Good Fortune Part 5

What a busy few days. First finishing off parts three and four, just  a day before part five was due to be released, getting ready for Christmas (still have some food shopping to do for Christmas lunch - some welcome extras now), and general house stuff. I did have time to catch up of Moda Blockheads 2 blocks. I'm really interested to see how all these red, white, and blue ROOSTERS quilt is going to turn out.

Sew, onto part five of Bonnie's Good Fortune Mystery. It was a pretty easy step - great at this time of the year. I spent Saturday evening cutting all the pieces - double checking the number twice!!!. I had all pieces laid out ready to sew Sunday morning.

 And that is what I did. They were easy to piece following Bonnie's instructions for cutting, and I sat chain piecing while binge-watching Vera. I have replaced Bonnie's suggested blues and oranges for purples and pinks. See what others are doing with Good Fortune Mystery Part 5 link up.

 This is the last blog before Christmas. Have a wonderful Christmas or holiday period. Safe travels and happy sewing - may the Christmas fairy bring you lots of fabric and notions.

Sewing, Sewing, Sewing...Good Fortune catch-up

After being away for a week, it has been a busy few days catching up on Good Fortune Mystery quilt. I am two steps behind so first step was to cut all the pieces for part 3 - greens and neutrals. Once ready. I decided to do five of part 3 and alternate with five of part 4. That's just me, in my head it is quicker (but of course it is not). I guess it's the satisfaction of seeing both parts getting done.

 Part 3 was actually two units - half chevron's and BONUS half square triangles. I love bonus triangle and this time Bonnie has included them as part of the mystery - woo hoo!

I have finished ironing all the bonus units, but trimming the dog ears will have to wait. I also enjoy string piecing. Part 4 was pink string blocks. I first did string piecing way back in Bonnie's Orca Mystery, strange enough it was pink and blue string pieced units then. Bonnie suggested oranges, and I have chosen pinks. I have a collection of plastic containers (they use to contain flour), that I put strips of fabric in to make string blocks as my leaders and enders. I have the containers sorted into colours and each time I use a new fabric I cut a couple of strips from the end - sometimes to straighten the edges. This has given me a lot of strips to use...and I do use them, usually on placemats.

 This time I had a lot of shorter strips, so made a combination of small and large string pieces. Here they are ready to trim to size.

 I cut and trimmed the units and ended up 6 units short - well two of the units from the larger string blocks ended up too small, and I must have miss counted the last four from the big unit. - so back to the sewing machine! 

 To see what other are doing go to Bonnie's Part 4 Link up Party here. Waiting another day for clue 5. Might cut our some Moda Blockheads 2 pieces - to catch up there.

Good Fortune Mystery - Part 2

Saturday mornings at home are always 'my time' YouTube surfing, while I wait for Simply Colorful to live stream. I use the time waiting to catch up on my favourite YouTube Channels, and discovering new ones. Today I discovered Sugaridoo - wow, it was really good. I am going to make some of the projects including the coasters, so I can practice my quilting. I am also watching Bonnie's Quiltcam, not live but interesting anyway, while I do this blog. I always pick up some tips from Bonnie. Anyway, I am behind in the mystery - of course, but I'm not worried. I wanted to finish an advent calendar for granddaughters, which (silly me) was mostly hand sewing, and catch up on hexie challenges, so some of that has been happening also.

A couple of weeks ago we found a last minute cruise up the Queensland Coast, so we have been away and I had no time to post part 2, or start part 3. Read our Travel Blog - Are We There Yet? Now part 4 is out and it is string blocks - I love string blocks, so later today I am going to start part 3 and 4 at the same time and continue part 4 in the coming weeks. Yes, I am going to make part 4 my leaders and enders until I finish the number required.

So part two of Good Fortune Mystery was hundreds of half square triangles. I have changed the blue suggested to purples. I used the triangle ruler method as most of my purples were smaller scraps and strips, so that worked out well. It was good to chain piece while catching up on TV - my series of choice at present is Broadchurch.

So here we are with hundreds of half squares triangles.

On to step 3 (and 4). I'll be linking this to Part 4 Link-up Party on Monday.

It's Mystery Time....

I love mystery quilts and I have been doing Bonnie Hunters mystery each year since Orca in 2011. I usually buy one or two fabric colours to use in the quilt and add to my stash. As Bonnie's mysteries are usually scrappy, the past couple of years I have only purchased one piece to use as a constant colour, this year I am making the quilt entirely from my stash - luckily I have enough red fabric to still have a constant...... and it is an Asian fabric!

I always struggle with fabric choices. Last year I used the same colour choices as suggested by Bonnie, but this year I am changing a couple of colours. Red and neutrals I have kept the same, I substituted pinks for orange, and purples for the blues. I've kept the greens BUT I may change my mind!!

I hope I have enough contrast.

Part 1 is hundreds of 4 patches

Clues come out each Friday US time. Waiting for part 2........

Go to Good Fortune Mystery Link up to see what others are doing.

Red White and Bluesters - Good Luck ROOSTERS!

When we arrived home from our last adventure I was keen to start the 2018 Moda Blockeads challenge on my sewing machine. Last year I used all shades of brown, and I admit with so much traveling the last 12 months I have still to finish the last 6-8 blocks from that challenge. Downloading the pattern for the first block and needing to decide on a colour theme I thought it is footie finals sew why not make a red white and blue quilt for my ROOSTERS.

I was about 10 blocks behind and once I started it took just over a week to catch up. Of course, then two blocks were released for the following week.

 This block was an applique block but also included a piecing pattern. Sew don't want to do applique right now, so piecing it is.

I'm using one white background fabric and at the moment working with only two dark blue fabrics and 4 red fabrics.

A lot of the blocks have cut off sections, and you know me, I wont waste any fabric. I now have a large collection of 'bonus' half square triangles, some of which I have already used in later blocks.

 There are 46 blocks in total and this week 19 and 20 were released, sew almost half way.

 

Back home and in between adventures a little sewing has been happening, as well as lots of baby cuddles and some house sorting. A few weeks ago I started '100 hexies 100 days' by Sew Foxy Mama. Each week has a theme, starting with 1 and a half inch hexies, 1-7 theme was ME. All things that mean something to me. #1 I use to love being a teacher; #2 I love to travel; #3 I love cruising; #4 I love my ROOSTER boys footie team; #5 I love being in the caravan and seeing Australia; #6 my favourite colour is pink; #7 I love tea.

I did the same challenge last year and have all these hexies sitting in a box, so this year I decided I would make them into flowers and add them together to make a lap quilt. As I had a plain pink hexie, I decided to make that the centre of the flower and embroider the theme. Lovely Aunty Margaret actually embroidered the ME, while did the other two while visiting her. Hexies #8-14 were 'Summer Fun' - a palm tree; a sombrero; a beach house; beach towel pattern; lovely flowers; and sailing.

Week 3 theme was Mystical. With a lack of 'mystical' type fabrics in my stash I decided on alternate hexies to make this whimsical flower.

Week 4 was Cute Critters. Some cute, some not so cute.

Week 5, 1930's prints. This was hard, in that I couldn't find my stash of 30's prints, so had to make do with 'look a likes'. I chose to use 1" hexies and make flowers with maroon centres. 

I will turn these into a centrepiece.

Week 6 micro mini things - I am making these out of half inch hexies, so will not use these in the quilt, but will probably add them to something else, but who knows!

Sew.... I have another six hexies to make, and Week 7 starts in 2 days!!!!

What a wonderful winter trip we had ......... and how addictive are hexies?

Knowing we were going to drive through a lot of drought affected Queensland and the red centre of Australia, and lots of fine dust, I took my little Elna Lotus machine out of the van and packed a lot of hand sewing. I didn't even open my box of Farmers Wife blocks, but did a lot of hexies. Continuing with Naomi's Fussy-cutting Sew-along, Wk 21 was favourite fabric house. I love Tula Pink fabric (although I'm not fussed with her De La Luna range) and I collect it as I find it in LQS in our travels. I found this lovely fabric, Sorbet Hypnotizer from the Chipper range in Kyneton, so decided to make my hexies pattern match. Week 22 was favourite fussy cutting style - well, as I haven't been doing fussy cutting for very long, my preferred (and easiest) method is framing as I knew I can do that one.

The theme for the month of June was  flowers. I used the same fabric for each weeks method: Week 23 - central motif; Week 24 - petal tips; Week 25 - pattern matching; Week 26 - section frames. I realised the fabric pattern didn't have a good repeating pattern, but I'm happy with the results. I've used this fabric for a lot of little bits and pieces, including the trim around my ''fly hat' (to keep the flies away from one's face). 

 

July's theme was Summer - as the host of the sew-along lives in England, it is their summer. We, on the other hand were travelling outback where the days were a beautiful 24-27 but the nights were frezzing, one night it got as low as -3! Week 27 was Independence day - I didn't pack any red, white or blue fabric, so had to wait until I found some, which I did in a craft shop in a little town called Quorn in South Australia.

I also found some other fabric remnants, roosters and a bright orange 'summer' fabric, so after making week 27, it seemed perfect to add a rooster to the centre for my favourite football team.
Week 28 was central motif and the closest fabric I had in my 'caravan stash' was tiny, so this flower had to be 1/2" hexies.

Week 29 was sections, and this was when I was able to use the orange 'summer' fabric.

Week 30 - we had the choice of central or pattern matching. I chose pattern matching and not only had to match the focus of the fabric, but also the background pattern.

Week 31, and the last of the 'summer' theme was lines or frames. I found some Mexican fabric with cactus, and to me that is summer looking. The fabric will also suit the August theme of Travel.

Now that we are back home, I can get into some machine sewing, which I have missed. I have a new challenge of Moda Blockheads 2 - which I am going to do in red, white, and blue. I will continue with the New Hexie Challenge and I've started 100hexies100days challenge two.

I am determined to layer and quilt the finished Spring Fling Mystery by Simply Colorful and also finish the browns in Moda Blockheads 1 - SHHHH don't tell anyone!

Winter is coming

As the cold weather begins I'm looking forward to traveling to the warmer (by day at least), central Australia, and lots of hand sewing to be going on. I am already starting to pack a box of fabric to take. I haven't been doing a lot of hand sewing at home - too many other things that need to get done and of course I have my machines. I am a little behind with the fussy cutting hexies, but that's ok!! May is a month of favourites - Week 19 favourite colour, well pink of course!

Week 20 -favourite fabric, well so many to choose from, and it was really hard to fussy cut. Just as well I like crazy units! Week 21 is favourite house, so I need to find my Tula Pink fabric. So many favourite fabrics, but Tula Pink is what I'm collecting at the moment, so it must be my favourite.

Week 22 is favourite cutting style - well that will be interesting. I've not long been doing fussy cutting and feel I'm still learning, so I guess I'll be doing a 'framing' flower - the only one I feel confident doing.

I finished the Spring Fling Mystery by Simply Colorful and really like the pattern. I substituted blue/teal instead of green; dark purple instead of dark blue; pink instead of magenta. I'm very happy with my choices.

After looking at some other quilters colour choices, I think I'll have to make another one 😍.

 I have only finished one block from the new hexie sewalong, block 8 .... but road trip coming up so .....

So that's it for a few weeks, till we are on the road.