Quilters' Circle - 31st August, 2009

It was the last day of winter, and the quilters met again at Sussex Neighbourhood House. In between discussions about noisy neighbours, the roadworks and detours due to sewerage works in the area, and the likelihood or otherwise of an event anticipated with dread turning out to be nothing like that bad, we all did some sewing.

Marie worked on joining together rows of her quilt-as-you-go dogs, as seen here last time. She brought along a book of star blocks which we all admired. The book included illustrations of the different effects that you can achieve by altering the value of sections of the designs. Joy also brought along a coloured diagram of a quilt using the same "friendship star" block as in Vireya's quilt from last time, but done in a limited range of colours to really emphasise the trellis pattern which is only incidental in Vireya's. I should have taken a picture of it!

Marie brought along her finished placemat:

The background fabrics are really a lemon yellow, not the beige-y colour they appear to be here. Marilyn's placemat from last time is for the same project, and includes some of the same fabrics. Marie also brought along this bag:

I think a few of us want to try making one of them! Marie had written out the construction instructions. I already have instructions but haven't made one yet. Stand by for more bags appearing here in future.

Marilyn worked on the last part of the border for her quilt we have seen in steps along the way. She is looking forward to completing the quilt so she can start a new project! Recently she visited her sister who showed her how to make "crumb blocks" from odd scraps of fabrics. Here's a couple Marilyn brought along to inspire us:


Apparently making the blocks is good exercise, because you sew a short seam, then get up and trim what you have sewn, then go back to the machine to do the next piece. (Repeat until finished).

Joy and Vireya were both appliquéing. Joy worked on her blue "Baltimore album" blocks, that we have seen some of before. A basket block is here, and a posy block is here. Vireya was sewing so hard her needle snapped! (Top left of this picture).


Who knew that could happen? It necessitated a quick trip to the nearest patchwork shop after the meeting, to buy more needles. The swirl is another part of the Red Delicious quilt designed by Esther Aliu.

Vireya also brought along her first ever quilt:


It is square, I don't know why it was hanging so strangely there. The quilt was inspired by an old episode of Simply Quilts, where the guest was Margaret J. Miller. In the episode she talked about her new book, "Strips that Sizzle", which is now no longer new (it was published in 1992), and no longer in print. I might have to make some more of these blocks some time, because they are fun to do.

Our next meeting is only a week away, on the 7th September. So happy Spring, everyone, and enjoy Adult Learners' Week this week.

Will Be Missing You
Hi to the triangular ones. I will be really missing you and your little triangles on Wednesday night when I am away and you are finishing off your blocks. Make sure you post lots of pics so I can see how all those lovely colour combos came together in the final product. Happy Accuracy. L : )

Triangles Continued

Lesson two of the "Working with Triangles" class was held last night. Last week we looked at sew and flip triangles. This week we made the same size triangles using a couple of different methods. It was interesting to see different students work out their preferences.

Here's J in full efficiency mode, making up a string of half-square triangles for her centre block:

She has cut her squares, drawn her diagonals and stitched her 1/4 inch seams on either side, now it's time to cut the triangles apart ready for pressing.

We also had a quick look at Flying Geese which will be used for the final border of this sample block. By the end of the session there was one little goose ready. I'm sorry I didn't capture it on my phone camera. There are more photos on the Neighbourhood House camera.

On Wednesday nights the Neighbourhood House is absolutely full. There's our quilting class in the North Studio, a computer class next door and yoga in the Children's Centre. Our class seems to be the last to finish, so we get visitors from the other groups as they come out of their classes and pop in to see what we're up to. That just adds to the excitement, especially as there's usually some work ready to be admired by then.

Triangles to Go

Yesterday was the first "Working with Triangles" class. I took several photos, but when I checked over them this morning, this was the only one that included any actual triangles. So here it is.
We used the "sew and flip" method for the first batch of triangles. In this pic J is marking the diagonal line across one of her squares. You can see the half-square triangle units she's already made in the foreground. I really like the way her floral and purple fabrics tone and contrast.

We spent a bit of time at the beginning of the class talking about colour values and making decisions about light, medium and dark fabrics, since the success of these blocks so often depends on the contrast between fabrics. Of course that meant we had a chance to admire the fabrics which each of the students had brought along.

Vireya's Friendship Star quilt, which featured in the last blog post here, was my demo quilt for the day. It was much admired and very effectively demonstrated the importance of colour value in block designs.

As for "Triangles to Go", we have a correspondence student signed up for this class. So I'll be exploring flexible ways of delivering the teaching to some-one who can't be there for the face-to-face class.

Quilters' Circle - 17th August, 2009

It's the third Monday in August, so the Quilters' Circle met again. We sewed, we chatted, we bought fund-raising pens from Leigh, we were shaken by trucks thundering past, we read Marie's magazines, and we drank cups of tea. Here's the what we achieved.

Vireya brought along a quilt featuring triangles to be used as an example in the "Working with Triangles" course which starts on Wednesday. This lap quilt is a scrappy version of the friendship star, and normally lives on Vireya's couch.



The friendship star is quite a simple a 9-patch block, consisting of a plain square in the centre surrounded by eight "half-square triangle" squares. Each square has a light side and a dark side, although some medium fabrics appear as both light and dark depending on the fabric they are paired with. I like the lattice-like secondary pattern formed by the light triangles when the blocks are put together.

Vireya spent the time today doing some embroidery on the fan block she was appliquéing last time.


Joy did some appliqué for her Japanese quilt which we have seen parts of here before, and told us about the adventures with the medical profession she has had since last we met. We hope the next round goes well!

Marie was trimming quilt-as-you-go blocks featuring dogs. Here's a preview of how they will look when they are put together.


That's just a small sample of the blocks - there are about 60 blocks all together. Aren't there some very cute fabrics in that quilt? The variety of fabrics you can find on any given theme is amazing. As further evidence of that, Marie brought along some bug fabrics to add to Leigh's collection.

Marilyn sewed down binding on this placemat:

She was pleasantly surprised at how much she got done in one session.

Our next meeting is the bonus 5th Monday in August, the 31st. If you can't join us in person between 1 and 3:30, come back here to see what we are all up to then.

Triangles start this week

Woo Hoo!!! The Working with Triangles classes start this week and I am very excited....both about the triangles, and about catching up with alot of the people who were in the Patchwork for Beginners class earlier this year. L : )

Working with Triangles

There are already seven students enrolled in the "Working with Triangles" class. This class is a follow up on the beginners "Patchwork by Machine", class offered at Sussex in term 1. The sample block is now on display in the office.

Here is a pic I took before I dropped it off.
It's a 16 inch block, so it could easily be turned into a bag, cushion cover or small wallhanging.

There is a limit of eight students in this class, so get in quickly if you would like a spot!

I'll do my best to keep you posted on this blog as the classes get underway. There are only 3 sessions in the course and it's mainly about techniques, but it's always fun to have a project to work on.