Hospital Sketches Block 2

It is Slow Sunday Stitching. And my Hospital Sketches block 2 has indeed been in slow stitching. I started it in beginning of March and now we are allmost in the end of June. I didn't like the original block but I liked a lot of fern like leave so I decided to make two of them instead of one. And after that my problems began. 

Original flowers didn't fit properly and I made three alternative flowers until I found the one I liked.

And finally block 2 is done and I have learned to love it.

 Riikka

hospital Sketches block 3

I skipped block 3 in Hospital Sketches earlier because I tried to catch up with the quilt-along. I haven't started on block 5 though so still some catching up to do.

Block 3 in Barbara Brackman's Hospital Sketches is called Love Apple. I made some minor changes in this block too. I added some flower buds and more leaves on my block.

 I was having some diffficulties choosing how to use my limited fabrics in this block.  I have regretted my use of allmost solid and limited fabrics in this project. I'm missisng bright colours and bold prints. Usually when I start a new quilt I have someone in my mind and I use colours that I know suit for his or hers personality. But Hospital Sketches I began just because I wanted to start a new applique blocks and do Baltimore Style quilt. So I never thought my colour choices thoroughly.

But it looks just fine with the previous blocks.

Riikka

Hospital Sketches Block 4

I loved my first block in Barbara Brackman's Hospital Sketches quilt-along and I have my second block done, but I don't like it at all, so no pictures from it. I'm planning to re-do it, but I don't know yet how to change it. 

I skipped the third block because I tried to keep up with the quilt-long and finished my fourth block almost in time before the fifth was published. I love this block Cockscombs & Currants allmost as much as the first one. But I really hope there is no more tiny circles in the future blocks.

Riikka

Japanese Quilt Blocks

All my japanese quilt blocks are done. This is how it's going to be. I wanted to take an outdoor picture but it has been raining lately. Sorry about the bad light.

I even found lovely wool fabric for my backing. It feels soft and silky, but I have never used wool in my quilts so I have no idea how it's going to act when quilting. But in this quilt there is also natural linen and that is not easy to quilt by hand. it's a little thicker than cottons I used.

Riikka

Japanese Quilt Blocks Part 6

These blocks are going to be last ones. Handpieced using civil war era reproduction cottons and natural colour linen. Block is number 24, Hira izutsu ni kugi, in Susan Briscoe's book Japanese taupe quilt blocks. 

 
I have made some of previous blocks more than four so next I'm trying to make all my 48  9 inch blocks into a quilt top.

Maybe something like this...

Riikka

Japanese Quilt Blocks Part 5

Once again I have handpieced set of quilt blocks from Susan Briscoe's book Japanese taupe quilt blocks. This block is called Awase yamagata and it's number 55 in the book. After previous blocks these were easy to handpiece, only 28 pieces in one block.

And other way round

There is also potential using just a half of the block maybe in border.

Riikka

Jen Kingwell's Mystery Part 2

I have so many quilts in progress so sometimes it seems I get nothing done. In the new Quiltmania is the second part of Jen Kingwell's mystery quilt Marshal. This time there is two type of small blocks: circles and rings. I decided to start with circles and there should be 24 total. So far I've made only four.

I don't like to make similar circles more than four so now I'm sorting my fabrics to find next colour options.

Riikka

Japanese Quilt Blocks Part 4

This is the fourth block called Kakuyose from Susan Briscoe's book. It was very slow to sew, lots of small pieces. But I did finish them.

Here is the first setting for four blocks

And the second setting

Soon I have to start thinking what kind of quilt this is going to be. But not yet. Maybe some more blocks to try...

Riikka

Hospital Sketches BOM

Ever since I learned to quilt ten years ago in Ireland. Baltimore style album quilt has been in my to-do list. So when Barbara Brackman wrote in her Civil War Quilts about free applique quilt along, I wanted to start right away.
I do not like to repeate myself doing lots of similar quilts, so this is probably only Baltimore style quilt I will ever do. I wanted first to do traditional red and green quilt, but I don't have many red fabrics in my stash so it turned to be blue and green on white background.

I changed original version a bit, but it's common design in Baltimore Album quilts. I added some pink so it's not only blues and greens. Tomorrow will be time for the next block and I will start it right away....

Riikka

Illusion

Finally I have one quilt finished. Illusion from Judy Hopkins' book Triangle-free Quilts.

Riikka

Jen Kingwell's mystery

Winter in Finland is cold and feels long. This year we have lots of snow even in South Finland wich is nice. Snow makes everything much lighter and our short daylight  bearable. But as nice as snow is, it washes all colours away. It doesn’t matter is day or night everything is either white or dark. 

So when I  got my new Quiltmania and saw Jen Kingwell’s colourful mystery quilt Marshall, I knew I wanted to start it right away.  

In my mind I saw bright colours and different prints, but this mystery had its own plans: romantic flowers, pastel stripes and neutral gingham. But I love it. The only problem is long wait for the next part. Next Quiltmania issue is due sometime in March. 

Riikka

Japanese Quilt Blocks Part 3

It's end of January and I've been mostly quilting my Illusion quilt. Not done yet. I'm quilting it with my Bernina, but I don't like sit long and sew with machine. So it's taking time.

My goal for New Year was start blogging more and regulary so far it's not looking promising because it's allmost the end of January. For a while I thought to write in Finnish but then decided against it. Finland is a small country and there are not so many quilters here. 

This was a fun block. Chigai kaku  is number 46 in Susan Briscoe's book Japanese taupe quilt blocks. Not the easiest block to sew when most of seams could be sewn only halfway before adding the next piece. But this is block I could easily make for a whole quilt. Setting combinations are all nice. I don't even know wich one I like most.

Riikka