gemini stitches

WIP Wednesday - Modern Mini challenge quilt (part 2)

2012-02-22T01:00:00.001+10:00

This week I am still working on the Modern Mini challenge quilt as it took me a while to decide on how I wanted to quilt it:

I wanted to keep the geometric theme of the quilt so have done a squarish spiral going from the centre of each block out to the edge of the quilt.

I am using some spools of variegated cotton that I have here for each of the blocks – Gutermann in green, yellow and blue, and a King Tut black/grey/white thread.

The quilting is very time consuming but I really like the effect so far…..

Other WIP:
-Baby Swoon quilt : quilting in progress
-~~For the Love of Solids 2 project~~ :done
-FLOS 2: small item - in progress
~~-Mango Tango Zig Zag quilt~~ done
-Quilt process mini quilt: needs quilting
-DSQ Swoon: still only 1/9 blocks made
-Sparkle Plenty "Ruby": blocks cut for HST's

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced,
Kirsten.

Zesty Ziggy

2012-02-20T09:21:00.001+10:00

I started with this stack of fabric a few weeks ago, and used the Zig Zag pattern from Amandajean of Crazy Mom Quilts to stitch this quilt:

I had decided to make this quilt for the Tangerine Tango challenge so have only used a dark grey/coal solid along with the different orange fabrics:

When I found this very cute dog print at Spotlight I had to add him in as well:) Our lovely neighbours have a little dog named Ziggy so I have named the quilt after him.

Then I remembered I had a large piece of minky which matched the blue in the dog fabric so it became the back, along with some scraps from the front in a strip along each side.

I finished the quilting on the weekend - just some echo quilting along the zig zags in grey or orange thread. It shows up quite well on the back (although it is very difficult to get a good photo of it).

It measures 46x62 " and it is bound in the same shade of blue.

Linking to Sew Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations, and to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory (buttons in sidebar).

Kirsten.

WIP - Modern mini challenge

2012-02-15T06:29:00.004+10:00

There is a new challenge over at Ellison lane quilts involving a blog hop for some creative inspiration as well as a Modern Mini quilt contest.

As Jennifer says, this is the perfect opportunity to try out some quilting ideas on a smaller scale……so I decided to make a mini quilt based on a design that I have really wanted to do since I first saw it late last year .

image source

This is Australian artist Goyte's album "Making Mirrors". The album cover artwork is inspired by a painting by Goyte’s father in the 1980’s - I just loved the asymmetry and graduation of colours.

I used about 9-10 shades of slightly different colours to the original as I just wanted to use up what I had in my stash and I seem to have a lot of blues and teal/greens as they are my favourite colours. They are all solids and there is a mix of cotton, linen, shot cotton, cross weaves, and organic cotton fabrics.

I drew up the design on graph paper and worked out the approximate shapes/sizes needed to make the blocks. I made a small hourglass type block to start with then added triangular shapes similar to flying geese to those before piecing the remainder of the each of the 4 blocks in each colourway. Needless to say I became very good friends with my seam ripper during this whole process !

Then sewed them all together to make a mini quilt which is about 26 inches square including the border. Now I just need to figure out how I am going to quilt it.............

Other WIP: I have a few projects due by the end of February so they have first priority:)

-Baby Swoon quilt
-~~For the Love of Solids 2 project~~ done
-Mango Tango Zig Zag quilt
-Quilt process mini quilt
-DSQ Swoon: still only 1/9 blocks made
-Sparkle Plenty "Ruby"

Linking to WIP Wednesday with Lee at Freshly Pieced and to Pieceful Iife with Elizabeth..
Kirsten.

Valentines Day

2012-02-14T17:15:00.003+10:00

Happy Valentines Day!! I gave my hubby this cute little individual white choc mud cake from my favourite bakery:

And Gemma is just whipping up a batch of Red Velvet cup cakes for all of us..................

The cupcakes were yummy - we did use a packet mix though as we were a bit rushed for time. We all loved the colour of them - such a very deep and romantic red (although Gem said it looked like beetroot which she doesn't like!). I would like to try to make them again from scratch so I'll have to search for a recipe.

Hope you are having a lovely day wherever you are! Linking to Debbies Tuesday at the Table.
Kirsten.

One thing...... one week

2012-02-11T15:59:00.004+10:00

Amy is holding another "One thing...One week" challenge so I thought I should probably get one of my numerous sewing projects finished as there are a few that need to be done by the end of this month.

This is a modified "Swoon" block that I have made for my partner in the Love of Solids Swap(2).

I changed the size to make a 16 "ish block using all HST's rather than Flying Geese as in the original pattern.

And used lots of bright solid fabrics as my partners likes a rainbow of colours..........

My goal this week was to do the quilting, which I have done in straight lines forming a "X" in the middle..

It shows up quite well on the back too.

Just have to finish off the other small item now but I know what I want to do so that is a start:)

Linking to Amy's Creative Side: One thing.....one week challenge (10), to Sew Modern Monday @ Canoe Ridge Creations and to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory (button in sidebar).
Kirsten

WIP Wednesday

2012-01-31T19:21:00.002+10:00

This week I have made a start on choosing some fabrics for my partner for the Love of Solids swap - this is what I have come up with so far:

A rainbow of brights or cool blue/green tones with a splash of colour.......I have a few ideas in mind for the fabric selections.

I also still have quite a few more solid fabrics left over from last years FLOS swap which I may add in as well.

I made my first Swoon block today for my DSQ Daisy Mae Swoon..... and I have another cut out ready to sew up.

Hope to get at least one block done each week now that the kids are back at school:)
Linking to Wip Wednesday at Freshly Pieced:

Kirsten.

iphone/ipod pouches

2012-01-30T08:47:00.001+10:00

I was cleaning up my computer the other day and I have realized that I hadn’t posted pics of the “little” extra items that I made to send with the mini quilts as part of the Denyse Schmidt Doll Quilt swap.

So I picked a couple of coordinating DSQ prints mainly using ones from here in Australia.....

from the Picnic & Fairgrounds and Winding Roads ranges.

and made a couple of ipod/iphone pouches using the pattern in Janelle Winds book Pieces Of Me as I had overseas partners whom were less likely to have a copy of the book themselves.

And speaking of DSQ fabrics, this is my lovely new spotty ironing board cover - I chose it because it matches the DS blue and green dots so well...anything that can make ironing more enjoyable must be good:) And I am going to be doing a lot of pressing once I get my Swoon started....................

Linking to Sew Modern Monday @ Canoe Ridge Creations and to Fabric Tuesday @ Quiltstory. (buttons in sidebar)

Kirsten.

The mid-Winter stitching check in

2012-01-25T07:50:00.002+10:00

I joined in the Winter Stitching challenge with Sarah at Fairy Face designs and it is now time for a review of how things are going so far:)

1. Finish my Amy Butler starflower quilt – check

2. Sew a table runner for the Modern Christmas Table runner swap – check

3. Make a christmas decoration for the above swap too - check

4. Make a quilt for a baby due early next year – in progress.

5. Make a “plus” quilt with the DS fabrics – check

6. Make a “Surf” themed quilt for my BIL and his wife - check

7. Make a fabric basket or two for Christmas pressies - check

8. Finish my "Quilt Process" mini quilt – no further progress!

9. Make a quilt for my friend V who should be back visiting here over the holidays – check

10. I would like to make a quilt with predominantly red and aqua as I really love this colour combo – in progress, a Sparkle Plenty quilt using some Ruby fabric leftover from the tote bag I made.

Round 2 for the Love of Solids swap - have signed up for this again and partner assigned last week - this is my mosaic:

Other items done but not on the list: a quilted tote bag, mini starflower quilt, DS log cabin pillow, started a Mango tango quilt for the Tangerine Tango challenge, have fabrics ready to make a Swoon quilt, made a couple of "plus" table runners and wrote a tutorial on how I made them.

At this stage I have done 7/10 and the rest are in progress so things are looking good so far - the kids are due to go back to school next week so I will probably have a better chance of sewing again!

Kirsten.

Beef and Mango Stir fry

2012-01-24T08:00:00.001+10:00

It is summer here in Australia and our mango tree is usually filled with of ripe mangoes about now - but due to the huge amount of rainfall here last year, sadly we have none :(

We try to use up our mangoes (when we have bucket loads of them) by making Mango Chutney, and we also cook Beef and Mango Stirfry. We haven't had it for a while so my hubby bought a couple of mangoes to make this delicious stirfry to celebrate Chinese New Year yesterday:

1. Mix all of the marinade ingredients together and marinate the thinly sliced beef strips in the fridge for about an hour.
2. Heat the sesame oil in a wok and add the beef strips - stir fry until browned.
3. Mix the ingredients for the sauce and add to the beef, cooking until heated through.
4. Add ginger and spring onion - you can also add snow peas, sliced carrot, broccoli, capsicum or other vegetables if you wish.
4. When the sauce thickens, add the mango slices and serve with rice.

Enjoy:) Linking to Debs "Tuesday at the Table" @ A Quilters Table where you will find some great recipes and stories.

Kirsten.

"Plus" Table Runner tutorial

2012-01-19T06:00:00.003+10:00

I love modern designs for quilting and in particular the "Plus” pattern. There are very few seams to match so it is a great project for a beginner and is a very effective pattern that can be adapted to any size. So far, I have made a mini quilt and a larger quilt using this design but wanted to make a table runner for the Tangerine Tango challenge so thought I'd take photos as I went and try to write it up as a tutorial - so here goes..........

I have seen quite a few Plus quilts made up using squares but I prefer to use squares and rectangles. This pattern uses 2.5 inch wide strips, so jelly rolls are suitable also. These are then cut in lengths of 2.5, 4.5 or 6.5 inches to make up the plus shapes. You can also use scraps as the longest piece needed is 11.5 x 2.5 (to make a "full" plus).
Note: All seams are ¼ inch seam.

So ,for a runner approximately 14.5 x 29 inches long - you will need 12 full plus pieces , 5 partial plus pieces (vertical), 2 partial plus pieces (horizontal) and 10 single squares.

1. For the 12 "full" plus pieces: cut an 11.5 x 2.5 strip of fabric then subcut into one 6.5 x 2.5 inch and two 2.5 x 2.5 squares.

2. For the 5 partial (vertical) plus pieces: cut a 9.5 x 2.5 strip then subcut into one 4.5 x 2.5 and two 2.5 x 2.5 squares.
3. For the 2 partial (horizontal) plus pieces: cut a 9 x 2.5 inch strip then subcut into one 6.5 x 2.5 and one 2.5 x 2.5 square
4. For the 10 single pieces: 2.5 x 2.5 squares (many of these can be cut from the same fabric or you can just use scraps)

5. Once all of the fabrics are cut, lay them out in the Plus design.

6. You can also begin laying them out as a dot-dot-dash-dot-dot-dash across the rows but once the pattern is started it is much easier to see where the next pieces are to go, and then just fill in the gaps. Rearrange the pieces/colours until you find a pleasing arrangement .

7. Pin and sew the rows together – I find it quicker to do chain piecing as there are many small seams.

8. Once the 14 rows are sewn together, press the seams to the side in alternating rows right and left – this helps to get a nice flat finish at the end. I use a pin on one side to help me remember which way to press the seams.

9. When they are all pressed, sew the rows together keeping them in order and matching the seams as you pin and sew.

10. Press the seams to one side and trim up the edges of the runner to make sure the sides are even.

11. Cut a piece of wadding/batting to the same size or slightly larger than your runner. Lay your backing fabric right side facing down and smooth it over so it is nice and flat, and tape down the edges to hold it in place. Then lay the batting on top of this, smoothing it out also. Lastly, the runner is placed over the batting with the right side of the runner facing up. This forms the “sandwich” as the batting is sandwiched between the backing and the top.

12. You can then baste the runner – I use pins as it is only a small area but you can also use a spray to baste the three layers together.

13. Then, using a walking foot, quilt the runner in the manner of your choice. You could free motion quilt the entire runner but I outlined the design by quilting just on the inside of each Plus:

You may also just wish to do straight line quilting along each row approximately an 1/8 or a 1/4 of an inch either side of the seams like I did with the DSQ runner below:

14. Once it is quilted, you can trim the edges and bind the runner. I prefer to machine stitch the binding on also as it is more durable, especially for items that are washed frequently such as runners and place mats.

Then step back and admire your lovely table runner. You can also make your runner longer or wider for different table sizes by cutting larger pieces originally or by cutting more pieces and adding them to the layout - you just need to keep the length of the pieces in a 1:2:3 ratio adding an extra 1/4 inch to each side for seam allowances .

If you make a runner or something similar using this tutorial, I would love to see your projects so please leave me a link to your blog or flickr. Also if you have any questions please ask - thanks!
Linking to Sew Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations ,to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory ( buttons in sidebar) and to Tutorial Tuesday at Lawson and Lottis.

Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday - Tigerlily Baby Swoon

2012-01-18T07:50:00.002+10:00

Still swooning along here:) Yesterday I made a practice swoon block firstly to see if I could actually sew one as I haven't made flying geese before! And secondly I want to cut the squares for the HST's out at 4 inches then trim them back to 3.5 inch once sewn so I needed to check that I could cut all of the pieces out of a FQ - which seemed fine.

I needed to make a baby quilt for some friends who are expecting early this year, and had just enough of this very cute Michale Miller Zoology print to make the centre square. I teamed it with some Prima Tigerlily and dark grey solids, then added a 4 inch border to the finished block.

I wasn't sure how I was going to quilt it but remembered a mini swoon made by my friend Deb! She just did a big "X" though the centre and then echo quilted using the walking foot as a guide.
So I got started last night and got one quarter quilted before we watched the 4th Pirates movie - love Captain Jack:)

And I may have finally decided on fabrics for my Big Swoon now that I feel "safe" using FQ - I swapped some Aussie DSQ fabrics with a US friend last year and she sent me an 18 FQ set of Daisy Mae in return which I think will be perfect. I really seem to be on an orange kick so far this year:)

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Kirsten.

Tangerine Table Topper

2012-01-15T17:49:00.006+10:00

This stack of fabrics has now become my first finished project for the Tangerine Tango challenge:

I went with the modern "Plus" design as I love how it looks with a mix of fabrics. We were allowed to use one "other" colour so I chose the light aqua/minty shade which was in both the Joel Dewberry Heirloom Tile Flourish in Amber and the Amy Butler Love aqua and orange spots .

The table runner is 14.5" wide x 29" inches long and I quilted just on the inside of each of the plusses so this is what it looks like on the back.

There are quite a few fabrics in this runner - Joel Dewberry, Amy Butler, shot cottons, organic solids, Sandi Henderson, Denyse Schmidt, honeycomb dots to name a few - but my favourite part is the square of Daiwabo elephants in the bottom right corner:)

I took lots of photos as I made this so I hope to have a tutorial coming up some time this week so check back soon.
Linking to Sew Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations,LIttle quilt Monday at Pieceful Life,
and to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory.

Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday - Zig Zagging and Swooning

2012-01-11T15:52:00.003+10:00

I made a start on a quilt using some of the Tangerine/orange fabrics for the Tangerine Tango challenge. I have wanted to make the Zig Zag quilt by Crazy Mom Quilts for a while now so this seemed the perfect time as I had a few 1/4 m pieces of orange fabric rather than FQ.

I have used a dark grey solid as the "neutral" fabric and am still trying to work out what to use as the backing.

And I decided to join in the Swoon-along organised by Katy at I'm A Ginger Monkey. I have had the Swoon pattern here for a while but have not been able to decide on what fabrics to use. I have enough FQ of Dolce, Peacock Lane, Meadowsweet and some Echo on the way, and 10 FQ of Heirloom (Citrine) so I could just add some solids. The Peacock Lane would be great to fussy cut the centre squares and I have 5 yards for the backing too. But I really should use up some of the mountains of Denyse Schmidt fabrics that I have here as I have seen a few Swoons made from them and they all look lovely, and at least if I muck the blocks up I still have plenty more to cut from as the pattern cutting is quite a tight squeeze from the FQ! I really need to do a practice block to see how I go first anyway.....

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.
Kirsten.

First finish of 2012 - Blushing quilt

2012-01-09T10:50:00.001+10:00

A friend of mine was back visiting over the holidays and I had said that I would make her a quilt when she moved away to a much cooler part of Australia last year. I met V about 10 years ago when she had moved here from another country and was expecting twins. As I was involved in the Multiple Birth group here at the time, I met up with her and we have been friends ever since.

I chose some pretty Basic Grey Blush fabrics as I loved the colours and V will recognize the fabrics as she likes scrapbooking. I used the Abracadabra pattern from Bloom in the smaller size 44" x 57" (112cm x 145cm).

Also, as V lives in a household of 4 males, I think she needs a bit of pink in her life:)

I backed it in a coordinating light brown spot - all of these colours remind me of strawberry, vanilla and chocolate Neapolitan ice cream.

Linking to Sew Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations and Fabric Tuesday @ Quiltstory (buttons in sidebar).

Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday

2012-01-05T17:30:00.000+10:00

Well, it is Thursday now here in Australia but anyway:) These are just a couple of the swaps/challenges that have caught my eye so far this year........

Following on from my last post about the Tangerine Tango challenge, I have gone through my stash and surprisingly, found quite a few tangerine/orange fabrics:

(solids,shot cottons,spots,Denyse Schmidt,Amy Butler,Joel Dewberry,Sandi Henderson)
Along with these, we can use one other colour and one neutral solid (shades of white, cream, beige, brown, gray, and black). I have a few ideas of what I would like to make so will hopefully get started this weekend.

I have just gone through my my flickr favourites and saved photos to make a new mosaic for the Love of Solids (2) swap - this was such a fun swap last year and I can't wait to do it again!!.

Whilst I was looking for images, I kept going back to this one which I think would be stunning (!!!) made into a quilt. It is the cover of Goyte's album "Making Mirrors" - lots of little HST's in neutral tones. You may be familiar with this amazing song from the album - the video is very visually inspiring too:

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced:

Kirsten.

Mango Tango

2012-01-03T14:26:00.002+10:00

There is a competition going on at Quokka Quilts where you can go to The Fat Quarter Shop and make up your own bundle of FQ from all of the wonderful fabrics that they have to choose from. There is the chance of winning a half yard bundle of your choice of fabrics:)

The fabrics in the bundle are:

1. Pure elements Burnt orange solid

2. American Jane poppy pindot

3. Flora Tangerine Garden damask

4. Terrain bloom lichen

5. Fruit ala carte orange bubble dots

6. Bella solids Betty' s orange solid

7. Indian summer orange mini dots

8. Timeless treasure sketch nectar screen texture

9. Treasure and tidbits orange tiny floral

10. Riley Blake Tangerine blender

11. Riley Blake Sweet carrot solid

12. Heirloom amber ribbon lattice

13.Floral folio dark orange allover leaves

14.Sweet on NYC orange swirl

15. Super orange playful pindots

The bundle I have designed is inspired by the Pantone colour of the year 2012 which is "tangerine". I actually first saw this on Erins blog "Two more Seconds" where she is holding a

Tangerine Tango quilt challenge along with Ali of asquared(w) on flickr which looks like fun.

Kirsten.

etzcetera magazine

2012-01-01T13:08:00.000+10:00

The beginning of the month (and a new year!) brings another source of wonderful crafty and inspirational goodness. The lovely Kim Archer (whom I first met a few years ago through scrapbooking) has released a fabulous online magazine called Etzcetera.

The magazine is filled with articles and tutorials for many types of crafts from her very talented creative team – from jewelry making to scrapbooking and of course, stitching. This is a “Little Houses on the Hillside” mixed media canvas my sister-in-law made using the tutorial by Kate Mason in issue 2:

Although it released every second month, there are plenty of projects to keep you going between issues!! The first issue is free, and you can also download the previous issues here.
I am to have a cuppa whilst I browse through Issue 4 ..........
Kirsten.

Wrapping up twenty-eleven

2011-12-31T09:02:00.002+10:00

Just wanted to do a quick end of year post - more so that I can remember what I did his year:) So here are the quilts:

And a few mini quilts/table runners/mug rugs:

Some other sewing projects:

And I even managed a bit of crochet......

But I think the highlight for me in 2011 was being chosen as one of the 10 finalists in the Umbrella Prints Trimmings competition. There were some amazing entries and it was a lot of fun thinking of how to use almost every tiny piece of fabric in the pack!

photo source

It has been so nice to meet so many other lovely bloggers this year since starting this blog and becoming involved in flickr group swaps. Thank you so much for your sweet comments and wishing everyone a happy new year!!

Kirsten.