Put 20 November in your diary!

...but only if you live in NZ and quilt ;-)
20 November is Coast to Coast, a two-yearly event for quilters that incorporates a chance to show your work off to others, learn about quilty things, spend money on quilty things, and hang out with similarly daft persons without having to explain yourself. It's heaven! :)
I've set up a blog about it, that I'm updating regularly. If you can't make it then at least you can read about it! :)

My colour wash quilt part 2

My sister tells me that I am making a 'colour wash' quilt and it is "very '90's". HA!!! *tosses hair*.
Hana and Jo, I tried the opposite border thing but I got stuck on what to do next, and was fossicking in my stash when I found this:

As the quilt starts in warm reds and finishes in apricots and browns, I thought this would make a delicious border.

However, light triangles between it and the quilt look stark, so I opted to use a black backgrounded sprig fabric to fill them all in, which will blend into the border:

Half way done...

All done. Now all I have to do is sew the strips together and add that yummy border.

Amelia's First Quilt

My gorgeous and fabulous stepdaughter Amelia, aged 11, has taken to sewing big time.

This is she cutting strips from which to build her first quilt.

Amelia chose all the fabrics herself and has gone for a scrumptious pallet of "fluoro" blues and browns with some black and white and a hint of metallic gold. I love the way she has played within this range of colours.

The block we are doing is a variation on "Pussy in the Corner" which appeals to us as Amelia loves cats.

The reason why we've pinned them into these odd shapes is experimenting with order of colours in each block.  It's so good having a design wall!

Using up bits

Last night at the committee meeting for our quilting club we were talking about 'charity' quilts. Not a term I like but I do like what it means - giving quilts to those who need comfort - the comfort of something physically soft and snuggly, and the comfort of knowing something was made with love. Quilts fulfil both of these types of comfort.
It got me thinking about what I had in my stash that I could whip an emergency quilt with, and I remember the 7,000,000 charm squares I've been hoarding. Yay! A rummage through them for all the florals and a sort into colour values and I came up with this. Finished, it will be a queen size quilt. since taking the pic I've moved a few squares around in the middle.
So, tell me, what am I using as a border? Do I use one fabric, or graduate it through colour values like the squares? I have a bunch of fat q's in a black background, very fine floral that may do it, but ideas are welcome! And lace, is it that kind of quilt? Help me!
It feels good to make a small dent in the charm collection!

What the Embroidenator has been up to

Remember my clever mother and the beautiful needle case she made me? It came about because she made herself one and I lusted after it in a most obvious way.
The other night at our sewing group I took a couple of shots of it.

Isn't it gorgeous!! Birds are her other favourite thing after flowers, and I think these are fairy-wrens because of their cute little tails, and that I know she adores them.

Why so quiet?

So much to share, so much to show off! The apartment is looking gorgeous and I've got a quilt, some presents and all kinds of other things to show. HOWEVER, our camera is nearly flat and can we find the charger? No we can't! So, I have finally given up and bought a new one. When it arrives and the camera is ready to roll again, I promise to be more interesting.
It's the award ceremony for the Plain English Awards tomorrow night. I've got my frock sorted out, still not sure what to do with the hair though. Luckily I am on stage for the first two awards only, so I can get it over and done with, and enjoy the rest of the night. :)