Design Wall

I'm doing the Craftsy BOM...my way.  I have read that over 40,000 people have signed up for the free online course.  The instructor is actually based in Denver.  Each month is supposed to help quilters build a particular skill.  I'm not participating for that, although there are some months in the future that feature techniques I've never tried.  I decided to participate because it's free and I was after the social experience.  The online video experience was an interesting experience.  I've followed along with the discussion periodically.....umm.

My blocks are 8" instead of 12" and I've been able to paper piece the January and February blocks.  I used the patterns to draft the blocks.  I didn't feel like slashing and sewing in January.  I decided to make my February blocks with geese units instead of a bunch of HSTs....sue me!  I dug out my collection of skull fabrics and some red, white, black, and grey coordinates.  The kids keep asking me who I'm making it for, why I'm making it, blah, blah, blah.  I don't know.

I have another item on my design wall.  A Twilight T-shirt.

I'm going to try starting my Beyond the Block quilt featuring the shirt.  I'm not sure if I want to use the whole printed picture, though.  I need opinions....  I'm torn.  I don't know why I don't want to include the Nomads?

Sally's Custom Quilts: Twilight Quilt in Progress

Sally has made more progress on the Twilight quilt she is making.  The quilt is really coming together!

Here is the quilt plan:

Sally takes commissions....  She has many designs to choose from, including non-Twilight designs.  She is a pro at designing in Electric Quilt.

Check out her Facebook page for Sally's Custom Quilts.

Chess Match

I don't think it's a very good analogy, but maybe it feels like a chess match when I'm trying to "design" a new pattern for myself.  Having never played chess, I'm probably totally off base.

I had some time on my hands yesterday afternoon so I pulled out my image of the white queen chess piece.  I put Kiefer Sutherland's new Fox series, Touch, on the computer and got busy.  (Totally amazing show, by the way.  I got goose bumps during a couple of scenes and cried.  The episode totally blew me away!)  I missed the episode on the night of its original airing--what did I do before the DVR, On Demand, and the Online Streaming?!

No pressure on myself or anything, but I don't think my brain will allow me to move forward with anything else until I get the Breaking Dawn Chess Piece pattern done.  The block is, I think, the center of my block.  Yep, I know I could just leave a big black square to represent it and go on to other parts..... 

It's a tough one!

I've got to include shading unless I decide to add it with thread upon completion.  The top elements of the piece have to be squared up a bit.  The first line is the toughest.  I think I may move it.  Every line after is drawn from that first line so it's important to make a good decision.  That's the way I do it, at least.

I've been distracted by other quilts.  I've also decided to fully embrace my paper piecing fascination.....or obsession.  Did you know that I convert almost every single pattern I use to be made by paper piecing?  I'm in the middle of Orca Bay, paper pieced, and I Believe in Pink, paper pieced.

Sewing on Paper is under construction...... and soon to be a (dot) com.

126 More to Go....Gulp!

Orca Bay will be the death of me.

I made myself get back to this project.  I tested the pattern I made for the goose unit.  It works!  I did almost make one mistake, though.  I thought the wing unit light was a square, but it is a HST.  I don't much like all the bias edges.....  I dug out my Fons and Porter Triangle Trimmer to cut off the top tips of the wing units before I sewed them which really helps in attaching the units accurately.

Now that I know the pattern works, I'm going to be more efficient by chain sewing.  I'm going to cut up a bunch of the triangles needed for the wings.  I'm sticking with the scrappy example.

I'm planning on working on some other projects to break up the monotony.

I did a test draft of the Breaking Dawn chess pieces in EQ7 that are a part of the focus square for the Breaking Dawn quilt.  It didn't turn out to anything more than a doodle it was so bad and it's not even worth showing.  I'm going to have to work long and hard at the pattern.  I'll probably have to make a hand drawing first.

I think this is the coolest thing:

Zombie Snowflake

My son is really into Zombies.  I think it would make a cool Hawaiian-type of appliqued quilt.....that is, if I appliqued worth a darn.

Sally, Custom/Commissioned (Twilight) Quilter

I still miss being a part of a group on some levels, but don't miss at all the headaches being a part of a group gave me.  I'm sure I'm not missed either.  I'd probably miss a group more if it weren't for the friends I've made lately.

I treasure the connections I've made through blogging, especially through this blog.....

I have a lot of fun chatting with friends about projects.  I'm inspired regularly by their creativity, quilting ability, and friendship.

Sally contacted me a couple of weeks ago for permission to use one of the Twilight Hands patterns for a quilt she was making for a friend.  (Pattern located at Twilight Quilt Patterns)

Of course!!

She's been kind enough to share some of her amazing designs .  Sally uses Electric Quilt to design her quilts.  She makes commissioned quilts as Sally's Custom Quilts.

She is working on this Twilight quilt:

Twilight Hands

Thank you for letting me share!

Design on the Brain

I survived my weekend!  My laptop gasped its last breath.  I conceeded and attached my IPod for the first time to the home computer so I spent some time on Sunday building my playlist.  I lost some music and, honestly, it's going to be too much of a hassle and mind numbing experience to try to recover the songs I'm missing from the back-up drive my husband has saved.  I don't have to worry about my Twilight stuff, though, because it was all there....  Music is really important to me.  I use my IPod at work, to tune out noise at home, and to lift my spirits.  I had taken all my other pictures and important files off the computer previously.

Another weekend without sewing, except to repair my son's Spiderman quilt.  I don't like the method I used and the spider frayed a lot because I was an idiot in the way I stitched the edges down and not understanding that the glue I used wasn't permanent..  Lesson learned!  My son doesn't care so I'm just going to leave it instead of redoing it.

I also thought a lot about how I need to stop messing around and stop making excuses about not getting anything done. 

I've got a design floating around my head that I'm trying think through and be brave enough to work on.  It's another quilt that I dreamt about--a lot like I did with the Stephenie Meyer Quilt.  It's been bouncing around in my mind for a couple of weeks, but I've had a mental block about it.  One of the reasons I've been thinking about it is that I don't feel like I can move forward with any type of quilt unless I have a setting because I need to know block sizes and the other elements I want to include.  I've always wanted to make a quilt that had a border like this:

It's out of one of my favorite books in my library about design,  Rodale's Innovative Piecing.  The book is dated having been published in 2000, but the ideas are sound.  The book is very cool and would be very useful for today's modern quilters and the movement.  The checkerboard is drafted on large graph paper, like from a large tablet flipchart with 1" squares, and then transferred to freezer paper according to the instructions in the book.  The freezer paper drawn sections are cut apart, ironed onto fabric strip sets that have been sewn, cut, and then sewed together in the checkerboard pattern.  I'd like to use the border in a Twilight quilt to represent the Breaking Dawn checkerboard.

I pulled both of my red fabric totes upstairs and printed the patterns so I can start making the red string goose units.  I haven't given up on that quilt.  I can't let those 72 grey string units go to waste....

In Need of Repair

There's a site out there that acts like they've cornered the market on fandom quilts....

I've been a fangirl or one thing or another as long as I've quilted.  I made a Spiderman quilt for my son Zach over eight years ago.  It is one of my favorite quilts that I've ever made.  I really came into my quilting-own with the quilt.  (I also made a Strawberry Shortcake quilt for my daughter, Sarah, about the same time.)  I used paper piecing patterns to construct the blocks, even the tradtional blocks.  The quilt pattern wasn't my own and I didn't attribute the design on the quilt label....shame on me! I had both quilts professionally quilted by Top Quilters.  The silvery thread that was used is awesome!








For more of my first quilts go here and some opportunity quilts go here.

The kids quilts have been well loved.  When you give a quilt to a kid, you've got to figure that something is going to happen to make you cringe.  Sarah spilled nailpolish on her quilt.  Zachary ripped a patch in his that I've never fixed.

A friend suggested a long time ago that I fix it by placing a spider over the holes.

Today I'm going to machine applique a Spiderman logo spider.  Fortunately, the fabric is only ripped on the front of the quilt.  I think a spider will work...

Another Favorite Designer

My daily life is still in a state of upheaval.  I've spent the past couple of days dealing with family issues and just doing all the regular mom things that keep me so busy...too busy for anything else.  I only share this as to explain the distinct lack of anything creative from me.

I'd like to share another one of my favorite paper piecing pattern designers:

Claudia's Quilts (Claudia Hasenbach)

Claudia is German.  Her designs are uber fabulous!  She has a patternshop and appears to accept payments by PayPal, although I have never purchased.

Of note, is her Big Quilt of Nature.  The patterns for that quilt, 80 blocks, are sold in sets are are very reasonably priced!

The series of birds for this quilt are being offered as a free BOM.

The first bird in the series is a SWAN!!!

I hope to get back to things soon.....

Blue Skies by Blue October