Row By Row

 I'd forgotten how slow it can be to piece small pieces of fabric. Even DH asked why it was taking so long to work on this piece when i can finish off large quilts very quickly. Of course the quilts I finish quickly are not usually made up of pieces this small and using either light or dark scraps means there's not a lot of decision time required. This is actually a medallion quilt and not a row by row but at the moment I'm slowly piecing all the fabric into 2.5" hourglass blocks. Progress is slow but if I keep going it will soon be finished.
I'm using modern fabrics for an antique quilt and I'm trying to re-create the difference between tones as they appear in the original. The last round doesn't show as much variation between the two fabrics but in the original quilt there are also some rows without a lot of contrast between the fabrics. The next round will have a plainer fabric with cream. Cutting the fabric into small pieces means that I have less background showing but I hope it will be OK when it's finished.

I have 3 more rounds the same as these and then I start on the larger pieces. In the meantime I'm off to bed as I have night shift again tonight.
 Sew long.
Jan Mac

A Little Time for Me

 I started the day well by finishing off the top made from Split Nine Patch 4" blocks. I sewed for quite a while last night and got almost all the blocks done so today I only needed to make 2 more blocks and then join them together. Aesthetically I prefer to add a narrow border in a feature fabric and then add a darker border 4 to 5" in width. However this one is a donation quilt, it's large enough at 44" x 64", and I didn't have any suitable fabric for the border. I even used left over binding in greens which worked with the colours in the blocks.

 I had received a lot of these floral squares which are 4.5" in size so I used them as the dark side of the half square triangles. You think you'll use up lots of fabric when you make a quilt but the stack of 4" squares has hardly decreased in size at all.

 It was a good way to use up some of those older scraps though and I \will be able to make lots more before I run out of squares. These have been sitting here for too long and it's good to get them made into quilts and donated. Even the less pretty (or downright ugly) fabric still looks OK when the pattern depends on tone rather than colour and using dark or light fabric allows me to use up lots of different scraps.

Finally this afternoon, after quilting and binding the donation quilt, I made time to get one of my projects out to work on. My Melbourne quilting group is making a reproduction of an Australian quilt made in the 1800s and there is going to be a display of them at our exhibition on the 5th and 6th of April 2014, so I need to get mine finished soon. Until today I was up to the last border of rust and cream but had only sewn one side of the border. It's a bit tedious making all the small triangles which measure 2.5" square but it's best to just keep going as it's harder to get motivated again after putting it away for a while. Others are making their Elizabeth Legacy quilts in reproduction fabrics but I decided to use my Australian wildflower fabric, designed by Leesa Chandler.
I'll keep going with it again tomorrow before I work nights again so maybe I can get another border or two finished.
Hugs, Jan Mac

The Best Laid Plans

 I don't know why I make a decision to work on a particular project as I seem to work much better when I choose one on the spur of the moment. I had decided to get a few more donated tops quilted before the next shipment of quilts leaves here. I loaded a top on the machine and it immediately locked up. The needle was down and I couldn't move the machine at all. Luckily my handy DH, took the machine apart and found a stray piece of broken needle had lodged in the bobbin case.

In the meantime I stitched some more Split Nine Patch blocks from my bin of 2.5 " squares. Then I was running out of light coloured squares so I decided to make some with my 4" squares as it will make another nice donation quilt and they go together quickly.

 Luckily for me, I was able to get my quilting machine working again and there was time to quilt two tops and bind them. I plan to make some more Split Nine Patch blocks this evening and hope to get another top finished soon.

I know I keep planning to work on my projects but it's a good thing to get more donated quilts finished so the needy will receive a nice gift for Christmas. Many thanks to everyone who made and donated QAYG blocks and quilt tops. They will all be finished and donated on your behalf. Hopefully I can quilt more tops tomorrow now that my machine is playing nicely again.
Hugs, Jan Mac

Feeling Scrappy

 The split nine patch blocks are fun to work on and a great way to use up 2.5" squares. It's mindless sewing and perfect for when i'm too tired to work on a more intricate piecing project.
  Today was busy with getting my haircut, shopping for clothes etc for my next trip so not a lot of sewing time again. This morning I did get another QAYG quilt put together from donated blocks so the pile of donation quilts is growing. Hopefully tomorrow will see me with more time to sew. I need to sew my sister's quilt but I didn't feel like it today so hopefully I can work on it over the next few days before I work nights again.
Bye for now, Jan Mac

A Slower Day But Progress

 This afternoon was spent on family activities so I didn't get as much sewing done as I had hoped for But I still made some progress. I finished off another quilt from donated QAYG blocks.
 Yesterday I received a set of QAYG blocks and binding from Maria of WA http://maria-lifeontheblock.blogspot.com.au
 Maria very kindly cut, pressed and joined the binding strips and it was so easy to finish off the quilt.

 I finished the quilt today and it went together very quickly. Many thanks for your donation and all your work with the blocks and binding, Maria.

 I also made some more QAYG blocks as the pile is dwindling. I need to work on some of my UFOs and hope to spend the next few days finishing off my sister's quilt for her 60th birthday. It's only 2 years past its due date and I want to get it done before my next big trip.

I love to travel and have another overseas trip planned for 3 weeks time. I'll tell you where very soon. I really wish I was in Houston for the Quilt Festival to see all the fabulous quilts and will definitely be heading over again in the future.
 Thanks for stopping by.
Hugs, Jan Mac

Scrap Play

 One of the reasons I've been busily sorting and cutting scraps is because I've bought some of Bonnie Hunter's books. She has some very intricate quilts pieced from small scraps and i started some of the blocks using 1.5" squares. The quilt uses 400 squares and I have made 8 so far! Hopefully I'll get some more sewn up very soon.

I'm still feeling sleep deprived after working an extra night shift so I didn't push myself too much to get more blocks sewn. I also finished off another QAYG quilt to donate. Linda asked how many I have finished recently and I'll have to count them when I have time. I think I have at least 30 to donate now.
Thanks for stopping by.
Hugs, Jan Mac

Visiting Scrap City Again

 The house seems to have been taken over by scraps and piles of fabrics sorted into their sizes as either squares or half square triangles. I decided that I needed to finish off my current scrappy project so I finished this top and just need to add borders and then quilt.

 I enjoyed making these blocks so much that I've also started on another quilt top from them. It will probably be a baby quilt as I want to practice my free motion quilting on some smaller quilts, using my domestic sewing machine.

 I also started my new leaders/enders blocks- a split nine patch and they are going together quickly.

 Yesterday was spent tidying the scraps but I did find time to quilt and bind two more donation quilts.

I'm off to sleep now as I am working nights again. I can see lots of scrappy or multi-fabric quilts in my future as the scrap bins are overflowing now and I have more scraps to sort. I need to finish off more WIPs but it's fun to use up the scraps and re-visit some fabric I've previously loved and used.
 Hugs, Jan Mac