BritQuilt Swap Arrived Today

I had a wonderful parcel in the post today, a quilt from my secret partner in the BritQuilt Swap.  Wow, thank you Ethne, I am absolutely over the moon with the gorgeous quilt you made for me and all the lovely goodies you included in the parcel.  During the swap we have been posting "work in progress" pictures on Flickr and I have to admit to coveting this quilt but I never dared to expect that it would be for me.  When Ethne posted a picture of the quilt all finished I commented,
"This is absolutely gorgeous and I have just the right place for it in my little house, I wish! Beautiful stitching and such a great palette and design, all yummy."

Here is "Tranquillity" already hanging in my house, it's in my guest bedroom which has a Japanese theme so it fits in beautifully.
I've taken some close up pictures so that you can appreciate the wonderful quilting that Ethne has done, in fact DH was with me when I opened the parcel and he immediately exclaimed, "Now that's what you call quilting".  Ethne has painted with the thread to create wonderful texture and movement in the picture, clever girl.

 Here's the lovely label that Ethne printed for the quilt:

Here are the extras that Ethne so kindly included with the quilt, chocolate, mmmm gorgeous (but DH saw it in the parcel so I will have to share) and these wonderful fabrics that she dyed including the shibori piece.  I am planning to do something very special with that.

I am delighted with my side of this swap and I've just read on Judith's blog that she has received the quilt I made for her and is also pleased, phew!  Many thanks to all the organisers.  If you're a Brit quilter why not join the Flickr group now and be ready for the next swap?  Thanks to Teresa for getting me into this.  Have a great weekend everybody.

Out of this World - BritQuilt Swap done!

My quilt for the first BritQuilt Swap is all parcelled up and ready to go in the post tomorrow.  As you know this has been an interesting challenge for me.  Lime and purple are not really "my" colours but my partner likes colour and so I was happy to give it a go.  I enjoyed foundation piecing the background cloth and then going a bit mad with the embroidery stitches, beads and buttons to decorate the quilt.  It grew out of a postcard swap I did to represent the piece of music by Gustav Holst called The Planets Suite and so I've called the quilt, "Out of this World". (It's much more square than it looks by the way)  Here are some close-ups of the details:

Today I received this most wonderful quilt, from Plum.  She offered it as a giveaway on her blog after making it in a stay at home round robin and I was the lucky person who has it to stay at my home.  I've taken a few photos to show some of the lovely detail.  Look at that little girl and the hill she has to climb, it speaks to me.  Thank you Plum.

I had a very excited phone call from DD this morning to say she's got flowers on her French beans.  She is so enthusiastic about her new garden and I'm delighted that she's having success.  To be able to go and harvest something you've grown and then eat it is one of life's sweetest pleasures.  She's blogged about her gardening here and is doing a happy dance!
I'm doing a happy dance too as I had a meeting with Tina today (I met her at the Quilters' Guild AGM in Exeter in April and discovered we live about six miles from one another) and we are going to start a new quilting group in Sibsey in Lincolnshire.  The first meeting is going to be on Tuesday 20th September so please email me if you're local and interested.  All the quilt groups nearby are full and have membership waiting lists and so we hope there is room for another group.  It's early days of course but we have lots of ideas for workshops and activities.  We're hoping to have a trader at our first meeting, and cake!

Twin Needle Tutorial and More

Many of you have asked me to share the twin needle method of attaching bias tape.  This was taught to us at the "Vistas of Japan" workshop by Gail Lawther.  In her books and pattern packs she shares some ideas for attaching the bias tape with ordinary stitching and also with decorative embroidery stitches.

• Twin needles are available in a variety of widths and the important thing is to get the right width for the bias tape you'll be using.  With Gail we used quarter inch fusible bias tape (from Clover) and a 4/80 twin needle and stitched with a very small zigzag.  This created a pleasing slightly raised faux trapunto effect. 

Looking on the internet I've found there are also twin needles available for using with metallic threads - this could be a whole new area of experimentation!

• The twin needle goes in your machine just like an ordinary needle and then you need two reels of cotton of the same colour and weight (or of different colours of course, more room for experimentation).  Most machines have additional spool pins for this but if your doesn't wind two bobbins with thread and put them on your spool pin with the threads going in opposite directions.  

• Thread the machine almost as usual, check your manual.  With mine I need to omit the last thread guide with one thread.  With some machines it is possible to thread either side of the tension discs. 

•  Use a presser foot that allows you to see where you're going!  My machine says use the plastic T foot. 

• Then carefully try the machine out, not by pressing the foot pedal but rather by gently turning the handle.  If nothing crunches you're good to go - on a practice piece first.

Gail's method sounds remarkably straightforward but I think we were all terrified of it.  However, it turned out to be remarkably straightforward!
Now straight is the keyword here, applying the bias tape in curved lines is what is naturally wants to do, being bias tape. 
Applying it straight takes a bit of practice -

• press with the tip of the iron at the beginning and then at the end of the line you're following and then press between those points.  

Sewing round corners is a whole new skill.  Applying the tape with the iron is fun, it turns corners rather neatly, but twin needles don't pivot! 

• When you reach a fold (and make sure you are sewing so that the folds have their "back" to the needle so that the presser foot doesn't nestle in the fold), 

stop and raise the needle.  Then turn your work a little, keeping the needle on the inner side of the turn in the same place,

then take another stitch and repeat until you're on the straight again.  Gail described it as being like those marching bands at tattoos where the people on the outside end of the line have to run while those at the inside end just march on the spot and the whole line revolves.  Does that help?

Practise and have fun, I think this stained glass method could be appearing quite a lot in my work. 
Thanks Gail.
Clover fusible bias tape is a horrific price in UK.  You can make you own (yeah right) or you can get a friend who's visiting USA to bring some back.  I'm trying to find a reasonably priced source....any suggestions?

I also want to show off my lovely cherry blossoms that I've added to my Mount Fuji quiltlet.

The flowers are a development of the Suffolk Puff (or yo-yo as it's now commonly called) with the puff pulled in towards the centre several times and then a scattering of beads added in the middle, cute eh?  This quilt is nearly all done now (I hope I'll get it backed and bound at quilting group on Friday) and I'm pleased with it.  I'm intending to make another of Gail's patterns in the Japanese series, possibly the Japanese Sand Garden.

British P&Q magazine have recently started a blog and are planning to have some special quilty goodness in cyberspace.  There will be blog buttons for all those talented bloggers out there who produce such wonderful material that is featured in the magazine....that's you Lynne and you Trudi....wow I have such star connections, or who blog about articles they have liked or prizes they have won. There'll be some special blog giveaways - please spread the word and watch this space! Look out in the magazine too for hints when you need to check out the FB page!

Finally for today, here's the quilt I'm making for the BritQuilt Swap - I hope this will be finished on Friday too, it's due in the post at the beginning of July.  It has been very interesting for me to work with these fabrics which aren't "mine" at all but I have had some praise for the quiltlet and hope my partner in the swap will like it (or at least be kind).

That's all for today, I'm off to watch Wimbledon.

Africa? China? No, just sunshine in Norfolk, England

The African Fabric Shop came on safari to deepest Norfolk today and so DH took me to visit them and I treated him to a delicious piece of cake to say thank you.  I wonder why quilting, fabric buying and yummy cake are such a good combination?
Also on safari was Sally Chang's Chinese textiles.  There was a wonderful selection of Chinese brocades and lots of indigo dyed pieces using both shibori style tying and stitching and a batik style resist dyeing using bean paste.  My purse just flew open of course and I got straight to work on this little runner when I got back this afternoon.  Here it is in situ

and here's a flat shot.  Sally doesn't seem to have a website but her email address is sally.warb at yahoo.co.uk

Once the sewing machine was warmed up I got going on this piece which is for the Brit Quilt Swap.  The colours are right out of my usual choices but I'm enjoying working with them.  I started with just the limes and purples but then I found the Amy Butler for Rowan "Peacock Feathers" fabric and it seems to bring everything together.  So far I've used foundation piecing to create this striped background cloth for the quilt.

I'm going to be adding this batik and also some handquilting and possibly some beady madness too, I'll see how it pans out but I just have a message for my secret swap partner who I hope is reading this:

After this weekend it will be too late to tell me you hate lime and purple!  Shout now if you don't like what I'm doing.
I hope that wherever you are you're having a great weekend - we have amazing sunshine here, I was actually out in my cossie yesterday, covered in high factor cream and feeling as if I had been mysteriously transported overseas, bliss.

Now what have I got myself into?

I'm finally out of bed and up and about now, although still taking it carefully after a nasty M.E. flare up.  It was particularly annoying as my quilting guru, Teresa, has been here with her DH for the week and I had all sorts of quilty outings planned.  Never mind, we did make it to the LQS, Camelot Crafts, and were very amused to see our respective other halves head for the tools display before enjoying a nice cup of tea courtesy of lovely owner, Wendy.

We've had time to chat and plan and I seem to have got myself into one or two projects!
Come and Join "Brit Quilt"

Lynne at Lily's Quilts has done what we've all been waiting for - UK quilters now have an online place to meet, get to know each other, chat and show off what they're working on.  The first project is going to be a Brit mini quilt swap but firstly we're getting to know each other.  No offence to all you lovely quilters in the rest of the world but it's nice to think we might actually meet up with a fellow BritQuilter at a local show or in the LQS.
The group is for any quilters living in Britain, long or short term.  So click here and go and join, add the button to your blog and spread the word amongst any UK quilters you come across in your blogland, flickrland, facebook, twitter or real life travels.  Look forward to seeing you there.

While I was at it I've signed up for a Charley Harper quiltalong at Ethne's blog.
Charley Who?  That  was my first reaction when Teresa mentioned it but fortunately she was armed with books illustrating his wonderful work and so I was inspired.  There's no time limit on this one and it's just for you, no swapping, and maybe an opportunity to get to know this artist and explore a new style.  More details http://flamingstitches.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-wait.html and follow Ethne's posts forward for lots of inspiring pictures and a button for your blog.  I'll share the process on here but at the moment I'm just enjoying the designs and trying to decide which one inspires me the most.

Do you think technology has taken over our lives?
Thank you very much to Plum who sent me a lovely fabric postcard with her best wishes to me while I was feeling so unwell.  I've sent healing hearts etc to others in the past but this is the first time I've been a recipient.  Golly, it made me feel good, loved and cared about, so thank you Plum and, knowing how much I appreciated your kindness, you have inspired me to make sure I send even more quilty thoughts to those in need of them.

Also in the post I've recently received a lovely goody bag from Joan, my partner in the Global Piecers recent mug rug swap and above you can see that mug rug, mug carrier and other bits that I sent to Sal.  We don't use mug carriers very often but in US and NZ they use them to take their own mugs to workshops and classes.  I suppose our meetings are often in church and community halls that have their own kitchens and equipment.  It would save on all that washing up though!  
I have finally got back to stitching and completed the Patchwork in Perspective quilt top that I started in Exeter with Lynne Edwards in April.  I'm quite pleased with it and am looking forward to hand quilting it with a simple shadow quilting design so I don't distract from the geometry.

Time to start catching up with all your lovely blogs now...