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Tuesday 28 January 2014

Half square place mats

Disappearing away down south for respite from the heat and to enjoy the glorious coastline is all very wonderful, but it doesn't get much quilting done. Having had a few delightful days away I hope to get back to doing some patchwork and quilting this week.
Last week I did manage to complete, prior to going away, some place mats for the friend who lives in Albany. Blue and white are her favourite colours and the colour scheme of her home so I knew as soon as I saw the blue and white fabric it would be for her.
I did some free-motion quilting of feathers in the white sections, along with some simple large stippling on the outside borders. Machine binding also helps to bring the process to a swift conclusion, though had I more time, there is something very relaxing and pleasurable about completing the binding by hand.
Small projects are satisfying for their prompt completion, but also whet the appetite for larger ones. These place mats use half square triangles and it is such a versatile and useful shape. I had earlier made this lap quilt for another friend on her 80th birthday.
Thanks to Nicole (Sisters Choice Blog) for displaying such variety that different arrangement of these shapes can create - it was great inspiration for the place mats.
Now to get back to adding some borders and doing some sandwiching on my next current 'flimsy'!

Until next time,
Lynn

Sunday 19 January 2014

Pooh and me

I've had a wonderful week - a few days spent in one of the best places on earth to me - Goode Beach in Albany. It's about a 4 and a half hour drive from Perth, but such beautiful coastline.

As you can see from the photo, it was a quiet day at the beach, other than a woman in a black and red bikini. She inspired me that my 'shocking pink' bra wasn't too different from her two coloured two piece. And it was my 55th birthday, so what did I care? I stripped off and entered the opal like turquoise water - it was magnificent - refreshing but quite warm and I revelled in it. The only other woman I passed as I returned along the beach was so busy searching for a signal and then talking on her mobile phone I don't think she'd have noticed if I'd been in my birthday suit!!

So to home after a restful stay with a friend there whose home has magnificent views of the ocean - very peaceful. And back to my 'Pooh bear' quilt for a friend who is due to deliver her son in March. 


I've now added the binding and the stipple quilting in the squares plus a daisy on the nine patches. I took my 'better half's advice' - (he really does often know best) and used a flash inside with a 'day time' globe. Getting better at the photos. I do enjoy the free-motion quilting and gradually am improving, as everyone says it just takes practise, practise, practise. 

I'll link up with Confessions of a fabric addict. 

Until next time, 
Lynn

Saturday 11 January 2014

New Bag

With the summer here down under in full swing, we got a taste of what may be to come in Feb and March - it's over 40 degrees celsius today and here's our outside (in the shade) temperature gaugue to prove it!


Not really weather for quilting - at least not anything much bigger than this bag. So it became first in the line. The other two quilts in waiting will have to remain just that - at least until I get back from cooler climes down south towards the end of next week.
I'm trying to learn how best to photograph quilts etc too. Two lamps, daylight globes seems to give more shadows than I want at present. Will continue to explore and hope to improve.
I quilted the bag in a simple stipple particularly around the 'squares' that formed from the edges of the stripped block. Good fun all round and I hope my 'musical' friend finds it useful.

I'm linking up to Confessions of a fabric addict and Lily's quilts at:http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/2353631/lilys-quilts

Until next time,
Lynn

Friday 10 January 2014

Blog move

A New Year, a new blog and already I've moved. Apologies to those who commented on my first location, I have now moved to Blogger. Will post photos soon of one completed bag, I hope. Looking forward to continuing the patchwork and quilting journey with the wonderful on-line community.

Until next time,
Lynn

Works in Progress

Mid week and the temperature is warming up here in Perth – that’s anything beyond 30 degrees celsius in my book and by the weekend it’s forecast to be around 30! Thank goodness for air conditioning. Staying home (or heading to the movies) is a good plan. So I hope to work on some works in progress, 2 that are cot sized quilts and the third another bag.
The first that will begin to get its quilting on is most likely this ‘Arkansas crossing’ pattern that is a great one for using up more of the ever present scraps. I have quite a few child friendly ones and I just keep plodding at using them up. I like the calm, rest your eye paths the pale green makes as well.
Arkansaw crossing pattern - WIP
The second is still using up some scraps, but alternated with some cute Winnie the Pooh fabric. I don’t often subscribe to the ‘pink for girls, blue for boys’ idea, but I began it without knowing who it was destined for but am very pleased to find out that one of my friends who is pregnant has found out it is a boy (after 2 girls she’s not sure what she’s in for but I’m sure she and her husband are delighted).
Winnie the Pooh - for a boy!
And then there’s another bag – still in one large rectangle at this stage. It’s planned for a ‘musical’ friend, so it was fun to make the musical fabric squares the feature. I can see myself making other bags with various patterns within the large rectangle that is quilted to make the bag. There is something very satisfying in the time it takes to make them as well as their usefulness and delight friends seem to have on receiving them – wins all round I say.
Soon to be bag
All the best with whatever you are up to this week. I’m linking up to Freshly Pieced Modern Quilts

Until next time,
Lynn

New Year – new quilts

5 days into the New Year and part of my resolution this year is to post regularly (at least once a week) to keep up with whatever I’m working on. To catch up first of all, I made a couple of bags as Christmas gifts and then decided I’d like to change the pattern a little as I made the first for 2014. So here they are.



First Christmas gift bag
Second Christmas gift bag

I used a pattern from Patchwork & Stitching Vol. 4 No. 4 from 2004 designed by Ruth Jennings. It’s a good one and easily made up in a short time (for me usually a couple of days, but I don’t sit at it from start to finish).
Third bag with pattern change

Then I went on to quilt a flimsy I’d completed during 2013 – (there’ll be a few of those, which I guess are U.F.O.s but now become Works in Progress W.I.Ps, which sounds more productive).  I used up some scraps from child friendly fabric I’ve used in a number of quilts to date and adapted a pattern I’ve seen in a number of places, to suit the size I wanted. It’s 46″ x 351/2″ with the small squares being 3″finished. The free-motion quilting I did I feel like I’m improving. I started last year and this is around quilt number 10 with trying feathers, now swirls and other patterns. I really enjoy it on my fairly basic Janome 1600P QC. I bought it second hand and it’s semi-industrial, which comes in really handy with the walking foot taking any variations in thickness in it’s stride.
Fruit and Cream

I’d like to give names to quilts, but I’m not sure how to go about it. I don’t think I could give them actual names, like people, but in trying to think of a ‘title’ for this one, the only thing I’ve come up with so far is fruit & cream. Bit boring as the fabric in between the squares is cream and there are a number of lemons, apricots etc in the squares. How do others name their quilts? Does inspiration strike somehow?

Well, that’s all for now, so back to working on my next piece/s which are mostly cot sized quilts at present since I know a number of relatives and friends who are expecting happy bundles in 2014.

Until next time, Lynn

My Purple Patch

I’ve read many blogs, web pages and sites over the past year or more and thought it was time to add my own photos and begin a blog, so 2014 is the year. Why is it called Purple patch? The phrase in common English has come to mean a period of success or a favourable time. I think having raised 2 amazing sons, having sufficient leisure in life to enjoy my hobby of patchworking and quilting I am indeed in a purple patch of life. Purple was also the colour of fabric often added to garments as a decoration, as it is a distinctive colour and was often used for Emperors. And it’s one of my favourites!

And to the right is a literal purple patch that I’m currently working on as I piece several different colours of scraps in various hues. Not sure how many I’ll add yet but I’m gathering yellow, orange, green, blue, brown and of course purple. I could be heading for a dozen or so, depending how that looks together. I have a never ending stash of scraps (doesn’t every patchworker who’s ever made two or more quilts?).

About Me


Living in Western Australia (one of the most remote parts of the planet, or at least Perth city is one of the most remote cities – but remote from where I ask?) I was born in Engand but came to W.A. as a child.

I’m a creative patchworker, typically have too many projects on the go, but delight in both piecing and free-motion quilting. I made my first quilt in 2000 after taking a starter class from a shop (that no longer exists). I’ve continued to be self taught, usually doing one quilt with hand quilting per year. The others are usually machine pieced and quilted. I’m approaching my first 100 quilts – from doll size through to queen size.

I’m in the second half century of life, still with my life long partner, have 2 adult sons living on the other side of the world (ie one in Europe and one soon to be Canada).

My other mainstay is a small white furry companion/shadow, a Jack Russell cross, who when she’s not squeaking in delighted anticipation of a walk simply dozes on her bed and watches every move I make!