Something for you to look at:

Pooky

Stunning work there Tottles.:j

I made a single sized patchwork quilt in my teens - took me about 3 years to finish then I foolishly gave it away when I left home.

I shall pass the link on to my mum - she's looking for inspiration for a bed cover for her spare room - I'm sure she can pick up lots of hints from there.

tootles_2

culpepper wrote:

tootles what is the 300e picture? Is it your sewing machine name?
I love the quilts! Do you hand quilt then as you say its a strain on your hands?

The 300e is the embroidery machine I bought earlier this year. The picture is of free standing lace bookmarks, they are worked on a film and then soaked in water to allow the film to disolve, you are then left with the lacy effect. I am looking for a doily pattern at the moment, so I can sew some for the craft fair and also to send to my US friends.

I mostly hand quilt, I enjoy doing it although the tip of my middle finger on my left hand gets very sore, you use that finger to 'feel' the tip of the neeedle coming through the 3 layers.....it does callous over bit then you end up sticking the needle into your finger through the callous. I have tried various means of protection on that finger, but for me I 'have' to feel the needle coming through.

It is a strain on both your hands and wrists which is why I am trying to save up enough cash to go to the US again have take a masterclass with one of the famous machine quilters over there......it will cost me a bomb but save me hours of hand quilting and strain on both my eyes and hands.

I started patchworking years ago, made my daughter a quilt from ready cut hexagons from Laura Ashley.....swore I would never make another. When I moved to Scotland in 1990 I found a group in Haddington and they set me on the road, in fact at one time they kept me sane when my job and the racialist attitude I found there threatened to get on top of me......... it was a very unhappy time for me in many ways......our move to Hampshire really set me on the road when I found a teacher there....she was great, but quilting had caused her problems with her hands and she gave up teaching, but she had already told me that I really could manage on my own.

The friend I am teaching how to use the computer is also a quilter, so we share a hobby, swapping fabric patterns, visiting quilt shows etc........as well as a valued friendship on other levels.

Shez

WOW tootles, your quilts are really lovely!!! i bet they take some time doing! I wish I could do something creative as that, but I dont think i could sit still long enough!

catznine

You are a very talented lady tootles! I love the bags! Those quilts are works of art!

AussieLass

Thanks for sharing that Tootles. :A Your work is breathtaking. I do tapestry but have never tried quilting.

Queenie

:T :T :T :T :T I am sooooooo happy you took the plunge and decided to share :j

Stunning work!! :T :T :T

tootles wrote:

....
It is a strain on both your hands and wrists which is why I am trying to save up enough cash to go to the US again have take a masterclass with one of the famous machine quilters over there......it will cost me a bomb but save me hours of hand quilting and strain on both my eyes and hands.

A more frugal alternative (or, something to keep you occupied until you've saved enough) is the following book which breaks the process down into lessons (I think I posted about it in the Daily earlier this year).

Machine Quilting Made Easy - it's a great little book!

I prefer to machine quilt, mainly for speed (I'm a very impatient person ) but my first quilt hand quilted initially.

I adored your Thimbleberries quilt - I really like Lynette Jensen's quilts. My first intro to quilting as an adult was from a website and I fell in love with Debbie Mumm's speedy quilts (suited my impatience :rotfl: ) but tracking down the fabrics suited to those two inspirational ladies at an affordable price is a real bind!!

I did stock up on fabrics when I went to New York a few years go though (and transported them back all rolled up neatly in a dolls house )

Maybe we should have our own 'virtual' MSE Quilting Bee :rotfl:

Swan_2

absolutely wonderful tootles :T :T :T

thanks for showing them

tootles_2

A more frugal alternative (or, something to keep you occupied until you've saved enough) is the following book which breaks the process down into lessons (I think I posted about it in the Daily earlier this year).

Machine Quilting Made Easy - it's a great little book!


Queenie: I already have this book and two more, one by Harriet Hargraves and I cannot rememebr who wrote the other one.......I really would like to go on a machine quilting retreat, I think really the last thing on my wish list of things to do before I d** if you know what I mean......thank you for suggesting that I post the link to the website.

I still have fabric from my last visit to the US which is waiting to be made up into a quilt. The thimbleberries was inspired by the ready printed blocks, but if you look carefully at the rest of the blocks, they are from the blue and yellow quilt I made for my daughter made in samples of TB fabric. The blue and yellow quilt was made up from a block of the month kit that my friend in the US bought me, it was in the sale in joann's she bought 4 complete sets including the fabricfor the blocks and borders for $1 each so we had two quilts each for $48. The other one is the Christmas one I am still working on!!!!!

joannasmum

They are lovely, it must be fantastic to have such a talent.

Sandollar_2

Nice work Tootles. Do you ever read RCTQ? Some of the famous American quilters post there. Also I came across an interesting website. The owner scoured antique fairs and boot sales etc in France for mongrammed bedclothes. Cut out the monograms and attached them to new pillow/cushion shams, then sold them for quite a hefty price tag. Your hand quilting cushions would be ideal for somethng like this.
Have you thought about making up some little cushions around 3" and showing them at wedding fairs? Dressed up they make lovely ring bearing cushions. You could quilt them in the wedding colours and monogram the bride and grooms initials.
I did this for a friends wedding and got quite a few calls afterwards from couples wanting one for their wedding.

As it seems there are quite a few OS quilters, the idea of an OS quilting be is a nice one.

And to keep on the OS theme, for those of you wanting to get into quilting, it need not be expensive. Check out charity shops and buy old clothes but make sure they are 100% cotton. A hot wash and then striped apart at the seams and you have the beginnings of your 'stash'. Patterns and instructions can be found on the 'net.