Quilting and Stuff by Knitnoid

QA Wednesday

January 13, 2010 8:14 am ⋅

Quilting Accountability.

Last week the goals were get the borders on Ladder to the Stars – http://knitnoid.wordpress.com/2010/01/10/stash-report-4/.

Piece the weekly Sylvia’s Bridal Sampler Blocks – Done.

Start machine quilting the Music Quilt – 1/4 of the way through.

Start hand quilting the Double Wedding Ring, 30 minutes – 1 hour in so far this week.

In the next 7 days, I want to finish the Music Quilt, and get in 3 1/2 hours of quilting on the DWR.  This week’s SBS BOW is already finished, but there will be a new one next week.  After the music quilt is done, I’ll finish up Step 4 of Carolina Christmas.

Thanks Bari for starting the Accountability Challenge.QA

Posted in: goals

The Quilting Has Begun

January 12, 2010 12:34 am ⋅

After a bit of running around this evening, I finally sat down and started quilting.  The top half of the photo is the music quilt.  I’m doing simple straight line quilting using the star points as guides.  It turns out I have to mark one side of the star, but I can use the guide on my walking foot for the second side of the star.    This is a large quilt (roughly 87 x 102) so I’m having to wrestle it a bit.  Hopefully there won’t be any running around Tuesday night and I can get more done on the quilt.

The bottom half is the hand quilting I was able to do in 30 minutes.  Actually, it is probably only 20 or 25 minutes as I’m watching M*A*S*H on DVDs and using it as my timer. I need to check to see how long each episode is and maybe “watch” two episodes and include my marking in the time.

Posted in: dwr, hand quilting, music quilt

SBS Block Due 1/17

January 11, 2010 7:39 pm ⋅


C5 – Lady of the Lake

This is a paper pieced block. When I saw the announcement this morning I thought it would be quick. What I failed to remember is that these tiny 6″ block take as long if not longer than a 12″ block. I’m off to work on the music quilt now.

Posted in: SBS

Batting and Basting Pass Quality Control

January 11, 2010 5:15 pm ⋅


After finishing the basting last night on my DWR and loading it into the frame, I carefully folded up the excess off the back of the frame and propped it on a crate. The excess to the side I flipped onto the frame.

But this did not prevent Seven from doing her job as Quality Control Cat. She must like the Quilters Dream Cotton Request that I’m using and she appears to have no issues with the way I basted the quilt.

I think I’m going to look for a couple more sets of bicycle pants clips….

Posted in: QCC, Seven

What’s On My Design Wall

January 11, 2010 1:09 am ⋅

Technically, I still have Ladders to the Stars hanging on my design wall.  However, for this week’s report I’m showing that I’ve gotten my Double Wedding Ring into the frame.

I basted with a combination of basting spray and #1 pins.  There are spots which simply don’t lay flat.  This was never intended to be a show quilt, so I’m OK with that.  Or maybe I simply want it done, so I’m willing to over look things.  Either way, I plan on starting the quilting this evening.  My plan is to spend 30 minutes a day on this quilt.

The music quilt is up next.I’ll baste it tonight so I can start the machine quilting.  I’d like to have it finished by next week, to take to the guild meeting but I’m beginning to wonder if I’ll get it done.  Saturday is my nephew’s wedding to no quilting then, but I’ll have all day Monday instead to work on it.  Of course the Sylvia’s Bridal Sampler BOW will be announced.  I’ll need to get that worked in by Sunday night.  I’m thinking something is not going to get done.

This will be especially true if I spend much time checking out other quilters’s design walls by following the links over at Patchwork Times.

Posted in: designwall, dwr

Stash Report

January 10, 2010 3:04 am ⋅


After what seems like months of me saying I’m going to put the borders on Ladder to the Stars, I’m happy to report that they are done! In addition to this top, I made 4 swap blocks, a SBS block and 100 pickets for Oklahoma Backroads. All had fabric I can count in this week’s report.

There was no fabric in, and I spent an hour in a quilt shop. Admittedly signing up for the UFQ Program — UnFinished Quilts. I’ve picked 5 quilts that I want to make significant progress on — 4 are to be completed and bound, the 5th on I’m just aiming to get the top complete.

Here are the totals:

Fabric Added this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Added to Date: 0.25 yards

Fabric Used this Week: 3.664 yards
Fabric Used to Date: 9.59 yards

Net Stash for 2010: -9.09 yards

Check out other stash reports over at Patchwork Times.

Posted in: Ladder to the Stars, Stash Busting Report

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