Nothing but trouble..............

The same top thread was used on this I Spy 1 quilt that was used on the last 3 quilts, no problem on them.  I had at least 12 thread shred/breaks on this one.  I changed the needle in the middle of it but that didn't help.  But, it is done.

This is one of the oldest fabrics, from somewhere in the 1991-95 time range.

I love the tractor print.  My dad never had a tractor that looks like that but I saw many tractors in my childhood.  We also had a windmill like that over the outside water pump.  We didn't have an inside bathroom until I was 2 and I don't know if there was plumbing in the kitchen until then either.  Eventually the windmill was taken down when I was young and the pump closed off. 

Taking a break from finishing...........

Even though the next quilt was loaded and ready to quilt, I needed a break.  Instead I sewed the 9 patches from the Kaffe collective strips that were already cut.  Today I need to get back down to the longarm.

The pale pink cactus by my west picture window is still blooming.  I see some buds on the orange one too.

My sister-in-law sent me a potted Amaryllis for Christmas and finally after 3 weeks it is sending up a bud.  Some of them take a long longer to wake up than others.

 

Finish # 4 for December 2023...........

I Spy 2 is officially finished.  It is 67.5" x 79".  It will be for my 2 youngest great-grandchildren.  I originally intended to make an I Spy quilt for my grandchildren and they range from 27 to 36 now.  Better late than never.

I used Warm and Natural batting and a flannel backing on this quilt.

I got the backing and batting for I Spy 1 loaded on the longarm and draped the top over it.  

Last night I went through the pile of 6.5" squares and the box of 2.5" strips as a first pull for the Rosy quilt.  A lot of these are too dark though if I want the same feeling as the one in the book.

I pulled out most of the dark pieces and now it is more of a starter kit for this quilt.  I need to cut some more greens when I decide I'm ready to make it.

I couldn't resist buying a new cactus with red and white flowers.  I used to have one like this many years ago.  My other red is just solid red.

# 3 finish for December 2023............

I finally got the batik star quilt up on the double design wall.  The batting is Quilter's Dream cotton that I had a package of and it was thicker than I usually use so the quilt is heavy.  I finally resorted to using a chair to support the weight of it while I got the first 5 pins in the top edge and then it was pretty easy the rest of the way across.  It measures 73" x 99" now.  I forgot to take a photo with the backing showing so I'll add that photo later.

I took this photo while it was waiting for its portrait.  You can see the quilting that Robin did on it.  I still believe that meandering is the most evenly distributed quilting design and that it doesn't add an obvious secondary design to compete with the piecing.  This quilt was made of all batik scraps in the stars and although each block is the same layout, the value changes make them look like a variety of block patterns.  The triangles are 2" finished size.

I trimmed I Spy 2 and cut the binding and started sewing it on all by machine.  This is a kids' quilt and the binding needs to be sturdy.  I have a couple sides to finish the stitching on and then I'll photograph it. 

Quilted..........and binding done...........

I Spy 2 is quilted.  I did straight line with the channel locks farther apart than normal.  With Warm and Natural the quilting doesn't need to be as close as with Hobbs 80/20.  I didn't want a lot of quilting lines going through the novelty prints.

I used the same medium tan thread that I used on the 2 flannel baby quilts.  No thread breaks or shredding on this quilt.

Then I finished the hand stitching on the batik star quilt.  I'll try to get it up on the double design wall for its photo.  It is around 74" x 100".  It probably lost an inch or so in quilting so I'll measure it today.

I also need to sew the seam on the blue flannel backing for I Spy 1 today and get it loaded on the longarm.  It needs to be mailed out before the weekend. 

Progress..........

The seam was pressed and red bear print flannel backing was loaded on the longarm.  I also pressed the blue flannel for the other I Spy quilt and it is ready to have the seam sewn.  Maybe I can get the batting and top loaded and the machine threaded today.  Hopefully I will also be inspired to turn on the machine and do the quilting.

I had 3 sessions of hand sewing on the binding of the batik star quilt and now 3 sides are finished.  One long side to go.

Two readers alerted me to the name of the Kaffe quilt in yesterday's post, and yes it has been published in his books.  I hadn't noticed the pieced border on the earlier quilts.  It is his "Rosy" quilt and each one has a different name referring to the color of the quilt.  The 3 quilts in "Glorious Patchwork" aren't made with his fabrics because they wrote that book while he was only designing the yarn dyed woven stripes.  It is also in "Quilt Road" with stripes used. In "Kaffe Quilts Again" and "Quilts in an English Village" with the border changed.  I haven't looked through the hard cover books to see if it is in any of them.

Going through books again............

A while back I showed the bookcase in my studio that had 2 collapsed shelves.  The books were too heavy for the shelves.  My son stopped by yesterday afternoon and I had him do a few things for me.  One was removing the bookcase.  This meant moving out the last shelf of books.  I had gone through the other 4 shelves earlier.

This is a book from 2014 and has 2 pages devoted to each of a lot of the "in" people in the quilting world, a lot of them fabric designers.

This is Kaffe Fassett's quilt.  There aren't any directions for most of the quilts. The border around it is 2 different size squares and the center, 9 patches and plain blocks.  It is one of the few quilts that he designed with mostly green fabrics.  If I used 2", 4" and 6" finished size squares and 6" finished 9 patches it would be a nice throw quilt size.  I might make it one row longer.  I could use some of those 6.5" squares that are already cut and some 2.5" strips that are already cut.  That sounds like a winner to me and it is one I could start assembling in little bits of time between other projects.  And this is just one book that inspired me; there are several more.

The short daylight each day is keeping me out of the basement studio for too many hours.  I don't like to be down there at night.  I always feel like someone could be looking in the windows and watching my every move.  I need to get down there early today and get one flannel backing pressed and loaded on the longarm.