Hard copy

Last night I finished hand-stitching the binding onto the 2007 Mystery Quilt. I washed it to remove the green marking pen. I cannot find a trace of the green pen. It is sooo brilliant. Some of the pen has been on the fabric for 1 1/2 years. No problem.

I am putting together a pretty good collection of in-progress photos of my quilting journey by making this blog. A lot more photos than I would normally take.

drying on the clothes horse - still very wet

Should I make a hard copy of my blog and the photos too??? What do you do?

I wish I had pre-appliqued the label onto the quilt backing of this quilt. I machine-appliqued a small panel for a label onto the Eureka Chain quilt backing before posting it to Mum for quilting. I must try to remember to do that for all my quilts from now on. It's pretty hard for someone to steal a quilt when the label with the owner's identifying details are embedded in the actual quilting.

OK, not hard to steal, but hard to lose the details of the maker which would ultimately identify the quilt.

I am Elizabeth Bennett!

Eureka chain is on its way to Mum for quilting. Yesterday I pieced the back. It is quite interesting. I found a small (unlisted) UFO and some orphan blocks that were leftovers, and incorporated them onto the reverse side (I will not be calling it the back on a double-sided quilt).

You will have to wait for a photo though, it was too big to photograph on my own. The quilt top and reverse are the size of my king-sized bed, so you wouldn't be able to see anyway.

As well as finding the small UFO, I found these oven mitts that I finished in June (I think).

I already gave some away.

I bought a panel called "Amy's Kitchen", and I wondered what to do with it.

I will make some more oven mitts to give as gifts with the rest of the pictures. I feel that oven mitts are useful and can suit a country home or give a kitsch feel, so the recipient does not have to feel like they are a cook to appreciate them. (Anyone can put frozen chips in the oven anyway!!)

I like these kids eating the chocolate cake. There should another picture of kids licking the bowl and wooden spoon or eggbeaters.

I machined the binding on the 2007 Mystery Quilt, and last night I started the hand-stitching while watching Pride and Prejudice (the BBC series) for about the 46th time. I love it. I am going to watch for the conversation prints in the girls' frocks.

Did you see? I took the quiz Which Austen Heroine Are You? I am Elizabeth Bennett!! Well, like her I guess. I couldn't be happier. The BBC series' portrayal of Elizabeth Bennett is very much to my liking.

OOh! and I have another quilt on Quilter's Show and Tell. Visit the site and submit your photos. It's not bragging, the intention is to inspire others, like me. Go on! Off you go!

Dang it!

I finished the border on the Eureka chain quilt. VBG. I will piece the back today and post it to Mum to be quilted. If I had more time I would have pieced the back with another PIG or UFO as suggested by Sharyn.. but time is now of the essence and I must make haste.

Last night I dug out the 1950s dresses UFO (from my list of 4) and I made 2 Maverick Stars. That was fine... the blocks don't look too bad. Why didn't I piece the quilt back for Eureka last night? Too tired, I probably would have stuffed it up. But, how can you stuff up these stars? So I made them instead. It was a good idea to make 2 blocks first.

But dang it!! I have only stitched 9 of the dresses. I still have 3 stitcheries left... Urgh! I didn't feel like stitching the dresses at the moment. This might go back into the box for a little while longer.

So, that means I will be changing my current list of 4 projects again

1. Christmas Mice (handwork)



2. 1950s dresses is out for a while, and in comes the 2007 Mystery Quilt ready for binding! Mum custom quilted it, and now it needs binding and it will go in the wash to remove the green marking pen.



3. Christine Book stitcheries are in the box again because I will either make cushion covers, or put them on the reverse side of a quilt (not "the back", the reverse) and in comes the Noddy quilt. It's nice to have something whimsical to play with.


4. Once I have pieced the Eureka Chain quilt backing, the French Collection quilt will take its place. This will give me something to draw and design as I figure out how to put the blocks together. The fabric should arrive next week. Uh-oh! More busy-ness!!!

OOH!! and I got a Clover needlepunch tool today... I must try that out soon. Ok, when I finish the Mystery Quilt binding I might have time to have a go at it!!!

What does a PIG look like?

A few years ago (Ack! Maybe even 4 or 5 years ago! Sandra bought me some lovely fabric. I bought more to go with it.

It is a Project In a Grocery Sack (PIGS). An unstarted UFO. Not even a future project, just a lovely group of fabric in a box or bag ready to go (usually kept in the shopping bag it was purchased in).

NB Although we don' t use the term "grocery sack" in Australia, it's such a good acronym I am stealing it.

Why haven't I started it? Same reason for not using the red and green Robyn Pandolph fabric I bought 8 years ago. Still looking for the "right" pattern. Actually, now I look at this fabric, it probably needs a little zing in there somewhere. I know I will find it.

Anyone know of a good pattern??? LOL! This fabric makes me think of Persian carpets and Moroccan tiles.

Cecile Whatman is organising a challenge: create either a self portrait or an abstract self expression quilt. Download the forms and send a donation for the N.S.W. Cancer Council (in Australia) and you will receive specific challenge materials to use in your small quilt.

You need to register by 12th September (hurry!!), but you don't have to hand in your mini quilt until December... that's good news!!!

P.S. One side left on the final border of Eureka chain.

Eye candy... have a closer look

I have only added the next border on one side of the "formerly known as Moustache" quilt. So, I will post a photo later after I have added more sides. Fay suggested I call the Moustache quilt "Eureka Chain" because when it went together, Eureka! you could see the chain effect.

I like the name because not so far from here in the 1850s the Eureka Stockade occurred at the Ballarat Goldfields. Most of the fabrics I used are circa 1850s reproductions, so that makes me happy.

And now... for some eye candy! I've got to finish this quilt...sigh. It's lovely. Have a closer look.

Mosaic. Another quilt I am currently working on. I started it in about 2002 after an Olga Walters "exploration" workshop. She is sooo inspiring!

I used fabric I had overdyed during previous experimentation. It was purchased light pink, and I added leftover dyes until I obtained an icky green, and put the pink in with it. It looks good as grout.

My finger is used to gauge the size of pieces.

I used pieces of velvet to add glow, lurex to look like mirror pieces, and lots of blue and white prints to give the look of broken china. I also cut up some printed cup and teapot fabrics.

All the pieces are now stitched on. I need to remove some tearaway stabiliser, then baste and machine quilt around all the pieces. FUN!! But it's not on my list of four... at the moment...

Finished quilts take up more space than UFOs

I added a bit of the border treatment onto the Moustache (??) quilt yesterday. It took an awful long time to do what really doesn't look like much. There are still more borders to come...

While I was sewing away inside, the sky alternated between dropping hail and brusque showers, leaning on my washing until it drooped heavily on the clothesline.

I finished one audio book "The Third Day The Frost" by John Marsden (the 3rd book in a series of about 10 books), and listened to half of "Cross Bones" by Kathy Reichs. It's great exercise for the brain while I sew and cut, but not while I calculate measurements (that's when I pause the sound).

I hope to pick up the 4th audio book from the library tomorrow.

I really love how good the Noddy blocks look on the computer screen in yesterday's post. It was worth posting them, I feel inspired! It's nice to alternate between my vintage/traditional quilts with something a bit whimsy! If ..... No, not if, but when I finish the UFOs I have listed, I will have an AWFUL lot of quilts!! I couldn't dream of giving away the Noddy quilt or the Moustache quilt at the moment... But, I do plan on giving a large quilt I made in 2000 or 2001 for a Christmas present. I need more space in the house! Finished quilts have batting in them, so they take up more room than UFOs and PIGs.

I noticed something about the purple sashing fabric yesterday - it is exactly the same print I used in the Luxembourg sashing, but a very different colour. I don't think I have that print in any other colours.. LOL!!! Funny how I didn't notice it before.

Noddy quilt

As I didn't do any quilting or sewing yesterday (what???!!), I am going to show one of my UFOs.

I have noticed that when I click on a UFO from my very large list and have a look at it (which is much easier than taking it down from its box and getting out the pieces), I get excited about it again. Putting each project away in its own box is convenient, but it also makes it easy to forget about them. The boxes are stored on top of tall bookcases, so I need to look up in order to see them. It's amazing how we mostly search at eye level, but I digress.

Noddy is a licensed product and image, so I am making this quilt purely for personal use.

This is Mr Wobble-Man.

I embroidered chain stitch on Big Ears' trousers to get the stripey effect.

Sly is a naughty goblin.

I can't think of this monkey's name at the moment, but she was very meddlesome, and naughty. Her tail was always getting into things while Noddy was driving.

The faces are not yet finished. I need to embroider some details on them.

I love the sky fabric I chose as a background, but it looks like the characters are floating in the air. I put Noddy onto a green hill - I want the background including the grass to look straight out of Toyland. I think it looks a lot better.
Unfortunately this means I need to unpick where I have sewn the feet on the other blocks. This is probably why the blocks were put away in a box.

I also plan to applique Mr. Plod, Tessie Bear, Mrs Skittle and Little Skittle... and one more. Comments please!!! Should it be Noddy in his car, a Golly, The Bumpy Dog or ?????

As the lawn bowls practise season has arrived I am unlikely to do much sewing at all on a Saturday now. I guess it will become Talk About UFO day or some-such every Sunday for a while.