Only 8 more

 Only 8 more curved blocks to go.  I could have sewn them all yesterday but we were out of bananas along with everything else so had to make a trip to the grocery store.  I moved a couple fans but then moved them back because I created a near mirror image of the 2 fans then I moved a couple log cabin blocks.  In response to the reader who asked if my imaginary chess set would be prints and solids, no it would be one side of pastels and the other side of darks with a wide variety of prints on both sides, no matchy matchy designer line for me.  Another gloomy day here on the prairie  I wish it would rain or clear up and since the forecast is for more gloom I will spend it in my sewing room.  --Ann--  link to curved piecing

final arrangement

I spent hours on Monday trimming the log cabin blocks and then arranging and rearranging them on the wall.  Yesterday I didn't look at it at all then this morning I studied it over my second cup of coffee.  I moved some blocks mentally which lead to another mental move and another kinda like playing chess if I knew how to play chess. Maybe I would be good at chess but I would have to tape a piece of fabric to the top of each chess figure since I think in color and pattern not rank of the playing pieces. The king would be a loud plaid, the queen a beautiful floral......... I didn't actually move any log cabin or fan blocks so I put some of the background fabrics up and this is how it is going to be.  The outside round of blocks is going to hang over the edge of the bed thats almost half of the blocks will not be seen straight on like on the design wall.  I will start sewing the curves after lunch.  Things always go together better on a full tummy.   Another gloomy getting-to-the-end-of-March day here and a good day to sew.  --Ann--

Pastel VIII

 The pattern for this was in Linda Brannock's book Miss Jump's Quilt Album,  she called it Summer Garden aka Summer Pizza.  I think summer pizza is fitting.  I organized the background fabrics into diagonal groupings because there was just too much going on for them to be scattered randomly.  I need to add a border of checkerboards or maybe half square triangles  like the pin wheel quilt,  previous post.  It is a small queen size quilt.

The majority of these quilts were sewn in the 1990's specifically in 1999.  I must have challenged myself to use as much of this stash as I could before the new millennium.   I made a dent but I didn't come close to using all of the 1980's/90's pile. I could still make a couple more queen size quilts or 4 or 5 twin size.   One more 1990's fabric post to go. --Ann--

Design Wall Monday

All the curved piecing is finished now to trim the blocks and do a little rearranging. I will study the prints that are the eye catchers and try to have them evenly distributed across the quilt. Since I used the same background for every block I can move any block anywhere.  A never ending project until I say enough!  There will always be a couple prints in close proximity. Linking to Judy's DWM --Ann---

Curved Piecing tutorial

Sewing quarter curve blocks is easier than setting in a sleeve or sewing a collar on a blouse. After sewing all the wedges into quarter circle segments trim a smooth curve using a templet.

Finger press the center of the wedge section and the background fabric.
Match and pin the crease.

I also pin the beginning and end edges.

Begin sewing making sure the edges are at right angles.  I use my finger nails to scratch the edges into alignment as I sew the seam. It is a very gentle bias curve and if cut accurately  there will be no puckers when you get to the center pin.

Scratch the edges together for the second half of the curve, open and look no puckers!

The small quarter circle is a little tricker because it is so small.  I match the edges then sew a few stitches

as I am stitching I pull the quarter circle around to meet the wedge section. I stitch slowly on this part.

Pull the quarter circle edge around to meet the edge of the wedge.

press and wow! these blocks will all be trimmed so they are exactly the same size. Then everything fits together so nice and straight.  Be brave try sewing a curved seam and remember the three P's......  Practice, Perseverance and Patience--Ann--

St Pat's quilt top

The quilt top is sewn together. No big rush to get it done now that it is April except that I wanted to clear the design wall for the next quilt.

I have these 12 curve segments left over I thought they might be nice for a kitchen window cover. I don't like the view. And it would be good to practice machine quilting on the curves before I start on the quilt. But St. Patrick's day is 11 months away. How many more projects can I start and finish in the mean time???  So many cloudy dreary days here. I wish the clouds would burst with rain and then get sunny.      --Ann--

Design Wall

I love the way this is coming together but there is so much trimming to do with each block. Trim to 9 1/2 inches then sew two together add triangles then trim again. It does sew together better when all parts are the same size. This is Metro Rings using the Quick Curve Ruler. So much trimming to do.....trim the tree.......trim the stair rail.............to the top of the cabinets and the fireplace....deck the halls and the walls with lots of quilts. linking to Judy's DWM. --Ann--

Design Wall Monday

Last week I posted a teaser of cutting parts, I'm still cutting parts but had to sew some together to see what the blocks look like. I'm half done with these parts then I need to choose fabric for the triangles that will square up the block. The pattern is Metro Rings by Sew Kind of Wonderful, her quick curve ruler makes it so easy to sew curves. I'm using leftover fabrics from click, click, click and there will still be fabric left for another quilt of this combination. Check out the quilts at Judy's DWM. Its a great day to sew here summer might be gone with yesterdays wind.--Ann--

Afterimage the last stitch

  I stitched the last stitches of the label last night onto Afterimage.  I finished DD baby quilt the eve of her birth, yesterday's post. Happy Birthday Darling Daughter!! I'm so glad I added the hot pink and the bright turquoise to the mix of fabrics. They are light turning on the lights. It is snowing here and the ground is white. --Ann--

Quilting on Afterimage

I'm 2/3's done machine quilting. Last night I thought I must be 3/4's done, its hard to tell when is it rumpled under the sewing machine and bundled  on the table surrounding the machine and the pieced circles keep getting bigger in the center of the quilt. The goal is to finish quilting it this weekend. Projects like this brighten the gray day with the chance of more snow in the forecast. What do people do who don't quilt or knit on these long extended winters? Happy stitching--Ann--

A Finish and a Sunny Day

 See we have sun today and temps are in the double digits! We had sun yesterday too but much colder and I wasn't home all day so I couldn't see the dust.  The only down side to a sunny day is seeing the dust. Lets look at the quilt instead.

2013 was the year of sewing curves, this(click for progression of the quilt) the log cabin and fans quilts and the winding way quilt. I became an expert at sewing curves last year. Finishing the last stitches of the binding last night felt as good as sitting in the sun drinking my coffee this morning not looking at the dust. --Ann-- I really should sort and organize my labeling system for posts.

Design Wall Monday

The borders are on and it has been layered and pinned ready to machine quilt. I could do it the easy way and just do a wavy line up the tree trunk and swing arcs in each tree and background triangle or I could do a variety of lines such as diagonal, vertical, horizontal, cross hatching etc. in  each tree and maybe scrolls in the background and diamonds or curves in the plaid sashing. Any ideas???  I like easy but that doesn't push me to creative free motion quilting.

While the wind was howling over the weekend and it was just howling because we didn't get more than a dusting of new snow I finished machine quilting the border of my Glorified 9 Patch. I'm getting brave and tried a free motion feather. well half a feather and figure 8 ovals.  My brain and hands did not always want to swing the arc to the left then right, my habit is to go right then come back with a large arc to the left from years of doing the concentric tear drops on quilts. Now just trim the edge and sew on the binding.  Check out all the quilts at Judy's Design Wall Monday and be inspired.  Temps just above 0 here. Its a good day to quilt --Ann--

Design Wall Monday

The Winding Ways parts are all sewn together. The quilt has made a quarter turn clockwise from the initial arrangement of block parts. Next to add a 6 inch border of the scallop fabric then to machine quilt it. Daughter thinks I should quilt with the concentric tear drops that I do so frequently, I think it needs a double ring of stitching in each circle and all the circles will overlap. I want to accentuate the circles because arranging the parts was like having a flash go off in my face. I was seeing spots like an Afterimage which is what I am calling this quilt. I will need an arc for a 15 inch circle for that and I will be machine quilting while sitting at the machine I know there will be lots of challenges or I can send it to someone to machine quilt it that way. Decisions, decisions. --Ann-- Check out Judy's Design Wall Monday and be inspired. Linking to Nina's off the wall Friday to see more of the design process click Winding Ways in the labels section.

Half way there.....

Hump Day half of my After Image Winding Ways quilt is sewn together. It is amazing what I can get done if I stay home and put the knitting needles down. --Ann--

Winding Ways tutorial

 Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day with little wind and I tried to sew a couple blocks and do this tutorial but wouldn't you know I sewed it together wrong for the camera so I went for a 2 mile walk and did I ever sleep good last night. Today is grey and rainy a much better day to spend in the sewing room and this time the block went together perfectly. Funny how some days are like that.

 I have a paper towel on a tray so things don't slide around and an arrow so I know which direction it needs to be. I took the parts off the wall in order. I have the parts numbered in my head upper left is 1 going counter clockwise lower left is 2, lower right is 3 and upper right is 4.














Flip the skinny triangles, the left side triangle will be sewn to 1, bottom to 2, right side to 3 and top to 4. Match the square end of the triangle with the point of the large triangle and begin sewing, gently curve the skinny triangle to match the edge of the large triangle. This is such a gentle curve that it doesn't need to be pinned. It just fits together.

 Sewn together 1,2,3,4.

Finger press the skinny triangle toward the large triangle. The directions in the magazine called the large triangle A, corner triangle B, and skinny triangle C.












  Lay them back in order.

 Flip 2 onto 1 and 4 onto 3, I like to sew from the inside point to the outside.
Shown sewing 4 and 3.

 The block will not be connected in the center. clip apart and finger press the skinny triangle C toward big triangle A.

Should look like this.
This backward S curve is the best way to seam it. I tried  a C curve and it did not sew together as nice.

 Match the cut off corner of the skinny triangle C to the inside corner of the the corner triangle B. Begin sewing and curve the right side to match the left side the center seams will butt together. Pin if you like but after sewing a couple you won't need to pin.

 It is a very gentle curve and just fit together nice. I use my finger nails to scratch the seam edges into alignment.

 Press and return to its place on the design wall.  Visual scan and the skinny triangles match in the four point stars. The magazine that was in my big box of  parts is the March/April 2004 F & P Love of Quilting. I ordered the acrylic templates from the magazine. The templates have a notch in the center of each side for matching the seams and is helpful. The piecing is not difficult. Only 88 full blocks to sew and 30 some half blocks. It is a good day to sew. --Ann--