unexpectedly wonderful

Super excited to be piecing these 9patches, 4patches & little 16patches, it's wonderful seeing them all mixed up together! I'm making my version of a vintage quilt from Roderick Kiracofe's book "unconventional and unexpected", see here for more details. Also inspired by Chris' recent work over at afullenglish 

It's growing super fast and I'm keen to keep on keeping on now

… and am very excited to see where I end up!

Linking up with Cyndy for 'oh scrap' here

my top nine

It’s December! Get ready guys, you are about to see lots of 9patch grids all over Instagram, with everyone sharing their Top Nine collages with their best nine Instagram pics for 2020, about anything and everything! 

Blogging & Instagram have been a great source of inspiration & friendship for me during this {very crazy} year. I have loved sharing, & learning, & trying new patterns out, and I've found the quilting community are so very generous with their thoughts, tips & techniques.  

My top nine popular pics are just a little snapshot of my quilty 2020 year. It has certainly been a year where I have faffed about, had spurts of sewing and then nothing- absolute zilch - for weeks on end. However, it's still interesting {read surprising} to see which pics got the most interest. 

Of the quilts featured, three are now completely finished

- Carolina Chain, Scrappy 9patch & Stars and Stripes

 

two more are in the process of being quilted

- Norah & Second Star to the Right

two are completed tops

- Courthouse Steps & Pastel Spiderweb

and two are still very much works in progress

- my raw edge applique piece & Flea Market Fancy project

I have, of course, got just a few more WiPs hanging around here

- projects that will keep me busy well into next year

I'm thinking maybe it'll be another year of scraps? 

If you are interested, you can see more of my IG feed over here.

Until next time, Linda

around here lately

Lately, I've been faffing around, jumping from one thing to another! I've cut out four more bouquets and put them up on the design wall too, (that's eight blocks now!). I'm combining ideas & inspiration from a few places for my bouquet blocks, using an old 12" block pattern but am still unsure of any setting decisions yet. 

This soft, dusty palette feels like quite a departure for me, but sometimes it's nice to venture off on a tangent. And not really being a 'purple person', I was surprised by how much I love these pale colours teamed up with the warm purple florals in this recent Tilda collection.

I've got a bit of reading lined up too! This stack of books arrived all at once from our local library this week, a tad overwhelming - but I'm not complaining!

I finally managed to decide on the binding for my 'Esplanade Quilt'. The pattern is by Jo from frankieandray and is available in her online store. I love Jo's patterns because they lend themselves perfectly to big florals.

This quilt was made using some Outback Wife leftover fabrics, a mix of vintage, and a few AMH fabrics. I had it quilted by Leeanne from quiltmekiwi in an all-over pattern called 'water drops'. Finished quilt measures 1.91m x 1.91m.

Linking up my latest finish with Kelly for 'needleandthreadThursday' over here

And, I also had a change of heart about the inset triangle borders for my scrappy 'pinwheels on point' quilt.  It's my version of the bonbonerie quilt pattern by Christine - with a few variations. 

It's a simple sew, and, determined to stick to only shopping- my- stash, I began adding a teal floral for my setting triangles. However, the more I looked at it, the more I felt that particular fabric really overpowered my light & breezy pinwheels.

Long story short, I ordered some new fabric. It turned up this week and so I'm now going with this yummy ever- so- useful Kaffe spot in Sage … and loving it! 

It'll need a bit of spray starch when I get to layering things up for quilting I think, as those triangular edges are a wee bit stretchy!  

Sharing my latest projects with Frederique over here this weekend

Until next time, Linda

A bouquet {or four} in tilda & kaffe

http://encyclopediaquiltpatterns.blogspot.com/2018/05/brides-bouquet-or-nosegay.html

This is a traditional quilt block from the 1930's, with lots of different names, and was quite popular despite its set-in Y seams. It's been on my wish list to make for more years than I care to count. 

I'm modernizing it with a soft colour palette, using a 'maple farm' bundle from Tilda and then I added Kaffe spots to it. 

Am totally inspired by Kathy from MO, and I recently purchased her 'Bunch of Ruby Rose Hips' pattern, {see here} but I didn't realise I needed to get the accompanying templates as well 😞… so I resorted to googling the pattern. 

I've also seen lots of pics around on IG with yummy combos for these pretty wildflower blocks, including Jo Brozinski {here} and Carolyn Forster's 'patchwork of posies' quilt {found over here}. 

I've got these four blocks stuck precariously up on the design wall today. Not sure on my setting yet, there's a few options including maybe sashing in a stripe … I'll decide later on after I've made up a few more blocks. Until next time, Linda

Anthologie quilt: more progress

"Four Seasons in one day quilt" is my version of Melanie from southerncharmquilts Anthologie quilt. It's basically a sampler quilt, and is meant to be very Bohemian in style, with lots of layering, and mixing pattern & texture.

I'm going for a boho mix of colours and florals, using Kaffe spots, Tilda and Anna Maria florals. I'm finding that if I repeat a few combos, it's starting to look fairly cohesive. The plaid & those Kaffe spots really add a much needed contrast with all my florals. Sewing with this mix of fabrics is totally uplifting!

 

  

I'm running outta design wall space, 

so one section is down on the design floor now and the other larger section is up on the wall.

Yep, I think this could work!

Linking up with Kelly for 'needleandthreadThursday' here

Until next time, Linda

get the mix

- initial selection of four groups of fabric to use throughout my main blocks.

I find repeating a fabric or colour often disperses any doubts I may have had, so fingers crossed!

And onto the collage section...

Just adding in some green foliage now to connect up my floral clusters.

Oh and I was determined to include this plaid... somewhere...anywhere... 

… and am très happy now! 

Lots of fun exploring this eclectic mix of fabrics - Kaffe spots, Tilda and Anna Maria's effervescent florals - all teamed up a few extras from my stash and a selection of creamy low volumes.

And, thanks to Susan from patchworknplay for the spot on visual, I'm now thinking this palette is looking very much like a four seasons in one day quilt - the light florals for Spring, the rich purples & deep blues for Winter, with touches of warm orange & gold for Autumn, and the cool light teal blues & very berry colours for Summer.

 

Until next time, Linda