Weekend sewing

Admittedly sometimes, just sometimes,  I have a short attention span and tend to get bored easily. 

I allowed myself to get completely distracted over the weekend which resulted in some doodling and then some piecing. Sketching out an idea is a rarity - I even had to borrow the pencils from the teens. Quilts are  normally planned in my head and often inspired by traditional quilt designs.  From there the colors and fabrics just happen.  I don't have any color theory knowledge and although I've heard of the color wheel I use my own instincts in choosing colors and fabrics.

I also sampled two different blocks sizes to get a better idea of the overall effect.  My head tells me to go with the bigger blocks, my heart with the smaller blocks.

The heart rules.  I've pieced a whole bunch of Half Square Triangles from 2 1/4 inch squares.  Chain pieced and individually trimmed back to exact size. These HST's measure 1 3/4 inches and will be 1 1/4  inch finished patches.  Call me a little crazy. Maybe.

Sunday Stash #53

Now and again I need a nudge or a gentle reminder;  it should go something like this:

Hello Betty (Retro) by Chloe's Closet for Moda

"This really is pretty collection - don't let it pass you by - you should get some of that now - in your cart and press "buy" - you'll want some of that in six months time -  when it is hard to get - all gone - and then you'll spend way too much time searching the net - and then it becomes a challenge and an obsession!" Aargh ...

... but I did find a layer cake and I have picked a favorite (above), it's grey - no surprises there.

Progress

Some "Quilt as you Go" progress:

More Birds:

Brown:

Pink/Red:

Orange:

And Underwater World:

Loads of stitching and fabric play, with a bunch of finished blocks.  Loads more stitching to go ...

Basics

It has been a week of stashing basics .... you know, those fabrics that you use often and then without notice they are all gone.  For me basics generally means dots, checks, and stripes, all in vivid colors and often with an element of white.

Simply Sweet by Barbara Jones for QuiltSoup

Purchased at SewDeerlyLoved on Etsy.

Simply Sweet has been around for some time, but somehow escaped my attention when they were in abundance.  More readily available, and from my local patchwork stores, are these checks:

Both the green and the yellow check fabric are from a range called "A Day in the Country", an Australian owned fabric company (purchased at Patchwork House).  The small and larger red checks are good quality lightweight woven fabrics purchased at Patchwork on Central Park.

And then of course there are several solids that are "must haves" in my basics stash.  These are Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton Solids and from left to right they are:

Snow, White, Bone and Pearl Pink - all subtly different, and therefore a little difficult to picture correctly.  All purchased from The Fabric Shack.

What are your basics?

Note to the fabric budget auditor:  these fabrics were not all purchased in just one week! : )

Tuesday is for sewing ...

Penny from Sewtakeahike recently completed an awesome quilt using the "Quilt as You Go" technique.  Not only did Penny document her progress but also provided several informative tutorials detailing how to "quilt as you go".

Of course, I had to try it for myself.

And I have fallen in love with this (new to me) technique.  Each block is quilted as it is constructed, which gives me the freedom to quilt exactly as I have always wanted without carrying the bulk of the entire quilt.  

The blocks are wonderfully big at 14.5 inches, which makes a nice change from small HSTs.  Choosing fabrics for these blocks has been fun and relaxing in an otherwise busy week (so far). 

You can check out Penny's Quilt-Along: - Quilt as You Go Tutorials here:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Thank you Penny!

Monday is Washing Day ...

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Base fabric by:  Pippijoe - "Laundry Birds"

Sunday Stash #52

And that's 1 whole year of Sunday Stash!

Cloud9 -Beyond the Sea

By Michelle Bencsko

Cloud9 fabrics are 100% certified organic; printed and dyed with low impact materials.  The colors are vibrant, the prints detailed and original. 

Beyond the Sea - Anemone - is a new favorite! Without any doubt I need more of this particular print, what a wonderful quilt backing it would make.

The entire Beyond the Sea range is available at FabricWorm and at Modern Organic Fabrics (on Etsy).

Happy Stashing!

HST Overload (Continued)!

Finally some whole quilt pictures of the HST Overload Quilt (although you are probably sick of seeing it!), and with perfect timing to enter the Blogger's Quilt Festival.   If you are a visitor from the festival, Welcome! 

HST Overload Quilt

Finished quilt size: 51 inches x 69 inches

And a picture featuring the quilt back as well as the details of the straight line quilting.

My favorite part of this quilt was definitely conquering the maths for the setting triangles as well as the cropped corners and the accompanied binding.  Writing the pattern for this quilt was another challenge as it required detailed diagrams for layout and setting triangles.  The help of teenagers who are so computer literate came in very handy for this process!

A complete and comprehensive pattern for the HST Overload Quilt is available in my Etsy Store.

Thank you for stopping by!
Rita

The HST OverLoad Quilt Pattern

In response to the many emails requesting a pattern for the Half Square Triangle Quilt, I have obliged and have finished writing just today.  Phew.  Although I can happily sit at the sewing machine for hours on end, staring at the computer screen is a whole other matter.

The finishing touches have also been added to the quilt.  Quilted with the my customary straight lines, outlining the 4-patch blocks and also running a vertical line through the on-point setting of each block. Straight line quilting is slow going, but well worth the extra effort.

The chosen binding fabric is another favorite, a white polka dot on an orange background.  I did not add corner triangles to the on point quilt layout, leaving cropped corners which works really well for this quilt. 

I am very pleased to have finished this quilt, and am already on the lookout for my next project.

You can find the HST Overload Quilt Pattern in my Etsy Store. 

The pattern includes detailed tutorials, as well as all the information required to piece the top and bottom, and side setting triangles of the on-point quilt layout.

Patterns purchased from my Etsy Store are available for immediate download.

All Red Pepper Quilts Patterns are now also available from the RPQ Pattern Store (patterns are sent by email):

Thank you for stopping by.  Happy Stitching!

RELEVANT LINKS:
HST Overload Quilt in Progress
HST Overload Quilt - quilting

Wordless Wednesday

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Well almost wordless as surely you want to know more about these fabrics:
From left to right -
1.  Lace Fans by Teagan Rose - Ink and Spindle
2.  Acacia by Lara Cameron - Ink and Spindle
3.  Dragonfly Garden by Kirsten Doran
4.  Sumor by Bianca van Meeuwen -Hollabee
5.  Daisies by Pippijoe
6.  Orchard by Pippijoe
7.  Delft by Bianca van Meeuwen - Ink and Spindle
8.  Laundry Birds by Pippijoe
9.  Delft by Bianca van Meeuwen -Hollabee 

Quilting

Yesterday's goal was to prepare a quilt back for the HST Overload Quilt top, as well as prepare the batting (soaking - extracting - tumble drying), and then baste the quilt sandwich.  (You can read more about batting and basting here in this previous post).

These tasks were finally accomplished after much procrastination. Today I am sporting a bruise on my knee from basting - crawling around on the floor has its hazards - and sore fingers from all those pins. 

 

I have started quilting and am pleased with the progress and how well the quilt sandwich has basted.  No shifting, no puckering.  As much as I dislike the basting process, I take comfort from the fact that the pin basting method delivers good results every time.  Changing basting methods now that I've got it down pat is just plain scary!

Sunday Stash #51

Fabrics by boutique Australian fabric designers Lara Cameron and Tegan Rose otherwise known as Ink & Spindle.

All fabrics are hand screen printed using organic fabrics and environmentally friendly printing techniques. How could I resist these?

Enjoy Sunday!

HST Overload

I have certainly had my daily dose of sewing and Half Square Triangles this week.  This project was totally addictive and I have sat and sewn obsessively and compulsively until the quilt top was complete, way late into the evening (or perhaps I should say the early hours of the morning).
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Made almost exclusively from my fabric scrap bin and and an attitude of "anything goes" each block is comprised of four Half Square Triangles.  I tried to not over think the block colors and fabric combinations, although I did loosely focus on light/dark prints for each block.

For those of you who enjoy the numbers:

The quilt top measures 51 inches x 69 inches

is made up of 72 blocks each pieced from 4 Half Square Triangles

blocks measure 6 1/2 inches

a total of 288 Half Square Triangle blocks

plus

24 setting triangles (top, bottom and both sides)

Quilt inspired by:  Bemused

Piecing this quilt top this week was a mammoth task which I have thoroughly enjoyed!  However, as I finally look up and around me, I have come to the conclusion that working with my scrap bin causes huge amounts of mess; threads, teeny tiny scraps and dust bunnies galore.  It's time to down the rotary cutter and start some serious housekeeping. 

Thank you for visiting!

RELEVANT LINKS:
Finished Quilt and Quilt Pattern - HST Overload Quilt

Wordless Wednesday

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Tuesday

I am surrounded and inspired by color today -

Ni-co is the newest collection from Etsuko Furuya for Echino.  This is such a fun new fabric line, featuring tour buses, bicycles, cameras and helicopters.  It is the vibrant colors that called out my name, and before I knew it this happy stack arrived on my veranda, bundled in just one very tightly packed envelope.  

Bicycles

Available from Fabric-Worm 

 Glasses

 and Hawthorne Threads.

I've also started a new quilt, getting back to basics and piecing blocks I don't think I will ever tire of.

I have been looking for a project that would help me use up the ever growing  mountain of scrap fabric for quite some time.  Most of my scraps are small, quite small, and difficult to part with. However, inspired by this quilt by Jan from Bemused I have started another Half Square Triangle quilt, made entirely from scrap stash.

So much color and a catalog of my favorite fabrics, all put to very good use.

More blocks to be pieced this week; I have a feeling it's going to be a good week.

Sunday Stash #50

Happy Mother's Day! 

Orla Kiely Queen Size duvet cover - now available at Myer

As you can see I have been incredibly spoiled.  Again!  I love all of Orla's designs, although this is my favorite.  Even the box is much coveted.

This is very large scale print called Multi-Stem.  Believe it or not, this cover is going to make at least two unique quilt backings.  I have my rotary cutter poised to cut, without hesitation.

Enjoy Sunday - enjoy Mother's Day.

Reading

I never tire of browsing through books and magazines for inspiration, and both these publications have been close companions this week:

The Gentle Art of Quiltmaking by Jane Brocket   is a book in the spirit of Kaffe Fassett, filled with colorful inspiration; where to find it and how to use it. 

It is a guide for making personal quilts, simple in design and technique using stunningly beautiful fabrics.  Most quilts pictured use an abundance of Westminster, Heather Bailey, Amy Butler, and Denyse Schmidt fabrics. No wonder I love this book!

The cover of the UK edition is lightly textured, the yellow cuff removable, and features the Hydrangea Quilt.  Oh! So beautiful.

I regularly stop by Jane's blog (Yarnstorm) for a dose of tranquility and color.  It is obvious that Jane's love of flowers has influenced her use of fabric and quilt design. 

A gentle nudge by Amy from Mrs Schmenkman was all the encouragement I needed to order my own copy of the Quilt edition of Selvedge magazine (a UK publication).

Lovely images (I even find myself trawling through the advertisements) and craftiness, but indeed rather pricey.  Way pricey.  Like Amy, if you're into quilts and want to check out the Selvedge magazine this is definitely the one issue of 2010 to splurge on.  I have devoured it.

Have you got a new favorite book for quilty inspiration?