Photos of the two finishes...

Red Blocks and Trees. This one is a deeper red than the photo, but close. The pantograph is called Ebb and Flow and feels super nice, soft. For some reason, this one is not very photogenic. I think it looks much better in person! 😀

Something Old, New, and Blue. This is kind of a modern mix with the old fashioned look of Crazy Quilts in the blocks. The panto is called Saffron Blossoms, perfect for a lady from Asia.

Legend of Zelda and two more finished!

 The blue and red quilts are finished, waiting for labels and photos. The Legend of Zelda quilt is also waiting for its label to be sewn on, but I do have some photos. Remember, I wanted to quilt this one first, then sew on the iconic design so I didn't have to quilt around it, and so the recipients could take it off if they ever decided this game wasn't what they wanted on a quilt. (That might never happen... the news this week tells of an unopened, first version of it for Nintendo, sold for about $800,000 to a collector. Yikes!) I've never played the game but it seems to be incredibly popular!

Anyway, this was a good decision but difficult. The icon pieces were made by sewing right sides together of gold and green fabric, cutting a slit in the green, and turning it right sides out. I pinned the pieces in place and sewed them on by hand. I'll never do that again. It was hard work, physically hard. The quilt is a king-size and I had to lay most of it on a coffee table so I could manage to get my hands where they needed to be. I used Glide thread, a big help as it is strong and does not twist or shred. About every seven stitches, I did a double or triple to make sure that it was secure. It took a loooooooooong time. The label is an extra triangle and I put the words on it using a transfer for t-shirts etc. that looks cool. Just have to sew it in place and we will deliver this to our grandson and family this weekend.

Now I have a black quilt to make and several charity quilts for our local guild. Need to get at it!

Blue being bound, Red getting quilted...

The blue quilt from my last post is in a pile on our living room coffee table. I'm doing the binding by hand on the back, during hockey games and watching mystery shows. It is fast, again using Glide, the most wonderful thread for this task. It does not twist, break, or annoy in any way!

The red queen-size is on my machine and I'm using a very simple panto called Ebb and Flow. It looks like ocean waves but I'm doing it vertically, so on this quilt, it goes with the brilliant tree panel in the center. She wanted red and a nature theme. I had a few red slab blocks so incorporated them. Many of the fabrics have floral designs or leaves or trees. It was fun to make. Since red is notorious for running, the whole quilt is mostly red with a red backing. Hopefully more pictures soon.

I have one more to make for this family of four. She asked for black, also a nature theme. I have a perfect panel and will put black (but not a solid) around it. So far, it is still in my head, but must come out soon! Making quilts with just a bit of 'guidelines' is fun for me.

Blue Quilt progress...

I offered to make quilts for refugee families thinking with Covid and the crazy amount of paperwork to get them here, I had lots of time. Not. One family is coming in July, a mom and three daughters. The yellow one is done. The blue on is on the longarm, pictured here. The red top is finished and next in line. The black one is still in my mind. I do have the fabric though. It seems best if they are all done before these gals arrive, but I'm not sure it will happen. I do have another life and do need to eat now and then! Sigh. 

Anyway, the blue one is twin-size, 12" blocks in a modern arrangement. I decided to use variegated thread and a simple panto to quilt it. This panto is called "Saffron Blossom" and just happened to work out to one motif per block, roughly. It gives the plain blocks a kick and pretty much disappears in the pieced blocks. I'm happy. Hope she likes it. Two of the women are in their early twenties and one is still a teen. It will be great to meet them!

Otherwise, I'm sewing icon pieces to the Legend of Zelda quilt while watching hockey and other stuff after supper. Funny, it was supposed to be a queen-size but wound up a king... and the young gal in the couple it will go to told me this week that she has been bugging her hubby (my grandson) for a king-size bed! So my 'mistake' might turn out for the best after all. 

Hubby is golfing this week. He has been working hard and long (from home) for the past few weeks and deserves some fun time. He 'retired' three years ago and never slowed down. He loves his work too much to say no to all the phone calls for help!

Hope everyone is enjoying sunshine and flowers!

So far so good

This Legend of Zelda icon is coming. The idea of sewing layers and turning them right-side out worked, even with the points. I'm now sewing around the edges for stability. Also made a small sample to see how they will quilt before I put them on the quilt. The first picture has them loosely atop the quilt. The next one shows three sets of triforce triangles tacked to the design wall. The last one is my sample. I'm using Sulky Metallic on the top and Glide in the bobbin. Needed to loosen the top tension just a bit and it is sewing like a dream.

I've designed motifs for each piece. There are a few online and the game company page even has some decorative lines on it, but they are not very interesting. Depending on where you look, there are all kinds of symbolic meanings given to this game. Apparently it started out as a Christian spiritual warfare theme, but appears to have been sold and that theme is not as obvious now. It is still good vs. evil and this triforce is about wisdom, power, and courage... the players need all three in the right proportions to win it. I'm not for depicting evil critters, demonic stuff, etc. and had to do some research before agreeing to make this quilt.

It was hot here today, nice (we wait all winter for days like this) but also nice to be in my studio, lower level where the air conditioned cool air comes down to keep me from having a nap in the afternoon!

Marsh Marigolds and a very messy studio...

Yesterday we went for a picnic (if Subway sandwiches count as picnic fare) and found a park in a nearby town that is huge, basically untouched except for the pathways, and surprise, surprise -- it was full of Marsh Marigolds. I've not seen these for years and felt like a kid in a candy store. They were like dappled sunshine on the forest floor.

As for quilts, the blue refugee top is done, thread and backing ready, just need to prep the batting. I got sidetracked by an idea for a row of carousel horses, went shopping for stuff to decorate them with, and have one drafted and a second one in the works. Why do I do this to myself? OVERLOADED!

Oh, the icon/logo thing for the big green quilt is coming. I have made all the pieces, turned all but the 12 triangles, and need to press and start stitching. The idea from my last post works wonderfully. Thank You, Lord. 

Photos when...

Question answered!

Last post's question: I found a YouTube answer. It showed how to do a 'fake trapunto' by sewing two layers, right sides together, trimming the seam allowance, then slitting one of them to turn the piece right sides out. She used the slit to put in some stuffing and then sewed the piece on the quilt top.

For me, I can eliminate the stuffing and sew a piece of flannel with the two pieces of fabric so that the flannel is on the inside when I turn it. Then I can sew around the edges, do some fancy quilting on each piece, and then hand or machine sew it on the quilt top. I'll do it, and send pictures. 

The binding is done. I usually do 2.25" but this time used 2/5" and wound up with more on the backside than normal. It is tidy and looks okay though. Also, I used Glide thread since my longarm bobbin was half full and didn't want to leave it that way. I will never go back! Glide does not fray, twist, tangle and sewing it with a fine needle made it almost invisible. Fast is the operative word. This binding was finished in half the time I'd predicted. Glide comes in every color imaginable and is not expensive. A cone will do several quilts plus the bindings. Love this thread!