WIP Wednesday and a QuickTip

I've got a terrible cold so I don't have any monumental progress to report today.  The only large move I've made on Vintage Charm is I finished stitching down the bias tape around the border.  I ran out of adhesive so I basically traced a line two inches from the edge and tried to align it to that by eye - never again!  It came out all sorts of wonky and that adhesive, though expensive, is worth every stinkin' penny for the accuracy and neat factor alone!  I think I can work around it...I'm going to add beads and lace to the border so hopefully that combined with trapunto will help give the optical illusion of perfect lines.  LOL  In any case I'm thrilled to say that my goal is to have this baby loaded on the frame for quilting TODAY!!!  That gives me about three weeks of quilting time before I start customer quilts again...and of course taking a few days out for Christmas festivities.  Woot and JUKI TIME!!!  LOL  :)  I'll need a good solid day or two of play with the Juki too...hehehe!  :)

So my tip for today and a shot of my WIP!  I have found for me, the easiest form of applique seems to be to cut out the shapes I want to use out of freezer paper, pressing it to fabric, then turning the edges under and adhereing them with a bit of glue from a glue stick.  I'm still perfecting applique and getting better at it all the time, so when I get a free day I'll do some tutorials and show you what I've learned.  In any case, the only downer to this method...the glue sticks....REALLY stick!  It can be difficult at times to remove the paper from the back, especially if you have tiny pieces. 

One thing I found that really helps the process go faster, is after you have stitched down all of your applique pieces, to spray them with a little bit of water to loosen up the glue.  Let it dry, then cut your slit in the back of the quilt and remove the paper.  It makes things EASY PEASY!!!

After this top dries I'll flip it over and cut a tiny slit behind each applique and remove the paper with tweezers.  I'm psyched to be almost finished with this quilt!!!  Hopefully the next pictures I show you will have some quilting in them!

Have a great Wednesday!  :)

What A Difference A Little Bias Tape Makes!

It was really fun to read so many different thoughts on the comment I made the other day about quilting being my "hobby".  To be truthful, it's more than a hobby.  Yes, I have a small long arming business that I'm having a total ball with - but for me, it's even more than that.  I suppose at this point, on this level, I've moved beyond hobby or a little fun into the hopelessly obsessed zone!  I AM completely passionate about quilts.  I'm passionate about quilts like artists are passionate about their art - and I fully consider what we do an art.  My running joke - "God called the nuns to the convent...and he called me to the sewing machine!!!"  Ok I'm really not THAT full of myself, HA!  But I say this with the meaning that I do at times feel like something greater than me is pulling me to create quilts.  I love them so much and I love planning them, creating them...I love the people quilts have brought me to meet and I love that buzz of creative energy we get when we bounce ideas off of each other and inspire each other.  This little microcosm of quilting - and in particular us quilting bloggers - it's really an amazing phenomenon that I love being a part of.  :)  While I love other forms of art and dabbling in other mediums...quilting in particular is so fulfilling on so many levels - I don't know what I'd do without it!!!

Mushy stuff over and moving on to the really important stuff - my JUKI IS HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A number of you asked about this machine and as soon as I have time to play I'll share all I can with you!  I may even do an unboxing video/blog for anyone who might be interested.  I first heard about the infamous Juki brand way back when I had first discovered Sharon Schamber.  I always said if Sharon told me to dance around the room with a pickle on my head because it'd make me a better quilter I would do it!  LOL  There aren't a lot of people I would so blindly follow but this lady - I tell you she has yet to steer me wrong!

I began researching the machine and it fit all of the marks that are important to me, the most important being that it doesn't have a computer.  It is seriously going to KILL me to have to sit and look at it under the tree and not open it!!!  :)  For those interested I bought it from Ken's Sewing Center in Alabama.  They have online stores on Ebay, Amazon, and their own website.  They were wonderful to work with - my Husband did most of the chatting with them but that has always been an important thing to him.  They do I believe have the machine listed incorrectly on their website - as a TL - 2010Qi which I don't believe exists...they sent the correct machine though, a TL 2010Q.  The shipping took about two days - to me that's incredible - and it was free.  They sent it UPS and there was some damage to the box that I wasn't thrilled about but that didn't have much to do with Kens.  They did call me to let me know that they fully guarantee everything so when I do open it up, if there is any damage to let them know and they would replace it.  That's pretty awesome.  :)

I spent some time playing with the borders of my Vintage Charm yesterday - eeep!  I love this!  Can't you imagine this with intricate quilting now!?  I love it!

Off to make breakfast and I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend!  :)

Plugging Away...

Eeeep!  The reality that I am on a deadline is starting to freak me out a little.  I keep reminding myself that this is my HOBBY and while I have goals, I am not going to kill myself trying to meet them.  (Right?!  I'm not sure if I'm sharing or trying to convince myself!  LOL)

Here is a closeup of the overlay applique I created for the crocheted lace...

Here is where I'm at...and I know it's not terribly spectacular laid out flat and boring like that above but I need a really boring shot so I can plan out the quilting.  Today I'm going to add a little more personality and do something fun with those borders.  I'm thinking sort of a curving scallop edge like my recent whole cloth design.  I've begun designing the quilting plan...OH MY GAWSH I can't wait.  I'm toying with the idea of shading in the quilting with my Shiva Paintstiks.  I'm going to have to do a sample first as there is SO much handwork in this that I might cry if I decide I hate the paint AFTER painting this!  LOL  I really love how the applique overlays look over the crocheted lace.

Oh - and guess what?  MY JUKI COMES TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  It's seriously going to kill me not to open it.  :)  :)  :)

WIP Wednesday

I have decided to name this quilt - Vintage Charm.  I cannot keep calling it my "crap load of applique quilt" or "that one quilt with the blue birds on it", so, because I'm going for the classic, vintage, old feel...I think Vintage Charm is fitting.  I know it's getting a little bit cheese ball...I have this thing about people who take their quilts way too seriously and give them ridiculous names that nobody understands but them.  LOL!  Eyeroll.  Vintage Charm is getting a little geeky pants but at least it makes sense.  :)

I absolutely love the personality this quilt is taking on.  I haven't added much, but what I have added was time consuming.  I finished stitching down all four birds, and also the flowers and leaves in all four corners of the pink center.  Those were several hours of work because with pieces this small I prefer hand applique to machine.  Believe it or not I enjoy hand applique...it's peaceful, and kind of spiritual.  Yes, I went there and got even more cheesy.  It IS spiritual...when it's quiet...and it's just me and my cup of coffee sitting by the kitchen window and watching the snow fall.  When three kids are barreling through the house it's more like a pain in the...you get the picture.  :)

I am still going to add some sort of vining or bias tape or something along those leaves.  I have decided I just don't like the way they look just floating there, with no anchor...nothing to make it make sense.  I have toyed with the idea of cording, piping, thin bias tape...no decisions yet, but it's getting down to the wire so today or tomorrow there will need to be something there.

I also spent about six hours yesterday stitching down the crocheted lace that I had thought I would use on my stockings.  Remember those diamonds that I thought at first were brilliant...then I hated them...and now I love them again!  LOL  I have some ideas for quilting those areas...and if they turn out as lovely in real life as they are in my mind then I'll be thrilled!  LOL

I love how this is looking but I think once it's all together and the quilting begins it will really come alive.  After cleaning up my sorely neglected house after a day of sewing yesterday, I have designed a few applique overlays that will set over the lace and tie in the brown from the Celtic knots.  I can't wait!  I want this to be loaded on the frame and in the quilting stage by next week...this weekend even.  Time is dwindling and quilts will be rolling back in soon - I need to get busy!

One last thing I thought I would share...the Husband and I ordered my Christmas gift a few days ago and I get to know about it early because I'm paying for a good portion of it!  LOL  His gift to me was a good hunk of the down payment on a Juki TL - 2010Q....eeeeeeeeeep!!!  I'm so excited!!!  This is the slightly  newer version of the TL-98 that some of my quilting super heroes use...like Sharon Schamber and Cindy Needham to name a few off the top of my head.  It sews almost double the speed of my Brother and it's an all metal straight stitching machine...with no computer...and I'm super super psyched about it!!!  It can be framed later which I'm planning on doing, and if I take care of it, it should out live me.  Woooooohooo!!  I cannot open it until Christmas but as soon as I do I'll do some comparisons of it with my other machines and maybe some videos on how it sews.  I'm beyond thrilled!!

Stockings Finished!!!

I hope all of you in the States had a wonderful Thanksgiving Thursday!  I know I certainly did!  Thanksgiving day we usually spend with my Husbands family and then we get together usually the following Sunday with mine.  While waiting for the family to get ready for dinner I was able to get the last of the stockings finished, and I have to say, I'm thrilled with how they turned out!!

Now, are you ready for lots and lots of photos???  LOL

Here is a shot of the backs - remember how I chose to go with an all over feather on the back?  The only thing I might do differently if I did this again would be to choose a similar pattern for all of the feathers rather than just randomly stitching them.  I like order!!!

To finish the edge of the stocking I used vintage lace for a binding.  It is a wide lace that I think may have originally be intended for lingerie...but we won't tell!!!  I hand stitched it to the front first, then fold it over and under to the reverse side.

The ruffles were made from some leftover French General jellyroll strips I had laying around.  I wanted something that added a little interest but didn't take away from the quilting...because the star is definitely the quilting!  I stitched it down on the inside, then flipped it up so that the seam would be enclosed and the ruffle would be peaking out of the stocking.  Now just imagine some pretty sparkly wrapped presents peaking out of there too!  I can't wait!

An up close shot of the back...I decided to bead only the pumpkin seed quilting.  I contemplated crystals...I love the look of crystals on all those fancy show quilts you see, and these will never be washed...but there is just something to be said about simple beading.  I love the very Victorian flavor of these stockings.

My dahlia quilt is at a standstill...mainly because I've become sick of looking at blue and black!!  All the quilting on muslin has put me back in the mood to work on this quilt...yesterday I made another twenty or so feet of bias tape to add some more fun details to this.

I ended up not using the vintage crochet'ed bits on the stockings but found a PERFECT place to incorporate them into this quilt!!!  I appliqued all the birds on last night and started adding flowers.  After that I'm going to put the crocheted lace on and I'll share with you all...I REALLY can't wait to start quilting this!!!  :)

Almost to the Finish Line...

I hope you haven't gotten sick of photos of my stockings.  I am almost finished with them...

I just can't get enough of that texture.  I love it!  I thought the back looked SO pretty with all of those feathers and textures.

I cut all of the stocking shapes out and have started beading them...it will take me a while so they may sit on the back burner as I dabble in other projects.  I have a short attentions span!  I think I will work on these in the evenings...beading is perfect for watching listening to the tv with Hubby.

Below is how the third stocking turned out.  I sprained my wrist the other day so I had a little bit of difficulty controlling the machine for the orange peel/pumpkin seed design.  It got a tiny bit sloppy!  But I'm hoping the beads will help to make up for that.

I am going to play around but I think that the plan will be, after I bead these, to add a floral cuff to the top and drape over that the lace pieces.  I will have to fiddle and experiment and see what works well.

This will be a busy Thanksgiving week for us, but I'm looking forward to it.  My favorite time of year!  I will be doing a lot of cooking and cleaning, but in between I have pulled this quilt back out and am going to get to work.  Playing with muslin again has given me ideas!

Stocking Three Front is Finished - Woohoo!

Wooooohoooooo!  I finished the front of stocking two and three...and just have one more feathered reverse side and I'm finished.  I get bored quickly so I'm ready to pull these off the frame and start something new...

Above is the front of stocking two, finished...below is number three.  I wanted to try something different since I did a lot of different textures on the previous two...so I tried doing the pumpkin seed/orange peel all over in the background...and now I think I like it better in sections!  I will add beads to it, but it's just kind of boring all on it's own.  Looks like plaid.  Bleh.  It'll be pretty though with sparkly beads on it.

I really like the filled feather spines.  Don't they look like peas?  LOL

I have a mountain of laundry to do and I suppose I ought to shower.  LOL  So I'm off...  :)