Addicted To Quilts

Some of My Favourite Customer Quilts

2012-02-29T19:54:00.001+11:00

Over the past week have found some time to update my Customer Quilt Page (the link can also be found above on the navigation bar).

I had plenty of new quilts to add to this page as I hadn’t updated it in a while.

I enjoyed looking at all the customers’ quilts that I have posted over the last couple of months. I am so lucky that I get entrusted to quilt so many beautiful quilts.

Here are a few of my favourites (which were really hard to choose as all of the quilts I show on my blog I really like).

Click on the picture to go to the post for more photos.

Butterfly Quilt

2012-02-29T07:40:00.002+11:00

This is a round robin quilt brought to me by Jo. I like how each of the butterflies are different, and how they have been brought together in the quilt with the flying geese.

The round robin group that Jo is a member of have been together for thirteen years. This round, to be different, instead of the quilt owner putting together the blocks, each person was appointed a ‘construction manager’ who was assigned this task.

Heather was assigned as construction manger for Jo, and she did a great job putting together her butterfly blocks.

Jo was the construction manager for Judy’s quilt that I quilted last year and you can have a look at it here.

I have linked to Esther’s Blog for her WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays.

Heart Feathers

2012-02-24T08:37:00.000+11:00

Alita made this cot sized lone star quilt as a present for her great grandson. She asked me to quilt heart shaped feathers in the corner squares.

Feathers with Curved Cross Hatching

2012-02-22T09:38:00.004+11:00

I was given this quilt by Anthea last year with instructions to quilt it heavily with traditional quilting.

I had a lot of fun doing it, but boy did it take me a long time.

I was really happy with how the curved cross hatching and feathers look in the border.

Last year I did a great class with Carla Barrett at Feathered Fibers called Quilt Whispering, where you look at developing your quilting design skills. One aspect of the class is that you can send pictures of a quilt to Carla and she will draw on it suggested quilting designs.

I did this with Anthea’s quilt, and the design Carla suggested can be seen in her post here.

I liked what Carla did, but I had some different ideas. I had already planned to do curved cross hatching and feathers in the border, and pebbles as the background fill.

One thing I did take from Carla’s quilting design was to put a little flower in the border to create a point that the feathers could come from.

I am glad that Anthea chose a plain back as it shows the quilting beautifully.

I have linked to Esther’s Blog for her WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays.

Two Pretty Embroidery Quilts.

2012-02-19T05:51:00.004+11:00

Two more quilts made from Janet Sansom’s embroidery designs. I think both of these are very pretty. Quilted with outlining on the embroidery blocks, and a combination of feathers or flowers.

This is my favourite embroidery block on this quilt.

And the second quilt.

Black and White Quilt

2012-02-17T05:22:00.007+11:00

This striking quilt was made by Andi as a present for her husband.

As Andi didn’t want contrasting thread colour on either the black or white, she requested that I quilt it with two thread colours. It was quilted with an open loop pattern.

I love how the centre of the quilt really draws the eye.

In The Pink

2012-02-15T07:57:00.002+11:00

This gorgeous quilt belongs to Jan. It is Esther Aliu’s design - In The Pink. You can view pictures of Esther’s version of the quilt here.

Jan used similar fabrics, and gave me artistic freedom with the quilting. I wanted to quilt it heavily like Esther did with hers, but at the same time, I wanted it to be unique.

I wanted the quilting to be a feature on the floral fabric border because, to me, this border framed the centre appliqué. So I decided to do a combination of curved cross hatching and feathers. I think it looks really elegant.

The background quilting of combining pebbles, swirls and peacock feathers around the appliqué was inspired by Judi at Green Fairy Quilts on a quilt she posted in December last year.

I have linked to Esther’s Blog for her WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays.

Double Wedding Ring

2012-02-12T09:00:00.000+11:00

I love the Double Wedding Ring design, and want to make one …… one day.

This quilt was made by Margaret for her daughter’s birthday. As it will be used, we kept the quilting light so the quilt is very soft. Margaret chose flowers for in the centre of the rings as they complimented the fabrics.

Dreams of Feathers

2012-02-08T08:02:00.000+11:00

I was very excited when Michelle Yeo brought me this quilt. She gave me artistic freedom so long as there were lots of feathers.

The design I quilted in the plain diamonds came partly to me in a dream. I often dream about the quilts I am working on, or quilts that inspire me that I am about to start. So I can say I take my work to bed with me.

I like how the back shows the quilting too. You can see all the ditch stitching I did. Not one of the points was cut off – Michelle’s piecing was perfect.

I have linked to Esther’s Blog for her WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays.

Collingwood Quilt Finished

2012-02-01T08:51:00.000+11:00

I actually finished this in mid January, but have only just organised the photos.

It was made for my nephew pictured below.

I quilted one football into the quilt for a bit of fun.

Another family member follows West Coast Eagles, so I pieced the back in their colours.

I have linked to Esther’s Blog for her WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays.

Giant Dahlia Quilt

2012-01-27T22:21:00.001+11:00

Yesterday I finished the final seam of the centre part of my Giant Dahlia Quilt.

I have linked to Sarah’s Blog for her Whoop Whoop Fridays.

Just the Binding to Go

2012-01-26T22:43:00.001+11:00

I have almost finished my sister’s quilt - I just have to stitch down the binding.

I was originally going to put black binding on the quilt, but at the last minute I changed my mind as I felt it needed a bit of colour so chose the stripe that has a bit of red.

Waverley Patchworkers Raffle Quilt

2012-01-25T09:36:00.001+11:00

I had the honour to be asked to quilt the WaverleyPatchworkers Raffle Quilt which I completed last year. I am only just now able to show the photos.

The design is by Michelle Hill, and it was completed by a group of talented ladies from Waverley Patchworkers who volunteered their time to make it.

It will be raffled at the Waverley Patchworkers Show – 25^th to 27^th of May at the Waverley Community Centre.

It was an absolute pleasure to quilt. I combined McTavishing with feathers in the centre, and I alternated double lines with single ones in the border to make it a bit more special.

I know I will be buying lots of tickets this year in the hopes of winning it.

I have linked to Esther’s Blog for her WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays.

A Little Sewing Time for Me

2012-01-20T11:05:00.001+11:00

I have had a little time to work on my own sewing projects and have definitely not wasted it. My sewing corner has been a hive of activity.

I had been wanting for a long time to make another Giant Dahlia in reproduction fabrics using Michelle Yeo’s templates. Kathy is going to make one too, (in very different fabrics) and will likely start any day now.

I was thinking that the way I was procrastinating she would have hers all sewn up before I even started - this was enough to prompt me to get going on the project. (Thanks Kathy, it is nice to have a sewing buddy to keep you on track).

So on Wednesday I got it cut out. Last night I started sewing, and I will continue working on it today. What fun!

My Sister’s Quilt and a Package from Canada

2012-01-18T09:57:00.004+11:00

I usually take a break from quilting for customers from Christmas until sometime in January. This is when I try to do some quilting for myself. Unfortunately life has been so busy that I haven’t had much time this year.

But I have finally been able to load my sister’s quilt and start quilting it.

I made it in colours that will match her lounge room décor. As it will be a functional quilt I didn’t want to quilt it too heavily. I know she likes feathers and the long strips were just perfect for them.

Just before New Year I got a lovely package all the way from Canada from Kathy of Tamarack Shack. I am so spoilt!

All the goodies have been eaten except the Mini Rolos, and the Kraft Dinner. I enjoyed reading Kathy’s Snow Dyeing article in the magazine she sent, and her hand dyed fabrics are gorgeous.

Kathy has some fantastic tutorials on fabric dyeing on her blog. She has the tutorial links listed on the left hand side of her page directly under the picture of Quilters Connection magazine.

I have linked to Esther's Blog for her WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays.

Cup Cakes

2011-12-24T17:25:00.001+11:00

I have had my nephew staying with me for the last couple of days. We decided to make cup cakes.

I remember when I was a child, licking the bowl being the best part. I can see it still the same with my nephew.

But eating the finished product is also a lot of fun.

Dresden Plate

2011-12-21T07:01:00.002+11:00

I adore the colours and design of this quilt made by Vicki as a birthday present for her mother in law.

Although I quilted it several weeks ago, I held off posting pictures until after the birthday party. You can see Vicki's post about making the quilt here.

This was a pleasure to quilt. As Vicki didn’t want heavy quilting, I ditch stitched the centre and outer edge of the Dresden Plate as well as the blocks. I quilted a feather on each Dresden Plate, continuous curved the cream blocks in the sashing, and quilted a feather in the border.

I love how the quilting shows on the back.

Pop over to Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on with her WIP Wednesdays.

Dancing Dollies Quilt

2011-12-16T04:05:00.021+11:00

This is the second time I have quilted this pretty design by Trish Harper called Dancing Dollies.

Made by Alita as a present for a young girl, we decided to do an allover freehand daisy pattern which is soft and pretty.

The first time I quilted this design I custom quilted it. If you want to have a look at this version, please click here.

Coffee Quilt

2011-12-15T04:13:00.000+11:00

Sometimes fabrics in a quilt really appeal, and this is one that draws me – it is so warm and inviting, and makes me crave a hot chocolate.

Jeanette made this quilt as a present for her son and daughter in law for their combined 30th birthdays. She had the fabric selected for a couple of years, earmarked for this special event.

It was quilted with an allover freehand whirlpool design to compliment the swirls of steam on the fabric.

Australia Canada Quilt

2011-12-14T07:03:00.003+11:00

In December I stop taking custom quilting jobs, and schedule more allover quilting so I can get more quilts done for my customers before Christmas, as most of them are Christmas presents at this time of year. I have only a couple more to do this year and most of the quilts I have done this month have already been collected so they can be bound in time.

This hasn’t left me much time for writing my blog. But I have taken photos of a couple of the allover quilts I have done that have caught my eye, and will share them in the next couple of posts.

What I liked about this quilt by Coral is the story behind it.

Coral’s grandson moved to Canada to work. He met a lovely Canadian woman while he was there, and in October last year they got married.

They are both coming back to Australia to live, and she wanted to make her grandson’s wife something special that combined both Australia and Canada. She made a quilt in Canada’s colours that had both the Canadian Maple Leaf and the Australian Waratah.

I think this is a special quilt, with a special story.

Pop over to Esther's Blog to see what other poeple are working on with her WIP Wednesdays.

Mystery Quilt No. 4

2011-12-02T08:00:00.001+11:00

Karen from my local patchwork shop, Somerset Patchwork and Quilting, asked me if I would like to teach another mystery quilt workshop as part of her summer school next year - scheduled for Saturday the 14th of January 2012.

So I set about designing and making a brand new mystery quilt. I am pleased to say I have finished piecing the top, and am happy with how the design looks.

I can’t show you the finished quilt just yet, but here are the fabrics I used.

Electric Blue

2011-11-30T07:35:00.000+11:00

Teena made this very cool and modern quilt as a Christmas present for her daughter-in-law. I love the colours and the design. It is so fresh and striking.

It was quilted with a freehand allover pattern of echoing wavy lines which I think look like ripples in a pond.

Pop over to Esther’s Blog to see what other quilter are doing this Wednesday.

A Collingwood Quilt

2011-11-25T05:27:00.001+11:00

I am making a Collingwood quilt for my nephew.

A few months back, a customer brought me a great Collingwood quilt, and I asked her where she got the fabric/emblem for the top. She said it was from a doona cover that she bought online. So I ordered one for myself. I chopped up the doona cover and this is what I have made.

I am also working on another black and white quilt, but this is a coincidence, and this is not a Collingwood quilt. I have a black, white and red striped fabric which I think I will use as the binding just so I have added another colour in the mix.

I think I might quilt feathers along the grey strips. This is a present for my sister, and I know she likes feathers.

Feather Background

2011-11-23T07:36:00.000+11:00

This quilt was made by Debbie. Although the background was made with the same fabric over the entire quilt, I wanted to break it into three areas – the appliqué border, the pieced border, and the centre.

To do this, I quilted two backgrounds. Small curls around the pieced border, and feathers in the other two areas. I love the texture and movement the feathers give, which is in keeping with the traditional style and fabrics of the quilt.

Pop over to Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on with her WIP Wednesdays.

A Quilt with a Difference

2011-11-16T07:33:00.022+11:00

I have been quilting for Judy for a few years now. I have learnt to expect the unexpected from her and this quilt was no different.

Judy wanted the circle part of the blocks to stand out, so we decided I would ditch stitch and continuous curve them with a small feather in the centre.

Even though it was a completely different style of quilt, Judy liked what I had done on a earlier quilt by Margaret (to see Margaret's quilt click here), and we decided that I would feather the remainder of the quilt with the feathers curling out from circular wreaths on the four feature fabric blocks.

Judy chose an electric blue thread, and because she gave me a white back, the quilting is really striking.

Pop over to Esther's Blog to see what other quilters are doing this Wednesday.

Feather Allover

2011-11-13T06:55:00.000+11:00

Janet loves feathers, so we decided that I would do an allover freehand feather winding up and down the quilt. I usually prefer more random feathers, but as the front of the quilt is pieced in orderly strips, if felt like more orderly feathers were called for on this one.

Floating a Quilt – Tutorial

2011-11-12T06:06:00.004+11:00

Kathy asked in the comments of my previous post if I float my quilts. The answer is yes, and I thought I would share my method.

There are different ways of loading a quilt, and the best way depends on the preferences of the quilter. I prefer to float my quilt as I feel it gives me more control, and I am better able to see any issues as I am working through the quilt.

First I load the backing by pinning it to the rollers. I lay the wadding on the top of it, and then the quilt top, ensuring that the top is straight and square on the machine.

I then tack along the top edge of the quilt.

You can see in the picture that this quilt is extremely well pieced and is hanging straight on the machine. However if there were issues like a wavy border, or fullness in places, I would be able to clearly see it and be able to take steps to correct them.

These photos show the quilt on my A1 machine. Those with the same machine will see I have removed the top front roller. I don’t use this roller and found it got in my way.

I roll the quilt forward and tack down the sides.

After quilting or stabilising the available area, I roll the quilt forward, tacking down the sides as I go. I check to ensure the sides are straight as I tack them down. I also check that the lines in the piecing are straight and square.

I continue quilting, rolling the quilt forward and tacking down the sides until I get to the end of the quilt. Then I tack down the bottom of the quilt.

If you want to see this quilt completed – click here.

The above photos are on my A1 machine and I follow the same procedure on my APQS.

I haven’t removed the top roller on my APQS as it doesn’t get in the way like on the A1. I use it to line up the quilts to ensure they are square and it is handy to lean on.

3D Baltimore

2011-11-11T07:54:00.001+11:00

This exquisitely stitched appliqué quilt was made by Pam, and if you look closely at the photos you can see that many of the flowers are individually made and stitched on.

Pam asked me to background fill around her appliqué to make it pop, which I did with a small curl design, and to quilt feathers in the border.

Medallion Quilt in Liberty Fabrics

2011-11-09T09:19:00.002+11:00

Lisa made this pretty and feminine quilt in Liberty fabrics from a pattern by Judy Newman.

Kathy, of Tamarack Shack had pictured on her blog a feather motif that incorporated hearts that I really liked, and I used this as inspiration for the feather design I quilted around the centre appliqué motif. To see the blog post with the quilting motif I used as inspiration, click here.

I am so glad Lisa chose a plain back so all the quilting shows beautifully.

Pop over to Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on with her WIP Wednesdays.

Fabric Memories

2011-11-07T05:25:00.002+11:00

This quilt, made by Jane, is special because it is made from left over fabric from many of the quilts Jane has made over the years.

Each block represents a quilt Jane has made. I think Jane’s choice of fabric for the triangles between the blocks was perfect as it just blends into the background letting the fabric in the blocks shine.

The back had panels where Jane placed hand-written details of the quilts she had made, which the fabric represents.

It was quilted with an allover freehand line and loop pattern which is funky and fun and compliments the quilt.

Giant Dahlia

2011-11-06T06:16:00.002+11:00

I have quilted many of Michelle Yeo’s Giant Dahlia pattern, and have made one for myself. I even have reproduction fabric already picked out to make another one – I just need more hours in the day.

I particularly liked this one as I found the fabrics appealing. It was quilted with an allover freehand leaf and loop pattern. I am usually asked to do allovers on this design, but occasionally custom quilt it, usually with feathers going out from the arcs. Next time I custom quilt one, I will post photos.

Georgetown in Baltimore

2011-11-04T21:08:00.004+11:00

This gorgeous traditional quilt by Barb was a pleasure to quilt – everything Barb brings me to quilt for her is always lovely and well pieced.

Barb asked for traditional quilting, so of course that meant feathers.

Modern Appliqué

2011-11-02T11:02:00.002+11:00

I really enjoyed quilting this striking quilt for Leanne. The fabrics and textures were modern and refreshing, and it is going to be a wall hanging.

I quilted two background fillers, double loops with a diagonal stripe of a small zig zag, which I call “maze”. The effect is subtle, but I like the contrast and interest it creates. I also feel the Windmill flowers in the border really suit the feel of the quilt.

Some Chocolate Quilts – Bloggers’ Quilt Festival

2011-10-28T22:47:00.003+11:00

I haven’t been doing much sewing for myself over the last six months so I don’t have anything new to show for the Blogger’ Quilt Festival. Instead I thought I would show some of my favourite Chocolate Quilts.

If you asked me what my favourite colour was, I would say purple. However, when I started quilt making, I was immediately drawn to brown fabrics.

Initially as a joke, I began numbering my brown quilts as part of a ‘Chocolate Series’. After the first few, I went a step further and started to incorporate the word Chocolate into the quilt name.

Clicking on the pictures in this post will take you to the original post for more details.

The first quilt pictured is called Illumination – Number 3 in the Chocolate Series. This quilt pushed me out of my comfort zone and I was happy with the overall effect.

The second quilt pictured is called Chocolate Overdose – Number 4 in the Chocolate Series. I called the quilt Chocolate Overdose as I felt there was a little too much of the plain brown fabric in it.

The third quilt pictured is called Cherry Chocolate – Number 6 in the Chocolate Series. I love reproduction fabrics, and this quilt will always be special to me, although it did have its dramas – click here to read about what happened when I blocked it.

The final quilt pictured is called Ruled By Chocolate – Number 7 in the Chocolate Series. Whilst simply pieced, this quilt was quilted intricately with a combination of ruler, stencil and freehand techniques.

I hope you enjoyed my Bloggers’ Quilt Festival post and a little peek at some of my Chocolate Quilts. Please visit Amy's Bloggers' Quilt Festival to see the other beautiful quilts on display.

William Morris Meets McTavishing

2011-10-26T08:54:00.001+11:00

This is Noelene’s William Morris appliqué quilt. She didn’t want the quilting to dominate and asked me to McTavish the background to give it texture. Noelene’s background fabric was gloriously rich, which unfortunately doesn’t show as well in the photos as it looks in real life.

I have quilted several versions of this design. To see Margaret’s version click here.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on with her WIP Wednesdays.

Blue Stars

2011-10-23T10:02:00.006+11:00

Trish made my “Check Out the Stars” design for her daughter. Her daughter asked for stars and blue, so I think Trish hit the mark with this one.

It was quilting with a freehand allover star and curl pattern.

If you would like to see my version of this quilt, I have made it twice, and there are pictures on the My Quilts page which you can access by the navigation bar above – they are quilts number 15 and 30.

Caesar’s Crown Quilt

2011-10-21T10:01:00.002+11:00

This quilt was designed and made by Michelle Yeo, a local quilt teacher and designer. (This is my second post this week featuring a quilt designed by Michelle).

It was an absolute pleasure to quilt. As a quilter I liked that it had interesting shapes that I could incorporate feathers into. Plus I love the reproduction fabrics.

Visit Sarah's Blog to see what other quilters are doing.

Ballaarat Beauties

2011-10-19T10:17:00.001+11:00

This intricately pieced quilt was made by Judy as a project that she shared with a group of friends. They would go away together and all work on their version of this quilt - inspiring and encouraging each other. I have had the pleasure of quilting several others made by this group of friends.

The design is by Michelle Yeo.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on with her WIP Wednesdays.

Art Deco Quilt

2011-10-12T10:51:00.000+11:00

What a striking quilt! Made by Ann as a present for her son, he picked the quilt from the book Design Art Deco Quilts by Don Linn.

Unfortunately the book didn’t have the pattern for this particular quilt in it. So Ann had to draft the entire quilt just from the picture. I think she did an amazing job.

Ann wanted the quilting as close as possible to how it was done in the book, and I really enjoyed working on a quilt so unusual.

The back is also lovely.

Pop over to Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on with her WIP Wedmesdays

Marylebone Quilt

2011-10-07T17:41:00.000+11:00

This gorgeous quilt was made by Sue as a present for her husband. Her husband picked all the fabrics, and I think he did a fantastic job.

The quilt is designed by Sue Ambrose, a local patchwork teacher and designer. I have had the pleasure of quilting a number of this design.

Sue chose to have my allover Feather Plume on the quilt which gives it a lovely texture, and shows up beautifully on the cream.

Visit Sarah's Blog to see what other quilters have done this week.

Feathers, Flowers and Embroidery

2011-10-05T09:32:00.000+11:00

I have finished Janet Sansom’s latest embroidery quilt (the one where I showed pictures of how I designed the quilting in the pink ‘v’ last week – click here to see post).

I really enjoyed quilting this one, especially the creative challenge.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other quilters are working on this Wednesday.

Athenaeum Theatre

2011-10-02T18:58:00.002+11:00

A couple of weeks back Paul and I went to see DUMPED! The musical at the Athenaeum Theatre. I couldn’t resist taking a photo of the ceiling to add to my collection.

Turning Three

2011-09-30T13:53:00.002+10:00

My gorgeous nephew turns three today. He is having a little party at a local pancake parlour with family members tonight.

Here he is on a quilt I made for him, which I finished couple of weeks ago. He helped me pick the fabrics and watched me make it when visiting my place.

My sister has told me she has already had to wash it. I am sure that will be the first time of many washes as it is loved and used.

I Love Quilting Feathers

2011-09-29T18:45:00.004+10:00

Today I am working on another beautiful quilt by Janet Sansom. My instruction from Janet for the quilting in the pink ‘v’ shape was to treat it as one area, and to incorporate some kind of curling feathers.

I decided to let Janet’s embroidery design be my inspiration, and I started by chalking in my design ideas.

These were the tools I used to mark the chalk lines.

Once I was happy with the design outline, I took a deep breath and started quilting.

I am happy with how it looks. And I really enjoyed the creative challenge.

I will show you the whole quilt when it is finished.

Double Wedding Ring Embroidery

2011-09-28T10:00:00.000+10:00

This quilt is Janet Sansom’s double wedding ring embroidery quilt. I love how each ring is made up of different flowers – there is so much detail.

Star Quilt

2011-09-21T07:30:00.000+10:00

This unusual and striking quilt made by Monique was a pleasure to quilt.

The setting triangles were broken with straight lines on the outer edge and feathers inside. The background fill around the stars was a double loop which creates a lovely texture.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other quilters are working on this Wednesday.

Candlewick Embroidery

2011-09-16T15:29:00.001+10:00

Another gorgeous quilt from Janet Sansom. She designed the embroideries to look like Candlewicking.

I divided the border with diagonal lines, quilting feathers inside, and straight lines at the edge, which I think made it look more interesting.

Visit Sarah's Blog to see what other quilters have to show this Friday.

Star Medallion Quilt

2011-09-14T08:20:00.001+10:00

This lovely quilt made by Anne could have been either custom or allover quilted, and we discussed both options.

Anne decided to have allover quilting, and chose my favourite freehand feather plume. I love how the feathers are in keeping with the style and fabrics of the quilt, and how they show up beautifully in the plainer areas around the star.

The result is beautiful, soft and traditional, without the time (and cost) required for a fully custom quilted quilt.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other quilters are up to this Wednesday

Birds of Paradise Quilt

2011-09-07T08:16:00.002+10:00

This gorgeous appliqué quilt belongs to Lesley. She completed it in a class with Anthea Bradley.

Lesley’s appliqué is the highlight of this quilt and we wanted to keep my quilting unobtrusive to make the appliqué shine and pop. So we chose a simple meander around the appliqué.

On the plain corners of the border I quilted a simple floral motif in keeping with the appliqué.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other quilter are up to this Wednesday.

Xavier’s Quilt Top Finished

2011-09-04T10:43:00.002+10:00

I have finally finished the borders on the quilt for my nephew who turns three in a couple of weeks. He has been watching me make it, and had helped me pick the fabrics – notice there are a lot of star fabrics which seemed to be his preference.

I asked him if he wanted stars quilted on it and he said yes. I also asked him if he wanted red or blue thread. He had a very strong preference for blue.

I will show pictures of it quilted soon.

Pretty Quilt for a Girl

2011-09-02T21:30:00.003+10:00

This sweet quilt was made by Edwina for her granddaughter Rachael. She wanted the quilting kept light and used Hobbs wool so the quilt has a lovely soft puffy feel.

I ditch stitched all the piecing and outlined the appliqué. In the plain border I quilted a daisy row which was in keeping with the feel of the quilt.

The back looks pretty too as Edwina chose a plain fabric which shows all the quilting (and the detailed ditch stitching).

This post is liked with Sarah's Blog for her Friday Whoop Whoop.

Bold Quilt with Simple Quilting

2011-08-31T12:00:00.001+10:00

I love the strong visual impact of this quilt made by Pricilla. It was quilted with a freehand curl pattern.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other quilters are working on this Wednesday.

Funky Oval Spirals

2011-08-24T09:51:00.000+10:00

This quilt belongs to Jill. She asked me to make my usual spiral allover pattern more oval in shape. I really like the funky modern effect.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other quilters are working on this Wednesday.

Creating a Quilting Design - Tutorial

2011-08-13T16:16:00.000+10:00

This is a close up of the fabric in Bronwyn’s quilt which I showed in my last post.

I used this fabric as inspiration for the quilting design in the setting triangles of this quilt. You can see there is a mixture of flowers, swirls, leaves and paisley shapes.

I started by sketching some ideas that came to me from looking at this fabric.

Then I incorporated them into a triangle shape – a few pages of sketches were discarded before getting to this stage.

When I found something I liked, I was ready to load the quilt. I marked the shapes and basic lines with chalk to see if I liked how it would fit into the area I was working with.

Once satisfied, I took a deep breath and started quilting.

It was a little intimidating to work with such a high contrasting thread as it shows every little wobble. Once I got started though, it was a lot easier than I thought. I even found that one line of stitching was not strong enough, so in some places I went over the stitching line twice to make it stand out even more.

Challenge Quilt

2011-08-12T16:40:00.000+10:00

This is Bronwyn’s challenge quilt. The challenge was to use the brown/tan fabric in a quilt (it was all one fabric that graduated from light to dark). Bronwyn decided that instead of using this fabric as one of many, that it would be the primary fabric. To achieve this, she had to obtain as many pieces as possible of the challenge fabric from members of the group.

Bronwyn asked me to quilt something special in the cream setting triangles, and she requested a high contrast thread. She decided on an allover leaf and swirl pattern in the centre, and a simple leaf design in the border.

I used the patterns in the challenge fabric to inspire the quilting design I created for the setting triangles. I will discuss how I did this in more detail in my next post.

And the back.

Visit Sarah's Blog to see what other quilts have been working on this week.

Mariner’s Compass in Purples and Reds

2011-08-10T11:14:00.000+10:00

I love the colours in this quilt made by Irena. She made almost the entire quilt out of her stash, and many of the fabrics have special meaning for her. I think it has come together beautifully.

Irena didn’t want the quilting to dominate in her quilt, so I did a lot of ditch stitching. I broke the large red setting triangles up with some straight lines as well as feathers to create a bit more interest, and I think the effect worked well.

Feeding the Kangaroos – Part 2

2011-08-09T08:44:00.000+10:00

I don’t think this video of my nephew feeding a kangaroo is as cute as the one I posted a couple of months back (click here to view it).

But this still is pretty cute (yes I know I am a very biased Aunty). I can see how much he has grown in the five months between the two videos - kids change so fast.

He is having a sleep over with us this weekend. I can’t wait. Hopefully the weather will be nice so we can go to the park, or maybe the zoo.

Queen Square Quilt

2011-08-05T15:29:00.000+10:00

Anne-Marie made this gorgeous quilt for her mother. The design is Sue Ambrose’s Queen Square Quilt. Anne-Marie’s quilt is striking due to her fabric choices – I love the green background.

Anne-Marie didn’t want it too heavily quilted so that it would remain soft. All the appliqué and seams are ditch stitched and outlined. I used my curved cross hatching rulers to emphasise the curves of the appliqué, and I quilted some feathers in the shapes created.

Visit Sarah's Blog to see what other quilters have been up to this week.

Floral Embroidery

2011-08-03T07:19:00.001+10:00

Once again, another of Janet Sansom’s beautiful embroidery quilts. We decided on a simpler quilting design in the sashing than what was quilted on Janet’s black embroidery quilt because the embroidery was lighter on this quilt.

I have posted a number of Janet's quilts on my blog. You can see them all by clicking on the Embroidery label, or click - here.

Visit Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on this Wednesday.

Celebration Cake

2011-08-02T08:56:00.000+10:00

We had lunch on Sunday with Paul’s family. My mother in law, Angela wanted to celebrate the success of my quilt Ruled by Chocolate at the quilt show.

This was the gorgeous cake she made. She went to so much trouble to make the rosettes, and the lines of chocolate coated macadamia nuts symbolise the name of the quilt.

I am so lucky to have married into such a caring family.

'Ruled by Chocolate' - won Best In Show

2011-07-28T16:01:00.003+10:00

Today is the first day of the Melbourne Quilt Show, and the award ceremony was at midday.

I still am floating on cloud nine.

My quilt ‘Ruled by Chocolate’ won –

First in the Machine Quilters Category

Best Use of Colour

Excellence in Long Arm Quilting

And the biggest shock of all

Best In Show

It hasn’t sunk in.

Besides a peek of the quilt with my nephew sitting on it, I haven’t shown the quilt on my blog – so here it is.

This photo was taken today with my wonderful supportive husband Paul who is so proud of me.

Funny name for a quilt you might say, but several of my quilts have the word chocolate in their name and I call them my Chocolate Series (by the way this is number 7 in the Chocolate Series).

This quilt was called Ruled by Chocolate for three reasons. Firstly the colour. Secondly, there was a lot of ruler work in this quilt. Finally, I consumed a rather large amount of chocolate whilst quilting this quilt (or more accurately, the chocolate was being consumed while I was unpicking the bits I didn’t like).

While the piecing on the quilt is simple, the quilting is very detailed. There is a combination of ruler work, freehand and stencil on this quilt.

I chose a deep red for the back as I knew I was going to use three shades of brown thread, and I wanted the quilting to show, but not with too much contrast.

Matilda’s Quilt

2011-07-27T06:49:00.003+10:00

This gorgeous quilt was made by Emma, for her daughter Matilda who is eight. Emma wanted it to be special, so she asked me to quilt lots of feathers on it.

Matilda chose the orange backing fabric, and I think it was a perfect choice, so I am showing lots of photos. There were three thread colours used on the quilt – brown, green and cream. All three show beautifully on the back.

William Morris Appliqué

2011-07-25T15:48:00.000+10:00

This beautiful appliqué quilt belongs to Margaret. The pattern had appliqué on alternate blocks, but Margaret decided to piece plain blocks instead. This left more scope for the quilting.

We decided to quilt feathers around the appliqué ignoring the piecing which allows the feathers to flow across the quilt top. I love the effect, and was very happy with how this quilt turned out.

Hungry Caterpillar

2011-07-22T15:30:00.000+10:00

Do you remember the Hungry Caterpillar book from when you were a child? It was one of my favourites.

This quilt belongs to Heather, and the pattern nicely showcases the Hungry Caterpillar fabric.

I love the border. It brings back memories of the book from when I was young, and imagining the delight of eating all those yummy foods.

Visit Sarah's Blog to see what other quilters have been working on this week.

Picture Appliqué

2011-07-20T09:32:00.000+10:00

This stunning quilt belongs to Anthea. She does gorgeous appliqué, which she pads for a beautiful 3D effect.

This quilt was designed to depict the appliqué as though they were pictures on a wall. I quilted straight lines behind the appliqué ‘picture’, following the lines in the fabric to create the feeling of wallpaper.

Visit Esther's Blog to see other quilter's work in porgress.

Allover Leaves

2011-07-15T15:35:00.001+10:00

This is another one of Janet Sansom’s lovely embroidery quilts. I normally custom quilt Janet’s quilts, but this time we decided to do an allover leaves and loop pattern.

As I quilt freehand, it was easy for me to quilt around the embroidery, and I also ditch stitched the stems of each embroidered flower.

Visit Sarah's Blog to see what other quilters have been working on this week.

How I Quilted This - Tutorial

2011-07-13T17:18:00.001+10:00

Mary asked me in what order I quilted the elements of Elaine’s appliqué quilt which I posted yesterday. (By the way, Mary’s blog is worth a peek I especially like her latest post on the wholecloth she is making. Click here to see it).

I thought answering that question would make a good blog post.

Whenever I’m doing a detailed custom job, I like to stabilise the quilt first. Then I can go backwards and forwards over the quilt doing the quilting as I please.

So firstly I outlined the appliqué, ditch stitched the four blue strips, and quilted the main or top curved cross hatching lines.

If you click on the picture you can see more clearly where I have marked the areas.

Originally Elaine wanted much simpler quilting, but as soon as I had these main curved cross hatching lines in, I could see a lot more potential, so I rang her and talked her into letting me do more feathers.

I then did the feathers on one of the curved cross hatching arches in the centre to see how I liked them. With a little unpicking, I was happy with how I got them to form the circle.

Once I was happy with one, I did the other side of that particular circle.

Elaine had asked for the horizontal lines to be 1 ½ inches apart. But when I quilted this, I could see that with the feathers this was now too wide, so I reduced it to ¾ inches apart. Once I was happy with the width of the horizontal lines I completed one of the centre circle shapes to make sure I was happy with the overall effect.

Because of the increased detail in the centre panel, I needed to do more detailed feathers in the plain cream strips than originally planned with my customer. I decided to do curling feathers in the cream strips, and now I then quilted in the stems.

You can see how I mark the stems at my blog post here.

Also, I now needed to do feathers on the borders, curving with the cross hatching to match the centre. Plus the horizontal lines also needed to be ¾ inch apart to match the centre.

At this point I had decided on all the quilting elements for the quilt – which you can see was an evolving process that involved some unpicking.

Now that the quilt was stabilised and all quilting decisions had been made, I rolled the quilt up and down, quilting it in whatever order I felt like. Because my hand aches when I do too much ruler work at the one time, I would alternate between quilting a few of the curved cross hatching areas with a few feathers.

To see more pictures of the quilt click here.

Curved Cross Hatching to create a Circular Effect

2011-07-12T18:27:00.004+10:00

This exquisite quilt was made by Elaine. Elaine does the most beautiful appliqué and embroidery, and it is always a pleasure to quilt for her. To see Elaine’s butterfly quilt click here.

The quilting really evolved on this quilt while it was on the machine. I always knew that I would do the curved cross hatching at the sides, but once the main lines were done, and the quilt stabilised, I then came up with the concept of how I wanted to do the feathers.

I love how the curved cross hatching has created a circular effect around the centre appliqué panel, and this was exactly the effect I was aiming for.

Elaine chose a plain fabric on the back which is perfect for showing up the quilting beautifully.

Pop over to Esther's Blog to see what other people are working on with her WIP Wednesdays.

China Blue Quilt Finished

2011-07-08T15:31:00.001+10:00

I finished quilting this a couple of weeks ago. I made it as a thank-you gift. The person I am giving it to doesn’t know it has been made, and I hope she will really like it.

As it will be a functional quilt, I didn’t want to quilt it too heavily, but wanted to do more than an allover to make the plain squares special.

Once I have the binding completed, I will be mailing it to its new home.

Taking Work to Bed

2011-07-06T08:38:00.000+10:00

I am currently working on a beautiful appliqué quilt for a customer and I am doing a double loop background fill around the appliqué.

Last night when I was laying in bed, all I had going around in my head was – big loop and little loop and big loop and little loop and big loop and little loop and…..

Talk about not being able to get away from your work :)

If my customer gives me permission to post photos of her quilt I will show you more when it is finished – it is a gorgeous quilt.

Appliqué Inspired by Tattoos

2011-07-04T10:52:00.000+10:00

This unusual and beautiful quilt was made by Marg for her daughter’s 40^th birthday. Her daughter likes tattoos, and gave Marg a book of tattoos to use as inspiration for the appliqué in this quilt.

I really like the uniqueness of this quilt, and how it has been personalised for her daughter.

The quilting was kept fairly simple with the appliqué borders being ditch stitched, a background fill around the appliqué, and a freehand allover on the red. As the background area around the appliqué was large I decided to break it with a diamond shaped frame in three of them.

Marg appliquéd one of the birds flying in a different direction to represent her daughter’s free spirit.

Sydney Quilt Show – Part 4

2011-06-29T11:34:00.000+10:00

The final instalment of my Sydney Show posts is devoted to Mariya Waters. Her quilts are always incredible, and I find her quilting so inspiring.

The detail on this quilt given its size is extremely impressive.

This quilt blew me away. Not only was it impressively designed and pieced, but the quilting complements it perfectly. I particularly like how the quilting on the sky and the water as it gives the quilt movement.

Sydney Quilt Show – Part 3

2011-06-28T13:45:00.000+10:00

You can tell I focus on the quilting the most when I go to a quilt show when you look at the photos I take.

The photos for this quilt by Marina Shanidze do not do it justice, and I spent a lot of time looking at her beautiful workmanship.

The same also goes for this stunning quilt by Ming Hsu. I think she has well and truly achieved her aim of elegant classical quilting.

Sydney Quilt Show – Part 2

2011-06-27T17:17:00.001+10:00

The quilting is the part of the quilt making process that I am most interested in. When I go to a quilt show it is the quilting on the quilt that I am most drawn to, and what I notice the most.

The quilting by Sharon French on the blue background of this quilt I found appealing.

Another quilt where I found the quilting inspiring was this one by Rachelle Denneny – and the quilting was done on a domestic machine!

Sydney Quilt Show – Part 1

2011-06-26T23:19:00.000+10:00

Paul and I flew up to Sydney for the weekend. We went to see Mary Poppins at the Capitol Theatre on the Saturday night, but the highlight of the weekend, and the primary reason for the trip, was to go to the Quilt Show.

There were many beautiful quilts, and over the next few posts I would like to share some with you that I found particularly appealing.

This stunning quilt by Helen Godden had me spellbound. These are only a fraction of the photos I took. It was made from one piece of black fabric, and it was painted and quilted.

This quilt, aptly named Googly Eyes by Catherine Butterworth, really appealed to me. I love the fabrics, but what I really liked about this quilt was the detail taken in the fussy cutting and appliqué. I also liked the pieced border.

Abbeville County

2011-06-21T17:25:00.002+10:00

This gorgeous quilt belongs to Beryl. It is Michelle Yeo’s ‘Abbeville Country’ pattern.

Beryl asked me to quilt it with traditional quilting and she said that she liked feathers. As the background fabric would show up the quilting the most, this is where I concentrated the most detailed quilting.

I used my curved cross hatching rulers to create the quilting at the corners of the blocks, which mirrored the shape of the piecing – these are very handy rulers, useful for more than just curved cross hatching. I brought the feathers around the piecing to emphasise the design.

I have quilted a number of this design over the years - I wish I had taken more photos in the past. I am much better at remembering to pull out the camera now that I am blogging.

Here are a couple of photos I found of Barb’s and Joan’s quilts.

Rose Sampler

2011-06-17T13:51:00.001+10:00

This beautiful quilt belongs to Kym. I really like how the McTavishing in the background has given a lovely texture behind the appliqué.

Kym’s choice of backing fabric was excellent. I used three different thread colours in the quilting, and the print on the fabric allowed the threads to blend in - but you can still see the quilting, though subtle.

Windblown Leaves

2011-06-16T01:01:00.001+10:00

This lovely quilt was made by Dawn. It was quilted with one of my favourite patterns - an allover freehand leaf and swirl pattern, which I think gives the quilt movement.

Traditional Appliqué

2011-06-15T00:05:00.005+10:00

This is Michelle Yeo’s latest design. The pattern will be in September’s Quilter’s Companion.

I custom quilted the centre of the quilt with a small curl background fill, and ditch stitched the two inner borders, which made the centre the focus of the quilt. The remainder of the quilt had an allover freehand feather plume. As this quilt was very large, having it part custom, part allover is a beautiful, but also cost effective way of having it quilted.

How would you quilt this?

2011-06-13T16:45:00.001+10:00

Because I quilt for customers, I am lucky to see different quilting designs on a wide variety of quilts.

The colours and fabrics are cues as to what quilting would look good on the quilt, combined with some important questions to ask the customer -

Who is the quilt for?
How densely can it be quilted?
Is it going to be washed and used a lot or be mainly decorative?

The answers to these questions help me determine the best quilting for each particular quilt.

A week or so ago I posted about an article in Machine Quilting Unlimited (click here to see the post). I always find it interesting to see the same quilt quilted in different ways.

The quilts in the magazine were beautifully and heavily quilted.

I asked myself - how would I quilt this snowball design if my customer asked for a light custom quilting, it was made in pinks and she was planning to give it to her five year old grand daughter?

I came up with some ideas and roughly sketched them.

I like the single daisy with leaves and swirls the best. Which one do you prefer?

So I challenge you – how would you quilt this if it were to be given to a young girl?

If you want to have a play, feel free to download this blank design and print it out.

If you decide to post your sketches, please leave a comment saying that you have done so for anyone else interested in having a look.

Have fun with it…..

How I Mark My Curling Border Feathers – Tutorial

2011-06-08T06:15:00.001+10:00

Kathy asked me recently how I mark the veins in the feathers in the borders of some of the quilts I have posted. She asked if I used any special tool or circle template to mark the feather veins.

My answer is no, nothing special – just a regular old piece of chalk. But I do have a nice case for the chalk which makes holding it a lot easier as the piece gets smaller.

So I thought I would share with you how I do the free flowing curling feathers in the border of a quilt. I found some pictures of a quilt I completed for a customer in 2006 where I had taken photos at various stages of the quilting of the border. (If you want to look at pictures of the finished quilt, please visit my web site)

I quilt freehand, and I usually like my feathers to be free flowing and not following a rigid or consistent pattern as I think it looks prettier that way.

The first thing I do is chalk in the feather vein. There is often some rubbing out and re-doing of the chalk until I am happy, and I check that I like how the feathers will curl around into the side borders.

If you look at the first picture of the quilt (below) you can see the veins are not all regularly spaced and some just curl around, and others go out and in before curling around. I am aiming for balance, but at the same time, deliberately making them slightly different – so they are flowing naturally. Sometimes it can be harder to make them look naturally balanced than it would be to do consistently curled feathers in equally spaced units.

Note how I have done a line of tacking – if there had been a seam for this border, I would have ditch stitched it, but as there was appliqué, I needed to stabilise the quilt before commencing the intense feather quilting.

Once I have the feather vein stitched in. I start at a ‘v’ in the vein and quilt the top side of the feathers.

However, you can see in the second picture that I didn’t start at a ‘v’ but just began at the corner - remember I did this quilt quite a few years ago. I no longer do it this way, as starting at the ‘v’ looks better.

At each ‘v’ I do a teardrop, and quilt around the curl, then backtrack along the vein and continue.

Once I have finished the top side of the curling feather, I go back and quilt the bottom side of the curling feather.

As you can see in the last picture, I have also varied the length of each feather slightly. Depending on the look I am trying to achieve, or the style of the quilt, I will deliberately do this as it can make the feathers look more interesting.

Note - I don’t do this if I am filling the whole border, where the feathers need to come down to the edges of the border. Like in this quilt the feathers have a different, slightly more formal look.

If you want to look at more recent versions of my curling border feathers, have a look at my quilt Stars and Diamonds or a customer’s Hexagon Quilt. Also, here is an example on Janet’s quilt where I marked the quilt in the same manner, but put pebbles in for the vein.

After reading how I do the feathers you may want to look at the curling feathers on these quilts a bit more closely as they are slightly different.

Regent Theatre

2011-06-07T22:25:00.000+10:00

It seems to be becoming a habit that I am posting photos of ceilings……

Sunday night we saw Love Never Dies - Andrew Lloyd Webber sequel to Phantom of the Opera. It was very good, and the sets and costumes were fantastic.

But I couldn’t resist taking a photo of the ceiling of the Regent Theatre.

Crisp and Fresh Floral Embroideries

2011-06-06T14:09:00.006+10:00

Another one of Janet Sansom’s gorgeous embroidery quilts.

Circle of Friends

2011-06-05T16:06:00.004+10:00

This quilt was made by Margaret, a local teacher, quilter, and embroider. She sells kits for this quilt.

We decided on a simple custom design for the quilting, as we didn’t want to quilt over the appliquéd children fabric. I quilted a smallish meandering around the appliqué with a spiral in the centre of each motif. I like this because it emphasises the fabric. I crosshatched the pieced border, and quilted a freehand allover open curl pattern on the remainder.

Machine Quilting Unlimited

2011-06-03T10:53:00.004+10:00

When I get a spare moment, I have been reading the latest Machine Quilting Unlimited. I really enjoy this magazine and look forward to my copy turning up in the mail.

In the May edition it has an article called “A Quilter’s Challenge”.

They had six well-known quilters quilt the same simple snowball quilt top - each quilter completed the quilt in their own style.

I really enjoyed seeing how the same quilt could look so different due to the different quilting. Whilst I liked some more than others overall, each quilt had aspects that I particularly liked.

My favourite was the one done by Ronda Kae Beyer. I especially liked what she did in the border, and the curved crosshatching really gives the quilt movement.

Stephanie Patterson’s version with freehand feathers on all the white also really appealed to me.

I was wondering if anyone else gets this magazine, and if so, what are your thoughts on the quilts in this article?

Round Robin Quilt

2011-06-02T14:40:00.001+10:00

Judy’s quilt was made as part of a Round Robin. Her friendship group has been going for thirteen years, and meet every second year in New Zealand. This is the 7^th Round Robin that the group has had, and Judy has been involved in all of them.

I really like the way the quilt has come together, and I think the placement of the blocks is very effective. The quilting was kept fairly subtle to complement the design.

I am currently working on a beautiful big appliqué quilt which I am custom quilting. Hopefully I will have my customer’s permission to show it to you when I am finished.

Simple Design, But Oh So Effective

2011-05-30T16:18:00.003+10:00

I have been really busy lately with quilting as well as personal and family commitments. But I have a couple of quilts I’ve completed recently to show you once I organise the photos.

I have updated the Customer Quilts page - click the link on the navigation bar at the top of this page to have a peek. I have also changed some of the quilt photos on the side of the page – please click them if you want to see more pictures of that quilt.

The fabrics Marion chose for her quilt are not normally fabrics that I am drawn to, but I just love this quilt. I think it is such a simple but effective design; plus the fabrics themselves and how Marion has placed them looks stunning.

Marion wanted to keep the quilting really simple, so we chose an open loop pattern that doesn’t distract from her fabrics, and gives a lovely soft finish.

Last Friday night Paul and I went to see the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra do Symphonic Abba at the Melbourne Town Hall. It was a great night, and the vocal ensemble – Rajaton were really good. I love the ceiling at the Town Hall and couldn’t resist taking a photo.

Sneak Peek at Ruled by Chocolate

2011-05-20T20:28:00.005+10:00

I finished quilting my quilt, Ruled by Chocolate at the end of April. Since then it has been sitting in a calico bag. It needs to be blocked, but I don’t have a lot of spare time at the moment.

I was showing my sister the quilt, and had it laid out on the floor. My nephew was there at the time, and he took a liking to it, insisting on putting his toys on it and wanting to play on it.

I snapped a photo of him with his big yellow ball. You can get a peek at the quilting, still with the chalk and blue pen markings on it.

Once I get it blocked and bound I will post some detailed photos.

I have been working on the My Projects page (click the link on the navigation bar above). I hope to start regularly updating this page.

Hearts for a Granddaughter

2011-05-19T20:15:00.003+10:00

This pretty quilt is Heather’s. She chose an allover heart and loop pattern as the quilt was made with love for her granddaughter, Adelaide, who is turning seven.

Heather asked me not to quilt on the green squares made up of the four triangles because she plans to hand quilt this area herself. As I quilt freehand, it is easy for me to go around areas on a quilt. But because it was not appliqué or something really obvious, the hardest part was to remember. So I placed some templates on each of the green squares to remind me to go around those areas as I quilted.

Heather pieced the back, and the quilting shows beautifully on the cream.

Binding done on Autumn Flowers

2011-05-18T14:01:00.008+10:00

I have shown plenty of close ups of the quilting on this quilt, when I first quilted it. (for more pictures click here). It was a while ago, and I have finally finished the binding.

A blog that I follow regularly is Kathy’s – TamarackShack. Kathy lives in Canada beside a lake. One of the things I like about Kathy’s blog (besides the beautiful quilts), is that she takes stunning photos of the quilts outdoors, showcasing the quilt’s beauty along with the beauty of nature.

I live in Melbourne, and I don’t live in such beautiful surrounds. My house is on a smallish block of land, on a quiet suburban street with lots of houses all around me. But inspired by Kathy I decided to take a photo of Autumn Flowers a little differently than my usual “flat on the floor” pictures.

As it was raining, I couldn’t go outside. I took this photo looking out of my front window. You can see my elm tree, a small part of my magnolia tree, the street and the house across the road.

Melbourne weather has become very cold over the last couple of weeks even though it is still autumn. I took this photo a couple of weeks ago walking through the Carlton gardens next to the Exhibition Building.

Blocking Stars and Diamonds

2011-05-17T16:58:00.007+10:00

If you read about the drama I had when I blocked my quilt Cherry Chocolate, you will understand that I had some trepidation about wetting Stars and Diamonds – especially as many of the same red fabrics were in this quilt. But it had blue pen all over it, so I had to wash it to get it all out.

In the past I have blocked quilts by pinning them into the carpet, which is undoubtedly not very good for the carpet. And because I am aware of what I am doing to the carpet, I don’t stretch the quilt as much as I probably should.

I came across a post at Margaret’s blog describing how she blocked her quilt. She bought sheets of interlocking styrofoam. I asked Paul if Bunnings might sell interlocking styrofoam, and he suggested I get kids’ play mats. What a great idea I thought, and I found some on sale at Bunnings.

I dunked the quilt in the bath, watching carefully for any red dye coming out. I didn’t leave it in the water for long and I didn’t put it in the spin cycle of the washing machine as I didn’t want any of the red fabrics touching any other fabrics in case the dye ran.

I laid it our on the matting, and dried it as much as possible with towels.

Using my rulers and tape measure, I pulled and tugged to get the quilt square, ensuring the sides measured the same and it was the same measurement diagonally. I had very wet knees and a very sore back by the time it was done.

I recently re-watched Karen McTavish’s DVD that came with her book ‘Quilting for Show', which describes how she blocks her quilts. It was fairly similar to what I did, only she has someone help her. The next time I block a quilt, I might try to rope Paul into helping me (honey if you are reading this - hint hint).

To view more pictures of my quilt Stars and Diamons click here.

Three Days in Perth

2011-05-16T20:51:00.004+10:00

I have just returned to freezing cold Melbourne from beautifully warm Western Australia. I flew back on the overnight flight, so am taking today to recover from lack of sleep and the time difference. Then it will be back to work on the quilting machine tomorrow.

A break like this always invigorates me, and I know once I start quilting again tomorrow, it will be with renewed enthusiasm and energy.

I was very pleased to be able to catch up with Joan - Joan at Leschenault while I was in WA. Paul and I were staying in Rockingham, so we took the short hour’s drive to beautiful Leschenault where Joan lives. She has an amazing studio with gorgeous views from her window. It was great to see her beautiful work first hand. (And she makes an impressive pineapple fruit cake too).

After a delicious lunch (thanks Joan, Andrea and Emily) , we went to Gnomesville which was amazing. Tens of thousands of gnomes from all over the world have been left at the corner of two country roads.

They just go on and on, seemingly forever down the path.

Give away winner drawn

2011-05-15T14:41:00.001+10:00

Thank you to everyone who participated in the give away last week. Paul being the computer wiz that he is, whipped up a couple of lines of code that would randomly select a number for me.

So the winner of Karen McTavish’s book Quilting for Show is Jan Hutchinson. Congratulations Jan! Jan - please send me an e-mail with your address and I will post it to you.

Onto some other news, Linda from The Quilted Pineapple passed on a Versatile Quilter Award to me. Thank you Linda. Linda does beautiful long arm quilting, and like me, loves to quilt feathers - check out her blog for some lovely eye candy.

Stars and Diamonds - Bloggers Quilt Festival

2011-05-14T09:31:00.002+10:00

Welcome to my Bloggers Quilt Festival Spring 2011 post. I hope you enjoy - this is the first time I have participated in Amy's Bloggers Quilt Festival.

I really liked the quilting motif I did in the diamonds of Barb’s quilt (click here to see the post), but hadn’t had the opportunity to do them again since her quilt. So I decided to make something for myself where that quilting motif would work.

I started piecing this quilt late last year, finished the top in January and I quilted it in February this year. I have just finished the binding.

I still have the label and hanging sleave to do and then it will be finally finished.

I will be posting soon on how I blocked this quilt.

Curved Cross Hatching Border

2011-05-12T21:43:00.002+10:00

This is another one of Janet Sansom’s beautiful embroidery quilts. I had quilted curved cross hatching on a previous quilt for Janet, which she liked. (Click here to see it). So for this one I wanted to continue experimenting with the curved cross hatching and do something different in the border. I think it has come up really pretty.

This is the high tech gadget that I use to mark the centre of the feather wreath (which I do with chalk).

Pink Hexagon Quilt

2011-05-11T21:42:00.000+10:00

A couple of weeks ago I posted some design ideas for this quilt. To view the post click here. Well I ended up not using any of the options I was considering.

Most people liked the curved cross hatching in the centre of the pink, but when I actually quilted it I didn’t like it. The shape was quite unusual and it just didn’t look right. So I unpicked it.

However, I did like the actual shape itself, so using the curved cross hatching rulers I came up with a curved diamond spiral shape which I think worked really well.

King David’s Crown

2011-05-10T12:25:00.001+10:00

Sorry I haven’t posted for a little while, there has been an “issue preventing the post editor from loading for some users”. I unfortunately was one of the 'some users'. But it seems to be fixed now even though I have to load the photos a slightly different way.

I quilted this for Barb in 2008. Barb is one of my favourite customers and has being bringing quilts to me for years now. She makes beautiful quilts, often in reproduction fabrics. But what I like best is that she likes to leave nice areas of plain fabric for the quilting. Then she entrusts her quilt to me and lets me have fun with it. As we both love feathers, it’s a match made in heaven. Barb’s blog is – Love to Quilt.

This quilt is a Michelle Yeo design. Michelle Yeo is a Melbourne based designer and teacher that makes beautiful quilts inspired by antique quilts. To view her web site where she has her patterns click here.

I wanted to create something special for Barb in the diamonds, and was really happy with the result. This quilt won second in the Custom Quilting category in the 2008 Vic Quilters Show.