Tag Archives: hand stitches

Nan’s Quilt

This quilt has been about 3 years in the making, I decided early on that I wanted it to be for my Nan who was delighted that I was sewing and quilting, I knew that she would appreciate the time and effort of a handmade gift.

Nan's Quilt

I’d worked on it in bits and pieces up until the end of 2015 when I learned my Nan’s health was deteriorating, she was 93 and still living in her own home up until then. I took the finished top, got it basted and started quilting it so that I could get it to her to cheer her up.

She was going to need to move into a nursing home for the extra level of care and also moving down closer to family (yet far from her home) and so I wanted her to have something to make her room feel like hers.

Nans Quilt

I kept working away when I could, another family emergency kept me out of my sewing room for weeks, but eventually I got the machine quilting finished, and I had to update the year on the label I’d already prepared. She was having a hard time settling in, when I went to visit I would take other quilts and sewn pouches to show her and she was so happy that ‘young people’ were still making things.

Nan's Quilt - Binding

I decided to put the binding on first before hand quilting, then Nan needed to go to hospital. She showed some improvement and returned to the nursing home, I started working on the binding, when I went to see her I told her I had something special on the way for her.  Shortly after her health went rapidly downhill again, before I could finish handstitching the binding I went to visit my Nan for what would be the final time.

When Nan passed away I put the quilt aside for a while, I needed a break from it, I felt terrible that it was still here, not finished.

Nan's Quilt - Detail

It had started as a couple charm packs of Moda’s Domestic Bliss by Liz Scott and a couple solid packs in Moda Bella Solids in Snow which were turned into piles of Half Square Triangles, but I quickly realised I didn’t have enough for a decent size quilt so I had to hunt around and eventually found 2 more charm packs of each for more HSTs. The backing print is by Joel Dewberry that matched the colours and style in Domestic Bliss perfectly. The leftovers from this quilt went in to making Heidi’s Quilt.

The layout was designed with the quilting in mind. I wanted the large diamond shapes and then worked out by offsetting them I’d have nice channels zig-zagging all the way down the quilt for long straight quilting lines following the seams. Inside the diamonds I used Angela Walters’ dot-to-dot technique from her Craftsy class to create more diamonds. All of the machine quilting used Aurifil 50w thread in 2110 Light Lemon. The print fabrics needed a little quilting so I decided to add hand stitches in Perle 8 thread in the middle of each triangle.

Nan's Quilt

Towards the end of 2016 I picked it back up again, my Mum had a tough year and I thought maybe the quilt would bring her some comfort, I had wanted her to have it after Nan anyway.

I didn’t stuff around this time, I worked on the hand quilting over a month or so to have it ready for Christmas, I nearly got there, but with only a row to go I gave the quilt to Mum anyway and finished off the last bit of quilting the week after Christmas.

The label reads:

Handmade with all the
love in the world
For Nanna
By Jessica
2016

Nan's Quilt - Back and Label

Quilts for Lachlan & Heidi

Hello! I’m still here! Went a little bit AWOL from blogland for a bit there. The 1st Modern Quilt Show Australia back in May last year was a huge success (more on that to come) but boy, was I wiped out afterwards. Just as I was getting my sewjo back a couple months later, we went and bought a house (as you do) and so everything was packed up and moved and unpacked. There was just enough time to settle in before all the Christmas/Birthday craziness, with a few house warming parties thrown in for good measure and so here we are at the end of January and I’m finally getting back in the groove.

I have been sewing & quilting a bit here and there and popping pics up on instagram. Now I finally have a handful of fun things to share with you all, including a couple of special quilts for two awesome little people.

First up is Lachlan’s quilt, a Single Irish Chain in rainbow colours over a silvery mid-grey solid background. It worked out about 42″ square.

Lachlan's Quilt

Simple straight line quilting outlines the chains in both directions, and bright blue binding keeps things fun.

Lachlan's Quilt - Detail

For the back I used a darker grey (which I secretly prefer and wish I used it on the front to, the colours pop right off it). Both quilts have their name and the year embroidered on as a simple label.

Lachlan's Quilt Label

Heidi’s quilt features pinwheels, made up using the leftover HSTs from another quilt I’m still working on. This quilt measures about 36″ x 47″.

Heidi's Quilt

The fabric line is Domestic Bliss by Moda, with Moda Solid in Snow as the background. I’ve quilted straight lines in the sashing and border to help define the individual pinwheels, and hand quilted inside the background on each pinwheel using Perle 8 thread. This was actually my first attempt at borders, for some reason those long strips scare me but at least on this smaller quilt it worked out ok.

Heidi's Quilt - Hand Quilting Detail

I love this binding, is there anything Architextures Crosshatch (in Plum) cannot do? Another embroidered name & year.

Heidi's Quilt Label

I hope to see both these quilts being dragged around, snuggled with on the lounge, used as picnic blankets outside and maybe occasionally make it back onto the beds of two adorable little munchkins.

Quilts for Lachlan & Heidi

I’m linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday!

Sunday Stash – Catchup

I may have been quiet here recently but not for lack of new fabric acquired, so what better way to resurface than with a Sunday Stash (linking up with Quilt Show Winner Molli Sparkles), and a sneak peek at what’s been keeping me busy (psst… it’s sparkly!)

Sunday Stash - Fat Quarters from Kate Quilts
Making more of an effort to buy citrus colours, the purple is from Collage which I’ve always wanted and the kitties were just too cute. All purchased from Kate Quilts at the Quilt Show.

Today I’m sharing the fabric I picked up at Australia’s First Modern Quilt Show. April was a whirl wind of helping to get everything organised for the show and not a lot in the way of sewing, except for the quilt sleeves on the back of my quilts.

Sunday Stash - Low Volume Fat Quarters from Kate Quilts
Adding to my mini stash of low volume from Kate Quilts, these have been great for the Aussie Modern Instabee

It was hectic but all worth it, we were so happy with how everything went and that so many people came to visit.

Australia's First Modern Quilt Show
The main hall of Australia’s First Modern Quilt show, see more photos over on Instagram #modernquiltshowau

We also had a wonderful range of stalls who I was more than happy to support, I just wish I has some more time to go shopping. I did get to go visit My Patch Fabrics in Milton after the show and picked up a few more low volume pieces to.

Sunday Stash - Screen Prints from Ettie + Marion
These beautiful fabrics were hand screen printed by Minevra who launched Ettie + Marion at the show. The octopii were a bit creepy at first but I think they’re more friendly in peach.

As soon as the show was over I was straight back onto another project, a costume that had to be ready by the end of May (eek!) for WAMED, the West Australian Middle Eastern Dance Festival. Lucky I enjoy hand sewing because this was pretty much all done by hand. The sequins are a fabric, I’m not quite crazy enough to sew all those on individually but it is a pain to sew through. The beads and crystals take a while but they’re sparkly and pretty to look at so not all bad.

Anubis Costume - original design by Virginia Keft-Kennedy
Anubis Costume – so shiny, yet tricky to capture in a photo!

The costume is an original design by Virginia Keft-Kennedy with each of the seven performers designing their own motifs. Being creative on a short deadline isn’t always fun but I’m happy with how all the motifs turned out.

Anubis Costume - Motif close up
Motif close up to show the colours of the Volcano crystals – my favourite

Ada’s Quilt: Step Down Piecing with Wombat Wonderland

This sweet little quilt combines a whole lot of Aussie inspiration. The fabulous fabrics are from Saffron Craig’s Wombat Wonderland collection which are 100% organic GOTS approved cotton. The pattern is a technique from Sarah Fielke’s Craftsy class, Big Techniques from Small Scraps. How adorable are those wombats?!

Ada's Quilt - Step Down Piecing using Wombat Wonderland by Saffron Craig

The larger squares were fussy cut from Wombats in my Garden and complemented by Sunrays, Flower Spot and (my favourite) Triangles. The smaller dark squares are from Wombat Lovehearts, there was the occasional bit of wombat surgery, creating some of my favourite details with wombats wandering in and out of their little windows.

Wombat Wonderland

I used strips of the same range for the back, including Sunflower Garden which was too pretty to cut up for the front.

Ada's Quilt Back

I finished up the top a couple of weeks ago, you can read more about the technique and the rest of Sarah’s class in my previous post. The top came with me on a long weekend away where it was basted and I began the hand quilting, approximately 1/4″ inside each of the squares.

Hand Quilting & Embroidery

The quilting was done in bursts over a few weeks, once I started each session I didn’t want to put it down. I really enjoyed this process and found Sarah’s technique easy to pickup and really enjoyable, when you get into a groove it is quite meditative. The result of using organic cottons and hand quilting is a beautifully soft baby quilt.

I love the striped binding, reminds me of liquorice all sorts (yum!)

Stripey Binding

This quilt was gifted to a work friend whose baby girl arrived in January. In place of a label I hand embroidered her name and the year. I hope it’s used and loved for some time to come.

Ada's Quilt

A Sashiko Sampler

Just a quick finish to share from earlier this month, a sashiko sampler panel. I bought 3 of these panels and the slightly less traditional variegated thread at the Sydney Craft & Sewing Show after taking a workshop with Indigo Niche which resulted in a finished scissor pouch.

Sashiko Sampler from Indigo Niche

These panels are great little travelling projects. Most of this one was completed while out and about at bike races. I had the panel folded, the thread, a needle and a small pair of scissors all inside a little pouch that went out with me all the time.

I haven’t decided exactly what this will become but I’m counting the panel as a finish for now.