August 26, 2014
Hello Fellow Quilters.
We had a wonderful meeting at Laurel’s house on August 26th. I think we set a record for show and tell.
There are many lessons learned and tips and tricks scattered throughout this
BLOG entry so keep an eye out for “TIP:”
Stacy started off with showing us the quilt-as-you-go
Disappearing 4 Patch quilt she created for her son to take off to college. The
hippo Stacy used for the label has significance for her son AND of course when
you go off to college you need a matching pillowcaseJ. The quilt is a long twin and if you look near
the hippo you can see the quilting.
TIP: Next time Stacy will not quilt as she goes…
unless she uses the sashing technique. Kathleen is REALLY glad she didn’t quilt
as she went for the king size quilt she made.
Stacy created a Disappearing Hour Glass block. It must be
magic – 4 patches and 9 patches can disappear also. She took on the challenge of using cool
colors. The two purples look gorgeous together, Stacy.
Stacy has been busy this summer, she also created a
portable project carrier (Quilter’s Sidekick) using a pattern from Jinny Beyer
Studio: www.jinnybeyer.com. Notice it has place to store
the pattern, pieces and has a small design wall. The elastic band can function as a design
element and to keep the Sidekick closed. She uses it for the Little Jane blocks
she hand pieces while chauffeuring her daughter. Not to fear she doesn’t sew
while she’s drivingJ.
The hand piecing is done while she is waiting.
YES!
Stacy made the purse, too.
David, my hubby, and I (Kathleen) pieced this king sized quilt for a friend. The pattern is called “Pin Curls” and is designed by “Me and My Sister Designs”. You see the scrappy quilt (without sashing) on the cover of the pattern: http://meandmysisterdesigns.bigcartel.com/product/pin-curls-quilt-pattern-3039-pdf-pattern
Jody was up next with a puffy sheep, a super hero cape,
and a blessing outfit.
I am not sure what the puffy sheep technique is called…
other than “WAY COOL”.
You are not likely to see this cape still again once
Jody’s two year old grandson puts it on.
Now for the blessing outfit. WOW! Jody made ALL the lace (of course). She made LOTS of pin tucks in the bodice (if
my sewing terms are creeping out of the recesses of my brain correctly).
If you look closely at the bottom, Jody took different size
tucks. I am always in AWE with Jody’s
handmade lace.
Laurel made several receiving blankets and shared this
really NIFTY KEEN idea to make the blanket stiches even.
TIP: Laurel stitched
the two sides of the flannel together with the blanket stitch on her sewing
machine. That became the guide for the
spacing and stitch size for her embroidery which became the basis for the
crocheted edge. Brilliant idea, Laurel.
Thanks.
No two blankies were edged the same.
Laurel also made some quiet books for her grandchildren
to make car rides more fun. The pages have wonderful textures and numerous
fasteners.
In the “next time category”, Laurel shares this
suggestion -
TIP: Embroidered
titles don’t show up super well on busy prints.
Next time she plans on putting the embroidery on a plain sheet of fabric
and then attach that to the cover of the book.
Krista has been busy, too, making quilts. She used color
selections which were out of her comfort zone.
ALL the quilts were backed with Minky (of course). TIP/REMINDER:
Minky is not JUST for childrens’ quilts.
Look closely and you shall see the fun flower quilting
patterns between the bumps in the Minky.
This is a really soft and pretty combination of fabrics.
Quilts were not the only thing on Krista’s agenda this
summer. She made a sleeping bag for a
doll and several really quick and easy table runners. We’re hoping she will show us the trick on
how to make the pointy ends of the table runners at an upcoming meeting.
Krista made this block and received several “thumbs-up”
on her color selection.
It will look good with its ‘friends’.
Krista also went away for a few days with her sisters this summer. They each planned a craft Pinterest project to share. We thought that was a great idea. Here is a close up of the blanket stitch and crocheted edge of a pillowcase they made at their retreat.
Lorraine is making a Disappearing 4 Patch with her
nine-year old granddaughter. Grandma is
cutting. Granddaughter is doing a
magnificent job of sewing straight seems.
TIP: Lorraine used a
vinyl table cloth with a flannel backing to transport the quilt. It worked
quite well when it is all rolled up. Notice the fabrics that will frame this
fun quilt.
Lorraine and her granddaughter’s bright scrappy “Disappearing
4 Patch” looks significantly different than Stacy’s “Disappearing 4 Patch”
which was designed with 3 colors. Here
they are side-by-side so you can see how different fabric choices create a
totally different affect while using the same pattern. Sharon, yes we still
discuss colorJ
A link from March’s blog for the information on how to
create your own Disappearing 4 Patch:
Caren has two beautiful Grandmother’s Flower Garden
Quilts in progress. She is creating the
quilts entirely by hand. She uses plastic templates from Picking Up the Pieces
in Ohio http://quiltpati.tripod.com/
These hexagons are 1 ½” on each side.
Quilt top #1 is done! The answer to the question “how to
bind this beauty” is yet to be decided.
Number 2 is in work.
Notice the origami flower centers that Caren has included (AND the
plastic pieces on the right side). TIP: Caren finds the plastic templates make it “easy” to
whip stitch the hexagons together.
And for contrast, here is a hexagon frame created with paper
pieced templates next to the quilt Caren created using plastic templates. Stacy made the red hexagons with paper
templates which she prefers. We thought
Stacy’s hexagons would make great frame for Christmas ornaments.
Kathleen’s Parting
Thought (for August): I believe that the debate of “paper vs plastic” will
endure as long as the discussion of “whether to wash the fabric before piecing
it”. I believe both debates are unlikely
to be resolved.
Laurel got a second turn for show and tell. She showed us her jean quilt which also uses
bright fabrics. We had a discussion
about which scissors will leave your hands hurting less after all the clipping
to create this rag quilt.
See ya’ll
on September 23rd at a home to be determined.
Upcoming Quilt Shows in the Bay Area:
September 25-27: Quilt
Craft and Sewing Festival at the Alameda County Fairgrounds
October 16-19: PIQF
at the Santa Clara Convention Center. There was a discussion that this might be
the last PIQF at the Convention Center which is right across the road from the
new San Francisco 49ers stadium.
