Friday, July 13, 2012

TGIFF - A Mini Thing

A few weeks ago I posted about Round 2 of the Name Game Swap and I'm now proud to announce that I have finished the mini for my partner.  Yippee!  In the interests of secrecy I can't quite show it off in all it's glory (yet!) but I can show enough to give you the main idea.  So, here tis is...

Name Game Swap, Round 2 - Mini Quilt

After a little bit of stalking it seems my partner likes brights and rainbows etc so I hope this suits her tastes.  To further fulfil the brief, her name has been appliqued within the "moon".  I'll post a complete photo once it has arrived at its destination.

Name Game Swap R2 - quilting close up

I kept the quilting simple, opting for straight lines following the zig zags.  They are randomly spaced for a "modern" look and, truth be told, to stop me stressing about having them all perfect.  Yes, I am a complete stresshead.  Actually, confession time, I quilted this twice - unpicking it all after the first attempt (while listening to a lecture from Mr C about the pointless pursuit of perfection) and then starting from scratch.  It was a pain but I am sooooooo glad I made the effort as it looks 500x better and allowed me to experiment with a better anchoring technique.  What a learning curve!

Name Game Swap R2 - label close up - secret

For the binding I followed Laura's suggestion and went with black and white stripes.  Me likey!  My original idea was just plain white but I like the subtle stripes.  And, for the first time, I added on a hand-written label, just to finish it off.

The final size of this mini is 20.5" x 15".  I hope this isn't too big!

I have to admit - I'm pretty stoked with how this turned out.  It has been such a fun project and, as it used a few techniques that were new to me (free motion applique, trapunto etc), I have learnt alot through-out the process.  Big thanks to Kristy and Laura for guidance, encouragement and technical assistance.  I could not have done it without their help.

Excitingly, it seems I'm not the only one who is happy with this design as it has recently been picked up by Australian Patchwork and Quilting magazine for publication later this year (thanks to a certain someone who emailed them a pic).  Wow!  It is a complete honour and I am definitely looking forward to it.

That said, I'd better be off to make a start on version #2...

E.

I am linking up to this week's Thank Goodness I Finished Friday linky party over at Quilt Matters.  Pop over to see M-R's gorgeous growth chart that she made for her niece.  Awesome idea!

Thursday, July 5, 2012

TTT - the Baby Edition

Now before you get all excited - no, I am not expecting.  But... as a few friends have annouced their own fantabulous news recently I thought I'd better get organised and start preparing.  Yes, I need to get myself ready for these births too.  ;)

I totally stole this from the lovely Lucy.

Firstly, I thought I'd compile a list of tutorials and patterns for gorgeous gifts - all readily available on the world wide web for free.  Oh, how I love Blogland!  In no particular order, here are a few that make me go ga-ga.

Habitual Kimono
Kimono by Hammer & Thread.  Pattern available from Habitual.


Baby Blocks tutorial by Zaaberry.


Bib tutorial by My Go-Go Life, on Clover & Violet.


Easy Baby Blanket tutorial by Ode to Inspiration.


Jack Rabbit softie pattern by The Mary Frances Project.



Moda Bake Shop Jungle Path baby quilt
Jungle Path quilt tutorial by Sew Crafty Jess, on Moda Bake Shop.

That's enough inspiration for me for one day.  Time to stop thinking and start doing.  :)

E.

Thursday Think Tank

This post has been linked up to Thursday Think Tank with Making Rebecca Lynne.  Hi Becca!  *waves*