Oh Christmas Tree Quilt-A-Long & a Giveaway!

January 5, 2016February 11, 2016 Elizabeth E.38 Comments

When I first saw this Christmas Tree on Instagram, I fell in love. So I proposed a Quilt-A-Long that would ~~force~~ enable me to to get it completed in time for Christmas 2016, for there is power in having to put your innermost feelings about quilts/goal setting out there in the world and shaming yourself into finishing it. I’m really good at this, I know. I wrote to Wendy Williams, who designed this pattern, and she gave us her blessing, and said “she can hardly wait to see the quilts that will come of this.” So onward, everyone!

The magazine where this pattern is found is Simply Modern Issue #3, and that’s the giveaway part. I have an extra copy which you can win, but wait a minute. First let’s do the business of this. If you aren’t lucky enough to win this, you can buy it from Fat Quarter Shop, or the QuiltMania people, or if you live in Australia, it’s on Wendy’s website Flying Fish Kits (link below).

I’ve broken it down into several steps, some easy and for some months you will be carting around your embroidery around with you everywhere you go, but these are definitely do-able steps. Here they are:

January, Step “prepare”: buy the magazine, gather your fabrics, buy the felt/wool, buy/find the pearl cotton. More about that in a minute.

February, Step 1: Make the tree on the background and stitch it down. If you use wool felt, she has an easy appliqué method.

March, Step 2: Make 21 flowers.

April, Step 3: Make 10 birds.

May, Step 4: Make the scene at the bottom. Wendy’s pattern (IG: flyingfishkits) has two cavorting reindeer. I plan to switch mine out to a simple nativity. Your choice. (If I were you, I’d also start haunting her IG site as she has lots of great embroidery ideas for the flowers. I’d also consider buying her book, Wild Blooms and Colorful Creatures, for more tips and helps.)

June, Step 5: Appliqué down the flowers.

July, Step 6: Appliqué down the birds and the scene.

August, Step 7: Sawtooth border (reds).

September, Step 8 (finish up Quilt-A-Long): Make wonky star blocks, sew them together and attach border #2. Ta-Done! I just have to deliver you here. You are on your own for getting it quilted and bound.

So here’s the drill for Step: prepare. Wendy calls for wool felt. Some of my IG followers have left a lengthy series of comments on an earlier IG post about threads and wools (scroll back in the feed to find it–it says Step 1 on it, which is an oops, but it’s those Flying Monkeys again). You can buy 100% wool and felt it yourself (more tips in her book or on the internet), or buy 100% wool felt. According to @yondergirlie, the preferred is the felt, as you don’t have to stitch it down as much as it doesn’t fray (sometimes the felted wools can fray). The general consensus was to use pearl cotton #8 for the embroidery. According to the pattern, you’ll also need a medallion-style piece of fabric to appliqué in the center of some of the flowers. I love Wendy’s combination of wool and felt together.

(all of my felts, threads and wools; some of the fabrics, and Sue Spargo’s Creative Stitches book for embroidery ideas)

I visited with the people at a local shop today that specializes in felted wool. When using the wool they use Steam-A-Seam 2 to back their pieces, fuse them to the top, and then they handstitch around them, using pearl cotton size 12 thread. All these are options for you to try and to experiment with. I’ll be using wool felt, plus some felted wool sweaters for accent pieces, that I recently re-discovered in my garage (let’s hear it for UFOs that deliver to your newest project). I also found a stash of wool felt that I purchased in Munich, Germany some years ago. If you want to take a trip there, I can provide the address (it’s another one of those things that I buy, hoard away, and then later find a use for, much to my delight).

Many others mentioned an ETSY shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/quiltingacres [copy and paste addresses into your browser address bar]. I’ve also seen Primitive Gatherings mentioned for felted wool, as well as @benziedesign on Instagram. I have found lots of Christmas fabric on sale this past month to use for the wonky stars, borders and background. So, gather away and get ready for the Oh, Christmas Tree quilt-a-long!

UPDATE (2/11/16): I’ve found two more sources for high-quality felt from companies here in the United States. I’ve ordered from both of them and can attest to the quality of these felts (and no, they aren’t giving me anything for free).

The first one is A Child’s Dream. Above snapshot is from their website; they have several different thicknesses and many more colors, but I went for the “Holland wool felt” type of wool.

The second is The Felt Pod. Again, a snapshot from their website shows many of their different products in their wool felt. This is the “Reds” page.

Now for the giveaway (domestic only). HOWEVER! if you live in Australia, Wendy has patterns of this tree for sale on her blog (just thought you’d like to know).

Since it’s my birthday tomorrow, I’d like you to leave a one-or two-line memory about your best birthday ever. I’ll randomly draw a name this weekend and get it sent off on Monday. Make sure you fill in an accurate email address as I’ll use that to contact you. And if you throw your name in the ring for this magazine, I’ll expect to see a finished quilt this coming December, as you wouldn’t want to just hoard it away from someone who really really really wants it, would you? ~~Leave your comments below.~~

NOTE: Comments are now closed. Giveaway winner will be announced this afternoon (Friday, Jan. 8th).

Quilts

Matrix and Offset Pattern Giveaway

July 14, 2015July 13, 2015 Elizabeth E.3 Comments

Sometime back I wrote about the Mid-Century Modern Bee and all the talented quilters there. I also mentioned my friend Anne of SpringLeaf studios and how she is a pattern designer and maker. This week she is having a giveaway of two of her patterns, and I thought you’d want to know.

The first one is Matrix, a beautiful quilt using bold and bright colors as well as soft-toned grays. It’s fun to make and easy too. Head to Anne’s blog to leave a comment and enter her giveaway for this pattern and where you can see other versions of this quilt (she is very thorough). Hurry! for the giveaway for a downloadable PDF version closes soon. You can also buy this in her Craftsy shop if you want (info is on her blog).

The other quilt pattern she is releasing is Offset. Our group test-drove block patterns for her in the early stages of development, so it’s fun to see both of these patterns. Head over to her Offset Giveaway to leave a comment and enter your name to win one of her patterns.

I’ve sewn Anne’s patterns before and she is a ‘cut above’ in the pattern designing market. She writes clearly and makes her illustrations easy to follow with clear directions. I also like the “extras” she puts in her patterns, and it was from her pattern Facets that I finally perfected the miter when I end my binding. Again, you need to hurry! to get in on the giveaway–head over to SpringLeaf Studios and have a look around!

Quilts

Sampler Quilt Top & Rosette #1 Finished

March 13, 2015June 26, 2018 Elizabeth E.28 Comments

I’m slowly making my way through the New Hexagon Millefiore Quilt-Along, and have finally finished Rosette #1. Because of the deep colors, it’s a bit harder to photograph than I’d thought, but here it’s tacked up on my fence, in the daylight. I’ve got the template ready for the next partial rosette, but will get to it a bit later, as there are some projects in the line-up ahead of it. This was the beginning of my Mid-Century Modern Bee Sampler, with all the blocks from my bee mates, plus a a couple I’d sewn together. Not Working was what I called it over the last few days. Definitely Not Working at all. I kept in all the bits and pieces of extras they’d given me, then I’d take them out. I’d move them around some more; this quilt was more challenging than I’d thought! The last post talked about the basket block, but I pulled out a vintage quilt block book I’d purchased at a garage sale, to find another. Four blocks of Road to California it is, as all my mates had to send blocks to California. Finally it came together and I declared the top done. I sewed all the pieces together while I listened to the next book in my Inspector Gamache series: Today I used the bits and pieces my bee mates had sent on the back and got it ready to go to the quilter’s. It’s the first one headed over there since October of 2014. How had it been so long? Teaching had taken a lot out of me, and I left room for church service, teaching Sunday School, going to QuiltCon, and my family: PeterMeganMove2015 My son, Peter and his wife, Megan moved back to California from Betheseda, MD. They did the cross country trip in 3 1/2 days. You can tell they are young. Clearing Garden SPR 15 And I left some time to clear the garden, with a few cabbages, Swiss Chard and Brussels sprouts left. We planted seven different kinds of tomatoes, but are waiting for the weather to stop being so hot and dry before continuing. My lettuce isn’t going to be happy this weekend that California has skipped winter, skipped spring and gone right to summer. But this cute tote and fabulous card arrived today as if to celebrate with me that I’d finally finished up. Rachel, of The Life of Riley, sent them over as a little gift. Her timing is impeccable! And so, to continue the celebration, I have a little giveaway. I actually have two: The first is this little book of Quilting Techniques. I’ve actually enjoyed looking through it, as I picked it up at a recent quilt show. And since California thinks it’s summer, it must be time to spruce up those toes with a weensy cute pedicure set in a flip-flop case, a Passive-Agressive notepad (in honor of our freeways) and a wee pair of Itty Bitty Scissors, for those summer trips you are planning. I’ll pick two winners. Just leave me a note telling me your latest success and somehow I’ll randomly draw a name and send off these gifts. International is okay, but I’ll just send one overseas (the other one is domestic). I’ll let you know the winner in the next post. Giveaway will close Tuesday evening, SoCal time.

Giveaway closed. Thank you all for entering.

Quilts

False Dawn (and a Giveaway!)

January 6, 2015December 24, 2014 Elizabeth E.35 Comments

False Dawn
Pieced and Quilted by Elizabeth Eastmond
#138 of 200 Quilts
41 1/2″ high by 36″ wide

Made for the Modern Quilt Guild Cotton Couture Classics Challenge

Michael Miller, a manufacturer of fabrics, sent members of the Modern Quilt Guild a packet of fat eighths in pastels, for their challenge this year, and to try their line of solid fabrics. I know that pastels only makes a dull quilt, with no contrasts, so I reciprocated MMiller’s kind gesture by buying some darker colors in their fabric line. I had one design all laid out, but then re-read the contest rules and it said it had to be predominantly made from the packet they’d sent. I decided to obey, but in scanning the IG feed of those quilters who had submitted in this category, I noticed most ignored this rule. Maybe I should have too?

This is how it started. This line of solids is lightweight and would be perfect for making French-sewn dresses, or smocked clothing for children. The weight is more like a batiste than a broadcloth, but it is strong and has a lovely finish and hand. Since I’m used to working with Kona Cottons, a more mid-weight line of solids, I had some challenges working with the Cotton Couture line. I found that even though I pressed it and starched it, it was still more prone to wrinkling. The quilt, however, weighs next to nothing when finished, so it would be a perfect line for a lighter quilt, or those in hot climates.

Because of its lighter weight, it quilts up easily so I had fun layering on thread in narrow zig-zags and loopy-loos.

We also had to use Michael Miller fabrics for the back, and I had enough yardage of this Parisian print, choosing a jewel-like print for the binding. I named it False Dawn, hoping to bring to mind that luminous light before the sun rises.

While I did enter it into QuiltCon’s Challenge, it was not accepted. Even though I have no way of knowing what the criteria were, other than “predominant use of the Cotton Couture Pastels” and all Michael Miller fabrics, I’m not that put out. I followed the only rules available to me, I finished a quilt made with gifted fabric (and purchased some more) so I figure I fulfilled my part of the bargain.

Since it’s my birthday this week, and I think that’s a terrific time for gifts and presents, would you like some of these fabrics? I know that many quilters love this line, and like I said before, it has a lovely smooth hand. If you would like my leftovers (about 2 yards in a variety of colors), please leave me a comment below, making sure I have your email address. Since we are all recovering from Christmas, I must limit it to domestic (USA) readers this time around. Maybe your New Year can be welcomed in with a new project? This will close Wednesday night, the 7th of January. I’ll announce the winner in the next post.