Blogger's Quilt Festival - Spring 2014 edition

It's time for another Blogger's Quilt Festival!  If you've joined me through the link on the Festival, Welcome!  I'm so glad you came to visit!  If you're a regular reader, well, you're just as warmly welcomed!  And a huge Thank You to Amy for hosting this fun Festival again.  It is so fun to see all the wonderful quilts, get some inspiration, and meet new-to-me bloggers.

11-11-11 - The Corduroy Quilt

Regular readers may recognize this, although it's been awhile since it's made an appearance on the blog.  But, I'm happy to report, this is finally a FINISH!  Yay!  This quilt/comforter has been a loooong time in the making.  

I made the quilt top in 2011.  This quilt is made from corduroy, and it was made to celebrate National Quilting Day on November 11, 2011.  In other words, 11-11-11.  The Date That Most Closely Resembles Corduroy.  Hee hee!  That date just happens to be my birthday too, so it was my present to myself!

Unfortunately, then this quilt languished.  I got it layered and pin basted and started to tie the quilt . . . and very quickly got bored with it.  I've worked on it sporadically ever since.  This past winter I pulled it out to work on it again, and was determined that this was the year it would be finished.  So, I still had a few fits and starts, but I persevered!  

Detail 1

This quilt almost never happened.  In 2011, I read on some of the blogs I regularly visit about making a corduroy quilt and thought it sounded like fun.  But I didn't have any corduroy and I didn't want to go buy corduroy either.  But someone in my quilt guild was giving away fabric - and I received 2 2-yard pieces of corduroy from her!  Then I mentioned making a cord quilt and another guild member gave me her corduroy scraps!  So, I took that as a message from the Universe that I really should make a corduroy quilt!  Who am I to argue with the universe?

Surprisingly, most of the colors worked well together, but I ended up over-dyeing the green.  It was just too bright.  I used a blue/turquoise dye, and that toned down the green nicely.  In Real Life, you can see some variations in the green, but I don't think it shows up well in the photos.  I used up every bit of the yellow, the green and the purple, and most of the burgundy and the black fabrics.

Detail 2

I've entered this quilt in the 'Original Design' category of the Festival.  It is my original design.  My inspiration for this quilt was the quilts made by the Gee's Bend quilters.  (If you don't know about the Gee's Bend quilters and their quilts, you can read about them here and see some of their quilts here.)  In other words, I worked in an improvisational manner.  

I decided at the very beginning that I would only use scissors, NO rotary cutting!  After a while, especially for the longer pieces and borders, I just tore the fabric.  (I found out what a mess corduroy can make when you do that! Fuzz everywhere!)  It made a disaster of my quilt studio, but I worked quickly.  Just cutting and putting bits up on the design wall, then sewing without agonizing.  It was so much fun!  I ended up with big borders on the top and bottom edges just to make the quilt be long enough so that my toes won't stick out the end.  *grin*  The quilt ended up being about 50 inches wide by about 70 inches long.  I say "about" because, just like the Gee's Bend quilts, it's not quite straight or square.  I purposely left it "wonky" - because I love how it looks!

I used a poly batting (Quilters Dream Request polyester) because I wanted warmth without weight.  I knew the corduroy would be heavy enough.  And I used brushed cotton on the back of the quilt, which is so soft and cuddly.  In the manner of the Gee's Bend quilts, the brushed cotton doesn't match or even quite "go with" the top, but it was in the stash and it was the right size.  I used regular quilting cotton for the binding.  I chose to go with black, but added a few touches of yellow in places too.

a glimpse of the backing fabric

I was afraid that quilting this would be difficult, so I tied it with black Perle cotton.  But it turns out that the needle goes through the corduroy and light batting like a knife through warm butter!  I will quilt the next corduroy quilt I make.

I love the way the corduroy almost looks like velvet.  It is so soft and snuggly.  And I really like how the fabrics change color depending on the direction that the nap of the corduroy is running.  I love running my hand over this quilt, not to mention snuggling up with it!  It will be my quilt to cover up with this next winter when I watch TV in the evening.

on the couch

I don't think this will be my last corduroy quilt!  I still have a few bits left, another 2-yard piece in tan, and friends are still giving me their corduroy scraps!  And I've discovered how much I love working in the Improvisational style.

It's My Blogiversary - but I'm Stalled

Wednesday was my blogiversary - 6 whole years!  I can't believe it has been that long.  That seems like a lot of blabbing going on here in my little corner of the internet.  Thanks for following along on my sewing/quilting/blogging adventure.  I never would have guessed that so many folks would be interested in what I had to say and show.  I really appreciate all your comments too.  Thanks!

Not much happening at the Threads household this week.  No sewing is occurring, due to the quilt studio being cleaned.  Poor DH is under the weather with a cold, and has been feeling pretty puny.  So far, I'm just having the sniffles.  I sure hope it doesn't degrade into worse.  My fingers are crossed.  This is always a bad time of the year around here - seems like someone is sick every year.

I went to the quilt studio last week and tried to do some sewing.  The "stuff" level has gotten so deep and thick I just couldn't function.  So, I'm trying to get things down to a dull roar.  Unfortunately, I really don't want to clean it up AND I've been so busy this week that I haven't had a chance to get in there at all.  So, no forward progress is happening.  There is sewing I want to do, and I'm still trying to get that tutorial done, but there's no room on the cutting table to work.  So I really need to get it in gear around here.

On the bright side, after much stalling, I'm finally making some progress on getting my corduroy quilt tied.  I have the middle section all tied and just have the top and bottom borders to do.

the obligatory quilt picture!

As you can see in this photo, I still need to trim all the ties.  I have all kinds of lengths going on, mostly because I didn't make up my mind early on as to what length I wanted them to be.  

I'm tying with Perle cotton, and I'm a little worried.  I'm nervous that the ties won't stay tied.  I wanted to use wool yarn, but I couldn't find any that was affordable.  Have you ever tied with Perle cotton?  How well did it work?  I made each one a square knot as well as a surgeon's knot, but still I'm wondering if I should put a dab of Fray Check on each tie when I trim the length?  I'm open to any suggestions or information.  I'm hoping to finish this up while watching the Olympics for the next 2 weeks.

I had a guild meeting Wednesday and got to see Bill Volckening (his blog is Wonky World and you can find it on the blog list on my side bar) showing and talking about his collection of New York Beauty quilts.  If you ever get the chance to see him and his quilts, go!  He's very personable and amusing, and the quilts are just stunning. 

We got a little snow Thursday night.  Only about 1 to 1 1/2 inches.  When I went out to fill the bird feeder today, I found all kinds of tracks around the back yard.  I found birds', and I think rabbit tracks.  Probably some squirrel tracks too.  This track, on the deck, was the only one that wasn't too melted to tell what it was.

I think this is a raccoon track.  I know we have a bunch in the neighborhood.  Any one know for sure?  I think the little bugger was looking for more of my bulbs to eat - they have gotten most of them so far.  They are NOT my favorite visitors.

Well, back to the salt mines quilt studio to see if I can make some progress in there.

I hope you are having a creative weekend!

An Eagle, Some Corduroy and a Smug Cat

My DH took these photos of the bald eagle yesterday, while I was out visiting the Doctor.  The eagle possibly looks better than I do.

Good news, though.  I have a diagnosis (bronchitis) and some antibiotics, so I should be feeling better in a few days.  When I called the Doctor's office Monday, I actually looked at the calendar and counted how long I've been sick.  I was shocked when I realized it's been 7 weeks.  *sigh*  No wonder I'm tired of it!

The ducks that live on our pond were scarce yesterday.  No one was taking any chances with that hungry eagle flying around.  But apparently the one seagull that comes here in the winter was chasing the eagle in the air.  This crazy seagull comes to visit when the diving ducks come in the winter.  He harasses them and tries to take the fish that the ducks catch.  When the diving ducks leave, the seagull goes back to the grocery store parking lot where the rest of his relatives live.

I finally pulled out my poor neglected Gee's Bend-ish corduroy quilt made for National Corduroy Day back on 11-11-11.  *blush*   You can read about the making of it here.   I think it's "marinated" long enough and it's time to get serious about finishing this.  I'm tying this with black Perle cotton, and it's tedious and boring. 

one block finished

Last time I was working on this, I was putting it on the kitchen counter to tie it, (it's the right height for me to work at), but I got tired of standing.  So, for the Super Bowl, I pulled out the card table and started using that, so I can tie while seated in my chair.  It's working!  

I've decided to spend at least half an hour a day working on this, and I'm starting to see progress! I haven't gotten to this every single day, but I do more days than not, and I'm happy with that. I haven't trimmed any threads yet.  I'm waiting until I'm done, mostly because I haven't decided how long I want them to be.

The smug cat

Dunkel found himself a cozy spot the other evening.  He found the quilt I'd been using and decided he was claiming it.  Oh dear, I'm a little embarrassed for him.  It's not a very flattering shot.  He's gotten quite portly, hasn't he?  Poor baby.  I won't tell him if you won't.

Random Christmas-y Stuff

I've been so busy around here - after all, it is the season, right? I've been trying to get this posted for a week now.

Here's my oldest Christmas quilt.  I made this back in 1980-something.  I don't remember where I found the pattern, but piecing those letters was a challenge for me at that time.  It's very graphic with those bright colors, and I don't know that I would pick those fabrics again!   But it's OK.  I still enjoy it.

Here is my big mistake - intricate quilting on a busy fabric.  Can you see the "Merry Christmas" that I quilted?  Pretty hard to see, isn't it?  Can you see the holly leaf on the left border?  I think those show up fairly well, but I sure learned my lesson about quilting the busy fabric.  Sharon over at Grass Roots Quilting blog talked about this a while back, which reminded me of this wallhanging.

Last week we went to see the Zoo Lights at the zoo in Tacoma.  This shot is overlooking part of the zoo.  We'd never been before, and it was a lot of fun!  There are millions of LED lights all over everything in the zoo.  There were only a couple of animals to be seen.  We saw a sleeping tiger and we were ogled by a shark at the aquarium.  I think he was looking for a hand-out. 

Here is my favorite display - the purple tree!  Isn't it awesome? 

We'd never been to the zoo before, so I have no idea how it normally looks, but I sure enjoyed the zoo lights!  One of these days, we'll have to go back when the weather is good and in the daylight.

I've been working off-and-on at tying the corduroy quilt.  Not making much progress so far - I just don't have enough time to spare right now.   

I've pretty much finished cleaning the quilt studio but have had no time to go in there to play.  I have a few Christmas presents to get sewn this week, so I do need to get in there.  I've mostly finished shopping, I have some wrapping to do and all my baking, but I am hopeful that I can get in the studio!  Besides, I need to go play with fabric for my sanity! 

Happy Quilting!

Corduroy & A Birthday

The Corduroy Quilt
approximately 53 inches by 70 inches

Welcome to a special edition of Indigo Threads!  Just in case you didn't know, today is a perfect date: 11-11-11.  A once in a lifetime event.  Those of you who are regular readers will know that I love these fun dates. 

Well, today is much more than "just" a perfect date.  It's also National Corduroy Appreciation Day.  LeeAnn over at Nifty Quilts invited anyone who wanted to to participate in a corduroy quilt-along.  So, if you've come here from Nifty Quilts, welcome!

Initially, I thought the Quilt Along sounded like fun, but I had no corduroy.  I'm not purchasing much fabric lately, as I already have a large stash.  But it didn't include corduroy.  So, I decided not to do the quilt-along. 

Then, unexpectedly, corduroy entered my life!  A lady at quilt guild was giving away a bunch of fabrics, and there were 2 2-yard pieces of corduroy!  Another lady noticed my interest in the corduroy and offered me her corduroy scraps too.  So, it seemed the Universe wanted me to play with corduroy!  Who am I to argue with the Universe??

I ended up with 2 yards of wide wale burgundy, two yards of wide wale tan, a pretty good-sized chunk of purple, some pieces of black, a small piece of yellow and a little larger piece of bright green. Amazingly, it worked together pretty well, except for this piece of bright grass green.  (you can't tell from this picture exactly what color it is/was)  First, I washed all the corduroy together.  The black cord scraps kind of dulled down the bright yellow and dulled the green some.  But not enough.  So, I hauled out the dye and had some fun!  I decided on the blue overdye that the arrow is pointing to.  It didn't really come out great, but it was much better.  Sadly, that was the only fabric dyeing I managed this summer. *sigh*  These colors are not easy to photograph and get true colors.  Some of the color differences you're seeing are just the nap going different directions.  



the challenge is fitting these all together!



I decided early on that I wanted to do something in the Gee's Bend style.  Those ladies made a lot of corduroy quilts, and I knew cord didn't lend itself to fussy. (just fuzzy!)  So, no rotary cutter or rulers, just me and my scissors.  I  tried to just work intuitively.  It was fun!  When I could, I ripped the big piece of cord.  What a mess that made!  I used a walking foot to sew this together, and used 1/2 inch seams.  I don't think this will come apart anytime soon!

I paid no attention to the nap of the corduroy, I just cut and sewed whatever fit together, and patched in other bits when something was a little short.  You know: "if it's too large, cut it off and if it's too small, add on to it"!  I used even the smallest pieces.  I completely used up the yellow and the blue-green.  I have only a small handful of scraps left of the black, the purple and the burgundy!  Oh, and I have the entire 2 yard piece of the tan left - maybe another corduroy quilt in the future??  And, my scissors are now incredibly dull!

 

In true Gee's Bend style, this top is kind of lumpy.  It will never lie flat!  And I'm OK with that.  It's heavy and cuddly and soft and will be warm! 

I had fun, and did this in pretty much record time, at least for me.  It's not tied or quilted yet, but the back is pieced and ready.  I'm using flannel on the back, for even more coziness.  I'm going to making a little test swatch to decide if I want to tie or machine quilt this.  I've had 2 people offer to help me tie it!

The other reason today is a special date?  It's my birthday today!  So, this quilt is my present to myself!  Yay!

I'm not planning anything special today, maybe just some more time in the Quilt Studio.  That sounds like fun to me!  And maybe we'll go out to dinner tonight.  I just have to decide if I want Mexican or Chinese.  Hmmmm . . . . They both sound good!

Thanks, LeeAnn, for the fun Corduroy Quilt-Along!  I got a yummy quilt out of it, and had so much fun making it.  I can't wait to go visit all the other Corduroy Enthusiasts to see their corduroy quilts!  Be sure to go visit Nifty Quilts for the Corduroy Quilt show!

Now, I think I have to take the sticky roller to the carpet in the Quilt Studio before I take the vacuum to it!  Yikes!  Fuzz Attack!