My quilting thoughts and inspirations sprinkled with a glimpse of life down on the farm

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

TWO finishes!!

After a bit of a drought for the last few months, I finally have not one, but two finishes to share!!! My OPAM page is looking very empty this year but oh well...
I've quilted both the quilts I've been talking about lately, first up, it was Love Me Love My Cat -
It's a bit hard to see in this photo that I have actually quilted it.. but yes, I have :-) I used Aurifil 50 weight which is reasonably fine and gives the effect I like.
 I cross hatched in the stitchery blocks, stopping at the stitcheries - I would have hated to plough through those hours of hand stitching!
And I did a feather border, you cant see it very well but it gave a lovely texture and something was needed to balance out the quilting in the main body of the quilt.
The sun glaring on the back in this photo shows you the feathers, and also what I
did in the star blocks.. a small amount of curved cross hatching and then stippling
in the background areas.
*****
The quilt is actually quite square but it was a little windy when I took the photo!
The second finish is the French General one I've been making. It took me a while to determine what quilting it needed. Searches on pinterest (etc) showed that most quilts of this type are quilted pretty simply. The fabrics/pattern do all the work; a lot of them are just stitched in the ditch. I decided against that as every second seam is pressed a different way (for easier assembly, see *here*). Also diagonal lines weren't going to work for me as the quilt already had a diagonal stretch. And I didn't have a thread colour that would work with all the different colours it would have gone across.
(AND OF COURSE the pattern said 'quilt as desired' so that was no help!! Don't you hate that?!!)
In the end I went around the inside edge of the cream squares —
A good chance to practise some ruler work!
As always it shows up much better on the back. Looks boring, huh?!
I'm wondering if the quilt will tell me it needs a few more lines of stitching; for now though, I think it is enough.

Both these quilts are samples for The Country Yard so will be off into the shop for a while :-) And speaking of the shop, this week we are heading down to Auckland to be vendors at the big Festival of Quilts Show put on by the Auckland Quilt Guild. We've been slowly dismantling the shop and making piles...below is how the workroom looked on Monday afternoon, and the heaps have grown even more since then! I'm looking forward to the show - I couldn't go last year so will enjoy it doubly much this time round :-)

*****
I was lamenting my lack of finishes then realised I could count the cot sheets I've been making. I sewed up a couple more for 'our babies' last week.... yes I know cot sheets are a dime a dozen really but these ones have the special Ganma touch, with velcro flaps to insert a divider while both babies are sharing the same cot. 
 I've made about 8 I think -first were winter ones from brushed cotton and more recently I've made cotton ones - do you think that would count as 8 finishes or would it be one set of sheets - or maybe even two sets, the winter set and the summer set!!
Easy enough to remove the flap when the girls are into a cot each.
So finally I feel caught up! And I'm slowly starting to catch up on my blog reading too and enjoying seeing what you have all been up to. Thanks so much for visiting and reading along,
till next time,
happy creating ♥

36 comments:

  1. You've been busy. I love how you quilted the stitchery quilt. I must admit to being lazy with my quilting and just stipple around any stitcheries. I think I may try the cross hatching next time though.
    Enjoy the quilt show xxx

    PS> Of course you must count the cot sheets as 8 separate finishes. Any finish is a finish xxx

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  2. I love your two finishes! I love the feathers in the border of the Love Me quilt! Two very lovely finishes. I also really like the cot sheets you have been making for those darling grand babies of yours. Well done!

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  3. Beautiful finishes--you have been one busy productive girl/quilter. Enjoy the quilt show am sure you will come home with lots of new ideas and fabric

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  4. love your Trip Around the World - the colors are great.

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  5. Great quilts! I love the kitties. And the French General is gorgeous. Have fun at your Quilt Show!! And keep making things for those adorable little grandies.

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  6. You have been busy with such beautiful finishes. Your quilting is fabulous.

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  7. What beautiful finishes! I love both of them--your Cats is really lovely and that TAW turned out so nicely...pat yourself on the back--great job!! hugs, Julierose;--)))

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  8. The cat quilt is so cute and you did a lovely job. I particularly like your TATW and the fabrics you used. As for "quilt as desired" I think a little advice is always helpful even if it is just to ditch quilt the entire thing. I do like what you did and it appears to create a really interesting design on the back!

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  9. Both quilts are soo pretty and both looked like they were fun to stitch--
    and always making baby things are delightful--
    have fun at the show--
    smiles, di

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  10. Wonderful idea for the cot sheets!! Trip around the world is a beauty and where do you find your ruler for your quilting?
    Have a good time down at Festival!

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  11. Both quilts are gorgeous, Raewyn. You've done a wonderful job of the quilting.

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  12. Your two finishes are amazing Raewyn,
    Cute stitcher is and your French general one is so gorgeous.
    I love the effect of the fabrics, the red solid row looks like hearts around the centre and the outer white look like crosses.
    Couldn't imagine all those little squares coming together, I'm sure they would push me to my limits.

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  13. Very cute kitty quilt. I would hate to quilt over my stitchery, too.
    The Trip Around The World turned out so pretty. I've always loved this design, and these fabrics make it shine. That was a lot of ruler work!
    Clever idea to divide the sheets for the two little babes. I'd call it as many finishes as you want to. : )

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  14. Your finishes are lovely...go ahead count those sheets lol! Hoe you enjoy the show x

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  15. Love both your quilts and great quilting too. Hugs.....

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  16. Two beautiful finishes both are amazing!! I bet they get a lot of attention at the shop. Enjoy the show!

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  17. Such beautiful finishes and gorgeous quilting , you are so talented !

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  18. Absolutely wonderful finishes!!! The quilting is perfect for both!! Thanks for the tip - I'm about to quilt a baby quilt with embroidery blocks! Thanks!!! Your feathers are the perfect border!!! I think "simple" quilting is always in order - especially when the pattern does the "talking"!!

    You are one special Ganma!!!

    Blessings and hugs!

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  19. Both quilts are stunning Raewyn, especially love the cat one. And both in favourite colours of red :-) And yes, cot sheets DO count !!! Best of luck for the quilt show this weekend.

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  20. Two lovely finishes Raewyn. xx

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  21. Well done on all the finishes and to The All Blacks for their World Cup win.xx

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  22. Wowza! They are both fantabulous!

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  23. the cat wall hanging is lovely, wish I had quilted my cat blocks now but my quilting would not do it justice like yours. You have made plenty of sheets for the twins, I would say they count for more than 2 finishes. Have a great time at the quilt show.

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  24. Two beautiful finishes! I sure love those cute cat stitcheries. And you chose such beautiful fabrics for your Trip Around the World quilt. I hope you have a great time at the quilt show. The cot sheets with the divider are so clever.

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  25. Lovely work on both quilts, Raewyn.
    Beautiful stitching on the cats and the the cross hatching looks perfect. I agree about not stitching through the embroidery.
    And a good decision on french general quilt. That has turned out to be quite effective. Sometimes there can be too much quilting.
    And the sheets definitely count as special finishes!

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  26. Such lovely quilts. Congratulations on your finishes!!

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  27. fabulous fabulous quilts and quilting for them.... I am like you and prefer not to quilt over the stitcheries...
    Hugz

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  28. Lovely finishes ... Yup I'm slowly catching up too

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  29. Hi , can you please answer a few questions... i´m a girl from Sweden , 16 years old, and i´m doing a research about the history of the english language. I would be very grateful.
    How has the english language been influded by others in New Zeeland?? Examples on words would be helpful.
    How has the NZE spread to other countries?

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  30. Hi Raewyn! I have always wondered how to quilt with embroidered stitchery. I love your solution of cross hatching and stopping at the stitching. It looks so perfect!
    I love your French General TOTW too. And the twins' sheets are very clever!

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  31. Your quilts are so pretty . . . I am a huge fan of red work. It's so old fashioned and seems to have a cozy appeal to me. I guess it's a vintage thing:)
    Have a wonderful day!
    Connie :)

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  32. Www Raewyn those quilts are amazing,love them both,well done my friend and isn't it lovely being a grandma xx

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  33. Dear Raewyn,
    what lovely finishes!!!! I love your way of working and stitching and quilting.
    Thank you fpr visiting my blog although I don´t have very much time for blogging and leaving comments...and less time for my needleworks.
    Many hugs
    sigisart

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