Jennie's Threads

I am addicted to sampler quilts. So when I first saw Elizabeth Hartman's Patchwork City I knew a copy of this book would be coming to live at my house. And it arrived just before Christmas. And since then I've been trying to decide on blocks, layouts and colours. I've decided on a rainbow scheme, just slightly different to the original Metro Area quilt from the book. I'd also like to make a couple of the other quilt layouts...but one at a time. This is my first attempt at my first block I started with green because it's a colour I find quite easy to work with and I have rather the extensive stash to help me out. But I didn't like it. So out came the seam ripper and I made some changes. So here's the second attempt. I like it better, but I don't love it yet. Maybe it's because it feels quite chunky compared to some of the small piecing I like to do; maybe it's because I feel like I'm copying the original too much; maybe I jus...

Today is my thirtieth birthday. And I decided I wanted to mark this year with a quilt. But finding the right combination of fabric and pattern has been quite the search. Right up until last weekend I thought I had it sorted... Fabric: A couple of years back at the Fat Quarterly Retreat I picked up a fat eighth bundle of Oakshott Impressions (with a white weft/warp) and never found the right project for them. Even further back I picked up a Layer Cake of Puttin' on the Ritz - the only Layer Cake I've ever bought, because once I'd bought it I had no idea what to do with it... I've put the two together and I love the soft pastel effect they create - I know, not my normal choices... I've added in some fabrics from my stash, and picked up some extra Oakshott fabric from an IG destash, so I think I have enough fabric to make a quilt. There is a lot of cream in the layer cake too... But what quilt? Initially I had though of doing the Women of the Bible Sampler Quil...

I don't know whether to celebrate, or to heave a huge sigh of relief... Apparently I started this quilt on 21st January 2011. I've just read through some old blog posts about it and read that I hoped to finish it by January 21st 2012 - a year after I started it. Excuse me a moment while I laugh hysterically. We are now three years on from that, and four years on from when I first started it and I can finally tell you that it is FINISHED! As in done. I managed to get a couple of photos outside in between the  flurries of rather pathetic snow #notquitejuno Finished. This was my first foray into quilting, and was started as a monthly class at my local quilt shop and we used the book "Essential Sampler Quilt" by Nikki Tinkler. I pulled fabrics from my "stash" - again I must laugh hysterically - at that point my stash took up one 9 litre Really Useful box. Oh how times have changed. The first block I made for the quilt didn't make it into the f...

I had a day to sew by myself on Sunday - uninterrupted. It was lovely. And I'l gradually share with you what I was working on. But for the most part I have spent the week hand-stitching. There's been a lot of binding involved, but also some EPP. I've been working on a fairly new project - one I started just after Christmas. Trapies. These are mostly made of half hexagons and I love how they seem to spin. I've made two blocks so far (I know - not much) and I'll keep going until I get bored. Chances are that will be a cushion :) The third block is basted and ready to piece and I think once I make that third and place them all together I'll get a better idea of how they will work with each other. And the other project is an old one. In summer 2013 I made some hexagons. The plan was something quite involved for the Fat Quarterly swap, but I fell pregnant and lost all energy and inclination, so ended up scaling back my plans. But I already had a lot of hexie...

Here's my latest quilt top finish. It's a mini version of the Power of Nine Block of the Month by Rebecca Mae Designs. When I first saw the quilt back in December I knew I wanted to do it - I loved the setting. But I had no purpose for the quilt. Sometime I'll make quilts with no purpose, or rather, for me. But I couldn't justify this quilt on that basis (especially the cost). I decided to shrink the block size to 6" down from the original 12" and the shrink the sashing similarly. I was expecting the blocks to be pretty familiar, but with the exception of the favourite Churn Dash and a another couple, each was new to me. Most used the square in a square block or flying geese units with clever colour placement and created fabulous blocks. Here are a couple of my favourites I have to confess that I didn't follow the instructions from the point where I read to cut the fabric to one-sixteenth accuracy for the 12" blocks... I looked at ...

So it may seem that I'm on a roll with these finishes, but after this, the next one is a good way off still. I made this block by accident (I totally mis-read my partner's likes for the Schnitzel and Boo Mini Quilt Swap). And by the time I realised I'd made over half of this block. It's just as well, because the centre of this block is bloody awful! So bad, that I've added a button... Luckily I loved the colours I'd picked and I had a brainwave: during December I loved having a little mug rug/mini quilt (cause I don't put my mug on it) on my desk at work. It let me dream of quilting whilst actually project managing... I hope my manager doesn't read this! So I've decided that for each month this year I will have a different mug rug on my desk. It's a great excuse to make a mini each month! And once the month is over I can add them to my mini quilt wall. My mini quilt wall doesn't exist yet, but when we move to our new house I am definitel...

I've spent more time this week working on the Power of Nine quilt. But Mia napped on Sunday afternoon so I have more than one block to share with you this time! I'm loving these blocks - they are mostly new-to-me designs - mostly due to colour placement and the secondary patterns created, and it's really refreshing. I'm also really chuffed with my neat points! So that's five complete blocks, seven left to go and I can't wait to get back to them! After yellow I can move on to green and blue and really start to get a feel for how this quilt will look! And once Mia woke up on Sunday she helped me sort some of my scraps... Linking up with WIP Wednesday

I may have cut it to the wire with my Schnitzel and Boo Mini Quilt, but my Whimsical Woodland Mug Rug is done a week ahead of the deadline! Go me! My partner likes foxes, among other things, so I did a hunt for a fox design (no pun intended) - first I was looking for a paper piecing pattern, but nothing really grabbed me, so I moved on to an embroidery design and hit on the winter fox from my new favourite Urban Threads . I carried on the colour theme with a log cabin on two sides, then pulled out my perle threads for some hand quilting. There was a delay whilst I ordered orange (and a few other colours for good measure) but I finished this on Friday night. As I said before, a swap needs extras, and for this swap they had to continue the whimsical woodland theme. When I was hunting for fabric the other day I came across some hedgehog fabric which I've had for ages - I was sent it by Liz in Sweden and although I love it, inspiration has been lacking so I've never...

Last year I decided not to do any more swaps. Then I joined Instagram and got sucked in. I've got two swaps due to send out in January, and the deadline for this one was yesterday. And miraculously, yesterday, I posted this mini quilt. I knew early on what I wanted to make, but struggled for a while with what colour to use. In my head it was always purple, but I know some people aren't keen and I wasn't sure. In the end I went for it! The centre low volume section came mostly from my scraps, and all of the purple came from my scraps! I had to raid my stash just to finish up the outside border and the binding. The binding was another decision - between purple and low volume scrappy - I'm glad I went for the low volume and let the single purple border pop. The quilting is matchstick "straight"-line quilting in all of the low volume. The sewing machine shape is made from 1/2" hexies and this applique was the final things I did on the quilt. By leav...

I''m not finding much time for sewing at the moment and most of the time I do find I'm using to finish up a couple of swaps. But on Saturday evening I started a new project! I shared it briefly on Saturday when I posted my Finish Along Lis t (which I nearly forgot to link up!), but I'm so pleased with it that I think it deserves a post of it's own. It's the first block from the Power of Nine block of the Month And I love it. The original block is 12" but I've shrunk it to 6" and I'll use the same layout but as a baby size quilt. I have to confess that I didn't follow the instructions very well. The instructions for the 12" version involve cutting with an accuracy to a sixteenth of an inch. I don't think so. I cut to an eighth of an inch but no further (my ruler doesn't have markings for anything more). So rather than make life even more complicated with the shrinking to 6", I quickly drew up some foundation piecing t...

Just popping in quickly to share a crappy phone photo with you because I am so chuffed: My Essential Sampler Quilt is now all put together! All of the incredibly-stupid quilt-as-you-go seams are sewn! The end is in sight! I'm planning on free motion quilting a small stipple in the sashing just to reinforce the hand-sewn seams and then binding. And then it's done!

So after the successes of sleep-deprived-stupid and overly-ambitious Finish Along lists in Q3 and Q4 2014 I'm going for realism with the next installment! Honest! Aspen Glow: I really, really should make some progress on this... Star Mug Rug - I really enjoyed having a mug rug on my desk during December, but the Christmas Trees have been packed away, so I need a new one. At the moment it looks like this... Skill Builder: how many times have you seen this quilt appear on my lists? Maybe, just maybe, this will be the last time. Secret Sewing: it has progressed a little from this picture, but not much. I'm having a blanket stitch crisis: I don't like the blanket stitch on my new machine. I love the blanket stitch on my old machine, but it doesn't sew at the moment and needs a service. Or I could do it by hand... Jennie Rayment wall-hanging: this needs quite a lot of applique before I can layer it up and quilt it. That should give me enough time to work ...