Unity

In the waaay back of early pandemic days, in April of 2020, Bonnie Hunter started a mystery quilt called Unity, and unlike her usual winter mysteries this was a round robin quilt--each week we got directions for another round of blocks. YAY! Something to do while we're stuck at home for a few weeks :P I have very limited fabric stash at home, and the local stores were closed to in person shopping. So I emailed Along Came Quilting and connected with Sharla. I wanted to do an all blue quilt--described to her what I wanted, she texted back some photos of fabrics, and she had a short stack of bolts to choose from by the time I went to the store to peer at the fabrics from behind a taped line through the open door (this was waay back when when we were being told NOT to mask because masks were for the medical professionals). Not an optimal way to purchase fabrics but better than on my computer monitor. I think we did better than OK. But I did learn, the hard way, that Grunge doesn't have anyting on the selvedge to indicate the colorway, and its hard to match up later if you didn't get the color name off the boltend when purchasing the first time. Luckily, when I needed more, Kim was able to take my swatch into the store and match the bolt, give me the name, and then I could order still more again online from Willow Creek, as I emptied the bolt at ACQ.

And then the fun began--I like having a step all cut out and ready to sew, its easy then to sit down for even just 15 minutes and run fabric through the machine.

I was planning all along to make Unity for our bed--but I thought I wanted it square, rather than rectangular, so I put flying geese all the way around (In Bonnie's pattern the geese are only on top and bottom)

It kept growing and growing, and I really ran out of room to lay it on the floor for photos

This was where Bonnie's pattern ended, and with my geese all around, about 98x98. I decided I wanted it a little wider, so the sides would cover the drop of the mattress, so I made it rectangular after all, by adding a checkerboard border to the sides. This is where it took me a while to source the extra grunge, and to figure out what to add. 99 1/2 x109 1/2 was the prequilting measurement. and this is my quilt, for our bed, so custom quilting all the way!! which meant it had to wait for me to have a large chunk of time on the frame, and the right mindset for designing the quilting. The right mindset has been a little hard to come by some days in the past few years. December was finally the time! Wool batting for lovely loft to show the quilting and for warmth and comfort.

I gave the quilt a mix of ruler work and freemotion --straight lines, continuous curve, ribbon candy, loops, figure 8s.

And really, I can look at the back as much as the front. I haven't yet reversed it on the bed, but maybe next month!

Some areas I knew right off how I wanted to quilt them, and some took quite a bit of drawing and planning.

Binding only took an afternoon--I had already made the Susie's Magic Binding last year when I finished piecing the top, so it went quite quickly for a king size quilt. I love that method.

This quilt was on my frame for a full month, I generally track my hours on all quilts, but I didn't on this one--suffice to say it took a ridiculously long time. I was extra picky on this, as it's the first bed quilt I've made for us in more than 10 years, since I've had my Innova. I wasn't able to do precision work or ruler work on my old setup.

Post quilting measurements are about 96x106, so it shrunk up about 3 1/2" in each direction. I've come to expect anywhere between 1-3" It makes a lot of sense, if you think about crumpling a piece of paper and then trying to lay it out again--it won't be its original size as the folds/crinkles have shrunk it in. I did presoak all the fabrics, so I don't expect it to have much shrink from washing--it's been cold here so it went straight on the bed (our other quilt had silk batting and I was a little chilly some nights) where it has been keeping me perfectly warm. There is room for some more shrink though, so it will be OK either way.

Happy New Year! Michelle

Technicolor Dream Quilt

 Hello, yes I am still here, and still quilting.   I am amazed I went 8 months between blog posts, but it has been both a busy 8 months and a slow 8 months.   I think what has kept me from blogging was lots of time at the computer doing other things, and I really didn't want to spend any extra time at the computer.  Also, I know now, my hard drive was gradually slowing, making everything take too long (it was rather like the fable of the frog in the slowly heating pot....I really didn't realize how bad it was until I finally got to use a different computer).  So....I am now using a new improved hard drive and have some time to catch up...

This was the Summer Sampler 2019, and I had to make it because of the setting blocks...aren't these circles fantastic?    I had participated in the Summer Sampler 2020 last summer (top complete but still to be quilted) and then saw the SS2019 and decided I would make it for my daughter.

 

SS19 was labeled as a skillbuilder, and it sure delivered on that!  my first y-seams

lots of curves

diamonds

some really tiny paper piecing

some improv piecing

Each block was designed by a different designer, so lots of different styles and skills to learn from.  It was (mostly) fun!   And then I custom quilted it, which was also really fun. Another great thing about these summer samplers are the facebook groups that go with, full of really supportive and positive posts.  They were exactly what was needed during pandemic and not being able to sew in person with my friends and guilds.

I had planned this to be a Christmas gift, but the quilting wasn't done by then, so it was still on the frame when my daughter came home for Christmas (luckily University students were allowed home for the holidays, so we had our kids even if no extended family) and so I had her name it for me.  Technicolor Dream Quilt!  what a perfect name!  She was surprised to get the label as a Christmas gift.

it was finished and ready to go home with her when she returned to her university house after Christmas break.

I had added 4 blocks from SS20 to make it a square quilt vs the rectangle quilt as designed.  I am currently working on SS21.

Baskets and Butterflies

This is Linda's Baskets and Butterflies, a Jen Kingwell pattern.    Or maybe it's called Spring Fever?  I couldn't find the exact pattern online. 

I know this quilt took Linda a long time to craft---all that hand applique.   My husband wandered by to have a look while I was quilting and he couldn't quite believe it was all hand stitched down.  

Echos behind the flower baskets and a meandering flight path behind the butterflies.   As little quilting as possible on the appliques--some of the baskets needed some quilting in them though. 

Linda had to wait a long time, in these Covid days, for her backing fabric to arrive.  It was worth the wait! 

Santa's Ride by Lisa

While it is sunny and warm today, I'm pretty sure it was still snowing when I quilted this top for Lisa back in early March.

We decided on minimal outlining and detail stitching in the applique, E&3 in the body of the quilt and separate treatment of the borders. 

 I used ribbon candy (because that was an old time Christmas treat) in the white and red borders, and Christmas ribbons in the dark green border.  

 Take a closer look at this amazing applique.

 

 if you're young enough not to know ribbon candy.... 

https://images.app.goo.gl/zhojHs9prcqTCZof6

Gypsy Wife

This is Dana's Gypsy Wife quilt, pattern by Jen Kingwell

Jen Kingwell patterns are always so much fun to quilt, and Dana's fabric choices are so interesting to explore as I quilt.  Dana added some length to the quilt to make it bed sized.


Here are 3 photos of the same part of the quilt...before quilting

 during quilting

 and fresh off the frame

When quilting this sort of a quilt, I try to leave some frames (and in this quilt some of the long strips) unquilted, to give the eyes a bit of a resting place, and it's another way of adding texture as well.  

 Dana and I decided to group several of the stripes together in the quilting--and to keep the quilting costs reasonable this was all freehand--no rulers.  I'm so lucky my Innova can handle ditching vertically and horizontally so easily. 

 I picked several quilting designs and just kept repeating them, always a good method for sampler quilts, where each block is unique. 

 So many photos....but each part of the quilt is unique....

 I have fun spotting fabrics I've used in quilts before...

 The quilting shows nicely on the back too---love using a wool batting.

Queens Cross x 2

This is Katherines Queens Cross quilt, a Jen Kingwell pattern.   Jen Kingwell quilts are so much fun to quilt.  

So many fun fabrics in this quilt.  Katherine said the construction was a mix of machine and hand piecing, and all the little circles are hand appliqued.

 These photos speak for themselves, no commentary necessary.   Wool batting shows the quilting definition nicely. 

Dana also brought me her Queens Cross--for basting.  Dana plans to hand quilt hers.  She and Katherine worked on their quilts together, and share a lot of the same fabrics.    I really hope Dana sends me photos once the quilting is done.