Black and red and a touch of Asian

Check out the stars on this quilt - the red is a shiny satin fabric and it gives a lovely zing to the blacks, whites and greys in the rest of the quilt. I did the ditching on the Gammill classic and then moved it across to the statler for the rest of the quilting.



In each of the star blocks I used a range of 7 different Japanese crests from Legacy Quilting (not too flowery as the quilt is for a 21 year old young man), and I positioned them in the centre of each of the blocks.




Interspersed in the star blocks were 5 other pieced blocks, and I had a little play with some other fillers and Japanese/Asian designs, as well as a couple of trim backgrounds from Anita from Thimbleworks.

In the black sashings, which you can't see very well, are a bamboo design going vertically up the sashings, and then in the horizontal sashes, I used an pumpkin seed design.

I enjoyed all the pattern manipulation with this quilt, and I think it has turned out beautifully.

Enjoy

Belinda

Lots of hearts

This beauty went home the other day... another one which could quite easily have lived in my house...!




It was quilted both on the Statler and freehand, with 2 of Anita's trim fills behind the hearts....

freehand wavy lines and ruled lines in the little checkerboard sashes....

freehand swirly curls and hearts in the four patches and in the purple, and then a leafy heart (called Sweetheart Leaves) in the spotty border, by Anne Bright...

Then in the solid red border I used a design called Romancing Feather Sash (2221), and in the outside red floral border, a design called Romancing Feather Border (2216), both designs by One Song Needle Arts.

Enjoy

Belinda

Roll Roll Cotton Boll quilt

I have been working on this top for months, and yesterday I finally got it finished. It was designed by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville fame and was her mystery quilt over Christmas and New Year 2010/11.

I was over all the blocks and little pieces by the time I had made them all, but once the border went on, it suddenly came alive and now I love the way all the pinks and greens work together.

Sorry this is sideways, but you get the gist.

I had to get it off my floor as the girls are coming to stitch on Wednesday and my room looks like a tip as it is, without having all the blocks and borders all over the floor.

The weather here has been gorgeous, so here are some pics taken in my garden. This first one is taken on our deck looking out towards Ophir. I love that tree in the middle.

Cactus flowers.

Enjoy

Belinda

Mariner's star quilt

I did this quilt a couple of weeks ago, but time has just disappeared and now here we are in the school holidays!

Anyway my partner-in-creative-memories-digital-scrapbooking-crime made this beauty for her husband and he wanted nautical, no flowers or girly things.

I went looking through my stash of patterns and then had to have a look through some designers' pages (as you do), and found some fabulous patterns which would work perfectly.

There are lighthouses, a clipper ship, pelicans, north star, compass rose fish, and some rope -all done on the statler. Then I did some freehand wavy water patterns. I think it came out really well, and looks great.

My boys have finally convinced me that a Nerf gun is not too bad a thing to have around (Ha!), so they now have nerf wars and enlist the aid of some friends from school. Check out the size of the gun on the right - nearly taller than Connor! I have no idea which sort it is, except that they shoot and hide and run around for a bit and then go hunting for their foam bullets.

Enjoy

Belinda

Another beauty....

I'm trying to convince Jane (who owns this beauty) that she should give this quilt to me - or at least adopt me as her cousin! Without much luck though....sigh. She has made this quilt to give to her cousin as a gift.

Anyway it has lots of feathers on it, along with some curved cross hatching to break up the large spaces.

It was made in a class with Lynne Alchin who always has such beautiful designs.

The fabric in this quilt is predominantly French General which I'm also partial to, and the whole effect is just lovely.

Enjoy

Belinda

Baltimore Garden quilt

This beauty went home this week. It is called Baltimore Garden by Ann Langely and Karen at The Stitching Post has it in a kit and patterns (if anyone is interested).

It is entirely freehand quilted with some ditching around and inside the appliqued designs and lots of feathers.

I particularly like the black and white checks - very scrummy.

And this crane is surrounded by jonquils - the view out of my sewing room.

Along with working hard, I have been trying to get a couple of my own quilts made up, but they are both by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville fame, and have a gazillion pieces, so it is taking time to get them all together. I hope to have one done by next week, and that is the Roll Roll Cotton Boll that Bonnie ran as a mystery late last year, over Christmas and New Year. Its only taken me 9 months to get it done.

Anyway, enjoy

Belinda

Hexies and a finish

Check out this beauty - I think they are 1/2 inch hexies, and the graduation of colours is quite lovely. It took me a while to see the rings when I was quilting it, but you can see them quite clearly in these photos. It was completed in a class with Lynne Alchin.

This is the back......

I quilted it using both the Classic and the Statler. The swirly designs in the centre and the corners are a design by One Song Needle Arts (from the Dogwood design series), and then the fill is freehand pebbling.

The outside border is half inch parallel lines.

My finish this week is a SAL I have been doing with The Stitch Specialists yahoo group and is called the Tree of Stitches designed by Abi Gurden.

Each of the colours is a different stitch and there are some beads in amongst them. And an owl in the middle. Very cute and I found it very enjoyable to do. I haven't done a lot of specialty stitching, but this was a good way to learn new stitches without being overwhelmed by a huge project. Thanks Abi.

And this morning young Hazza competed in a ten pin bowling tournament in town and managed to pick up a second in the handicap second. He played a really good third game and this brought h is scores up. Next weekend is another tournament which he is competing in. This is all in preparation for the Nationals over Easter next year, so the more tournaments he competes in now, hopefully he will cope with the size of the Nationals.

Enjoy

Belinda