It's been a while

I've sewn a bit more of my Honeycomb. The length is where I want it but the sides need , I think, 2 more on each side. The hand piecing was supplemented by the sewing machine in the end. I can sit for hours and applique but stitching along a line - boring.

 

So with that said I've been back to the centre block of my Maltaville quilt and have sewn it all except for the berries and I've also stitched 2 of the smaller blocks so it's back under the heading of WIP and not a UFO.

I've been asked to look under the bottom of my plant pot and find the name of my friend. You see, she gave me this one, mine is flowering again and hers unfortunately is not.

Sorry,Bev I didn't find your name there.

 

Progress

The Honeycomb blocks are growing. It looks old in the browns and creams.
One more round of cream and then square off the corners with a few more
and I'll be finished.

In my Mary Mannakee quilt there is a fabric looking 'pink' but it is red flowers on a white background. I didn't even add the yellow fabric as I wanted a red, green and white quilt. I was going to change it for an upright photo of the quilt but it still looks 'pink' a colour rarely used by me.

New Header

I couldn't wait for the end of the month to change my header. Home Sweet Home is a lovely quilt but it looked rather lifeless in the header space.
I made the Mary Mannakee quilt in class over  3 1/2years doing 1 block per month.
I cut the blocks larger and stitched it together with French seams so it is a Summer Throw instead of a quilt. This was my first needleturn and when I got to the end, I went back and restitched the 1st block. It was really bad. I've loved needleturn stitching ever since.

Montsalvat

Today we went to Montsalvat to visit my daughter. She and Susan Buret are artists in residence for the month of October. This place was started in1937 and has wonderful old buildings, some of which are being restored. I have some photos I took today but see more of the place click here .

One of the houses.

The Stables where there is a guitar maker in residence.

Inside the stables.

The Great Hall there are 3 floors inside with the narrowest of stairs and wonderful woodwork. The doors on all the buildings are large and solid wood.

There are numerous peacocks around the grounds and they are tame enough that when you walk close to them they don't fly off. This was the largest tail of all.

This the family going up to inspect my daughters accommodation. My other son thought 'Rapunsal' was an apt name while she stayed there.

but the neighbours place looked better!

To see my daughters work here

It's finished

I trimmed all the blocks and they went together easily. When it's quilted and bound I get a proper photo of it taken with no sunshine coming through the trees and somewhere high enough to hang it straight.

The Four Corners

Here is a photo of the four corner blocks to finish the borders of my Homage to Mary Brown quilt. I went all out with my fabric choices for the birds and thoroughly enjoyed sewing them.

Now to trim, join all the blocks together and attach to the centre. 

Fabric Choices

I am still sewing the blocks that make up the border on my Mary Brown quilt.These have been wonderful to pick up and sew while my other projects have needed preparation and I always need something to do at my sewing groups.
I try to keep to reproduction fabrics but sometimes another fabric is so ideal I have to use it. For the petals of the sunflowers I have used a tone on tone silky Japanese fabric and I'm really pleased with the texture it has added.

The fabric for the pineapple is a reproduction fabric and looks just right.

The blue bells had to be blue.

I have continued to use the fabrics from the centre square. This block reminds me of the passionfruit, a vine with tendrils. 

The birds continue to be black with blue wings as they are in the rest of the blocks.

I am now working on the last 4 blocks that will fill the corners of the border.

Over the weekend.....

it was the AQA, Australian Quilter's Association, quilt show. My local guild and I forgot to take my camera. The array of quilts were wonderful and varied. Pieced, Appliqued and Hand & Machined quilted.

There was a challenge to make a small quilt A3 size,bound and quilted. We  were given a paper bag with the challenge inside. A page out of a garden magazine, a packet of flower seeds and a piece of fabric. Green with gold thread through it. [one of my pet hates is fabrics with gold or lurex thread] I pinned the magazine page to my wall so I could look at it every time I went in my sewing room. There were sweet pea flowers on one side and a few small pictures on the other of a garden arbor,flowers and a meadow. I decided I would try and recreate the Meadow. Here is the page showing what I was doing my challenge on. I slipped a sheet of white paper over what I was not doing.

Strips of green fabrics which included the one from the paper bag. White daisies cut from fabric with a dab of yellow paint and a rough meander of quilting to hold them on. I didn't even vote for it. There were some with soo much work and effort.

I was totally surprised to find that mine was the winner.

The packet of seeds will be sown in the garden when the weather warms up.

A Little Red and White

I discovered on Cheri  's blog a free pattern at the beginning of each month. This is September's pattern. The first red and white I have made. Such a change to piece and not applique. Before I started my sewing machine got an oil and clean and a needle change. It worked beautifully. I have had my Bernina 440 about 3 years and I still love how smooth it runs and how even the stitches are over seams.

Now to sandwich and quilt.

The Sun has been Shining

I took my camera out into the garden while the sun was shining. I am amazed that at the start of Spring I have so much flowering. The first photo shows the Spider Magnolia, a soft pink with a delicate flower. The deep pink flowers are a Salvia. It only flowers through the Winter and is 7' to 8' tall. I think the birds have been trying to get nectar from the flowers because a number of the stems are leaning well over.

The blue Echiums are out and will be buzzing with bees soon.

The Camellia bush was here when we moved in and all I've ever done to it, is a heavy prune every second year.

This is a flowering Almond, all for show, once a year. The netting below is an extension to the vegie garden and it's the only way we've  managed to keep the possums out. 

This is my Blueberry bush. It usually sits on the verandah but I moved it while the blossom is out so I don't knock it off and lose the fruit.

and my Cyclamen sitting outside my sewing room window.

New Header

September has arrived and  my header photograph was due for a change.This is called Lila's quilt. Made for my DIL. She loves red. I am going to add the photo of the backing.I couldn't resist it because she was nursing at the time.

Quilts in the Barn 2

Here are a few more photos of Jo Morton's quilts at the Barn. I was back on Sunday helping out and the weather was just glorious. Not quite as busy as Friday but a steady stream of visitors to see the quilts. A lot of familiar faces and some new ones too.  

Isn't the cheddar and blue wonderful together? and the little baskets.

So many to look at again and again.

This Quilt belonged to Megan. It is a Karen Cunningham design but made with Jo's fabrics. The photo doesn't do it justice. It was vibrant.

This tumbler quilt hung at the entrance to the Barn. It belongs to Linda and is made with Jo's fabrics. Just beautiful.

 Linda will let us know what was raised for Breast Cancer Research when she tallies it up.  Next year, I believe we are having our own Red and White quilt show.

Quilts in the Barn - Day 1

This is the entry to the Barn and our wonderful Raffle  quilt made with Jo Morton's fabrics. The Quilts in the Barn is held every year to raise money for Breast Cancer Research and this year features Jo Morton and her quilts.

Here Jo and Russ are checking out their photos. The basket quilt to the top right is second prize in the raffle. The quilts are beautiful with the many different fabrics of Jo's.

I loved this quilt with the little stars.

This is Jo's new quilt pattern and will be available October/ November.

If you live in Melbourne, Australia the quilt show runs over the weekend too and well worth a visit. The Quilted Crow shop from Tasmania is here too. 

Photographs of the quilts will be on here in the next and coming weeks.

My Granddaughters Quilts

I made the same quilt for both of them. The first one is for Abbie and is made in the colours of her bedroom. The background is a light cream and the white wings show quite clearly but not in the photo. Even with the clothes hoist on the highest, the quilt was still longer. I thought I would get a clearer picture outside.

This one is for Grace. I picked the colours mainly because my DIL likes [loves] red and don't we dress our children, in colours we like. The pattern came with 3 layouts so they are slightly different.

I did the all applique and sewing on the machine, so fast and easy to make and rather enjoyable.

It's a Month Tomorrow

It has taken a month to sew the applique on the 2 end borders and now it is finished. There will be a frame of 1/4" fabric bias around the outer edge of the flowers but I'm going to put it on when I do the binding. It has been lovely working with bright colours but I still like my 'muddy' colours.

Show and Tell

Here are a couple of the Show n Tell quilts from people that attended on Saturday. This one was really pretty with it's large sunflowers.

The next 2 photos are of the same quilt from different angles. The colour of the 2nd one is truer to life. I wanted to show all of the quilt because it is hexagons, tiny, tiny hexagons. Even the brown border. Amazing  or insanity.

This was Merri's quilt, so far. Enormous blocks. Just beautiful.

This quilt was down before I got a full photo of it. Here is Corliss from Threadbear holding it. It was the pieced border that interested me the most, made in purple and white it surrounded a centre of enormous flowers.

I showed my Ann Daggs quilt which is my header just now on the blog.

Yesterday

Yesterday, Saturday, Bev,Linda & I went to Castlemaine for the quarterly Applique Society meeting.  We saw Carolyn's antique quilts. Here are some photos of them. The 1st one had lovely bright colours.

This quilt was so different. I had seen the block before but never a whole quilt of them.

The background was more green than grey in colour but the yellow really stood out and was wonderful.

A beautiful red and white quilt.

A quilt with Bev's favourite block.

 

The blue setting triangles were vibrant.

Another red and white and depending how you look at it the flying geese are going up or down.

This was a teddy bear made by Carolyn, from a school blazer showing the badge and the trim.  What a great use of an old 'wool' blazer. I'm thinking more along the lines of felting the wool for applique on my 'Prim' quilts.

and a real treat for the day.

Seeing Di Hall's Antique Wedding Sampler Revisited that had just been quilted and finished. This is the new BOM quilt from Threadbear. 

sorry I did't get the entire quilt in the photo. Too many in front of me also wanting a photo.

 I will put more photos of the show n tell up tomorrow.