May BOM for Crafty's

Here are my 2 blocks for May for Crafty's BOM. The wretched Iron packed up just as I finished, so of course I couldn't iron them totally flat, so they certainly look a bit crushed....not the best way for a block to look! I LOVED making these.  I have realised that I really prefer making these kinds of blocks, and enjoy them much more than making those that are very precise. That's why I love the crazy quilting. So will possibly stick to these. I am all set to start a quilt with the wonky log cabin block!

Floor cushions!

Finally my 2 floor cushions are ready!  I love scrappy quilts. Besides my resolution is that I am going to use up most of my scraps and the fabrics i already have, before buying any more! One lesson learnt overall,  was that casement is not a good background fabric. The weave is too loose and loses shape ever so quickly. Since these were cushion covers and I wasn't planning to quilt them, I wanted a thicker fabric so tried casement.  I made the top, then put a lining of a thin mulmul (fine cotton fabric used for lining) , and held that together with the hand stitching, then made it into a cushion. The lining added as a of backing without the actual inner batting, and protected the seams.  I am participating in a BOM for Crafty's and both designs were originally learnt there.
The green and red one was the first one I made. I am happy with the results, the combination of  colours and the way I have matched them seems to have worked. The sewing has also been accurate as most points have matched, and thats a great feeling!

The second one looks attractive, but I am not overly happy with it. The colours haven't been coordinated well, and the darker strips seem to stick out in a random manner. Although there is no planned manner in which the fabrics have to be used, there certainly needs better merging of colours. Also the points haven't matched at all well. I realise that I will have to change the sewing lines on the blocks!

Went looking for inner lining batting for my quilts, down Bhendi Bazar in Mumbai! Didn't find the batting, but spent the afternoon walking down small lanes, taking in the intoxicating smells of kebabs and 'chaap' and biryani being cooked, hot jelebies being fried, and listening to a philosophical discussion on how pure cotton is unavailable as it has become so expensive, besides this being the 'jamana' of 'nakli' synthetics; burkha clad women with arms full of glass bangles, old men in pristine white kurtas and crocheted skull caps walking to the mosque for namaaz! Took me back to my college days. Nothing much seems to have changed since then! What an amazingly old country we live in!
Wish I'd carried my camera!

Desi Quilters

I went to the India Modern Quit Guild's 1st  meet in Pune with so much excitement and anticipation. The FB group had been going so well and I was really looking forward to meeting all the people who had become friends! However it turned out to be a real damp squib, as, besides having been really badly organised, the very reason why we had thought the meet was being organised, differed so much from the organisers. However not a single regret for going as I met and made friends with a number of like minded quilters. all with a singular love for quilting! We have decided to start another FB page and have kept it as a closed group, to ensure we get the kind of people we want on the group!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/233721996728443/?bookmark_t=group

Sufi's birthday clown!

I enjoyed making this clown for Sufi....used up a lot of my scraps of wool as well! I am amazed at the generosity of people who post free patterns. I got this from http://www.enfys.me.uk. 

The crochet cat!

Just a quick crochet cat for my 27 year old daughter!!!! So relaxing to make something quickly! Wonderful pattern sent by my friend Sandhya!

Cushions!

I spend a lot of my time imagining all the different quilts I can make and haven't really got down to it yet!!!! Joining the IMQG has definitely got me more proactive and my plans are becoming more concrete! My friend Yvonne Pinto (an amazing quilter) says I must practice on small pieces before attempting a full quilt! So I am trying out all sorts of precision block making techniques by making cushion covers. These 2 cushion covers are for the 'new look' drawing room  that Nafisa has decided we get, and started the process by choosing the new sofa covers when she was last home. All in a wonderful cream, and has given me strict instructions that I cannot use my usual earth colours for the cushion covers, but that they have to be an assortment of totally bright colours. So I decided to make a few of them myself.   I am going to finish all my scraps before I actually buy any new fabrics for any of my sewing projects!  I love using scraps anyway....the fabrics carry so many memories since I have been saving them for eons!
The cushion on the right is in my favourite log cabin pattern.   The yellow and black and white fabric, certainly sticks out a bit but I deliberately used that, to try something different!
The one on the left is another strip block made from one I have just learnt from the Crafty's BOM quilt along! It is certainly better coordinated in terms of colour. 

I also did a bit of running stitch...and really like the effect it creates. It also adds a finish. Its going to become my signature I think.