Warmest of Christmas Wishes

Graphics courtesy of The Graphics Fairy

St Martin, Caribbean

This has been a year of rather few “releases” from my UFO box.  I am certainly happy though, with some small achievements underway, especially on a floating, tiny home.  Just think, another new quilt started!  I also managed to give away at least 6 of my quilts to good homes, so that’s a bonus too.

Well, we won’t be back in time for me to do my annual new year’s UFO box audit, but the promise of travelling so long this year means that, fingers crossed, we will have a full year at home.  Yippee!!  I’m starting my let’s-get-busy list for my garden shed (my sewing room in the garden) even now.  

Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year with family and friends.  Remember to take the time to do some quiet stitching or perhaps design just a few more quilts to make…

Missing Quiltmania

I actually finished the quilt project on this cover, Colour Game 
(2009, Issue 72) in 2013. I called mine Spice Market.

Sadly, this year on 24 April 2024, Quiltmania closed.  I loved the high quality, glossy mag and its projects were always a source of inspiration.  I never knew which project I wanted to do first.  The content was interesting too and included a world-wide coverage of people and places of interest and inspiration to quilters.  Each country seemed to have its own style, born no doubt from cultural heritage.

QM closed with minimal notice.  I didn’t realise until some months later when, in need of a good quilt fix, I tried to access my e-mags.  Although I generally paid for a “paper” subscription, sometimes I missed out on copies in between subscriptions or wanted to purchase some of the Simply Modern copies as well.  E-mags are also a bonus when living life afloat in a tiny floating home - they don't take up too much room!  Anyway, I also thought e-mags would be safer held on line rather than downloaded on my ageing hard drive.  Silly me!  

The sudden closure caused a bit of on-line chit-chat, mostly about lost subscriptions and the cost of the magazine.  Anyway, at least I knew and,thanks to a Texasgal had a link to the last ever issue.  Here in Aus, quilting supplies are rather more expensive (and less expansive) than the US, and mail delivery fees are another killer.  Anyway, I felt the price was worthwhile for a quality product, especially a European focused one that opened our eyes to quilty delights from around the world.  My only concern after closure, was lack of access to our paid on-line magazine copies.  Nothing heard yet, or probably ever, at this stage.  

My heart goes out to Carol and the team at QM.  My quilting friend’s sister ran a fabric chain (KnitWit) that ultimately failed too.  She explained to us the risky personal and financial consequences of running any business.  I should add here that several quilt shops have closed doors over the last 2 years in the wider Sydney area.  It was not a great year either for my favourite UK on-line bookstore, Book Depository, a great source of hard-to-find quilting books, which also closed.  Quiltmania’s demise though, is indeed a very sad loss for our world-wide quilting community.

Graphic courtesy of The Graphics Fairy

Scraps 'n Boro

Since making my Hourglass blocks, I’ve decided against trying to find a suitable fabric for sashings.  At least until I get home.  Unless we are hooked up to electricity at a marina dock, solar panels can only produce so much and our fridge & freezer must always come first.  Along with navigation instruments and trusty computers for weather reports.  So, my sewing machine has not seen light of day since we started heading north.  And whilst fabric is nice to have, it adds extra weight to my (one) travel suitcase. I like to travel light.  With all this in mind, it was back to Plan A, which was of course, making bags from leftover scraps.  

Two pieces fairly heavily stitched. Hardly exhibition quality
but it won't matter for an everyday bag or wallet

So now, I’m currently hand stitching scrap pieces – and attempting a bit more boro!  Basically, my process is an assemblage of bits of scraps on a cut-to-size piece of thin cotton batting and a light backing of flour sack cloth.  I think I purchased the flour sack cloths in a pack I found in the cleaning products area of Walmart a few years ago.  They look a bit like a more robust cheese cloth and the whole lot just needles through quite nicely.

The batting size is cut mostly 13 x 8 inches with the cloth backing slightly larger.  Once the scraps are down and held by pins or glue.  I use 1” masking tape as a guide for my stitching lines to keep them straight, then stitch the rest, mostly by eye.  I’m happy doing that (keeping it simple) rather than being too creative with other designs.  Its relaxing and achievable, even on a boat anchored out in the middle of nowhere… 

You can see how I pinned the pieces, then stitched
guiding lines 1" apart, making the final stitching easier

My thread of choice has been Perle #8 in two shades of pink.  A nice big-eyed sashiko needle helps make threading easy too.  

When the pieces are all stitched and any loose threads trimmed, then I’ll decide exactly how best to incorporate these pieces into a project of some sort.  Perhaps a dolls bed quilt for my larger piece?  That might make me rather popular!  Anyway, keeping an open mind for now...

And for the back.  Not sure I want that to be seen!

I'll post a photo of the final product when it is done... could be a while yet!!

Eating Humble Pie

St Lucia. Still. Leaving any day now... Oh, sure!

Dear Friends,

Specifically, those who have commented on our blogs and never been answered, we send to you our most humble apologies.  Having managed our blogs for some 17 years now, the Galley Slave/Blog Manager, has only just stumbled upon the Comments section.  Here lie many missives, that until now, have mostly sat forlorn and unnoticed.  Oh dear!  

Our Galley Slave has just finished revitalising the now ageing blogs.  A perfect job indeed when on hurricane watch sitting in a marina for a few months.  Low season maintenance tasks!  We have six blogs to manage, with only two connected to our regularly accessed, email accounts.  These are the busiest blogs, although I hasten to add that none of them are appearing in any top ten popularity lists (just yet!).  That’s fine with us; we’re not in it for glory, money or bow bunny pix.  We started our blogs as an easy way of keeping contact with family and friends as we moved about and to have journals to remind us, in our dotage, of “our wilful youth.”  They are also a way for us to participate in and share with our communities.  The Cap’n writes of his boat maintenance efforts and GS, her travel and textile finds.  Our Cap’n is also a big fan of the Cruiser net community.  Many a problem has been thus solved.  

Thank you all for your efforts to engage us.  We shall endeavour to be more attentive and prompt in the future.  Always learning!  And a big thank you to everyone who reads and enjoys our adventures.

A rare moment in front of the camera this year.
A good drop of champagne will do that for you!!

What a Year, 2024!

So, here we are.  The start of November.  And very little in the way of quilting achieved this year…  All, well mostly all, due to our sailing plans that seem to have taken on a life of their own.  So, what happened?

Supermarket run in our 'other' car

• Our intent for an early start (Feb) this year to get from Trinidad to the US before hurricane season, (June to November) fell apart, waiting on visas. So, the plan was re-written.
• We added a bit more work to our list for completion in Trinidad, as you do, while we were hauled out.  So, very slow off the starting block and yet another plan was made.
• Hurricane Beryl (1 July 2024).  We were not affected, thankfully.  Our revised plan had been to do a a few months of cruising with a visiting friend, then return to Trinidad in September, haul out and fly home.  Not long after arriving In Carriacou (Grenada) and then a few days later in Bequia (SVG), we watched closely, a developing weather system, working its way toward the southern Caribbean islands.  We moved further north to St Lucia avoiding catastrophe unleashed by quickly strengthing Beryl, with, for us, only storm-force winds to contend with.  Tucked well into the lagoon here, we also avoided tidal surge that caused enormous coastal damage.  Given decimation of the islands to our south, the flight of many cruisers to safety in Trinidad and lack of available space to haul in the Chaguaramas boatyards, it made sense to stay in St Lucia. So, we did!

By then, Hurricane season was well underway, islands to our south seriously damaged and Trinidad facilities stretched to the limit.  Leaving our boat for the season in St Lucia was not an option either, though surprisingly, many do.  We slipped sideways, into our next plan.  As going home was now out of the question, we decided to stay with the boat in St Lucia, then when the coast was clear, in November hopefully, make a dash for Chesapeake Bay, in the US, parking our boat and heading home, we’re hoping, by March 2025.  Phew!

Scrappy & colourful hexies (last of the snowflakes!)

During our stay in St Lucia, I’ve managed to stitch the last of my Kingfisher hexies (aka St Lucia snowflakes) on to pre-cut backgrounds.  I’d started stitching them the previous year when we stopped in St Lucia - time flies!  In the hope of getting some stitching time this year, they were part of a little pack of handwork I had prepped to take away with me.  Having finished all the applique, I decided not to stitch the blocks together (given bold background colours) until I get home and can arrange them on my design wall.  Sewing on a boat is do-able, I’ve decided, as long as it’s handwork, easy to pick up and put down, and compact – storage space is limited.

Scrappy Hourglass Variation

I had also packaged up with my supplies, a bag of scraps to make some small bags.  My plan was to stitch them by hand, boro style, then assemble them at home.  However, with time on my hands, and a recently serviced, teeny-tiny sewing machine (not to mention oodles of electricity at the dock!!) I changed my mind, deciding I could manage a few quilt blocks for a scrappy quilt. 

All I had was a selection of lights and darks; no background fabric.  Quilts and quilt making is not a “thing” here in St Lucia.  Tropical weather will do that for you!  So, with no chance of finding something for a background (we’d also had a recent wardrobe cleanout, so nothing there either!!), the hunt was on for a suitable block.  Funnily enough though, I ended back at BethShibley’s Hour Glass Variation.  Big, bold and easy to cut shapes, HST’s that I could manage in my tiny space with only a few tools, and enough scraps to assemble 30 11 inch blocks, with little waste!  Best of all, this pattern works very nicely with a light/medium and a dark contrast, then a cross of either in a colour match. 

Quilter at work - keeping it tiny is not easy!

Let me just say, that a $70 Walmart Brother sewing machine is not quite my ageing Bertie Bernina, but once I’d discovered its foibles (with quite a bit of unpicking), I had 30 colourful blocks to play with.  A sheet became my temporary design wall, however I packed the blocks away to assemble at home.  Availability of fabric for sashing was the hold-up…  My hope is that we can stop in St Martin briefly so that I can visit Lyseth’s “A Stitch at a Time” in Cole Bay.  That’s where I found those beautiful blues for my first Hourglass Variation – also waiting at home for me to sew together.  Next year, I suspect my quilting time at home will go rather too quickly…

Oh, and just to be sure you know, even though I sneakily reduced my mission to complete 9 items in 2024 down to 4, not one thing, on either list, was finished!  Ha ha!  Sometimes, you've really just got to laugh at yourself...  Still, I love a good list and I'm sure next year will be filled with them!

Finish Your Four

The idea of the Making Nine Project is, as I understand it, about starting and finishing your chosen undertakings for the year.  Signing a contract with yourself to commit.  For me, there’s the challenge!  Given my rather too large, and if I’m honest, very old collection of UFO’s, huddled in boxes rarely seeing the light of day, ignoring them bothers me.  Then of course, there is the ever-present fantastic new patterns, fabulous magazines, ideas on the net, friend challenges and workshop opportunities.  All singing like Sirens, luring you to commit to the possibility of adding yet more to that UFO count…

Another consideration is that a large chunk of my year is given over to living the gypsy life.  Sewing large quilts in confined spaces is not for the faint-hearted at the best of times, so I cram my days at home with as much stitching time as possible.  Only recently, have I actually managed some hand stitching while we’ve been away.  Thank goodness for the convenience and ease of hexies and EPP!  So, with all this in mind, and given it was already July anyway, I felt nine was a too big a commitment.  So, in a “Let’s get it Done” mood, I’ve fashioned “Make Mine Nine” to a more achievable “Finish Your FOUR”.  Here’s what I achieved in 2023.

1. I happily packed my box of hexies to take away and managed to stitch a bunch of scraps into pretty “flowers.”  They are now firmly stitched to diamond backgrounds waiting to be set into a top.
2. Far from home, I stumbled upon a wonderful patchwork shop, filled with the most tempting blues.  (There’s that dreaded inspiration again!!)  These I cut out, along with a bag of blue scraps from home, then bagged them to make up into blocks for an Hourglass Variation (Beth Shibley’s pattern).  I was able to check her cutting requirements on days when we actually had an internet connection!  Back in my Garden Shed, I’ve stitched up 30 blocks ready to set into a top. 
3. But not before deciding that a Layer Cake pack of Debbie Maddy Shibori fabrics “Shimo” would make up into the perfect quilt gift for friends.  I did get this quilt finished, just not until early in the new year. (I need more photos before posting!) 

I've now made up 30 Hourglass Variation blocks using both new and "revitalised" fabrics...

Still, that makes three out of four in 23; I’m just not pointing out that only one was actually finished!  Numbers can indeed, be rather rubbery…

Then of course, now having rolled over into the new year, it was time for my annual UFO Review.  This revealed a fairly constant annual figure of 13 UFO’s (my lucky number so it would seem), with some projects dating back to the 1980’s.  Having settled on an achievable (or so I thought!) project number of four, I insisted (to myself) 2024’s fab four come from my static WIP stash – 2 old & 2 more recent.  That’s setting the task bar high with quite the quota of quilting!

1. Machine quilt Stumbling Fans, my oldest top: 1980 UFO #1
2. Christmas Fairies, make into a tree skirt: 1989 UFO #2
3. Finish machine quilting Dutch Coverlet: 2014 UFO #4
4. Finish the Horta blocks, sew the top & backing, then baste: 2013 UFO #9

Luckily, it’s still only March!  Whoo hoo…  So, with all this machine quilting, my poor Bertie will definitely need a service/check-up very soon!  He must be getting on a bit - 21 years old this year, and deserves a bit of “me” time.

As to newbies – inspiration will strike as inspiration does!  And I am thinking it might just be time to explore a Japanese theme or two again.  I still have a nice bundle in my stash from the Japanese Textile Tour I took in 2000.  “Tell him he's dreamin'” to quote Darryl from The Castle, one of our most loved movies.  

A sneak peak at my almost finished Shibori Jacob's Ladder Variation

2023 And Me

 

Graphic courtesy of The Graphics Fairy

Yes. it's that time of the year again!  Amazing how quickly it sneaks up on you.  I've been hiding in my garden shed on temperate days and can boast a top just completed.  All easily put together thanks to a Jenny Doan Jacobs Ladder tutorial.  I did muff the pattern a bit!  But it's quite forgiving and I don't think anyone would know (she said hopefully).  If this weather holds, then I hope to have it basted and under the machine for a few quiet days of quilting.  Further activity in the shed has seen construction of heaps of HST's in prep for my hourglass variation inspired by My Sewing Room's Beth.  I plan to leave some time however, to clean up and dig out all my UFO's for the big annual guilt-fest review.  This always puts brakes on my ambitions to start yet another quilt before finishing at least one or two "sleeping beauties".

Sadly, I would like to bid my quilting buddy Margaret a fond farewell.  It was always fun stitching with you on your balcony watching the world go by.  We will miss your kindness, good heart and amazing quilting talent.

This cute little kewpie reminds me of the play by Ray Lawler, Summer of the 17th Doll, written in 1955.  I trust this cutie brings joy to you all this festive season, where-ever you are.  Have a wonderful and peaceful Christmas and New Years, and allow at least some time to spend on your own stitching projects.  Better yet, relax in front of a few good, old fashioned movies while you stitch!