Snow Days - Picking a Quilt Motif

Having decided awhile ago that I was NOT going to do an all over pattern on this, I searched to see what others had done. Unfortunately the quality of the photos that end up on the Internet and Pinterest were not very useful.
I knew I wanted snowflakes. I decided there was no reason to join them in a continuous stream. That said, they could be any size.!  Snow flakes are really abundant in the CLOUD.

When it came to the large border, (I had added almost 8 inches), I decided to treat it differently, partially to maintain the border identity but also to ensure an good solid quilted edge.

I found this continuous  pattern on line and figured I could adapt it. After playing with the size and the placement of "diamonds" / "stars", I'm now ready to begin quilting this fellow.

Snow Days Quilt _ adding the border

While I still really like this quilt I decided it was just too small.

So I spent a long time deciding how I wanted to enlarge it only to come to the realization that I didn't have enough of any of the fabrics. I had worked primarily from fat quarters or single yard pieces, (and shirts).

I went back to my quilt store, Caroline's Quilts in Cambridge and came away with almost the same materials AND some WOOL batting. With the cost of that batting I committed to hand quilting this guy.

With the addition of the three bands, white, grey and brown, the size went from 64 inches square to 86 inches square.
Now it's definitely a bed quilt.
And Now it's on the FRAME. All set for winter mediation. 😌

Binding the Quilt

For what ever reason I developed a mental block regarding the binding of this quilt. I was dismayed that I had to assemble the material for cutting the binding by hand as well as stitch it all on, by hand.
Funny little road block, seeing how much hand work had already gone into it.
So I ignored the quilt for week, (showed it off to some friends) and today I dove in.

Sometimes you just have to wait.

After refreshing my mind re the method of making continuous bias binding, I discovered I had just enough material to do this. That had been one of those unconscious worries.
The math was pretty simple so knowing I could make well over 400 inches of binding, I started stitching, cutting, marking and assembling.

After cutting large square diagonally, it was resewn to create a diamond shape. This was then sewn into a lop-sided tube and cut into a 2.5 in. strip. (There are many examples of this method on line.)

After reading a trick to control slippage with bias materials, I heavily starched and ironed the strip into binding a French binding. The quilt was marked with a cutting line. I will use this to follow with the binding a a placement guide. 

Now...... all I have to do is stitch, for a few days!

She's Off the Frame

The Jane Stickle quilt is .....quilted.

There will be a scalloped binding but I'll take a break now and focus on some of the other things I have on the go. Binding is evening TV work.

I have a lot to say about this experience but I think I'll save it until the quilt is complete. In the mean time here it is....on the lawn. (with a few bugs)

Jane Stickle Quilt - Almost There

Most of you will have heard of this iconic American civil war era sampler quilt.
I AM plugging away and I'm almost ready to take this gal off the frame to hand finish. I've hand quilted 11 rows ( in a little over a year.....seems slow but I have been working on a few other things!!!???)

Rather than re-post, here's a link to my album in another quilt forum.
My favourite block from this row, and the choice was difficult, is below.

https://www.quiltingboard.com/members/marykatherine-u22131-albums19752.html

Leaves Final

In the end I didn't place all the cut outs. Finishing with cording for the branches and then more satin stitch for the leaf stems, this is ready for binding.

Jane Stickle Quilt - Row 4 Complete

Once the weather broke, and I finished my current projects and quilting commitments...........I had nothing to do.
I walk by my "quilt on a frame" everyday and a few days ago it was, once again, TIME.
Not all the pictures are great and not all the blocks photographed well but here are the latest 15.

The purple dot is where my air erasable pen "exploded"? It's been a few days now and it IS going. I figure another week.

This was my favourite from this row.

This one is my second choice.

I have a few busy days coming up between Thanksgiving, prepping the garden for winter, house guests and our next workshop, so I won't be starting anything major for a few weeks.
Give my brain a rest!!

New Hand Work

One of the things I loved about working on the Jane Stickle Quilt was each block was a portable little package, I could take anywhere and work on at almost anytime.
I love that my assembled quilt is on the frame, in front of a nice sunny window.
But............

Now that spring HAS arrived, I don't want to sit in front of a window and look out. I want to be out. Our summers are too short.


I remembered I have this.

This was one of my "win's" from a magazine. Paper piecing with hexies and diamond.
Just the ticket.

I've got 2 done already!!
When the weather is nice and the birds are at my feeders,........ I will be outside.
Jane will wait.

May 19th - This could take awhile. Oh Goody. Bit fumblefingered though. LOL

Jane Stickle - Row 1

5 weeks off and on, mostly in the late afternoon while I unwind from the heavy duty quilting that goes on in the workshop! I can't believe how busy I've been.

Photographing the individual blocks without the flash helps show the stitching. Am I getting any better?  It still depends on the thickness of the material (that translates into how well I trimmed them), and the direction I'm stitching.

Jane - 13 Days Later

I AM moving on!
First border, 29 blocks
Done.
NOW I can leave it and get back to all the things piling up, Art, custom work,...cleaning?

I can quilt, and I now know this will not take forever.
I will post each each row as I finish it. 13 blocks each row. MAYBE one a day. Maybe not.