Quilting and Stuff by Knitnoid

Author Archives: Pam

I made my first quilted item as a visual aid for a math project in 7th grade. Over the next 25 years quilting was hit or miss, but quilting took over all the other crafts I've done in 2003.

What to do with Tiny HST

January 9, 2010 2:28 pm ⋅

When making Carolina Christmas and Oklahoma Backroads you can either toss the triangles trimmed from the blocks, or you can sew an extra seam and have tiny (finish at 1 1/2″) half square triangle (HST) units.    I picked the latter and have a shoe box full of them.

But what to do with them?  One suggestion was to make an Ocean Waves quilt – which is also on Bonnie Hunter’s website Quiltville.com. However, since half of my squares are pink and white and the other half are simply light and dark, I can’t visualize my pieces as an Ocean Waves quilt. So, I keep tossing my HST into the box waiting for inspiration to strike.

Then this morning while I was looking for something on Quilter’s Cache I found my inspiration. The Depression Block.

This is what I came up with in EQ. I think I’ve found my next new quilt project.

Posted in: Quilts

Let’s Hear It for Knee Pads

January 8, 2010 11:42 pm ⋅

The thing I like least in the quilting process, is crawling around on the floor squaring quilts up. It’s not the squaring up, but rather the crawling around.  It just hurts my knees.  This is especially true now that I pulled the carpet up in my studio to expose the hardwood floors.  We won’t even talk about working on tile over concrete.  After I came home from last spring’s quilt retreat where I squared up and attached borders to 3 quilts, I decided I had no choice but to find some knee pads.  I found these in our garage.  I’m not sure why we bought them, but they now live in my studio.

Why is this pertinent? Before I could measure for the borders I had to square up Ladder to the Stars.  The quilt is now square, and the millions of strips cut for the borders.  OK, it’s only 32 strips the width of the fabric and 4 strips the length of the fabric, but it seems like millions now that I’m sewing them together.  I stopped after one set to verify that I have the proportions correct, although I probably should have done that BEFORE I cut all the strips. Here it is with one strip set folded to miter around the corner.

I think it is going to work.  I’ll see how far I get with the strip sets, but I doubt I’ll try to attach them to the quilt tonight.

Posted in: Ladder to the Stars

Wind-Up for the Weekend

January 8, 2010 8:23 am ⋅

Tamara is hosting Wind-Up for the Weekend.  It’s a chance to show what you are planning to work on over the weekend.  The first thing I’m planning on doing is trying to stay warm.  They are predicting -20 degrees farenheit plus wind chill overnight.  At least I won’t be watching over goats in the cold.

On to the quilting.  Ladder to the Stars needs borders.  No hurry on this, just that I posted I would do it by the end of the month, but before I started basting my quilts.  Both the DWR and music quilt need basting so I can start quilting them.  I would like to have the music quilt finished so I can take it to the guild meeting on the 18th.  The DWR needs basted so I can start quilting – I want to get 4 rings done by the end of the month.

Check back to see what I get done.

Posted in: Wind-Up

Borders or Basting

January 8, 2010 12:02 am ⋅

The SBS BOW is done and the swap blocks for both January and February are done, so if I follow Wednesday’s plan, it’s time to tackle the border on Ladder to the Stars.  The only problem with that plan is I’m itching to start the quilting on both the DWR and the music quilt.

It’s late, so we’ll see what tomorrow brings — besides blowing snow and freezing weather.

Posted in: block swaps

SBS Block Due 1/10

January 6, 2010 6:05 pm ⋅

Last night I threw up my hands in frustration.  I’ve worked with 45 degree diamonds before so I wasn’t expecting any issues. Ha!

First off the centers didn’t match — honestly, that was to be expected. So I ripped and started sewing again.  The centers matched beautifully.  That’s when I noticed I had yellow points instead of a red and blue point.  Eventually, I ripped again and re-sewed.   This time all was good.  We won’t discuss the setting triangles and squares.  Nearly all of my previous diamonds were appliquéd (there’s that word again) to the background.

I sent an e-mail to the SBS list and then Mary posted here that she was now concerned about making the block.  Truly, the diamonds are easy so I’m going to show a brief photo tutorial on how I made them.  It may not make sense if you don’t have the book.

#1 – after sewing the two strips sets, cut the strips as directed, making sure the colors are oriented the same way and the angles are a like.

#2 – Flip the diamond piece on the right so they are oriented correctly.

#3 – flip the piece on the right over on top of the piece on the left.  Make sure the “v” forms at 1/4″.  This is the seam allowance.

#4 – This is a trick I picked up along the way.  I’ve drawn my needle line and 1/4″ either side of it on a straight piece of cardboard and taped it to my sewing machine.  There are notions out there you can buy (and I have some of them — not that I can find them when I need them).

#5 Line up the top  “v” with the needle and the bottom “v” with the line on the guide.  Stitch the seam.

#6 – Open up the diamond.  I promise there are no camera tricks here and I didn’t re-stitch it.

When I work with larger diamonds I pin, but I was finding that pinning on these tiny pieces was causing part of the problem.  Hope this helps someone.

Posted in: SBS, tutorial

QA Wednesday

January 6, 2010 7:30 am ⋅

Quilting Accountability.

Over the weekend I worked on Carolina Christmas and got through the first part of step 4.  At that point I needed to cut more fabric, and if I did, I would continue to work on it when I really needed to finish the DWR so I can start the hand quilting.  So, I temporarily set aside Carolina Christmas, and finished up my DWR piecing last night.

I’m participating the Sylvia’s Bridal Sampler BOW, so I will finish piecing this week’s block and a couple of swap blocks before tackling the borders on Ladder to the Stars.  I continue to work on Oklahoma Backroads as my leader/ender.

It is my intention to sandwich both the DWR and the Music Quilt this weekend so I can start quilting them next week.  As long as my wrists holds out I’ll spend 30 minutes each day on the DWR.  I expect the music quilt will take me several evenings to machine quilt.

Thanks Bari for starting the Accountability Challenge.

Posted in: goals

Shout it from the Roof Tops!

January 5, 2010 7:11 pm ⋅


I just put the last seam into my Double Wedding Ring — the one I bought the fabric for on September 13, 1989. Click here to read about my progress this summer on the quilt top and about when I started this quilt.

Now it’s on to the next phase — Quilting! It’s my goal to have this on my bed by the end of November this year. Stay tuned for progress on the hand quilting, and hope my wrist doesn’t give out before I get it done.

P.S. Yes, this is the same picture I posted in November when I checked to see if I needed to make it bigger — but I promise all 3-patches and 2-patches along the edge are stitched together.

Posted in: dwr

Making Progress

January 5, 2010 12:05 pm ⋅


The 4-patches I seamed Sunday evening went together easily with a 3/8″ seam. No issues. For the most part, the 3-patches on the outer edge are going together just as easily, also with a 3/8″ seam. I suspect, on the 4-patches which gave me so much trouble which were from the older part of the quilt, as I’ve run into a couple along the edge of the quilt. I can easily tell the older parts of the quilt from the new from the thread color. Burgundy is really old (20 years), navy can either be really old or simply just old (5+). The piecing from this past summer is done in gray thread. I switched to mostly piecing in gray thread 4 or 5 years ago.

After I stopped piecing for the evening, I counted what was left. 10 3-patches. So, I’m really close to having this pieced. Maybe tonight?

Posted in: dwr

What’s On My Design Wall

January 4, 2010 7:00 am ⋅

Today, it’s really “What’s on my Sewing Table?”  Yesterday after getting something to drink, reading several chapters in my book, cooking dinner, doing a couple of loads of laundry and shoveling snow, I sat down at my sewing machine to get tough with myself.

I won’t say the 4-patches are perfect, but then that can be said about the entire quilt top, but they are done.  Now, on to the 3-patches along the outer edge of the quilt.   I’ve done one side, so I think there’s 18 left to do, plus one corner 2-patch.

Check out other design walls by visiting Judy at Patchwork Times.

Posted in: designwall, dwr

Three Days into the New Year and Procrastination Has Started

January 3, 2010 2:52 pm ⋅


It’s only January 3rd, and I’ve already started procrastinating — and I’m not talking about the laundry or other housework — that’s ongoing. I’m referring to getting those last few seams done on the Double Wedding Ring or putting borders on Ladder to the Stars.

I’ve finished the HSTs for Carolina Christmas Part 4. I don’t have the 2 1/2″ squares cut that are needed to finish this part. To help combat the procrastination, I’m not going to cut them until I finish the DWR top. There’s only 9 4-patches, 23 3-patches and 2 2-patches to finish seaming (see, anything to avoid working on it).  I think I’ve narrowed it down to 3 things.

  1. I’ve worked on this quilt on and off (mostly off) for 20 years and it will be sad in some ways to see the top finished — never mind that I’ll finally get to start quilting on it.
  2. I made the mistake of putting it on the bed before I finished those 4-patches to see if I need to make it bigger. As a result I’ve “seen” the finished top and I’m ready to move on.
  3. I’m not able to simply use a 1/4″ seam.  Each seam has to be measured to see what is going to best work for the particular patch I’m working on.

Truth be told, it’s # 3 which is really holding me back.

As for why Ladder to the Stars is not getting done it’s because if I work on that, I’m not working on the DWR.  Anyone see a theme here other than me?

Well, I said the DWR is # 1 on my Accountability Challenge so I that will be what I work on next.  Right after I get something to drink, read a chapter or two in my current book and perhaps shoveling some snow off the driveway.

Oh , I’ve got a problem.

Posted in: Carolina Christmas, dwr, goals