New Years Resolutions

Over the last few years I have been pretty good at making and keeping some resolutions. The creation of this blog was one for this year so I thought that by going public on my resolutions for next year would help me achieve them. It will also help me to sort out in my own mind just what I want to achieve in the coming year. So here goes (in no particular order):

• Attend courses/workshops/days to learn new techniques or just to get creative amongst likeminded people.
• Go through books already on my shelf and list the techniques and ideas that I want to try. Actually get round to doing things instead of just reading about them.
• Post on this blog regularly each week, even it it is just 'work in progress' or my inspiration for a current piece of work.
• Enter work in exhibitions or contests.
• Put aside time each week to get creative.

Christmas Postcard Swap

A few weeks I wrote about the christmas postacard swap I had done with three other members of Greenstede Quilters. I wanted to share the three postacards I got in the swap as I think they illustrate just how different fabric postacrds can be.

The first one was made by Val and is her first ever swap. The photo doesn't really show up the really neat hand stitching all around the applique.

the second one was made by Jacquie and incorporated some fabric painting.

The final one was made by Jayne - buttons do it for me!

Thanks to all three of you for swapping. We must do it again sometime!

Experiments

A few month ago my daughter, Karen, went on a day course with Angie Hughes and bought me one of her kits. In a bored moment just before Christmas I remembered it in the drawer and gave it a go.

It uses velvet as the base and on to this you put bondweb. I have to admit this was a bit scary but that was the instructions! I then used a stencil I had seen Angie use at the FOQ this year to apply some foil. To this base I added some squares of organza and other shiny fabrics the topped with some organza. I then machined around the square shapes, adding more machining where I thought it needed then before finally attacking the piece with a heat gun. Just to add a bit more glitz, I added some beads and sequins.

Having got this experimental piece which I was quite pleased with, I used some more black velvet to make it up into a journal quilt, extending the machine quilting into the black velvet. I was not too sure what to do about the endging as I felt it could not take a bound edge so i just machined around the quilt and cut the edge with a wavy rotary cutter. I had some square beads which I had bought at the FOQ this year so I added these arounf the edge.

I pleasing result - I hope everyone else agrees!

Birth Postcards

When each of our granddaughters were born I made fabric postcards for family members as a way of celebrating their births. This was mainly because both of their mothers are quilters and I didn't get a look in on making them quilts. With the arrival of our new grandson in November, I've again made postcards to celebrate his birth. Each of the postcards are a little bigger than normal as they are approximately 7" x 5" but as I needed to get photo and information on them, I gave myself permission to do so. Here are the postcards for each grandchild.

Block of the Month Quilt

For the last year I have been taking part in a block of the Month challenge at my quilt group, Greenstede Quilters. Having vowed never to make a quilt again, I'm not too sure why I decided to take part but having done so I did enjoy the process although it was more like "six blocks this month to catch up" rather than "block of the month! I had a selection of blue batik fabrics which I bought on a whim at the National patchwork Championship in 2008and had had sitting in a drawer ever since. I just love batik fabrics as I feel they do all the hard work for you and as long as the fabrics go together, you can't really go too wrong.

I have to admit to cheating on a few of the blocks, especially the ones with curves! I did make a Drunkard's Path, even if it was the cheats way by appliqueing circles to a square and then cutting it up. It came out very chunky because of the bondaweb and the size wasn't quite right either (accurate piecing was never my forte). I did have every intention of having another go when I'd got over the first one, but it was never to be. I also ditched the Dresden Fan which I just don't like. The quilting is a mix of free mchine quilting, quilt in the ditch and fancy stiches.

I'm really pleased with the finished result but I have renewed my vow not to make another quilt!

Major update

Thought it was time to get some photos on this blog so I'm catching up with the Christmas Cards and Quilt that I mentioned in my last blog.


A challenge was sent out at Greenstede Quilters, the group I belong to in East Grinstead, to take part in a Christmas fabric postcard swap. Only four of us put themselves up for this challenge so well done to Jayne (who organised the swap), Jacquie and Val. As it was such a small group we all made one for each other.


I decided to have a go at making "inchies" for my postcards. I used a Christmas fabric which I bonded to both sides of some pelmet vilene for the background. I then free machine quilted over the fabric in a swirly pattern. I then cut up in to 1" x 1" squares and zig-zagged around the edges before adding beads and sequins to finish. For the postcard background I first printed some gold stars over some red Christmassy fabric and again free machine quilted, adding some star shapes to a random swirl. I finished the top by adding three of the Inchies in a row.

I also used the same Inchies for my christmas Cards this year but they were all sent before I thought about photographing them!