Category: quilting

  • finish line

    Hey, did you guys know that it’s really difficult to take a good photo of a whole quilt? It’s especially difficult with a) a fixed length lens and b) a Toronto apartment without a yard!

    Relatedly, I finished quilting and binding my giant star quilt! I used Daiwabo Vintage Dry Goods from the workroom for this one, purchased in fat quarters. I think I originally cut the squares to be 15″. The finished quilt is 60″ x 70″.

    Daiwabo star

    When I finished the center star I decided that it needed to be a bit longer, so I put a border around all the sides and pieced together some short strips for the top and bottom. The purple binding is Painter’s Canvas by Laura Gunn, and the backing is some unlabeled chambray from the Textile Museum sale! Everything was sewn by hand with needle and thread – I really love Clover Black Gold needles. I use sharps for the piecing and binding, and quilting betweens for the hand quilting.

    Daiwabo star

    Daiwabo star

    My Rhinebeck sweater is off the needles and in a bath as I type! This is my own pattern, which I hope to release in early November. If you see me in it this weekend, please say hello!

    rhinebeck sweater 2013

    Between (Canadian) Thanksgiving on Monday and leaving for a night in NYC on Thursday, it’s a short week! Hope to see lots of you at Rhinebeck!

  • tomatoes, quilts, sweaters

    There are 5 days left in September. Whaaaaat?

    The garden is winding down. There’s still some greenery, and I need to harvest the herbs. I think the dill went to seed though.

    beans

    The tomato plants aren’t looking very good so we harvested all the green tomatoes. Some will ripen, some will be pickles, some will be fried. There are a lot!

    dying plants

    harvested tomatoes

    I’m super close to finishing the hand quilting on my giant star – that’s the bottom edge right there! I’m still planning to put in just a few long vertical quilting lines, so it’s not quite done yet. What colour binding shall I do? The back is a dark blue-grey chambray, so I was thinking maybe a navy binding. Or purple. Or red. I’m open to suggestions!

    almost

    I started a new worsted weight sweater with this yummy pink organic merino from Phoe. It’s Fleece Artist, so it’s kinda funny that it went from Nova Scotia to England and then back here to Ontario. I’ve ripped this sleeve twice already, so I’m hoping the third time’s the charm. It might even be a Rhinebeck sweater.

    pink!

    Speaking of Rhinebeck, have you seen Ysolda’s The Rhinebeck Sweater book? It’s full of people and sweaters I love, in a setting I adore! I really missed attending last year, and I’m really excited about this one.

    In case my pink Rhinebeck sweater doesn’t work out, I do have a pile of other new sweaters to wear – my next collection! It’s a small one, with 3 sweaters and 2 accessories. I’m really happy with how they all came out, and the yarns from Lorna’s Laces are heavenly! The patterns should be available in October – before Rhinebeck.

    sneak peek!

  • Enjoying The Process

    Hand quilting is slow, but I love it. I’m nearly halfway done the quilting in one direction on my Diawabo giant star (fabric from the workroom). I’m planning on lots of horizontal quilting lines, a bit wonky/organic, and then just a few vertical lines.

    diawabo star quilting

    diawabo star quilting

    diawabo star quilting

    I’m also loving knitting with Lorna’s Laces Haymarket! The weather turned just a bit cool today, and it’s so wooly and soft.

    braid