Project 10 - Harriet's Irish Chain Variation Quilt - Onward to Quilting!

Hello!

I've sorted out my quilting design for my scrappy quilt, but before I get to that, I want to mention the Hobart Quilt & Craft Fair which ran over the last 3 days.  Boy, oh boy - what a guild full of talent we have here in Tassie.  I had a blast working as a volunteer on Saturday and Sunday.  I had "white glove' duty as well as 'meet & greet".  It was loads of fun, the public loved the display and the volunteers really enjoyed themselves (well I did, and judging by all the smiling faces, the others did too).  What really impresses me, is the fact that a lot of members didn't enter a quilt - what treasures are out there which remain unseen?  I would guess that Tassie is full of quilts which are just as wonderful, diverse, imaginative and beautiful as those which were in the displays.

While I can't post pictures here, please take a look at the Tasmanian Quilting Guild website.  There is a picture of the (well deserved) winning quilt.  Check in again later to see the other winners, the photos haven't been posted to the site yet.  Congratulations Shirley Gillam on winning the Bernina Best of Show Award!!

I also want to say how impressed I was with the atmosphere in the committee room, as well as out on the floor.  The ladies were incredibly helpful no matter how busy they were (and they were running on all cylinders) and the smiles lasted throughout.  Whenever I entered the room, there was always the sound of laughter, food & drink on offer and a wonderful camaraderie all around.  I hope to be more involved next year.  I left the show with a head full of ideas - designs, colours, patterns etc - but alas no idea yet on how to convert such ideas into reality.  Which is the reason for this course - to learn the techniques so eventually I can create almost anything I can envision.  A long, long way to go yet, but every journey starts with a single step etc etc.........

Now, back to work.............  The sandwich was made, the basting done and I finished the ditch stitching this morning.  Then onto the quilting design.

Of course Quilt Shows are not just about quilts.....they are also about shopping, and although I got myself pretty well stocked up at the Melbourne show, there is always something wanting to come home with me.

This time I was happy to score some more stencils - I'm building quite a collection now.  One of these I'm using on this project - I had planned something different, but I really like how this welsh block stencil looks on this quilt.

I think the block stencil and the border stencils will work well together

What is exciting me about this design is, not only does it fit beautifully onto the block, those curved lines will all join up to make a lovely circular pattern all over the quilt. 

I've marked the centre blocks to see how it looks when they're all joined together.  Wow - I think it's fantastic!  It will give a lot of texture to the quilt, and as I've used a cotton batting, it should pucker up nicely when washed.  Now if only my quilting is up to scratch and I can pull it off!  I've had a few practice runs, and it's not a difficult design, but it's not entirely continuous either (not in a way I could figure out at least) which will make it slow going.   I don't mind slow, but I will admit to some impatience to get started on Vol 2!

 Finding the perfect marker is still an ongoing drama for me.  I added another to the collection which I found at the quilt show - Clover Trace & Mark - Extra Thick.

It also comes in Pink!

I chose this one because it's 'extra thick'.  I have trouble seeing faint, skimpy lines, so a big, fat blue marker is exactly what I'm looking for.  It worked a treat at first, but it doesn't seem to last long before it becomes faint and needs a recharge.  The first lines I marked are lots darker than the last ones *sigh*.  I also used ponce power on the dark fabrics as the blue didn't show (maybe I should have got a pink one too), then of course the marker doesn't work over the chalk. 

"My Distraction" is now back at work, the quilt show is over and tomorrow I plan to spend a blissful day in my sewing room doing the quilting.  Ahhhh - Life is Good!