Design Wall Monday - 9/9/13

My Design Wall is covered right now with Genevieve's Banners.  I have the top completed to the flimsy stage, and now I'm ready to sandwich and quilt.  I'm hoping to get this one finished before I leave for retreat next week.

Sorry for the crooked picture :*D

After affixing the banners to the background fabric with a buttonhole stitch, I used this yarn .... a nice bulky variegated bright pink to cranberry yarn with lots of texture ....

and this special Bernina #43 couching foot ...

.... to outline the "clothesline" the banners hang from, as well as her names and the heart....

I love the extra touch of this heart, and I chose to fill it in with the gray text fabric that I am using for the backing.  I love the words in this piece.... "grow" ...  "sprout"... "plant" .... perfect for a precious Little One!

The same fabric in pink was used in this banner...

I'm thinking for the quilting I will outline the names and banners, and then do a Daisy loop allover design in the free space of the background - not too dense but just enough to keep it soft and cuddly.  The binding will be the deep cranberry fabric as used in the upper left banner.

My only concern right now is that the yarn may pull away from the quilt too easily if tiny fingers tug at it.  It is a loose two-ply yarn, and the original stitching doesn't always catch both strands all the time.  I may end up going back and stitching over the yarn again just to be sure it won't come loose.  It was designed to be a wall quilt, but I want her to be able to enjoy it too.  I'll keep you posted on this project as I finish it up :*D

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The other project on my Design Wall is Talkin' Turkey - and here are just a few of the 30 blocks I managed to get done Friday during our sit-n-sew.  Aren't these fun blocks?  And all made out of scraps so far - I just love using up those scraps!!!

Now to start on the dreaded 400+ flying geese!!!

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What's on your Design Wall?

Check out other Design Walls at Patchwork Times!
Also linking up with:
Freemotion by the River's Tuesday Linky Party
Freshly Pieced WIP Wednesday

Hugs & Blessings!

Teresa

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I Made a Feather!!!

My first attempt at Dreambird was a failure.  You remember this picture I showed you of the shawl I am planning to make?  (remember too that this is NOT my shawl, just a picture of one of my favorites from Ravelry!)

Beinenfresser - HERE on Ravelry

I knitted and knitted and tried my best to keep count on all those dratted short rows!  But after half of the first feather was completed, I was supposed to be at the end of the work, but I had 7 stitches left over..... had to rip it all out!!!

My second attempt has been much more successful!  See how my stitches came all the way to the end here?  This was a very good sign that I had worked this one correctly!!!

Here it is at half of the feather complete....

And then here is the full feather - completed and correct - whoohoo!!!!

Ask me how excited I am - go ahead!!!!  

Yep, I'm like a puppy with a new chew toy!!!

Also today, a couple of my sewing buddies, Joanne and Mary came over to my house armed with sewing machines and lots of red & neutral fabrics, and we sewed some more on our Talkin Turkey quilts......

!

We each did 60 of these string blocks, trimmed them to 5-1/2" and cut them diagonally.  These sections are done now, so we'll be working on the nine-patch centers next.  After that we get to enjoy the pleasure of making over 400 flying geese!!!  Yeh, I'm not that crazy about making flying geese, but I suppose I can handle it for this quilt :*)  Bonnie Hunter sure does like to design quilts with a ton of little pieces, doesn't she?

Hugs & Blessings!

Teresa

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The Turkey Wars!

Yesterday, my Turkey Bee friends and I got together again to work on our Talkin' Turkey quilts.  We sewed string blocks all day long ....

We sewed....

Love that black background swirly fabric - this is the last of those scraps :(

..... and we sewed.....

That plaid is from a 99-cent Goodwill shirt I cut up - love those bright colors!!!

...... and we sewed.....

Don't you just love the "I Love You" fabric in the corner?

And we sewed!!!

By the end of the day, we each had completed about 47-48 blocks out of the 60 we need....

Three of us sewing as fast as we can sew....... and we still have an overflowing strip bin!!!!

Wow!  I think it really is true that they multiply as quickly as you sew them up :*)

One more day of sewing string blocks, and then we will start on the large center nine-patches.  This is a really fun project!  But we did have one rather nasty casualty....

Yup, that's my finger!!!!  

(Badly in need of a manicure too LOL!!!)

Somehow, while I was trying to get a pesky piece under the needle, my foot mashed down on the foot pedal before I was ready, and the needle went right into my finger!!!  I thought at first that it had gone all the way through, but after examination this morning, the blood I saw at first on the other side must have bled from the front because there are no exit wounds :*D

And get this..... amazingly, the needle did not break and I just kept on sewing.  After some peroxide and neosporin and a few bandages, that is!  =^..^=  So today it's a little sore, but really not as bad as you might think.  Looks like that worn out manicure is going to have to wait to be refurbished until this little battle wound heals up though.  I'll try to spare you any ugly finger photos until that is fixed :*)

Today, I plan to play in my YELLOW scraps for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.

Anybody recognize this little sunshiny friend?  Also the last piece of this :(

Hopefully I can finish up a few blocks without further casualties LOL!!!

What are you doing on this beautiful Saturday?

I'd love to know!!!

Hugs & Blessings!

Teresa

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Design Wall Monday - 6/3/13

I have a couple of things cooking in the quilting studio this week!

Yesterday, I finished up all the blocks for Amish Beauties - whoohoo!!!

Here they are with the sashing pieces laid out on the design wall and ready to piece together the center!

I haven't yet decided about the borders, but a few ideas are percolating. 

A few of the blocks close up - YUM!!!

This is my quilt from the "Jared Takes a Wife" class with Bonnie Hunter back in April.  I chose to make my quilt out of solids on a black background, and then cut them down to half-size - 6 inches finished - to make a small wall quilt.  We are having a special Show-n-Tell at Guild tomorrow for the BH projects, and I really wanted to have at least the center of mine put together to share.  You can click on the name of the quilt to read more about it's journey if you like :*)

And I have started yet another new project!!!  Yep, I just didn't have enough quilts in progress.  Don't you hate it when you've only got about 20 quilts in the works?  Seriously, I need to start another project like I need another hole in my head!!!  But, I ask you, how could I resist this gorgeous red beauty???

Talkin' Turkey by Bonnie Hunter @ Quiltville.com

A couple of friends and I fell in love with this quilt when Bonnie visited our Guild, and we decided that we would start a quilt-along together to work on it.  Each week or so, we plan to get together at each other's house and play in our red scraps!  What fun!!!  Want to join us?  Come on over!  =^..^=

We finally set our first play date a few days ago.....

We each dumped some red scraps into the heap in the middle of the table, and then got busy sewing up strip blocks.....

Here is Bonnie's Talkin' Turkey block ......

Talkin' Turkey block by Bonnie Hunter @ Quiltville.com

I just love the mish-mash of neutrals - it adds such variety and warmth.  And the reds just sparkle when there are so many levels of color all put together!  This quilt is in Bonnie's book "String Fling" ....

It has quite a few really wonderful quilts in it that I plan to make - someday LOL!!!  You can see these patterns and order your own copy of Bonnie's book here at this link and she will autograph it for you :*)

http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2012/05/presenting-string-fling.html 

So what's on your Design Wall?  I'm really anxious to know!!!  

Share with us at Patchwork Times!!!

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Hugs & Blessings!

Teresa

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