Another Alturas Update and a Request

26 Alturas blocks!

And I just can't stop making these. I now prep them in groups of five. Some weeks all five get done, some times I go weeks before I get any done. Either way is fine by me. Quite a bit of progress from those first nine!

Last week I decided to throw some yellow into the mix. I felt like the blocks needed a bit of pop. I wasn't sure at first, but now I really like it. In truth, it now reflects one of my favourite fabrics ever, Motif Madness from Tsuru by Rashida Coleman Hale for Cloud 9. Hmm, I wonder if I could get my hands on more for the backing?

I'm at the point now where I am almost out of the options I've got in my stash for blocks. I am trying to make no two blocks alike. Not a perfect charm quilt, as some backgrounds may get used more than once, but as close as I can get. So now I am putting out a call for help.

Would any of you be willing to send me pairings of fabric for a block? Just a 5 1/2'' square for the background and a 5'' square for the appliqué. You could pick any combo you like, so long as we stick with the colours I've chosen:

- coral (not pink, not orange)
- blue
- teal (not turquoise or aqua or mint)
- grey.

I've got enough yellows to tackle those blocks.

I'm not picky about modern vs traditional fabrics, loving them all. But I do know that batiks are no good for the needle turn appliqué that I am doing.

If you are keen on sharing a bit of your fabrics with me, let me know and I will send you my mailing address. I would appreciate it so much! So would this quilt. It wants more variety, it keeps telling me that.

Friday Favourites - Inuvik Thimble

With the smell of campfire wafting through each stitch I sit and bind this vintage quilt. My thimble is made of moose hide tanned by the Inuvialuit near Inuvik. And beaded so preciously. It is my new favourite thing.

 - It is pretty and dainty and tough at the same time.

- It reminds me of the people in Inuvik, namely my students, who were awesome and listened to my enthusiasm.

- It works really, really well.

Let's bind all the quilts.

Alturas Update

So, I may have mentioned my new addiction before. At the time I said I would make at least nine blocks. Well, I've made nine and I'm already on to the next round. Maybe seven more? Maybe seventy?

It's slow going project, there is no doubt about that. It takes me about an hour and a half to make a block, sometimes 2 hours. It depends on how many interruptions I get from small children asking for food or cuddles, or how engrossing the conversation or movie is on TV. At that rate it is going to take me a very long time to make this a big quilt.

Just like improv quilting, appliqué seems to be so much more about the process than the finished project. Of course it will be gorgeous when it is done. Right now, however, I am just enjoying the process, with no real goal in mind. One block at a time.

Embroidery - Properly

It took four years. Four years to get from this to that there.

Their first efforts have hung on their art wall, surviving every single purge of art at their request, for the past four years. Then one night a few weeks ago The Monster asked if we could do it again.

"Mama, can we do more of that up down sewing with thick thread? Except, can we do it properly?"

Of course sweetie. And I panic. Because I have no clue how to actually do it properly. Thankfully I have a rather extensive book library for sewing. A few resources to the rescue and we teach ourselves a running stitch and a back stitch. We stock up on a few bits of floss (all in pinks and purples except for one lonely skein of yellow. We buy hoops. And we put their little brother down for a long winter's nap so he stays out of our way.

They each drew a picture on a piece of scrap osnaburg, lightly and with a pencil, selected their floss, tightened it up in the hoop and we sat down to stitch. And we stayed there for two hours! This activity kept my 7 and 5 year old girls still for two hours. I'm still in shock about that. I was on cutting, floss separating, and knot tying duty.

We've got some skills to learn - sometimes they don't always pull the thread all the way through and we get tangles, and their back stitch and running stitch look kind of the same. But this first effort is not any better than I probably could have done.

And the best part? They want to do more.