Category Archives: Craftsy

Craftsy

Fractured Complete

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Fractured Quilt CompleteHere it is, Fractured complete. The binding isn’t quite the same colour as the deep purple but it goes and I’m happy with the completed project. Next week I’ll be starting Fractured Low Volume in whites, beiges and maybe a brown or two, looking forward to it! If you’d like to make a Fractured quilt of your own, you can find the Tutorial at Displacement Activity and check out the different colour combinations on the Flickr Group.

Yesterday I purchased the Craftsy class, “Design your own handbag”, it’s so awesome!! I’ve been making simple totes and bags for many years but rarely used hardware. Now that I know how to install it, I’m excited to try it out! I have a ton of grey wool I bought when I was making clothes, needless to say I’m going to be making bags with it! It’s very, very soft, it almost feels like cashmere but I know it’s not. I also have a ton of black, lightly woven interfacing which is perfect for this application.  Another leftover from my garment days is yellow top stitching thread for jeans, looks great against the grey with a nice big 4mm chunky stitch.

Topstitching

Happy Friday everyone! What sewing are you planning to do this weekend? Have you signed up for the Craftsy handbag making class?

If you’re blogging, you’re not sewing!

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My hands have been busy with hand quilting and sewing and I finally used Gracie Queen quilt frame and Juki TL-2000 Qi but sadly no updated photos yet. It’s been snowing here for a number of days, grey and wet so I have nowhere to take pictures.

What I’ve been up to:

  • Modern Mable  hand quilting complete, I just started putting the binding on today.
  • Parcheesie has finally been bound and ready for it’s new home with my Mom!
  • Chicopee Log Cabin is quilted and waiting for binding. I had some tension problems so there’s loops on the back, it’ll be living on our bed.
  • Les Fleurs Bleu is partially quilted and needs binding.
  • Birds & Berries was quilted on the Gracie Queen frame and I screwed it up so I need to rip out all the quilting!!
  • Star Blossoms is one of my favorite quilts, I don’t have backing fabric for it yet.
  • Oh Deer! doesn’t have a backing yet either.

What’s New?

  • I purchased my first wool batting and I’m so excited to try it out! It’s Hobb’s Tuscany Wool and oh so soft and spongy.
  • I joined my first Flickr Bee, Simply Solids: A Modern {Bee}, looking forward to sending out blocks and choosing one myself!
  • Signed up for “Lucky Stars” paper piecing block of the month.

On the back burner is “Constellation” from Quilter’s Academy Vol.4.

I guess I’ve been busier than I thought!! Happy 2013!

Parcheesie

 

 

Parcheesie in progress

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16-patch in progress

16-patch blocks done!

25 more corner blocks to go.

I really enjoyed working on my Parcheesie quilt top today. I thought those tiny 1″ 16-patch blocks would drive me crazy but I really had fun, especially since all my seams matched! In one recent Craftsy class, the teacher pressed her seams open. I would never have been able to match my seams if I’d done it that way. I pressed them to one side, as traditional quilters do, and they snugged beautifully. I really love the corner blocks too, they’re essentially a type of log cabin.

Earlier this week I was contacted by the Education and Events Manager at Juki America Inc., they’d like to feature me in one of their Newsletters! I’d love to get my hands on one of their domestic quilting machines in the TL line!

Also this week, my triple-zipper bag was featured on A Quilter’s Table with other wonderful triple-zip pouches. It’s been a great week and it’s not even over yet!

P.S., I’m linking up with TGIFF because although this quilt top isn’t finished, the 16-patch blocks are done and tomorrow, the corner blocks will be finished too! :D

Free Motion Quilting practice

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I sewed a number of things last week including bibs for a friend’s baby and a little lavender sachet but nothing big.

This past weekend I singed up for the Craftsy class, Design It, Quilt It: Free Form Techniques with instructor, Cindy Needham. This is an excellent class and Cindy is a great teacher if you want to learn detailed and heirloom free motion quilting.

I used my Easy jellyroll star orphan block since the corners were pieced in Kona snow in error, as practice. I used glass bowls to create the arc designs and drew 1/2″ grids in the corners. Deciding which pattern goes where is a hard decision, you never know what it’s really going to look like until it’s complete and if you don’t like it, too bad. I used Aurifil 50wt thread for the piecing and quilting, it’s the finest I have. Gutermann 50wt is just too thick.

Click any image to enlarge.

Cathedral Windows

Echoed Daisy

Echoed Daisy

Feathers and Pebbles

It is tedious but rewarding but I managed to quilt all of this by noon, walked the dog and got on the treadmill.

Scattered Flowers Coffee Table Topper

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Click to enlarge.

This is another project inspired by Elizabeth Hartman‘s Craftsy class, Inspired Modern Quilts: 7 Small Projects with Big Style. I had purchased Thimble Blossoms’ June Bug quilt pattern moons ago but hadn’t started it because I thought it too time consuming but after watching the tutorial, dove in and made a bunch of pedals.

Because I positioned the pedals close to one corner of each block, I had to make sure that they were clustered toward the center, a mistake I made in a previous iteration which will no doubt become mug rugs for gifting and giveaways. :D I quilted all the linen parts of this piece with a rambling vine motif which I doodled on paper first, there are a few random flowers tossed in for good measure.

My sewing space is rather chaotic after so much sewing so I’m going to take the day off to clean and organize. Not sure what I’m going to do for my next project. If you have any great tutorials, please pass them along!

Cheers, Tabatha