Need to get organized…

Posted in Finished Quilts by wombatquilts

I am in desperate need of a some organization… I have not posted anything for the last couple of weeks because I was not organized enough to get the photos up and posted. I have about 5 quilts finished and photographed but I have not been able to get them sorted and corrected so that I can post.

So here comes the admission… I am not quite myself at the moment… and actually have not been for a little while. You see it seems the knock to my head a the end of 2016 did a little more damage than originally thought. I have not been able to read properly for a little while… my eyes and brain are not communicating the way they should be. It means that blogging has been a much more of a task than it used to be… and I have been reluctant to do it.

The quilting though has been surprisingly easier than my Neuro-optometist thought it would be. There is a lot to be said for muscle memory. It seems all those years of mindlessly sewing has helped me continue working during this fun phase… though some of my paper piecing stitches have not followed the lines the way they should…

After keeping this under my belt of the last 6 months I thought I should come clean about the struggle. I am seeing a large number of people with the word “neuro” in front of their title and things are getting better…slowly. So I ask for your patience as I try and find a rhythm as my brain heals.

All that being said I do have a quilt to share this week… and it is one I LOVE…

This quilt is another beauty that came out of a PMQG Charity Sew Day. It took tons of brightly colored solid scraps as well as some cream/white scraps – I spent a lot of time with my Accuquilt cutter cutting 5 inch squares for this one!

quilt detail

The solids worked so nicely and I have become a bit of a solid fan for charity quilts…. though I do miss the novelty fun that comes from using prints…

solid stars quilting detail

The quilting on this piece is beyond amazing. One of our talented long armers, Cindy Lund had a field day… each star is quilted with a different pattern and the sashing is free motioned. The quilting really does make this quilt so much more special.

the pinkies

I mean it is beyond anything I had imagined when I handed the quilt over… I am always in awe of the work of our amazing long arm quilters… they do such an amazing job… and it is a job that I am not particularly fond of, which makes me even more grateful for their time and talents.

quilt back

As this is quite a large quilt I used a nice piece of wideback for the backing. The backing was donated by Elizabeth Hartman and is part of her widleback collection for Robert Kaufman. I have a been so grateful for the wide back donation we got from Elizabeth… it has saved me piecing backs for so many of the larger quilts.

quilt detail 2

To finish the quilt off I made the unusual decision to bind in white… because the sashing was not added around the outside of the quilt a darker binding would have made the quilt a little imbalanced I think.

This beauty is labeled up and headed to Camp Erin. We have a wonderful collection of quilts going to this cause this year. I was thrilled to run across the documentary “One Last Hug” on HBO last month, which is about Camp Erin… it is always nice to know more about where the quilt are going and who they are helping.

Quilt Details:

Quilt Block: Traditional block known as African star or pinwheel star
Block size: 12 inch
Fabric: Solid scraps with Kona white and Snow background.
Finished Size: 54″ x 68″

4May2018

The weather has finally co-operated…

Posted in Finished Quilts by wombatquilts

After some miserable weeks of rain here in Portland it has recently fined up enough for me to drag Mr Wombat out and about to photograph some quilts. It used to be much easier when I hung the quilts on the back fence, but not as much fun. The first of the recent quilts I am going to share is a Do Good Stitches finish….

double cross quilt

You might recognize the block as I shared the details for making the double plus block in November and if you are interested you can find the pattern here…

It is a fun block and a real scrap buster…and my fellow Do Good peeps did a great job with their Double Pluses. Mr Wombat was also on good pinkie form don’t you think?

double cross quilting

In true scrappy form it is full of fussy cut goodness and fun bright colors… and is wonderfully gender neutral I think. I do love my charity quilts to be cheerful and worthy of a good game of I spy. I was talking to a friend today about stashes and I realized where other people (aka. grown ups) go for simple blenders, I will always go for a novelty print if I can.

double cross detail 4

The quilt was quilted and bound by one of the fabulous PMQG members. Our Charity program receives quite a few quilts from different Do Good Circles (or Bees), and each one is sent to our local Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Every month or so we send to the hospital between 15 to 30 quilts… some of them are panel quilts but most of them are beautiful handmade masterpieces.

double cross detail 5

I am constantly in awe of the people of my quilting community and the wonderful work they do. I have always made charity quilts – it has been my passion/obsession for over 20 years… but I never expected so many people to jump in so enthusiastically and help out. I am constantly speechless at the generosity I see. There is such good in the world.

double cross detail 3

Quilt details:

Pattern: 12 inch Double Plus block
Fabric: Scraps…nothing but scraps.
Quilt Size: 48 x 60 inches

9Mar2018

Finishing up some more quilts…

Posted in Finished Quilts by wombatquilts

I am finally getting around to finishing up and sharing some of my long over due Do Good Stitches quilts…

With the Do Good Stitches quilts I do try and challenge myself to do gender neutral or boy orientated quilts. As a card carrying pink lover it is always difficult to try and keep to a less girly palette.

With this quilt I went with a very traditional block but got my fellow Bee members to mix up the blues and to throw in some boy based novelty prints.

It really like the way it turned out. The fun quilting was done on the long arm at my local Quilt shop – Modern Domestic. I can not tell you how much I love having a local shop… and one that is just 5 minutes drive away. I am very very spoiled.

In the next month there are two quilt shops in town closing down, which makes me a little sad. I love going into Modern Domestic and petting the fabric, getting advice and teaching/taking classes. I can not imagine what I would do if my LQS shut down. If you are lucky enough to have a local store make sure you appreciate them and frequent them – they are such an asset and it would a sadder world if we could not physically go and touch the fabric…. stepping off my soap box… and now back to the quilts…

For the back of the quilt I used an IKEA pillow case (cut open of course). I am having a blast using sheet sets and Doona (duvet for non-Queenslanders) covers for the back of my quilts. Between IKEA and Martha Stewarts Whim sets the novelty print choice is too fun.

And it is thanks again to my trusty quilt holder and pinkie model… Mr Wombat. He really is getting good at this quilt holding thing!

Quilt details:

Pattern: 12 inch Ohio Star blocks
Makers: Do Good Stitches Hope Circle
Fabric: Scraptastic – blues & cream/whites
Size: 48 x 60 inches

16Feb2018

I was not joking about my new obsession…

Posted in Finished Quilts by wombatquilts

Last week I said had a Cotton and Steel…and to prove it here is Exhibit B….

hop skip jump cs quilt

This pretty little thing was made using a pattern from V & Co called Hop Skip Jump. It is just one block but two different color ways to give the scattered affect.

Cotton steel quilt

The prints are all Cotton and Steel prints, of course with Kona Snow background….

hop skip detail

The block is made up of half square triangles and broken dishes sections…. I became quite proficient at matching my points by the end of this process. I may have cheated a little by using glue basting to match my seams for the broken dishes section of the block… but don’t tell anyone!

hop skip detail 2

What I really love about the Cotton and Steel selection in this quilt is their “kind of grey” color that they use. It is not quite a grey and not quite a bone color. It is really a unique color shade that they use over and over again in their prints. I must admit my stash of this color took a big hit with this quilt particularly because…

cs quilt back

I used a swath of it on the back. This print did not work in the block so I kept it whole on the back. I know the typewriters are the wrong way but I love them anyway… and as always the kid that gets this quilt is not going to care at all.

QUILT DETAILS:

Pattern: Hop Skip Jump by V & Co
Fabric: Assorted Cotton & Steel prints and Kona Snow
Finished size: 60 x 72 inches
Expert quilt holding: Mr Wombat

19Jan2018

Another Good Finish…

Posted in Finished Quilts by wombatquilts

This week I wanted to share one of the Do Good Stitches quilts I have finally got finished… the guilt over the number of DGS tops I have done is weighing on my conscience a little…

dgs cross quilt

These blocks were a year or so old before I finally got them into a presentable state. I really like this block but it was a little problematic as a bee block…

dgs detail 2

Not all the seams matched perfectly as different people made the blocks on different sewing machine. I learnt from this quilt that I needed blocks that had a bit more wiggle room for variance – i.e. do not have seams that must align for the pattern to work.

dgs quilt detail 3

I do like the finished quilt regardless of my seam issues… it is a rare boy appropriate quilt. There is always a desperate need for boys quilts at the hospital and I am trying to make more gender neutral quilts but the call of pink is hard to resist!

dgs quilt back

As an added bonus you get a shot of the scrappy back just so that you can admire Mr Wombat’s finger pose. He is obsessed with sticking his pinkies out when he holds the quilts… which means you have a couple of months of quilt photos with feet and pinkie fingers. He insists it is his signature move!