A Miniature UFO Finish...

Way back in the mists of time, at a crafty peeps weekend away in the year of can't  remember, some 1930's repros were turned into a miniature quilt top...eventually in a very much "on again/off again which spool of thread was I using oh who cares this one will do for this attempt" fashion it had over the ensuing years ended up at about 3/5ths hand quilted...Friday night it was unburied when moving something else and the weekend stitchy task became "get it from hanging over the tapestry frame in a state of being ignored and into the state of a finished quilt"...and wonder of wonders I actually achieved that objective...

The hanger is just for taking the photo, it will find a home on a horizontal surface.

Double X: from "Fat Quarter Quilting: 1930's Style" by Lori Smith", 16" x 20", hand quilted in the ditch

Enjoy your week.

Happy Stitching...

Red, Purple, Circles...add Stripes..

Take drunkards path templates, some red and purple fabrics and a monogram stitchery (from Michelle Ridgeway's lovely alphabet patterns) add a rectangular cushion insert and what do you end up with?..

It has been sitting finished for a couple of weeks and if it didn't have an initial on it that has no point in my house I don't know that it would have made it to being delivered to its intended birthday present recipient because I have to say I quite like the finished product and red/purple aren't even "my" colours.

I even almost stitched Michelle's monogram design as she drew it...

I did say almost...in the design the running stitch is on the inside of the letter but it sort of moved and ended up around the circle...I had fun playing with the drunkards path shapes and I really like the rectangular cushion rather than the regular square shape. I used parlan to stablise the pieced top and give a bit of body before doing the stitchery - the stabiliser I usually use for stitcheries being too fine and not wanting the bulk of batting so parlan was perfect.

Finally delivered yesterday only 2 1/2 months late - but hey, managed it before Christmas so that has to count! - I can update my OPAM page and sidebar too, a finish to count for August...

And the stripes? Well I came home with these...

warm and toasty toes...lucky toes!!!

Happy Stitching...

A Title Would Go Here if I Could Think of One...

A couple of posts ago (yes the posts are so infrequent May wasn't that long ago on this blog - sad but true) while at Retreat in Maldon doing my bit for the local economy at The Village Patch, I picked up a pre-printed mini wholecloth "Ribbons and Lace" by The Stencil Company.  Made it into a mini quilt finished at 16 1/2" square, the binding was stitched down in company Friday night while enjoying the fun and friendship of our regular 6-Midnight stitchy hijinks...so, without further ado...presenting...Ta Dah!...

my first ever Wholecloth Quilt...

Hand quilted using Mölnlycke Sytrȧd Core Quilt Thread colour 6644...the lovely turquoise colour quilting thread thread just demanded to be purchased at the same time as the cloth and I couldn't resist. It was a good way to practise the hand quilting and test drive the wholequilt concept without committing to a new UFO large project. The only thing I'd not do again is use a colour thread that was so close to the colour of the printing - it would have been so much easier to see where there was wonky not so even stitching and some not so invisible stop/starts and I didn't catch them all but live and learn and I was treating it as a learning project so not going to beat myself up over that. 

I was a bit concerned about how the printed design would wash out as it was printed with quite thick blue lines (almost the same colour as the thread I used) but I followed the instructions of simply soaking in cold water (and it's so nippy outside the water out of the tap is icy) for 30-60 minutes (so I left it for the full hour just to be sure) and it was just gone, like magic, no trace left.

I've not pressed it after washing (I did dry it flat on a towel) as I like the "crinkled antique-y touch me" look rather than the "polished perfect do not touch" look of a finished quilt, I want quilts that look like they can be used not hung in an art gallery, but that is just me so please forgive the wrinkles...

And I realised when uploading the photo...that is OPAM ticked off for August as well, wahoo!!! One project, two ticks, gotta like that :)

Happy Stitching...