Not much sewing going on

I've really been slacking on getting any work done on anything.  I haven't felt well, spent all weekend just laying on the couch and basically the same after work.  I did work on the CW fabric quilt for a couple of hours and finished up the first batch of corner sections for 24 blocks.  I also got the strips sewn and half of them cut for the next 24 blocks.  It's coming down to the finish line, which is how I think of it.  The last part is the side centers so as each one is done I can complete a block.

Got my show packet today

I've been checking the mailbox every day, waiting impatiently, and it came today!  Brewing some coffee so I can sit down, relax and look over everything.  There's even a press release that was sent to my local newspaper.  I'm so excited!!

My quilt was accepted for the Knoxville show!!!

I just saw the semi-finalist list and my name is there!!!  I am so excited I can hardly contain myself!!! 

Pamela White
http://www.americanquilter.com/shows_contests/knoxville/2010/quilt_contest/quilt_semifinalists.php

Progress on latest quilt

I haven't worked on this because I had to get the IRR round done but now that's done and mailed off, I can get back to it.

This evening I cut the 1 3/4" x 3" ivory pieces for the next part of the blocks.  These pieces are sewn to the ivory/color sections, two with the color on the bottom and two with the color on the top.  I sewed half of this batch and pressed them. 

These are only the parts for 24 blocks, two of each fabric.  I have the strips of CW fabric cut for the next batch of 24 and they still need to be sewn to a strip of ivory and cut into sections.

This is turning into a whole lot of work!!  I still have 8 HSTs to do for each of 48 blocks.

Quilt errands day

Today I got my last IRR quilt mailed to the next person in the round and I received the next one that I had to go the post office to sign for.  I also took my feathered star quilt to the county fair.  The fair is in June so I won't know the results of judging until then. 

I need to add a 7" wide row onto this quilt.  I don't have any idea yet what I'm going to do but one possibility is that the blue fabric with the trees looks to be from the Twiggy collection.  This is the fabric that I used in the feathered star quilt and I have a lot from the whole collection, fat quarters, jelly roll strips, and some yardage.

All of the original centers are imported into EQ6 and I've been adding the rounds onto them as they get completed so that when it comes to me I can play with designs on it.

IRR Round 3 is done

Man... I worked on this for 4 hours tonight to get this completed and so glad it's done!!!  I am happy with how it turned out and I did decide to do just the two opposite corners.  Need to get my name on the label that travels along with the quilt, get it packaged up, and sent on to Canada.  I've also been sending a hankerchief with each quilt and I try to choose one, out of the 100 or so that I have, that goes with the quilt.

One corner completed

Well, I didn't get the TWO corners done that I wanted to do today but one is totally completed.  I like this and re-thinking about doing all of the corners in different flowers and adding blue ones.  That might add a lot of other elements that are going to jumble the whole thing up.  I may just do the upper left corner in the same tulips, at least that will balance it out.  I'll see how it looks when I lay them on and try the opposite corners in blue flowers.  Sometimes a little goes a long ways.

MY IRR center!!

OMG!!!  A picture of my quilt was posted today!!  It is so beautiful!  I am just blown away at how wonderful it looks!  I so appreciate all the thought and work that everyone has put into it.

Borders are on

The borders went on just right, no adjustments to do.  I got one of the corners layed out and I like it!  It looks good next to the red border and it brings in the feeling of the center.  Now to get all the pieces glued down in place and sewed on.  That sounds so simple but I know it's not going to be quick work.  I hope I can get two corners done today but right now, I need to eat lunch!

Squaring up a quilt

I got some 6 1/2" strips cut for the border I need to add to an International Round Robin quilt and measured the quilt so far.  I found that it was 39 1/2" across the middle and across the ends it was 40 1/4".  I needed to square it up as there was no way that my borders would come out well with those measurements.

I laid out the insulating foam board, put an old sheet over it, and laid out the quilt.  I started at one corner and pinned it square just a couple of inches on each side of the corner then used my straight edge to pull one edge straight and pinned it at the correct length. 

I then measured across to the other edge and pinned.

Using my metal square I pull and pin the quilt square along one edge.

Because the whole quilt was pulling inwards in the center there was a lot of stretching to do.

I continued around each edge, constantly checking the measurements and using the square and straight edge.

When it was all square and secured I sprayed it with starch VERY WELL and left it for a full day.

I checked on it this morning and it looks great.  I unpinned and it kept it's shape so now I can sew on my black border and do the machine applique on the flowers.

Pieces of one corner

The pieces for one of the applique corners are cut out.  I still need to starch and iron the 6" black border and get it sewn to the quilt.  These pieces probably won't be layed out exactly like this as I need to fit it into the border and spread it out the sides. 

How I'm doing this is using freezer paper and tracing the pieces onto it.  I then iron the paper onto the fabric, cut them out, then used fabric glue to put the flowers together.  Much easier to treat them as one piece when it comes to sewing them on.

I really hope she likes it.

Much work to do this week

I have the third round to do on one of the International Round Robin quilts this week.  I've been really stuck on what to do with the next round to tie it in with the first two.  They are very different styles, going from a delicate watercolor to a bold red and white.  I just didn't know what to do!  I asked the quilter's board today and got some ideas, especially from the woman whos center it is.  She would like a black border with flowers in blues and pinks.

I have some black fabric from Connecting Threads and the Fusions jelly roll strips.  I'm not happy with the color gradations of the JRs for what I had in mind for them but they will be great for this.

I chose a range of blue and pink and added green and yellow.  I included a red to bring that color from the center and to tie it into the red/white row.  I have a bunch of delicate floral applique patterns that are in loose corner settings so I'll do one in each corner and trail out towards the side centers.