Author: Kay

I make stuff

Dear Jane

by Kay, posted in WIPs

Had a lovely day out with Mr ‘I don’t like cats’ and his friend as they looked for somewhere to play their doodle sacks. Doesn’t sound like fun but we stopped at another doodle sackers warehouse who just happened to sell haberdashery! I ended up getting two things. (I didn’t want to put Mr IDLC off taking me there again) Which means I now have another project to add to the list!

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This is definitely a long term one to go with my other long term project – grandmother’s flower garden. There is quite a bit of applique to do for this which I prefer to do by hand so it will take years ha ha.

 

Taking Stock July 2015

by Kay, posted in Taking Stock, Uncategorized

 

 

Pip Lincoln over at http://meetmeatmikes.com/?s=taking+stock publishes a blank ‘taking stock’  list for anyone to copy and take stock for themselves – don’t forget to read Pip’s too

This is my first one;

Making : blocks for The Global Quilting Project – TGQP ….. Cooking : as little as possible …..Drinking : tea …..Reading: blink; the Power of Thinking Without thinking. by Malcolm Gladwell ….. Wanting: my mum to get better ….. Looking: out of the window …..Playing: Midas mah-jong online …. Deciding: which fabrics to use for the next quilt challenge …..Wishing: Greece well ……Enjoying: the summer sun ….Waiting: for a PAC to change my phone but keep my number  …… Liking: the crochet blanket I am making … Wondering: if this headache will go without taking tablets …..Loving: being able to see family now we are back from Australia …..Pondering: what to do next ….. Considering: starting baby crib blanket …..Buying: a venus fly trap  ……Watching: silly cat and dog videos …….Hoping: to win the lottery like most people! …… Marvelling: at moths https://www.distractify.com/magnificent-moths-1236736287.html      Cringing: at my dry hair ….. Needing: a good conditioner ….. Questioning: why can’t I get a good conditioner …..Smelling: the borrowed cat’s fur* …..Wearing: jeans, t-shirt and a long cardigan …..Following: no-one, I’m not a stalker! …..Noticing: that I am still full-up from lunch even though it is time for dinner …..Knowing: I need to finish numerous WIPs ……Thinking: I should make a label for my sisters birthday quilt….. Admiring: PC Ian Dibell who was killed off duty trying to protect the public from a gunman….. Sorting: out books retrieved from storage …..Getting: excited about finishing my blocks for the TGQP swap…… Bookmarking: my place in an actual book …..Coveting: nothing …..Disliking: olives (the things in jars not people called Olive)….. Opening: drawers to select fabric …..Giggling: at Mr ‘I don’t like cats’ making a fuss of the cat that came with the rented house*….. Feeling: sad about all the wars going on ……Snacking: on Blue Riband chocolate wafer bars …..Helping: to babysit Poo-pert ……Hearing: the sound of  Mr ‘I don’t like cats’ testing bagpipes when I am trying to listen to the radio

I should add Having: no idea why this looked like a list in draft but not in the preview – hence the dots to separate everything

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This is what our sweet little ‘borrowed’ cat looks like

Geese Around the World

by Kay, posted in Quilting from Little things

Geese close-up

My first go at foundation piecing and I thought it was harder then the woodpile, even though they are both rated two stars for difficulty. The first part; attaching the inner patch and the ‘goose’ wasn’t too bad and I only used one strip of background fabric out of the four needed. I thought I was being very economical but for some reason attaching the last piece was harder – it must have been some thing to do with the angles – and I used all of the other strips.

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When I finished I thought ‘I won’t be doing that again!’ , but I love this little dolly quilt and it is the only way to get perfect piecing. Not sure that I will rush into making a Mariners Star but maybe in the future…

The Woodpile

by Kay, posted in Quilting from Little things

Forget everything you learnt about carefully selected lists of fabric, precision cutting, points that meet and parallel seams. The aim of the game is deconstructed piecing more commonly known as wonky log cabin blocks.

I found it really strange to let go and the first few seams were a bit too, err… straight. After a few tries I got in to the swing of things and thoroughly enjoyed it! Blocks are trimmed at the end and there are only two straight seams in the whole piece. I did sort of fussy cut the centre section which goes against the grain of the woodpile but I fancied having a flower in the middle – so I did. After all we make things to make them our way.

This is the first time I have made a log cabin block too and I will definitely try it again  There was quite a lot of hand stitching and I put more in some blocks than others for variety and interest – plus it gets a bit addictive!

Botanic Gardens Prep

by Kay, posted in Botanic gardens

The kitchen island proved to be the best place to trim the edges ready for binding. Its great for basting too; I used to stick my quilts to the floor to pin and baste but this worktop is long enough to baste even a fairly big quilt in sections. Just the right height and no more sore back and even sorer (is that a word?) knees!

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It was also perfect for cutting as the light was so good

Spring!

by Kay, posted in Spring

The purpose of this dolly quilt is to teach you how to use needle-turn applique to attach bias strips; you get lots of practice with this lovely swirly design as you can see from the photo. To make it easier Sarah suggests buying ready made bias strip, I couldn’t get a nice spotty one but I like the bright green of the plain one that I found

IMGP4425 Spring basted vertical

 

You also learn Sarah’s method of needle-turn applique for the leaves, using a silver gel pen to mark the template outline. This outline forms the edge to be turned under. This way there is no need to worry about freezer paper, gluing, ungluing or seam allowances, etc. It is easy to position the template where you want it if you like to fussy cut. Thinking about it you could even use this method to draw freehand if you are confident enough

I love the colours of this mini quilt, purple is a favourite colour and I used to wear lots of it whether it was in fashion or not.
I changed this slightly from the 21 x 20 inches to 21 inches square. Sarah suggests using it as a cushion but I thought it would make a nice picture and it would be easier to buy a frame if it was square. They have nice box frames in Ikea but I should have checked the sizes as it is slightly too big for their large box frame – I won’t make that mistake again!

I haven’t hand quilted before but enjoyed the process – I like finishing binding by hand too. both are lovely jobs to curl up on the settee with while you watch a film

Now it is finished it is pegged up on the line in my little workroom