Tutorial for Melon Points

I do not pretend to be the best point maker but I have managed to get a few of them nice and pointy so decided to write up how I am doing them now. I wish I had been so attentive in the past. There are 256 melons in the 4 corners of each of the 64 blocks the 1857 Album Quilt. I chose to do the melons instead of the diamonds partly because I could cut them out in minutes with one of my custom GO dies and partly because there are exactly half as many points as there are in the diamonds. My granddaughter had a long weekend sleep over at the farm and she was my photographer and my nurse.

Each block has either a melon or a diamond in each corner and they will come together as a flower.

I gently creased each block on the diagonal then placed the melon in the corner lining it up with the crease on the inside and the corner on the outside. I have decided to cut the blocks the exact size including the seam allowance and plan to stitch them up so the points just touch to create the flower. In other words, I will not be trimming them later.

Using matching thread with a knot, I come up behind the melon at 1/4 inch from the point.

I  crease the point under, pinch with my thumb then take the first stitch through the background.

Now, using the #10 Milliner's needle, I use the point to grab just in the crease and roll it under.

Take a stitch

Pull the point back out making sure it is sufficiently pointy.

And now take the next stitch  holding the crease in place with my thumb.

Photographer selfie.

When I get to the other end, I fold under enough seam so that it is 1/4 inch from the edge of the background.

Then stitch it.

Stitch up to 1/4 inch from the other background edge.

Now take an extra stitch to secure before turning the corner.

Sometimes I clip a bit of the point off. Sometimes I snip off too much. This will make it less bulky.

Getting ready to turn the corner.

Using the tip of the needle, I grab the crease near the last stitch and turn it under being careful to not grab too much or grab the background. Then pinch this crease in place. 

Now holding the crease with my thumb, I take use the tip of the  needle to turn under a second bit. Here it is easy to mess up so be patient and keep going. If you mess up one, there are several hundred more to get it right.

Now, before taking the next stitch, I carefully pull out the point of the double stitch I had already made.

Guess I wasn't quite as careful as I thought. I felt the needle prick my thumb, but Ava spotted the blood and helped me avoid a mess. Speaking of which, if you do get blood on your fabric, your own spit will take it out.

I hope this is helpful. Blessings,
Chris and Ava

Love Entwinrd: 1790 Marriage Coverlet BOM

I first learned of this amazing coverlet in June 2013 and promptly joined the group and started collecting the free patterns for the next 18 months. I initially thought I would use many of the Morris fabrics that I have but thought they needed some more colours. I bought some bright prints that I saw used for some of the applique and Broderie Perse.  I obsessed about background fabric and bought a few rest-of-the-bolt options. I even considered taking the class when I was in Australia last year. Sigh.

 In the end, I never started the thing because I could not decide what colour to make that center mariner's compass. Now I have made one mariner's compass in my quilting journey, but this one is much more detailed. Speaking of details, quilters around the worked posted their progress and each one was more beautiful then the previous and I was still in a quandary. I could not decide so never actually started it. Instead, I started the CCCQ, Ben Biggs,  1718 Coverlet AWS, Dear Jane 2  BTCT, Morrell and 1857 Album and  GORF. However, I did complete my Dear Jane quilt and CCCQ.

And then it occurred to me that I could start with the next stages and add the center compass later since it is appliqued on. A logical thought I have is completing just one block per month per project. That is about 2 blocks per week. It also occurred to me that if I keep starting more quilts, the likelihood of actually completing them gets dimmer and dimmer. And then in the middle of the night I think about stopping work on ALL quilt projects and take a month to focus on other things, like completing the coursework for my doctorate. Remember that? It is self paced with no deadlines. In a week and a half, I am flying out to visit my daughter and the little boy grand babies and this time I am taking 8 year old Ava with me. I figure that she can entertain Jonathan, I can snuggle David and my daughter can get some rest. Maybe. 

1857 prep

I prepped a few more 1857 blocks and stitched down corner melons. These are going to look great when all 64 blocks are eventually connected. Some of those appliques have to be layered so I have the first 6 on the go. I finally moved a card table into the living room and have been stitching while watching tv with my Sweetie. Actually, I was home alone the other day, sick and bored spitless with no internet so watched some daytime tv sit coms. And finally found where to watch American idol since CTV did not pick it up this year.

1857 blocks in progess

 Another project this week has been machine quilting the Blue Roses quilt. So far, I have been stitching in the ditch around all those blocks using the walking foot. Not my favourite part of machine quilting. I moved two 8 foot tables to make an L and have the Brother machine in a craft table in the  middle so there is a flat surface. The tables support all that weight making it easier to move the quilt around.

Blue Roses

Another challenge I am in the middle of is the 40 Bags in 40 Days of getting rid of stuff. So far I have filled 7 really, really big bags with stuff from the back kitchen; got rid of the bread maker I never used and the juicer; several hundred quilt magazines are going out in this week's recycle bins and many items that have an expired best before date. Several bags of unused clothes and  finally threw out my barn clothes since I have been retired from that for more than 4 years. Whew! That's a lot of stuff. 

So now that I have had my rant, a cup of hot honey lemon and a reality check, I do not think I will start the LE BOM right now after all. Esther's progress on LE will be posted on her blog the first Friday of each month and I already belong to the facebook group so can follow along, again. 

Blessings,
Chris

Victoria and Albert Museum Part 3

Here are a few more pictures from our visit in December. 

Some silver, tapestries and glass. I had far more blurry photos that clear.

The silver gallery was amazing. 

This silver tray is so big and heavy, I cannot imagine anyone carrying it empty let alone with and food on it and who keeps all this silver so clean and shiny?

Grand Piano

Tapestries

Glass

Miniatures

Definitely a place to return to.
Blessings,
Chris

Slow Stitching Sunday

Almost 4 year old Elly came over for the long weekend for 3 sleepovers. This morning I got wakened with, "Gramma, Wake Up. Gramma. Wake Up! It's 5 o'clock. Wake Up!". It was closer to 6 so we got up, went out to visit Grampa at the barn for a while, had showers, breakfast, church, shopping, lunch, then she remembered that she wanted to visit that person who lives by Uncle Robert's house. So we went to visit Great-Grandma next door and take her some grapes and cookies.

I have been busy working on some Morrell  blocks. This is my valiant effort at hand piecing an 8 point star that will be appliqued onto a background square.   

Morrell Block # 4

 I prepped several 1857 blocks for back basting needle turn hand applique. It might be my new favourite technique, but I should be a bit more careful to check the front placement before doing all that hand basting. I think I will leave that bit of selvage on the flower. It might look like a bug later. maybe.

1857 Block # 2

 The first 12 blocks are started. I have cut the corner melons with one of my GO dies to needle turn. I am doing the back basting for the designs. Seven patterns have been released so far from sentimental stitches
I cut out the rest of the 64 background squares yesterday and now have a good supply of blocks ready to take babysitting. 

1857 Blocks ready for stitching

 I have finally got the bias wreath ready to stitch down on this Beyond the Cherry Trees block and should have it completed today.

BTCT Block # 12

Blessings,
Chris

Prepping Applique

Ava came over for the weekend. She helped Gramma put the BTCT blocks onto the design wall. Eight are  completed and 8 in process. Same numbers as a few months ago even though I did a lot of stitching in those months.

 A few stems here.

 And a few stems there.

I ran out of stems so have to make lots more. I hunted and hunted for those bias tape makers and do you think I could find them? They were in the designated drawer but I did not see them until the third time through. They were upside down. I found the 1/4 and the 3/4 but where, oh where is the 3/8?

I did 2 more Broderie Perse blocks for my  Morrell.

 I think I am going to like this technique very much.

 I also prepped a few of the first blocks for Gay Bomers newest BOM from Sentimental Stitches called simply The 1857 Album Quilt.

Now I did not plan to start another new quilt this winter, although I have seen several that I want to, but, I reasoned, I have everything I need to make this (except maybe the time) and will not have to purchase anything, so why  not? And, I have been collecting some of those lime green 1800's prints and a few solids from Mary Koval.

I have several pink reproduction left overs from my Dear Jane Quilt, as well as a few pink fat quarters from the Primitive Gatherings bundle that I am not using in BTCT, so I reasoned, why not? Also, I had purchased  14 yards of some Kona Snow on my trip to see the original Jane Stickle quilt. I can cut exactly four 11 inch squares across.

I decided to not use red in this quilt since I have several red and green projects in the go. Speaking of GO, that is how I cut out the 256 corner leaves using one of my custom dies. I knew they would come in handy.
 

This will give me an opportunity to practice the back basting technique that Gay and Brenda highly recommend.

Blessings,
Chris and Ava