The big bad ugly

In autumn 2013 there was a one block wonder QAL I was reluctant to join, because I was not really looking forward to buying a big print fabric only to cut it up in pieces ... until I found one of the most ugly fabrics in my (inherited) stash.

I had no qualms whatsoever to cut it into tiny pieces and make a complete mess out of it ... but somehow the fabric worked and I started puzzling and tryign to find placements to get that colour flow within a squarish-shape ...

Once I had finished the toop I had to look for the most fantastic backing ever - I mean with that front, it needed to be extra garish ... and I did find something ... more nightmare-ish flowers

now that I finished quilting ... I need to wait for nice weather to take some shots that show it's grand ugliness in its best light ...

getting things done

sometimes you need a little kick in the ass to get some more sewing done ... I first started this quilt about a year ago when I chose the block for the bee Biased Bee to sew for me. I finished the top somwhen later that year and only now got around to just figure out a backing.

I had all the stuff set out and started actually piecing and then decided the "siganture blocks" where too colourfull to just sew directly to each other and I wasn't really lookign forward to cuttign up the flannel - I was a bit afraid it wouldn't be big enough in the end ..

So I completely threw that decision over baord and went hutnign for the remainder fo the solids I used for the front and started piecing a backing ... which now turns out o be almost looking like a second front ...

If you wonder what the white spot is for - I plan to use that instead of a lable to put all the swap information down ... Now just a few more stripes of red and I can go on to basting and then eventually quitling. Well as soon as I cleared up more of my floor ...

Löni

in need of colour

I haven't done much sewing lately and when I did it was all pale colour for bees ...

May for Stash Bee Hive#8

May for NewBee Bee Hive#8             and         quite a while ago April for Stash Bee Hive#8              

So I decided I had to get out one of the colourful UFOs that was missing a border so a lot of colour but still not much sewing ...

Now I just need to finish the back - that screaming red flannel with that small pile of signature blocks - and decide on a quilting design.

Löni

linking up with WIP Wednesday

luckiestestest day this week

I could have kissed the post man - if I would have been home wen he came by - he dropped two swap parcels. My Doll Quilt for September and my very special "Swap°pen auf Deutsch" cushion .

Ahh and I had this crazy idea about finishing up the Red Herrign top ... it works out fine - I might add a row in the future ... at the bottom or the bottom and the sides who knows I don't have batting to finish it anyway at the moment.

I decided to go for bigger sashing there because it helps with the shift of the blocks - if you loko at the others with thinner sashing at the top/bottom of te blocks you will see that the "herring bone" pattern gets shifted quite a bit to the right ... I tried to avoid that - the bigger distance with the sashing makes up for that to some degree. Oh and turning the top up sided down helps a lot because it changes the way you look at the shift. [Do I make sense?]

Ohh and I get to drive home and enjoy some motherly cooking - and it's finally autumn - we broke the zero degree margin tonight and we have heavy fog with sight under 50 meters - cycling was hell this morning - the should make pedestrians wear head lamps and reflectors ....

Löni

One Block Wonder

I had this plan to get two Quilt Alongs done while on semester break, but I feel like I did most sewing while still writing papers and now that classes have started again  ....

Well this is a late night picture of my finally finished One Block Wonder quilt top for the Quilt Along #1 - now that all is sewn I see that maybe some blocks need to be changed, but I'm not going to get out my seam ripper.

Löni

finally some more sewing

I had a fun long weekend: uprooting some willows, trampoline jumping - I don't remember ever having been so dizzy, I guess I'm too old for somersaults ...

I have a visitor for the book fair here and my plan to make use of the few opportunities to sleep in went out of the window. Getting up at 6am is early  for me, but hey I sat down and wrote a to do list:

sorry it's in German

 Of course then I went to my rack and pulled the first thing that caught my attention - long time UFOs that need backings and I pieced a back - which is nowhere on the list. (Am I good at lists or am I good?)

Yeah - true work in progress pictures - no cleaning up around the edges, no ironing or straightening out. I only needed the top to take some rough measurements for the backing. It's 180x180 cm (that's 70 inch square) So my usual 150cm backing was too small and I had to do something - like add in a strip.

So now my quilt will have a sunny side for sunny days and an umbrella back for rainy days - I really love those umbrellas, now I wish mom would have bought more than just 3m

The rest on the list ... that I have pictures of ... and things I have pictures of that are not on the list but should be there

       

       

Löni

first day of the holidays

Well ok it's probably more the second day - I spent the first one cleaning up and doing laundry and packing and cutting fabric ... After an unusually uneventful train journey I did dive head first into sewing ...
Ok it did take me a while to set up the sewing machine - the old Lady is a bit well, let's say she sometimes has her own mind. I should probably introduce her to you at some point - it's an old PFAFF machine, and probably the grandma of my main machine and mother of my heavy duty machine ...

Anyway I did get some sewing done yesterday - as I decided not to wait on the last bee that is hmm ignoring me and went ahead and assembled the top.

ehemm yeah I folded it over night - you will see the reason in the next picture - and didn't iron it for the photo shoot

In the evening I went for a puzzle - while watching, or rather listening to an Austrian movie I knelt on the floor arranging and re-arranging and changing and ... I'm really glad my mum has such a large free space in the living room .. I'm sure to spend some more time arranging and re-arranging in the next few days.

Today I spent most of the day in the garden, planting a rose and some other perennial things, and a few strawberries that are of the early kind, and I got the wood I need to fix the wood-shed roof ...

Tomorrow is for visiting the park I worked at for a year, getting tea and some fresh meat and tinned sausage, and catching up with old friends ...

The Ladies - very headstrong ---- the meat is the kids, nieces, nephews

the drying beds for herbs and in this case flower petals for teas .. 

Löni

sewing marathon

I was just too busy to write posts during the week - I got a lot of things done:

I quilted my two Ribbonry rainbow tops:

I finished the "Deal with Mum" quilt (more here and here)

I bound my Hand Qulting Trial I:

And I almost ofrgot that I even worked a bit on Easy Street:
see I cut the "extras" that I dutifully ignored so far on step 2 and 3 and I marked a few more of the shaded 4 patches.

Leo

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Ribbonry - double rainbow

I won this pattern ages ago at a give away and as I'm waiting for batting to finish other tops I thought why not start catching up on aptterns I saved up to make. And as I was given this pattern, it was quite high on my list.
I got the pattern from Candice at The Double Nickl Quilt Challenge


I started fabric picking and cutting in the morning .. then headed out for the afternoon and then did some late night sewing. You can see / guess my Iranian fig (right) and my purple chilli (left) on the window sill.

Well and this morning I was ready to assemble the whole thing - I think I found two points or so taht aren't matching, but I'm not going to repair that - it will just be a sign of "hand made".

Now I just wander wheather I shoudl keep it or let someone else have a joy with it... my sisters might both like it, maybe I should make two of them? but can I make identical gifts? ohh well I coudl make different backings - but can I manage that until Christmas? ahh you see decisions and more decisions...

Leo

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border problem solved

well it was not really a problem - it was more a problem of me not being in a mood to make decisions .. so yesterday evening I just had that idea and started cuttign and sewing.  Yes I know I should have ironed it compeltely for the photo shoot, but I figured was only goign to sew around the border so the outer shashing was all that got ironed - I really don't like it a lot.

yes that's a chair in the rigth bottom corner - it is higher than the bed, I might try the desk next

And I worked on my October project ... I tried Elizabeth's barn bats and even though mine look completely different I still like them. Befor and after quilting - you can see how much the colours are off with different light, if you look at the cutting mat. Now I just need to decide on a fabric for the binding (another decision!).

And a question for you:
How do you make your pumkin pie? (I don't want to choose a random recipe from the internet)

Leo

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once in a while

... I'm fed up with what I have to do ...



to the left  are things still to include into the text - to the right keepers just in case I need to look again




Aye well I got really really fed up yesterday and got some sewing done. I added the outer blue border to my Walk the Line top - I really like it. I'm still waiting on my batting - not that I would know how to quilt it if I had the batting here and could actually baste it.

Somethign completely else - Claire, mentioned she thought I could use a purple or blue to go with my Beginner's QAL blocks. Well that's an idea of my purple. How about a simple: arghhh no you can do that!!! or a ohh my that's an absolutely lovely combination!! from you  ...

I also started on my October Mini Quilt - for the Doll Quilt Swap - mine is already halfway over the Ocean. I hope those colours qualify as autumnal. I didn't go for Halloween. Where I am Halloween does NOT exist. We have our own not so nice traditional holidays around those days.

And of course my current best friend. He came to me late this summer as a late birhtday present. Since then he spends most mornings beside the bed keeping my book company until he gets into action again after lunch and spends the rest of the day and night watching over my computer and making sure my vitally important USB-stick doesn't wander off. Aye yes he keeps my coffeein level on a constant high.

Leo

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