What a mess......

My Black and White plus One Challenge piece is proving to be just that.....
A Challenge!
First off I wanted to use SOLID colour and chose what I thought to be a good quality plain homespun.......
....apparently it was not the quality I needed.

 I seam to have a slight problem! (Pun intended).

I will trim up as much as I can - but I fear it is a worthless cause as every time I touch this quilt it frays!


Hopefully it won't show too much once it is batted and backed.

This morning I only had One last border to put on...
and put it on I did.......
TWICE!

Some times we just have to make a cuppa while we finish laughing at ourselves...
Then sit some where comfy and unpick it!

Well at least I now know what quote/saying I am going to leave on Esther's "Win a Baby Go" competition!!!!!

See you there -
Cheers Wendy.


PS.  I love trawling through the stats for my Blog, and I see that I have many folk drop by for  a second look. I would get such a Buzz if some of you said Hi once in a while!

Family Day

- it is the one day a month that is just for us!
I noticed at the start of this year the wall planner getting crammed with Appointments, Dates, Gigs, Outings, not to mention the day to day stuff of 3 at Uni - so it was decided that before the new month starts to fill up that ONE DAY would be blocked in as Family Day.

Missed the turn off and ended up somewhere else!  Isn't that the fun of just pointing the car in one direction and seeing what is at the other end of it? The plan was to go to Point Lonsdale via Geelong.

What actually happened was....
Melbourne,
Geelong Bypass
....TORQUAY





Where none but the brave ventured in..

(Oh well ... what's a 40km detour when you have no-where to go and all day to get there?)
The wind was perfect for kite-surfers.

We eventually arrived at our original destination Point Lonsdale via some fantastic Hot Chips at Barwon Heads.

The land in the distance is Point Nepean, the water on the horizon is "The Rip", this is where Port Phillip Bay opens into Bass Straight.

And as usual....  the sun sets on a great day out.

At what point in time?

is it a good time to discover that your 6 1/2" square ruler is in fact NOT SQUARE!

Possibly not after you have just 'squared up' a pile of Log Cabin blocks.....








Thankfully I had decided to do this little pile after they were pieced and as I was sewing them together - so only one or two blocks have been trimmed.

BUT It may explain why some of my HST's didn't match up in Dad's quilt.
I had used this ruler to cut my 1 1/2" strips into the required pieces including the final  6 1/2" lengths and now realise that some are 1/8th" short!

I had recently replaced some of my squares so they were all the same brand (making them identically calibrated).  I have checked them all and they seem to be ok, so.... with the greatest discrepancy at the top/bottom and a smaller one on the sides,  there is a possibility that over years of use - it may have worn down.
When I go to replace the square I will be taking my trusty 12" steel ruler with me - just to make sure!

Only 2 weeks late....

The one thing about stitching the binding on a quilt is that it can be done anywhere - any-time....

With just a couple of clips I would have a perfect mobile quilt frame!!!!     Ahh the hours I sat around waiting for the kids to finish classes...If only I had started quilting then!
But wait - I AM STILL waiting for them.. but now I have another use for the steering wheel!!!

I won't keep you in suspense any longer.  Dad's Father's Day Quilt is finally finished and I will be able to give it to him tomorrow - only 2 weeks late.

The Quilt was a kit called "Positively Parquet"
It is 48" x 48" and according to the pattern was designed by Eileen Sullivan.

Tying off loose ends....

.....and a performance to end the night.

My Dad's quilt is at the binding stage.  It is sewn on and I just have to find a quiet time in the sunshine tomorrow to hand sew it down.  And not forget to do a quilt label.
I must admit I have not enjoyed making this quilt - maybe because it was rushed I wasn't careful enough with the HST's .  I don't know what happened as I measured and squared them off before sewing the logs to the sides but they still misbehaved.

The evening ended with attending a performance at the Yarra Edge Music Festival.

We were played out of the venue by the haunting sounds of  the Tenor Saxophone in the night air.

Ooops

My Grandfather had a wonderful little plaque above his workshop bench.

I ALWAYS think of  my Pop, His workshop and That Plaque
whenever I do something like this!

Oh well, it was only a few inches of straight stitching......
So much for an early start to the day!

WOW - A quilt for Dad

Today will see me trying to finish off the lap quilt I started for my Dad's Father's Day gift.

I bought a Kit about 3 or 4 years ago because I thought it was such a fantastic design for a Man's quilt - especially one who has dabbled in Parquetry.

The one thing that has disappointed me about the quilt is the inconsistency in the fabric - I should have listened to my own advice and changed at least one fabric which was way too light in both colour and weight to have been included in the kit.
Every quilt I make is a learning curve...  What I learnt this time was:-
                               as always, if in doubt leave it out!
                               next time - Foundation piece it!
                               Allow more time - 3 days isn't really enough!

Spring Cleaning 101 - Change the wallpaper.......

The weather has been hinting at it for a few weeks so now it's official!
The 1st day of Spring so what better time to change the wallpaper!
Japanese Maples in the Garden are no longer bare and  are now bursting with new growth.