Fabric Crushes

 I have had four distinct fabric crushes, and I’m always surprised when I find something I love so much.  The first was from a Bonnie .Christine AGF line, “Hello, Bear.”  

The second was fabrics from Marcia Derse.

And then I discovered Janet Clare and her Wordsmith line.  Like the other two so far, these fabrics are now out of print.  

And now I’ve discovered Seth Apter and his line Storyteller.  His fabrics have a collage-ish look with muted colors.  (Note:  I almost included e bond  in this post.  Her first line was Glyphs with the most interesting mostly black and white prints.  But now she’s gone waaay too colorful). Let’s see how long this crush lasts! 

Two completed projects

It's always exciting when a quilt is completed.  This one is from a set of Cherrywood fat quarters given to me in 2022.  It took me a while to decide what I wanted to do.  What I did know for sure is that I didn't want little tiny bits - these fabrics needed to be left big.  I found a couple of beige-brownish neutrals and used a shadowbox setting that just barely shows up.  And to make this a quilt of size, I had to find a couple of fabrics from my stash, but I think they blend well with the Cherrywoods.   

 

Most of my backing fabrics are white.  My answer was to find scraps that read as brownish or tannish.  And actually I like the scrappy look of these warn neutrals.  Some of this quilt is quilted by machine. But each block has some hand quilting, just enough to keep all the layers together.

The second completed project was actually done in the summer of 2022.  This quilt features those lovely e bond prints.  Each block was hand quilted and then joined together.  The result was a quilt that was 60 x 80, the size of the top of a queen mattress.  My sister Paula moved from St. Joe to Ann Arbor, and I offered her a quilt for her guest room.  She chose this one.  But...it needed a drop all the way around.  The resulting quilt is 94" x 98". Of course I love how the borders fit in with the original, and I think she will, too.  

The back is an assortment of various fabrics - you can see that in the last picture.  Now?  Onto one of the several projects that need hand quilting - my favorite winter evening pastime!

Guild Retreat

 

To state the obvious, our guild hasn't met much in person for the past two years.  There was a retreat last spring, but participation was determined by a lottery.  And I didn't get in.  But the recent retreat was held at a hotel near O'Hare and participation was not limited.  I've been feeling a bit disconnected from the guild and my mates.  And this retreat took care of that feeling.  So good to reconnect with the oldies and meet some of the newbies. 

Guild retreats mean unbridled sewing.  Instead of 6 hours a day, one may sew for 12 hours without getting odd looks!  And so I did.

See those strips in between the big blocks consisting of two dark strips separated by a middle light strip?  I made 72 of those units but waited until I was home with a design wall to construct the quilt top.  It is now 80" x 100".  The big fabrics are by e bond and her Glyph line.  

Before leaving for the retreat, I did the heavy lifting of cutting out all the bits.  So at the retreat all I had to do was assemble.  The two darker colors run into each other more than I envisioned, so I am thinking about how some hand stitching in all areas might bring out the beauty of this pattern, which is Shuttle by Glad Hand Sews.

A really fun part of the retreat was sewing with Ellen.  This fellow guildster has been so supportive of my work with Sew Powerful, and she came to this retreat prepared to make her first purses.  Look at the photo,  Can you count six around Ellen's neck?  Nothing like sewing with someone to get to know them!  

I'm heading back to purses soon.  In fact, I found several fabrics on the retreat scrap table that are perfect for purses.  I have an opportunity to lead a workshop in the new year and am about to put together purse kits!

Summer Quilt - Finished!

Summer Quilting is so much different than quilting in the other seasons.  Evenings I quilt.  Cool and cold days are perfect for sitting with a quilt and stitching.  But in summers?  No way?  Not to mention that my body temp is always 10 degrees warmer than John's.  So for several summers I have "summer quilted", meaning that I will hand-quilt a block at a time and then join these blocks using Sharon Pederson's Reversible Quilting method.  

A few months ago I saw e Bond's fabric collection Glyph at the Crimson Tate (an indy quilt shop in Indy!)

website and fell in love with five of her fabrics.  When they arrived, I fondled them a lot and realize that these were not fabrics to be cut up into little bits.  So I cut 10" squares and used the Attic Windows setting.      I found enough leftover wool batting and Frankenbatted with abandon.   Since I was going to be quilting these 30 blocks by hand, of course I had to find some Art Gallery fabrics for the backing, all neutral scraps.  Most of these blocks just have a simple spiral.  After all, it's the fabric, not the quilting, being featured.  And full disclosure:  there is one fabric included not in the Glyph collection although it is Art Gallery.  

I love how the back looks.  There is no rhyme or reason to the arrangement.  All I know is that the back of this quilt is wonderfully soft.  Each block is 12" so this quilt is 60" x 72". 

It's only late July.  I may have to find another summer quilting project!  

ADHD sewing

 

So many unfinished projects, both in the house and in the studio.  There is an underlying sense of not quite being able to settle down and focus.  On anything.  But slowly the house projects are being finished - kitchen lighting - check. New dining room table - check.  Soaker tub removed - check.  Closet being built - almost there.  What has made everything tolerable is that our contractor works very very neat and is easy to absorb into our daily lives.  For a while I thought I’d have to move my studio out to the dining room, but that just hasn’t been necessary.  So I’ve been able to start projects, sew with abandon, and not give thought to finishing anything. 

The new dining room table?  It's 62" round.  But with one leaf it's 62" x 80" oval.  Perfect for a table runner I saw on Instagram by @tygeroting.  Everything they do catches my eye.  I like the design, the fabrics, and the quilting.  And since imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I'm trying hard to capture the feel of this runner.  Here's what I have so far:

Most of these fabrics are ones given to my by some of my special quilty friends, namely Melissa and Sarah S.  Ive been saving them until I figured out what I want to do with them.  Quilty Lynn send me some "bone" fabric when I was doing the broken bone thing in 2020.  And of course a little bit of Zen Chic's punctuation fabric has to be included.  If I named quilt runners, I would have to call this one "I get by with a little help from my friends." Since I am going to be doing some hand quilting on this runner, I need to wait until I have some wool batting.  Which leads me into my next unfinished project.

I loved how Natalie's graduation quilt turned out, and I still have more of that wonderful fabric line "Wordsmith" by Janet Clare.  So I whipped up another "Trip Around the World" with these fabrics. Grandson Sam had one of the first ones, Natalie has one, and I am not sure who this one will go to.  But the backing is there and ready.  So is my final roll of queen-size wool batting.  If I ever clear off my tables, I will then be able to pin-baste and get this ready for hand-quilting, but not until the fall.  

Speaking of Janet Clare, who designs for Moda Fabrics, a recent line of hers is Geometry.  I like what she does, so I bought a couple of charm packs (5" squares featuring the entire collection).  In a moment of insanity I started a project.  I don't know what it's going to be and literally just played around.  It became obvious that I need greens, so I put away what I was doing and ordered 4 greens.  And here they sit.  I'm pretty sure I'm making 8" blocks that I will put on point.  But I have a feeling this isn't going to happen for a while.  

 

And always I think about Sew Powerful purses.  Usually I act as well.  But after sending off that last box of 20, I've been slow to restart.  So far I know I have these fabrics for 2 flaps, and there are straps. I have fabrics set out - it's just a matter of focusing and assembling.  My goal is to make some purses and leave them a various stages of completion.  A fellow guild mate is interested in setting up a workshop of sorts, and these step-outs would be useful!  But onto the project that I am currently in love with...

This last project features five fabrics from a e.bond's Glyphs fabric collection, which I found at Crimson Tate.  The absence of colors as well as the designs appeal to me.  And I'm always in search of a summer quilting project, meaning something small that I can work on without getting hot!  I've cut five 10.5" squares from each of the fabrics, and I'm setting them using the Attic Windows design.  I had enough leftover wool batting for thirty 12.5" blocks and I found enough neutral Art Gallery fabrics for the backs of these 30 blocks.  Although each block will need some hand quilting, it must not take away from the wonderful fabrics but yet must unify the six fabrics.  I love the simplicity and sparseness of the spiral design.  These 30 blocks will make a quilt that is 60" x 72".  It is a Quilt As You Go sort of project, one that I've done several times.  Look at the entry from December 7, 2021, my Broken Wrist Quilt.  I sometimes call this method of quilting reversible quilting, and I learned it from Sharon Pederson's books on Reversible Quilting.  It's not easier or faster than regular quilting - it's just a different way of approaching quilting.  

I think as the house projects draw to a close, some of these projects will also find their way to the finish line!