I really didn't mean to get distracted, but . . .

I know lots of bloggers are on a mission to clear UFOs in 2013, and I know I have a lot of them too (some are confessed on this page), but I'm not ready to commit to finishing any of them just yet, I need to like them again before I can finish them!

But I really didn't mean to ADD to the list, so I decided that I would finish the Tasmanian Twins before I moved onto anything else.  I was doing well . . . but yesterday I went to the January meeting of the Richmond and Kew quilters, and took along Stained Down Under to ask for quilting advice.

Until I took it out of the bag to show to the other ladies (and the gentleman) I'd forgotten how much I love this quilt.

So today, when I came home from work to an empty house (yippee) I quilted it (just in the ditch, along the sashing), machine stitched the binding to the front, and FMQed a kind of label to the front (really difficult to photograph black FMQ on black: this section photographed best)

Not quite a finish as there are a few hours hand sewing left to do, but a very satisfying distraction.  Stained Down Under will be going in the sitting room, so mum, you can have this one for your bed if you want!

Binding and Boats

(Last time I blogged about binding, when I used the word bondage in my post, I got more hits than ever before - what are people like?)

Anyway today, in the cold and the rain, and that amazing Diamond Jubilee pageant, I was curled up on my sofa, hand sewing binding

 

 onto not one . . .

 (love, love LOVE this newspaper print fabric, 

brought it back from Amsterdam years ago, 

and knew it was prefect for this binding)

not two . . .

 

but three quilts :-)

Number 4 didn't get started as the cat looked far too cosy!

Hope you had a good weekeknd

Quiet Quilty Confession

I have just had my first quilt properly quilted (not my first quilt, but the first quilting if you needed that explaining)

I shall code the experience, just in case husband ever finds himself here, but I should first say I AM DELIGHTED - Thank you Steph, it's FAB!

A big stipple all over, with a few whirls added in

And the whole quilt

But I think this will be a one-off!  The cost of the wadding, backing fabric and thread was the cost of (say it very quietly) 28 fat quarters.

The cost of the quilting was (even quieter) 30 fat quarters

At least the binding was just the cost of 2 FQs . . . and how accurately did Helen calculate how much binding I needed!

 So now there are 4 quilts waiting for cooler days so I can hand sew the binding!

(* And I'd like to draw your attention to the irony that yesterday's embroidery earned me money equal to 61 FQs - and this cost me 60 FQs - actually not a bad exchange rate for services!!!!)

darn darning!

As previously mentioned, I don't knit, but mother does - and is fab at it.

Over the years she has knitted me a number of really warm Norwegian style jumpers.  The most recent one (3 or 4 years ago) is a style called Voss: a place near Bergen where coincidentally my aunt and uncle have a 'hutte' or cottage.  This design would usually be knitted in just two colours, but I couldn't decide!

With the colder weather this last week, I went to get this jumper out of the wardrobe: can you see a problem?

 

What if I put my finger behind part of it

I am very peeved.  I don't know if I caught it on something and didn't notice, or if I have moths, but I certainly have some darning to do, sigh

I wore this jumper to church on Sunday instead - more traditionally Norwegian.  The scarf isn't traditional at all: it was bought from Holister - in Florida!  It looked fab, but was too thin, so I have lined it with fleece which gives it a better shape, and much warmer

I have managed some sewing: it doesn't look much but, but these 50 or so blocks were last seen laid out on the floor in mum's spare room, where they were pinned together in rows, well now they are stitched together in rows, ready foir ironing and suddenly I have a gazillion more pins that I had yesterday!

Getting closer to target

Sorry if this is getting boring, but I need to celebrate every achievement towards my target (UFO list in the right column): In 30 days I go to Australia, and there are still a lot of quilts and bags that need to be done before I go.  Today I was frantically sewing so that I could move the Green and Pink Pinwheels, and the Cream Orphan 9 Patch Blocks into the next piles, just so I can blog about it (how sad is that?)


So Green and Pink Pinwheels has joined Swirls and Flower (to the) Power (of) 9 as just needing the binding hand stitching, but these are not needed yet, so they have gone on a top shelf in the sewing room ready for after Christmas

A job that never even made it ONTO the list has also been finished.  The Bling Inn  at the Army camp near where I teach is due to be officially opened tomorrow, and they asked me last week if I could make the opening plaque - it got finished late last night and collected today.

This is the Red and Stone Woven rail fence (nicknamed Cricket Stumps) for the living room - yes - a quilt I am actually going to keep! These blocks are each 10 inches, so it's huge, and I wasn't able to work out the placements of the blocks at my house as I have too much stuff and not enough floor, so mum helped me sort them at hers yesterday.  All pinned, but put away with the other after-Christmas quilts

There are about 20 different dark and very dark reds used, and generally each line is of the same fabric.  There is one deliberate substitute as otherwise it would have to be shorter, but if you see any mistakes please dont tell me!

Design Bed problems

I tried to arrange the red blocks today, but the largest (clear) horizontal surface surface at home is my bed - and that isn't big enough to lay out all the blocks!  So the red "Cricket Stumps" quilt will have to wait until I can either get to mum's or to my nearest patchwork workroom.

I did spend a bit of time preparing some cotton for a quilt project a friend is planning.  I cut the cotton into 8 inch squares and have bundled them up with fabric pens for people to decorate before I get them back to join together.

  
Hopefully nothing significant will be lost in the seam allowance .... do you think they'll get the message!

more mindless sewing

I have carried on with the dark red blocks and the pink and green pinwheels today.

I've got 48 red blocks, and I think it will work to arrange them on point (at 45 degrees) - I'll lay them out on my 'design bed' tomorrow and see if they work as I expect

I have done the pinwheels: most are stitched and pressed, a few just need the final seam sewing.  I seem to have ended up with 13 of these which is NO good for a quilt.  I guess it will be a 3 x 4 quilt with one block in the orphan drawer!

I also made things with these three fabrics, but they are being posted as surprises, so no details about what they are or who they are for until after they have been received!

a bit of sewing

Nothing too fancy, just a bit of mindless sewing, interspersed with cutting and pressing:

These blocks will become a cuddle blanket for the living room (I've been collecting dark reds for ages, and now that I'm cutting into them it occurs to me I may have too many!!!)

And these pink and greens have been half square triangles for ages, but are finally being assembled into pinwheels ready for the school's next 'Pink Day' raffle, raising money for the local breast cancer unit

Hope you all had a good weekend