Critters in quilting

Sometimes preparing for a new quilt isn't all that easy ... as can be seen.
I was working "hard" to prepare lots of bits with Inklingo which makes preparing quilts for hand-piecing a breeze ! when Pushkin, the tail-less gentleman decided that I lacked company, and seeing that my cutting-mat held no fabric, he made do with freezer-paper.
Note, however, that front paws are clinging to fabric.

BUT, I persevered in my pursuit and he lost interest in being shuffled around all the time, so I could print lots of brown, beige and taupe bits for a new carry-along hand-sewing project. About half a quilt prepared for hand-sewing, with stitching-lines and cross-hairs and all the trims ... in an afternoon ... and that was with serious printer-trouble on the way !

And I do need a take-along project. Not a project to work on at home, because my at-home priority project right now, and in the foreseeable future, will be the hand-quilting of the Allsorts Applique Album. Picture here shows the finished top. It is now layered and basted and ready to roll. I'm holding out a wee bit longer, though, with the start of quilting. I have two small doll-quilts that I need to bind first.
But Allsorts will keep ... and will probably keep me company all winter. That is usually the way of hand-quilting. It takes forever ... but it does look wonderful in the end.

Another quilt on the wall

An old freind is back on the design-wall with the intention of having it become (at least) a finished top before the year is out. It is now my priority project, and will get a daily thread.
First step is to trim the blocks and add sashing between them.
It will neither add nor detract much from the way it looks now, seeing that I'll go for white sashing, same fabric as the background on the blocks. The idea is to have all the little pictures floating on white.
Oh, and just in case you don't know : the blocks all finish at 4½" square.

SE-2 finished !

And here it is. Almost all of it :-)The gentlemen on either side are called Peter. The gentleman on the right is my DSis-in-Law's DH and the gentleman on the left side is my "little" nephew.
They are both about 2 meters (that's 6'8" to ye who still work on imperial measurement), and - as you can see - that is not quite enough to hold it up in its entirety.
It is rather big. Almost 100" square, and - even if I say so myself - looking good :-)
So, I'm ready for the next adventure.
I'll keep you posted.

Still progressing

Here they are. All 20 blocks, 16" square, up on the design-wall.
I decided to finish blocks rather than start joining them into a lap-size top. Possibly because I've also decided, that she'll get this quilt whether she wants it or not.
This isn't about what she wants. This is much more about what I need !

The finished size of the quilt will be 64 x 80" and the joining of the blocks will start tomorrow. Probably won't show pictures of that, seeing that the finished top will not differ much from the above picture.
All in all, I'm very satisfied with my own progress on this one ! Amazing what a bit of focus and a lot of time can do for a project :-)

Busy, busy, busy

Here is what I've been doing these past few days. My design-wall is overflowing

No less than 3 out of 5 blocks for SE-2 are now finished. They look good, don't they ? Very pink, yes, but that's ok with me :-)

What is below them, will be a red-and-white Jewel-box quilt. Everything in that one is from shelves and scrap-bag. Very scrappy. And its fun to make, 'cause quite a few of the fabrics in there have been used in other projects, and/or are gifts or part of exchanges, so many of the fabrics have stories and memories. Nice.
It will - in the fullness of time - go to my DSister-in-law ... if she wants it. She has been diagnosed with MS and is having a very rough bout right now. She will have chemo in November, in the hope that that will stop the attachs ... and then she'll need a quilt. Correction. *I* will need her to have a quilt about her person, as a long-distance hug.
It will be quite big. The 5 blocks you see on the design-wall are 1/4 of the quilt. 16" blocks, 4x5 setting. Big quilt :-)

And today holds : another SE-2 block, and more Jewel-box blocks. It would be very nice indeed if the Jewel-box top is finished on Sunday, when it's DSon's b'day and she (hopefully) will be here with the rest of the family. She can see it and tell me if she wants it.

One down ....

Yes. The first out of 5 huge Texas-star blocks for SE-2 are now finished.
... and it looks like this :

One is joined so that the outer, very pink, border can be basted and then applique'ed on, and right now, it looks like this :

Three more are waiting for their turn on the design-wall :

All in all : good progress is made on SE-2.

Testing blocks

Sometimes, I want to make blocks. Not to finish a project or even to start a project. Just make 1 or 2 or 10 blocks for the joy of making them, or for testing fabrics, colours ... whatever. Eventually these blocks land in BOB and might (and might not) turn into something useful one day. I give myself that leeway :-) it is necessary for my comfort.
Yesterday was one of those days where I really "needed" to do "something else", so I decided to go with some already printed bits, and test a block I've actually been wanting to see "real life" for some time.
Now, most people know about the Dolly Madison's star block, but how many of you know, that her husband had a block named for him too ?
Another star-block :-)

I found it in Hall and Kretsingers : "The Romance of the Patchwork Quilt in America", plate XXIII, no 5. A not very good black-and-white picture
So, with Inklingo # 3 coming out, this was the perfect time to do one or two, and here is what "Madison's Patch" looks like in colours :

And now you know too. That it is there, and what it looks like, both in two colours and in 3.
And what with printing the templates on the fabric with Inklingo, they are a breeze :-)

Long time no write

So, here's hello to everyone :-)
It's been a month ! since I last wrote. Yes, time does run on, doesn't it. BUT, term has started, full gale, at the university, and I've been working.

Do you remember the blocks I showed off last year ? that turned into a kick ... donkey top ?
Well. I did the blocks with a freind, and we both made tops.
And guess what ! Her top has turned into a quilt, which was in a quilt-show this past week-end, and ! she won a viewer's choice ribbon !

Isn't that wonderful ! ? !

I'm so proud to be allowed to have been in a very small way a part of that gorgeous quilt. And I'm so happy for her that her creative setting and hard work pays off this way.
Oh, and just so that you don't get an all text-post today, here's a picture of our 3 kitties eating.

From left to right : Baby (or : velcro)-cat called Josephine, tail-less gentleman called Puskin, and shy lady with rococo-legs called Sorte (blackie)