Quilting New Year's Resolutions for 2015???

[Dawn S.]

Louis and Dawn!

I was gifted a couching foot last year and hope to try it soon. I'll make sure to have chocolates and a good bottle of wine in the studio to help celebrate the grand occasion.

Cheers
Jeanine

[Lois B.]

About that glass of wine I am holding. It was to toast Lorchen's 60th birthday. That was a few years ago at this point. I've ordered a couching foot for my machine too. It's to arrive Monday. Sounds like I may need to refill that glass. It's about time. Hopefully the foot will arrive for me to accomplish my "Inspired by Libby Challenge" that we are doing over on the CW Thread. Anyone is welcome to join. Speaking of that challenge I am going to be having a housefull of company for a bit of time over the next week. I may post late.

[wendy w.]

Ooh look forward to seeing it

[wendy w.]

I get the hint, ladies. Time for chocolate! Let's share!

I think I really need some chocolate because I am doing a quilt that I started in a QAL (Quilt-Along) and getting so mixed up with it, ripping out twice (patiently - honest!) and now I think I have to change my colour placement again! Trying to find a pic without all the cutting instructions included. Unless you want that pic?

[wendy w.]

Nom, nom, nom, dark chocolate my favourite.

Just back from a day with my branch and the Ryedale branch of the Embroiderer's Guild. we had great fun. This morning was using transfer crayons on paper that you then iron onto synthetic fabric, just playing for playing's sake, wasn't very good at that. and this afternoon was a small piece of stumpwork - a holly leaf & berries. What is really great is that Izzy wants to join EG as a Young Embroiderer, and the rest of the branch (all 8 of them, we are the smallest branch in the Guild), bless them, are quite happy for her to join us adults, as she is the only one of her age group in the area. She came too today and did much better at the playing with crayons than me :P . Bucked her up no end, being better than Mummy at something.

By the way our branch is Hull & East Riding Branch, which spells HERB. Which makes Izzy HERB-YE :woohoo: :lol: (go on say it out aloud). The rest of the members sniggered when I pointed this out to them. Izzy just looked :angry: and started tapping her foot. :lol:

So now she is into my embroidery thread stash....

[Geneva C.]

Well, couching feet are much easier to use than FMQ! At least for me! All you do is thread the threads/yarns through the foot and sew. I will take a picture next time I do it.

BTW, I took my mom to the local quilt show today and found that "The Doors" has won the "Youth Award." I haven't a clue what the youth award is, but I've decided that it has knocked 20 years off my age. (Maybe 25!) When I go to pick up the quilts today I will ask about it. Maybe it's something to do with crouching while couching? :lol:

geneva

[Nancy R.]

Congratulations, Geneva! Well deserved!! I think it got the youth award because it makes you feel happy and young to look at it!!

How wonderful, Rosemary, to have Izzy wanting to join you in your embroidery! It's so great to pass along those skills and be able to enjoy an activity like that with your daughter.

[Lois B.]

Congratulations on the award, Geneva. And Rosemary, I am jealous. I'd be so happy to have a daughter that would want to stitch with me. Still working on the grandnieces. Someone in this family of mine should want to sew.

[Lois B.]

Geneva, Congratulations on your quilting award. It was well deserved and you do look younger!

Rosemary, it must be fun to have your daughter interested in something you enjoy. Great way to make lasting memories. My daughter has never been so inclined but her six year old son likes to sew with Grandma and that is fun.

Judy

[Dawn S.]

Geneva, congrats on the award! I am so glad you have found the fountain of youth! Be sure to let us know what that is all about! :huh:

Rosemary, that is so cool! I have one daughter who started quilting when I did, and she has become a wonderful sewist, even while using my old, old 730 Bernina, that I handed down to her many many years ago. She occasionally calls with a sewing question, and I am more than happy to share with her!

Yeah, couching is easy, and I can handle FMQ, but I could have sworn the gal at the store said my new machine will do free motion couching. I need to ask her about that again, and have her show me! Otherwise, what's the difference between that and bobbin work, other than the side of your project that you are working on?

And, thanks for the link to all of those wonderful mug rugs! Since I didn't have the opportunity to get on TQS much in the last 6 months, it was fun to see what you all have been up to!

Dawn
in beautiful Northwest Montana

[Nancy R.]

On my Bernina, free motion couching is done with a special foot. You can see Libby demonstrate it in her video, towards the end between couching with free-motion zig zag and bobbin work. It's pretty slick and nice to be working from the top, but, as she mentions, is a bit finicky since what you are couching needs to fit into the hole in the foot just right.

[Geneva C.]

I think I showed you all this bed quilt I made last winter. It's for the back guest room. I used Kaffe Fassett fabrics and had it long arm quilted by my new BFF here in the tri cities. She did a great job. Anyway, I had some left over half square triangles so tried out the magic pin wheel pattern on Missouri Star. It was fun. I made 2 pillows out of those magic pin wheels. I made matching piping which was fun and tedious. When you make the magic pinwheels you end up with leftover smaller half square triangles. So I used some of them to make a neck roll pillow. I must thank TQS and Jacqueline de Jonge for teaching me how to sew a rectangle into a circle. It went very smoothly. I love how I learn something, then later I come up with another project and think "hey, that technique so and so taught me will work for this!" Alas, I still have a few small and big half square triangles left. Maybe a mug rug?








I hope everyone is finally getting some spring weather. We are!

geneva

[Lois B.]

Your bright colors make me feel as if spring is here. Your bedroom is just lovely! Nice job. Thanks for sharing.

[Dawn S.]

Very bright and cheery, Geneva! I like the simplicity of the large HSTs for the bedspread, used in a very creative design! Shows me that a design doesn't have to be complex to be appealing! Is it a pattern, or did you design it?

Dawn
In beautiful Northwest Montana

[Dawn S.]

Wow Geneva,

What a bright and cheerful guest room. Anyone would be lucky to spend the night there.

Judy