 And this is what I did on my vacation 

The picture is taken in full sun on the deck, so is a bit washed out looking.  I don't usually

work in these kinds of colours so it was challenging to stick with it. 

I had the good fortune of acquiring someone else's ufo at a recent Guild auction. For a very small sum. I know the lovely lady these blocks belonged to, she is no longer able to sew or quilt. There was no info with this kit re designer or pattern name.
There were 8 completed blocks and 4 in various stages. I made several more from my scraps, to make this a larger quilt. There was lots of the light green fabric  included in this ufo pack. 

 I will add  a border(s) but haven't decided as to colour(s).  I am thinking of using the rest of the light green and  a tiny bit of white. Keeping it simple, making a one inch "straight"

border is enough of a challenge for this piecer.

This isn't everything, more later.

Wishing you a happy Friday. and as D A M  say

 peace

gudrun

A Quilting Challenge

I belong to a wonderful internet group. It is a teaching group for folks who dabble in fibre arts. I am learning some new techniques. The phrase  "stretching my abilities" is what comes to mind, when I think of what I do with this group. My latest is an attempt of a portrait of my home. My teacher/coach has a photo of my home and several other students homes on her blog, Chris.

I can see from the instructions...which I read carefully,  this project is not a going to be a quick one. But I am sure pumped to get going on it!  Thing is, I need to finish client quilts this week and  of course it is a short week.  That isn't a complaint, I 'd like all Mondays to belong to the

weekend. 

 

Quilted Foxgloves

I have been working on another 'art' quilt. I am struggling with this one, it needs light.

The flash I used to take this picture makes it appear lighter then it is.

How about the spider, every garden has spiders, and they bite too!

 Perhaps a large yellow flower will add the 'light'.  Ideas anyone?

gudrun

A Little hand made Quilted item

I am a machine quilter, but I do like making small things by hand. 

Here's a Kumiko Sudo style flower.

These bleeding hearts were made in memory of my Dad.   As a wee girl, he taught me how me  to see them as the ladies in bath tubs.

                                                                           Also the 2008  Guild challenge called "A Snippet of My Life", and this little memory was that.  I used the challenge fabric, but too many of my own colours. So, I didn't qualify. I like this piece. I filled in a few spots with 'found items'.  I took a piece of bamboo from our garden to keep this taut through the middle, a partial bead bracelet from a child's unfinished project is the hanging loop. Building this one was fun.

gudrun

Red for Passion

  

Is this not a lovely quilt? Does it make you think a moment or two of passion could be shared underneath? Wink wink. Bring on the Champagne, and put a 'do not disturb' sign on the door.

Lynn the piecer,  informed me that the quilt shop owner thought the dahlia fabric ugly.  In the eyes of this beholder I think Lynne did a great job using 'ugly' fabric.
This quilt is a large one, has a wool batt and a lot of quilting, including the dreaded SID. The one border is 14 inches. It seemed to take forever to quilt, always the way when there is a schedule. I am well pleased with the end result. 

Here's a picture of the back. No! it's not puckered or creased, it is fresh off the frame, it is being picked up asap. 

 I need to learn more about photographing quilts, and acquire some sort of hanging system for them.

Thanks for looking,

gudrun

I sure missed quilting.

Yesterday I did a Happy Dance!
I enjoy my work, and yesterday I was back at it.
The Edge Rider wheels were installed, and I did a small
charity quilt to test the new wheels. A noticeable improvement
in machine handling. I am glad I made the switch, instead of
merely replacing the broken wheel. Replacing the wheels wasn't
difficult, just frustrating :) my anticipation level was high, and
patience level low. Not a great combination for "mechanical stuff".

I am not quilting today however, as I invited a group of quilters for
lunch. Last weeks hard work (housework) needs to be shown, it
isn't often that the place looks this good. Hopefully no one will
have the need to visit the studio, it took a beating yesterday.

UFOs now RTQ

What does a long arm quilter do, when the long arm is 'resting', other then
housework and bookkeeping?
UFOs.
I have six previous UFOs at the RTQ stage. (ready to quilt)
Three ufo's required backs to be prepared, 2 required borders & backs, and
one had only the centre basket blocks finished. I pieced the baskets this
past summer. The basket block quilt was a challenge, or maybe an adventure might better
describe it.



I purchased a kit, while visiting my ailing father in '06. I was in a weird head space
as I am not a kit person, nor am I fond of slime green but there ya go. It also has
a border print, which of course needs those wonderful mitered corners. It wasn't as
difficult as I thought.  "It will look better once it is pressed and quilted, even though it is Kermit green", she said hopefully.

I also dug out a bag of  3.5 " triangles made from sewing strips together. I read a tip about making strips from scraps, as one gets the scraps.  I kept them in a large ziplock bag, when the bag was stuffed I started sewing stratas.  Then I cut triangles. Now I have strips of triangles sewn together. I am going to make those into a quilt.  Stay tuned for the ongoing adventure.

The Millennium is resting.

      

 I am not a happy gal, it is my fault. I have an APQS Millennium, (named Lenni, long before APQS developed a machine they call Lenni) and on Saturday I gave it a push, to send it over to its parking spot. I was using the circle lord and had not completely removed the stylus, which fell down and stopped the motion of the machine. This rather abrupt motion broke a wheel. At least this is my theory. The phone was ringing, and I knew I would be awhile, so as not to have a problem with oil on the quilt I gave it that fatal push. I didn't notice the damage until the next morning. These things never happen when one is not busy. That's a law. Murphy's Law. The quilt on the frame needed only one more block and a couple of  'corrections'. The first thing in a sheer panic I ordered wheels online.  Then I heard some not good things about these wheels, more panic, cancelled the order. The short version of this story is I ordered Edgerider wheels, and am impatiently awaiting them. In the meantime, I am trying very hard to get other work done....most of it unpleasant...like paperwork, housework. But that was yesterday. Today I have a Guild meeting in the evening and during the day I am going to organize my studio. Better known as fondling fabric.  gudrun

The Thread of A Quilter's Life....or Thread Happens

I have thread.  I need thread. I like thread and its many beautiful colours. Check out the lost thread I have been saving, for no particular reason.

      I use to keep spools in containers, and it was a bother keeping it sorted and for clients to

see the possibilities. So I put them out in the open. Mostly they have wee bags on them, and 

they are out of the sunlight. There's no dust in the attic so I don't worry about it.  Or maybe there is but I still don't worry about it.

 This Quilter's darling husband likes thread too, read on.

    My wife is a professional long arm quilter, with a geezly (can't use geezly in scrabble, Wilma!)

great machine that could only fit in the bowling lane side of our attic.  The house is approaching the century mark and has settled as much as it's going to, but I still do a double take when I look at the wobble to the old pine floors below her machine.  But along with the knots in the pine...there are other things lurking at foot level. But first a little clarification on the division of labour is required.  You see when the long arm sewing machine arrived and the resident quilter turned pro, I offered to take on increased duties, vacuuming among them. Big mistake.  You see, not only do we have a brown carpet and a yellow lab (she who has already devasted 3 vacuums in her 13 hair ridden years) but said resident Quilter is also a devout stair climber.  She is up and down, to and from the attic a couple dozen times a day, bringing hand projects to work on while sitting on the couch, her collection of cups and plates and so on.  AND unbeknownst to her, every time she does so, she carries with her enough thread to keep the local spring flocks in nest lining for years to come. Bits and pieces of multi-coloured spaghetti cling fervently to socks, pants, blouses and particularly polar fleece, all of which participate in the thread transfer process from clothing to carpet and just about any other surface. Try as she may to de-thread at the top of the stairs (please note de-threading is different from de-materializing), by the time she reaches the main floor she has succeeded in turning our brown wool carpet into a rainbow berber. But I am the vacuum guy. I take my job seriously.  Yes the current vacuum is up to the increased duties, and as I've discovered it also does double duty as a sewing device.  As a professional, my Quilt Queen winds umpteen bobbins a day and has dozens of spools of thread scattered about the house in working stashes of project gear.  The cat enjoys her play time and not surprisingly the not-so-occasional spool hits the floor. Enter the vacuumer, blithely doing his duty, said vacuum turns into an industial bobbin winder with a voracious appetite.  The spinning carpet brush snags the leading edge of the thread and even though I am vigilant and fast on the foot switch, the beast usually doesn't stop before the spool has done its dizzying disappearing dance across the floor, following a retreating vacuum and its unwitting driver.

That vacuum can clean off a spool like nobody's business...the spent naked spool continuing to spin like a top...to the delight of the cat,  and the dismay of the resident Quilter and her vacuum meister. "Gone in 60 sec0nds" is an under statement.

Next to fabric, thread is the stuff of my Quilter's life and it is with mixed emotions that we turn the vacuum over to follow the thread of her life. I used to dutifully cut the thread, cleaning the carpet head back down to plastic and rubber but recently I have begun to leave it.  It's not only colourful, but I imagine and or rationalize that it also acts as a 'pre ' air filter, as well as a vibrant reminder that life is too short to continually cut thread. Thread has become the multi-coloured link in our mechanical lives....her long arm and my vacuum.  And now that I've come to accept the inevitability of the threads in our lives mingling, I am a more relaxed cohabitant.

I've become zen like in my approach .  In order for quilts to appear....threads happen.

Wishing you a Good Day,

gudrun

ps the carpet is a rust colour