Mastering the Art of McTavishing, 2nd Edition

One of my favorite free motion quilting designs is McTavishing. Quilter extraordinaire, and design creator, Karen McTavish has updated and expanded her original book on her namesake design.

When I was planning the first Free Motion Monday series which featured McTavishing, I learned from Karen that this book was nearing release but wouldn't be ready for my series.

She and her publishers were nice enough to send me a review copy when it became available and it's fabulous!

In addition to a lot  of material from the first edition and the original DVD, there's quite a lot of new information, including an all new DVD (featuring my unrequited love, George) and a new swirly version! Here's information from the publisher's website:

The author's namesake stitch makes a quilt look and feel as if it has motion and texture. The inspiration for this style of quilting comes from Art Nouveau artist, Alfonse Mucha. Author, Karen McTavish, adapted Mucha's curvy, stylized art form into a free-hand background filler quilting design. The effect was electric on the quilting community and in judged competition.

Mastering the Art of McTavishing instructs the quilter on adding this technique to any quilt or garment, from traditional wholecloth to contemporary art quilts, for use by hand, domestic machine, or longarm quilters.

Lessons from the author combined with interviews of accomplished hand and domestic machine quilters on the DVDs* give the reader an unparalleled view of the quilting process. Every aspect of how to use McTavishing is compiled in the book and in the accompanying DVDs*.

The book is softcover, full color, 128 pages, includes TWO DVDs, and retails for $27.95.

After working on my McTavishing sampler above during the series, I can't wait to work on the swirly version! You can see the rest of my McTavishing series posts on my Free Motion Mondays- A Quilting Adventure page.

Mastering the Art of McTavishing, 2nd Edition is full of beautiful quilts by Karen and many of her students. There are plenty of pictures and instruction for her namesake design plus several other designs. It's a must have book if you don't have the first edition, and has enough new material to justifying adding the newest version to to your bookshelf next to the original too.

You can order it at On-Word Bound Books.

Leave a comment on this post and you will be entered for a drawing to win my copy. Name to be drawn Saturday, June 28th.

Edited to add- This giveaway is now closed. We have a winner!

Quilted Wallet

I've been wanting to stitch up my own wallet for some time now. I was using a Dave Ramsey envelope system thing for my dollars, plus a zippy pouch for my change and plastic. (And if you're familiar with Dave Ramsey, don't tell him I still have plastic! None of it is actually credit cards these days anyway.) Things were a bit unorganized to say the least.

I knew I wanted two zippered compartments and pockets for the plastic and other cards). I had just a little fabric left over from making my current purse so I was able to coordinate my wallet. Happy day! I didn't use a pattern and sort of winged it. Love me or hate me, that's just how I am. The down side to being able to wing it and create my own patterns is a very bad case of impreciseness. That's why I don't do a lot of intricate piecing! My sewing life is also littered with things that didn't quite work out as I imagined them, at least not the first time....

But this wallet turned out nicely! There are a few tweaks I'll do next time and I did make my own pattern on paper as I went so I can make it again with those tweaks. The magnetic snap was a...well....snap to put in too. Best thing is it's the perfect size to grab out of my heavy purse if I'm just popping into a shop and carry it as a clutch. I might put a little handle on it as a wristlet.

I used a serger for several of the seams and even sewed the zippers in with it, but since I didn't have a zipper foot for the serger, it was a bit wonky. I think the next time, I'll just use oversized zippers and then trim them down when I stitch the side seams. I'll probably add another zippered pocket, since I do use a cash system for 2-3 expense categories.

I used Peltex under the outside fabric for a nice, stiff outside and did a bit of free motion quilting following the fabric's pattern too. I think it could use some stitching around the outside edges for a more finished look, but I'm glad I made it.

Quilts: Washed and Blocked

I've had a couple of people ask about how I wash and/or block my quilts and first of all I'd say this is one area that I'm still learning.

I always, always, always wash all my fabric unless it's a charm pack or jelly roll. Yes, that means I do a lot of ironing and refolding and such, but it's worth it. Shrinking and running colors are the pits. Washing everything as it comes in the house (or comes out of my "needs to be washed" fabric drawer) is the only way I can keep track of what has been washed or not. Essentially, it's all washed. Always.

But using blue water erase markers really require a good dunking to get the marks out. (There are other methods, but this is what works for me.) I use other marking tools occasionally that I like to wash out too.

When it comes to customer quilts (ie: someone else's top that I am quilting as opposed to a commissioned quilt that I make from scratch) I don't even want to spritz with water!  So I use the purple air erase markers or chalk if I have to mark them. Mostly, I try to not mark them.

Customer quilt, wool applique----no water for this one! No way, no how!

Smaller quilts I will dunk in the tub with cold water and then roll it up in a few towels and press the water out and then dry flat. If it's a bigger quilt, same thing, but I'll let the water out of the tub while the quilt is still in the water and then press on it to get more water out before lifting the heavy, wet mass out, then roll it up in a towel to remove more water. This is how I do most quilts unless they are utility quilts. Those go in the washing machine on a gentle, cold, short cycle.

For the farm quilt, which was 72x72, I used the tub but kept it folded so when I pulled it out there wasn't a ton of weight pulling on just one or two areas as I pulled it out. But it was also designed as a bed quilt, so when I was worried that the white mechanical pencil I used wasn't washing out with just a soak, I tossed it into the washer. In case you were wondering, I was an anxious woman until it was all done.

Washing a quilt is when the fibers can be at their weakest, which is another reason to stay away from cheap, thin fabrics. Cheaper fabric tends to have a lower thread count and shorter fibers in the threads of the fabric. I'm all for frugality, but choose wisely. Don't pull a large wet quilt out by one or two spots along the edge, cradle the bulk of it until the majority of the water is out.

For drying, I use a blocking board made of foam insulation that I got at a hardware store. If I want to block the quilt to dry absolutely square and flat, I can tug and pull, measure and then pin into the foam. Blocking is a pain, but usually necessary for anything that you want to show or lay super flat on a wall. If a quilt isn't quilted all at the same density, it will draw up more in the denser areas. Blocking helps even it all out. For smaller art quilts that might need blocked, a good spritz with water will wet it enough to block.

I didn't block the farm quilt, just laid it out flat and it remained square. Both my Poured Out and Poured Out 2 quilts had to be blocked since they had areas of very dense stitching around areas of trapunto. The bed quilts I have either get air dried in the dryer (kids' quilts), or hung over my cutting table so only a third or so hangs down on either side and then flipped a time or two as it dries. Line drying for utility quilts is a lovely idea, but....birds. It has happened several times, so I don't do it.

Poured Out

Poured Out 2

So, I hope I answered thoroughly enough. This is what works for me, and I am still learning in this area. It's kind of like binding when you are first learning to quilt. It takes so long between quilts that you tend to forget what you did the last time! Which is a great argument for working on smaller projects.

Free Motion Monday Quilting Adventures: Grid-Based Designs 3

It's week 3 of the grid-based designs free motion Monday series! That means it's time to share more designs, another video, and to draw the names of the winners of the stencils from www.quiltingstencils.com!

If you haven't seen the previous weeks' posts, you can find all of them on the Free Motion Mondays Quilting Adventures tab above.

First a video on a form of tiny continuous curves with the square grid from last week:

Then I filled in some of the checkerboard squares from last week, using a different direction for my stitching to form a basket weave effect. It sure flattens out the background. Not sure I like it, at least not at this tiny scale and density. Maybe at a bigger scale or using a slightly more contrasting thread.

Then it's time to move on to some new angles for the stenciled lines:

This is what happens when I attempt to use geometry with a brain befuddled by a summer cold. Try again:

 That's more like it! Then a triangle based grid. I thought it would look cool to fill in an occasional triangle.

Then I did a triangle based checkerboard. Pretty nifty except sometimes my eyes keep focusiong on 3 triangles at a time like the nuclear symbol.

Then a continuous curves design in the 60 degree triangle grid.

Here's all of my grid-based designs on this piece so far.

Now for our stencil winners:

Emily aka The Caffeinated Quilter
Linda E in AZ
Karen from http://www.nanagirlquilts.blogspot.com/

And don't forget to link up if you've got a blog and have some grid-based designs to share!

For the linky this week, link up a post of  grid-based designs you've done, if any. If you haven't done any, now's the time to draw some out, start a new practice piece or even try them out on a quilt!

Some quick rules:

• Keep your post relevant to this quilt along please. Spammy posts will be deleted.
• Make sure you link up to the individual post, not your home page as nobody wants to have to search around for the post if they're a little late to the party.
• Reciprocate! Link back to this post somewhere in your post or use the clickable blog button in your sidebar. You've got to dance with the one who took you to the party, so make sure you link back.
• Don't be a wall-flower. (Talking to myself here too. In person I am so stinking shy!) Visit the other links, be sociable, and leave comments.
• Please make sure you leave me a way to contact you if you are a no-reply commenter, especially if you ask a question. 

Don't forget to bookmark this blog, follow, or sign it up in your favorite feed reader. Like the facebook page (I do post some short things on it pretty regularly), or even check out my Pinterest boards.  I'll be visiting you too!

Linking up with Connie's Linky Tuesday. Go check it out!

BTW- If you're of a praying persuasion, I could use some prayers. Most of my family including me has a summer cold. Nothing too serious, but I've got a lot of irons in the proverbial fire and I feel like I'm burning out plus some stressful personal stuff so it doesn't help that I physically feel yucky.