Antique Hearts Needleroll SAL - Finished

Shepherd's Bush Antique Hearts Needleroll finished, at last. I must have misjudged my placement for starting the roll, as I did not have enough fabric to do a proper roll/fold to complete my top hem. I used the finishing techniques here. I like the color of this roll, but as I plan to do another SAL with Litla Skvís using And Many More Needlebook by Just Nan, I want to do another needleroll using Shepherd's Bush Amaranth, so the backgrounds will match.

Le Boutis - Ouvrage Divin

Diaporama : Le boutis, ouvrage divin - Diaporama

The diaporama speaks for itself--lovely Marseilles or Marcella quilts.

Antique Hearts Needleroll - Week Two

Two more rows done, but I have discovered that I'm going to have to buy some sort of magnifying/light device. These old eyes are getting dim and seeing holes in the cloth, let alone the right holes is getting difficult. Somewhere in all my past moves, I have lost the beads and little metal heart that were supposed to embellish this needleroll--so stitches will have to do. I'm anxious to see how Litla Skvís is coming along. Her stitching has been an inspiration to me. Her crosses are all in the «right» direction, mine are all skewobbly--I think it is time to find some abcs and 123s on how to actually cross-stitch properly. Until next week.

SAL - Antique Hearts Needleroll

Linda Björk Eiríksdóttir from Litla Skvís in Reykjavík, Iceland, and I have challenged each other to finish some jointly held items in our needlework stash. First up is «Antique Hearts» Needleroll by Shepherd's Bush.

Here is the first two rows - my color is a little off - must learn more about my camera! Also in the picture are white thread «rows» to help me judge my stitch placement and counting--they save a lot of removing miscounted stitches.

Embroidery, a howto film from 1932. It is in French, but the video is very self-explanatory. For those reenactors out there, think of yourself as seeing the embroiderers of St. Aubin or the Plates of Diderot coming to life …

«Silent documentary on embroidery with different types of stitches and techniques as well as their application in clothing and decoration of Interiors of the time. Explanatory captions alternate with the different stages of manufacture of an embroidery filmées. Présentation sequences: the design model to its realisation by an embroidery business where the worker will run various stitches to vary for specific types of embroidery effets. Démonstration: beads embroidery, embroidery application that allows you to stitch pattern directly on fabric or a dress, metallic embroidery and finally the mechanical embroidery.»

Documentaire muet sur la broderie présentant les différents types de points et de techniques ainsi que leur application dans l'habillement et la décoration d'intérieure au fil du temps. Des cartons explicatifs alternent avec des séquences filmées.Présentation des différentes étapes de fabrication d'une broderie : de la conception du modèle à sa réalisation à l'aide d'un métier à broder où l'ouvrière va exécuter divers points pour varier les effets.Démonstration des types de broderie spécifiques : la broderie de perles ; la broderie d'application qui permet de broder un motif directement sur un tissu ou une robe, la broderie métallique et enfin la broderie mécanique.

Stitch Markers

Such a handy little thing, a knitting stitch marker, but only if I can visualize how it would be used. Prior to seeing Litla Skvis's lovely ring stitch markers, my only visualization was of little plastic safety-pins! And here is an interesting site on how to make another type of ring stitch marker.

Disappearing Nine Patch

Loving «Rouenneries» as I do, I fell in love with Kim Quiltz's use of them in the Disappearing Nine Patch so I recreated four of them. I will be adding sashing and using them to back the four placemats I've been working on.

Shopping for quilt fabric …

I've only taken one quilting class, long ago in Boise, Idaho in the late 80s, at Quilt Crossing, a local quilt shop run by a fellow Boise Basin Quilters member. The quilt was based on strip piecing and was called Garden Trellis. I knew nothing about choosing fabric for a quilt, I just chose 3 lights and 3 darks and a large print. The sewing of this quilt is beginner level but the concepts of color and shading do not lend themselves well to a first quilt. When I saw what the other women in class did with their color choices and placement of the combinations possible, I was really demoralized and never finished mine. In fact, I've only completed one quilt since, although I have now returned to quilting, but I've chosen a quilt with instructions in a book--hopefully with answers to all of the questions I'll likely come across.

Now, as to choosing fabric--I've been lucky enough to find almost all of the actual fabrics Denise used in her Jacobean appliqué quilt. But, like Bradie, I've just about died when I added up the cost of all those fat quarters needed. I've solved that problem by buying charm packs, layer cakes, turnovers, jelly rolls and honey buns of the three collections in the colorations used in the book, many of them on eBay and several from on-line merchants. I've only had to purchase yardage for three of the backgrounds and the backing--all of the rest is useable from the Moda precuts. I tried going to quilt shops, but they either didn't have any of the fabric left or had never had those particular collections in their store. So it's on-line for me--it saves me time and gas money searching here and there and usually coming up empty.

I also try to save money by choosing fabric collections to make items for my home or as gifts that will actually match or coordinate with items or rooms that I already have or need to make for someone else's home as a hostess gift. I'm willing to spend a little more to gather the precuts I need to make a lap quilt and shoulder wrap to wear when I sit in a drafty room at my computer for hours. It will save me money in the long run on energy costs. I need some placemats and small appliance covers and a quilt to use in favorite chair when I read and another to nap with on the bed. So I will acquire a stash, but I intend to use it all--dying with the most unused fabric is not how I want my epitaph to read.

Quilter's Blog-Along

Quilting for Kids

The first quilt I ever finished was a 6 block machine appliqué of Winnie the Pooh for by grandson, Anthony. I used a color book illustration of Pooh, reduced it down to the colors of gold, red and black pieces for the bottom of Pooh's foot and his nose. It was my first attempt at machine appliqué. The six Pooh blocks were interspersed with solid green blocks appliquéd with hunny pots. The sashing, border and back were made with a small green and red plaid and small green blocks. Anthony is going on fifteen, but he still has this quilt.

Quilter's Daily Blog-Along

Machine Piecing

I'm not at all happy with the supposed 1/4" seam my quilting foot makes. Even though I was oh so careful, my first three pieced blocks did not turn out to match the dimensions that should have resulted from my careful cutting and stitching. I will be experimenting with other feet in my sewing box in hopes of finding a more accurate foot. QuiltCetera offers some tips to eliminate this problem for Tutorial Tuesday.

The Flagstone block is one of the larger pieced blocks in the Graceful Garden Jacobean Quilt I am reproducing. The Whirligigs are one set of paired piecing. The two Poppy blocks were an appliquéd pair.

Quilter's Daily Blog-Along