Quilt Along # 32 Snake Paisley

Quilt Along # 32   Snake Paisley

Thanks Leah for challenging us each week to try new designs we might not ordinarily do!   My sample ring is Full and now it is time to start a second sample book of designs!  Comes in so handy alongside your book when looking for inspiration for the next quilting project.

Quilt Along # 31 Lava Paisley

Quilt Along continues with Pivotal Designs.  This one is called Lava Paisley.  See you next week!
Godspeed,
Mary

Quilt Along # 30 Paisley

Thank you Leah  for Quilt Along number 30, the Paisley tutorial!  This is my journal page of notes on the design.

This is my sample of the quilt along #30 paisley  pattern ~

              This is the paisley pattern that I used on a small basket mat to go under a metal basket in my renovated bathroom!Will use this pattern again in future quilts.

I am looking forward to learning more pivotal designs from you.   Still enjoying my 365 FMQ design book ~ thanks for putting the patterns in a book.

Godspeed,
mary

My FMQ challenge project September with Paula Reid

September FMQ Challenge has been fun.  Thank you Paula Reid for your tips and suggestions!  I wish I had the small hole throatplate for my machine to try, but I do my FMQ on a husqvarna embroidery machine, and it did not come with one.  Alas, but will try that on my Janome at sometime in the future.

I used your design stencil, and traced it onto tissue paper, and pinned it to my layers of fabrics.  

I then quilted it and tore the paper away when done.

  The first circle wreath I did, I quilted for the bottom of a basket I  was covering for my newly refinished bathroom. 

I usually use little rubberized pillow pads I made for my hands to move my quilts, and they have worked great for FMQ.   However, when I saw Paula,s bats she uses, I took out two little stamps I had just purchased to play with the grandsons on a future project, and tried those.  They worked terrific! 

The height of the stamp took so much pressure off of my hands and the foam stuck so nicely to the project.   These fabrics I am using for this project are home dec canvases, and found they were hard on the needles you suggested, having broke 2 the first 1/2 hour.   So I put in my old one, a denim universal, and we finished up nicely.   Will try Paula's suggestion for a needle next time I work with the cottons.

I did an earlier post today of a photo tutorial for the diretions of how I quilted this stencil, where I went first and so on.

Thanks Paula and sew cal gal...

Godspeed,
mary

FMQ Challenge September ~ Paula Reid ~ how to do the stencil

Thank  you Paula for the challenge tutorial for September.  I have tried a few of your tips with great success.

This is the direction I am doing the stencil in.   First I turned it over and am working from the backside as I prefer the feathers to go in this direction.  THen I traced the pattern in different  colors so I could learn where I was going to retrace.

These are the photos for the direction of the inner and outer feathers. I started the circle at the dot then went N, w, s and backto the dot....

then I drew out the first feather, retraced a little of the circle drew the second feather from the back side to meet at the top of the first feather,

then did the bump bump method of drawing over the top of the second feather by retracing then creating the top of the third feather at the bump.. 

and continued in that order doing inside then the outside feathers

when done the circle will retrace my steps and start thecorner motifs with the teardrop and work thefeathers each side then thetop of the motif.
Having fun quilting today!
Godspeed,
mary

UFO 3 Sunday ~ Bathmat inspiration

UFO Sunday

September 9, 2012

This weeks UFO project I am working on, which I thought was completed last week, (until I saw Cindy Needham's project)  ~ a quilted bathmat for our updated bathroom to match the shower curtain.

                                                    (front of plain clamshells on right)

I had used a clamshell design in FMQ on the plain white canvas, using blue painters tape cut out for a pattern to follow (no marking).  Then I received Cindy Needhams newsletter, (love Cindy's work), which had a photo of a quilt with clamshells on it, and she had quilted the ripples of the shells onto her piece.  It is beautiful!  I was so inspired I had to give it a try, so my finished bathmat now became this weeks UFO.

                                                  (this is the back of the plain clamshells)

So I made a few drafts of how I would do the ripples of the clamshell pattern in my journal.

I then made a sample sheet in cloth to see how it would work up in cloth, and decided which design of the ripple patterns I liked best.

                                   ( I chose the bottom row on left with the little v's in middle )

 

WahLah ~  here is my completed bathmat, with my clamshells now containing ripples.  Thanks Cindy for the inspiration ~ see you on Craftsy with Leah and Angela!

    

Thanks Leah!   Off to make some quilted basket covers and liners and then a few small runners for the shelves!  Down to the last bits of fabric for the bathroom projects.

Godspeed

mary

Quilt ALong # 29 Add a heart for a new look

Quilt Along #29  not only is a review of 5 fmq patterns, but it included an addition of a shape to the pattern, thereby creating a whole new look to the design. 

The shape we added this week is a heart, however, any shape that fit your project or fabric pattern could be added.   If you look closely at the loopy line pattern, my last design I added to this sample, I added little loops to the bottom of the hearts making it look like a little bow at the bottom of the heart.   I do like this addition to the hearts in the loopy design.

Thanks Leah!

UFO Sunday 2 finishes

September 2 , 2012
UFO Sunday ~

Two finishes....

First, the shower curtain that I posted photos of last week, well, it is now hanging up, and I love it.  I would like to attach some seashells onto the curtain hooks, but that is a project for another day. 

The second finish is I made a bath mat from more of the same fabrics, and quilted it, and it now hangs in the shower when not in use!  You can read about it and see photos on my previous blogpost for my quilt along with Leah # 28. 

I have a few other accessories for the bathroom started, and a few others in mind, but those are for another day. 

Thank you for reading my post.
Godspeed,
mary

QA #28 Auditioning Designs

August 31, 2012 

Quilt Along #28 Auditioning Designs

This weeks QA with Leah, (you wouldn't know her computer was still at the repair shop), we continued on this week with another great lesson~ how to audition designs to go in your project.

 

I am working on quilting accessories for my newly renovated bathroom, I finished making/designing a UFO shower curtain, it will be posted tomorrow in the UFO Sundays with Leah.    So this weeks quilt along project, designing a bath mat, and auditioning which FMQ designs to go on it!

 

I chose to audition shells , pebbles, swirls, lines, and stippling patterns.  My theme fabric is an ocean scene.  I drew out the design of my quilt, then sketched in different patterns in different areas of the mat. 

 

I settled on swirls, which reminded me of the snail shaped seashells in the fabric, and a clamshell pattern.  I did the swirls random, and the clamshells I used blue painters tape, cut out the shape and stitched around the tape, going line by line, moving the tape as I went. 

 

 

 

I made three tiny buttonholes, and put 3 suction cups with hooks on my showerstall wall, and there our bathmat hangs, ready to be in use with the next shower.

 There is a rubber grip fabric on the backing (the fabric you use for the bottom of baby feety pajamas), and cotton batt in the middle for absorbency.  I used a layer of tissue paper (for gift wrapping) on the back so the grippers would slide over my supreme slider .  The paper is so thin it tore off very easily. 

I bound it in a dark brown bias binding and stitched the back by hand.  Off to work on more accessories...

Thank you for viewing my blog.  Each week I am learning and reviewing skills, and enjoying sharing my progress with you.   Thanks Leah… see you on Sunday at the UFO posting.

Godspeed,
mary