In the last few months, I’ve been working on a quilt. It is a lap size quilt that I designed and for which I’d like to sell the pattern on my own (instead of being published in a book or magazine). I’m writing it as I go. It’s a first one and it is a long process. As I was saying to a friend, it is always easier to get the motivation to work on projects for other people like gifts or ones that have a deadline. So, this one has been pushed back many times. I’ve had the fabrics for a while (see this post). The fabrics are from the Treetop Fancy collection by Tina Givens combined with some Kona cottons in Aqua and Snow. I had done a sketch for the quilt even before that.

Anyway, I’m almost done with the quilt and I wanted to share one of the last step with you: the quilting. The quilt is 60″ x 72″. Again I decided to put to practice some free motion quilting using patterns from Angela Walters’ book. I chose some chain squares for the different pieced squares and some flower (looks like dahlia) designs for the negative space. I’m echoing the pieced squares before filling in the negative space. I’m marking the squares with painter’s tape to echo them.

I’m using Aurifil for a second time and I would say it is going pretty smoothly for FMQ. I used Aurifil 2021 to match Kona Snow for the negative space and Aurifil 5006 to match Kona Aqua in the squares. The aqua thread is finer (50 wt compared to 40 wt for the one matching Snow). This is perfect as I’m using it on prints of different colors, so it blends more with the fabrics.  All the squares are quilted and about 3/4 of the negative space too. My flower pattern is pretty dense. So, my only worry is that I’ll end my 1000 meter spool before I get to the end. Then I would need to order a new spool … Here you can see what is left compared to a brand new spool in another color.

My quilt has been on my machine table for a bit more than a month now. I’m doing some half hours quilting here and there. I have been thinking of buying a second machine for a while. This project convinced me to do it. I had a few other small projects I wanted to do and didn’t want to wait until this was finished. Anyway I can’t quilt all day long. So, I looked around if I could find a used Janome machine. I wanted the same brand as my main machine to be able to use my sewing feet on both. Finally, I ordered a new really basic machine: a Janome My Style 100.

I’m really happy with my decision. This will be perfect for our sew-ins at the Montreal MQG. I can’t wait for our next one which will be in October. Anyway, until then I really need to get this quilt done so I can show it to you.

A few people mentioned me that they received their copy of Modern Quilts Unlimited and saw my quilt in it. It is a wall art mini-quilt I designed for the Summer 2013 issue. It is named In The Mirror. I didn’t receive my copy yet. It is always fun to see how they pictured the project. But, I couldn’t resist any longer from sharing it with you!

It the same size as my Reflection mini-quilt: 20”x 36”. And just like it, the design is playing with reflection and asymmetry. The reflection is achieved by using dark and light values of the same colors in the squares, the negative space and even the binding. I used neutral colors for the negative space to make the squares stand out. For the quilting, I did a square spiral in each square. And I did straight line quilting about 1/2″ apart in the negative space echoing the squares on each side of the reflection line. My only deception is that the lines going in between each square distorted their piecing a bit.

Did you see the Origami Market Bag at Whip Up? I couldn’t resist making one.

This was super fun to make. It was a quick project. Even faster because I decided to use my serger to assemble the bag. I need to get this machine out once in a while. It will make the bag sturdier.
It was sold at a large family gathering to raise money for the next party.

The handle print is from the Early Bird collection by Cosmo Cricket. For the bag, I used some linen. I think it was a blend, I’m not sure. It came from my grand-mother’s stash. It was some leftover of what I used to make pants to the boys. It was for a pioneer costume at the same party.

This was my first attempt at making pants. Being for a costume removed a bit of the pressure. I followed this tutorial at Made. I used the same pattern she was providing for a size 2-3 toddler, but I lengthen them. My boys are 3 and 5 years old. I thought that would fit as my 5 years old boy still has size 2 shorts that fit. I was wrong. I guess I was a bit lazy. When it came the time to sew the side seams, I realize that they were to narrow. So, I added a 2″ strip of fabric. Then I topstitched the seams to create a pintuck to make it less obvious that this was an error.

In the end, it wasn’t too bad. My sister had found some nice hats and braces at H&M to go with the pants. The boys looked really cute in their pioneer outfit. We had a great time that weekend meeting cousins we haven’t seen for a while. As for the pants, I might decide they are good enough for everyday clothes.

This spring I worked on a baby quilt for Fat Quarterly. It was published yesterday in Issue 14 of their ezine. If you didn’t see the issue, take a look at the preview here. It is filled with inspiration!

The design for the quilt was one I had in mind for a while. I showed the stack of fabrics for it a year ago.The quilt features a rainbow of color in three different values. Visual spectrum from red to indigo is often plotted on a logarithmic scale. At least, this is what I recall from the different physics courses I followed. Here it’s my  engineering background who’s insinuating itself in my quilting design! Anyway, this has inspired me to do 3 rows of different widths from darker to lighter being longer to shorter. For the quilting, I wanted to emphasize the design. So, I decided to do straight line quilting, but to use a logarithmic grid to space the lines. I repeated the grid 4 times.

For those of you who are more familiar with my quilting experience, you know that I’m not that comfortable with straight line quilting. Having to deliver a quilt with straight line quilting, put a bit of pressure on me. But, I didn’t want to leave that out as I thought it really added to the design. I decided to put all chances on my side.

First, I used spray basting instead of pins. This was a first time for me. Below is my setup. I’m not a big a fan of putting glue on fabric, even though I know it will all wash away. Also, I hate spraying something that smells bad. Just like when my husband needs to paint some car parts in his garage and it smells all over the house. I did my spray basting on an old sheet installed on my deck. It went well and I’m sure it helped a lot in avoiding the shifting. Still, this is not something I would do inside the house in the winter when you can’t open the windows.

Other things that probably helped were my new walking foot and the thread I used. I had broke the plastic piece holding the guide on my foot. When looking for a replacement part, I learned that Janome made a new walking foot with a guide that could be put both sides of the foot. I find this really practical, so I decided to order one.

I read so much good things about Aurifil online, that I decided to give it a try for this quilt. People from Aurifil and the lady from the store I ordered it from, helped me find the color that would match the background fabric which is Kona in Ash (2615, Aluminium). A big thanks to them. I used the 40 wt thread. I appreciated quilting with it. Did it make a difference? I couldn’t say. But, I’ll definitively those threads again. One major benefits is the large spools you can order.

I’m really glad of how the quilting turned out. The texture was even nicer after washing.

All fabrics used for the front and binding are Kona cottons from Robert Kaufman. The back panel is the print Just Hanging in Natural from Alexander Henry. I wanted a large print that a child would love and that would feature the different colors of the rainbow.

The quilt design is simple, but I think it would bring a contemporary feel to a baby’s room. And I’m sure a baby would love seeing all those colors!

Thanks a lot everyone for your lovely comments on the book  Set the Table! The winner of the eBook is number 11, Jane S.

 

Last summer, I designed and made a table runner for a book. It is called Set the Table and it is now out!

Martingale is offering an eBook download to one of my readers. So, if you are interested in having a copy of this book, just leave me a comment. I’ll pick a winner in a week from now, on August 1st, that I’ll contact by email. Hope you’ll enjoy the book. Table runners are projects so fun to do. They allow to try out some designs and techniques but on a smaller scale than a quilt. Also, they add so much to a table!

Update: The winner of the eBook is Jane S.

A friend of mine asked me to make some pillows for their living room and a table runner for their large dining table. I had given her a quilt for their second baby girl two years ago and she wanted some more. It’s fun to sew for people who enjoy and appreciate this kind of work.

She loves country style. For the pillows, she had asked for some red. I had sent links to her of a few examples. We had agree on this one. I did pretty much the same. The final size of the pillow covers is 20″. I picked some fabrics from the Shelburne Fall collection by Denyse
Schmidt mixed with a print from a previous collection, Flea Market
Fancy. I also used prints from Salt Air by Cosmo Cricket and Reunion by Sweetwater both for Moda. For the neutral fabric, I used Essex linen/cotton blend by Robert Kaufman in flax.

I used this technique for the half-square triangles. It went quite well. My initial squares were 4.25. I just trimmed the dog ears when I was done making the HSTs. I’ve used this tutorial at Sew! Mama, Sew! to put a zipper closure on the back.The fabric on the back is a home decor weight cotton I bought at local fabric shop.

For the table runner, I had a bit more freedom. My friend had sent a picture of their dining room, which has green paint on the walls and curtains made out of a fabric with plaid patterns in cream, black and brown. I tried to find fabrics in those colors. I used Kona from Robert Kaufman in Parsley for the negative space and in Ivory for the flange. The prints used in the main blocks are from the following collections:

• Little Country Posies by Kim Schaefer for Andover Fabrics
• Antique Fair by Blackbird Designs for Moda
• Hometown by Sweetwater for Moda
• Back in Time by Sandy Gervais for Moda

My main blocks were inspired by these projects: here, here and here. I decided to add some diamonds in between blocks to lengthen the table runner. Unfortunately, I don’t have the name of the green stripes I used for those.

The final size of the HST are 2.5″ and I added a 1″ border all around, so the flange I added wouldn’t cover the blocks. This made a table runner of 12″ x 42″, which I think is great for their table of 39″ x 71″. It leaves place for placemats. For the flange, I had cut my fabric to 1″ strips. I think next time I’ll try to do them narrower. For both projects, quilting went quite well. I particularly like the free motion quilting I added for the green diamonds in the table runner.

It was the first time I sewed for “commission”. It was a bit weird to set a price, particularly for a friend. I find it hard to price handmade items. It has always more value than what you can charge. But, anyway I really enjoyed making this for her, trying to find what she would like. I hope I succeeded. Pleasing people you like is always the best gratification.

Jeans have been piling up in the last months. I guess being a 5 years old boy is hard on pant knees. I just can’t resign myself to throw them away.

 A few were turned into shorts. I have been looking to do some projects with them. But I realized that they are a bit to small for most projects I have seen using old jeans. It’s a good thing that one of dad’s pair of jeans joined the pile.

I was able to make both of my boys some denim bins following this tutorial by Betz White. These were fun and quick to put together. For the lining of the first one, I used a print from the PB&J collection by BasicGrey for Moda Fabrics, which I just love. For the second one, I used  a print from the Mind Your P’s & Q’s collection by Keiki for Moda Fabrics.

I made those bins for them to put their coloring pencils. I did as said in the tutorial and only used batting for the interfacing. It lacks a bit stiffness to hold pencils. I decided to put some old yogurt container inside of it, so it would stay straight up. Well that wasn’t the plan, but it is still nicer than a yogurt container alone and this will protect the fabric.

I also made each of them a bicycle bucket following Anna from Noodle Head’s tutorial. The lining and binding are both prints from the Mod Century collection by Jen Ski for Moda Fabrics.

This project was a bit of a challenge for me. Working with stiff interfacing makes things a lot less maneuverable. Everything went smoothly until I had to put the finishing touch: the binding. I guess things would have been a lot more easier with a sewing machine having a free arm. Just like the one pictured in the tutorial. But mine doesn’t have one. For this reason, I sewed the binding from the interior contrarily to what is done in the tutorial. Also instead of sewing the two ends of the binding together, I made them overlap on about 1 1/2″ with the one on top folded. It is less cleaner, but I was a bit easier this way for me. This isn’t the project I’m the most proud of, but both my boys were happy to ride their bicycles with their new basket!

If you have some suggestions of what I could do from the kids small pair of jeans let me know. Or if you have other upcycling projects with jeans that you want to share, let me know. I’m curious!

The Montreal MQG held is last meeting before summer break last Wednesday. To celebrate our first year anniversary, we had  a potluck, some giveaways and a pincushion swap. We had a great time. You can read more about it here.

I had prepared this little pincushion for the swap.

I followed this great tutorial. The only thing I made different is that I hand stitched the curves of the windows instead of machine stitching them.It was great to try out cathedral windows. I’m not sure I would have the patience to do a whole quilt like this!

We all had brought our pincushions in brown bags to keep the surprise. It is Louise who picked mine. And I picked Melanie’s pincushion.

Isn’t it cute? It was really fun to see all the variety of pincushion that were made. I’m sure this is something we’ll do again next year.

I’ve sewn this messenger bag for someone special who got 18 years old a few weeks ago and who will be finishing high school in a few days. I decided to make her this bag to highlight those important steps in her life. She had seen my purse last summer and she had asked for one with pastel colors. She got a rain coat in coral earlier this spring. So, when I saw the print I used as for the flap, I thought it would look lovely together. The print is from In My Room fabric collection by Jenean Morrison for Free Spirit Fabric The remaining outside fabric is Essex linen by Robert Kaufman in flax. The lining and side pockets are from a older collection by Robert Kaufman as well, Made in Japan. I just love that wood grain print.