Gypsy Wife Sections 8, 9, and 10 = Flimsy

 I finally finished the top!  It was an exciting and colorful journey that began on February 26, 2016.  I am so glad to have used over 70 orphan blocks.  I added borders to blocks or trimmed them down to fit each area.

 Section 8:  Used 5 orphan blocks.  This one was really easy to piece.  I just wish my two fabrics in the leftmost position contrasted better.

Section 9:  Used 4 orphan blocks.  By this time, I was running out of blocks that would fit the size requirement.  I had to add larger borders and/or sew HST units to form blocks. There is also some trickery with this unit where if you don't have the book, you may miss it.

Sections 8 and 9 sewn together.  I wish the pinwheel block was turned 180 degrees so the white was against the red.  I considered taking it apart but decided not to because I'd already taken it apart once before.

 Section 10 continued with the slight trickery created in section 9.  I really had to build up two blocks with wide borders on this one.  Used 11 blocks.

Sections 8-10 sewn together.

Flimsy.  All done!  I enjoyed this journey and may do it again some day with planned background strips instead of all of them being a different fabric, choosing many colors.  In total, I used 72 orphan blocks that would have otherwise continued their hibernation in my studio.  Also, I've named my quilt Gypsy Convergence.  It's so fitting with all the prints.

If you've completed a Gypsy Wife quilt, please leave a link in the comments section.
-------------------------- Type-u-later, http://www.teaquilts.com

Gypsy Wife: Section 7

After working on section 6, section 7 was easy.  It does include even more partial seams so plan the sewing ahead of time.  I have three more sections to complete.  I've already selected the orphan blocks I will use.  I also did some housekeeping of my strips.  I remove all strips that I've already used from my pile to reduce the stack.  I have about sixteen strips I haven't used but need about twenty one to finish the project.

Section 7:  Used 7 Orphan Blocks

 Section 1-7

-------------------------- Type-u-later, http://www.teaquilts.com

My Gypsy Wife Rendition

On February 26, 2016 I began my journey with the Gypsy Wife quilt by Jen Kingwell.  The quilt required the piecing of numerous blocks.  I decided that since I have a lot of orphan blocks already pieced, that I would do one of the following:  (1) cut larger blocks down/rip apart sections or (2) frame smaller blocks to make them fit the allocated spacing in the chart.  That's why my version is a rendition of the original.  My quilt will not have the blocks used in the original version by Jen.

I love making scrap quilts with random blocks placed throughout the quilt.  I meant to start this journey in 2014 as a scrap club yearlong project but life got in the way of my following through.  I recently saw new quilt alongs starting up in March so I thought I get my quilt going as well.

I cut numerous strips from my scrap stash in yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, blue, and green.  I decided to omit tans, browns, black and white unless it was already in a pieced block.  I mostly omitted fabrics that read didn't read as a particular color.





As I began piecing the sections, I could feel the addiction growing stronger and stronger.  It was fast becoming the only project that I wanted to work on.  The addiction won and I made five sections within 24 hours and want to share them with you.

SECTION #1:  I used 5 orphan blocks.  Also, I am using the same fabric strip in the vertical construction of this quilt.  It will become more obvious as I complete the sections.

SECTION #2:  I used 6 orphan blocks.

SECTION 1 & 2 COMBINED:

SECTION 3:  I used 4 orphan blocks.

SECTION 1-3:

SECTION 4:  I used 2 orphan blocks

SECTION 1-4 COMBINED:

SECTION 5:  I used 7 orphan blocks.

SECTION 1-5 COMBINED:

Although I wish I could work on this quilt further, I have to put it aside to work on uploading some of my recent finished projects, scrap quilting club show-n-tell, work of some yearlong projects, make binding for three quilts, and prepare a few income taxes for my family.  I am sadden that I had to put Ms. Gypsy up for a little while.  I'm hoping to be able to publish section 6 within a week otherwise I'll give an update in a blog post.



-------------------------- Type-u-later, http://www.teaquilts.com

Design Wall Monday

We are starting another year of design wall Mondays thanks to Judy of Patchwork Times.  I have been really busy this week with a lot of activities.  I used every spare minute at home sewing to get my tasks completed.  I made 3 blocks and I blogged about them here and here.  The last block is Judy's block that's included in 100 blocks volume 2.

I started my second quilt top with the blocks.  I need to add a teal 1" border, then a 6" floral border to this quilt center.

I also worked on a challenge quilt that will be revealed at a much later date.  I cut the pieces about two weeks ago.  Now, I'm using the pieces for chain piecing.  To view more design walls, visit Patchwork Times.

--------------------------

Type-u-later,

 

http://www.teaquilts.com

Design Wall Monday

I missed last Monday's post but made sure I caught up this week.  In my last post I told you about Block Party Sampler quilt I was working on.  It is now finished and the post is here.  I had a very successful trip to Pittsburg, KS and Joplin, MO.  I had access to post last week but was just too tired to do so.

On my design wall today is the Twist and Shout top (sorry, blogspot is turning my photo) from pattern by Lyn Brown.  It's really a neat way to get a quilt on point.  I'd seen this before in an old book at home with rail fence blocks but didn't want to cut up my blocks after sewing into a top so I forgot about it.  Now, why was it so easy to cut just plain ole squares?  I selected this pattern for the scrap quilting club's first project.

My scrap quilting club met Saturday and we swapped the Bento Box quarters.  My generally "bright" quilt turned into something not too bright and not too sedated.  I really like getting fabrics from swaps.  This photo is of the scrappy version.  My blocks are sewn with sashing in the middle.  I still have to add a border in the beige fabric before adding the red print as the final border.

And here is the Batiks only quarters we swapped.  My scrap quilting club is doing an awesome job?  Now I have to figure out how I want the second top pieced...

Again, another scrap quilting club project.  We are working on a major project over a few months.  We have until the end of May to make 305 3.5" 4-patches.  I started on mine yesterday and made 110 units that need to be pressed open.  I have a few more 2-piece sections ready for the next batch.  These were all made from 2" squares and 2" strips I had already cut that was stored in my studio.

I worked on some other projects but don't have photos of them, so that's all for now.  To see more design walls, go visit Patchwork Times.
--------------------------
Type-u-later,
Tea in MO
http://www.teaquilts.com

Block Party Sampler

I got around to hand sewing the last side of the binding on the Block Party Sampler quilt.  These blocks were in my "extra block can" (I keep large popcorn tins for storing them).  I taught a class on how to make a sampler quilt when your blocks are various sizes.  First I grabbed test blocks I made of my guild's optional block of the month.  I have a lot of units included that are typically thrown in the trash, like leftover strips I made into 9-patches, HSTs from snowball type blocks that could have been in the trash, edges from trimming stack-n-whack blocks that I made into squares (before the 4-stacked posey pattern), prairie points, and various units that I made into blocks just because.  The pieced border was made from things most quilters throw away.  It was so much fun to make.

Here is a close of the quilting that was done by a professional long arm quilter, Sarah.  The design is a free style allover design.  Where I have 3-d elements, she quilted around them.  Using yellow thread tied the quilt together so well that I decided to use yellow binding.

--------------------------
Type-u-later,
Tea in MO
http://www.teaquilts.com

Women of Influence

I got the binding completed on the Women of Influence quilt.  It was a BOM of a local quilt shop in 2004/2005.  The center attic window block I added as I needed 13 blocks.  The setting from the quilt shop was just plain sashing.  I saw this setting in a book (too long ago to remember) and decided this setting was perfect for these blocks.  The label photo underneath the quilt photo indicates each woman each block was made for.  I didn't like the quilt blocks and now love the completed quilt.  Quilted by a long arm quilter in the area name Sandy.

--------------------------
Type-u-later,
Tea in MO
http://www.teaquilts.com

Block Swap Round Up

've been having a wonderful time! I had a week of vacation from the job but stayed at home; just needed a break from the office. I'll start with the ugly part. I spent a day and a half cleaning the bedroom and going through all my printed from the Internet patterns, local quilt shops BOMs, and embroidery files instructions - you know all the stuff I just couldn't live without. I threw out a lot of paper and organized what I kept. Then came the boring part. I made backs for 23 quilt tops. Some were made with quilt backings and others were pieced from scraps left over from previous quilt backs. So far, I have 6 more quilt tops that need backs made. I'm sure that will change when I go through my WIPs. This was a two-day job that just needed doing. The best part of the week was that I used my friend's long arm machine to quilt three quilts. I quilted Chocolate Berries (sorry, no photo yet) and Reconciliation which now needs the binding added. Here is a photo of part of the Reconciliation quilt with my daughter standing on a portion of it...oops! I laid it out so I could determine the binding fabric. This quilt is asking for blue binding so I'll start looking through the stash after I cook dinner. I added the binding to this one, Block Swap Round Up, after quilting it on my friend's long arm. I taught a sampler class and used this setting. Isn't it great!

Oh, and the other amazing part of my week was purchasing a new laptop. This one is only from my quilting/embroidery information - not work related and don't have to share computer time with my husband. I'm having fun loading all my software. So far I've only found 2 programs that don't like Vista. I can work around both of them but for one program it's not worth the headache. It'll take me a few more weeks to get it in top shape.

I had a wonderful time off work and am dreading the work that has piled up in my absence. I did check my e-mail during last week to reduce the amount I'd have to sort through on Monday. However, I'm happy I have a job to return to as my husband is still laid off and it's difficult to find employment with so many people in the workforce.

-------------------------- Type-u-later, Tea in MO http://www.teaquilts.com

Works In Progress Update

Well, its been a few weeks since I've written. I've been very busy with a lot of things with family as well as quilting. My husband has been laid off from his machinist job going on three months. The stimulus package helped us to get medical insurance at a reasonable rate, so that's a plus. It's very stressful and I've been having a difficult time sleeping lately. I'm being optimistic in hoping that the stimulus package will eventually trickle down where my husband will be called back to work.

On to more fun stuff...I've been very busy with quilt meetings as well as working on my projects. I wanted you to know that my Dear Jane quilt top is basted and I am doing the hand quilting. I searched high and low but could not find a quilter or group that could have it ready by September for my guild's quilt show. I'm no where near an obsessive compulsive quilter, so the quilting will not be pretty. However, it will be done and I can say I did it myself! I'll keep you posted as I progress. I am machine quilting the Trip Around The World Quilt. I'll post a photo when it's done. I'm basically quilting this one in the ditch but using one of the decorative stitches. Also, I have the Jitter Buzz quilt with backing made.

I'm in the process of reorganizing my machine embroidery designs and I'm falling in love all over again. I just can't stop. I made a Freedom Tote Bag using designs from BFC Creations, design number 737. I had so much fun and I tried her technique for adding the joining strips. I love the accent strips, just could not get it to be perfect though. By the time it came to sewing the bag to the lining, I converted back to traditional bag making techniques. To get the accent at the top, I folded my lining over at the top. I LOVE my bag! By the way, I made the medium size.

Well, I'm on a roll so I embroidered the Window of USA. This one is also a BFC Creations number 605. This one is really neat in that it's made in what are called tiles (12 each 4" embroideries) that are sewn together to make a panel. There are a few ways to put them together. I chose to satin stitch my panels as I wanted the stitching to look like grout. I now have to figure out if I want to frame it or quilt using traditional methods.

I have a baby shower next week and decided to make Baby Bibs. This one is a dog. The design packet also has elephant, cat, giraffe, bunny, snake, and another one or two that I can't remember at the moment. If you really want to know who this design is by, let me know and I'll look it up. It's 10:00 p.m. and since I've been looking through so many designs, I can't remember who the designer is. Anyway...I decided that I'd only make this one instead of 2 more. Why? It took me 3-1/2 hours to make this "puppy" and I really don't think the mother will want to use it. I've decided to give it to the baby along with more traditional style baby bibs.

I'm sure I could find more to add that I'm blocking at the moment, but as I said earlier, I haven't been sleeping well and I'm exhausted. I hope when I look at this post tomorrow that I don't think it's horrible. Take care and enjoy your quilt making...

-------------------------- Type-u-later, Tea in MO http://www.teaquilts.com

WIP Update and Quilt Retreat

I had a great week! I finished my Underground Railroad Quilt Code quilt just in the nick of time to take to quilt guild meeting Thursday evening. During show and tell I showed 6 quilts this month. I got a few jokes about "do you sleep?" I got a little carried away as I needed a break from working on the Dear Jane quilt. I hope to finish the last triangle and kite this week, and then add the final border. The best part of the weekend was that I attended a quilt retreat organized through my quilt guild. This was our first visit to Mercy Center in Clayton, MO. It was wonderful. The sewing area was very large to accommodate the 36 quilters. Some quilters had their own tables and we were able to have a few tables set up for cutting. Even the 4 ironing areas were accommodated in the room. We had 3 projects for this retreat: The Dump Bag was completed Friday night. This will make a great grocery bag. I pulled fabrics from my stash as I didn't want to purchase new fabrics for this project. The Jitterbuzz quilt was very challenging. The instructor had some problems with the EQ directions and a few sections had inappropriate cutting instructions, templates and quantities. I persevered and finally got the top pieced as I was determined the process would not beat me. I decided to wait to add borders. :0) I was also supposed to make the Magic Trip Around the World quilt but didn't get a chance to cut it while working on the Jitterbuzz quilt. Yesterday I cut it out and sewed this much of it together. I plan to finish the top tonight then audition border fabrics. Another new activity at retreat was that we had a Secret Quilter where each participant bought 4 gifts under $5 and a final gift of around $10. Prior to retreat, the participants completed a small profile like favorite colors, quilt magazine currently subscribed to, hobbies other than quilting, favorite quilt shop, etc. to give the Secret Quilter an idea of things to buy/not to buy. Then, we provided anonymous gifts for 4 meals in brown paper bags that we gave the coordinator when we arrived. The fifth gift we delivered personally, revealing our identities. Here is my loot. It was good fun and I hope you try it at your next guild retreat. We had one over achiever quilter that brought goodies for all 36 quilters. She started making things last April for the big day. Every year Connie makes wonderful gifts for the attendees that she donates. She is very kindhearted and talented. This year's retreat was themed "Valley Girls Buzz" and the committee provided the machine embroidered bee name tag. It is very pretty. Also, they made charms on shrink plastic. The committee was very creative. I hope I haven't bored you this week and that you'll come back soon. -------------------------- Type-u-later, Tea in MO http://www.teaquilts.com

WIP Update - Getting a Lot Done!

I had another busy week filled with quilting. Last Monday I went to embroidery club meeting at a local quilt shop. It's always interesting to see the various projects demoed and show-and-tell. We had a demo of an Origami Bag that I thought was cute. This is my practice bag. I see I have to play with placement of the embroideries in the next one.

I quilted Splat Attic Window and Wonky Hearts. It's great to get these two off the list.

I also quilted Just String Series: All Together Now which had been a UFO since 2007. Now I have a quilt for my office when it's a tad cold.

Another great accomplishment is that I proofed, printed fabric sheets and sewed the backing for my Underground Railroad Quilt Code quilt.

Had a quilting guild/bee meeting on Saturday. On Sunday I went shopping for my batting. I picked up 6 twin batts and 6 yards of Warm 'n Natural batting too. The way I've been quilting, I need to keep my batting stash stocked. They had sale on batting at JoAnn's and Hancock Fabrics.

Hope you are stitching too. -------------------------- Type-u-later, Tea in MO http://www.teaquilts.com