My Great Down Under Adventure Part 1

It is hard to believe that I have been in Australia for a whole week. I went to the AQC on Friday and would you believe I forgot to pull out my camera and take pictures!! I had my camera with me. I got to meet my blogging friend  Carole  and we had  dinner the Thurs night with six other quilters and no less than 4 of them are dairy farmers. I just cannot get away from cows. I took a make and take workshop in Paper Piecing. Not to confuse it with foundation piecing like I am used to doing. It was in English Paper Piecing with hexie papers. Will I get hooked? Not sure at this point. But one of those dairy farmers,  Linda White , gave me a copy of her book Eleanor Jean. This quilt has no less than 22 thousand 5 hundred quarter inch fussy cut, hand stitched, hand quilted EPP hexagons and was awarded the Australia National Quilt Award 2014 by Bernina.  I just might consider it.

I got to meet some quilt icons like Jinny Beyer and Di Ford.
I did make it to Castlemaine and was warmly greeted by Sammy with a kiss. Cheeky fella. Does he do that to all the girls that visit Threadbear Patchwork?

I did not receive quite as warm a welcome from Bella the 22 month old baby Koala at the Gorge Wildlife Park in Adelaide.

I had 2 farm stays on Guernsey farms and the quilter in me sees potential patterns everywhere. This is a ceiling mold on one of the 12 foot ceilings in the century farm house. 

And this is another. Can you just picture those hearts surrounding a center medallion?

Far far away blessings,
Chris

More Hand Applique

For Slow Stitching Sunday I am showing my progress on this BTCT block # 24. Several months ago, I started by placing the leaves. I like how they are relaxed and not really centered formally. I drew in the stem lines with a blue disappearing pen and stitched them in 2 weeks ago.

Last week I cut out the yellow flowers using freezer paper. I drew the whole flower on and marked where the petals meet the stem. Then I cut out each flower with a scant 1/4 inch seam allowance. I will clip the inny curves of the petals when I start stitching each one.

 Then, I cut out the middle sections of freezer paper and ironed them onto the right side of the pink and then cut them out with a scant seam allowance. Those chopped off ends will help line the petals up.

 The yellow flower backs are in position. I did NOT draw on the flower shape. That is all determined by how much I actually turn under when I needle turn it. I stopped drawing the shape onto the leaves a long time ago.  The plan is to do a reverse applique circle in the center of each. And there will be a double circle in the very center.

I had to double check the original to see if that pink flower top really was so off-set and it was. This is one of the applique blocks I will be taking with me to Australia when I leave late tomorrow night, unless I forget all the things on my to-do list and just keep stitching.

Relaxed Blessings,
Chris

Getting Ready for My Trip to Australia

I am starting to pack my bags for my first ever trip Down Under. I am trying to not get too too excited because I still have lots to get done before I fly out early Tues morning.
We have a work crew here at the Farm for 2 days trimming cows feet before they go out onto the pastures. The cows, not the workers. That means 4 extra mouths to feed. The workers not the cows.
And the accountant is coming to do the taxes next week, but I will  not be here!! My daughter-in-law is my bookkeeper and she is taking care of it. Three year old Elly is coming to the Farm for the weekend so mom and dad can do some painting. Elly might help me pack or not.
The weather forecast keeps promising 18C and sun but we are still at plus 2C and rain. Rain is good in the spring. Something about April showers. Anyway, the rains warm up the ground and melt the frost in the ground, which by the way, was 2-3 feet deep this winter. 

I promised  Carole that I would bring along my Antique Wedding Sampler (AWS) block # 1 with me to work on. Well, here it is so far.

I signed up for the Block of the Month from Homestead Hearth. The next bundle of kits will probably arrive when I am away. I might have to do some explaining to my husband when he picks up the mail. I still have 4 days so maybe, just maybe, I can get the pieces cut out ready so I can learn to do some hand piecing. I wonder if I can find someone at the The Australasian Quilt Convention & Expo next week to show me? Now I have something to look for. Glad I thought of it.

Pieceful Blessings,
Chris

Machine Applique Experience

I attended the annual meeting of the Canadian Guernsey Breeders yesterday and had to have some hand work to work on. So, I finally cut out the 100 plus corner buds and leaves for the Ben Biggs BOM. Good thing I took along 2 different pair of scissors.  I  used the larger pair to cut out the buds with their smooth lines. I used the smaller ones to cut the fussy leaves. I noticed more than a few pair of farmer's eyes watching my hands. Too bad I did not bring along several extra pairs of scissors and ask for help. I had a dent in my right thumb by the time I was done.

Corner buds fuseable

A year ago, I photocopies several pages of buds and leaves onto wash-away fuseable. I had planned to blitz this step and get ahead on the corner buds. I stacked 4 sheets together and pinned some and stapled others. There are 4 corner buds in each block for a total of 100. And, there are more in the border, about 40 and now I see that a couple of the blocks have this same motif in them. I hope I have enough prepped.

master copy

I decide to do this BOM by machine applique using the wash-away fuseable. I initially thought I could do a raw edge machine applique, but the first block was a disaster so started over and am doing a turned under edge. Needless to say, this is taking some a lot more time than I had planned on. I could not make up my mind just what colour to do those buds. Will they all be the same colour? Will they be scrappy? I do not do scrappy very well. I like order and symmetry which is why I like sampler quilts so much. There will be buds since, in my mind, this is what makes the Ben Biggs wedding quilt so special.
 

prepping the leaves

This week I finally got block # 11 prepped and ready for machine applique. I had initially used a different red with a blue print floral print but this is one of only 2 blocks that has yellow so I changed it.

Ben Biggs #11

Also, I got started on the Bed of Blue Roses. I quickly considered all the UFOs in my quilt cupboard, so neatly organized in labeled boxes and decided that I would complete this one for a wedding later this summer. Did I just write the word "summer"? Spring has finally arrived with warmer weather and rain and purple crocuses.

Lancaster Rose

As I was sorting through the box,  found that I had 4 blocks already glued under. I still have to adjust some of the elements. I am using 4 blues and 4 greens on a very crisp tone in tone white background with a nap. I can be ingenious with my impulsiveness. It will be interesting how I do the final block arrangement with this in mind.
 

Democrat Rose

The pattern is Rosemary Makhan's Rose Sampler Supreme. The first time I saw this pattern was at a quilt show more than 21 years ago. I bought it while it was still in the full layout on newsprint sheets before it was published in book form. This has made it more convenient for lay out. I started one in pinks. The plan was to do each block in different pinks and greens. Did I say I don't do scrappy very well? I was just learning how to do machine applique. Why oh why, did instructors back then insist that the "proper" way to do machine applique was with monofilament thread on top and lingerie thread in the bobbin?? That is one of the things that has slowed me down. It just was not working in my Bernina machine. 
 

Tudor Rose

I had started this quilt 6 years ago thinking I could easily do a block a day and get it done in 20 days plus the double swag border. Huh. I decided to blitz the preparations and made clear over-lays for each of the blocks. Don't really like doing applique that way now that I have given it a try. I cut out all the freezer paper shapes and ironed them onto the back of the fabric AND cut out all the fabric shapes. The memory of this reminds me why I invested in the GO applique dies.
Anyway, school and life got in the way and I started Dear Jane and now fast forward 6 years and here I am.

Wild Rose

It looks like I even tried some fussy cutting thinking it might almost look like broderie perse. I have learned a lot in the past few years. I still have to place those small leaves correctly. I am now considering what stitches I will use. I have some Bottom Line thread in light and dark blue. 

Indiana Rose

So this is what I am thinking about my applique experience. I started doing applique with freezer paper on the back with edges glues under. I stitched it by hand, pushing the needle through with a thimble. This did not make my arthritic hands happy. Machine applique was complicated the way I was taught. I learned needle turned hand applique a few years ago in a Baltimore class with Kathy Dunigan, but did not progress very far on that project.  I will revisit it when life slows down a bit. It is when I started the CCCQ and made the switch to needle turn, that I have finally got it. What I love about the BTCT quilt is that the placement of the leaves and flowers is so relaxed and forgiving. The Rose Sampler blocks above are all set in perfectly and symmetrically and all the flowers and leaves have to be exactly the same all around. I am so glad I have learned to relax. And I cannot believe how much applique I have accomplished in the past 18 months.

Easter Blessings,
Chris

Bed of Blue Roses

A few years ago I impulsively bought a half yard fabric bundle at a quilt show. Not surprising for me. I thought Rosemarie Makhan's Rose Sampler Supreme would look lovely in the blues and greens. The plan was to make a block a day for 20 days and get the thing done quickly. The story of my life. I ended up putting it in a box, went to India, then started Dear Jane. Fast forward 5 years and DJ is complete but this was still in the box. I mentally went through some of the UFOs that are neatly stored in my quilt cupboard and considered one that I was willing to complete and part with as a wedding quilt. This one is the winner.

Bed of Blue Roses

I had cut out all the background blocks and borders, then traced and cut all the freezer paper flower and leaf shapes. This is long before I bought the GO dies to do just that exact same task. I have most of the fabric shapes cut out and a few are turned under and ready to place. I had traced overlays for each of the 20 blocks. Everything that is needed to complete it is in the box, including threads and the already cut swags for the border.

I have had my face into red and green applique for the past 18 months, so this will be a refreshing change of scenery. My goal is to have all the applique pieces prepped and laid out on the background blocks before I leave for Australia. If I get at the machine applique before then, it will be a bonus. It will be quilted by machine in sections. And absolutely NO cross hatching. The deal here is, that I do not have to do any thinking, or planning. All that is done and I just have fun working on it. Or so I tell myself.

I am almost finished the final edit on my book before submitting in to the publisher and I am a few short hours away from submitting a course. My physio therapy homework this week is to stand up straight and breathe at the same time. This is no small task considering that my diaphragm has been cramped up for so long. I have lost 18 lbs so nearly half way to my 2015 goal of weight loss. Spring is here and I can do almost anything.

Rosy Blessings,
Chris

Stitching With My Hands Brings Healing

I love spending time at my sewing machine. But so often, as I spend time at my sewing machine, I have to engage my thinking ability as I figure out a pattern. It can be intense as my eye has to watch the needle while machine quilting or matching corners. And sometimes just sewing a straight line can be a challenge. I am presently working on a doctorate and have to read and write. I am editing the manuscript for the story of my journey with a handicapped child. And I spend time blogging and connecting with people on facebook. As a result, I spend hours on my computer with my brain engaged.

In the past year and a half, I have discovered that hand applique brings healing to my spirit and rest to my often over worked mind. I am almost finished the chester criswell quilt that I started Sept 2013. There will be a total of 33 blocks. There are still 3 blocks to be released. Completing this quilt is on my 2015 goals.

CCCQ

I used to do applique using freezer paper on the back of the fabric shapes and gluing the seam allowance under. The glue dried hard and I had to use a thimble to push the needle through. This was stressful on my arthritic fingers. Now, with needle turned hand applique, the needle just glides through the cotton and begs to keep on stitching for hours.

I started the beyond-the-cherry-trees-album-quilt in June 2014 and have 6 blocks completed and 10 on the go. I prep similar elements on several blocks at a time so I have something to pick up when I want to sit back and mull over things I am working on, or to just relax as I listen to some worship music before going to bed. I like to have a gramma's bag ready to take babysitting my little girl grandchildren.

BTCT

I found a very interesting post on facebook this morning extolling the meditative benefits of such repetitive and "monotonous" activities of hand crafts such as quilting, knitting, and even colouring at christianity today.

 "As my mind and hands work together, following a pattern or improvising, I find my spirit soothed, my anxious thoughts subsided, my mind free to think and even to pray." 

This is so true. It is worth taking a few minutes to read. As a student of psychology and Christian counseling, I have often stated that quilting, especially the handwork, is a healing activity. This is one of the reasons that I open my quilt room to others and invite them in to experience a morning of refreshment here, where we Quilt at the Farm. 

Hand Work Blessings,
Chris

Sarah Morrell Album Quilt

Someone asked me about the Morrell Quilt and then I just threw it out there on facebook and got some interesting discussion going. I purchased the pattern a year ago from Threadbear.
I have collected some fabrics and a background and am resisting the urge to impulsively jump in and start the thing.  Every once in a while I pull out the box and sort through the fabrics and I have read over the pattern a couple of times to get an overview.

So, I have written it in (in ink) in my January 2016 daytimer to begin. The CCCQ will soon be complete after the final 3 blocks are released. The 1718 Coverlet is an 11 month QAL which will take me to December 2015. And Ben Biggs will offer the last of 25 blocks in January 2016. Sounds perfectly logical to me. There is no time line for the BTCT so I can enjoy it whenever I want. I have 3 wedding quilts to machine quilt and one of them is only half made so far. I committed to a publishing contract and will  submit  my Denine manuscript this month. The sun is shining today and there is mud in my yard. Lovely, gooey, stinky mud. Oh, I almost forgot, the Antique Wedding Sampler BOM from Homestead Hearth just began. I got the first block and the background in the mail and it will go until April 2016. 

Yes. I can do anything on a day like today.

Logical Blessings,

Chris