framing

 My house build is progressing well. The last post was of bare land! Much has changed.

That moment when you turn into the street and you see a house!

My view of the sea - enjoy it while it lasts before it is built out!

day 16

My nest. Comfy sofa, hand piecing, crochet, magazines, tv remote, laptop, iPad, cuppa tea, quilt and oh..the crutch, my new best friend. What more could a girl want during a lockdown?

day 4

Time to get the crochet out again. Thank goodness for YouTube that reminds me each year how to crochet - not a skill leaned when I was young. Maybe I could make one or two peggy squares a day? Maybe.

where's you mother when you need her?

When she was 83, I asked my mum to teach me to crochet. I kinda left it a bit late considering the plethora of crochet hats and ponchos fashionable in the 60s. The requirement was to make a crochet blanket for my first grandchild which I diligently achieved. But lately, I've been fantasising about a crochet throw for my sofa. Like I need another blanket? This reminded me of the Granny Square Book I purchased on a whim during that crochet phase. I hunted it out, finding Mum's instruction book tucked inside it. I had hunted for that book when mum passed away last year. Turns out I had it all along.  I chose the flower centre square I would like to use - oh so confident! Then off I went to Knitworld and purchased a selection of the most delicious coloured pure NZ wool ready to begin. But that's where progress ended. The afternoon was spent on the sofa willing myself to remember how on earth to do this? Youtube to the rescue. Gradually the synapses began to connect and it started coming back to me. I'll keep practising the simple granny square for a while before attempting the 'intermediate' flower pattern I fancy. Let's face it, a knitter and a crocheter I am not!

underway!

I am finally underway with quilting my Kaffe Fassett quilt that was finished two years ago and basted last summer! I began with some ditch stiitching - something I have always intensely disliked as it's so hard to do accurately but I invested in a 10D Edge Stitch foot and now ditch stitching is a breeze.
Next I had to do some straight lines - horrors. So I purchased a Hera tool - there seems to be a solution available for every problem! It works well by leaving a crease on the fabric although you need the right light to see the line. Once I get all this precision quilting finished I can move on to the free form stitching which is the part I prefer.

finito!

My daughter bought this huge quilt at a second hand fabric market for $30! She had to finish a few edge bits off but then somehow I ended up with it for quilting. Just stipple as it will be used mostly as a picnic quilt. Yeah ok?
I had gone around maybe 3 1/2 sides - reasonably wide - before acquiring my new machine. So I got it out to practise the new BSR on and voila! it's finished!
The BSR makes quilting much more relaxing. I did not end up all tense and bent sideways trying to get my stitches the same length. And the increased length of the throat, although just a few inches, makes a massive difference moving a large quilt through. I stopped once and did a bit of folding but no clips or fussing to fit it under. Truely the 'dream machine'.

another Kaffe conundrum

I had a very clear and simple image of the quilt I wanted to make with a selection of Kaffe floral prints I have. It was going to be so easy. But Kaffe fabrics never are. These three photos don't look like much but that was a weeks work, deciding on the main background colour and placing the 25 florals. 

Each square will be framed to double it's size and there will be a mixture of plains used. It's the quilt of the front of Kaffe's Quilts in the Sun book, which I don't actually own but...

The idea is to make an 'inside garden'. It will look much better once the blocks are made and spread the prints out but what is it with Kaffe fabrics?? - they promise so much and deliver so much difficulty! I'm always left wondering "do I actually like this?" I can see a little more fiddling needs to happen. 

i spy quilt

The time has come the walrus said... to make an I Spy quilt!
I have to confess to squirrelling away the odd piece of fabric with this in mind over the past 20 years. Time spent with Max recently makes me realise how much he would enjoy such a quilt now that he is beginning to talk.
So I have made a start.  I am making a string quilt, having done a workshop with Sue Western at the Taupo Symposium. It is exciting as there are decisions to be made with every piece of fabric. But it will not be a calm quilt- prepare for busy craziness!!

Busy, busy

Monsters! - Max's dad Toby draws amazing monsters, so I had to have monster fabric. 

knit one purl two

I grew up in the 60s when everyone knitted. Except me. Hated it, refused to learn. Just like crocheting, which I had to get mum to teach me in 2011 so I could crochet a blanket for my then expected grandson. Well Max is 20 months old now and I am knitting him a jersey. First thing I have knitted that requires reading a pattern since I knitted his mother a very cool hooded jacket when she was about his age. That's over thirty years ago. Reading a knitting pattern is like reading another language - and I was never any good at that either. I now remember and appreciate the constant stream of gorgeous home knits my mother produced for my kids, until they weren't cool to wear any longer.
The things an Oma does.

japanese taupes

I bought a book - Japanese Taupe Quilt Blocks. I already have quite a stash of the taupe fabrics. I love the colours and textures. What should I make?

Dealing to the stash

I used to collect fabric. Now I tend to buy what I want for a quilt and have a minimal amount left over. But once there was not that great a selection of fabric around so I tended to stash it. Now I have to store all this fabric! I'm not quite ready to get rid of it but 'using it up' would be a good option.

A holiday project was to deal to the stash so it was tidy and accessible. Some money and a bit of stress later - reorganised if not quite sorted.  I made up a kit-set large cubby-hole shelf (IQ test) and bought a considerable number of hobby boxes.

I'll never take a crochet blanket for granted again...

 

You just don't appreciate how much work goes into these crochet blankets until you make one! I grew up with them and took them very much for granted.  But not any more - and it's only cot size!

I can't knit!

But apparently I can crochet?
There has been a request for a crochet peggy square blanket. Like the 752 on Etsy.
Mum loaned me the how to book and the hook.
I bought wool - very expensive stuff.
I watched the lady on YouTube...replay...replay... (she makes it look easy)
Then I went back to mum's for a lesson.
I have spent all afternoon practising!
Crochet is not easy.

Raggy quilt

These are the flannel fabrics to make a raggy quilt - for a baby due in September.
I hope they pass the pending parents test for suitable colours and patterns for OUR baby.
But...I cannot criticize as I well remember my own aversion to baby blue and pink.