Before we get started on this year.....Mary's Star in the Garden

I thought you might like to see this quilt from 2012. The quilt belongs to Mary of Patchwork Creations  It's a sample from a class that Mary and Karen taught a while ago and has been waiting to be quilted.

There was lots of open space for the quilting especially in those borders, we were both pleased with the finished result......
Mary's own batting, I used Aurifil Invisifil thread for the SiD and outline around the applique, Glide in cream everywhere except the green star and border strip and the blue inner triangles of the star.....
Quilt measures 84" x 84"...

It was a super quilt, perfectly flat and square and a pleasure to quilt, thanks for looking now lets crack on with 2013.....

The Backing Singers....

Before Festival of Quilts in Birmingham this year, I made up a quick quilt in the 'modern quilt' style, with minimal piecing made up all from left over backing fabrics with the intention of quilting it as a demo quilt on the APQS stand at quilt FoQ. As it happened we had lots of quilts, some are still waiting to be quilted but this one is now finished....I quilted swirls and Egyptian key type blocks as a nod to Angela Walters. Using a navy Metro thread top and bobbin so it matched the top fabric but contrasted against the backing fabric. I gave a little bit of definition to the pieced blocks with some of my favorite straight line quilting.

The 'Backing Singers' is a throw size quilt and would be a great Guy quilt or a throw for  a modern style home.

I am a quilter....???

My name is Kay and I am a Quilter!

I have been a bit pre-ocupied of late with horses....but am still addicted to quilts....go figure?

I had a customer request recently to include a website logo if possible somewhere in this small quilt (30" x 30"), other than that do as you will!

This is the design I came up with, the logo is the 4Seasons tree in the top left block, all other designs come from the fabric with piano keys in the border.

Here it is stitched out...

All the elements in the little printed blocks have been outlined and enhanced...

This is more like the true colours, my customer Margaret was very happy and intends to add black hanging loops and black binding before giving as a gift!

Still here......

I am still here although a bit distracted with my other life.
I can't show you any quilts until they have been picked up by customers but I can show you a little of what I have been up to over the last week or so while MIA, it's so consuming and fun, I didn't think I had time for another addiction...lol...

I've been hanging out with Carla Barrett, of Quilt Whisperer fame taking her Design Class for Quilters.

It's a Photoshop based class and we get to do some great things that are all quilt related, how cool is that?

These are some of my Week 1 homework assignments.....

Can't wait to see what's next!

Clamshells and Scollops!

Sounds like a seafood dish doesn't it, but no it's time to put an extra quilt on our bed to warm my feet.

I've had this quilt a long while, it's hand quilted although you don't get many of these stitches to the inch?

Scalloped/swagged borders with fleur de lis, clamshells, cable border with an interesting corner treatment and sunbursts, I'm not sure about the orientation of the clamshells, I think I would have done those in a portrait orientaion as it really fits a single bed. The edges are finished with a turned knife edge.

So, I would say this is a wholecloth quilt even though both the front and back have three sections of fabric each.....So, those of you who know about these things, what do you think, is it still considered a wholecloth?

Feather Fans!

I've really enjoyed quilting my bought in quilt tops, it's given me the opportunity to experiment on a variety of styles and designs of quilts but also the quality of the piecing has thrown up lots of shall I say 'educational opportunities'.....I've needed to work my way around a few problems and find out how to enhance the piecers work to the best of my abilities.

Before quilting

I have to say that this top didn't really have any issues.....I did re-arrange the borders a little but that's all....I used this top as one of my 'what if' quilts, 'What if I try this and what if I try that'.
I tried a few new to me techniques including Ronda Beyers "S" shaped rulers .....only I would choose to use the largest of her rulers for my first try, those things are huge and a little difficult to manage....imagine it, ruler in one had, longarm in the other?

This is all freemotion, handguided and ruler work!

 

Everyone knows I'm a 'fan of feathers'....so this is 'Feathered Fans'.

It finished at 88"x66", I used white Glide thread on top, Bottomline in the bobbin, Super Poly batting/wadding gave lots of definition. When I spied it I just couldn't resist this fabric for the backing....it's Rosalee from Ikea, the colours were perfect for this top!

I've noticed a few new followers are stopping by, I'd like to say welcome to you all!


Greenfairy Giveaway

The Greenfairy  at http://greenfairyquilts.blogspot.com/  is having an awesome giveaway....well, Clint is really busy while Judy is away learning lots of new quilty stuff....why don't you pop on over to 'The Green Fairy' and take part in the fun...you never know you may be a winner??

Liberty Hunter's Star......

This quilt is made from Tana Lawn cotton fabric by Liberty of London, this is a very fine soft cotton with a high thread count. The pattern is a scrappy Hunter's Star using samples of lots of different fabrics from this very famous range.

It's amazing the difference a border fabric can make, there was really only one choice but I wanted to see which fabrics jumped out against these colour options.

I would have liked a real red but the blue fabric is the Tana Lawn, so we now have a blue quilt, that's what happens, see how the border fabric dominates and makes this a blue quilt.

I chose a white on white backing fabric and used Superior Bottom Line in white for the needle and bobbin. This is a fine thread, the white has a translucent quality which seems to mix with all colours and doesn't shout out against any of them, so the thread blended into the top of the quilt really well, I also changed down from an 18 to a size 16 needle. This quilt finished at 95" x 95", I used Quilters Dream wool batting/wadding as I love wool, but also because wool has a lovely soft drape to it, I was looking to keep the soft quality of the Tana Lawn cotton fabric.

Now quilting wise, I had many options, lots of custom designs came to mind, but in the end I chose a pantograph, 'Wildflower' by Willow Leaf Studio, it's an open design which keeps that soft flowing feel, and although it's a wool quilt it's going to be perfect for summer or an extra quilt for the bottom of the bed in winter.

You'll just have to believe me?

It's now too big for my small design wall and my empty floor space so you'll just have to believe me that I finished piecing the whole of my 'jewel box' quilt.....

I know I could have done the pieced border quicker with strip piecing but you know I am pleased with how the border came together and 'seams' more accurate pieced in the more traditional way.

I also love how Karen colour co-ordinated her latest book to match my quilt....lol....

FoQ 2011....

What a wonderful time I have had....I've seen Festival of Quilts from all sides as a spectator and behind the scenes helping and watching what goes on when you rent a stall/booth.

I had the wonderful pleasure of being driven from my own doorstep directly to Birmingham by Linzi (Linzi Upton of 'The Quilted Yurt' fame), how lucky am I?

We travelled down on Wednesday to set up Linzi's stall demonstrating the APQS Lenni longarm quilting machine.

I went to lectures and took classes but most of all I had the whole four days to drink it all in. What a fabulous display of quilts, themed, traditional, art, pieced, wholecloth, hand quilted, machine quilted and longarm quilted.

What a privilege to be able to enter the show floor at 8.30 in the morning and study the quilts before the general public arrived.

I am amazed by the number of people I met and already knew through my blog and the forums, you know who you are, it was great to meet you all!

What a shopping experience too....I am not going to divulge all of my hoard here but there were many bargains to be had!

We attended the fashion show, what a wealth of talent, a spectacular show!

The Tent Makers from Cairo were amazing....the quilters sat cross legged and seemed to make quilts without patterns using huge scissors and sewed so fast, they can make a small quilt all by hand in around ten days...

Tent Maker's Quilts from Cairo

Here is a selection of my favorite quilts from the show....

I may come back later and edit in the names of the quilt makers!

Firstly from my travel companion Linzi.....

'The Hare'......

And 'Celtic Connections'

Winner of Pictoral quilts 'Hot Africa' by Janneke de Vries-Bodzinga

The Rhinoceros by Pam Holland....I attended a wonderful class with Pam....

 

Look at that eye in close up....all those tiny hexagons...

Ammonoidia by C J Barnes.....amazing, looks like leather but isn't!

Aren't these two handsome fellows?

If you know me then you know I have to include a wholecloth....but this little beauty is only around 8 inches square...honestly!  This quilt won the Miniature class and was made by Kumiko Frydl from Texas....Blue like Wedgewood!

Before I knew it was Sunday and time to dismantel the Lenni and pack it back into and onto the Landrover but we stayed on another night. 
We had been directed to the most wonderful 'Brummy Curry' House where we ate till we were stuffed on two separate occasions.....I would like to say how impressed I was by all of the local Birmingham people who we met during our trip, they were courteous and friendly, it was a pleasure!

I had a great time, Thanks Linzi!