2011 January (S&Q)

 

SLIK pinwheels

I am not a fan of traditional pinwheel blocks (using half square triagles, where you take two squares of fabric, stitching two parallel lines from one corner to the opposite and then cutting down the middle).  Cant explain, just don't like it, so when I saw this method it appealed to me

This is an amalgamation of a number of pinwheel tutorials that I have seen, and results in a quick, easy and accurate way of making pinwheel blocks from strips of fabric.  (there is another way using squares, but that is for another day)

I used strips from a jelly roll, so my strips are 2.5 inches wide.   I stitched two strips together along BOTH long edges

 

 I then cut the strip into 2.5 inch squares [note, if you are layering blocks to cut a few at a time they need to all be the same (ie dark fabric on the bottom, otherwise you get some as mirror images ... guess how I know!)

 Now cut each square into two triangles, corner to corner (cut all  blocks the same direction)

 The triangle will have one long seam, and one diddy little seam just a few stitches long (you would see this if the photo wasn't out of focus!).  Slip your finger between the two layers and this will easily open

 Press all the newly formed 'twin' triangles open, seam to the dark side

 Now join these twin triangles in pairs to form quad triangles.  Press seam to the dark side

And then join pairs of quad triangles together to form a pinwheel block.

But now we have a problem - we cant press to the dark side as there are two dark sides ... top left and bottom right, on opposite sides of the seam.  Can you see the first two diagonal seams have been pressed clockwise, and we'd like to treat the centre seam as TWO seams and press each one clockwise

So ... we are going to do some 'spinning'!
Remember the seam that joined the twins to make quads?  It is now the seam that is perpendicular to the centre seam.  Confused?  OK, photo time.  The centre seam is shown black on this next photo, and the first seam is red.  We aren't interested in either of these.  The green seam is the one we want.  We need to unpick the top few stitches - from the edge to the centre line

Once we have done this, we can push / encourage / persuade each half of the final seam to spin, and lay flat clockwise (showing this cute little pinwheel in the centre)

... and Bob's your uncle

 

One pretty close to perfect Pinwheel block :-)

 

2011 January (1)

 

Feeling giddy ...... I won AGAIN!!!

I am in shock!

If you look at the blogs I am following (on the left hand side of my blog) you may have seen Block lotto.  This has been going for years: in summary, Sophie picks a block each month and the members make up to 9 blocks following her guidelines.  Each block (or pair of block some months) made (and a photo posted on the blog) equals one chance to win up to about 50 blocks out of the ones made by the other members.

The December block was pairs of liberated trees: one black on jewel tone, and the other one the opposite - here are the blocks that I submitted













If you click here you can see some of the December blocks that other members have made, really rich colours, and such fun trees.  Well I got one entry to the lotto from my blocks (only one as I didn't have two different jewel fabrics to use) and then some other kind ladies donated their chances to the Newbies (maybe ones that had won recently, or didn't particularly want these blocks) ... and somewhere along the line my name got pulled out of the hat (or at least the electronic version of names in a hat)

So I will be receiving 22 pairs of blocks from the lovely blocks seen here

And that's why I am feeling giddy :-)

Where did that week go?

That's the trouble with having to go to work - it takes up valuable crafting and computer time!  I have been working on a commissioned sort of bed spread since just after boxing day: a colleague at work's daughter turn 13 at the end of this month, and LOVES Cath Kidston stuff.  Mum bough two meters of coffee with cream spots, and another two of milky coffee with cream flowers, and a scrap of grayish blue with cream flowers.  If you look carefully you can see the start of the daughter's name (Jessie) in the blue flowers on the cream flowers.

They wanted the spotty fabric as a binding, so to make up for stealing some from the back I joined off cuts of the two flowery fabrics for a strip across the back.  It's really heavy fabric - more suitable for upholstery I reckon, but she's very pleased with it so far, and has paid very well, so who am I to comment!  (I just told her how much I had spent in cash (for the wadding) and in time and let her decide how much it was worth!)

My first Block Lotto squishy package has arrived - Kate is the other UK based member so her trees didn't have to travel too far.  These are really lush colours, thank you Kate.  I've got ideas of what to do with them, but none that I'm really pleased with so we shall see!

I've been doing a bit of hand sewing while we've been watching Lost of an evening.  Do you remember the 6.5m of 1.5inch squares that I'd sewn for the Log Cabin Christmas Tree?  Well I finally got replacement fabric for the sky, and the quilt has gone back into the pile of UFOs, although I do now know exactly what I am going to do with it ... which was more than could be said for all the blinking tiny squares.

Well another UK blogger, Kate (Kate of the luscious trees above) had posted a photo of a quilt using similar blocks, together with some snowball blocks, and it's perfect for my little blue squares, so I unpicked every third seam, and have now restitched them into nine patch blocks.

Once I find some suitable white I can make the snowball blocks, and then I can join them all together :-)
(do you think I should get a new ironing board cover sometime?)

Right, that's one thing off my list - back to the dreaded tax return!!!

Ooops, I spent some money

My Brother Embroidery machine has been playing up, and a couple of times has locked and I've had to talk very nicely to Brian to get him to take it apart and get it working again.  I finally decided that it would be better to get a replacement, maybe with an extended warranty; a machine that should be reliable.  My current machine is a combination sewing and embroidery machine, but since I got a new sewing machine a few years ago I haven't used the sewing element of the combined machine at all.  So I've today bought a new Brother 750e (practically the same as the 1200, but embroidery only), and it should arrive on Wednesday.
The man tells me that there is nothing to learn as it will work exactly the same as embroidering on the 1200, so I can just plug, and play!
He did offer me £100 (1/12th!) in part exchange, but we decided that we'll keep it and Brian can take it apart and try and get it going - when I have got a big order on another machine would be a bonus, I just hesitate to confess that I'll be up to six (keep it small so it doesn't seem too bad!) sewing machines by Wednesday.  In my defense one has gone to Lisa, one is a hand crank machine that is about 70 years old, and is just kept for it's beauty, and one will be Brian's project, so that's only really three machines - and one of them is just for embroidery ... that's OK isn't it?

 got organised!

I went to put some scrap fabric in my scraps drawer - and couldn't fit any more in!  It's been full for quite a while so I've just left it a few inches open and shoved stuff in, so it all got creased, and finally refused to accept any more!

So I emptied out all this lot (yard stick included to show the size of the drawer!)

... ironed it all, and separated it into piles: little bits suitable for applique,

...bits which belonged in project bags (like these bits which will be ideal with the blue Stay At Home Robin)

and longish bits which could be cut into strips.

...  and big bits

 ...and nearly-enough-for-another-quilt-top bits!

I then cut all the longish bits into 2.5inch, 2 inch and whatever-was-left strips, which have been separated into three labeled drawers,

  and now the box looks like this :-)

and I'm very happy!!!

I love my postie

What a day this has been ... first I received a sparkly red package from the lovely Madam Samm from Stash Manicure, with so many goodies I went weak at the knees... look at these thimble thingies, notions and scrummy Layer Cake (mum, this means 48 coordinating fabrics all cut to 10" squares) Lovely warm earthy colours.  I'm thinking of making this quilt from them, adding maybe brown or dark green to make the diamonds

Then there were all these quilt patterns ... so many choices!

THANK YOU MADAM SAMM!!!

Then ... the postman handed me a bunch of envelopes and I was still looking at the bills when I realised some of the envelopes were squishies :-)

Yay!!!! 
These lovely trees came from Laura in GA, USA

 These fab trees came from Cathy in Australia...

And these super bright trees came from Maree in New Zealand - what an international forest this is going to be!

MORE squishies :-)

I got back from a lovely (although wet and misty) day at Mum's yesterday, to find Mr Postie had brought me two more Block Lotto squishies:

 Thank you to Julie D in San Jose for the lovely turquoise and yellow trees

and to June (in San Diego) who sent these fab blue and orange trees, together with a spare piece of fabric

Thank you ladies :-)

Sewing and postal lovliness

I have finished and delivered Jessie's quilt, and mum is very happy.  Jessie's birthday is on Thursday, so I should hear then whether she is happy !

I worked on the three Round Robin flimsies: not all to Kate's instructed sizes, but I don't think she'll banish me from the group!

The pink version uses up more orphan blocks, and adds (at the top in this photo) the big liberated star, and the skinny inset together with a bit of extra pinkness to bulk it out.  I think I might prefer it on the bottom, enclosing the very pink piano keys, but that puts the stars close together, so I'm not sure

 For the blue I made three log cabin blocks, and these are pretty much the right size.  However I think they need to be moved too from the right side to the left, distributing the cream sections more evenly.  It's strange that it is easier to see this in the photo than looking at the flimsy itself!

The black and white piece level 7 addition didn't work at the top or the bottom of the piece, so I have changed it from a squarish finished top to a rectangular one, adding the new block to the left.  However with this photo too I am thinking maybe it would be better on the right.  Deep sigh, almost a productive day!!!

I received more trees, this time from Kathie  in Pennsylvania who sent a lovely chatty letter (which I will reply to Kathie, thank you) and a half yard of fab turquoise fabric...

and Belinda in Texas who sent these great wonky trees and some really sweet strips of valentine's fabrics, which I 'm sure I can use!

Thank you ladies :-)

Bits & Pieces

Three more pairs of trees have arrived :-) 

These - from Michelle,

and these from Deana, thank you ladies (I do hope I am getting the right names to the right trees!  My list has first names, and the envelopes have surnames, so I give it my best guess)

 

These cuppas went off with Mr Postie - To Lisa at Uni, to Mum, to Jackie, to Tante Berit in Norway, and one to Niki, here.  4 have been received, hope my favourite Nonagenarian gets hers soon!

Today Lisa and I went to Sandown, to the The Stitch & Creative Crafts Show, and had a great time.  Here is a photo of our haul, especially for Jackie :-)

The Hoopla cone is a long strip of t-shirt type material - we are gong to have a go at crochet!  Next (clockwise) is a mini iron for Lisa (she's been using her hair straighteners to smooth fabric!), followed by three tins of 505 spray adhesive, and two tubes of an Aloe Vera hand cream that we've had before and really like.  Then a small jelly roll of creamy coloured 2.5 inch strips for Hilary's tactile quilt, and 4 FQs in landscape prints (grass, pebbles, stones and bricks)

Carrying on round, clockwise, and two tiny packs of 2.5 inch strips for Lisa's postcards and 6 business card sized boxes suitable for buttons and other bits and bobs, finally in the middle, three packs of buttons for Lisa

The show was good, but only about 10% patchwork stuff, and slightly more each of card making, scrapbooking, other crafts, and knitting, with another third being ready-made stuff, or random stalls of bread, licorice, hand cream etc

Still we had a lovely day out!

For Indi

India, (my niece) starts pre-school next month, and the parents are asked to provide bedding and a towel that the child can recognise as their own.  Indi asked for a rainbow, or Disney's Belle.  Belle raises all sorts of copyright implications, so I thought I'd suggest Lisa gets her a Disney towel, or I can send one, and I would stick to the rainbows.  It has taken my longer than it should as I needed to wait for the new machine, then I had too much choice of cot size bedding (cotton, terry, flannelet, yellow, pink, blue, cream, white, not all fabrics available in all colours...) and then finally I decided I would stick to Brother threads for this machine rather than the cheap and cr@ppy threads which I usually use ...

So finally, now that all the excuses are resolved,

Ta-daaaaaa!!!

India has a set of rainbow themed, recognisable stuff, about to go in the post ready for going to school!