End of summer

Gosh, it's been two months!!  I really do need to write more often!

Our summer is drawing to a close, the nights are starting to get chilly, and I kept a jersey on all day today.  I have not been totally idle, just a few finishes, and lots of RSC colour sewing.  I read somewhere that one's blood pressure drops when one sits in front of one's sewing machine, I suspect there is some truth in that, as I definitely feel calmer feeding fabric under the needle.

My sweet son will be returning to the UK next month;  I have enjoyed having him here since November and will truly miss him.

Here he is with my dear husband, at the start of the new house kitchen unit construction.

As of last week we now have electricity to the house!  City council will only do pre-paid meters now, so have learnt how to buy units and to add to the meter!

 

 

My sister won a (tame) game drive at close-ish wildlife centre.  We saw elephants (very far distance), zebras, gemsbok, wildebeest, giraffes, rhino, hippos (their noses in the water), ostriches, lions, other animals and various birds. A very hot day.

 

 

Sign seen on a door in the foyer of a local girls' school - where we are hosting our biennial National Festival later this year:

 

 

A panoramic view of my sewing space, the window on the left is the same one as the one on the right!  Looks like I might have tidied up a bit before taking it!

 

And finally a few pictures of sewing done.  March yellows, all bits and strips sewn up (and back in a box):

 

Bonnie Hunter's last mystery, Rhododendron Trail, actually on the frame.  Sewed about a quarter and had to take the machine off as the top thread jammed up in the top mechanism.  Machine went off to the service centre (for the first time), and now back with quilting finished, awaiting trimming and binding.

Found a tub with lots of two colour trimmings, stitched them into columns, also back in the tub, until I find more to add to this new collection.

 

Another start, from that same tub above, think this will become a table topper.

 

Our Good Hope Quilters' Guild recent mystery, Greenmarket Square.  Have stitched on the last borders since taking this picture

And from the left-over grey bits, with others, pieced the back:

 

 

A gratuitous cat picture.  Two of our three, who all dislike each other!

 

Thanks for reading!

Teal, turquoise, aqua

I have had a lot of fun sewing up ALL of my tiny scraps and strings in Aqua, this month's colour as declared by Angela at SoScrappy.  Click on this link to see what amazing things others have done with this colour.   I still have no firm idea of what will become of these slabs of fabric, but that's a decision for next year!

 

Clicking on a photo will enlarge it.

 

 

 

 

These are the blocks from the past two clue of Diana's Greenmarket Square Mystery for the Good Hope Quilters' Guild.  As all the 60 blocks so far are the same size, I have no idea how this will turn out!  I am using a variety of greys and deep bright to navy blues.

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And these are my border units for Bonnie Hunter's Rhododendron Trail mystery, waiting for the centre to be trimmed and the narrow border to be stitched on first.

Happy Finishes

The beginning of this year has gone past in a whirlwind.  I haven't done a lot of sewing since back at work (from home) after summer break, as my marvellous assistant (also works from home) and her five year old grandson were in a horrific vehicle accident on New Year's Day - in which eight others did not survive. He has just had the casts off three broken limbs, but she is still in hospital, and it is going to be a long slow recovery.

I am still discovering things on my new-ish phone.  Today it was that I HAD to use the USB cable that came with the phone for my PC to see the phone when plugged in.  There are so many USB cables lying around, that I didn't think it would matter!  Which means that I was now able to copy the few photos I have taken with it.  I know it is old unsupported technology, but I really like using Picasa to edit pictures for this blog.

These are some of the quilts that were completed in November and December.  Most photos were taken on my front pathway.

This is one of three quilts (others waiting their turn to be finished) that were created from the Good Hope Quilters' Guild mystery run in 2020 (I wasn't very fond of the large revealed quilt).  The top picture was taken outside, and the bottom one inside which shows a little more of the quilting.   It is about 55-inches square.

This quilt was made from my Block Lotto winnings from March 2014.  The block was called Star Chain.

 

 This very pink log cabin was made for my new great-niece, but her mama said it's a bit too pink (she chose a rainbow scrappy instead - all happy!)

 

The next pictures are the fronts and backs of completed quilts from the various Orphan Blocks that proliferate around here.  Turquoise, dark blue, pink and lime green!  All about 51 by 71 inches.

 

 

 

 

 

And after that mammoth quilting run I have managed to assemble the centre of the recent Quiltville Mystery (no pics).  This year I decided that I want to sew up all my teeniest scraps and string pieces, by colour each month.  Not sure yet what the slabs will be used for, but it is wonderfully mindless (almost) sewing.  These are the reds from January, and there was not one tiny scrap left!

 

 

And, lastly, some of the blocks for this year's Good Hope Quilters' Guild Mystery:

 

 Thank you for reading this far,and  I have just breathed a sigh of relief, because as I finished typing all this I accidently closed the window, but Blogger obviously saved it all as it was there in drafts!

A Reasonable Start to the New Year

 It is summer here, and today it is hot...which makes it delightful to be indoors with the airconditioning set at a pleasant 24 deg C, until it cools a little outside.   I am looking forward to visiting the Cape Embroiderers Guild for their monthly meeting this afternoon (all masked up, of course), the first meeting for me in over two years.

With the Covid pandemic seemingly waning here a little, our weekly, monthly and quarterly guilds/groups are planning to meet regularly, and with some good luck this should be rewarding for all who attend.

The Good Hope Quilters' Guild has just started a new mystery quilt, "Greenmarket Square", with the fabric requirements listed this week, and the first part out on 14 January.  Having successfully participated in their previous two mysteries, I am all in for this one.  

In South Africa we have a National Quilt Festival every two years, with the bigger regional guilds taking it in turns to host/manage/fund-raise.  It is the GHQG's turn (delayed from last year) and will be held in Stellenbosch in October 2022.  The theme for this one is Diversity, more info here.

 

Recent sewing includes partaking in Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville Mystery - Rhododendron Trail. 

These are the blocks at the end of Part 6.  Before starting I asked my sister what colours she would like as I thought I would like to make this one full sized, and she said Black and Purple..so be it!

 

 

 

 

In keeping with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, and because I want to finish more quilts this year, I am piecing backs and making binding with less loved fabrics in the colour of the month.  This month is red, and one back is done!  No picture until it is quilted!  Please go and see what the other RSC quilters are up to on Angela's weekly link up.   I don't dare start on any more blocks just yet...until I get the UFO's under control.

I was hoping to add some photos of quilts actually completed in the past few months, but the uploading is taking a bit too long.  So instead I'll show you the cover of our Guild diary. The photo is of the Guild's 2020 mystery made by one of my friends.

Another check-in

Where does the time go?!    I mean, wasn't it New Year just yesterday?  And lo and behold, the next New Year is just around the corner!  

My old/new news:  still working from home, and I am still enjoying it.  The world is still trying to figure out how to live with Covid-19.  I am grateful to have been vaccinated.  Four stitches in the finger that got in the way of my scissors - all healed now.  My son is visiting us from the UK for an extended period while he completes his studies.  My grandson started Nursery in Wales, and he is a constant delight.  My mobile phone went for a swim in our pool - have new one but it's not as nice!  Luckily managed to get all pictures and data off the old one but only if plugged into a power socket!

Well, sewing... I am satisfied with what is getting done!   A quick summary of the year:  21 quilt tops pieced or assembled, pieced 9 quilt backs, 11 quilted and bound (8 in the past month!)

I play along with Angela at So Scrappy and this year aimed to make at least one top from random/orphan blocks in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) colour of each month, happy to say, goal exceeded!  In August I had a light-bulb moment (don't laugh), why not piece backs from less loved fabrics whilst the quilt top is still pinned up and being admired- best idea this year!

The reasons I used-to-have for not wanting to go near the quilt frame:

•   No backing ready 
  
•   Throat space quite small (9") on machine - starts at 6", diminishes to 4"  work space.
  
•   Batting not at hand, or needs to be joined
•   Thread always breaking, both top and bobbin
•   Rather be fondling fabric and piecing
  

I think (I hope) I have overcome/learnt to live with these problems.  My Pfaff Grand Quilters are not long arm machines, just fast straight stitch machines (great workhorses for piecing) and without stitch regulators.

• Next year will be the Year of the Backs!  Will make backings each month in the RSC colour and prep bindings
  
• Looking for and trying out 4" height free-motion quilting designs - keeping the designs very loose
  
• Bought WIDE batting;  I keep yearning for the fabulous bamboo I got in Australia, but making do with local polyester
• Thread problem resolved:  using a bigger needle 90/14 - polyester thread in bobbin (has a little stretch) - and using cotton quilting thread on top.  Last eight quilts, only one thread break!
• Fabric - always time to play!

In September, under the prompting of my very good friend - The Quilting Co -  challenging us to get UFOs moving, I listed all (100) of mine.  Am glad to say that has already reduced to 92.

Aah!  Just discovered that I have access to (some) pictures without uploading from my phone!  These are three of the finishes.

My niece and her two daughters, getting the baby's quilt.

Folded hexagons, zig-zagged together, and bound with left-over bindings:

 

Curvy Squares:

The jacaranda tree in the garden of the new house that will be finished next year.  It was severely trimmed three years ago before the building started and is now glorious:

That's all for now.

A Pink Quilt

I am always fairly optimistic at the beginning of a new year, my head filled with what I believe I can/will achieve.  The feeling will last at least another week, until my summer leave is over!  But meantime I have been playing with old blocks and bits.

 

For many years I have carefully trimmed all of my crazy accumulated scraps in Bonnie Hunters Scrap User's System and filed them away in appropriately marked boxes.  Then for the past few years I have participated in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, with Angela's enouragement to us to use our fabrics with her declared monthly colour.  What we sew is our own choice, and so I had made a variety of different blocks, and these too got filed away!   Am linking up with her today,

 

I have now started to use some of these blocks, if only to make way for more. 

 

Postage stamp quilt number two.  Using the 8-inch blocks, this was one of the draft layouts back in early December.  When I was happy with the layout I stacked the columns ready to sew.

 

 

This was the start of assembling the columns on New Year's Day.

 

 And it became a finished top.  48-inch by 64-inch

 

We have been making a "row a month" blocks with my monthly quilt group.  These cute 6-inch sailboat blocks were for December's row.  

I find it very hard to resist Bonnie Hunter's year-end mystery, and these are the 60 sashing units for Grassy Creek.

 

 

I have two storage boxes with parts and sample blocks, and a couple of times in the past I have tried to organise these into usable groups.  I have made a couple of quilts in a mixed row style, but struggled to get some cohesion from the variety of blocks, sizes and colours.  After seeing what Cathy managed to do last year with her Creature quilts, the light bulb moment hit on Wednesday, and so sorted all of these units into separate colours.  Pink being January's colour, started by playing with a layout in anything with pink .

And, today, by adding in some longer strips, had this top complete!  51-inch by 71-inch.  The memories of some of those units stretch back to the 1980s, from left-over blocks won in local guild challenges (the others were made into a quilt for my late mother-in-law), to Block Lotto winnings, to extra blocks from quilts for two nieces, to fabric from skirts.  And there are still quite a few pink blocks left for next year!

Quilt tops and finishes

I trawled through a lot of blurry photos to find a few clear enough to share of the sewing from this year.  This is the year in which we've been sheltering from the pandemic, the highlight of which was more sewing time.  

The first is a quilt made from left-over 3/4-inch and 1-inch solid strips from a previous quilt.   Initially, the pieces were joined randomly into two long bundles.  The whites are all white-on-white fabrics.  Made the 25 log-cabin blocks, not all exactly the same size, so fudged the final layout with the remaining coloured strips. The backing a grey soft brushed cotton.  About 50-inches square-ish.  Gifted to a colleague for his new-born son.

 After many years of occasional construction, my now named "Covid-19" is complete.  The units started as hexagons, and then morphed into heptagons, and then octogons.  Quite a challenge to assemble!  I see this was taken before the binding stitched down!  About 65-inch in length and width.

 

I have been working on using up orphan blocks for donation quilts.  I don't have many of each block, so filled in with some of the many 2-1/2-inch strips waiting to be used.  Finished size about 51-inch by 71-inch (our go-to size for a local childrens's home)

 

 

 

The South African Quilters' Guild asked the local teachers to make a 10-inch square mini quilt, the theme of which was Hands Up,and based on one's own hand outline.  All of them will be part of a travelling exhibition.  This is my improv piece, entitled "Using My Hand"

 

 

 

No title, but based on New York Beauty blocks, started in a class in 2018.  Destined for a wall in my new house (whenever we actually get there!)  33-inches x 43-inches.

And some tops.  

The centre from a big 2020-year-long mystery.   I really love the centre, but didn't love the rest, which have been made into 2 smaller, almost complete, tops.

Postage stamp colour-wash quilt.  For the past 18-months or so, made various sized postage stamp blocks with three different shades of the RSC colour, from 1-1/2-inch cut squares.  The bigger blocks are waiting to be sewn together, but this was mostly from the smaller blocks.  Some adjustments to blocks was needed to get it to all fit.   Love this one!

Happy New Year to everyone!