Surprise Quilt No.2

As Sweet as 'Sew Cherry'

Now that I have finished with surprise quilt no.1, I'm about to start on surprise quilt no.2.  I will be using Sew Cherry fabric bundle designed by Lori Holt for Riley Blake Designs.  Out of 27 fat quarter bundle, I have selected 12 for this surprise quilt.  Sew cherry fabric has a vintage, sweet and charming feel to the design which reflects perfectly the personality of my dearest friend.  I can't wait to get started on it.  The design I have in mind is a simple, my all time favorite HST configuration which I have blogged about in The Many Faces of Half Squared Triangles.  

Unfortunately I'm unable to say which of the configuration I'll be using for the quilt.  However, all will be revealed in due time.

A Book Review on "Material Obsession: Contemporary Quilt Desings"

Material Obsession by Kathy Doughty & Sarah Fielke

This is the very first quilting book that I purchased in 2010.  It deserves a mentioned as it has been and still is a source of inspiration to my quilting journey.  The quilt designs and amazing array of colors in each project dances across the eyes through the author's skillful and inhibition in combining and contrasting fabrics.  This book has beginners to advance projects with good description and simple hand drawn piecing instructions, and templates for projects that requires applique.  Majority of the projects uses hand quilting which I personally feel adds a special touch to the finishing quilt.

Till today, as I flip through the pages of this book, the beautiful quilts and designs still inspires me.  It also gives me the confidence to try new color contrast and combination which I would never dream of or even dare to do.  Here is an example of a quilt that I have made from this book which I have blogged about in Simple Things in Life.  This book is a gem and one to add to your collection of quilting books.

Happy Quilting!

I Heart Quilts

Surprise Quilt No.1

Be Ready to be Surprised!  

  Here's a sneak peak into surprise quilt No.1 I'm currently quilting at the moment.  I have about 30% of machine quilting to finish up and it will be ready for binding.  This is the first quilt that I have personally selected the fabric colors and prints as opposed to all my quilts thus far which has been Charm Packs or Jelly Rolls from Moda Fabrics.  This fat quarter fabric bundle was purchased at the Melbourne Craft & Quilt Fair in July 2012.  I had some inspiration in mind in terms of colors, however it didn't help with selection process as I was spoiled by fabric choices and bundles and the variety of stalls at the fair (I was like a little girl in a candy shop that wanted everything! lol!).  This bundle took me over an hour to coordinate by just browsing through one single stall!  I also had to picture the overall effects of each print and color together with the design I had in mind for this quilt.  Even though I was satisfied with the fabric bundle, I was still unsure if it would turn out as I envisioned it to be.  Lucky for me, it turned out great when I pieced everything together.  In addition, on my previous blog The Many Faces of Half Squared Triangle, the scrappy fabric came from this fabric bundle.

In the meantime, Summer Lovin' quilt is put on hold till Surprise quilt No.1 is done and... there is Surprise quilt No.2 on its way after this quilt.  These projects will keep me busy till the end of the year

The Many Faces of Half Squared Triangle

A study on the humble half squared triangle (HST) 

Got a little side tracked from quilting and decided to play around with some HST.  These HST were made from scraps of a 'secret' quilt I'm making on top of the 'Summer Lovin' quilt on my earlier post - talk about being focus!  I'm leading towards HST 01, 07 & 11 because I want to make a simple quilt with these HST.   I often feel that simple quilts with good color coordination often makes the biggest impact.  Hopefully with three quilts to finish by end of the year, I would have collected enough scarp to make a HST quilt.

Do you have a favorite HST design?  I would love to hear from you if you do.

HST 01

HST 02

HST 03

HST 04

HST 05

HST 06

HST 07

HST 08

HST 09

HST 10

HST 11

Summer Lovin'

A sneak peak to what I'm working on currently as I wait patiently for summer to embrace us down under. 

Summer Love

Flowing breezes with gentle heat

Fragrant flowers scents so sweet

Blinding sunshine from up above

Spring romance now summer love

Bathers search for the perfect sun

As summer season has now begun

Golden bodies on the sandy beach

A summer love within their reach

The song of summer is on the air

As heartbeats join as one to share

With fiery lips they so gently kiss

Sharing a moment of loving bliss

As darkness falls upon the shore

Their feeling deepen ever more

With starlight falling from above

They lose each other in summer love

-Gordon Jerome-

"Share the love you have to give

And love the life you choose to live"

-Gordon Jerome-

Love and Surrender

Saskia's Quilt

This quilt was made July 2012 for Saskia, the latest addition to the family.  I was very fortunate to have met this gorgeous girl on my recent trip to Auckland to catch up with the family.

This was a challenging quilt to make.  Not only did it had many different components to piece together, it also took a very long time to be hand quilted.  On top of it, I was (and still am) studying part-time, working full-time, and trying to have a work life/quilting balance.  All up, this quilt took me 4 months to finish as I could only worked on it a little at a time, and sometimes not at all having to juggle both exams and work. 

Quilting this quilt gave me a creative outlet from all the mental work and stress that goes with studies and work.  It gave me immense joy and satisfaction (often a therapy as well) to work with colorful fabrics, to piece different components together, and to see every stitch come together to form a completed quilt.

It was something I looked forward to do after working hours or a long study session on the weekend.  There was a 'soothing' presence about the feel of the fabric between my fingers, and the colors that saturated my eyes as I hand stitched the quilt together.  It made me felt that everything in life was going to be alright.

My family and friends called quilting a labor of love but to me quilting is an expression of love.  When you are in love with anything your heart desires, you surrender yourself into it with no reservation.  

"Surrender is faith that the power of Love can accomplish anything even when you cannot foresee the outcome" - Deepak Chopra

Quilt design: Jitterbug

Size: 56" x 72"

Fabric: Salt Air Jelly roll
Quilting: Hand quilted using DMC Perle 8 Blanc