Struggling and enjoying

... that is how it goes when you start a QAL not knowing what the final quilt will be like. I have finished ten new blocks for the Splendid Sampler quilt since the last time I showed my blocks. Here is what I renamed a Dutch kitchen tile and an allotment shed, both appliqued.

Two more appliques, the nice and easy cone flower and the intimidating 17-piece monster.

Two examples of paper-piecing.On the left the straight forward flying geese, and on the right a nerve-wrecking shell. In the middle section I felt really, really stupid when I was unpicking the red fabric for the xth time and had to tape the paper foundation back together because I had just perforated that cursed line too many times. Finally I pinned the red in place from the right side, flipped it open and at that strange angle it finally went on the right way.

For this Dresden plate ring I just happened  to have the Easy Dresden ruler so I didn't need to cut the wedges with a template. I have learned to take liberties to change the blocks if I feel like it. Here I used a striped background fabric instead of piecing the background from 1½" strips.

My favourites are the pieced blocks. They don't take too much time to finish and still they can have something  interesting to offer. With two new blocks every week I prefer the blocks not be too time consuming. Making this quilt with friends and sharing our experiences makes it worth while.

The thornless hawthorn socks are finished. We don't have sea hawthorn bushes here, but the poisonous berries of the lily of the valley are the perfect colour too. I knitted the foot part without the bubbles and with a rib knit on top so the sock has a nice snug fit for shoes and the legs with bubbles to show.

Same yarns, and my grandmother's mitten pattern for the legs.

It is time to change to autumn flowers. We have had some chilly mornings with only 3C after a cloudless night, but some very lovely sunny and fresh days like today.

Half way point of the Splendid QAL

This week has been productive, we are back to normal everyday routines. Mr K. has been picking bilberries, "just a nice evening stroll, max two hours", and as a result of these strolls we now have about 30 liters of those tasty arctic blue berries in the freezer to give us vitamins and good eyesight with our oatmeal every morning until next harvest season. Blue berries, blue hexagons for the Splendid Sampler QAL.

This flower applique was easy. I made the background HSTs from two 4" squares of each fabric instead of cutting four 3½" squares of each and wasting the smaller triangles. 

Foundation piecing, luckily just large pieces of fabric this time.

I found my favourites are normal pieced blocks like this one.

Because I didn't even start one recent block and dumped my paper pieced Balls in the Air after just one quarter of the block, I have been sewing several of the bonus blocks to replace those two and maybe some future blocks.

A fun little hat,

a flower in a pot

and to mark the half way point with 50 blocks published, we are now over the Top of the Hill:

I made my moon over the mountain very realistic, but as we don't really have such high mountains here, I could have called this Moon behind a fir tree, if I had used green fabrics in this quilt. Well, I haven't, so a brown mountain it is. I try to keep to the fabrics I chose last winter for the project. There are browns, blues, yellows, oranges and reds, two blacks with print and a selection of white to grey and beige for backgrounds. All fabrics are from my stash, and this may be my first project where I use new fabrics only, nothing has been recycled.

Naturally, my hands will not be idle when I'm watching TV, so I have knitted a pair of train socks, again. You can read my short version of the history of the socks here. The ribbed long legs make sure the baby doesn't kick his or her socks off. A friend is having a baby in the autumn so I decided to prepare for his arrival. With the rest of the white yarn I made stripes for a pair of peppermint candy socks, and yesterday I started a pair of mittens to go with them.

Stitched, appliquéd and pieced blocks, washcloths, mittens and some new socks

 A week ago I made a short visit to England, but after that I have been busy trying to catch up with the Splendid Sampler blocks. They publish two new blocks every week so it is easy to fall behind. Basic pieced blocks are a nice way to make the to do -list shorter:

The stitched blocks are a welcome change to my TV knitting, I can stitch while watching something not too demanding, like the Tour de France was.

Schools begin in a few weeks, and the shops are full of colourful bags, notebooks and my special love, pencils and crayons. This block is paper-pieced, without the nerve-wracking tiny bits that have three times as much seam allowance as there is visible fabric on the right side.

I mean this kind of paper-piecing, it is not for me:

We have some strawberries growing in the flowerbed, so small that they almost look and taste like the wild ones.

I try to keep my fabric selection limited, so my squirrel's tree has autumn colours already.

I have made some of the bonus blocks so I can skip the regular blocks I don't fancy doing. Here is a happy one with summer feeling:

This summer and especially during the three week Tour de France I faithfully watch with Mr K. (even when I have never ridden a bicycle myself in my whole long life), I have finished quite many yarn projects. First I refreshed my memory by crocheting a washcloth in Bavarian crochet, and then I thought I will learn something new, the Moss stitch. Well, it turned out to be something I had done before, just didn't know the name.

Bedsocks in olive  green merino wool, red socks with cables, and a small pair of basic socks using up a rest of self striping yarn, added with stripes in an off-white yarn of the same brand.

Then I knitted some mittens for a change, pink ones in a child size and yet another pair of Aino'S mittens in Finnish sheep wool in white, like Aino Sibelius would have knitted them.

At some point I wanted to try another new to me stitch and knitted these potholder/dishcloths in Cream 'n Sugar. The colour reminds me of milk chocolate with raspberry filling.

There it is, a post as long as the title.

Stitching and sewing

The Splendid Sampler blocks sometimes take their time, like this one,

or allow an easier way of doing, like this fancy machine stitchery instead of doing it by hand.

Some blocks are easy and take very little time

compared to some others that require more.

This is my newest finished block, so I'm just a little behind schedule. 

The next block is tiny paper piecing again, not my favourite type.

My peonies before the big rain that filled them with water and they were bent all the way down.

Peppermint Candy

Last week I was getting frustrated, I was working on a quilt that can be finished next year in February at the earliest, and knitting a scarf in fingering weight yarn and a simple lace pattern that still requires my full attention. There was no hope to finish any project in the near future. I looked around in my piles and project boxes, and found six red and white blocks with large polka dots. They were left over last year when I made this quilt for my exhibition at the Villa Cooper.

I had a larger quilt in mind but decided to keep it smaller, perfect for a little girl. All the other fabrics were still stored in that box so it didn't take long before I had cut and pieced a twin quilt for this one. Here it is:

There was enough polka dot fabric left for a border just like in the other quilt, and I will make the backing in the same red flannel, and the binding in the same red. This way the two quilts will be the same size and a perfect pair, if someone needs two quilts for two kids.

We had several days of hard rain and chilly weather, so I knitted another pair of socks in two grays.

The sun is out again, and today it will be up for 19 hours. It doesn't really get dark here at all at this time of the year, but naturally in six months we are paying our price for it. Here is a link to a beautiful diagram with the dawn and dusk times.

The warmth and the sun opened the first of my pink peonies

and the wagtail found a perfect watch point to keep an eye on their babies on the lawn.

Have a nice Solstice day!

Old embroidery, sampler update and flowers

Some time ago I mentioned a detergent test I made, and now you can see what the result was. I had this embroidered cushion cover from the beginning of last century, loved and used to shreds really, and still kept safe. I photocopied the embroidery to keep the lovely pattern safe. As you can see on the right side of this picture, the fabric was stained and yellow. I thought it can't get worse if I give it a try with some Vanish Oxy. Two hours soaking, a careful wash by hand, a thorough rinse and a flat dry, and you can see the difference.

Here it is after a light ironing. I can't imagine a better future to any of my handicrafts. Instead of being folded away from light and sight, they would be used, worn and washed. This cushion cover has been used for a long time after the first holes appeared, until it practically fell apart and could not cover a cushion any longer. I can imagine some female ancestor insisting on keeping it, maybe her own work or a gift from someone special. Maybe her husband used the cushion when taking a nap, the linen feels so cool and lovely. This piece is definitely beyond repair and must have been kept for sentimental reasons.

The colours have faded over the years

but on the reverse you can see how lovely it must have been when it was new.

I'm trying to find a spot with the fabric intact, large enough to use in the Splendid Sampler quilt instead of the embroidery suggested. I'm honoring the original creator by doing so, and I hope to copy the pattern some day for a new cushion cover.

Here are the new blocks I have finished since my last update. Mr Bunny, almost like Peter Rabbit. Not trimmed to size yet, I notice.

This one was fun and easier than it looks.

Appliqué

and paper piecing, with the tiniest pieces I have ever tried.

Dresden plate with wonky appliqued parts.

Paper-pieced heart

And yesterday's block, fast and easy piecing for a change.

A group photo of all my blocks, missing block 20 but including two bonus blocks. 69 more blocks to sew!

We have finally had some warm days again and the flowers in the garden are doing well.

The apple trees were in bloom a week or two earlier than usual, but luckily the weather remained warm and the bees were busy. The tree in the back was already full of blossoms when the on in the front was just beginning. This is my apple sauce tree, the bigger one is just for eating apples.