one two three... from Sew Nancy

it's been a very busy couple days around here- family in from out of town, a birthday party, and a whole lot of Good Summer Liven. I've been popping in and out of the studio to get emails written but that's about it.

Until I'm back to work I thought I'd share this beautiful project that Nancy from Sew Nancy has been working on. A little bit of quilt magic.

Gee's Bend

After my post yesterday I came across these quilts made by the women of Gee's Bend.  I can't get them out of my head- the color and composition,  the meaning of craft and community... it's all too much. I'm in awe.

Thank you Purl for this old post (which sent me on my search):

Gee's Bend is a small Alabama community geographically isolated by a winding river. The population are primarily descended from former slaves who worked the land for plantation owners in the nineteenth century and as share croppers for most of the twentieth century. Their self-sufficience was born of this hard-laboring life, and it yielded incredible creativity, resourcefulness, and spirit. To learn more about the quilters themselves, their work, and their community, visit their excellent website.

quilts-

I just found out a friend is expecting a baby and what comes to my crazy mind after being excited and so happy for her and her family?- I'm sure it's no surprise: "What could I make for her and the little one?" This sort of making is my favorite... and the planning is just as joyful.

I was doing a bit of searching around and found this beautiful collection of photos from Moving Hands- taken at the Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival. She has been making photos over the last few years and they're all up there. What an inspiration- it makes me look forward to getting sewing again.

fish! (a side note from outside the studio)

This morning Claude and I hung out (now I'm in the studio- soooo much to do before Friday!) and we admired the quilt my mom made for him this past Christmas. It's so lovely and we often talk about about different things we see in each small piece of fabric- this morning there was a lot of talk about "FISH!".

I'm sure she'll be posting more images of this beauty on her blog soon, along with all the pattern info-

nearly perfect... imperfectly so...

(via reference library)

a quilt for Claude...

I haven't been working on any quilts for the last year- except for one that went terribly wrong. So this week I cut it up and made something new... a quilt for Claude for Christmas. This was the first time I've made a quilt without making multiple blocks in the same pattern- instead I just worked on the odd shaped blocks (6 of them) and finally pieced them all together and then worked the whole piece at once. I can't wait to finish it. I think he'll like it... all those roads and bridges.

color studies

As I've made abundantly clear at this point- I'm kinda obsessive about making quilts. I haven't really finished all that many, but it's the thing I think about making whenever I have a moment to daydream. This morning while looking at Hop Skip Jump, Fiona mentioned these outrageously beautiful quilt color studies. One of my many quilt plans had been to hand dye a whole bunch of fabric and make something really similar. Now that I've seen it done and done so well, I'm really hooked on the idea. Who needs to sleep right?! Who am I kidding, sleep is one of the last things to go. Let's be honest- who needs to make it to the gym this week?!

Polka Dot Quilt Tutorial

I posted about the baby quilt I made some time ago and had so many people interested in how I made this polka dot quilt, I decided to share my pattern with you all. There are so many ways you could ad-lib with this basic pattern... I'm excited for you all to make your own. It's a little time consuming(those curves)but for those who aren't too fussy about it being perfect, it's an enjoyable quilt to work on. Each Square/Circle feels like a little accomplishment and before you know it, you have enough for a a whole quilt. Enjoy!

Below you'll find all the directions...
*please note... this is the way I made it and I'm no pro quilter- so if you can think of a better way to make your quilt, do so! I don't doubt there are countless ways this could be made "better"... but I'm just smitten with my version!

My 36" x 44" Quilt
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Background color approximately 1 yard
31 6"x6" scraps of different fabrics
Backing Fabric 1.5 yard
Binding 1/3 yard

Click on the image above to pull up the full sized file, then just drag it to your desktop and print it at 100% on a piece on card stock.

For each circle/square you'll need four of each piece: "background" and "circle". I wanted a fairly simple quilt which would be calming but visually dynamic, so I choose the same "background" for all the pieces of my quilt.


When cutting, depending on the size of the fabric I'm using, I'll either draw out the pattern directly on the fabric (making sure to cut off most all the marks) or I just pin the pattern on layered fabric and cut around. This second method is obviously much faster but creates more wasted fabric and doesn't work if you only have a little bit to work with.



Once you have all 8 pieces for one circle/square cut, iron or finger press each piece in half.

To sew the pieces together, I find it easier to pin the "background" piece on top:

1. Begin by lining up the press lines, and pin.
2. line up edges and pin each side
3. work the pieces together pinning until it seems to lay nicely
4. sew with about 1/4" seam allowance (I use the width of my presser foot as my guide)
   

Iron flat with the "background" folding towards the "circle" piece.


I'm not much of a perfectionist as you can see, so my pieces aren't perfect squares nor are they free from puckering... This might drive some people absolutely crazy. If you'd be one of those people, you might want to work on the pattern a little to get it just right, or cut down each square to be perfectly "square" before you move onto the next step.


Pin the seams together first. I don't worry too much if one end is longer then the other. If it is slightly to big on one side, I just cut it down once it's stitched. The most important thing is to line up the arching seams so you have a nice continuous circle once all the pieces are sewn together- fudge the rest.


Press both of the pieces in the same direction. Once you put right sides together the seams will lay in opposite directions.

Sew the last two pieces together and press... Viola, you have your first circle! Now, only a few more to go.

My finished Quilt had 31 circles.
7 rows-
4 rows of 4 circles
3 rows of 5 circles

I finished the edges with about 4-5" of the background fabric... I choose another polka dot for the backing fabric and used a organic cotton batting. Once the 3 layers were pinned together, I tied the quilt in the middle of each of the circle and quilted a few by hand for good measure. I liked the combo of the little yard balls and hand quilting for a baby- I remember loving those little yarn balls as a kid.

Best of Luck on your project...
Fin

playing with fabric...

When I don't have the time to start a new quilt (which is far more often than not), I find it nearly as satisfying to pull fabric swatches from websites or from my shelves... and begin grouping palettes and patterns. It's free... and without cutting I'm able to enjoy the daydreaming in design and pattern that is quilt-making. Here's today's groups:

all fabrics from Purl Soho

quilt joy...

photo: Roland Bello

Thank you Grandma

Taking after Miss Dolores.

I think my fascination for sewing was ignited by my Grandmother and by the honorable place her beautiful quilts held in our family. Each Christmas she would gift one of her hand-quilted compositions to one lucky person. They were meticulously made, and thoughtfully reflected the recipients personality. She was a thrifty woman, and would use every scrap. I love the economy of quilt making and while fabric prices have gotten quite expensive (or maybe it's just my love for imported and designer fabrics haha!) I try to employ that frugality while designing my own quilts. I began my first quilt three years ago, and I've (started many and) finished a few now. My Grandmother passed away well before I started quilting, but she passed the bug to me... and I'm carrying on the tradition of gifting a quilt each Christmas. Here are a few I've made and a few still in progress.

the quilt I love to much on my wall to finish for my bed...

Denyse Schmidt's Single Girl Quilt, done my way...

X's Quilt in progress

Baby Quilt... for the baby in my belly. See a detail here.

2008 Indigo Christmas Quilt for Mom and Dad