Block #6 Hand Pieced Quilt Along

Here we are in week six of the quilt a long!  I love how just turning this block can make it look so different!  I have started thinking about how I will set my blocks.  I am leaning toward an on point setting but time will tell!

Slow Piecing!

I can't believe another week has passed. Sometimes I wonder where the time goes.  Reflecting back over the week I do realize I got quite a few things done.  I first tackled my king size medallion quilt. It needed a border, fabric was ordered, and this week I was able to cut the border and get it sewn on.  This will be added to the line up of quilts that need to be quilted.

I also pulled out my version of the trailing vines quilt. It took me a while to applique the five strips But I think it took me longer to decide on what color I wanted to use as the alternate fabric.  Pink was used in the original quilt made by Susan Mc Cord.  I thought I would use a green as it's my favorite but after lots and lots and lots of shopping I decided it needed to be pink.  Then there was lots and lots of more shopping to find a shade of pink that would work for the quilt and my taste.  My version of the quilt will be a strippy quilt. So, I cut the alternate strips this week.  Hopefully it will turn into a top next week and join the others waiting to be quilted. I have always loved finishing quilts more than starting them. Although, these are not finished getting them to this point is like reaching the summit of a mountain, it's down hill from here. The quilting is thrilling and my favorite part of making a quilt.

Each eveing this week I have spent a bit of time hand piecing my HST's.  I have over 100 completed so far.  I kitted up my box with 100 more to take with me on vacation the second week in March. Since we are driving, I will have time to stitch here and there. Today I will linking up with Slow Stitching Sunday and visiting other bloggers to see their slow stitching progress as I hand piece a few more HST's. 

Block #5 Hand pieced quilt a long

Block # 5 was a whole lot of fun to stitch!  I can't believe in all my years of quilting I have never made a Ohio Star block!  Since these blocks stitch up in an evening, I have continued with hand piecing some HST's for a future quilt, more about that later.........

A new beginning!

Although finishing a quilt is exciting and sometimes daunting as you have to let go, it does mean there is time for dreaming and new beginnings.  That is just what happened at my house this week.  I was inspiried by a couple of bloggers Quilting in the Past II and Frameless Mind. They inspired each other to make a quilt of half square triangles.  I was looking for something to use up some scraps and something I could stitch in the evenings.  Of course, if you follow my blog you know I like old quilts and their quilts gave me that sense.  So, it wasn't long and I started cutting out my pieces.  I have so enjoyed the Hand Pieced Quilt Along that I decided yes.  I am going to hand piece this one. So after cutting my pieces I mark my seam lines and start stitching.

I have come to the point in my quilting journey that it's not so much about a new pattern that inspires me but the time I give myself each day to sit and stitch.  I have found over the last couple of years I throughly enjoy hand piecing.  It was my dream years ago to make a quilt totally by hand, now that I know I can, and I enjoy it, it's the path I have chosen. This was my progress this week! I am looking forward to stitching and dreaming about how I will set my HST's.

Hand Pieced- a Quilt a Long Week 4

Well, hand piecing a block a week for this quilt a long has not been stressful at all. I like to sit in the evening after a busy day and hand stitch. It's so very relaxing and would be hard to explain to someone who has never done it.  I think the repetition of the needle moving up and down thru the fabric gives us time to let our mind wander and relax from all the other thoughts that are usually flowing thru our busy heads. Maybe it's a bit like the deep breathing we do when we meditate or do yoga.

 I made so many of these by machine for my king size quilt, but I still enjoy the simplicity of this block.  Well, we are almost to the half way point on this quilt a long.  I am looking forward to the day I can start hand quilting it!

A Finish

I made great strides this week in the sewing room. I finished quilting stars,stars and more stars. Once the quilting is completed  I can't wait to make binding and to stitch  it down..  Finishes are so wonderful!  I am pleased with this quilt and can now say I can machine stitch y seams with the best.  I sometimes wonder why I keep starting a new quilt and have come to the conclusion it's learning something new that intriques me!  There are endless techniques and patterns which makes it such a wonderful craft. 

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Motivation!

With a nice week of weather here in Texas, I have been motivated to get some quilting done.  I was able to finish hand quilting my Stars, Stars, and More Stars quilt.  It sure was a fun quilt to quilt. The big stitching really helped to get it done quickly.  It's not a large quilt, lap size approximately 68x78.

 I found a piece of barn red, rust colored fabric in my stash that is large enough to make the binding.  I am always happy when I can find something in my stash that will work.

So, finishing the quilting motivated me to get my medallion off the floor in our front room. It's been layed out there in nine sections for over a month.  So close to being a top and then ignored. Well, I have to admit I despise the long seams that are needed to stitch  it together.  But this Tuesday I started stitching together sections and by Wednesday morning I only had the last two seams to stitch to bring the three sections together.  So I woke up early had a cup of coffee and headed to the sewing room and got it done.  It really wasn't so bad and with all the trimming I did to make these blocks all the same size it really went together very easily.  I laid it out on my bed to see how much of a border I will need.  Looks like five inches is plenty so I will order fabric so that that top will be ready in fall to be quilted.  It's a king size quilt so it should keep me plenty busy next winter.

Next I needed to get my hand pieced block made for the Hand Pieced-a quilt along. This is block number three.  It is made up of eight flying geese.  So I am using the stitch and flip method.  I have used this method when machine piecing but never hand piecing.   It's funny how I marked my seams on my stars stars and more stars quilt as would when hand piecing, and now I am using a method that machine quilters have used for quite some time. As I am getting older I find holding very small pieces really bothers my hands and this method really helped.
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