The joy of a good Crossword Puzzle…

Posted in Finished Quilts by wombatquilts

This week I have been working on a top-secret project for Quilt Market so my personal quilting has been at a minimum… but I did manage to squeeze enough personal sewing time in to get my Crossword Quilt top all done…

This is a very quiet quilt and very simple, but I love it. The subtly of the pattern is just perfect and adds just the right amount of interest to this low volume quilt.

I used white on white tonals, creams and greys for the back ground “newspaper” of the quilt and black and white/cream prints for the crossword section.

I used as many font or print patterns as I could find, which included raiding a few of my friends, stashes…. special thanks goes to MaryAnn who had some wonderful prints in her collection that she kindly shared. Oh and of course there is some Pearl Bracelet… I can’t make a scrap quilt without surreptitiously sneaking it in somewhere!

This top is a big one… 67.5 x 76.5. I actually played with the original pattern a little to make the quilt just a smidgen smaller than the on in “A month of Sundays”. The book actually encourages you to make up your own crossword, which is kind of fun.

So this is the point in the post where I admit I don’t understand the joy of a good crossword puzzle. My mum does them everyday but they frustrate me no end…oh and do not get me started on the craziness that is cryptic crosswords. Seriously they make no sense at all.

29Sep2014

Starflower Quilt block

Posted in Paper Piecing Monday, Quilt patterns by wombatquilts

For today’s Paper Piecing Monday block I did something a little different. The block still uses the simple square block, but only one…

..and yes kitties are still involved. It follows the rules of the other vintage blocks – 9 patch of four-inch blocks blah blah blah…

The components of the block are…one (1) WQ Simple square block, four (4) Triangle blocks and four (4) Starpoint component blocks. Just click on the links to get the PDF of the patterns.

So what did I do different…. I blew this block up to make a 21 inch block.

As the local hospital was now requesting 42 inch square quilts, I thought this would be a great way to make a quick and easy baby quilt… and I was right.

My quilt is unbound, but you get the idea. Simple pattern, bright solids and you have an easy quilt. The pattern components are the same but just 7 inches instead of 4…XL Triangle component and XL Star component and of course XL Simple Square component.

26Sep2014

A Briar Rose finish

Posted in Finished Quilts by wombatquilts

This week I finished the first of the quilts that I am dragging back to Australia in November. I know I am cutting it close, but I am a girl who works well with a looming deadline…

This darling quilt, made using just Heather Ross’s Briar Rose and Kona white, is for my cousin’s daughter, Annabel. I started it in October last year (I really am slow to finish stuff without a deadline), and you can find out more about the pattern on my original post.

A few years ago I made Annabel a baby quilt, but never got it to her (I am also slow to post things!). After she was no longer a baby, I gave her quilt to Project Linus and started making this quilt… which is much more young lady appropriate.

I used about 1/4 yard of each of the fabrics in the line, which means I still have enough of the fabric in my stash to make something else. I love these prints, but am particularly smitten by the bees…

For the quilting I used some of the lines of the block as a guide and ended up with a really cool pattern of stitches, some straight and some diagonal.

I pieced together a back using a large cut of one of the floral prints and some little bits of my favorite strawberry prints…. and finished it all off with some scrappy pink binding…

So one Aussie bound quilt done, two to go!

Quilt Details:
Pattern: Labyrinth by Red Pepper Quilts
Fabric: Briar Rose by Windham Fabrics
Size: 52 x 52 inches

24Sep2014

Cross Stitch Sparkle Pattern Testing

Posted in Quilt patterns by wombatquilts

Over the last couple of weeks I have been doing some pattern testing for the fabulous Sara at Knottygnome. The block I have been playing with is called Cross Stitch Sparkle…

It is a block made up of half square triangles, lots and lots of HST’s. When I got the pattern I was umming and ahhing about what colours to do and what scraps to use… you know my usual style. In the end I decided to do something completely different for me and go with solids.

I used just Kona for the white fabric but I really raided my solids stash for the rest – there is Kona and Couture Cotton and Bella Solids and who knows what else in this block.

With Sara’s pattern she gives directions on two different ways to make HST’s. I went with the version that makes 2 at a time because I wanted the colour variety and I was not making a huge quilt.

Sara’s other directions make 8 HST’s at a time and would be very handy if you were making a full quilt out of this pattern. Each block is 18 inches square so I made 4 blocks and called it good…

I now have a fabulous wall hanging or baby quilt…. I am not sure which one it is yet! Sara’s pattern goes live next week on her website if you are interested. The block is really easy and the resulting quilt top is striking.

I am linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday.

22Sep2014

Kitty Corner Paper Piecing Monday

Posted in Paper Piecing Monday by wombatquilts

For today’s paper piecing Monday I present the kitty corner block….

And yes that is a kitty in the center of the Kitty Corner… I could not resist. The pattern is another simple square nine patch block, have I mentioned I am obsessed?

To make this block all you need is the 4 1/2 inch simple square pattern (WQ Simple square block) and the Kitty corner component.

I was a little stuck on putting a kitty in the block, so my alternative block layout is not too much different…

But I think there are more exciting possibilities if you are not cat or fussy cut focused. I would love to see a block with no white space – with a pattern fabric as the background. Maybe if I get time….