Quilt Planning...Plan Quilting

I sit down to write a blog post every few months. The post makes it to the draft stage, I go hunting for photos, get distracted, and that's the end of that.

I am determined to get this one posted. Just like I am determined to get organised this year.

The Quilters Planner was to be my saviour. So let's just ignore the fact it's more than mid-way through April and celebrate a finish.

So what do you need to get organised? Cover the planner comes to mind...

This zippy cover tutorial is provided on the Quilters Planner website and was easy...and more importantly...fun to make.

Confession time...I hoard selvedges. This just seemed to be the most perfect use for them, and the way it's turned out...well let's just say that I can't wipe the silly grin off my face.

Front of the zippy planner cover

Back of the zippy planner cover

Somewhere or other, I'm sure I've mentioned that I have a predilection for paisley...not the first pattern that comes to mind for modern quilters...but if I'm going to get maximum use out of this planner, there had to be paisley somewhere in the cover.

Several years ago I impulse bought (confession number two: nothing has changed over the years), some fabrics from the "Cuteville Country Fair" range, mostly because of the red and blue colourways of the paisley.
I've used it for the inside front and back flap covers and the contrast gingham and triangle patterns make me very happy.

Inside front flap cover

Inside back flap cover

The cover has a zip pouch at the front, a pocket on each inside flap, a needle minder on the inside front. There's a scissor minder and business card sized pocket...credit cards fit too... on the back. The obligatory measuring tape twill bookmark is there too...and elastic to hold it closed.
I am convinced all that stuff that will make me churn out quilts at an alarming rate...

So now I have the outside all sorted...time to make a start on using the inside...

thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

Paisely...Blogtoberfest Day 29

A parcel arrived for me.

I took a picture of it before I carefully opened the parcel...ok I lied about the careful bit...and the before bit.

 Inside is a clue to who sent it. 

 Here are the contents...

a lovley puffy pouch

cutest little apron...

I was gasping for breath by the time I got to these...

paisley...

paisley...and Liberty *swoon*

and more paisley...and more Liberty too!!!

Here's one of the girls mannequin pincushions looking much smarter than her usual naked self.

Just lending it till I open a bottle of wine...

Thanks heaps to the talented, generous and fabbo swap partner, Nicky of Mrs Sew and Sow fame for my gorgeous swappy makes and heartstoppingly lovely paisely scraps.  There is a quilt  in progress that I know they will find their way into...

Thanks Kat of Diary of a Flutter Kat for organising the Scrappy Swap 2011

and to all of you readers, 

thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

Living in a material world...

Material: A lovely parcel of vintage sheeting arrived recently and were a lovely surprise after a hard days work and some of the emotional upheaval I've been through.

There are 5 lovely crisp fat quarters. I have been playing with them and photographing them in different ways (no I didn't win two sets!). I fear that I have now been bitten by the "vintage sheet lovin' bug" and am holding Jacqui totally responsible. I have to admit that I thought it was a bit funny - all the hype around the sheets, but I totally understand it now - there is something quite exciting about the colours, the texture, the history...I have even already picked out a couple of solid colours that will be used to go with some of the fabrics...there will be a least one cushion cover being whipped up soon. Thanks so much Jacqui for these beauties...you really brightened up my day in more ways than one.

Materialistic...Nic from CreativeDisorganization blogged about some lovely fat quarters she found at Spotlight and me being the copycat I am just needed them as well. I went after my visit to the dentist (oh yes I've had a great week!) but couldn't find them for the "special" price. Never mind...I found this lot instead...Paisley and Christmas in the one piece....ooh yeah!

Materialism...Fluffy pom poms destined for Meet Me at Mikes:

Mental...And finally one of the best things for keeping sane in the face of the madness that can be family life...the last of the square in a square blocks for the next border of the quilt variously known as... 

"I <3 Paisley"

"Mariners Compass"

"The Paisley Nightmare"

"That Giant UFO that I'm not quite sure what to do next with..."

It is actually coming together and I'm a really getting quite fond of it, fiddly blocks and all!!

thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

Good Mail...Good Friends...

A good mail day...

The cute little Penguin pattern that I'd ordered arrived...with some unexpected extras!!!
Clare from Clares Craftroom had a "guess my new pattern" post on her blog ages ago...who'd a thunk a crazy guess of a penguin would be right? Thanks Clare for the lovely surprise J

I had a great visit from one of my lifelong friends, Margaret. We usually get to the craft show together, but this year we couldn't co-ordinate our "timetables".

On this visit she kindly helped me with my paisley addiction...

 my magazine addiction...

 and my fabric addiction...

ahh that's what friends are for!!!!!

thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

My Creative Space

Today I am going to get a move on with the pile of square-in-a-square blocks for the paisley quilt.

The...

never... 

ending...

piles...

For more never ending creative types, head on over here.

thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

My Creative Space

*humming to self*"Wet washing hanging on the line, drying very quickly when the weather's fine" 

My creative space could have been filled with catching up on sleep, washing, cleaning and drying from the ski trip, but luckily I finally got around to a little bit of creating.

Mmm...circular needles - I don't think so. At least I tried.

Sewing the 'square in a square' for the Mariners Compass and/or Paisley quilt (depending on what I feel like calling it at the time). This feels like a much more productive and creative space.

only a few! more to go (88 to be exact).

...stop looking at me...you know you are beyond my skill level just yet...

Take a trip on over to Kootoyoo for plenty of creative people, who could whip up this little bloke in the blink of an eye.

thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

Giveaway Goodies at Mira Narnie

One of the things that I quite enjoy about the blogging world, are the many opportunities to win a little something from clever crafters. All it costs you is a little comment, and possibly a linked blog post!
You could head on over to Mira Narnie and leave a comment to be in with a chance to win a matching key fob and purse. There's a paisley one and you know how much I love paisley!!!

thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

Mariners Compass is coming...and going...along

It's been a bit of a while between posts. I didn't realise how much I need a weekly 'play along' to keep me posting. That means having ideas, access to the computer, and time - and daylight -  to take photos of what I'm working on.
Although I will spare you the 'hippy costume' for last weeks 50th Math and I went to. (Maybe it's just taken me a week to catch up from lost sleep after staying out waaaaayyyyy to late at that party?!?) 


I've been doing a bit of looking around and might just jump in for the 2010 Challenge (starting for me with February March challenge)

This however is worth the wait...

... except now I can see a flaw or two , so back to the unsewing...

Thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

Oh Brother!

Here is a picture of my Brother sewing machine...or rather the space where my sewing machine belongs.

It went to 'hospital' on Monday and it still hasn't called in (I do worry about the children when they don't keep in contact). I sympathise with The Handmaden who has had a similar story in the past week.

All I have to console myself with is what I managed to get done before the 'breakdown'

Here's me madly chain piecing Minky's quilt (remember the new year resolutions)

She might have even had a complete quilt top before her birthday (Feb 5) if I could have sewn 24 hrs a day for the past 3 days (self-delusion is one of my more attractive traits!)


The Mariners Compass is waiting patiently for it's next border. The border will have 29 pieced  paisley hearts in red and reddish tones.

I had almost finished this lot - only the few in the background to go *sob*.

Luckily I have some hand piecing that I can happily go on with.

Thanks for taking a peek over the fence... 

...of holidays and happiness...of paisley and perfection

I have been away for a week visiting the area that my Dad grew up in. My Aunt still lives there and I wanted to make the trip to see her too.
We spent time at Tathra Beach, Candelo and walking in the national parks. It was the strangest sight to see the area so brown and drought ridden, when my memories are of a full and flowing (and at times flooding) Bega river and lush green hillsides. 
We stayed in 'eco' cabins on the edge of the Bournda National Park. Every morning and evening King Parrots, galahs, cockatoos, rainbow lorikeets and kangaroos would come down and could be fed seed and pellets by hand.

We were even visited by this big fellow, probably after eggs in a nest!




The owners of the park must have know something about me. This is what I found on the bed spread!


I was very tempted to cut out a bit to put into the 'paisley quilt'.


Fortunately there was a 'therapy centre' not far away - Mandeni Needlecraft and it is truly as inviting as the pictures on the website show.


Here is the haul from there - 
(actually the magazines came from the newsagent in Merimbula). Yes, you can see 2 pairs of thread snips and no, I'm not that bad at unsewing...the yellow pair is for Marisew, cause as Miss Bee says 'we like to have everything the same'!


So...what have I been doing since I got back from holidays..........


....TA...DAAAA....

...and as soon as I post this I'm off to do some more. (If I can sneak past Diva because she reckons I should be finishing her quilt off...she's probably right, but we all need a WIP to come back to, don't we?).

Thanks for taking a peek over the fence....

Resolving one Resolution

That idea floating about in my head with the paisley fabrics might just have floated out into the real world. I have something on paper with the help of Quilt Design Wizard (this is the baby program to EQsixtyzillion and has been great for a baby quilter!).

At first was simply going to do colourwash squares to let the 'fabric do the talking'...but that just didn't seem right - with all those beautiful, whimsical, colourful, gorgeous patterns and designs. So I am going all out with a medallion quilt that will include a Mariners Compass, log cabin blocks, pieced hearts and square-in -a-square blocks. I can't even show the full design because QDW doesn't actually have the capabilities to show it properly, so the design is a mix of on-paper and on-computer mish mash. I do know the NUMBERS add up though!.

Now to master the finer points of paper piecing! (Didn't I mention that there would be paper piecing, template and rotary cutting as well as inset seams?)

Can you believe that I have done this much already?

The photos show one half and what the light/dark blue point looks like and the lt/dk pink points will look like when put together (this is one quarter of the block). Toooooooo excited for words.

It took a while to find a 'compass' that I both, liked the look of and that was the right size. (I knew MATH  would come in handy for resizing the printout - he has even taken to calling himself the in-house IT guy!). I have some patterns in books and magazines, but either all the points were not the right length, too skinny, too fat, didn't go to the edge of the compass, had a circle in the middle etc - in short were NOT what I had in my head. In the end I settled on the Bear Paw one and have just adjusted it to square it off, rather than the separate 'template A'. (If you hear a scream from the vicinity of quilary-land you will know I stuffed up somewhere...).

For some Mariners Compass goodness try looking here at Quilted with Love or here at Bear Paw Productions.

This should be a piece of cake if I pin carefully, sew in the correct sequence, sew along the marked lines, finger press the folded fabric, keep the loose fabric out of the way, match points and remember to trim the seams before going onto the next piece.

                                          

Yeah, paper pieceing and I can be good friends for a while yet (*maniacally crossing fingers*).

Thanks for taking a peek over the fence...

The best kind of New Year Resolutions

It's a cool, rainy day in Sydney. Australia is doing very poorly in the cricket, reflecting the drab day. 
I'd better cheer myself up by working out what my resolutions for 2010 might be.

I have to finish quilting this: 

and this:

I really should take this be machine quilted:

She really needs a mane and tail.

I'd like to do a bit more of this:




Play a bit more





















put this together for Minky:

and figure out how to turn this plethora of paisley into an I <3 Paisley quilt.