Category Archives: patchwork

Sunrise Quilt Finished

One quilt is finally finished and posted, it is free-motion quilted and the binding is stitched with the machine. I am happy with the result and really like the pink tone of the binding.  This reminds me of raspberry ice cream and hot summer. Just to comment : both day and night temperatures in our area have dropped a lot, the icy Siberian winds have reached the Med. No snow, but we have frozen puddles over night.

A short comment about threads:

  • for piecing I use MasterPiece from Superior Threads, a 50/3 ply, 100%  extra-long staple Egyptian-grown cotton, in a neutral colour (more beige than white)
  • for quilting and binding this top I used YLI Machine Quilting thread, a 40/3 ply-tex 40, 100% long-staple cotton, a variegated shade called Maui Sunset (red/pink/orange/purple)

Please find the listings for this quilt on Etsy and Dawanda This quilt is S O L D

So now it  is time to start quilting the other finished top. First choose a backing and prepare it, make a sandwich, pin, quilt …… and finish with binding … and take finally photos

Until next time, happy quilting, Barbora

Sewing Weekend – 2 Tops Ready for Free-Motion Quilting

Time is flying fast and I did not find spare time for writing the blog, but was nevertheless hard-working (or hard-sewing) over the weekend. I have finished 2 tops and they are now ready for free-motion quilting.

Last Friday my husband and me went to Alicante for the afternoon. And by this occasion we visited the local patchwork shop and I spent some money on fabrics (what else!?).

 

9 patch block variations 2012 :

Little Qpples by Moda in combination with white :

Next time some pics from my progress with free-motion quilting.

There is a lot of cold air coming, the temperatures shall drop well down, so this is and ideal time to sit behind the sewing machine.

Happy quilting, Barbora

HST – Half Square Triangle Quilt Tutorial

HST – Half Square Triangle Quilt – the one I always wanted to make and never started. This easy pattern is ideal for practicing precise cutting, piecing and pressing. Since I was working with the wonderful batiks on my last project and liked them very much,  I decided to carry on with the same fabrics. They are so colourful and warm.

Quilt size : 42″ x 48 “

Distribution : 16 rows with each 14 HST blocks, all together 224 HST blocks.  I have decided to work with 4″ strips. After piecing and trimming the blocks have a size of 3,5″ x 3,5″.

Material :

Solid fabric : 1 1/2 yard from colour of your choice; cut in 4″ strips and then in 4″ x 4″ squares

Colour fabrics : all together 1 1/2 yard or 13 different colours; cut in 4″ strips and then in 4″ x 4″ squares

Backing fabric : 1 1/2 yard

Batting : 43″ x 50 ”

Binding : 3/8 yard, cut 5 strips each 2,5″

Assembly :

1. Prepare all pieces by cutting into squares

2. Draw a diagonal line on the left side of the solid fabric, pin together with a batik one

3. Sew all squares along the drawn line with a 1/4″ seam allowance (normally width of the presser foot) using the chain piece method.

4. Complete the piecing by sewing along the other side of the line.

5. Now cut the squares diagonal along the drawn line in

6. Press seams open

7. Trim the squares to 3,5″ x 3,5″

8. You are ready to work on the layout. Using a design wall you can distribute the colour squares according your imagination – see below

I have decided to subdivide the quilt into several sewing batches. Taking always 4 rows with 7 squares. First I sew each row together, then the rows and as last the batches.

Here the rows are pressed a ready for pinning :

Accurate pinning is the secret to a nice and tidy quilt top. So take time, don’t hurry and work on your skills :

Once more : I pressed all seams open

And this is the finished top :

Prepare a sandwich and quilt as you want. After a lot of straight line quilting I decided to go for free-motion quilting. Trim the quilt and add binding. My favorite machine binding tutorial.

The quilt is listed on Etsy and Dawanda.  S O L D ! !

Praguer Patchwork Inspirations

Since coming back from Prague I did not dedicate much time to patchwork and quilting. The Rock Around the Clock top is finished and I want to work on it, pin it and go on with quilting. Lets put it this way: it is my goal for the weekend. The past 2 weeks we  orientated on the holiday season and cooking more than usually, relaxing on the terrace with an excellent book and enjoying the wonderful weather we have.

Prague has some inspirational pavements. I took pictures of the different patterns in the city and it is amazing what layouts can be done using just 2 colours.

Pictures from our trip to the La Manga area on New Years Day :

Friday is a holiday, so looking forward to a long patchwork weekend!! Happy sewing everyone, Barbora

The heat wave is here

Every cold winter I am looking forward to the heat and sun in the summer. But of course when it comes, I am also happy that we have a powerful air-conditioning in the house.

It has been some time since I came back from my visit to Prague. I haven’t been really into sewing. Just made 2 pillow covers with a Dresdner plate theme so that I do not forget how the sewing machine works.

We had also a friend from Holland staying with us for a week. Martein and me went for a nice days trip to the nearby Sierra Espuna that is situated near the town of Murcia. It has a wonderful, nearly undestroyed nature. The day was overcast – but this was ideal for hiking. We made a small tour to a viewpoint :

Last Saturday I went to visit a small craft show in San Juan. This was a nice change and I met some interesting people. But in July and August in Spain the clock stops to work and everything and everyone goes into the summer sleep (at least in the Alicante region). Beach, Med, water and ice cream are more important than business. Summer is fun, serious work can wait for later.

But nonetheless I have started with a new quilt, once more with bright colours. The top is finished and I need to buy some more batting and fabric for the reverse. This time it will be a nice solid fabric combined with a few colorful triangle blocks or just plain stripes.

Pin Wheels So these are all news for now, Barbora