Pages

Wednesday 25 April 2018

Stitching and catching up.

I'm finally starting to catch up, much to my relief, I'm still behind with some things but that's just the way it is and it will all get done sooner or later.  Before I tell you all about my wonderful weekend away want to see my design wall?



Not much has changed with Postcards, at least not on this pic, I have stitched the second row though and half of the third so a little progress.


These are my bee blocks for Paige who blogs at Quilted Blooms, Paige is making what she describes as a Teenage I Spy quilt.  I am a little late with these blocks they were due last month, we have two queens on two of the months in the year so we get finished well before Christmas.   I have very little in patterned fabrics, that is I love tone on tone and solids but when I buy patterned I never seem to know what to do with it, but I found these fabrics lurking in a box which seemed to fit the bill.  You can find the sizes and tutorial on our blog Bee Inspired.


This is my second bee block, Starry Night for Emily at The Darling Dogwood who is queen for April which is me bang up to date.  I met my nemesis, the most dreaded paper piecing, I did say I wanted to get to grips with it this year and this was my introduction.  Emily wanted it either blue with red or red with blue on a white background.  It took me ages, my own fault most of it, I just kept making mistakes, I would add the next piece and then stitch on the wrong line not realising until I had trimmed it therefor wasting the fabric, honestly, it drove me round the bend.  Finally I got the pieces stitched and then I had to stitch them together, that was another story, could I get the joins lined up properly?  Some seemed to go in no bother, I did remove the seam allowance paper and that did help though.  The final seam was the worst, I had it in and out several times it just wouldn't line up, finally I took another seam partly out and redid it and that did the trick, finished at last.  You can find the Bee Inspired post here which has the link to the free pattern too,

Guess what this is


Any idea?  No?   Its freezer paper and there are 48 of them,  they are the backing pieces for the signature panel for the second wedding quilt, I showed you the block last time.


This is it along with the two bonus triangles.  The middle bit is 4 1/2 inches wide, I will have to cut the ends of the paper though.  All the blocks are made and all I need to do is iron the freezer paper to the back and add some tape to the front so guests don't sign in the seam allowance, I did this for the first signature blocks and it worked like a charm, no one wrote in the seam allowance.  I still haven't decided what to do with the bonus triangles yet though.

Want to see my embroidery?


I finished my small piece.  It was supposed to have a spider suspended from a thread but I don't like spiders, I mean I really don't like spiders, I couldn't have one on my work so I made a ladybird instead.  The wings are made separately using wire and stitched in place at the end, stump work, the rest is surface embroidery.


This is the big piece I am working on which I progressed somewhat.


This is the bit I progressed, I did the green closed fly stitch leaves and the stem stitch vein with the seed stitch in the middle.

We only had an evening, a full day, and a morning to stitch but we had a little time off in the afternoon so my friend and I went into the small (as in tiny) town as always and of course I had to visit one of my favourite shoe shops where I found,


these beauties, are they not lovely?  I do so love them.

That's all my work since I last posted.  I've been thinking of what to so next as I have three quilts on the go not including any UFOs.  I also have some secret sewing to do, although you won't see that for a while yet, and I'm still in the planning stage.  I decided to get on with Postcards, at least I intend to finish the first four rows and get them stitched together, then I want to do the front of the first wedding quilt which I think will be fairly quick to put together.  I will need my design wall which is why I will finish the first quarter of Postcards first.  I do wish my design wall was a little bigger but at least I have one now so I won't complain.

I'm not sure how much sewing I will get done in the next week, I have all the last minute stuff to do before 'the wedding'.  However, I will endeavour to be back next week to bore you rigid with my ramblings.

Until then,
With smiles from,
Kate x

Linking up with:
Midweek Makers
Can I have a Whoop Whoop?
Finished or Not Friday
Crazy Mom Quilts




21 comments:

  1. It's great to catch up with what you've been up to. Bravo for changing out the spider in your embroidery; so many times something like that might turn a person off a project entirely but you made it work for you perfectly. Looks like you are on course for good wedding preparation, I hope it continues to go smoothly.

    ReplyDelete
  2. love the embroidery and yes if you don't like spiders change it to something else! I hate the little creatures. Cute shoes

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your embroidery is beautiful. The ladybug is awesome. But those shoes...wow...those are spectacular.

    ReplyDelete
  4. You’re making lots of progress on everything, Kate! Don’t forget, slow and steady wins the race. The signature blocks will give wedding guests lots of room to write a note if they wish! I made one a few years back and found some people had a lot to say in that little space! Gosh, your embroidery is beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Your embroidery work is so beautiful, Kate. Your stitches are so precise and perfect. I know, I know, you probably know where all the errors are, but it looks perfect to me. I want those shoes! :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. You have been one busy lady, Kate! I love the embroidery. That little ladybug is adorable, much more friendly than a spider :) Paper piecing is a beast I am still fighting. I never get it right the first time. Your star looks great and I'm sure Emily will love it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Those shoes are lovely! They look super comfy as well as stylish. And thanks for sharing the tip about using tape to keep people from writing in the wrong place on the signature blocks. Every wedding quilt I've ever heard of with signatures seems to have messy blocks from uncontrolled writing. Good to know there's a solution to that :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Those shoes are really fun! You have been busy, and I enjoy seeing what you are working on. Your handwork is amazing! I like the ladybug in place of the spider too.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Your embroidery is beautiful. I feel the same way about 'sp' (in our house I won't even allow the whole name of the creature, but the ladybird is just a lovely pop of colour. x)

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'd love to see your signature blocks after you get them all ready for the wedding. I'm assuming the freezer paper is to help stabilize them for the writing, yes?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Looks like you are on schedule for the wedding, good luck with the signing. Your ladybird is so sweet, a bug to love, unless it is in my house. They seem to love peonies and roses. The stitching is looking better and better with all those special stitches. Sorry I missed your call. I was doing my laundry downstairs. Have a happy week!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Paper piecing can be challenging. Go easy on yourself. Looks like the block came out just fine even if it involved ripping of seams and pulling of hair all the way to the bend and back. Cute shoes. I look forward to the pictures. Oh and I love your embroidery too :-)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Super shoes, love the freezer paper idea, and your wall, then the embroidery, what wonderful stitching. Wow,, or is it WOW!!!... you need to have a quiet weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  14. You've got some fun projects in the works up on the design wall. Your embroidery work is gorgeous! Happy stitching this weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  15. You have gotten lots done here Kate. The embroidery is so beautiful and your are doing a stellar job with all the quilting projects. I love the shoes.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I'm sorry you had such problems paper piecing my block, Kate! It looks great, though! I know how you feel about paper piecing, I almost didn't pick that block because I know some people, you included, don't care for it. But hooray for persevering! I love the embroidery with the ladybird and your new shoes are lovely!

    ReplyDelete
  17. It sure looks like you've been busy! I love getting an annual look at your embroidery progress. It's coming along beautifully! And those shoes! What a find!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Great projects! The embroidery is so beautiful!!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Wow! Did you ever do a terrific job of your first paper-piecing project!! Yay to see Postcard, and know there's been a bit more progress! Ah, blocking off seam allowances is genius, on the signature wedding quilt. :-) Might have to investigate your other one a little more closely now I have a daughter getting married in November... The ladybug is beautiful! I've not seen one with 3D wings like that, wow! And the other embroidery just exquisite!

    ReplyDelete
  20. I rally like the idea of a teenage I-Spy quilt. I need to think about who I could make one for! Your first attempt at paper piecing is great! Most quilters either love it or hate it, that's for sure. Putting tape in the seam lines on a signature block is genius. No mater how clear you make it to people they still write in the seams, don't they? Your work is lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I love all your projects, but I LOVE your embroidery most of all . The seed heads are gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much for taking the time to read and leave a comment, it helps me grow as a quilter and as a blogger. It also makes me very happy :)
I try to respond to all comments by email, but if I don't reply within a few days it may be because you are a no reply blogger

With smiles from,
Kate