Quilting

Here's a thread for quilters to share what they are working on, ask questions, swap ideas. Pictures welcome! (clickable thumbnails, preferred as there are still people with dial-up accounts. If you would like to post pictures of your work but don't know how, we can post that here also).

LT already has groups named Quilting and Quilt History. Both have very low levels of activity.

Yes, I've noticed. A modicum of activity would content me (after all we do need time to read and do needlework).

I'm currently working on two lap quilts in two different patterns using about 25 different fabrics contributed by friends for the project. The fabrics are about as different as the friends are! While working on one of the two quilts, which had a wild goose chase pattern, I noticed I was creating a lot of small triangle scraps. Well, not one to throw anything out, I started stitching them together and then worked out on graph paper an arrangement for them. Here's two blocks (so, I guess I'm working on three lap quilts simultaneously). This is a clickable thumbnail.

My mother has a quilting group here "Lighthouse Quilters". They meet at the house every Saturday morning. I'm sort of an "unofficial" member due to the family relation and that I help out with their shows etc. The challenge this year is to produce a small quilt / wall hanging with the 54-40 star (also known as Sedona I think) as the theme. Am working on design ideas - so far I'm thinking of one along the lines of "Star of Wonder" with the three wisemen (not particularly religious but I have always thought those three guys were interesting) and/or "I wanna be a rock star" using some of the fabric in my stash with musical notes.

Also have a kit I purchased last year of cats and orchids which I have sworn to complete this year (undoubtedly there will be even more swearing - it's all applique).

I'd love to see what design you go with!

In the continuing saga of the quilts made from the same fabrics (as mentioned in #3 above):

Here are some random blocks of the first quilt. It is based on the Yellow Brick Road pattern but the pieces are being cut individually. It features photos and one poem transferred to fabric, crewelwork, one foundation pieced "sun", and all of the fabrics sent to me by friends.




The second quilt uses the very same fabrics with black in a Wild Goose Chase pattern. This particular one is from Quilts from the Quiltmaker's Gift. These are some random strips. It's hard to get the idea without the borders and machine quilting but...




and finally. In the process of making the above quilt, lots of smaller triangle scraps are created. I sewed them together and then messed around on graph paper and came up with this:



All these quilt use the same fabrics from the same people. I have used less than a fat quarter from each donation. I still have leftover scraps! (might use them for one of the quilt's bindings)

Would love to see what you are doing. . .

I am a brand new quilter. Here is my first project which will be a reversible table topper. The blocks are pieced in this photo, but not joined together yet (hopefully all those points will line up!):

Weee! Writestuff, your table runner uses the same pieces as my quilt pictured just above it. It's interesting how the same pieces can be arranged to look entirely different!

Writestuff, that's really lovely - hard to believe this is your first quilt!

Avaland - your quilts are gorgeous! The black backgrounds work very well, but I think I like the first one best : )

Wow Ladies! You've really motivated me to get to work!

Thank you Avaland and Maggie :)

Avaland, I think that is one thing that really intrigues me about quilts - the way you can use the most basic shapes and they all look different. It satisfies the "puzzler" in me :)

My very basic placemats:





I only have two finished so far. I'm so jealous of y'all's big projects! I have a few I'd like to work on, but not until after I do a couple of smaller ones to make sure I've got this figured out.

ArmyAngel, it's all practice, practice! I think your placemats are lovely and practical!

ha ha, wait 'til we're all swapping fabric or blocks!

Oh yeah avaland, sounds like all you quilters need to start QuiltThing and QuiltMooch!

lindsacl, and you needlepoint & cross-stitchers also!

I'm not a quilter, but I thought you guys might enjoy this Flickr set of photos from the 2008 TOKYO International Great Quilt Festival.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23796207@N00/sets/72157603818753309/

Wow, thanks, those are unbelievable. Shows like this can be so inspiring.

Wow! Thanks fleela. I had the opportunity to go to the show in Seattle several years ago. I visited the show for three days and still felt that I had not seen it all. What can be done with fabric is simply amazing.

Still learning re attaching photos.

If this works the link should lead you to photos of a local quilt show I visited yesterday as a birthday treat.

http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/gg87/XenaBallerina/Stepping%20Stones%20Feb%20...

http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/gg87/XenaBallerina/Stepping%20Stones%20Feb%20...

http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/gg87/XenaBallerina/Stepping%20Stones%20Feb%20...

Interesting show! I'm not into that fusible appliqué, how about you? I maybe go to one or two shows a year, usually one in Nashua, NH and the big one in Lowell, MA (USA) and I didn't get to either last year!

http://www.lowellquiltfestival.org/ (this one used to be e/o year but last year they started a yearly rotation. There are three exhibitions sites/venues: The Tsongas arena, the Lowell Auditorium, and the New England Quilt Museum (with a shuttle that run between the three).

Thanks for the link avaland. I'm going to try the fusible applique for the first time this year with the star quilt challenge. Will see how it goes.

Happy birthday, XenaBallerina! Thanks for those links! My mother would love those kokopelli (spelling?) hangings.

Love the Memories of Ghana quilt in the Lowell exhibit, avaland!

It occurred to me that I will miss the Lowell festival once again, as we will probably be in Australia much of this August. Perhaps I can find a quilt show there!

Lucky lady! There will probably be shows there. Getting over to New Zealand by any chance? Have seen a lot of pics of amazing quilts that have come from there.

No, probably not NZ. We are, however, hitting the Sydney, Cairns/Port Douglas, and Alice Springs/Uluru areas. I don't imagine being able to time things that well, but I will seek out a quilt shop or two, maybe a yarn shop too!

I have started to finish the quilt pictured in #6, third one down. I have added a border of black with corner blocks made from more of the little triangles. I'm thinking of stitching a row of rosettes on the borders; however, I'm hestitating because I'm wondering whether the curvaceous rosettes will clash with all the triangles... Maybe I should stick with something terribly linear?

I'm similarly stuck in the same place with the 2nd quilt in #6. The first, thankfully, is finished (pictured on my personal thread).

This is just personal preference but I don't think they will clash at all avaland. I think curves soften all the angles on a linear quilt.

Maybe I'll post the quilt and intended border quilting pattern and see if you still think that... I've been at a bit of a standstill (a lot of distractions).

opinions, please! Here is my idea for a machine quilted border design for the quilt pictured in #6, bottom picture. I have added a 6 inch border with corner squares on point. Do you think the rosettes are too curvy for such a linear quilt design? Be honest. Perhaps I should use a more linear design like intersecting squares that echo the corners? Picture 2 has the design on tissue paper, picture 1 has it on white paper. The design would not be that think, just lines of variegated thread. Thoughts? (non-quilters can weigh in also). This are clickable thumbnails. . .

It looks ok, but I think something more geometrical might be better. What about a linear Celtic type pattern? Too busy?

yes, that's my response...it's ok. I think I will explore some linear designs...at least, ones that are more linear.

I finished this king-sized quilt yesterday. The second picture shows the quilting. The third shows my signature. I sign all my quilts with a stylized version of my initials (MLP) and the year. I hand-embroider this (mostly because my machine is no good at embroidery, but also I find hand-embroidery to be quite fun).

How clever, lefty33! Brava!!!!!!!
:-))

great job, lefty, that's a lot of quilt to quilt! Did you do the machine quilting on a regular sewing machine or on something special (assuming it is machine quilted).

Thanks aluva!

#38, ava, thanks! It is machine quilted. I just have a normal machine. So far I have found long-arm machines to be out of my price range. It was a challenge to quilt the center areas, but rolling it tight as I went made it possible.

I've done one big quilt and, as you say, it was quite a challenge but I kept the batting thin and the design reasonably simple (small loops). I have been able to be a little more creative with lap-sized quilts and, of course, table runners.

I toy with the idea of purchasing one of the machine quilting set-ups, but I really don't feel I make enough big quilts to justify the purchase.

Just wondering if anyone here has used text or lettering to quilt a project. If so, did you transfer your design somehow to the material first?

__________________

Wanted to add that I was looking through old threads today looking for a place to post this question and there are some really good threads out there which could do with revival!

>41 SassyLassy: Do you mean pieced letters or applique? Or did you mean the actual quilting? If actual quilting, I would be tempted to use something like light vellum or golden threads (is that what it is called?) or even the press-n-seal method I did with the raindrops on my April wall hanging.

>42 lesmel: Thanks for answering. I mean the actual quilting. I love fabrics with text or a text look, or with maps, basically anything printed, so I thought trying a quilt stitch that mimicked script of some sort might be interesting.

I'm not familiar with golden threads. Does the press and seal tear off easily once you are done?

>43 SassyLassy: I struggled with it in the tight spots. I think light vellum would work better. It has the benefit of you being able to run it through the stitching first (to get used to the pattern and to create some holes) without thread...and then pinning it (or clover clipping it) to the fabric for the quilting. Also, it's cheaper than golden threads.

If you were doing a large piece, I think using a template and a pounce would probably be better. But chalk always rubs off so easily!! Urk!

I use golden threads a lot and it has some pluses and minuses. mostly it crinkles up a lot and sometimes it's torn on me. Plus, if there are really close together stiches, I find I need tweezers to get it off. I've never tried the press and seal stuff.