Back nearly done

This is the pieced backing for my quilt (here)

(DH isn't very good at holding up quilts.  He gets arm ache!)

There was a lot of huffing and puffing about the layout and what colour to use as the background, but DH had a rummage through the solids bin and came up with this.  He then swapped strings and stripes round (yes Tonya - he did!) et voila!

It needs to be about 4/5 inches bigger all the way round and then I'm ready to baste and hand quilt - woo hoo!

Thanks Ton!

DD would like it known that she wishes Tonya had spoken up earlier and that she has been telling me for weeks "Just a plain border Mum.  No words."

 

So that is what she's got and I must say it does look good AND I've finished the top before the deadline - woohoo!

I will get round to piecing the letters for the back "Liberated Amish Get Together 2010" and my initials, but in the meantime we have sun and the garden is beckoning.

Thanks to Ton for holding yet another fabulous class and I'll let you know how I get on with the back sometime before the deadline in June.

Perhaps This?

 

with no words on the front.

Decisions Decisions

I've done the two inner borders and am now dithering between putting the words round the outside as another border, or leaving it is as and putting the words on the back.

Here we have the quilt at the moment;

 

and here we have option one for the letters;

(the family have given this one the thumbs down)

 

and option 2

which I prefer, but am still not sure.  

DH says it's yuk, but he's a man so what does he know!

 

I don't think I want to hide the letters on the back, especially that pink "i".

Help!

Progress II

Been sewing like crazy these last few days.

Here is the finished centre and the first border, which I now think is too wide and I'm going to cut down a bit.

Not too sure what to do for the next border as I don't want to detract from the centre.  I thought about using a thin strip of the dusky pink I used in the quilt.  Definitely NOT yellow!  The large outer border will be black.

When I was piecing the blocks together I lost the plot somewhat and it isn't the same as it was.  Some blocks got moved around and I forgot the original placement.  I usually take a photo before I start piecing everything together so I can remember where it all goes.  This time I forgot to and I think it's lost a certain je ne sais quoi!

I also think that putting the original words around the border - "S is for Stripes (or Strings)" - will be too much so I'm thinking of doing that for the back. Is this within the rules?

Unstoppable!

Look at those colours!

I'm loving this so much!

Got another 4 foundation squares left and then I suppose I'll have to cut some more.

Perhaps another four at the bottom after I've added some more to the right hand side (that is if I can stop).

Progress

Not too happy with the block bottom right -  don't think there is enough contrast.  Might have to add it to the Parts Dept.

If the weather stays as cold as this (-8°C tonight), then I'll have this quilt finished by the end of the week!

No. 60

Hi - Clare again.

Just wondering.  How many of us are doing No. 60 and am I the only one who has gone completely off the original plan on this one?

The First Block is the Hardest

It's so long since I've "stitched and flipped" that I forgot how to do it.

Anyway, here is the first block.

The original colour scheme has gone out of the window.  I'm cutting more colours to add.  I'm working on the principle that no block is going to be the same, apart from the blue centre and the purple on the corners.

Merging Ideas

Hi - Clare here.

I've been thinking about how to liberated my choice - No. 60 Roman Stripes - as I think it is liberated enough.  Trust me to pick a liberated quilt to liberate!

Unable to sleep last night and getting excited by the colour combination I am hoping to use, at 2.00 am I could be found going through Liberated String Quilts and - bingo!  I'm going to use Gwen's Amish Rectangular String Quilt (page 67) as part of my inspiration and V's Waverunner as the inner border.

I've already cut 18 7 inch foundation squares from baking parchment (hope the machine can stand up to that) and am now cutting stripes.

If I can't sleep tonight I shall be taking the sewing equipment downstairs to the kitchen so I don't keep DH awake.

Watch this space!

S is for Strings (or Stripes)

Goodness this has been difficult.

I started off with the star quilt on the opposite page to Gwenny's Variable Stars in LQI.  I think it's called Matthew's Stars (sorry I got the names switched in my last post).

Then I had another look at the web site and started leaning towards the Roman Stripes.  Then I saw Joseph's Coat which I like because of its simplicity.  The colours didn't grab me, but the quilt did.

Ok - decision time.  I threw the vote open to the family and the only other person in this house with an eye for colour (DD), decided on No.60 on one condition that she gets tohave it either on her wall or on her bed.

Colours yet to be decided, but that's the easy bit!

On that note I'm off to bed!

Decision Made

Hi everyone from a very very cold and white SW France!  Ton - you definitely wouldn't like France this winter.  It's been the worst winter ever!

Anyway, on to more important things.

I've looked through the Amish web site and there is nothing there that grabs my attention.  I suppose some of the Roman Stripes do and perhaps some of the bars, but there is nothing that I'd want to put on my wall.

So I got out all my Gwen books again and there, in LQI, was my inspiration.  Gwenny's Variable Stars.  I've only ever made one star quilt and that was for my niece.  It will be nice to have one in this house.

I'm pulling fabric at the moment and hope to get started sometime next week.

Just realised - I've got the selection process the wrong way round.  Has the quilt GOT to come from the Amish Collection?

Greetings from France

Hi everyone,

It's Dordogne Quilter Clare here.

I'm really looking forward to this challenge.  I've been building up my solid stash for sometime now and can't wait to start using it!

Got LQII and am waiting for Amish Abstractions to come through the post.  In the meantime I'm going to drool over the quilts on the website and see which one catches my eye.