Windows

The inspiration for this quilt came from the stain glass windows we saw on a recent trip to Europe and Britain. There were lots of the beautiful traditional ones to see, but there were also some more modern ones in very bright colours. Ngaire

Milk Round - Helen

Probably no need to explain the thought process for this quilt. I'm not sure whether the fact that I lived on a dairy farm and an uncle owned a "milk round" business (both a long time ago!) had any influence.

Round and Round the garden.

Hi Kerry,
I made this little quilt with a suffolk puff feature because they are 'round'.
Round when you cut them out and round when you sew them up.
I really like them because they are so versatile.
Enjoy your new house and fill it with quilts.
Cheers,
Ruth

Four Phases of The Moon- Kerry Glen

Kay ,I do hope you received your little quilt.I spent time thinking about time and came to the conclusion the basics of time is the measurement and that is determined by night and day and the passing of. The cycle of the moon is very relevent to the passing of time.  Can somebody work out how to place this in the correct space.?

Christmas has come AROUND again

For Kerry,
This was a difficult subject [for me] Then I kept seeing all the Christmas decorations in the stores - and everywhere else. So I am always stirred by the bright shiny colours - so here are some for you Kerry. Hope you enjoy.
I must say I am really enjoying this challenge group [albeit, I always seem to be late with my submissions etc.]

OK now for the next challenge how about - 'FLORA' - this should make it easy for you girls over the holiday break

cheers Lorraine

Round Robin - by Margie

Finished at last [13/12]. I thought about patterns with circles, and fabric with spots but it was Helen and Kay who suggested to me that we don't have to be too literal. And that led me to "round robin" - my robin is indeed very round! Margie

Tiles II - from Judith

Simple repeating blocks that form secondary designs was one of the things that first drew me to patchwork a number of years ago.  Every now and again I like to return to the traditional blocks.

What made me choose this design I wanted to try the Leaves Galore Ruler I’d bought recently (I love gadgets). This ruler enables you to accurately cut many leaf like shapes at the same time.  Such fun, on a larger project it would be invaluable, actually, it could result in a number stash buster projects in the New Year.  Hope so - several have come to mind already.

Hope you enjoy this quilt Kerry.

Cheers  Judith

Deb - Round and round and round........

I was going round and round and round by the time I finished stitching this one!!!
Inspired by a quilt in this year's Quilt National by Judy Kirpich, but constructed in a completely different way. 1/8 inch strips of fabric cut on the bias and applied to the backing fabric using Vliesofix. Then stitched and quilted at the same time with a small zigzag stitch.
I thought this theme was quite hard to begin with, but then ended up with several ideas before deciding to go with this one. Looking forward to the next challenge.

Round, but not a Circle

This was a challenge!  I was determined to have no circles in my "Round" quilt, so I thought long and hard about the word and came up with this little ditty.

Kay

Hot Spot

Once again I have delved into my collection of black and white fabrics but it doesnt seem to be diminishing at all. Perhaps I need to make a really big quilt out of them. I managed to find lots of fabrics in my collection with spots and dots to compliment the " round " theme.
Hope you enjoy Kerry, from Anna.

Round, round and round in Circles

Did I go round and round in circles on this challenge. Found this the hardest task to do so far. I would start and put it away and then come back to it because I had to get the quilt made.

Suprisingly I finally really enjoyed what I was doing, to the point that I have some of my regular students want to have a go at the many techniques used. I am going to create a workshop around this small quilt.

I cut stips of yellow and quilted as I stitched, then found lots of deco stitches on my machine for the background. I added curves in different colors and stitches and finally the 'round' circles. Had fun using many of the threads I've had forever as well.

Thank you Kerry for this challenge. It really made me think!

Cheers, and I look forward to the next challenge I think!!!

Pam

Tempus Fugit - for Kay

Hi Kay,
This one is for you, am sending it snail-mail today.
I drew the design in August thinking I had plenty of time, but things got hectic [that's life you say?]
Well I was overseas for a month and when I returned guess what the fairies had NOT completed it for me. So here it is title says it all Tempus Fugit - Time Flies.
I enjoyed seeing all the other quilts and hope to see them for real, soon.
cheers Lorraine

Day & Night

After changing my mind several times I finally went back to what I like doing, the traditional blocks. 

"Day and Night" also reminds me of the very long days and then the very long nights one of our sons will have in the next year as he enjoys and works in the Antarctic.  

Hope you enjoy this quilt Kay. 

Regards Ngaire

Dandelion Clock - Jane Mac

        One o'clock...Two o'clock... Three o'clock... Four...is what I would say to myself as I gently blew on the dandelion clock that I had picked from garden, field or meadow.

 I remember very much enjoying telling the time this way as a small child.

The delicate seeds were wonderful to watch being carried off on a current of air. They can travel great distances.

Thank you Kay for the subject!

I'm Late

I don't remember what I was looking for, but one day at my bookshelf I found my illustrated "Alice in Wonderland".  As I flipped through it I found the classic drawing of the White Rabbit with his gold watch and chain and saying "oh dear, Oh dear, I shall be late."  It was this that turned my thoughts to Time as a theme for our little quilts.  Before we had children we were always on time for everything, then with the chaos that was inevitable with two small boys we never seemed to make it!  Now they are all grown up there just seems to be so much to do that time is a very precious commodity, rapidly running out.

An  internet search revealed that John Tenniel's drawings are no longer copyright, so here is my White Rabbit, running late, lifted directly from my illustrated "Alice".

Kay

Story Time - Deb

Finished! Two months to think about it and only one week to stitch it! (I've been away on holidays.)
When I was a young mum it was always a struggle to find "time" to read the evening story and I nearly always fell asleep doing it! Now that I am a grandma I have lots of "time" to read the stories (and it's a lot of fun) but I still nearly fall asleep, especially after reading the same story five times!!
I adapted a picture from the Internet, machine appliqued the figures and did some hand quilting in the background. 
I LOVE the quilts that have been posted so far.  Amazing how we all come up with such different ideas.

Race Against Time - by Judith

Race against time, how well I know that feeling.  In fact I know it so well that the quilt was almost called “Self Portrait”.

In the Harvest Quilt I began to explore using watercolour pencils in quilt making.  “Race Against Time” explores the possibilities further.  When I began this quilt, using watercolour pencils and textile medium, I was not brimming with confidence but, as they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained.  The confidence grew and so did the fun - oh there are so many possibilities here.  Some of the finer details have been picked out with pigment liner pens.

Really had fun making this for you, Kay, I hope you enjoy it too.

Cheers Judith

Archaeology can be fun with TIME Team - Helen

One of my favourite television shows is Time Team where presenter Tony and the team uncover the amazing archaeology of Great Britain. I enjoy the interaction of personalities on the show as much as the discoveries!
The quilt shows my version of sections of the Time Team logo. The triangle of pink/green fabric is to acknowledge Mick Aston who, I'm sure, has worn the same striped jumper for every episode in which he has appeared.
Fortunately my Bernina responded well to the challenge of the gold thread.

Measuring Time : Hour Glass - stitched by Margie for Kay

Keeping it simple as usual, I chose the traditional Hour Glass pattern; with the spots being grains of sand. Transferring photo.s takes longer, well almost, than making the quilt; each time I forget how I did it the last time.

Autumn TIME for Kay from Pam

I also couldn't go past seasons, as much as I tried to be a lateral thinker, it didn't work!

Therefore with my helper we came up with Autumn TIME with a modern twist, I think!

Autumn Time is my favoutite season, especially in cooler climates with its array of wonderful colors.

With this quilt I quilted the background first using a decorative stitch on my machine, and then added the design.

I loved playing with some other stitches and the fabrics I had in my stash.

Can't believe I used a white background, but it all seemed to work ok.

Hope you enjoy the quilt, Kay as much as I enjoyed making it for you.

Look forward to the next theme!



Seasons

We mark time in decades,years,seasons,months,weeks,days,hours,minutes,seconds.
 I chose seasons as my ' time' theme as there is always an element in each season that I enjoy and anticipate with pleasure. Spring of course for its renewal and the burst of fresh growth. Summer for the long relaxing days on holiday hopefully enjoying the sun .Autumn for it's beautiful foliage and Winter , the long nights huddled in front of a cosy fire.
I too have finished mine early as we have four lots of overseas visitors here during Sept/Oct for the Rugby World Cup. Mostly family, two daughters, husbands and grandchildren from Australia, my sister and husband from U.K. and finally old friends from the States. PHEW!!!!
Hope you enjoy receiving the quilts Kay

Cheers Anna

Time Flies

Hi Kay,
Gee whizz........This topic had me scratching the old locks!
Never mind it is 'done'.
I'm a bit early and organized this month because I'm off to teach at Rocky tomorrow and won't be back until after the end of the month.
Please through your address and I'll post the quilt when I get back on the 3rd.
And then.........lucky duck that I am, I'm off to the States and Houston.
Hope you enjoy your quilts.
Cheers,
Ruth

Yukata Blues

At last my contribution! Apologies for the delay....Time just got away....mmmm yes.. a thought for the next challenge!!

I enjoyed making this wee quilt but not as much as I have enjoyed receiving all the amazing quilts from the group. Thank you all so much.

Jane

Navy & White for Jane - Lorraine

Hi Jane, hope you have

received the little quilt by now. I enjoyed making it - especially quilting the background with

red shiny thread. cheers Lorraine

Navy and White with a Dash - Helen

Through my eyes navy and white should always be accompanied by a "dash" of another colour - in my case that would always be red!
A discontinued furnishing fabric sample led to this quilt design - the sample looked really smart in bronze, grey and cream tones but I thought that the pattern had potential for the navy and white theme.

Thanks for this theme Jane and the quilts are looking great.

The Navy Blues

This quilt created some serious problems!  The first image that sprang to mind when I read the challenge was the Village People singing "In the Navy".  A bit too hard - too many people in a little quilt. The next navy and white image was the Carlton Football Club - for the New Zealanders, a champion Australian Rules football club based in Melbourne.  We used to live near their home ground, their playing uniform is navy and white and they are known as the"Navy Blues".  Now comes the scary part!  When I told my husband the theme for this challenge he immediately began singing "In the Navy"!  I said that I had already thought of that, but an indian headdress was probably a bit too much of a lateral stretch even for me.  He then said "Well, there is always Carlton."  I couldn't believe it!  We've clearly been together too long!

So here is my little navy and white quilt, a tribute to the great Aussie Rules side, the Carlton Football Club.

Now, it is time to reveal your next challenge:  Time.

I hope you enjoy it.  Happy Sewing,

Kay

Stop and smell the Flowers - by Ruth

Hi Jane,
I just typed out a story to go with my little quilt but then the computer 'switched itself off'
and so I had to start all over and reload the photo etc.
So i'll be brief!
I enjoyed the navy and white challenge.
Enjoy your quilts. They all look fabulous! Well done girls!
Cheers,
Ruth

Tiles - Judith

I have just taken possession of a bias binding making machine, which makes yards of bias tape in minutes. This little Japanese Meshwork quilt just begged to be made.  The pattern is from “Meshwork with Fabrics” written in Japanese but with good diagrams. I enjoyed making it for you, Jane, and I hope it gives you pleasure.       Cheers Judith

Karabana / Chinese Flowers - Ngaire

Dear Jane

At a recent symposium I did a class called “Sashiko by Machine” with Judy Turner.  Your request for navy and white gave me another chance to practice her techniques.  The design is called “Karabana”or "Chinese Flowers" taken from Mary Parker’s book “Shashiko” whose designs I enjoy and hope to do more of.   Ngaire.

Navy and white celtic

I really enjoyed making this quilt for you Jane as I was able to try out a new technique I have been wanting to trial. I managed to change the colour of the bias strip and match it perfectly to the seam line.The 9x12 quilt is the perfect size to experiment with.

Cheers Anna

NAVY and WHITE for Jane

Loved making this little quilt.

Thank you Jane. I think I had it made in the first couple of weeks.

With my helper, the computer and I, it all just happened.

Look forward to the next challenge, Kay.

Bring it on!

Wasn't it great that Quilt Encounter were willing to share our quilts with their quilters. To all accounts they enjoyed seeing all the different things we have done. Sixty quilts will have shown a great variety of ideas.

Our quilt group here, the Nelson Bay Quilters would also like to have a display with them in April 2012.

Will let you all know when this comes around.

happy quilting everyone.

Pam

Deb - Teacup Stack

I really enjoyed this theme. My first thought was to do a sailor - who doesn't like a man in uniform!!  Then I wanted to use some of my Japanese fabric collection which I thought Jane would like, so I looked at stacks of bowls and teacups and decided on the teacups. When it came to the quilting, white and navy looked very boring so I did some with red!

Kerry - When Bali Meets Japan

"Flutter By" - Navy and White - stitched by Margie for Jane

I admit to tossing around at night dreaming up grand ideas for our challenges but in the cold light of day the skills required for these grand ideas are beyond me! And so back to basics [and having fun] - out came all my navy and white fabrics, many of which were rejected for being more blue than navy, more cream than white. And I love the log cabin block and all its variations. I find it interesting that even though I did try very hard to cut and piece accurately the little blocks still look wobbly due to the scale of the prints.  Machine pieced and hand quilted.

Oishi - Ruth

An Excellent Vintage -Kerry Glen

I know I am late again .So sorry Judy. I am very careful not to view the latest pics until I have finished. That way I am not anxious that somebody had the same idea.THose that have spent time with me will know this was the right choice of subject.  5 oclocks drinks and nibbles ,something to look forward to at the end of a particurly long day.  Had fun with this one pondered over it at AQC knew what it was to be just could not find enough time to get the machine out.  I am off to the Sydney and Craft show tomorrow so will hopefully catch up with one or two of you if not then ,certainly in JUly. Can not wait.

Red Cabbage

I am late with my quilt (sorry Judy) as I did all the quilting on this arty farty  photograph of half  a red cabbage and was pleased with the finished result. I thought I had bottom line  thread in my bobbin but I found out it was washaway when I sprinkled the quilt with water before its final pressing. Arrgh!#*#

AND why is it called red cabbage when its clearly purple??

Anna

Yearly Treat

Each year Judy has a great vegetable garden which always include a crop of courgettes/ zucchinis. Some of the crop always grows a little bigger and my family becomes the beneficiary of a couple of the larger ones. I have a delicious recipe for stuffed zucchini which we always enjoy so here is my 'harvest' quilt to thank Judy for our Yearly Treat. Ngaire

Ripe for the Picking

 The quilt’s story, perhaps a more appropriate title would be “Rescued from Fate Unknown”

The starting point: a photo of some large red crab apples.  Inspiration: a magazine article on free motion machine quilting written by Jenny Bowker.  Unfortunately my attempt fell far short, the proportions were totally wrong.  What to do without sacrificing all that quilting?

Help came from two different sources.  Firstly, a TV programme on Chinese garden design and the way circular openings in stonewalls are used to frame a particular view.  Secondly, a magazine article about the use of watercolour pencils in quilt making.  To complete the rescue I reprinted the apples and appliquéd them in place.

This is far from the original concept, but may be, a fair compromise under the circumstances.

Judith

Harvest- Jane

Hay Bales at Harvest time in the Cotswolds. Lots of activity and hard work and to see the fields scattered with hay bales was always a wonderful sight when I was growing up.
If any one has read Lark Rise to Candleford you will know what I mean! 

Daffodil Harvest - Helen

For someone who has lived on a farm the harvest theme provided an opportunity to reminisce using fabric. Our family farm included a dairy, an apple and pear orchard, extensive market garden, daffodils and the "crop" for which the family was well known in the state - gladioli, grown for both the cut flower and bulb markets. In the latter years of ownership the daffodils became the main activity  - my late uncle achieved his ambition of completely covering the eight acre paddock with daffodils, including the banks and down to the water's edge of the dam in the paddock!

Guardian of the Crop

Thought long and hard about this one!  Something to do with wine came to mind since our son trained as a winemaker, but I knew that was Deb's area of expertise.  I took a step backward  and realised that you can't have a harvest without a good crop, so here is my scarecrow, keeping watch over the fields of grain, helping them reach peak ripeness.

Kay

'Harvest' - Challenge 12 - for Judith from Lorraine

Hi girls
Not much to harvest in our small house block, however our very young Meyer lemon tree has decided to produce a bumper crop this year. Good for the G & T at happy hour.
Looking forward to seeing the others as they pop up.
cheers Lorraine

HARVEST for Judith from Pam

Harvest for your enjoyment Judith!

We live in the Hunter Valley area even though we are right on the coast of NSW. About two and half hours north of Sydney.

The Hunter Valley is a popular tourist destination, with many visiting the many wineries.

Best wishes and I look forward to the next theme.

Pam

Grape Harvest - Deb

When Judith suggested The Harvest as a theme we were right in the middle of the grape harvest here in McLaren Vale. Although we don't actually squash the grapes with our feet anymore, I found this photo on the internet and thought it was very appropriate. (We have a friend who is making his own wine this year and he put the grapes into a bucket with holes punched in it, put another bucket inside the first one, a plank of wood on top and then sat on it! It worked.)
Lorraine might notice some free motion circles (the grapes) on this quilt. Free motion quilting is not my thing so I was very pleased with the way this turned out. I've had some very patient teachers!

harvest moon

stitched by Margie for Judith april/may 2011

We had a particularly bright moon just after Judith announced her theme "harvest". Good old Google told me this was the autumn equinox - the moon appears low in the sky and brighter than usual so in the old days the farmer could extend the harvest into the evening by the light of the moon - hence it is known as the Harvest Moon [nowadays they just turn on the tractor lights!]. The quilt pattern is  traditional and known as Moon over the mountain. Machine pieced and hand appliqued and quilted. I enjoy playing with combinations of colour and pattern and am often pleasantly surprised by the results [and sometimes not]. Margie

Fish

Kay

Deb

Jane

Anna

Kerry

Pam

Ruth

Lorraine

Margie

Ngaire

Helen

Judith

 

 

Finally got around to putting all the 'fish' together! Thank you all. They are great. I took the ones I had to a quilt camp a few weeks ago and everyone showed a lot of interest. Pam had hers there too. So nice to see them in real life.   
Cheers,     Deb.