Apron

I just finished making this apron. The picture of it on a hanger didn't turn out great because the apron was folding in on itself. I wasn't about to take a photo with me wearing it because I've been in my pyjamas all day, haha! The orange fabric has been in my stash for ages, the floral was too pretty just to chop up and use in quilt blocks. The pattern said to also make pockets on the inside so the apron would be reversible, I didn't do that. I'll take my old apron to the cabin to use there and I'll use the new one here.

Throwback Thursday: Vest Making Class From 1987

After I joined the local quilting guild in 1987, I took a class on making quilted vests. At the time, I couldn't find any 100% cotton fabric in the store so I had to buy polycotton fabrics for this vest. I never wore the garment after it was made, but I learned a lot, since I was new to quilting. Thirty seven years later, I'm still a member of that quilting guild.

Stashbuster 2024 Is Completed

I'm in a Facebook group that picks a pattern each year and holds a stashbuster challenge. This year's pattern was Scrappy Irish Chain. Because the quilt was so large, I had to photograph it outside, there's not enough room in my house. The wind was ruffling the quilt around on the frame, it wasn't easy to hold it still for the photo. When I win the lottery, I'll hire a professional photographer. It's free-motion quilted with flowers and leaves, using Glide thread. When I took it off the frame, I noticed a fold and some puckers on the back. I tried picking out the quilting in that section and redoing it, but it didn't look satisfactory. My solution? Applique a quilt block over the offending area. I'm keeping the quilt for myself. It's a good thing I don't quilt for customers.

This picture was taken when the quilting was still in progress.

A Solution To A Problem

These days, they seem to make socks for people with pencil-thin legs. The bands are so tight, they are impossible to wear without discomfort. There needed to be a solution to the problem. I stretched the band over the free-arm of the sewing machine and did a large zigzag. Look at the comparison with the unsewn sock:

I'm going to do this with all of my socks now. As long as the thread matches, they don't look too bad. They should be more comfortable to wear.

Coin Quilt Completed

In an attempt to whittle down my stash of blue fabrics, this quilt was born. I'm probably going to get tired of using the same kind of backing for multiple quilts, I bought an entire bolt because it was on sale. There wasn't a pattern, it's just an common design that people have made for eons. It's free-motion quilted with all-over feathers, using Glide thread.

Baptist Fans!

I finally worked up the gumption to try the Fab 5 Baptist Fan Ruler Set that I ordered from Michael Davison, Quarter Squared Quilt Company. The quilting was slow and tedious, you can't be in a hurry when doing ruler work. I usually try to match the bobbin thread to the back, but in this case, I didn't. It took so much focus to follow the rulers, I didn't want to keep checking the back to see if the dark thread from the top was showing on the back. I just used the same thread top and bottom to eliminate that worry. The quilt top was a mystery quilt that our guild did in the 90s. My fabric choices were a little odd, to say the least. I thought if I messed up on the quilting, at least it wouldn't be a great loss. On the back is what I call "Poor Man's Backing". I can't afford to buy wide backing fabric for every quilt, so sometimes I use up odds and ends. Now that ruler work doesn't seem so terrifying, I might try more of it in the future. :)

Another One Completed

I don't know what to call this one. I watched a YouTube tutorial on making the triangle units. There were bias edges, so I had to be really careful not to stretch them. At first, I was going to make the entire background with lime green fabric. If I continued with that idea, it would have been an eye-blistering quilt. To tone it down a bit, I added the white rows with navy blue sashing between each column. It's free-motion quilted with vertical wavy lines, using Isacord thread. The wide backing fabric is from Connecting Threads.