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Pieced quilts / Uncategorized — 22 Comments
7
Mar 11

Paper Piecing Pixies…

I recently ran across a blog in German..(I think?) that had the beginning of a fun Pixie quilt made by Hilde Klatt. 

The method used for piecing the Pixies is called Lieseling, which is the same as english Paper Piecing over foundations.

The IldicoTextilDesign blog gives templates that you can print out…and fear not..there is an English translation if you scroll down.

I didn’t have the heavier weight card stock that is recommended, so I printed my templates out on regular copy paper.

  As I looked at the pattern I thought it could be used as a machine sewn paper piecing pattern?

I’ve done a lot of paper piecing in the past..but haven’t done any for a while.  It takes a while for the upside down and backwards sewing to click in with me.   My first block took 3 hours!

I decided to try cutting out the templates, tracing around and hand piecing.  Much better.  My next block only took 2 hours.

From there I got in my groove and the hand piecing went faster.

The Ildico blog shows a row of Toadstool houses around the Pixies, but she hasn’t posted the directions yet.  There’s a center star too, but I haven’t decided on fabrics for that portion.  There’s a couple of ways to go with that part.

I’m thinking I might want to do the Pixies with black dresses and the center as a bonfire.  It might make a cute Halloween candle mat?

Barbara Brackman's Civil War blocks / Uncategorized — 8 Comments
5
Feb 11

Civil War Quilt block #6

 This week’s block posted by Barbara Brackman is called Richmond.

It’s a Confederate block.  Since I’ve used quite a bit of red in the last block, I thought I wanted more blue this time…and wanted a bit of brown worked in too.

I pieced this block using a fabric with Uncle Sam on it, but the background was pretty white.  I had planned on using more muted tans/pale golds, so the block just didn’t look right to me.

I pieced a second block, omitting the red and the bright white print.  This one had more blue.

I wasn’t crazy about so much blue. 

I was drinking a cup of coffee and wondered if dabbing a bit of coffee on the fabric would tone it down?  Why not give it a try?  I did, and the result is the block I have posted at the top. 

I like it better now.

And..not being one to leave well enough alone…

 I ordered a charm pack of Barbara’s Civil War Reunion fabric and it came in the mail yesterday.   I was happy to see that the colors look nice with the fabrics I’m using, and being anxious to squeek some into my blocks, I changed the center of the North Star block to the Union fabric. 

I didn’t intend to make two quilts..but at this rate…I just might?  ;)

quilt along / Uncategorized — 14 Comments
29
Jan 11

Midnight Stars?

I’ve gotten the top of my quilt along doll quilt from Lori’s quilt along finished, but not quilted.

I changed the color scheme from blue, cheddar, red and shirting white to browns, warm pink, cheddar and cream shirtings.  These colors will go better in the room I’ll use the quilt in, but now the name Midnight Stars doesn’t make any sense?

I wasn’t able to find the name of this block.  I found one that was very similar in Maggie Malone’s Quilt Block Designs book called Eddystone Light., but it’s not exact.

I need a name that suits my quilt better.  I’m open to suggestions, if you have any ideas?

It might be a while until I can this cutie quilted because I have a rush order for a baby quilt that’s to be given at a shower on March 6. 

While I had my scrap bin out and had some time to play I pieced a little log cabin variation.  I saw a quilt on someone’s blog around Christmas time with a split center log cabin block. It really grabbed my attention and I jotted down a few notes, along with the name of the blog I saw it on.

I did some cleaning up here and somehow misplaced or threw out my notes.   I’m pretty sure I got it wrong? I think the logs have to be 1/2 the size of the center square?

If this looks familiar to you, please let me know who’s blog I saw it on, so I can give them credit?

I believe she called a Split Rail Variation?

Barbara Brackman's Civil War blocks / Uncategorized — 3 Comments
29
Jan 11

Kansas Troubles

This week the block that Barbara Brackman posted is a Kansas Troubles block.

I’m happy to say there were no odd numbers to cut and the block went together very smoothly.

The light fabric I used was one that Kelly sent me.  I love that print!  I wish I had yards of it.

:)

Uncategorized — 14 Comments
26
Sep 10

Warning has been removed!

Depending on which browser you use…you may have gotten a warning that this was a suspicious site when trying to visit in the past 10 days or so?

I want everyone to know that there is not and never has been anything dangerous posted here. We have taken steps to make sure that your visit here is safe and enjoyable.

How did we get flagged with a warning?  Let me tell you..because it could happen to you too..and we don’t want that!

Google has a computer program that randomly “crawls” through a site and looks for suspicious links.  Those that take you somewhere other than where you thought you were going..or ones that try to download malware on your computer.  As the program ran on my site it found a couple of “bad” links.

One link was to a web site that sold a good cheddar fabric. That fabric has been discontinued..so the link was “bad.”

The other link was  in a comment that someone posted. It was a link to an ebay auction that had a quilt a lot like the old top I had posted.  That link was no longer valid either, because ebay doesn’t keep pages with old listings in place.

I deleted the links..and went over every page and comment on my blog.  As I was doing this, my son was looking at the code.  Neither one of us found anything harmful anywhere.  We asked to have the site reviewed so the warning would be taken down.  Let me tell you…they were fast to throw a warning up..but not so fast to remove it.

So dear friends…if you have a blog..check your links. Especially those in old posts. We tend to post things and let them sit. If your blog is checked and they find a bad link..they’ll flag you and not tell what they found. It’s maddening!

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