Yay for a finish!

I couldn't leave the Christmas trees alone and found myself sitting and sewing the binding on yesterday afternoon while watching Masterchef on tv on demand just to get it finished.

So last night I sewed a few hexies, just a couple.

The hexies are sitting on the next project which is waiting for completion, but more on that tomorrow. I am not sure how much I will get done today as we are going out of town today but I will keep you posted.

Check us out tomorrow to see how much progress has been made. Until then happy stitching everyone.

Donna-Maree

Oh Christmas Trees...

Oh Christmas trees, oh Christmas trees....

The binding is going on this wallhanging today, right now!

It is a good feeling getting this done and dusted. Yesterday there was a lot of reverse sewing going on as I was experiencing trouble with my thread and machine combination. I persevered as that was the thread that I had started with and didn't want to change halfway through. I also know that my Janome handles that thread better too, but again I didn't want to stop to set up my sewezi table and Janome machine. I just want to get this quilt done!

I made the binding and sleeve yesterday, so getting this binding sewn on shouldn't take long and I can do the hand sewing tonight watching some television.

So what is under your needle today?

Donna-Maree

First day of December 2015

This is what I am focusing on today.

I have used the end of the kitchen bench to batt this up - I am wanting this done!

Christmas is just around the corner and my list is too long.

What are you working on? Leave a comment and let us all know.

Happy stitching 

Donna-Maree

November is moving on

I don't know where the last few weeks have gone. I have spent some time away with mum to get the results from some tests. We are just waiting now to hear when her treatment starts.

We spent some time with mums brother and his wife along with their grown daughters calling in to catch up with us too. It is really nice being so welcomed and having the support from extended family especially through these stressful times. My sister who lives in Australia was here for several days which was nice and my sister who lives in Auckland managed to get some time off which allowed us to spend an afternoon and evening all together with mum. It has been a very long time since mum has had her three daughters all together like that, special quality time. The time spent with mum, my sisters and my relatives made me appreciate anew the support of people who care about each other. 

I worked on my hexies a little while I was away and it was very special sitting with my Aunty Bev and us both working on our hexies together while visiting with each other. My hexie collection is growing, I will have to start sewing some together soon.

I have spent some time doing more organising in the sewing room and have now completed sorting all fabrics into bins by colour. This took longer than I thought it would and I now have better knowledge of my stash. I don't think it matters how large or small your stash is, I do think we all have more fabric than we remember and I do have more than I thought I did.

This afternoon I watched some videos on machine quilting by Leah Day and then had a bit of a practice session, trying out a couple of the design ideas I had seen on the videos. The first one was a meandering ribbon type design, this was more difficult than I thought it would be. The scale I was doing this on was a little small and I will try it again on a bigger scale. 

The second pattern I did was a curved line pattern which I really enjoyed doing and love how it looks. I think this one will appear on some quilts in the near future. 

The biggest thing that I got from watching the videos of Leah's today was to give myself permission to play and explore and that practice will develop my repertoire of designs while developing my self confidence in using them. Yes, I knew this already but sometimes it is good to have a reminder.

I also spent some time de boning some of my husbands shirts that were worn around the collar. The shirts were still in good condition other than the collars and will make a good contribution to my strip drawers and scrap bins.

That is all for today, so until next time happy stitching everyone.

One of my Top Five

Today I decided that I needed to work on something that kept my mind occupied and had decided at the beginning of the week to set aside today for sorting out Home Coming Lane and getting the blocks spread out on my new design boards. It is blocks like these that I thought the boards would be absolutely perfect for and I was not wrong. 

I have been procrastinating about this quilt and always get it so far and then I have to pack it up again and until now I had not found a way to keep it all organised but still ready to work on until now with my new boards.

I spent yesterday afternoon working through what still needs to be done for each block. This pattern is a mix of piecing and appliqué and each block is at different stages. Having the boards means that everything for each block is laid out and all together and I can stack the boards.

Block one, nearly completed just vine below house to do.

Just about all of the appliqué pieces have now been attached to fabric, so the next step is cutting them all out and getting them attached to the backgrounds. This quilt was a kit and it is fun choosing the fabrics for each component. One of the reasons that the boards are really good is I like to have the whole quilt spread out at one time so I can check and see that the colours and fabrics are spread evenly throughout the quilt. I don't have the space for a design wall so these boards are the next best thing. 

Boards with everything laid out and organised.

I was really impressed with the how the cotton batting works holding the pieces in place with no movement, the other thing is I pressed directly on the board. My iron is very small and low wattage and while it gets hot it wasn't too hot for the board. 

Isn't this iron cute? Yes it is real and it does work.

Once I have all the appliqué pieces in place then these can be added to my 'to go' bag. I am really keen to get this one to completion and up on the wall. There are four blocks made up of both the appliqué and the piecing which I am intending to quilt as you go although I haven't thought through yet how I am going to deal with the borders.

Right, this one of the top five is calling me, so happy stitching everyone. 

Donna-Maree

Tauranga Patchwork and Quilters Group Open Weekend

This weekend 14 - 15 November Tauranga Patchworker and Quilters Group are having an open weekend.

The Open Weekend gives us an opportunity to promote our club and showcase the type of work that patchwork and quilters produce from traditional works to works of art.

On display we will have the Aotearoa Quilters "Green 12x12 Challenge" which is a series of 12x12 inch artworks that members have created.

We will also have the New Zealand Quilter "Suitcase" Exhibition which is a small number of invitation only quilts that are chosen to travel New Zealand in a suitcase.

On display will also be our club members Challenge Quilts from our recent exhibition along with our winning quilts.

Also on display will be club member Melanie Martin's award winning quilt 'Is it Art?' along with some of her other works.

We will also have quilting technique demonstrations taking place along with refreshments available and an espresso coffee cart on site.

Please if you are close enough to us, don't hesitate in coming down and checking us out.

The hexies have begun

I am loving the look of my hexies all ready in a container  - they look quite different when looking from another perspective, this way you just see the colour leaving any design as secondary interest.

I haven't sewn any together yet as I needed a project quickly and didn't have time to sort what colours I wanted with each other so I decided to just start making hexies and make those decisions later.

I have decided to bite the bullet and do the insanity quilt, although mine is my 'sanity quilt'. My mum has recently been diagnosed with cancer and having this project to do helps keep me calm and keep my fingers busy especially when waiting at appointments etc. I find that when life gives me curve balls that I tend to become more creative or simply having to keep my fingers and mind as busy as I can. Sometimes the simple act of stitching can help me sort out in my head what is going on in my heart and accept the path we now find ourselves on.

I love the way that hexies are so transportable and I have removed the tacked hexies to the above container from my little bag, making room for more supplies.

A special friend made and gifted me this gorgeous little bag for my birthday last month and this is what I keep my 'to go' project in. It is small enough to go in my handbag and therefore I am never without something to do when I need it. 

I think I will continue to tack hexies and get a variety of colours before I start sewing some of them together. As I was tidying a little in the sewing room yesterday some fabrics were cut and put straight into the hexie bag. I was quite surprised at how far a piece of scrap fabric can go when converted to hexies. 

That is all for now, happy stitching everyone and hope to see you back here soon to check out what I am doing next.

Donna-Maree

More little projects

Little projects can be so rewarding, they can be a good interlude to bigger projects and can be so much fun.

For Debbie I made a pair of oven mitts...

And I also made her a doorstop...

I love it when friends really like what I have made for them and I really enjoy seeing the items being used. I was a little concerned about the oven mitts as I only used one layer of insulbrite but Debbie tested them out and they work perfectly - no burnt hands.

These doorstops are very effective and look great in different colour ways and are filled with rice that has been frozen for 24 hours to stop insects eating it.

I was on a bit of a roll and also completed these folders that had been sitting around for a while. I am pleased with how they turned out and can't wait to make one for myself. These are going to be Christmas gifts, I will put some extra things inside as a surprise.

Until next time, happy stitching everyone.

Little Projects

Little projects often get squeezed into our busy schedules and amongst our other projects and I have recently squeezed in a few.

Over this last year we have been having projects at Tauranga Patchwork and Quilters Group and one of those was fabric baskets. So yesterday I made two fabric baskets as a baby gift for my hairdresser who has just had a gorgeous little boy.

Last weekend I made some portable design boards that I had seen on a blog which I thought would be beneficial to have in the sewing room or wherever I am sewing. They do make a good tray or work surface when sitting on the couch in the evenings with the family. 

I like how the boards can be stacked and because they are light they are easy to carry from one part of the house to the other. I usually do the cutting of fabric on the end of the kitchen bench - it works for me. Being able to spread the boards out on the dining table and place the components on each board and then transport them to the sewing room is definitely a bonus.

Lori has very good instructions on her blog for making these and you can check it out here. I chose to make my boards 16 x 20 inches so I can use them for different size blocks, as I have already mentioned this size also works as a lap top work surface.

I have several more projects to make and complete  today and they are gifts for a special friend that we are having quality time with this weekend who has moved into a brand new home. 

Check back to see what I made for our friend Debbie.

Happy stitching everyone
Donna-Maree

Whangamata Quilt Show

Labour weekend saw Whangamata quilters have their quilt show and what a show it was. The Whangamata group have 20 members and hold their show every two years.

Here are some of the awesome quilts that were on display.

Star Burst by Sandy Briggs

Close up of some of the quilting.

Postcards from Paris by Marion Welsh

The detail is amazing.

The mitred corners make the most of this beautiful fabric.

Still of the Night by Sandy Briggs

Close up of detail

Close up of quilting detail.

There is more to come so check back soon and in the meantime happy stitching everyone.

Donna-Maree

Oops, things have slowed down some

Okay, things were going at great speed on my current top five project until I couldn't find my specialty rulers - particularly the companion ruler. 

When my mum came down to convalesce following her surgery I had a tidy up in the front room where I sew and people stay and now I can not remember for the life of me where I have put the rulers.

 In the spare time that I should be spending sewing I have been looking and reorganising with some sorting as I go. After spending nearly the whole day today in the front room, I still have not found the rulers but I have reorganised all of the fat quarters into containers by colour groups. I have moved things around and put like things together, labelled containers and just had a really good sort out. 

I have found even more four patches - I am really going to have to sort a project to use some of them up or might indeed be drowned in them.

While I am looking for the misplaced rulers I have decided to continue with another project that I uncovered and here is a sneak look but there will be more about it very soon. I am pushing this one to a completion before I return to Orange Crush.

Watch this space to keep up with the progress.

Keep stitching everyone

Donna-Maree

First up on my Top Five is.........

My Orange Crush mystery quilt. Just a quick post this morning to give you all a bit of an update. 

Here are the completed components so far... 

All that needs to be completed for this quilt to become a flimsy are the set square units and the border units. I worked on this quilt yesterday afternoon and again this morning and more components are now completed.

These are the borders all sewn together just waiting to be pressed and sewn to the quilt. It feels good to be making some progress. Still to go are the set square units - watch this space!

I have club this morning so I need to get a move on.

See you soon, happy stitching everyone.

Donna-Maree

Getting organised - yet again

Yes I find myself doing this again and again - getting organised, re-prioritising my projects and along the way I often find things, projects or components that I had forgotten about.

Here are two bags of the same thing! The bag on the left are 4-patches that were sewn as leader and Enders at retreat a year or two ago. The bag on the right is the one that I keep in my strip drawer and there are already 300 4-patches in there!

I found these when I was sorting another project, my Bonnie Hunter Orange Crush Mystery quilt. The interesting thing is all of the blocks are made - I completed these on the retreat I talked about earlier and just have the setting triangles and pieced border to sort. 

I am further along on this project than I remembered and seriously it isn't going to take too much to get this one to the completion line, music to my ears.

Completed components - looking good.

This week I have compiled an honest list of my projects and yes I knew I had a few but seriously I have been blown away by just how many I do have. However, taking stock of the issue is the first step. From this list I am going to choose five projects that have the highest priority and I am going to work on these projects until they are done! 

Yes, you have read it here and now I have put it out there in print, I am accountable.

As I complete these projects and they get crossed off the 'Top Five' list, other projects will be promoted to the top five list and they will have their turn to shine. My objective with this system is to overcome the pressure that is stalling me from working on anything because I can't decide what to work on first as there are so many. Check back and see if I am on task and which project I am going to tackle first.

Until then, happy stitching everyone

Donna-Maree

Wow Workshop time

This weekend saw a group of ladies gather together for a bag making workshop and boy, did they work hard!

First they covered their cotton clothesline with strips of fabric....

They coiled like snakes on the floor...

Then they started sewing it together to create the base...

Then they started building the sides...

And then some completed or nearly completed bags...

Aren't they awesome! Which is your favourite?

The hexie bug has hit!

More and more people are sewing hexies at club - I have heard the phrase 'insanity quilt' mentioned a few times too. Not sure if I will go that far, but I do have several hexie projects on the go at the moment.

This one is supposed to be just a quick little project to fit in amongst everything else. I thought it would be a good little project to have for when I need hand work, like at club meetings. This project has somehow become the main project at the moment and has superseded everything else!

3/4 inch hexies - the beginning

Ready for the next step

These beauties are going to be appliquéd onto a square which will be part of a pillow.

This is a Bonnie Hunter pattern 'A little bit hexie' which is a kit that Bonnie has put together for her Peru cruise participants, but she has made the pattern available free through her website. You can check it out here.

I really like the pattern and I don't need a wallhanging but could do with some new cushion covers. Nearly there, just have to sort the background fabric and the hourglass fabrics and then just put it all together and it will be nearly done.

Please do check back to see my progress.

Happy stitching

Donna-Maree