African quilt, poppy quilt, embellished Soupcon blocks and a give away

I finished quilting my Mom's African quilt. All that is needed is to apply the facing.

I kept the quilting simple at the top and bottom. With my darning foot I just free motion quilted straight(ish) lines. I prefer to use the darning foot because the lines tend to have a more organic feel to them. I think Mom will be pleased. Once it is embellished I'll post another picture.

All of the organic straight line quilting reminded me of another quilt that is pinned. The quilt was started in a workshop that I took with Elaine Quehl. The name of the workshop is In Full Bloom. We had our choice of flower patterns that were created by Elaine based on photographs she had taken. I chose the oriental poppy; it is a great reminder of my childhood. My Mom grew beautiful, big, blouey poppies in her garden. I used mostly my own fabrics but also incorporated some hand dyed fabrics that I purchased from Elaine. One of them was a velvet which I used for the center of the poppy. Here is my poppy quilt pinned. The background fabric is one of Elaine's lovely fabrics.

Here is a close-up of the center. I decided to add the mottled green bits to the plum background to add some highlights.

I hate the sound and feel of the needle going through fusible web but decided it was time to bite the bullet and get this poppy quilted. Here is a close-up of the quilting I did first thing this morning. It actually went better that I recalled so I think it will be clear sailing from here on in (fingers crossed)!

So it sits on my machine waiting for me! It measures 42" by 40". A big wall hanging!

There are some more Soupcon blocks on the Soupcon FLICKR page and they are amazing!

Jean has been busy; she has embellished two blocks. They are so different but they are equally beautiful. She clearly has a love for flowers! I love the little red berries in this one and the variegated green floss shimmers!

Her second block is delicate and loaded with understated elegance. I think it really has a depression era feel about it. I am in love with her colour scheme!

Deb had selected the perfect colours of floss to make her block sing! I still say this block makes me think of a pretty bone china teacup! Don't forget Deb has some old fashion embroidery and applique alphabet blocks on offer on her block. The most recent block is the letter T.

Angie is on Step 1 and had picked a great blue print. She posted both arrangements on her blog. I think she might have settled on the first which is this picture she posted on FLICKR. She was looking for options on her blog last week. You can see what people had to say here. My vote was for the first block!

To give you and idea of what it looks like with the points facing out, here it is from her blog.

Finally Kat has posted a picture but she is stuck and looking for suggestions on how to embroider the block. So far he has fussy cut some butterflies. If you have any suggestions you can leave a comment on her photo in the Soupcon FLICKR Group or you could leave a comment below.

I used my computer to sketch out a bunch of ideas on the block. She can use them or not - I'm not bothered but I am always willing to share! I can't wait to see what Kath does!

And last but not least, Bunny has made a great start on her block! I'm looking forward to seeing it finished! This is such a great fabric!

Last two bits of news. I will post more tutorials on making hexagons using my foundation pieced English paper piecing. I'll try to get one ready for you tomorrow but if not tomorrow then on the weekend for sure!

Finally January 25th is grown your blog day and my giveaway will be a hardcover needle book. The winner will have her choice of a needle book with a pink leaf or a teal leaf. To win all you will need to do is leave a comment telling me which needle book you would like if you were to win. The post will go up late on January 24th so be sure to visit and leave a comment on January 25th. I'll announce the winner on the morning of January 27.

                            

   

Until I post again, happy sewing!
Karen H