Oh, the fretting one can do ...

over what was meant to be a quick project! Things have ground to a halt because I realised that my cunning plan for quilting will actually not work with the design.

I meant to free-form doodle a circle around the larger blooms but that will probably look very weird with so little actual background ... so now I'm thinking I might free-form trace the smaller blossoms to accentuate their shape.

All about the process, no?

Q&D Birthday pressie

Wonder what Q&D stands for? Simple: quick & dirty ... well, hopefully not all that dirty ...

This will be a table runner, made from Sandi Henderson's Ginger Blossom range with cream coloured backing, minimal quilting and stripey binding to match the tray shown and the recipient's cushion set. It needs to be finished by Friday morning ... yes, yikes!

So off I rush!

The Pink Quilt - by Pigeon Pair

I love this quilt and I imagine that after some planning, it's fairly easy and quick to execute.

Read more about it here: www.pigeon-pair.com

In the Pink - finished!

Just before the lawn-mowing service arrived this morning, I took the opportunity and shot a few pictures in the morning sun (and in my jammies).

In the Pink was done in time for the Spring-to-Finish at the end of May. It was inspired by Elisa's Emergency Quilt. And I think I will make another quilt with frayed edges.

Finished and photographed: Caroline's Objects

The weather was lovely today so I interrupted work for a moment to snap photos.


I am a bit ambivalent about this quilt, probably because I worry how it will be received. This is one of my main "faults": I invest a lot of time and thought and love into a piece and find it hard to (1) let it go and (2) present it believing that the recipient will like it.

At the end, mercifully, they at least all act like they do!

Hubby says this is his favourite, is the recipient worthy? Well, if she does not like it, I can always ask for it back and give it to him, can't I? After all, they both share a shoe fetish!

For more photos, go here: Caroline's Objects on Flickr.

Vague Heart - finished

Oh boy, that was a process! Inspired by Kristin La Flamme's piece "Houses" and on the occasion of the wedding of my dear friend and his partner of 15 years, I wanted something kitsch and dramatic yet indivudual and stylish. I'm not sure I pulled it off entirely but I like the end result. And they did too.

The piece started off with the heart and then I felt it needed a "tag line" - hence the "LOVe is eteRnAl" (their initials are R and A) and the letters are all the same height).

But then it looked naff and slightly boring in a pretentious sort of way. So I added the beading at the top of the heart.

But then the beading looked disconnected from the fabric and the heart shape and the whole thing really, so I added a few little circles of beads. And by that time I was very, very tired and it was the night before the big party.

Still I felt it was finished! That's always a difficult point for me to reach and hold on to. But here it is ...


and they loved it. I want to believe that they saw how much of me I poured into this for them.

This is why I quilt!

This is Hannah, my goddaughter, the only person in the world who is not my kid and still has two quilts I made. Apparently, she plays with the quilts almost every day. And the towel was a gift from me as well.

I'm all smiles!

Materials & Progress

This was quite a ride so far. Kristin Laflamme inspired me to do this somewhat kitsch-ey piece for my gay friends who will be celebrating their marriage this upcoming Friday.

One groom has been my friend for half my life and I am incredibly proud of them and their relationship. It is inspiring and amazing to see how they evolve and develop as a couple and also individually.

The heart had been sewn to an old towel, washed and tumble-dried for the rayed effect. Once detached from the towel, I glued it to the canvas using (a bit too much) spray-on glue.

Using a quilting needle, I appliqued the heart to the canvas, which worked remarkably well.

Then I transfered the words to see-through paper and stitched through that and the canvas using the same grey thread I used to applique the heart. I only need to do two more letters in a contrasting colour.

And I am very relieved with how well this has progressed so far!

I think I might join a Quilt-Along

This one sounds easy, fast and like a good way to make use of the excessive amount of Moda pre-cuts I bought last year:

AmandaJean's Quilt-Along No 5
Flickr Group
For more info on her quilt-alongs, click here .

Process Pledge

I've been noticing these "I've taken the Process Pledge" badges recently and wondered what that was all about. At the same time, I was feeling a bit silly documenting my meagre exploits in my blog for all to see. There are so many quilters out there who are better or more technically adept than me. But I enjoy posting about the process and reliving it as well.

So without further ado:
I, Dorothee, pledge to keep on talking about my processes, even when I can’t quite put them in the in words or be sure I’m being totally clear. I’m going to put my thinking and my gut feelings out there.