Already thinking ahead...

Despite the fact that I haven't even started sewing my genome quilt top together yet, I'm already thinking about what I'm going to start working on once I've finished it.

These thoughts aren't due to lacking enthusiasm for the genome quilt, as I'm definitely fulfilling my sewing resolution of enjoying the process. The thoughts are due to my upcoming trip overseas.

This time in 4 weeks I will be on a plane jetting away to England!!! I'll be away for 5 weeks, with 4 of them in England and one in the USA (Philadelphia and New York to be more precise). While I'm away I'll have many opportunities for fabric shopping; from the quilt show i'm going to, to visiting Cowslip workshops to see Jo, and of course, taking advantage of my time in the U S of A!

Because of this, I need to decide what my next project will be so that I can buy fabric for a reason rather than just randomly.

Which brings me on to the reason that this post is smattered with inspirational hexy pictures. I think my next project might be a paper-pieced hexagon one. I've been considering it for a while, and with the formation of the MMQG have discovered that I need a hand sewing project as I don't have the means to get my sewing machine to the meetings.

Now I need to decide - Do I want a 'scrappy' hexy quilt, or do I want a particular layout? I'm erring more towards a layout since my last ones have all been quite scrappy. But what kine of layout; Flowers, Diamonds, Stars, something else?

What do you think? What layout? What colour scheme? What style? Suggestions please!

The only thing I'm sure I want to do is to have a more 'interesting' edge - ie somehow keep with the shape of the hex's rather than square it off.

Still not sure on how I'd quilt it though, as my hand quilting leaves a bit to be desired, yet it seems somehow wrong to hand piece a quilt then machine quilt it.

(Click on any of the images in this post to see the incredible sewers that created them!)

Genome Layout Ready To Go...

Last time I showed you my genome quilt I had pinned about half of the HSTs onto my very high-tech "design wall" (which is only just big enough). All of the HSTs have been pinned on now, and have been rotated to fit the correct orientations for my chosen sequence

(Image is clickable to see it bigger)

What do you think? How does the gradient look? Are there any bits that look like they could be "blended" better?

Once I'm completely happy with the layout I can start stitching it together...

Melbourne Modern Quilt Guild - New Site

The Melbourne Modern Quilt Guild has a brand new website. If you're a member (or want to become one) please head on over to our new site and register!

The address is: http://melbournemodernquiltguild.com

Due to changes at Ning, the old site will be closing very soon so go and register on the new site to make sure that you receive any information about the MMQG.

Finally, my Hikaru is finished!!

A looooong time in the making, I finally finished my Hikaru last night. I even wore it to work today (even though it was a little warm for it). '

So, with no further ado, here it is:

I'm SO happy with how it's turned out. Particularly the awesome lining:

It had it's challenges. The wool was thick and my machine struggled with parts of it.

Military inspired buttons down the front and lapels on the shoulders

Not to mention the TWENTY FOUR buttons!!

Buttons on the cuffs

The button holes were the biggest struggle...

Patch pockets

The wool is surprisingly soft, not scratchy at all.

Embroidered "label" and a ribbon hanging hook

And did I mention the lining??! It's also soooo soft and smooth!

MMQG Name Badge Swap

Today at the Melbourne Modern Quilt Guild meeting we did the swap part of our name badge swap. There were some really amazing badges made!!

My badge was made by Margaret and is beautiful!

A colour scheme I would never choose myself, yet I absolutely love it! And the bird!! Thanks so much Margaret!!

My partner was Gina. I have to confess; I made two! The first one I made I didn't really like; I felt like it looked more like a coaster than a name badge, so I made another.

Here's the first "reject" badge:

And here's the second one that 'passed' and was made into a badge:

This was the first swap I've participated in (and the first one I've coordinated) and it was great fun! Thanks to everyone that joined in! I can't wait for my next swap

Buttons!

Yesterday in my lunch break I took a sneaky button shopping trip. I went to Buttonmania, which was a really lovely experience! Buttons of every size, shape, type and colour imaginable! I was offered many many different button options, and we narrowed it down to two:

The ones on the left were round mottled metal ones, and the ones on the right flatter textured brown plastic ones. I decided that the metal ones took the military inspiration slightly more literally, and the brown ones were a little "warmer.

I spent a very long time mulling over my choice, including calling a friend for a second opinion (with the lady in buttonmania being very patient!). In the end I went for the brown ones, as I like the slightly less literal interpretation of the military inspiration.

I'm hoping to get it finished this weekend - I have the buttons to sew on, buttonholes to do, and lining to sew in left to go... that's doable, right?

Quilt Show Lectures...

I'm officially going to the "festival of quilts" on the 20th and 22nd of August! I've bought tickets for the following three lectures:

Inspirations with... Amy Butler
Spend an hour chatting, laughing and getting inspired with American fabric and interiors designer Amy Butler. Get an inside look at some fun, behind the scenes imagery and stories chronicling Amy's latest creative adventures through her travels and studio life.

Machine Quilting in Sections / Quilting as You Piece (Marti Michell)
You’ll learn the difference, the similarity and how both methods can help you finish your quilts on your home sewing machine! If manoeuvring a big quilt through that little opening in your sewing machine is overwhelming, this lecture has answers! There are always new quilts and tips.

The Batting in Between (Nancy Goldsworthy)
Battings, battings and more battings! They are flat, fluffy, polyester, cotton, and all manner of blends. How can we possibly choose the best one for our current project? Nancy is here to help you separate the urban legends from the facts about today’s battings. Learn what the correct batt can do to enhance all of your quilting projects. From bags to bed quilts, find the best batt for the job. There will be lots of sewn samples so you can compare for yourself. Door prizes too!

I'm VERY excited!!

Buttons?

I have realised that I need to make a decision on buttons for my Hikaru before I sew the lining in... and I don't even know what I'm looking for. What kind/colour buttons would you put on this jacket?

For a reminder, this is what the pattern has for button placement, and also the burdastyle example:

So; Help??!