A last finish in under the wire

As well as my Lily Lapin I managed to finish a second project from my Quarter 4 finishalong list! And just in time since the link up will close tonight!

My Drunkards Path quilt is finally finished, thanks to the support and encouragement of the Finishalong community and my Instagram friends.

I started this quilt cutting out the pieces while on holiday last July. I used the 3 1/2" Drunkard's Path templates from Pappersaxten which were ideal to cut up a charm pack. The templates are for a Drunkard's Path version where the curve ends up in the corners of the block. The template set have extra allowances so that it is easy to sew the curves together, and the set comes with an extra trimming template for accurate blocks. Perfect!

When all blocks were assembled and trimmed I tested a few layouts:

With help from some feedback on Instagram I decided on the last version and sewed it together.


Then auditioning border fabrics,

sewing the top together,

and auditioning quilting threads:

In the end I used many different threads in different areas.
I machine quilted this one, emphasising the shapes I associate with retro flowers. 

Not being able to find a suitable binding fabric in my stash, I decided to turn in the edges of the quilt, and quilted the last border areas after finishing the edges.

Finally today I was able to convince my youngest to hold up the quilt for some decent photographs. Pfft!

Linking up with the Finishalong at Archie the Wonder Dog.

And if you want to be encouraged to finish your WIPs (quilty or otherwise), do join us for the 2017 Finish-a-long at Rhonda's Ramblings and other hosts...

Sandra

A productive morning

For a while now I wanted to play with some curved piecing. I had some ideas in my head, percolating away for ages! Big, bold curves and solid fabrics. Bright colours. Big pieces. Modern look.

Finally two days ago, it was such a grey, gloomy day that I had to take out some colourful fabrics to play with. I picked my (limited) selection of solid fabrics and chose some dark reds, oranges and a lime green/yellow. That day this combination of colours said "warmth and cheerfulness" which was exactly what I was looking for.

I cut freehand curves through two fabrics, and sewed them together, building up one fabric at a time from the middle outwards. Trimming was done when needed, and a straight seam entered at some point too. I thoroughly enjoyed my morning, and ended up much more cheerful, and extremely satisfied with the result:

I am hesitating what to name this one... I thought of "Energy", but I am not sure yet. The centre shape reminds me a bit of an eye, though on its side... Then again, there is something of an Earth shape on its tilted axis... And isn't the Earth full of energy?

The problem now is that this is 27" wide x 32" long. It seems a good size for a (bold yet small) wall hanging, but how many wall hangings can I hang?! A throw might be much more useful, but then I need to "grow" it a bit more... And what would be more appreciated if I wanted to give it away? I have been thinking about it a lot, but I can't decide.

If I do need to make it larger, I do not want to add straight borders around the edges. Maybe a border of blocks, each containing a different improv "eye" shape? Maybe different borders at different sides?

So, what do you think? Bigger, or not? And if yes, how? Any ideas, suggestions and/or comments much appreciated!

Linking up with AHIQ at Sew Slowly and Fret Not Yourself
And yes, this top is a rather wavy, but I solved that too!

Sandra

Pattern testing - BFF quilt

In my most recent sewing post I showed some improvisational patchwork, this time quite something else! While I do enjoy improv enormously, I also like the challenge of precise piecing.

Since I have become aware of the online quilting community I have mainly written my own posts (be it irregularly) and watched/read what others put out there. I just didn't have the time to be too involved with swaps, challenges and bees, and have been watching from the sidelines, thinking "one day...".

But when I had the opportunity this summer to test a pattern for Rebecca Bryan I felt it was time to jump in and try something new. The block she was making the pattern for required curved piecing which I was itching to get back to (have I ever shown you my double wedding ring quilt? I also have ideas for a different one), and I had some time to work on an extra project at the time, too. I jumped at the chance and Rebecca was happy to have me (even though I can't imagine she'd ever heard of me before)!

I decided to start with one block, to be made into a mini. Once I had received the pattern I wanted to start straight away so I chose some fabrics that I had at hand (no time for a day trip to the not-so-local quilt shop) and made a rather traditional version.

The pattern includes helpful directions for curved piecing, though I prefer to do it slightly differently, and use no more than three pins myself. The curve is not very tight and pieces together really easily:

curved piecing using three pins

 The corner units are made up of Half Square Triangles and HST units, apart from the corner triangles which are quarter square triangles. So within a couple of days after receiving the pattern I had this:

The complete block

The pattern was very well laid out, with clear explanations and templates for the curved pieces. It even includes a colouring sheet for a complete 4 x 4 quilt layout, so you can play with different colour placements before starting to sew.

The only unusual thing about this pattern is that the edges of the block all end up on the bias, which is something that I would normally avoid. Saying that, as long as you're aware of it, there shouldn't really be a problem. It certainly was no issue when making my block, especially since I added straight strips around the block to finish off my mini. The full quilt includes sashing in the pattern which would stabilise a quilt top, but I would hesitate using this block without sashing in a larger quilt.

I really loved making this block, and am tempted to make a whole quilt in completely different colours (one day...).  There is also a lovely version in the pattern with pieced arcs. In the end I finished off my mini with walking foot machine quilting (which as you can see from the result, could do with a little more practise!) and a narrow flange at the edge inside the binding.

The mini now hangs above my - theoretical - sewing space (no longer here on the outside of the shed which gave the best light for a photograph), brightening up a darkish corner.

For more versions do check out the #bffquilt hash tag on Instagram, and if you are interested in buying Rebecca's BFF Quilt pattern (PDF), it can be found here.

Meanwhile I'm going back to some more sewing, of course!

Sandra