It's time to de-clutter: a set of valance pleaters

I have a fairly high tolerance for clutter.  Anyone who just drops in for a visit can attest to that.  I'm not particularly proud that I don't put things immediately away where they belong, but I do acknowledge this is a factual character flaw.  :-)

Well, today the degree of clutter-ness just went over the top.  Nothing in particular tipped the balance but the overall visual chaos simply became too much for my poor eyeballs to tolerate.

As I began to  diminish the size of the piles (that's my typical method of organization:  Organized Piles of Chaos), I also set aside those items that, although they are *just as darling and functional* as when I first obtained them, I now face the fact that I am simply NEVER EVER EVER going to use them.  Or use them again, in the case of craft patterns.

Therefore, over the next several posts, I am going to be presenting a bunch of items that I am offering for sale.  All items are still in useful condition.  If any item (such as a pattern) was used, I will tell you.

This post is for (4) packages of Valance Pleaters #5450 by Kirsch.  Anyone who has done home decoration will recognize the Kirsch name.   The "pleater" isn't a device like a smocking pleating machine but instead is a flat, heavy-duty plastic bar with slots in it that create the "pleats" of the valance when the fabric is slipped into the slots.

Each package contains 2 pleaters, one for each side of a window, so that each package will make a valance for ONE window.    To be real obvious about it, all these packages together will make valances for *4* windows.

None of the packages have been opened.  The plastic bags look a little banged up but are intact.

It *appears* that there is no limit to the width of the window; I assume you simply cut the appropriate length of yardage to go across the window plus the amount of the drop that you want.

I got these pleaters under the delusion that I was actually going to get around to making valances for my living room.  I can't even remember how many years ago that was.  I now admit that I am never going to make them.  :-)

 This is the back of the blue label in the above photo.  It shows the kind of valance you can make.

This is the front of the little pamphlet inside the package.  I don't know exactly what is in the interior, since I've never opened the packages.  At the very least, I assume it's directions on how to use them. 


A PDF that explains how the pleaters are used can be downloaded here; it very well could be the same information that is in the inside of the pamphlet.

Don't those valances look pretty?  Even better, there's no special sewing that needs to be done; the directions say only straight seams are required.

I'm asking $7/package .. that's $28 total *plus* postage. 

My zip code is 94597.  The weight of all 4 packages is 1 lb, 14 oz .. but you gotta include the weight of the box, so figure on 2 lbs.

According to the US Post Office, standard post would be $9.79; a medium flat rate box would be $12.35.  If you come up with a less expensive mailing option, I'm all ears.

This is good only for the US ... shipping abroad is just way too expensive.

Interested in sprucing up your windows?  I'm sure you'll have better success than I did!  :-)   Contact me at pirate AT value DOT net to discuss your purchase.

OInk-a-Doodle-Moo quilt is done and delivered!

But not without considerable DRAMA during the construction process.  And it was all because *arithmetic* doesn't work correctly.  I'm sure that was the cause.

In any case, the quilt was finished and even gift-wrapped BEFORE the baby shower .... usually I'm doing some last minute sewing of the binding in the car en route.

The expectant Mom seemed to be pleased with the home-made quilt.  She even mentioned the baby quilt that  I had made for *her*, 20 years ago.  I was extraordinarily pleased that her quilt had been saved all these years.  In fact, when I was looking at her quilt, I could see that it had been *used* during her growing up years because there was definite wear showing ... like some seams had come undone.  Honestly, I wanted to fix them right there at the baby shower!

But, back to the new baby quilt ... I've written about the trials and tribulations and shenanigans that occurred whilst I was making this quilt.  It seems only right that I disclose all the dirty laundry (so to speak) so that y'all don't have the impression that all quilts come together magically.

That picture is just a teaser! For all the gory details, links and more pictures, please visit my web page for the Oink-a-Doodle-Moo quilt.

Oink-a-Doodle-Moo quilting done! (now to finish the quilt)

I did decided to put a border on it.  I found an interesting one at the Moda Bake shop for the Oink-a-Doodle-Moo line.  I'm changing the colors around and it looks like this:

Now, of course, I can't use Moda's measurements because my quilt has different dimensions than their sample.  But, look at how simple it is!  My math isn't all that bad and I've been known to figure out some pretty complicated layouts.

Sadly, this was not one of those times.

I carefully measured the blocks of my center medallion (the printed block prints and the 4-patch pinwheels).  I figured on a narrow inner border surrounding it.  I totalled up the bottom line figure (in inches) of the white background fabric.  I then measured my actual fabric.    All the arithmetic seemed to be in order, so I started cutting the fabric.

Remember that I have LIMITED amount of the white fabric.  It's a large-ish piece leftover from some other project; it's not even yardage.  

I made the border blocks (as shown above) for the top border.  In order to be more efficient, I also cut the white fabric for the bottom border (since it's the same as the top).  Imagine my shock and dismay when I discovered that the blocks for the top border came out TOO SHORT for the center medallion.

?!?!??!?!   Holy moley, how the heck did that happen??   And even worse, I've replicated the problem for the bottom border because I've already cut out those pieces.  I can't just toss those pre-cut pieces because .... I have a LIMITED amount of the white fabric.  Ay carumba.

Well, I came up with a Frankenstein solution and it mostly looks OK.

On to the side borders.  And dagnabit ... one of them came out "not exactly correct" either.  This is very annoying.  Remember .. I have a limited amount of the white fabric.

But, pressing onwards, because I really do want to get this top completed tonight so I can start quilting tomorrow.

I re-calculated the side border pices and cut them out.  Uh oh.  Something is seriously wrong.  Remember that I had a LIMITED amount of the white fabric?  Well, that "limited amount" has now become ... none.

As in, I've run out of the white fabric.  I still have 2 border blocks to make and 2 corner stones.   See that bloody mark on the wall??  That's where I've been hitting my head.

Well, my Mama didn't raise no quitter, so I Frankensteined another solution for the 2 border blocks but there was NO magic solution for the 2 corner stones.  What I eventually ended up doing was using a plain white fabric for those 2 cornerstones.  Luckily, if you squint just right and have less than adequate lighting conditions, I don't think you'll notice that 2 of the cornerstones are a completely different white fabric than the rest of the quilt.  ::sigh::  It was the best I could do, seeing as this quilt needs to be completely finished and gift-wrapped in 4 days.

On to the quilting .. which THANK GOODNESS .. was completed without any complications at all!!

All the seamlines were stitched in the ditch.

 The border got a scroll:

The pinwheel blocks got a free-form flower and leaves:

and the panel (pre-printed) blocks were outline stitched:

The next step to be done is to square up the quilt, make the label, bind the quilt and the final step ... launder it.

What's going on these days

I've started on the piecing for the Trip to Ireland barter quilt (I'm piecing a top for a quilting buddy; she's hand-quilting a quilt for me).  This project is a combination of an Irish Chain block and a Trip Around the World block.

This is the Irish Chain block.  I need to make a messload of them.  All of the strip sets have been sewn and I'm in the process of sub-cutting slices to make the Irish Chain blocks. 

I could be extremely efficient and sub-cut ALL the strips and bundle them together so that all I would have do to is sew-sew-sew.  However, I've chosen to take cautious approach .. seeing as this is not my fabric, what I have is what I have and additional fabric is not available ... and I am sub-cutting the slices as I need them.

You know what is really, *really*, REALLY annoying?   Running out of bobbin thread when matching up intersections on the 10 segment Irish Chain. Harumph.  If you must know, I was at the second segment but didn't realize it until the very end of the strip.


Since there is no hard deadline for the Trip to Ireland quilt AND I have a high-priority baby quilt to make, construction of the Trip to Ireland blocks has been temporarily suspended until the end of the week.

One of Mr. Pirate's nieces is expecting and a baby shower is this coming weekend.  I had a baby quilt pattern all picked out.  I was about to pull the fabrics for it when I came across the cutest name in one of the quilting blogs I read.  Yep .. the name of the fabric line caught my fancy so I tracked it down.

The line is "Oink-a-Doodle-Moo".  Now honestly, how could you possibly resist such a name?  Even better than having a complete fabric line to choose from, there is also a panel print of 6 barnyard blocks.   Now, as much as I disdain "cheater" quilts, this one is too cute to pass up!  Using the quilt shown in Lovin' Life at the End of the Dirt Road blog post as an inspiration on use of the panel print, I am alternating 4-patch of pinwheels and the panel blocks.

I'm undecided on whether or not to use her border.  It's really, really cute but might be a tad more involved than I have time for.  After all, not only do I need to construct the top but get it quilted and bound by *this weekend* ... 6 days away.  I'll be thinking about what kind of border to put on it whilst I make all those pinwheel blocks.

As you can see from this in-progress picture, I still have a few pinwheels to make.  The black isn't part of the quilt; that's a sheet I'm using as a design wall.

A family of finishes

I can now finally do a proper show-n-tell on the 2 sibling quilts I've been working on and had mentioned in my previous post.

Small about of background: I had made a baby quilt for one of Mr. Pirate's cousins.  The new baby has 2 older siblings and I've finished lap quilts for the siblings.

The boy's quilt was made from the Skinny Strips pattern.  You can read all about the trials and tribulations of making this quilt, see lots of pictures and follow the links in Jacob's quilt webpage.

And the girl's quilt was made from an inspirational picture from a quilting blog I read.  That blogger doesn't even know who designed the pattern because I asked.  You can read all this quilt's adventures, see more pictures and follow the appropriate links in Jolene's quilt webapge.


Now that those quilts have been delivered, the next thing for me to do is to take stock of where I am and just what project needs to worked on next.

I know I need to work on a barter top (I'm piecing the top for her; she's *hand quilting* for me.  I'm definitely getting the better end of this deal, but don't tell her I said so!).  I have a computer-inspired quilt to make for my nephew.  I have a fuzzy Minkee-like quilt to make for my favorite youngest daughter. 

I actually need to so some sort of re-org on my sewing room to rediscover exactly what I have stashed away, so that I don't forget something.  I have this niggling feeling that I'm forgetting something Really Important but that could just be the paranoia showing up.  :-)

Status Report: what's been going on

I've been working on a bunch of projects lately.


Donation Quilts to Moore, OK
1. The Pinwheel top I finished this past May finally got quilted by mid-June (previously blogged about here).  Since this was from scrap and donated fabric, I had ear-marked it for a donation quilt.  As a matter of fact, I had been stockpiling a LOT of quilts that had more-or-less recently been quilted for the local charity I like to support.  The Pinwheel quilt was going to join that bunch.

Then the tornado hit Moore, OK.  The devastation left behind was simply unimaginable.  A quilt guild local to that area of Oklahoma put out a call for finished quilts .. not blocks, not UFOs, not anything that need to be assembled or finished.  Well, that big, ol' box of finished quilts that was sitting in the corner of my dining room certainly fit that bill.  The quilts going to my local crisis center aren't specifically "necessary".  Every child who leaves the crisis nursery is allowed to take a blanket or quilt or afghan with him/her and that is where my quilts fit in.

But *Moore, OK* .. well, THEY had a real need.  I bundled up all 12 quilts that I had stockpiled and mailed them off to Moore, OK.  I hope they are able to provide some comfort.




California Poppies needleturn throw pillow

2. I'm continuing to work on my California Poppies needleturn applique project.  I've now (finally!) completed all the background stems and leaves.  The next step is to trace all the various petal pieces onto their appropriate color fabrics and start stitching them.  (I've drawn two in so you can see where they fit in).  I really want to get this particular project done .. or at least the applique part .. because I already have my next Forever Project [alt-0153] lined up.  I'm eager to start it but I *know* that if I begin it now, without the California Poppies being done, I'll probably never finish the Poppies.  Sooooo .. nose to the grindstone and get the needleturn Poppies stitched!

Quilts for siblings:  

for the older brother. This past May, I made a baby Rubber Ducky quilt for a new member of the extended Pirate family.  The family has 2 older children.  I was thinking that they might get their noses out of joint because the new baby is getting ALL the stuff and they're getting a big goose egg.

So, with the permission of the Mom, the two kids told me their favorite colors and interests.   I finished the older boy's quilt just last week .. but haven't made the web page for it yet.  He told me his favorite color was pink and that he liked the San Francisco 49er's and San Francisco Giants.  I was deliriously happy when I found fabrics that coordinated AND fit his requirements!  

You'll have to be satisfied with this single picture for now. 

for the older sister
4. Having finished the boy's quilt, I then started on the  girl's quilt.  I had an inspiration picture as a basis and am rapidly approaching the completion of the top.

As I now see the vine up on the design wall, I think I should have curved the leftside vine with the bright turquoise flower upwards more.  ::sigh::   It's not getting moved because it's already been stitched down by machine ... very small stitches.  Ah, well .. such is life.

I figure I'll get the top finished tomorrow, load it onto Lizzie and start the quilting.  As of right now, I haven't a clue what the quilting is going to be and that is of some concern.  I know that, for me, I need to have a quilting plan in place before I ever load up a quilt.  So maybe the quilting won't get started just yet.  :-)


Even though these two quilts are for family members, I feel safe in talking about them here because I know neither the kids nor the parents read my blog.  :-)

A Pinwheel Quilt

Yes, I actually HAVE done some quilting lately!  :-)

I was recently shown a new-to-me technique for making pinwheel blocks, which makes (4) half-square triangle blocks simultaneously from two large rectangles, instead of the normal way I make them, which is two at a time from two squares.  A small difference but it's nice to learn a new method.

I made enough pinwheel blocks to make a small quilt and eventually got the top quilted.  I don't know why I dither so much about the actual quilting process; I'm always so pleased when it's done!  :-)

The webpage for this quilt contains lots more pictures, quite a BIT more verbage :-)  and a link to a video (not by me) that shows the technique.

That picture is just a teaser! For all the gory details, links and more pictures, please visit my web page for the Pinwheel quilt.

(NQR) Genealogy - clarification of a surname

I've long been interested in my family history.  When I became married to Mr. Pirate, I became interested in HIS family history also.

I recently joined a local genealogical  society and one lecture I attended was given by the director of the big LDS Library, which is in a nearby city.  The talk was on how to effectively use the new, updated LDS website for searching.  He mentioned his own researching escapades and, almost as a throw-away line, he mentioned that because one of his lines was Portuguese, he has become an expert on Portuguese research, especially in the Azores.

Oh my .. did my ears perk up at that!  When the meeting was over, I introduced myself to him and asked if I could make an appointment to meet with him to learn how he did his Portuguese research.  He was exceedingly gracious and an appointment was set up.

I had (3) lines to research: two on Mr Pirate's paternal side and my own paternal line.  We actually struck out on all three lines because I don't have a whole lot of information to go on.  The one line for Mr. Pirate that I had the most information (birth year, town and island) resulted in a cruel and bitter defeat:  although the island & town DID have records online, their earliest started in 1844.  My guy's birth year was 1841.   ::cue sounds of disappointment::

When we were poking around on the other line for Mr. Pirate, I mentioned that we shouldn't be looking for the Rodgers surname because in 1915, my guy changed his name.  I brought a copy of the affidavit attesting to that and showed it to the director.

The affidavit said, ".... on November 17, 1915, Manuel Pereirada Rozas also written and known as Manuel P Rodgers ... "

My mentor took one look at that and immediately said that "Pereirada" is NOT, most emphatically NOT, a name.    (Parenthetically, I've asked one of my Portuguese friends about "Pereirada" and she said that she wasn't aware of a name like that.)

I kinda looked at him and said, well .. this is what I have  (thinking .. what, are you dumb or something?  That's his name *right there*.  It says so!).  But I didn't say that out loud; it would have been rude, ya know.

He continued on, saying, it looked to *him* that the spacing was wrong ... that the person writing down the information wasn't hearing it correctly and so typed it incorrectly.   He was sure the name was really .... Manuel Pereira  da Rozas.    !!!!!!!  Oh. My. Gosh.  That makes SO MUCH SENSE.

Pretend you're Manuel.  You have a Portuguese accent.  You might be fluent in English because you've been in this country for decades, but you still have that accent.  Now, say your name.  Manuel Pereira da Rozas.  Slur the Pereira and da together .. what does it sound like?  Pereirada.  Bingo.

So, the family name, way back when, wasn't simply Rozas .. but  da Rozas.    Not that it makes any huge difference to my research, but we now know the family's true surname.   That alone was worth the trip to the LDS libary.   I tell ya, I was one happy camper!


I've also been doing some very cursory research into the pronunciation of Portuguese names.   It sure isn't like Spanish, I tell ya.  For example .. Manuel.   In Spanish, it's "man-well".  Not so in Portuguese.  Portuguese words break out EVERY vowel into its own syllable.  In fact, "Manuel" in Portugese is actually "Manoel" and is pronounced "man-oo-el", close to Spanish but not the same.  It's extremely difficult for me to avoid a Spanish interpretation of the names.  :-)


I've been so jazzed about this small insight that I felt compelled to let the Entire World know.  :-)

I'll get back to quilting in a bit.  :-)

have you watched the Great British Sewing Bee?

I just finished watching all (4) 1-hour episodes.  It was *wonderful* ... precisely everything that I had originally hoped that "Project Runway" would be.

Let me back up just a bit.  When Project Runway first aired, I was eager with anticipatory excitement!  Here we would be able to see how designers actually designed!  How they came created their outfits; what obstacles they came up against and how they overcame them; what small but important items make a creation special instead of off the rack.

How I was disappointed.  Instead of a high-brow how-to show, what I saw was a bunch of drama queens, contention, arguing, back-biting and silly, silly challenges.  Stupid stuff.  Obviously, I am in the minority, as Project Runway is in its 11th season.  Enough people are watching it to encourage the advertisers to continue their support.  But then, it seems a lot of people like those atrocious reality shows too.

So, when I first saw that PBS was putting on a Great British Sewing Bee .. a national competition for the Best Amateur Sew in Great Britain, I was very skeptical.  Since my PBS station didn't carry it, the only way I could watch it was on YouTube.


Well, I really do NOT like to watch lengthy videos on my computer.  It's just one of my quirks;  I didn't save any of the URLs and I promptly forgot about it.

Until one of my quilting friends blogged about it.  Now, I truly respect her opinion when it comes to quilting matters, so I was willing to risk watching at least PART of the first video.  After all, no one was forcing me to watch the entire thing. :-)

Much to my utter surprise and immense delight, this show is EXACTLY what I was hoping that Project Runway was going to be.  The Great British Sewing Bee starts at the point where we have 8 semi-finalists.  We don't go through all the auditions.  Each episode has 2-3 challenges, which are all exceedingly spot-on when you want to see how well a sewer can *SEW*. 

One challenge is usually how well can they follow a printed pattern.  The patterns aren't anything unusual, despite what the hostess voice over says.  :-)   One pattern was to make a man's shirt (simplified because it didn't have cuffs and plackets). One pattern was to make a man's trousers. One pattern was to make a little girl's sundress.  These are items that any sewer might make as a matter of course.  (That being said, I've never made men's trousers, but I have no doubt that I could follow the directions, if they were half-way decent.)

Another challenge was to design and make something of their own choosing.  They could use a commercial pattern or draft something themselves.  These challenges usually involved fitting the garment onto a live model so that the sewers needed to know how to *alter* the pattern to fit body issues (something that I've never really mastered).

All the challenges have a time limit.  Since I normally don't sew under extreme time limits, I'm not sure if I could have finished any of these challenges myself.  But to embellish a blank purse with handwork only in any way you wanted in only 1 hour AND be the best??  I dunno.  It might take me that long just to THINK  of what to do!

There are 2 judges: a gentleman from a Savile Row tailor and a lady who has spent a lifetime teaching couture sewing.  They were both very down to earth people.  The hostess was an enthusiastic (in a subdued British sort of way!) lady who was the cheerleader for the group.  :-)

The program focuses on each of the contestants in turn, asking questions.  Everyone is very focused on what *they* are doing,   No one was bad-mouthing anyone else.  It was so, so refreshing.

As for the judging .. oh my!  THIS is what Project Runway should have been about.  Both of the judges talked specifically about each sewer's project, what they were looking for, the good points about the projects while being very diplomatic about the deficiencies.  And yes, many of the projects had quite a few major flaws.  (If I was trying to make a formal gown in 8 hours, I might have some major flaws too.)  It was *wonderful* to hear exactly what specific things made a project standout from the others, as well as what flaws made it classically "home made" in the worst sense.

Each episode eliminated 1 or 2 contestants until there were 3 finalists left.

After I watched the first hour-long episode, I promptly watch the other 3, one right after the other.  They were all Very Very Good.  And honestly .... how can you NOT enjoy those wonderful English (and one Scots) accents??  :-)

So, without any more blathering on my part, here are the YouTube URLs for you to watch each full length episode.  I promise .. if you enjoy sewing garments, you will thoroughly enjoy these 4 shows.

#1:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8te1WAO20I

#2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5trYhyBMuI 

#3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8MRlT9mAuE

#4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5KcpvBLELo

Hawaiin Applique: top *now* finished; new project started

The handwork for one applique project is done; another one is started.

I like to always have a handwork project in-progress.  It's my Grab-n-Go project, continually ready to be snatched as I head for the car.  If I know I'm going to have substantial downtime someplace, I like to be able to productively occupy my time.

It was only this past January that I started the needleturn applique for Nancy Lee Chong's "You are in our hearts" Hawaiian applique.  The project, as determined by the pattern, is about 40" square.  I finished *that* part of it last February.  In terms of Forever Projects ™, that's a pretty pathetic one.

I also don't particularly care for small square quilts; they aren't useful for me.  So, instead of leaving this pattern as-is, I decided to put a top & bottom border on it.  Fortunately, I had extra background fabric and extra applique fabric.  Using the Hawaiian applique design as the base, I made my own linear border.  The picture to the left is the top only, hence the wrinkles.

*NOW*, I'm pleased with the final, overall dimensions.  At 42" x 63", it's a more useful size.  It'll decrease slightly once it's quilted and bound, but it will be nominal.  The quilting part will need to wait it's turn behind all the other previous projects.

Because I knew that the Hawaiian Applique was coming on an end, I started the prep work for my next handwork project.  This one is called "California Poppies", which are one of my very favorite wild flowers.  I purchased the pattern and fabric at a local quilt show recently.  The pattern is designed by Bobbie Y Jarrett of Shingle Springs, CA and it was she, who was manning the vendor booth at the show.  When I realized this was *her* design, I asked her autograph the pattern for me; she graciously signed her name.  I'm such a fan girl. :-)

This project was originally designed as the center medallion of the 2012 Opportunity quilt made by the Gold Bug Quilters of El Dorado county.  Unfortunately, I can't seem to find a picture of that Opportunity quilt. 

But I do love this center medallion!  At a finished 18" square, it will make a wonderful throw pillow.  I'm thinking I might do "something" in the border area; I'm not sure at this point.  I'll need to wait until the applique is done to see what it says to me.

I did have one nitpick about the kitted fabric: the green batik for the background was perfect; the step-value oranges for the poppies were perfect.  But for the stems and leaves, the fabric was a bright BLUE.   Yes, that's right: blue.  It was incredibly jarring.  Apparently, this coordinated with the other blocks in the Opportunity quilt.  It may have looked fine in that setting, but as a stand-alone?  No way.  I substituted my own gray-green fabrics from my stash.

You can see that I have front-basted the stems and leaves onto the batik background.  Since the orange poppy petals will overlap the green parts, the stems and leaves need to be done FIRST.

As far as my (infamous) List of 17, I don't have anything loaded on Lizzie right now.  Later this week, I'm having an internet quilting list member come to my house where I will share with her how I do things on my Lizzie.  She has the same machine and was asking on the list if there was anyone "nearby" who could show her some hands-on things.  I'm always happy to share (and, as Mr. Pirate will tell you, talk.  And talk. And talk.  :-)  )  so I invited her up.  She wants to know about everything from the ground-up: loading a quilt, pantograph, ruler work.    I've told her that I can show her how *I* do these things but that's not necessarily the ONLY way to do it.  Even if she ultimately decides that the way I do things isn't working for her, the time isn't wasted: she learned something new, decided against it and would then be able to look for a different method.  But, I hope that what I show her is actually helpful.

If I load a quilt onto Lizzie for me to work on, I'm not sure I would get it finished before my internet list buddy arrives.  It's better to simply defer my quilt until after the visit.  It's not like I have nothing else to work on. :-)

Happy Star Wars Day!

"What's that?", you say? "There's no 'happy Star Wars day'."

Poppycock, I tell you.  *OF COURSE* there is.  It's today,  5/4.

Drum roll, please ....


May the 4th be with you!    LOL!  :-)

"Peace": another project finished!

The Reader's Digest version is that in July 2012, I completed the hand work on a needleturn applique wall-hanging.  The top was put on the Pile of Tops to be Quilted and there it sat.  And sat. And sat.

Eventually, it became an item on my (infamous) List of 17 (tops to be quilted).  And still it sat there.  Very patiently waiting its turn.

Which I can NOW happily say has come!  I have finished the quilting and the binding and the labeling AND the hanging sleeve!  Woo hoo!!  This puppy is done!   :-)

I'm pleased with the stitch in the ditch around the appliques; this is no mean feat with a longarm!  I *much* prefer SITD on my home sewing machine; the control is much greater.  

I'm not entirely certain I chose the absolutely, 100% "correct" quilting for the background around the applique.  It works; I think it looks fine but wonder if I couldn't have found something better if I had only looked for about a gazillion hours longer. :-)  I tend to get impatient after only a bazillion hours.

I'm *very* pleased with the binding.  There is a long, vertical, high-contrast division between the background fabric and the applique fabric.  I didn't want the binding to be a distraction so I used the applique fabric on the applique and the background fabric on the background.  Normally, when I join the ends of my binding, I do a diagonal seam.  This distributes the bulk of the seam allowance over a greater distance and makes for a flatter binding.

But if I did that on this project, the diagonal seam would be horridly obvious.  Instead, I made a straight, vertical seamline in the binding to match up with the division on the wall-hanging.

Those pictures are just teasers! For all the gory details, links and more pictures, please visit my web page for the Peace wall-hanging.

Manzanita: an applique project

I had finished my Hawaiian Applique project and needed a new handwork Forever Project™.  Looking in my pile(s) and list(s) of projects that I really want to do (someday, sometime), I spied a very interesting pattern, Manzanita by Random Threadz. 

[aside: there is a very similar pattern, Branching Out.  That one looks to be the same applique tree as Manzanita but the finishing details are different.  For whatever reason, I chose Manzanita .. I suppose I must have liked its finishing more than Branching Out.  I think it's too bad that we consumers would need to buy essentially the same pattern just to get the different finishing options.]

While the overall impression is rather dark and stark, the leafless branches intrigued me nonetheless.  As with any new project, I'm also trying to use supplies from my stash.  Not that I don't want to support my local stores, but I *do* have All This Fabric and should make an effort to use it.

At the beginning of this March, I found two different toned blacks for the tree and a multi-colored batik for the background.  Using the front-basted applique technique I learned from Nancy Lee Chong of Pacific Rim Quilting Company, I basted my trees to the batik background and started the applique process.

This particular project is small; the finished size is 25"x29".  The applique part is only 12"x16".  It fits nicely in my Forever Project™ box that I take with me in the car.  When I visit with my Dad on Wednesdays, it comes with me and I'm trying to *KEEP* this as a portable, away-from-home project.  (If I work on it at home, then I'll finish it in short order and then, not only will I have another top to be quilted but I'll need ANOTHER Forever Project™!).

So, progress was going slowly .. but that was OK.

Then, I was watching some TV movies and some TV shows that I had recorded but hadn't watched yet.   Generally speaking, I like to be working on some sort of hand-work when watching TV, otherwise I feel as though I'm not being productive.  Well, the only hand-work I had available was Manzanita, so out it came.

Needless to say, the applique work is now finished.

I must say that while it might not be award-winning work, *I* am exceedingly pleased with the overall look of it.  I really do love the gnarly and non-symmetrical look of the branches and stubs.  I love the little bumps and lumps.  Even with the dark fabric, these bare branches somehow feel more "alive" to me than a perfectly symmetrical and perfect design.

Now that the hand-work is completed, I have the machine piecing to do .. which means that pretty soon, I'll have another top to put on the pile.  This isn't exactly what I had in mind ... while at home, I really do want to work on the List of 17 tops to be quilted and *NOT* add another one to it!  Therefore, employing the ostrich head in the sand methodology, I am going to set Manzanita aside for a while.  All the fabric and pattern instructions are bundled together so I can easily pick it up again at some future point ... but for now .. into the UFO stack it goes.

And .... I now need a new hand-work Forever Project™!

Just Ducky!

I had the next top, from my infamous List of 17, to be quilted when we received an invitation to a family baby shower for one of Mr. Pirate's first cousins once removed.  Everything came to a screeching halt whilst I pondered what to make for the baby quilt.

I looked through my baby quilt ideas and finalized on a recent addition.  Does anyone else waffle over what their NEXT!  FAVORITE! project is going to be, based on what you just looked at?  It drives me nuts.

Anyway, the background is a mosaic of squares.  Along the top is a strip with appliqued rubber duckies.  All of that is surrounded by a frame and around *that* is another round of squares.

For the appliqued duck, I turned under all the edges then did a narrow zigzag (but not a satin stitch) in matching thread to hold the applique one.  Looks tidier to me than a fused and edge-stitched raw edge applique.

For the quilting, I did a continuous curve in the outer border, feathers in the yellow border and the duck wings, clouds in the sky above the ducks, stitch in the ditch around the ducks and a water ripple in the "water" area.

That picture is just a teaser! For all the gory details, links and more pictures, please visit my web page for the Just Ducky quilt.

all my ducks lined up in a row...

Not wanting to be scrambling to finish the baby quilt at the last minute, I started thinking about which pattern to use the minute we received the baby shower invitation, this past Tuesday.  I have a directory on my computer where I stash pictures for inspiration, along with the designer and pattern information.  It's kinda like my own personal Pinterest.  :-)

I had a bunch of almost fat quarters, left over from a previous project and realized that I could use most of them up with "Just Ducky", a delightful pattern by Cheri Leffler Designs. 

The ducks are fused appliques with the raw edges held down by several rows of edge-stitching, which looks rather like a small child outlining a coloring book design.  It looks adorable .. but .. I worried about it for two reasons. 

1. This quilt was going to be a gift.  Raw edge applique, although an intriguing "new" technique, does look unfinished.  I would hate for my recipients to think that I was using some slap-dash method.

2. Since this *was* a baby quilt and I haven't done a raw-edge applique design before, I was very concerned that with repeated laundering, the fusible would detach itself, leaving the applique body to "bubble" and that the edge-stitching would come undone.  Either scenario would be horribly, horribly embarrassing.

So, I decided to machine applique those cute little ducks in place.  I turned under the edge and did a very narrow zig-zag in matching thread along the folded edge.

Furthermore, I changed up the actual ducks I used.  Since I was going to be machine zig-zagging the edge in place, I wanted a smoother edge to work on.  The ducks in the pattern have delightful tail feathers, but I wanted a simpler design.  I found exactly what I wanted at Quiltmaker; the PDF for the duck appliques can be downloaded here. 

I'm sure that it took longer to turn under the edges of the applique & zig-zag them down than it would if I had simply fused and edge-stitched the ducks!  But, the final result pleases me ... and that makes me happy.

I finished the piecing over 1-1/2 days .... as is typically so, I had a LOT of distractions and interruptions whilst I was piecing, so it wasn't a continuous 1-1/2 days.  This really is a very easy pattern to do.

Now that the top is down, I'll need to go get some appropriate backing.  I'm thinking of some flannel with ducks on it  .. I'm not sure if this is in vogue these days, so I'll have to see what my local stores have in stock.

As for the quilting designs .. preliminarily, I'm thinking of Water Ripple for the patchwork water, some clouds in the sky area and Carla Barrett's "Curly Swirly" in the yellow frame.

Hmmmm .. maybe not for the yellow frame.  That yellow frame is 4" wide .. certainly wide enough to do something interesting ... maybe the alternating feathers that I recently did on another quilt.  

But first .. gotta go buy that backing fabric & batting!

Lovely Year of Finishes: April goal

How things change in a hurry!

I have small wall-hanging that I was originally going to use as my April goal for the Lovely Year of Finishes.  The top is a needleturn applique.  I have the batting and the backing.  It's ready to be loaded.

But I procrastinated by allowing myself to be distracted by another revived hobby of mine: family genealogy & scanning of family photographs.

It was serendipitous that I did procrastinate ... we just got an invitation to a baby shower for a family member!

Now, I don't keep baby quilts on hand, so now the push will be to go through the ideas I've filed away for interesting baby quilts, pick one, pull the fabric, piece the top, quilt it, label it and bind it .... all by April 21st!!

I have no doubt that I can do this *once I decide on a pattern*!  ::knock on wood:: 

Really .... Just how difficult can a baby quilt be?   :-)

Lovely Year of Finishes: March is done!

As I stated in my previous Lovely Year of Finishes post, this top was pieced in 2008.  And now, I can finally exclaim that it is FINISHED!  woo hoo!!

Quilted. 

Labeled. 

Bound. 

Web page created!  

done, done, done, done!  :-)

I used a new-to-me thread, "Premium Select" by NanoFiber and is their Soft Antique line. It's a 40wt polyester but is finished to have a matte cotton look. So far, it's working nicely with my Lizzie, not only on this quilt but on subsequent quilts as well.

According to the time that I have to keep track of time, it took me about 9 hours spread over 3-1/2 days to do the quilting. 

Most of that time was doing all the stand along motifs in the scrappy triangles.  Each one of them required its own start and stop because I was using a thread that would have shown on the black if I had tried to sneak through.  Ugh.

I urge you to wander on over the the webpage created for this quilt.  Honest to goodness, there is more verbage and LOTS more pictures for you to look at.  :-)

Those pictures are just teasers! For all the gory details, links and more pictures, please visit my web page for the God's Eye quilt.