Pies and Tarts - In A Quilt Sandwich!

Pies and Tarts Quilt, with navy background

It is a month since I finished hand quilting the Red and White Pinwheel Quilt, so yesterday I decided it was time to prepare the next quilt waiting in the queue.  Back in January, I told you about how I had finished the top to my Pies and Tarts Quilt. Yes, it has been hand stitched, and this time, the English Paper Pieced Pies and Tarts have been appliqued onto the navy background.  It was quilt sandwich time!


Millefiore GP92, Kaffe Fassett for Rowan

I am backing the quilt with a Kaffe Fassett fabric, Millefiore GP92, which is nice and busy to hide the quilting stitches, and also because of the circular patterns mirroring the circles on the front. It's a bit deeper in colour in actual life v. internet.


Quilters Dream Poly Batting - Midnight Black

In the middle of the sandwich I am using Midnight Black Quilters Dream Poly.  One of the first quilts I ever made was a small Wedding Ring Quilt, in navy and Japanese fabrics.  I had hand stitched it and had put a 100% cotton wadding in the middle.  Once I started the quilting, I realised to my horror that every stitch pulled out a beard of white cotton onto the navy top. I had to abandon the hand quilting and do it on the machine.  I was not happy, but the lesson was learnt - dark fabrics need a dark wadding.

Making a Quilt Sandwich - Laying the Top onto the Wadding

This is a double quilt, 75" x 75" square, so I knew it was going to take the best part of the day to baste.  Over the years I have done a few of these, and my technique improves slightly each time.  Having unpacked the batting, I unfolded it and let it 'relax' overnight.  Then, the first stage is quite simple, you just need to lay the quilt top onto the batting, smoothing it out, so it as flat as a pancake.


Making a Quilt Sandwich - Rolling Quilt and Wadding onto a tube

Using a long tube, I roll just the top and the wadding onto it, making sure any wrinkles are smoothed out, and then put it aside.


Fixing the quilt backing to the floor with masking tape

Now for the backing.  I lay the backing onto the floor face down, and using masking tape, fix the backing fabric to the floor, making it a taut as possible.  This stage will save you hours of trying to line up the three layers.


Making the Quilt Sandwich

Once fixed, line up the roll with the quilt top and wadding, and unroll. Easy Peasy! All you need to do now is fix them together ...

I had toyed with using the quilters safety pins, I even bought some.  But being realistic, when you are hand quilting, you really don't know how long the quilt is going to be in this state - it could be years, so I opted for the tried and true basting it together with tacking stitches.

Pies and Tarts Quilt, Brights on Navy

The task was an opportunity to admire all the colour combinations I had chosen from my stash for the Pies and Tarts Quilt. I love the quilt, and I enjoyed making it.



Sparky the cat on the Pies and Tarts Quilt

It took the majority of the day to get this done.  My fingers hurt.  My whole body hurts from sitting on the floor. But it was nice to have some moral support from Sparky, the cat, and the good news is that I even have the quilting pattern planned ready to get stitching over the winter months!

Linking with Freemotion By the River and WIP Wednesday!
 

BIG FINISH - Red and White Pinwheel Quilt, Hand Pieced, Hand Quilted

Red and White Pinwheel Quilt - Hand Pieced, Hand Quilted

Well, here at Fabadashery it is not often you get to see a BIG FINISH like you will today.  Usually you have to satisfy yourself with the little 6 inch Nearly Insane blocks that I am working through.  But my efforts of recent weeks have paid off, and I have completed my Red and White Pinwheel Quilt, in spite of the little trauma of washing it. 


Completed - Red and White Pinwheel Patchwork Quilt

It is a single bed quilt, hand pieced and hand quilted. I devised the design myself, with the assistance of my Electric Quilt software, and inspiration from antique quilts on the internet.  I love the look of red and white quilts like this, and would have loved to have seen the American Folk Art Museum exhibition: Infinite Variety, Three Centuries of Red and White Quilts, but it was just too far away, but I have downloaded the App onto my iPAD, and now I have my very own.


Back - Red and White Pinwheel Quilt

The backing is a piece of red spotty Laura Ashley fabric which has been in my stash for years.  I started the quilting at the beginning of this year, and it was completed 26th July 2013, (having an exhibition deadline definitely helps to get this sort of thing done....)

I probably started making the little pinwheels at the end of 2009, as I remember it being my hand piecing project whilst we were building our house.  The top was complete by January 2011, and the sandwich put together ready for quilting.  Having known this quilt for so long, there are a few things I may have done differently, and it is by no means perfect, but it is a finished quilt!  Anyway, no sooner had I stitched the last few stitches, and the quilt had to be packaged away for delivery to the NEC for the Festival of Quilts.  There were a few disappointed cats in the house, as they have been waiting, and waiting to test it out, but that will have to wait.

If you are heading off to the Festival of Quilts at the NEC in Birmingham 8th-11th August 2013, you can see my quilt among the Traditional Quilts section, No:660.  I can't wait to see it there!

  

Statistics
Dimensions: 150cm x 190cm (approx)
Piecing Method: English Paper Piecing. Hand Pieced
Quilting Method: Hand Quilted
Dates: 2009 – July 2013

Joining up with Sarah, Crazy Mom and Feline Friday today!


Hand Quilting in Hot Weather ....

Red and White Pinwheel Quilt, 2013 Tour de France

For the record, we have got really warm hot weather here in the UK at the moment, about 32 degrees. Perfect weather for quilting ....  Lately, I have been using every spare moment of my time hand quilting.  Thank goodness I have had the company of the Tour de France, for the past few weeks.  The exhibition deadline is getting close, but I feel as if I am on track with what I need to do, with just a few hurdles to push through.


Washing the Butterfly Quilt

The last time we had hot weather like this was 2006.  I was hand quilting my Butterfly Quilt, and I can remember sitting underneath it in very hot weather, again working towards a deadline.  I have come to the conclusion, that if we are to guarantee hot summers, I need to have a big quilting project on the go.  Anyway, whilst the weather has been hot, I have taken the opportunity to wash some of my quilts, as they are drying in no time.


Sparky the Cat lazing in the sun.

Otherwise, it is just too hot to do anything but snooze, especially if you are wearing a fur coat. 

Nearly Insane Quilt Edge Blocks - Block 92

Suzi the cat helps out with the hand quilting

It's that time of year. It reminds me of the days when I would be sitting doing revision for exams.  The sun would be out, you would be working to a revision schedule, and your life seemed paralysed, knowing that every waking moment HAD to be dedicated to doing what you could to prepare for the looming examinations.  To add to the pain, ALL you could do is  think about all the things you will do once the exams were out of the way!
This time around I am hand quilting a quilt for a show.  The delivery deadline is one month away, and every spare moment is focussed on sewing, and even just a few stitches a day will bring it closer to its completion.  I have noticed, as I surf the internet, that I am not the only one in this predicament. As you can see, I am getting a lot of help from Suzi, who can't wait until it is back from the show and in full circulation. All I REALLY want to be doing is more of my Nearly Insane Quilt, or to use the fabric, and to do some of the small projects I brought back from my trip to the USA, but this self-imposed deadline has taken over my LIFE!

Nearly Insane Quilt Edge and Corner Blocks

Nonetheless, I have used my usual tactic of taking the train to work to get my Nearly Insane Quilt blocks done (... the quilt is too big to take on the train!).  For a quick win I have focussed on an edge block, Block 92, which was originally meant to be the corner blocks.  In the top picture you can compare Block 92 (top), to the corner blocks Block 87 (bottom), ( ... I think I might choose another block to do the final two corners, just to mix it up a bit).  This block was done on my train journey and during my lunch break, whilst I sat outside in the sun by the canal.  I'm not sure that I quite got the fabric choice right, but it soon came together.

Nearly Insane Quilt Block 92 (Edge Block)

This block was simple enough, but you may overlook that it had two little TINY pieces in it, very similar to the ones in Block 1.  In small groups these tiny pieces look harmless, but I am starting to be on the lookout for the blocks where they appear in greater numbers.

So it is back to quilting. However, this weekend is offering up some good television entertainment, which is VERY good for quilting.  We have the start of the Tour de France, the British Formula 1 Grand Prix, and even the new series of Top Gear.  I hope to get a lot done.

Joining up with  Crazy Mom Quilts AND Feline Friday!

NUMBER OF PIECES: 24
DIFFICULTY: 4/10
SMALLEST PIECE: Triangle, 3/84 (1.9mm) x 1 1/16" (27cm) x 1 1/16" (27mm)
LARGEST PIECE: Square 1 1/4" (32m) x 1 1/4" (32m)
TECHNIQUE: English Paper Piecing (EPP)
FABRICS: 
Rural Jardin by French General (Leaf Trail Rouge) for Moda
Quilters Basics (Memory) Stof
"Polka Party III" by Holly Holderman, Lakehouse Drygoods (#03035)
 

Hand Quilting Progress - Red and White Pinwheel Quilt

Marking cross-hatching for hand quilting
on Red and White Pinwheel Quilt

My Nearly Insane quilt activity seems to have been put on the back burner for the time being.  Instead, I am currently trying to catch up with my hand quilting back log, which as you can see is STILL the Red and White Pinwheel Quilt.  As you can also see, I am still using the Wipe Off Fabric Marker, which I am finding works well.  What I have found is that you need to remove it with a wet cloth rather than a damp cloth - it is the water that removes the blue mark. So far, so good.
To get this one moving, I needed a deadline, so I have entered the quilt in a show, and now I am frantically quilting to get it done.  Mind you, the pace I am going could not be mistaken for 'frantic', as there is a lot of stitching for what seems like meagre progress.  The overall plan is not fully worked out, and the more I do, the more I feel I need to do, as well as the binding, plus the hanging tab, and the quilt label.  I can see myself stitching, just minutes before I hand it over!

Book: "Quilt It!" by Barbara Chainey

I would not say I am an expert at hand quilting, and don't feel that I have quite mastered how to choose a quilt patterns for particular quilts, but one book I find really useful is Barbara Chainey's 'Quilt It', as it gives loads of suggestions, especially for pieced work, rather than patterns for whole cloths.  I have designed some motifs of my own for this quilt, plus a lot of outline quilting, and at the moment I am working on some cross-hatching. 
It will get done.

Joining Up with Design Wall Monday! and Slow Stitching Sunday.
 

Celebrating Hand Quilting and Laura Ashley 60th Anniversary



Red and White Pinwheel Quilt
Laura Ashley Red Spotty fabric

Over at Celebrate Hand Quilting they are hosting a blog hop this week.  It is well worth a look, as hand quilters all over the world are sharing their love for hand quilting.  I am not part of the Blog Hop, but I thought I would take this opportunity to show you my current hand quilting.
This is my current hand quilting project, my Red and White Pinwheel quilt, and on the reverse it is backed with a red spotty cotton lawn that I bought in the Laura Ashley sale many, many years ago.


Vintage Laura Ashley fabrics 1980s - 1990s

If you delve into my everyday fabric stash (as opposed to my quilting fabric stash), you will find that it is largely made up from lengths of Laura Ashley dressmaking fabric purchased in the sales back in the 1980s and 1990s.  In those days the Laura Ashley Sale used to be a phenomenon, with people queuing around the block to get in.  I know -  I stood in the queue!  I always used to make a bee-line for the dressmaking fabrics, which were either Seconds or left overs from a print run which had been used to make last seasons dresses. Most of it was a lovely cotton lawn, very similar to the Liberty Lawn fabrics, but at a fraction of the price at £1.99 a metre. In those days I used to make loads of colourful summer shorts and trousers out of the fabric, and used to wear them until they were threadbear. Some of the fabrics you see here are old Laura Ashley skirts. I even have a set of the patchwork kits in my stash. Happy Days!

Today I have just heard that Laura Ashley are putting on a pop-up exhibition of their vintage clothes, celebrating 60 years, on 13th and 14th June 2013, in  London.  As it is on for such a short time, tickets are limited.  Not sure if I will manage to get up to London, but it would be great to see.

Also, between 13th July - 26th August 2013, the Museum of Costume in Bath, UK, is holding an exhibition alongside their normal display of historical costume, "Laura Ashley - The Romantic Heroine", which features the Romantic Style which she influenced during the 1970s.  It's a great costume museum, with a collection on par with the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

If you have nostalgic memories of Laura Ashley, Ann Rippin has a blog, and has a strong interest in how Laura Ashley fabric touched everyday lives and their patchwork and quilting, and there may be an opportunity to get involved in her research.