Guess who got a quilt frame!

ME!!!
I have been toying with the idea for a while now and then a friends mother was selling one... it happened to be Mothers Day... well it happened! It is quite large and I am still playing around with it. I really need a new machine to go on it as my Janome just does not have the throat space to do the designs I want. Seriously considering a Juki and saving up! It is funny when I go shopping now as I constantly ask myself  - new machine or new {insert random object here}.


My first go - not too bad!


then my first big project

This quilt is for my friend Kristy (or Kiki as my kids call her) she asked me to make one in red and aqua - not usually my colours for quilting and she gave me free reign over the design. I decided I wanted to do a half square triangle quilt with all different designs. My almost 4 yr old daughter wanted to design one of the blocks (can you guess which one) which made it a really personally quilt for my friend who loves my kids so much!


I quilted it fully on the frame - in a scallop all over pattern. I broke the thread so many times in the middle of the quilt it was starting to drive me crazy! Maybe it is a tension issue? I had a little issue with the quilt bleeding when I washed it (even with using 2 colour catchers) - just two fabrics I used in the centre panel bled. No too noticeable but I think I will be more careful using red and white next time.

Of course the backing had to contain shoes for the shoe lady - lucky i found this awesome print.

Outside my window: Twinkle Twinkle

The Quilter's Guild of NSW and Quilters Companion Magazine and Brother International (Aust) Pty Ltd are running a under 35's quilt competition with the theme "Outside My Window". I only JUST fall into that age bracket so I decided to enter *bites nails*. I struggled with the theme for a few weeks but then decided to make some stars!

With my bundle of Kona Summer 13 colours I won from the Feather QAL, I took out all the bluey colours and matched them with another fabric in my stash. The star blocks are a paper piercing pattern from Ula Lenz called Foldstar. I enlarged them and decided to use a LV background. I also decided to add some interest and use a black star and yellow star in opposite corners (OK that was code for I didn't have enough blues..)

I bought some Lizzy House Constellations fabric to back the quilt and while i was pondering the plain border I had planned decided I should try to replicate the constellations fabric. Lots of tiny equilateral triangles. But I am so happy with how it turned out!

I actually thread basted this on the quilting frame which was an interesting exercise. Was not quite confident enough to do the quilting on it though! For the quilting I did a falling star sort of pattern. The border is done in a milky way sort of vortex swirly pattern.

GWSMQG and a Sew Together Bag

I have been a part of the Greater Western Sydney Modern Quilt Guild for a few months now and am absolutely loving it! I love being part of the sewing community online (how great is Instagram!) but to part of a group that meets and sews and talks about fabric is amazing! Plus I get to escape the kids for 1 day a month just to sew!
Last weekend we made Sew Demented's Sew Together Bag led by our guild leader Lorena. Now the bag looks complicated but as long as you are used to zippers (and even if you are not) it isn't that bad! I am trying to keep all of my little sewing supplies in mine at the moment because I am constantly losing them.

I did the QAYG method and used some scraps left over from by Tsuru Quilt which is still unfinished! I made some flying geese and randomly put it together.






While I had the pattern fresh in my mind I decided to whip up another for my Sew Sew Modern partner in her favourite colours. I am not usually a pink person but I am super excited how this came out!