For Little-What's-His-Name and answers to a reader's questions

On Saturday evening I took the last stitches in the baby quilt I made for a friend and her baby who is expected on June 21.  I call the quilt "Counting on Little-What's-His-Name". When the baby is born and they've settled on a name I'll finish the label and replace "Little-What's-His-Name" with the actual name! The quilt was delivered to the Mom-to-be yesterday and she was delighted with it!

I don't normally work from patterns but this quilt was just so darned cute and so much fun to make that I've now made it twice (19 years apart)! The pattern comes from a book by Chuck Nohara. It is an old book that is out-of-print. It is loaded with great ideas and designs. If you come across a copy snap it up. There are many quilts in the book as well as lovely gift items for everyone in the family!

I hand quilted Little-What's-His-Name's quilt; I've got the sore finger joints to prove it! In a previous post I wrote about a couple of nifty tools, one of which I used to help with the marking of the quilt. The tool was a Hera Marker. It scores (or creases) the fabric thereby creating a quilting line. It worked like a charm and was perfect for all the straight line quilting in the sashing. A reader asked what quilting thread I used, how I keep the stitches even and any other tips that might help so here I go!

Thread Used - I used YLI hand quilting thread. I like it because it doesn't twist and tangle so I can work with a longer length. 

Needle Used - As for the needle I used a Roxanne applique needle which is longer and thicker than a between which I find very hard on my fingers. The needles are in the little pouch in the upper left corner of this picture.

For me a bigger, thicker needle tends not to flex as much and I find it easier to get consistent stitches. Don't feel that you have to use a particular needle for a particular task. Experiment with different needles until you find the one that is comfortable in your hand and that allows you to achieve the desired result.

Even Stitches - For this quilt I am did a bigger stitch. To keep the stitches as even as possible I took only two or three stitches at a time. I'm not sure how people count stitches but what I count are those that show on top so if I'm taking two stitches that means two stitches show on the front of the quilt but some quilters would consider that four stitches since there are two on top and two on the back. I find it is easier to gauge the size of the stitches if there are fewer on the needle; I can compare what I have on the needle to what I've already done.

Hoop or Frame? - I use neither! I've tried a frame and didn't like being tied to it plus in my little house I have no space for a frame. I've tried working with a hoop and it is just plain uncomfortable plus it is hard to use a hoop when you pin baste. So I dispensed with the hoop. I pin baste my quilt so that everything is tight, smooth and flat. If it isn't basted tight, smooth and flat it won't quilt tight, smooth and flat. I start from the middle out and anchor all the major seam lines, just as I would if I were machine quilting. Once this is done I can quilt the border, trim the excess fabric and bind the quilt. In doing it this way the excess fabric is removed making the quilt lighter, smaller and easier to manage. Once the quilt is bound I go back and fill in the quilting. It works for me and I get excellent results.

I hope this was helpful. Until I post again happy sewing!

Karen H
  

It's baby time

A friend is expecting her first baby in a few weeks. Although I've know the baby is coming for many months, I've postponed making the quilt until it was crunch time. I'm not really a baby quilt kind of person so I've been casting about for an idea. In the mid-1990s I found a patchwork book in a clearance bin. It was jam packed with ideas and so I bought the book. The projects inside the book are the designs of Chuck Nohara and the instructions were translated from Japanese.

I used one of the patterns in the book to make a quilt for a friend who was expecting her first child in 1997 and really enjoyed making the quilt although I modified the pattern by eliminating the pieced border and instead used a solid subtle neutral plaid for the border. This time I decided I would piece the border (more about that in a moment).

The instructions for making the quilt are "scant". In fact they fit on a single page! They are accurate but you need to be an experience quilt maker to understand them,

The quilt is made up of 20 blocks twelve of which are numbers 0 to 9 (some of the numbers are duplicated) and eight of the blocks are stylized birds. I decided to make the number blocks without repeats so there were ten of them and I made ten bird blocks.

I embroidered the plumes on top of the bird's head and topped each one with a colonial knot. The eyes were cut from a dotted fabric and appliqued to the face. I used a marker to make the dark pupil in the eye.

The feet were outlined with a stem stitch. I though they were dull and didn't stand out enough so I used a Sakura Pigma pen to add some shading to the legs.

The blocks were sewn together with sashing and cornerstones in a soft grey-green print. I made the pieced triangle borders and added the side borders to the quilt. I stepped back to have a look and realized that the border on the right was attached the wrong way! Argh. I little reverse sewing (i.e. ripping out) and it was ready to be reattached.

Much better, don't you agree?

The last step was to make the corner patchwork units and attach them to the top and bottom borders. TA DUM! The finished quilt top. It measures 44" x 54".

I wasted no tine in making the quilt sandwich and pin basting it. This one will be hand quilted with a larger stitch. I think it will make for a nice soft baby quilt. There is a baby shower next weekend and my goal is to have it finished in time for the party. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Meanwhile Jinx has found himself an nice place to sleep out in the solarium ..... he is curled up in a flower pot with a Mandevilla vine! Silly little boy!

Time to get back to hand quilting. Until I post again, happy sewing!

Karen H

Useful Patchwork Gifts, A Few of My Favourite Things and Love Entwined

I located the book that has the pattern for the quilt I call A Few of My Favourite Things. The book is Useful Patchwork Gifts and the name of the quilt in the book is My Room (Girl's Room).

The book was written by Chuck Nohara and it was published in 1993. There are a few quilts featured in the book.  I liked this scrap quilt which is described as a tablecloth with matching cushions!

 

I actually made this quilt as a baby gift for my friend's first child.

 

The quilt is consists of blocks that alternate large appliquéd numbers alternated with weird birds. Perhaps one day she will loan me the quilt so that I can take some pictures!

For those of you who love zakka style there are a some lovely little items that would delight you! Isn't this teapot cover cute?

I love hexagons so this basket is very tempting!

And now for the next four blocks in A Few of My Favourite Things! I have yet to photograph the entire quilt so fingers crossed that the weather cooperates so that I can get out and take a few pictures.

Progress continues on my LE quilt. The zigzag border is almost complete. I just have to make the corner units and then it will be ready to be stitched down. This panel measures 31.5". The zigzags are English paper pieced. My plan at this point is to pin the border down with tiny appliqué pins. I'll then stitch down the outside edge all the way around. Then I'll stitch down the inside edge however before doing so I will remove the basting thread and the papers.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Love Entwined it is a quilt pattern that has been drafted by Esther Aliu. The original was made in 1790! Esther is providing her pattern free of charge. The first section was released in June 2013 and each month another section of the pattern is released. Esther has set up a Yahoo group that you can join if you are interested in making this quilt. You can read about it here.

There'll be no post tomorrow because I am taking a half square triangle workshop with Jeanne Simpson. I've made zillions of half square triangles over the years but find that I always learn something new so I'm looking forward to tomorrow. And it is always fund to spend time with other quilters! So until I post again, happy sewing!