Echoes

C5 - Echoes

Echoes was one of my favourite blocks when making Raconteur.  Carol made it using English Paper Piecing which to me would be tricky considering how skinny each of the strips are. I still prefer regular hand sewing. I suppose with the EPP you wouldn't end up with as much fabric in the seam allowances or even if you did have a lot of seam allowance it may behave better.  I can remember this block was a tricky one for pressing.

The name is quite obvious I tossed up between Echoes and Ripples as both seemed appropriate.

Friends or Enemies

C6 Enter With Care

C6 Fake Hands

Two more delightful blocks from Carol. Can you see the cat faces peeking out in the first block, Enter With Care. Definitely a warning to the birds who linger in the area..and are those paw prints in the mustard background fabric.  A lovely mix.

The second block, Fake Hands was made as I watched some children play. The playground can be such a cruel place, while they pretended to play with the first child as I watched I noticed a few children were actually taking toys from this child rather than sharing as the others did... fake friends, fake hands of friendship. The first child appeared too timid to protest 

Scatterday I

 Next fortnight's fun is brought to one and all by the letter I, supported by money (that is something everyone would love to be supported by), tools, metal and in your sewing room inchies.

See you same place on 2nd March, without fail.

Scatterday T - Anyone for lunch?

 Last Tuesday as I toiled at my trusty tredle machine piecing this tiny two inch hexagon titled Terri's Triumph I took a gander (look) through a translucent opening (window) and spied a talkative terror tarrying for his tasty lunch (tadpole spawn) to transort (do something...like hatch perhaps).
As for the threads I don't have a tailer and ender task at this time and so have been stitching across this tiny scrap when I reach the end of my stitching.

Curves - oh what fun!

C16 Bull's Eye

Last week Carol ventured onto some of the curved blocks. Now while I pieced these in the original quilt Carol decided to use machine applique and boy is she accurate with it. You need to look closely to see her stitches and they are really well done.

C13 Nature's Force

What do you think of her gorilla in Bull's Eye. It is a shame but there are people who do think a gorilla is a perfect target. When will it end? 

With Nature's Force she has again used the flying birds for background and it appears as though the central fans are definitely wreaking havoc with their flights.

C16 Ravishing Rhonda

Ravishing Rhonda, named after a most wonderful and caring person, was made using EPP for the central star and then the darker frame was appliqued around this. Love the colours.

C13 Norwegian Wind

And in Norwegian Wind we again have the perfect choice of fabrics the dark grey suggesting a tumultuous wind surrounding torrid fires.  I don't think Norway really has much of a problem with fires though as a google didn't bring up many instances, unlike our home of Australia.

Testing Linkies

Hi To make it easier for people to check out who has uploaded a post for the current Scatterday I have added a linky post to the sidebar. It is easy. Write your post and publish it. Copy your blog address from the address bar. Come back here and click on the bit that says 'submit your link' and then add the info they ask for. For link title just put your name or something short, otherwise it overlaps the next link. I am unable to work out how to put the links one under the other.
Fingers crossed.... it worked when I tried it:) although it did take a few minutes for the link to show up.

BOM 2 - The Rice Pickers

C2 The Rice Pickers

Well I am finally organised and for what you may ask... Well my new Block of the Month series. Starting the first of April I will be running a BOM. Each month, hopefully on the first day of the month, but at the lastest sometime in the first week I will be putting up on my website one miniature hexagon for free or almost free. 

Rice Pickers is our first BOM. I pieced this block whilst travelling around Asia one evening after having travelled past an area covered in tiers of what I was told were rice fields. What a back breaking test that would be.

Perfect Timing

C9 When Two Are One

Just received another block from Carol and of course being Valentine's Day it had to be a heart. I wonder if she received any roses as it appears as these are definitely her favourites.

This block was named after my darling husband, as with him we are not two but as one. It has been a great life we have had together and I I have been very lucky.

Life's Contrasts

C8 City Living

C9 The Clouds of Denali

In these two blocks you see the contrast of our lives. The cramped busy conditions of City Living as opposed to the wide open spaces that surround the majestic mountains of Alaska of which Denali stands so high its peak is often hidden by the clouds.

DAGMT & 13 in 13

Well this has been a busy month and I have managed to sew for at least 20 minutes on just about everyday but have had no chance of actually uploading what I have done. So as a quick recap here goes.

1. The photo to the left shows some of the quilting which I have been doing.  For the first four days I completed 20 mins each day on this quilt, Terri's Treat. Now I know the quilt doesn't look like much but this is actually the back. I figured you wouldn't see my quilting on the front and so have included the back photo. 

Over the four days I used the same pebble pattern, trying both going along the length of the strip and going backwards and forwards. I found that I was actually better when I went along the length which surprised me. Also that 20 minutes was my limit for effort, after that I became sloppy wanting to finish more than wanting to make something worthwhile. The second photo shows the detail on the front.

2. The next thing I did was to add the binding to two quilts. I had been given the blocks, had then added the sashing and border. My friend Terri quilted them and then I added the binding to this one, A Summer Frock (that's another project in my 13 in 13 challenge also!)

3. The final thing that I did was to make a pillowcase backing for Snippets, the first mini quilt in the Raconteur series. 

This also means that I have finished another  project for my 13 in 13 challenge. So I only have nine to go.

Angry Bird - Carol Le Maitre

Well it is easy to guess which app Carol likes best on her phone.  That facial expression is perfect.  

Oh I didn't design this Carol did but I love it and it follows totally along with the idea behind Raconteur. It is a collection of stories about the maker.

English Paper Piecing Trials

C5 Mums Among the Gold

C5 Mums Among The Gold

Carol has always preferred to use English Paper Piecing for her patchwork and so decided to try some of the Raconteur designs with this method. Her first effort while looking great was a bit big and so after a bit of research I discovered that if I scaled the patterns slightly she would be able to cut the paper foundations directly from the patterns and so our adventure began. 

C5 Baby Blue

We have finally worked out that 200gsm paper gives her the best results, since this is strong enough for her to fold the fabric over and glue in place, guaranteeing sharp points and perfect joins.

Carol made two Mums Among the Gold blocks as she was trialling the EPP method and her second block is spot on in both size and pointy points. This bloc and Baby Blue were named from the fabrics that I used in the original quilt, crysanthemums with gold on white background for one and blue on white for the other. 

C5 Pointing The Finger

Isn't Pointing the Finger bright. To me it suggested people turning their back on someone as it to indicate that person was the culprit of something and they wanted nothing to do with them..a cruel world at times.

Scatterday T

My the things we do when we have too much time on our hands. For this week the categories are  # Tasty # Tiny # Terrifying # Threads              and no I didn't change the category types to T words... my husband did.

Publication date is 16th February. 

Scatterday Q - A night in the life of the quilter.

In the quiet of the night, as the clock ticked quelve,  the Quilting Queen quilted a quick quilt, while quelling her hunger and quivering over healthy Quaker oats served with homemade quince jam.

Remembering Summer

Blackberry Freedom

Birds at the Window

Summer's Day

All three of these blocks were made at the same time during a visit to Queensland one Summer.  As we relaxed inside my brother-in-law's home there was a bird which in the heat lost its bearings and crashed with an all mighty bang into the window.  Don't you love Carol's choice of fabrics for this one:)

Blackberry Freedom was a reminder of the times when as  child we would go blackberry picking and eat so many we returned home with mouths all coloured from the juices. Mum would make a pie with lattice strip pastry across the top, if we had returned with enough berries.. a wonderful Summer's Day.

Three Down - Ten to go

Well another quilt down.  This quilt was given to me by a friend who didn't like how she had orientated the sashing.  So I added the border, Terri quilted it and I added the binding. Viola another quilt down. This one has sat on my spare bed for over a year and if Terri hadn't helped it would still be there. Next project will be Terri's Treats.  I am moving them..slowly but surely.

DropAndGiveMeTwenty

Well as I have so little to fill in my time I thought I would join this challenge.  Hottie Haven is running her second annual Drop and Give Me 20 quiltathon here.  To participate you need to commit to quilt for at least twenty minutes every day of February... good thing it is the shortest month as that is fits in with my usual attention span...short.                        As I am also trying to finish thirteen quilts in thirteen I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to join two events with one effort..well any effort is a plus some days.

I am hoping that with my twenty minutes a day I can finish quilting Terri's Treats.  I have already totally ditch-stitched it, even had it published in a magazine, but now I will actually use it to improve my free motion quilting skills. So I will use my 20 minutes a day to work my way around the quilt actually filling all of the blocks.

If I finish Terri's Treats then I will hopefully finish off my modified Double Wedding Ring. This quilt was started in 2005, I think and is almost complete.  The photo shows the top section and I have a smaller section that joins onto the bottom.  I love the back, the oranges and yellows, but can't for the life of me understand what made me use those particular colours, green and purple, for the front.  I was probably at a stage where I was determined to get rid of all of my hand dyed fabrics and figured they would look good when combined.  Note to self - if fabrics don't thrill me before joining they won't thrill me after joining. Anyway those are my two targets for the DaGMT challenge.

If you want to join click on the link to the side, read the event outline and give it a go.  The only think it can hurt is your UFO pile.

Two Down - Eleven to go

Well isn't it cute.  My son's girlfriend wanted a tea cosy with pom poms and so after several experiments I finally finished this one. It is adapted from a pattern a friend gave me.

Want to make one.  It's very easy after the first set of baubles.

Materials
2 balls 8 ply wool
1 set of needles 4.5mm or whatever you need to get the correct tension
blunt needle for sewing

Tension over the design
3 repeats will give 10cm height and a 10cm width.

Final size (if your tension is correct)
circumference of teapot 46 cm, or flat about 40cm
height 20cm

Directions
Cast on 37 stitches

Ribbing
Row 1: K1, *P2, K1; repeat from * to end
Row 2: K3, *P1, K2; repeat from * to last stitch, K1
Row 3 = Row 1
Row 4 = Row 2

Pattern
Row 1: K1, (P2, M2, K1, M2, P2, K1) repeat 6 times = 61 stitches
Row 2: K10, (P1. K9) repeat 5 times, K1
Row 3: K1, (P2, K5, P2, K1) repeat 6 times
Row 4: K10, (P1. K9) repeat 5 times, K1
Row 5: K1, (P2, K5, P2, K1) repeat 6 times
Row 6: K3, (P5 tog, K2, P1, K2) repeat 5 times; (P5 tog, K3) once... 37 stitches
Row 7: K1, (P2, K1, P2, M2, K1, M2) repeat 4 times, (P2, K10) twice ... 57 stitches
Row 8: K3, (P1. K9) repeat 4 times, P1, K3
Row 9: K1, (P2, K1, P2, K5) repeat 4 times; (P2, K1) twice
Row 10 = Row 8
Row 11 = Row 9
Row 12:  K3, (P1, K2, P5 tog, K2) repeat 4 times; (P1, K3) once... 37 stitches
Repeat rows 1 to 12, 3 times and then rows 1 to 6, one more time .. 42rows pattern

Make two pieces as above

Top Ribbing
Repeat ribbing as per base of the teapot for 16 rows
Cast off.

Pom Poms
Make two pom poms using 2.5cm rings. Leave long tail.

Finishing off
Using a blunt needle join the side seams; sew up from the bottom three cm and down from the top 10cm, adjust if necessary to suit your own tea pot handle and spout.
Thread the pom pom tails onto blunt needle and thread through the 4th row above the top of the last bauble. Pull top in and tie off.

Have fun.

Collection 3 - Carol Le Maitre

Fox Pawed

 Yet another seven blocks completed. It is great to see all of Carol's bright colours. So different from what I started with. Raconteur was supposed to be my first pastel quilt.  About thirty blocks into it I discovered that I was not a pastel person and so although I tried to primarily work with pastels I ended up using many birght pastels. I love the sense of adventure which Carol shows with her choice of colours.

So where did the names come from for these blocks?

After the Showers

Fox Pawed was named after I accidentally cut some of the fabrics from the wrong fabric and so had to work out a new design with the pieces. Friends of mine at uni had lived in a house they called Fox Paw Manor a play on the french faux pas and I have always remembered this and call errors fox paws with friends.

Burning Bright

After the Showers was completed one afternoon as I relaxed at home watching the birds come to life and foraging for food after a long wet spell.  The bow ties resembled their wings and the central start their prey.

Burning Bright appeared to me like the explosions from the midngiht fireworks of New Year's Eve.

Ketchikan Jewels

On a trip to Alaska one year I purchase a few bags of coloured pebbles as I collect strange things at times. These small pebbles sparkle so and are used in one of our board games and so Ketchikan Jewels  was named.

One to the Left

One to the Left was named because it was another error and the outer blocks were supposed to be placed outside of the kite but as I didn't have the design with me when I was sewing it I put it where I thought it belonged but that was one spot to the left.

Paprika

 Paprika reminded of the spice of the same name, hot and sweet. And last but not least is Raspberry Swirl, why are so many of my blocks named after food... probably because I love food and sweets in particular:) 

Raspberry Swirl

These are definitely a gorgeous collection and should look great when finally sewn together into a full quilt.

Scatterday Q

What a quaint letter to baffle even the most hardy of scatterers and the categories are
#  a plant
#  nighttime
#  something healthy
#  and for something quilty how about something quick
Posting day is 2nd February

Scatterday R - The Festive Season

Well Xmas has come and gone yet again and during the festive time I thought it was high time that the whole fat man in the red suit package should be reassessed for future viability. Is he up with the times or just a relic of a bygone day?

Before you read this post there is a question you need to ponder - what is the difference between a moose and a reindeer?

In our small rural community  Santa has advanced with the times and rather than the old tired sleigh he now regularly avails himself of the red Rural Fire Services vehicle. Here he is seen offering lollies to the local children...hmmm!

His reindeer appears quite content to rest in the rear area, but where are the others?  Two days later we visited a local animal refuge where we discovered the others.  These animals were almost straining at the fence for any morsel of nourishment..perhaps the rural fire services vehicle had been used because of necessity rather than a modernising action....hmm!

Is it possible they all are tired from alternate employment.  I am certain that if I had to pull a completely laden sleigh around the entire world in just a mere 24 hours I would need the other 364 days of the year to recover but it appears as though this may not be the situation. Recently in Norway my son purchased the latest in modern kitsch lighting.  This is not an ordinary reindeer/moose light. This is in reality a remote controlled reindeer light. So now the reindeer are required to model in their free time.  
 
And what is the state of the situation when poor Santa with his red hat must also do second shift as a resplendent pin cushion. Things must be dire in the north pole.

And for the answer to the question... reindeer can fly.