Newcastle Stitches and Craft Show Stash

I went to the Newcastle Stitches and Craft Show yesterday. It was pretty standard craft show fair. I was a bit disappointed as they'd advertised that Block Lock would be there but they weren't. Lots of places selling cheap rotary cutter blades, but I'd stocked up on them at the Sydney Show (more on that later).

So I only got some fabrics, no templates, rulers or anything else. I stuck to 1800's Repros and Japanese Yarn Dyes.

After the show I did a quick trip to Spotlight, as I still needed a backing for a quilt. Ended up just getting some extra wide white (at a discount as it had marks and paint on it). I also picked up a couple of metres of this really nice Repro (I bought extra to swap!!). All quilting fabric is $9.95/m. Just wish they had a couple more colour ways.

I've also been working on my Blue & White and Yellow Split La Moyne Star quilt. I will be posting about it tomorrow.

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Hexagons

I have joined the craze! I have been using these as my handsewing project. Something to do infront of the TV or when waiting somewhere. I am doing them in 1930's repro fabrics.

I had planned on doing them with a yellow floral centre, but I am thinking maybe a more traditional yellow centre? Or is the plain yellow too bright? Opinions wanted!!!

I also couldn't help buying some of the new range of blenders that I saw at Spotlight a couple of weeks ago. Really loving the colours and patterns. I thought they lent themselves to 1800's repro patterns.

This is the range in a better light.

And here is Cleo helping me. I had them ready to iron after washing. They looked comfy!

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More Stash Enhancement

I'm trying to get a bit of variety into my stash. I'm OK with colours, but I tend to have the same sort of patterns - small or subtle tone on tone. So when I came across a site that had some of the Brown Gatsby fabric I needed, I bought some of their super clearance fabrics as well - at $4m how could I not!!

They arrived last week, after a small panic, as one arrived on Friday and the other not til the following Monday.

I tried to get some greys, as I don't have any and they are really in at the moment.

On a different tack, I've finished all my Ohmygosh Redux blocks. Only problem is, when I went to play and put them together, I didn't like how they looked!! So rather than push the muse, I just walked away and will leave it for another day when I am in a better mindset to deal with them. 

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Stash Reorganisation

I have only recently in the last couple of months really gotten back into quilting. So all my fabric was stored in plastic tubs. Not impossible to get at, but not easy either. I've had three of the below sitting in my kitchen taking up space while I worked on projects. It was annoying as I had to lift them off one another to get to the ones underneath! Also, they were taking up alot of room in my kitchen (only place with enough space to put them in).

I've been keeping an eye out for a system I liked the look of. The one I liked most was just using CD towers. The size is perfect for fat quarters and they are pretty cheap. I wasn't able to get the ones I liked best but the ones I ended up getting were perfect anyway. They were only $30 each and only took about 10 mins each to put together. The other advantage of the CD tower is that the are both the correct width and depth for a FQ, so they don't stick out too far into the hall like a book case would.

I am hoping that having it easily accessible and all in on spot will increase my productivity.

The first four towers are by colour, with a couple of complete collections together (hand dyed set etc). And the final tower is all my 1930's Repro fabrics. 

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Sydney Craft Fair Stash

So I made the trip down to Sydney a couple of days ago to go to the big, huge, annual craft fair. It's my once a year shopping splurge and also a chance to see the Quilters Guild of NSW Annual Show. It's a long day with the 4.30am start but well worth the effort.

The quilts were all gorgeous, with some great inspiration to be had. I can't post pictures but you can see the winning quilts at the Quilters Guild of NSW page.

Below, the William Morris Layer cake and some matching fat quarters.No idea of what to make with these fabrics but I think something "modern". The colours and the plainer patterns just seem to want to be doing that.

A range of shirt fabrics for a 1800's Repro project. No pattern in mind at the moment but I am really liking these fabrics at the moment. I'm really liking Dresden Plates in repro fabrics at the moment, so maybe something along those lines. Maybe a Spiked Dresden Plate? There is only local shop with does alot of repro fabrics but they don't have alot of shirting fabrics, so one of my aim for the show was to pick some up.

Japanese Yarn Dyed Cotton fabrics. I saw a quilt at the stall I bought these from and I really fell in love with it. Very simple stacked rectangles. Only problem is that the quilt is a small wall quilt, but I want something bigger!! So I may have to buy some more fabrics to pad them out.

Various brights. I don't have alot of these really clear bright fabrics. So I bought these two packs and some individual FQ's.

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Sunday Stash - Pre-Washing Fabric

Below is the culmination of about two months worth of stash enhancement, lots of loads of washing and many, many hours of ironing!! There is no one designer or range for these fabrics, many are quite old or from no name brands.

I know alot of people don't pre-wash their fabrics, and I think that that choice is happening more and more with the popularity of pre-cuts like jelly rolls, layer cakes and charm packs. However, my decision is always, where possible to pre-wash all my fabrics.

My reasons for washing are pretty simple. Firstly, I don't want to spend hundreds of hours making a quilt, to have it ruined because a fabric decided to run. This is a potential issue with any fabric, irrespective of price. If you've had this happen, you REALLY don't want it to happen again!!

Secondly, I want to get as much shrinkage, chemicals etc out of my fabric before I use it. Again, I don't want any surprises the first time I wash a completed quilt. I use a variety of qualities of fabrics in my quilts, some shrink more than others. I want that minimised as much as possible before I start cutting and sewing.

One argument put forward for not pre-washing is that the fabric is easier to work with when straight off the bolt or out of a pre-cut pack. This might be true, but you can get the same feel and workability by putting in a bit of elbow grease and spray starch if these are big issues for you.

There is no right way of doing this. Some people like the wrinkled look that comes from unwashed fabrics shrinking during their first wash. Others aren't as concerned about colour bleed. But for me, the extra hours I put in before I start cutting and sewing are worth it in the long run. 

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Stash - Michael Miller Neutrals and Modern Quilts

 

I've found a few really nice "modern" quilts on Pinterest that have got me interested in doing something in solid fabrics. I'd just started thinking I needed to start collecting them when I found this pack at the Fat Quarter Shop. List of links to more modern quilts at the end of the post.

When I look at the "modern" quilts that I like, they are just about all made with all solid colours. I think this is probably the thing that sets them apart from more traditional designs (except for Amish of course).

Here are some of the ones that got me thinking:

Source: alexandersonquilts.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Source: spottedstone.blogspot.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Source: blueisbleu.blogspot.com.au via Michelle on Pinterest

• The Modern Quilt Guild
• Fresh, Modern Quilts (Flickr)

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Stash Builder

So lately I've really been getting into green, especially olive and khaki. I've managed to collect a few of these in fabric, but I needed more. So I put out a call on my main quilting list, Southern Cross Quilters and got a few answers from shops who had stash builder bundles. One was a shop I'd dealt with when I first got into quilting, Patchwork Products. I bought a couple of pre-picked bundles from the website (orange and tan), but asked Sylvia, the owner if she could put together a bundle of olive/khaki tone on tone for me. Below is what I got.

I love them all, they are all ones I would've picked out for myself. So if you are looking to build your stash, at $20 for 10 FQ's, give Patchwork Products a try.

Also, I found this great block via Pinterest, a sort of spiked Dresden Plate design. After asking for some tips on SCQ's Email list, I was able to work out how to do it. I am writing up a tutorial and will be posting it on Tuesday.

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