Catching Up & Paducah Photos

How is it that we are already over halfway through May?  It doesn't seem possible that summer is around the corner.  I feel like I've been doing nothing but playing catch up over the last several weeks since we were in Paducah, but then that always seems to be the case after being away!

I have been trying to get several quilt tops quilted and so far, I am only on number two.  And these are little quilts!  Here is a glimpse of this little nine-patch quilt that I've marked with an allover orange peel quilt design.  I've showed this quilting design before on another small quilt I did awhile back.  Several of you asked how I get the lines to curve and line up, so I am showing you here.

I used nothing more than a plastic circle template that I had laying around, part of a set of several different sizes.  You can use pretty much anything that is round as long as the circle is large enough to intersect the corners of the block.  This is a 4" circle over a 3" block.  You can see how I line it up, above.  You want the circle to intersect the block about 1/2" to 3/4" on each of the four sides.  Then I just draw around the edge of the template with a blue water soluble pen four times on each block.  It goes very quickly and it is an easy and effective way to quilt with a walking foot.  Click HERE if you would like to read more on how I do this type of quilting.

Since I am so behind on blogging, I am going to jump right in and share some photos from the AQS Paducah Quilt Show.  Hopefully this won't be an overload for most of you!

We stopped over in Chattanooga, Tennessee on our way to Paducah.  Of course we had to check out the antique malls across the street from our hotel.  This beauty was in one shop.  I didn't buy it, but I definitely lusted after it!  Don't you love the scrappiness and the mix of colors together?

Here are a few antique quilts that were part of a patriotic quilt exhibit at the Rotary Center in Paducah.  I apologize for not getting more details on each quilt.

This one was made entirely of yo-yos.

The following quilts were in the AQS Paducah 2016 show and are in no particular order.

Eternal by Kazuko Noto

Yumemi by Maiko Ogawa

Yumemi (detail)

Summer Stars by Cindy Behrens

Bodacious by Claudia Clark Myers & Marilyn Badger

Bodacious (detail) by Claudia Clark Myers & Marilyn Badger

Arabella by Deborah France

Arabella (detail)

Sunburst by Sherry Durbin

Sunburst (detail)

Extraneous Female:  Escapement Mechanism by Beckey Prior

Extraneous Female:  Escapement Mechanism (detail)

Arandano by Marilyn Badger--Best of Show Winner

Arandano (detail)

Ben's Midnight Garden by Barbara Korengold

Victory by Colette Dumont

Oscar the Great by Nancy Sterett Martin & Kristin Sistek

Oscar the Great (detail)

Sparkling by Mitsuko Hashimoto

Sparkling (detail)

'Twas the Night Before Christmas by Linda Neal & Jackie Brown

'Twas the Night Before Christmas (detail)

'Twas the Night Before Christmas (detail)

In a Spring Breeze by Rumiko Ooiwa

In a Spring Breeze (detail)

A Garden for Your Peace of Mind by Kazuko Yamada

A Garden for Your Peace of Mind (detail)

Plates on Lace Napkins by Dawn Larsen

Plates on Lace Napkins (detail)

Supernova by Anapolis Quilt Guild

Tulips in a Vase by Betty Sweet

Tulips in a Vase (detail)

That brings me to the end of the first portion of my quilt photos.  Hopefully some of these inspired you!  I have more photos to share, including some of the wall size quilts, which I will post next time around. Have a fabulous week and Happy Quilting!

Orange Peel Quilting

Hopefully by now some of you have tried quilting cables with your walking foot!  Here is another easy and simple way to quilt with a walking foot and the effect is similar to the look of hand quilting on those old antique quilts we covet.  This quilting design is known as orange peel or pumpkin seed quilting.  I love this look, especially for scrappy quilts, and it's very easy to do.



Above is a little scrappy rail fence I finished last month, I've named it Petit Jardin which means Little Garden in French.  The finished size is approximately 24 inches by 36 inches and it's just a fun, colorful little quilt to display in my home.  You can see I've marked all of my lines and a feather design that wraps around the four sides.  When I mark the orange peel design, I use a circle template and place it so that the curve of the circle intersects each corner of the block.  I line up the circle with two corners, or one side, at a time, marking every curve individually on each side of the block. Click HERE to see how I use a template to mark the orange peel design.

I approach the quilting the same way I approach quilting cables, sewing one line at a time from left to right.  I always begin in the top center of the quilt and work my way over to the right hand edge, sewing one line, from the top to bottom, then moving over to the next line beginning at the top again.  When I reach the right hand edge of the quilt, I then turn the quilt 180 degrees and work from the center out to the right edge again.

Here I've flipped the quilt over so you can see the backside and the quilting a little easier.  As you can see, I'm sewing all the lines going in the same direction first, always working from the top to bottom and left to right.

Once I've completed all the lines going in one direction, I turn the quilt 90 degrees and beginning at the top of the center, I start sewing the lines going in the opposite direction.  I am starting a line of quilting at the seam line of the border, see above.  I always bring the bobbin thread to the top of the quilt before I begin sewing.

I follow each line, one at a time, taking my time and sewing along each gentle curve.  For tips on how I handle the bulk of the quilt when sewing curved lines, please see my post on quilting cables. 

Here are a few shots of the orange peel quilting completed.

And below, here is a shot of the back side of the quilt.

And finally, my finished Petit Jardin!  I was even pleased with the way the feather turned out in the border.  The pictures below are of the quilt after it has been washed, so you will notice a bit more puckering around the quilting.

Thanks to all of you again for your enthusiasm about quilting cables with a walking foot that I posted back in April.  I love the comments and welcome your questions.  I do hope it has inspired you to try quilting cables and now, orange peels!  Don't hesitate to contact me.  Happy Quilting!