Thursday, May 03, 2018

May updates and plans

The beginning of a brand new month. I'm not sure where April went, but it's now history😊 (lame but true!) Here are the updates and plans for this new month.

Comfort Quilt QAL

I finished the quilt top of my first Comfort cuddle quilt. I added a two inch border but that will have to be cut down so that the quilt ends up being 22" x 22". I'm hoping to practice some cool FMQ designs.

Cuddle quilt ready to FMQ
My One Monthly Goal for May (OMG) is to finish at least two of the cuddle quilts. I'm hoping for more, but we'll see!

FMQ Challenge Quilt Along

I've been following Angela Walter's FMQ Challenge Quilt Along for the last month or so and recently practiced week 4's Leafy Meander design.

Leafy Meander - week 4

Back of Leafy Meander
I still have at least two more FMQ designs that I want to add to this collection before calling it done.

Common Thread Quilt Guild Show - Ottawa

Next weekend (May 11 to 13) is the Common Thread Quilt Guild show. I'm really looking forward to seeing my friends' creations of the last two years.

I will have four small quilts in the show - the Charming baby quilt, the Tea Time - England souvenir wall hanging, and two art quilts - the Canada 150 and the Isles Canarias. Since this is a quilt show and not an fibre art show, I decided to show my more mainstream quilts.

Canada 150
Tea Time










Islas Canarias




Charming










I still have to put temporary sleeves on Charming and Canada 150,  as well as make a label for Charming. I'd better get this done this week since I'm sure we have to drop all our quilts off soon :-)

This is my To-Do Tuesday list.

Art with Fabric Spring 2018 Blog Hop

It's coming along! Here's a preview of my quilt to date.
Preview of Art with Fabric
Spring 2018 piece

I'm at the stage of thread drawing, that is,  FMQ on the fabric, before adding the batting.

I always find it a challenge to figure out what needs to be highlighted or drawn with thread as opposed to actually quilted. I've tried various techniques but at this time I like to do some thread drawing to attach the fabric as add highlights before doing the actual quilting.



What I learned
  • I have some great fabric for more "boyish" cuddle quilts. I can's wait to start playing with them.
  • I also want to try some variations of the Comfort Quilt pattern for them.
  • The Leafy Meander FMQ design is very forgiving. I messed up in a couple of spots but just kept going. I made sure to not leave any big empty spots because those are more obvious than mistakes in the design.
  • I'll be taking some pictures of the quilt show next weekend and writing up a post. It's so much fun learning from other people's quilts - their colour choices, their FMQ, etc.
  • I expect to spend the weekend finishing this piece up. I am sooooo looking forward to that 😊
  • I haven't posted a picture of my inspiration art piece yet, Sunrise by the Ocean by Vladimir Kush because I really don't want to push the copyright issue. I'll just post it on my official blog hop post on May 21. The link to the image is included below in the Related Links.
Related Links
Linking Parties
I will be linking this post to the OMG May Goal Setting link-up, To-Do Tuesday as well as many others. Check out what's happening. Linky Tuesday, Let's Bee Social, Midweek Makers, Needle & Thread Thursday, Off the Wall Friday, Finished or Not Friday, Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?, Free Motion Mavericks, MOP Monday, Moving it Forward, Design Wall Monday, Monday Making,


10 comments:

  1. Cuddle quilts sound wonderful. Thanks for linking up with Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal and good luck with your project!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Patty. I'm finding quite addictive to make :-)

      Delete
  2. Excellent leafy meanders! I am following Angela's FMC. This pattern was one of my favorites. i like your 4 quilts.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Pam, I started the FMC a little late but am almost done.

      Delete
  3. A very sweet Comfort quilt. I would like to try that size, not huge. Is it a project for Canadians or anyone? I'm enjoying seeing your blog again since Feton time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Paula, yes the quilts are for the neonatal unit of the Ottawa General Hospital. The Common Thread Quilt Guild has donated an huge amount, so it's my turn to make a few. Glad to have you along!

      Delete
  4. Your leaf free motion quilting is very pretty. I will have to look up that site and try it. Great job!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Judy. I hope you enjoy her videos. They are well worth it!

      Delete
  5. The comfort quilt is so pretty. Your FMQing is fantastic too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Christine. The comfort quilt has been quilted and is ready to bind. I even have a second one ready to quilt. It's been a lot of fun working on those small cuddle quilts.

      Delete

Hi! I would love to hear from you and I will try to answer you. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a message. :-)