it's been a log cabin sort of day

Have you made a one colour quilt before? 

Worried it might come out plain & dull? 

Worried you might not have enough of your chosen colour in the stash?

Me too!

Using a single focal colour is a challenge for me - if you've stopped by before, you'll know I'm a scrappy quilter who loves using lots of multi-coloured florals. But I fell in love with a photo my friend Glenys sent me earlier in the week of a couple of quilts @ cuttingcloth in Australia, and I was keen to give it a go. 

After some faffing around, I've chosen to make an easy, scrappy take on the traditional Log Cabin patchwork block. And I've decided I'm going to make a green quilt, inspired by the beauty & freedom of a tangled messy garden. 

I want to be more intentional about colour value though, and maybe just not use every green under the sun ...

... so, I did a deep dive into my scrap baskets. I don't often splash out on many green fabrics, but there were some oldies but goodies in there💚. Perfect jumping off point!

I'm thinking of using a scrappy mix of minty/teal gentle greens and adding a healthy dose of low volumes & grey (both highlighting just a little pink), and maybe some pops of dark green/blue for contrast. I'm hoping the finished over-all look will be green, calm & serene.

Some in-between sewing✅ 

and a nice change✅ 

from all the FPP & curved piecing on my 'boardwalk' blocks.

more of the same

- my favourite so far 🩷🧡

- the outer corners & arcs have more of merging look happening in this one

I'm using a real mix of beautiful fabrics, lovingly collected in my stash.

This next one's a little mix & match combo,

  RSS, Tula, Anna Maria & an unknown spot ...

and then there were nine ...

hope your weekend involves a little stitching time too

Linda

boardwalk: update

This quilt is quite the journey.

Lots of favourite fabrics, bright colours, and memories in these blocks

block #3 in blue & yellow

block #4 in a "spicy" palette of warm brown & pink/orange

block #5 in greens, pink & pops of blue

(this one went together really easily)

I decided on large-scale florals for the outer corners, assorted geometric prints for contrast, and blending itty bitty prints for extra detail. That's my 'formula', it seems to be working so far so I'm sticking to it! I love how the Liberty, vintage & modern fabrics all mix up together.

Have a good week, Linda

a zoom around the room

My sewing room was looking too colourful & tidy not to share

- As a scrappy quilter, I don't buy much in the way of large pieces.

Everything gets stacked on shelves in these white baskets, usually by colour, but sometimes by designer.

I use a lovely old dresser from mrD's grandmother for extra storage, 

which enables me to have some older fabric hidden away in the depth of the cupboards!

- Embroideries made by mrD's mum (in 1946) & my mum 

- Finished quilt tops get to hang out together in the wardrobe!

And on the design wall at the moment

- auditioning setting triangles for hexagon quilt

- a fun little colour collage

- a trial bear paw block

- string quilt

- present WiP boardwalk blocks

Thanks for all the comments on my last few posts, it seems a few of you are quite interested in my ongoing sorting & tidying up! I've zoomed around the sewing room quickly so you can see how things are looking at present. 

Starting was the hardest part for me. It all felt overwhelming a week ago, but once I got busy it was very satisfying (and almost a relief!). I haven't changed anything major, just sifted & sorted, made a few decisions - like keep, chuck, gift/donate - and am resolved to try & keep my space tidier, for longer! 

Love to hear how you sort & store your fabrics. 

Are you ruthless in the chucking out department? Or do you hang on to fabric, like me, just in case?

Linda

a sampler of sorts

Still busy around here. I've spent several days over the past week or so sorting and cleaning and re-organizing my sewing room and am pleased with how things are looking.

I've handed a bag (or three) of fabric scraps to my friend Glenys, I've prioritised a few quilt tops for backing & layering up ready for quilting, and I've popped a new needle in my sewing machine✅.

I have a scrap basket under my sewing table that I drop scraps into as I sew. It was pretty close to overflowing, so I also spent a bit of time sorting those scraps into colour-coded baskets. 

Taming those WiPs needed a more serious effort. I've decided I'm happy for blocks of current projects to either live up on the design wall or be tucked into a basket on top of one of my fabric cabinets, just so long as they are close by & easy to pick up. Potential fabric pulls, not yet cut but set aside for possible projects, have been bundled up with ribbons and placed together in a large basket. My latest finished tops are now folded & draped on coat hangers in the wardrobe. 

But I'm guessing you didn't stop by to hear all about my reorganising. 

Here's a few pics of my most current WiP ...

 

And a few more details about this one ...

I had recently splashed out on a few 30cms strips of Anna Maria's 'piecework' fabrics mainly in the vintage colourway, from jenkingwell in Australia. 

I felt the pull of creativity as soon as I unwrapped my parcel ... and before I knew it, I was busy daydreaming about making a sampler of sorts.

There is a *pattern available which I tried to source with no luck, and so using photos I saw online, I went a bit loosey-goosey and did my own thing. I do enjoy figuring out things for myself, especially if there are basic, traditional blocks involved. It's a fun challenge.

I used a few blocks from the Alison Glass Made & Found QAL, a fun free 9" block series emailed weekly earlier last year that I'd saved. I made duplicate blocks along the way and repeated some fabric combos I really liked to help give some sense of continuity within the blocks.

For fun, I also added in 1x FPP 8-point & 2x FPP 6-point stars, using patterns I bought from thimblesandneedles in Australia.

 

I mixed in a few solids with my prints, but - as I didn't have heaps of the new range - I've added in a few blenders from my stash too.  All in a rich palette of warm gold-yellows, blues, playful pinks, and a little bit of green.

Fast forward to now,

 and in no time at all, I had my 30 simple little blocks all joined up ...

 my favourite kind of quilt

- inspired by tradition but reworked to look a bit modern.

*I did finally find a pre-order pattern but postage to NZ was way too expensive :( 

I made a few queries and happily, Anna Maria dm'd that she'll have a PDF pattern available soon too 

- I might just make another one when that's available!

progress pics

I like to juggle a few WiPs at any one time, and usually, this helps me manage my crazy attention span!
But there comes a time when I simply have to stop and take some time to tidy my sewing room. I also needed make a few decisions about fabrics & my overflowing baskets (like keep - chuck - gift/donate). It feels like I'm simply shifting clutter from one location to another though! 

And those WiPs needed to be dealt to. I made a list. 

One mess quilt top I wanted to finish up was joining these TATW blocks. It's all straightforward patchwork, slow but immensely joyful. Each block is a new invitation to play with colour and pattern, see back here for earlier details.  

... and I decided on a scrappy border for the win! Not only does it use up more stash, but it also ensures all those edges are secure & prevents the seams from unravelling. I've used a selection of bold greens, and I love how it holds in the beautiful bursting floral blocks.

I've also made another 'boardwalk' block too,

 it's a repeat block design & great for using both big & small scraps ...

Hm-m- this one block a week idea won't last much longer, I'm having way too much fun!

And part of the big tidy up was some maintenance on my sewing machine.

Now & then Mr D kindly checks everything, including vacuuming out the dust bunnies.

OMG dare I confess, it must have been quite a while since the last time, 

'cos look ... 

🤣

... note to self: de-lint my machine monthly

Linda

playing with prints & patterns.

I started Emma's Boardwalk quilt this weekend. It ticks all the boxes - it's scrappy, vibrant, fun, and perfect for playing with prints and patterns. I'm loving the wee challenge of creating small, coordinated collections for each big 14 1/2" block. I'm hoping the bright colours of my larger prints will contrast nicely with the geometric intersecting cross to create a fresh, modern design. 

Must admit, the piecing kept me on my toes! The pie to arc seam is quite tight. So, I decided to make up a single paper piecing (FPP) unit for the fan blades, something I'd seen Suzanne on IG do, and it did make for a slightly easier sew. And, by the time I'd made my 4th quarter, I had it all looking okay.

- trial block✅

Planning the next block now,

Linda