winter project link party - November

It is unbelievable, one month has passed since the first winter project link party, hosted by Jennifer. I can honestly that I am not entirely sure what happened to the time since. I must have been travelling at the speed of light, thereby rendering time at my particular position in space irrelevant. Ah well. I have only just finished reading the other linked blog posts, for which I can only apologise.

You may remember that I was procrastinating over a quilting method and pattern for my crazy quilt. It took a while but I made up my mind eventually and have started quilting. It is going to take a while.




I really fancied a meandering running stitch and I even have a template but I couldn't transfer it onto the fabric no matter what marking pen/chalk/pencil used. I didn't fancy drawing free style meanders. I have many creative talents but drawing is not one of them unfortunately. My skill level is that of a five year old (on a good day) and a more or less consistent meander is definitely not something that comes easy to me. I also didn't fancy moving the quilt around continuously while stitching, it is on the bulky side. I decided to stitch chevrons instead. Straight lines are easy. The chevrons are not just any chevrons but chevrons stitched with big fat thread and quite large stitches. I am using Aurifil 12 in cotton. It is almost as thick as standard perle cotton and it is quite smooth and nice to work with. The only thing I don't like about the thread is that it splits if I work with too long a length. Enough thread to work two chevrons is just right. I prefer my quilts to be quilted quite lightly. If you look closely on the top photograph, the lines are diagonally across a three inch block. I like to quilt on my lap, just bunching the layers up, working my way around. I didn't quite have as many safety pins as needed for a quilt that size and they are quite widely spaced, which made it difficult to stitch without puckers in the back. I had to buy a large hoop to keep the fabric layers taut and aligned. Unfortunately, the loop is so big that I have to work on the table. This means that I spend less time working on the quilt than I probably would otherwise. It also makes it more difficult to make really regular stitches but I don't mind that so much. 

I am working on smaller projects and some extra secret ones, too. Sock knitting is happening in the background, a round here and there. I am falling out of love with socks again but I need a few more pairs. I have finished one of a pair and have a skein of bright green yarn for a new pair. Kimberley sent me this yarn all the way from New Zealand. She is owner of the delightful Creative Chaos blog (linking to the yarn giveaway so you can see both blog and yarn colour). Thanks Kimberley. 

My bra sewing adventure also continues, slowly slowly but most of my sewing time is taken up by making long sleeved tops for myself.

What have you been working on? I'll be sure to catch up with all my blog friends to find out. In the meantime, I must get ready for our traditional fireworks night next door. I am feeling a bit grotty and the big gigantic bonfire right next to my fence makes me anxious but the company is worth it and the kids have a ball. James and Alistair always get too close to the fire for my liking. Richard loves it of course, it brings out the cave man in him. I'd have made a terrible cave woman. Unfortunately Richard is suffering the heat in Brazil at the moment... I guess I'll have to make sure the youngsters are save myself for once. Anyway, must go. Have a great bonfire night if you are celebrating! 




Comments

  1. Did you try a Frixion pen? I use them for all embroidery-quilting markings now.They iron off beautifully. Enjoy your fireworks night-i'll be the bah humbug wearing earplugs. Catriona

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  2. That is one mammoth task. My sock knitting is progressing but I have had a set back this week of gigantic proportions - more on that later. We are going to see a comedian tonight and the girls are at a sleepover so I am planning on laughing and getting a bit tipsy. Jo x

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  3. Your quilt is magnificent and will become a family heirloom I am sure. I can imagine a bonfire next to your house would make you nervous.. it would me! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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  4. Can't wait to see it finished. You're right, the month since the last winter project link-up has flown by. Hope you enjoy the bonfire and fireworks. Cathy x

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  5. Hand stitching a quilt is a very good thing isn't it. I have a cowl cast on here, but the puppy does not like me to work on it so I have done almost nothing. He is tired tonight after a big afternoon up on the common though, so maybe my moment is imminent. Have a good time at the fireworks. CJ xx

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  6. Such a beautiful quilt, bet it becomes a family treasure. I'm working on a cross-stitch project, but yesterday I realized I'd used the wrong color and had to undo about a week's worth of work on it. I need to get going on some other projects I have for Christmas.

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  7. Hope the fireworks went well. I’m in mid creative phase at the moment. Not sure what my next big project will be. Your quilting is going to look brilliant. Can’t wait to see the finished item. B x

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  8. Hi Christina, thank you for joining in with my link party! I'm so glad to have you. I look forward to your posts every month. You always have something fascinating and beautiful to share. Your quilt is so gorgeous, I could look at the top all day, it's just so interesting and colorful. Your quilting knowledge and expertise have grown so much, I'm not quite sure what some of the terms even mean, but it seems like you know exactly what you want from this project. I'm not good at stitching free hand in a straight line, I usually end up tying any quilts I make, but I really want to learn better hand-quilting techniques because it looks so good. I hope all went well with the fireworks. I'm looking forward to doing some very simple firecrackers and sparklers for New Year's Eve, as we usually do. Maybe also Christmas Eve if we have enough for two nights. Have to check the bag in the garage. :)

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  9. Your quilt is ALIVE!! Such a beautiful colourful top! That looks like a lot of hand quilting, but I must say I love to hand sew for a relaxing time. You are certainly busy with quilting, knitting and sewing! Enjoy your week, and I hope there were no singed bits on you or your kids from the bonfire ;)
    Wendy

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  10. Beautiful. I can't make anything.

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  11. Gorgeous quilt. I love color and pattern. I'm not much of a sewer so can't imagine hand quilting. I've been trying my hand at embroidery lately but only very small projects.

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  12. You have more patience than me for all that hand quilting but it is going to be stunning when it is finished. I hope you had fun at your bonfire party.

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  13. Wow, that is a lot of chevrons! Though, how fabulous your quilt is going to be when finished, covered in all those chevrons. Happy quilting!

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Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment, I love to hear from you, I really do. I sometimes reply by email but I am not all that reliable... Christina xx

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