Blockdown Quilt – Part 45

Pending a final check next week, I think this is the last of our blocks. After this we will switch from discussions on a Tuesday to sewing. Have to set aside some time to get all the blocks finished off.  I have spent a lot of time this week playing with my new longarm. Getting to know it and learning some of the new features. I think it is getting close to being handed it’s first serious quilt. I will be using it for a lot of the stitch in the ditch quilts as the weight actually makes that easier, and having 2 frames with quilts on gives me more scope to change work position and style and so to put in more hours a day. I know that isn’t the usual way to use 2 machines but I think it should work for me. So far I am pretty happy with it and I love the channel locks. I didn’t realise how much that would help loading. Not totally sure it is worth having the computer on to do just that but maybe.

For the quilt we will be making 9″ blocks. As with every week remember all technicalities count when I say the theme is travel. Roads flights and all manner of tourist attractions could come up in this one. Maybe you have a few style ideas you want more of to balance things out. maybe there is a piece of fabric just crying out to be used. I hope you have had fun thinking about blocks each week, and maybe even making a few. If you think there are still blocks missing please do message me. As I said I will do another check next week but I think this is the last of them.

• For the small quilt you will need 1 block and it will be position blue 6
• For the medium quilt you will need 3 blocks and they will be positions blue 6, 21, and 26
• For the large quilt you will need 3 blocks and they will be positions blue 6, 21, and 26

Blockdown Quilt – Part 44

We are now tackling the last of our 6″ blocks. Our theme this week is not the one I originally planned, as that theme has proved to be one of the hardest for my regular group. So I have taken inspiration from the world and the theme this week is hope and peace. There are some really interesting blocks based on this and oddly there are some that would fit my alternate theme too. While looking at the scope I also found some really fun quilt ideas, so for me this has already been productive.

• For the small quilt you will need 1 block and it will be position red 18
• For the medium quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions red 18 and 24
• For the large quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions red 18 and 24

Blockdown Quilt – Part 43

we are rapidly approaching the end of this quilt. Well the end of the instructions at least. Those of us who meet each week to discuss our plans for the blocks will continue to meet but to sew. We are all quite a way behind and as life has opened up we have had less time to work on it. Our regular meeting on a Tuesday will let us carve out some time to progress. I do have some thoughts for more projects on the blog but we really want to finish this one first. I am also aware that supplies are likely to become more expensive and harder to get so maybe the next project will need to allow for recycled items or the fabrics we have that we really don’t like. Could be tricky but maybe also fun. Would you be interested in that sort of content? Assuming, and boy does it feel like a huge assumption right now, that the world settles down and life gets into another new rhythm I may look to do a monthly installment of whatever. To give people more time to work on it. I don’t know how other people feel at the moment, but I know I am struggling to plan a week ahead let alone further.

This week I have finally got my new longarm. It has been planned since I moved here, but for various reasons has taken time to actually happen. It is not yet fully set up. I hope before the end of the week to be playing on it. It is bigger than my current machine and will not only let me quilt bigger quilts but it will also mean I can have 2 on the go at a time. That opens up options for me to work on my own show quilts and to hopefully move complex customer quilts through quicker. It has a LOT of new features so there will be a learning curve, but it also resolves some of the issues I have with my current machine. Don’t get me wrong, I love the beast, but it does have a few annoying habits. Once I have it set up I will get some photos.

This week we are making the last of our 3″ blocks and our theme is scraps. By now I am sure you have a lot of odd strips and squares, maybe some triangles maybe some failed blocks. This is the time to try and repurpose them. Hopefully these blocks can do a lot of the clear up for us. It may also be an excuse to make that block with far too many pieces to be a 3″ or well I have a 3.5″ square left that will do for one. It all counts this week.

• For the small quilt you will need 6 blocks and they will be orange positions 5-7,  and 13-15
• For the medium quilt you will need 14 blocks and they will be orange positions 5-7, 13-15, 63-64, and 95-100
• For the large quilt you will need 16 blocks and they will be orange positions 5-7, 13-15, 63-64, 95-100, 115, and 124

Blockdown Quilt – Part 42

A day late due to DHL failing to deliver things. I should have had a very large delivery Friday, then Saturday, then yesterday. Unfortunately even when they managed to deliver something they missed two thirds of it. What should have been a short interlude in a day became a whole day event. We then did start to unpack and check the order. I hoped to spend this morning working on it as well but my hands are quite upset about my efforts yesterday so that hasn’t worked. I am sure I will mention it more once I have things together.

This week we are finishing out 12″ blocks. Our theme for the week is plants. I am quite sure I have found some plant based blocks in previous weeks so now I will need to select just a few for this week. Wondering if my fabrics could render a decent sunflower.

• For the small quilt you will need 1 block and it will be position green 5
• For the medium quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions green 5 and 11
• For the large quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions green 5 and 11

Blockdown Quilt – Part 41

Sorry another manic day here, but no I didn’t forget you. A combination of cleaning up after the storm and preparing for future ones has eaten the day. I hope you all came out of the storms reasonably unscathed. This week we will be working on 9″ blocks with the theme of 9 patch. So any block based on a 9 patch grid.

• For the small quilt you will need 1 block and it will be position blue 8
• For the medium quilt you will need 3 blocks and they will be positions blue 8, 27 and 23
• For the large quilt you will need 3 blocks and they will be positions blue 8, 27 and 23

Blockdown Quilt – Part 40

Sorry this is a bit late today. It has been one of those days with lots of jobs to do that eat time but don’t make you feel accomplished. However sometimes there are things that just have to be done regardless. At least clearing most of it today frees up the rest of the week.  This week we will be working on 6″ blocks again, and no we don’t have many more to do. The theme this week is places. I am sure from some similar themes you have leftovers. This is where we can use up any place related blocks. I know my regulars had been warned to save some of the simpler blocks, well this is why.

• For the small quilt you will need 2 blocks and it will be position red 10 and 17
• For the medium quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions red 10 and 17
• For the large quilt you will need 3 blocks and they will be positions red 10, 17 and 41

Blockdown Quilt – Part 39

I have had an interesting week, or I suppose a boring one depending on your perspective. For two of the days when both of us were supposed to be working at home we had no power. I will say the power network were great at keeping us updated on the problems and when we may get power back but it did mean we couldn’t work. On the other hand what better time for a bonus dog walk or chance to play a board game. I have also realised we could do with a few more torches and a simple way to heat water or food. I certainly appreciate having a lot of quilts around. Much as I hope this isn’t going to be a regular feature, I think for now I will make sure we are well prepared. I guess this means I need to get a hand cranked sewing machine out and ready to use, assuming I have reasonable lighting.

This week we are working on 9″ blocks and our theme is curves. Yes we have had this in other sizes and hopefully there are some spare ideas that will suit 9″. I have tried to make sure we have enough blocks of different flavours that they will all play nicely together.  Just one block with curves might stand out but a couple should blend nicely.

• For the small quilt you will need 1 block and it will be position blue 9
• For the medium quilt you will need 3 blocks and they will be positions blue 9, 25 and 28
• For the large quilt you will need 3 blocks and they will be positions blue 9, 25, and 28

Blockdown quilt – Part 38

Each week is surprises me how far through this quilt we are, and yet when I consider everything that has happened since we started it is seems like there is more than can possibly have fitted in the time. As I have said before I am planning on taking a few weeks after the last part for our group to work on completing their blocks. I don’t know if I will start another quilt after than. I guess it will depends somewhat on what the world is doing then. I am wondering if I should be working on some sort make do an mend project or series. If you have any thoughts on this please let me know in the comments.

I am hoping this summer I might also make it to a quilt show (or more if I get really lucky). I hope to send quilts to several if I can get my act together. I hope we can start getting more of the quilting community up and working. This week we have a theme that my confuse quilters outside of America, so most of my students, the theme is barn quilts. Of course some will just run with the barn and that is fine too, but I do encourage having a look at the traditions of barn quilts. We will be working with 6″ blocks so we need to try and find some simpler blocks, but maybe it will also inspire some similar projects here. I am sure they would look as good on garden walls as on barns.

• For the small quilt you will need 1 block and it will be position red 13
• For the medium quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions red 13 and 20
• For the large quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions red 13 and 20

Blockdown Quilt – Part 37

Another chilly week her that has been perfect to push on with a lot of customer quilting. I haven’t managed a lot of sewing though. Cold hands and accurate sewing don’t really get along. I have however found some time to work on a new design for a show quilt. I am hoping to have a second longarm very soon which will mean I can have 2 quilts loaded at them same time, which in turn makes it easier to slot in some of my own work. I don’t feel I can block the machine with a long project at the expense of my customers and now that will be much less of an issue. Well, OK not now exactly but soon hopefully. As things open up I am also getting to meet more of my local quilters. It is an area that I think has a lot of crafty people in so as we get to mix more I am looking forward to meeting a lot of interesting people.

This week we are working on 3″ blocks again, and a partner theme to an earlier one. The theme this week is written in my notes as “four or fewer” while I know what I was thinking, and I could add more words to make that clear I have decided to just leave it that vague so people has some scope to play with it and find other interpretations. Believe me there are a LOT of fun interpretations that come up on a Tuesday afternoon.

• For the small quilt you will need 7 blocks and they will be orange positions 31-37
• For the medium quilt you will need 12 blocks and they will be orange positions 31-37 and 65-69
• For the large quilt you will need 16 blocks and they will be orange positions 31-37, 65-69 and 119-123

This will bring us very close to finishing our 3″ blocks so make the most of any left over ideas you have.

Blockdown Quilt – Part 36

Gah, before I blog each week i check comments that need moderation. I am sure I should love being told my posts are priceless and so valuable, but when they are trying to advertise scams and pornography it really loses the positive boost. I also can’t help but wonder if quilters are really they target audience for most of these people. Still having done that I can get back to thinking about quilts

I got this quilt top mostly together this weekend. I think I will add a black border then it will be ready for quilting. I won’t say too much about where the patterns is from in case it spoils things for others, but it is a Merry Mayhem pattern. Yes it is very wide. I like to have spare width so even with people in the bed there is still enough to keep drafts out. A person lying on their side seems to take up about 1m or 40″ of quilt. The fabrics are a bundle of 30 fat quarters from Starr Fabrics.

This week our theme is pieced with paper. We are only working on fairly small block, 6″, so hopefully this won’t be too daunting. There are many techniques that use paper, so remember to think beyond the obvious.

• For the small quilt you will need 1 block and it will be position red 12
• For the medium quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions red 12 and 23
• For the large quilt you will need 2 blocks and they will be positions red 12 and 23