Sunday 9 March 2014

Hooray! Sisterly scrap quilts

Just a quick post today to link with Chrissie and her stitch along to say I have finished the sisterly scrap quilts and I am totally besotted with them. I quilted the second one last night (without red wine) and it went really well. I tried to get a photo of them side by side but the beautiful sunshine today is making shadows on my washing line but I am certainly not complaining about that.




The oxy-action detergent worked so it all turned out great in the end with the red wine stain. Just a few notes about the materials.



All but one fat quarter of the patchwork fabric was thrifted from our home for both quilts.

The side panels on both and back of one quilt was a pair of curtains bought for £5 from a charity shop.

The back of another was a piece of duvet cover fabric given to me 2 years ago.

I played wild and free with thread and used up any old reels I had at home - really, sometimes I didn't even match the top to the bobbin!

The embroidery threads for the name plates and quilting stitches are at least 15 years old and are left overs from cross stitch kits.

So what about the batting or wadding? It was the only part of these quilts I had to purchase and I decided wisely. Take a look at this stuff...



This wadding is made from recycled plastic bottles. A queen sized piece like this uses 20 plastic bottles. This sort of product is right up my street. What a great idea! It has a sort of green hue to it but it is easy to put under the machine and looks and feels softer than polyester wadding. I highly recommend it from a sewing and environmental point of view. You can get it here at an online shop called cotton patch.

All in all it has been a fabulous first experience at quilting I will certainly continue to try new skills. 

What have you learnt this week? Jo x





15 comments:

  1. These are beautiful Jo, I like that batting, who'd have thought! :) x

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  2. Jo absolutely stunning as is everything you do - I am so in love with your quilts as they are colourful and enchanting. I also love the batting, what a good idea. Have a wonderful week Jo and thank you for writing such nice posts. Sending you lots of love and hugs
    Dorothy
    :-)xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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  3. They look fantastic, and what an interesting batting, the things that they create today, just amazing.

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  4. Beautiful work Jo and I'm so pleased you got rid of that stain - great thrifting too, and that batting looks very interesting. I bet your girls are so happy with their new quilts! Joy x

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  5. They're beautiful, Jo! You did a great job and I love that they are similar but different, so each sister has something very unique. Well done.

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  6. Gosh...I learned again how amazing you are!!! You are a whiz! These quilts are stunning! The colors and patterns are perfect! You go JO!!! Have a great week! Nicole xoxo oh and love that the wadding is made from recycled bottles...very cool!

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  7. They are stunning, I have kept a note about the wadding perfect use of unwanted items.

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  8. Oh wow! Absolutely beautiful, love the colours

    Lluisa xx

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  9. The colours in your quilts are lovely & I like the idea behind the wadding. I shall look for that again!

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  10. These are lovely! Such a beautiful blue sky in the background too xx

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  11. Both are truly lovely!! As Jennifer said, I like the similarity but difference aspect of them, as I am sure do your two girls. Glad that the washing went well for the character mark on the first quilt! You really did a fantastic job! xx

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  12. Wow these look amazing! Im sure that they will be cherished for a very long time. I loved reading about your journey in finishing them and how you used old bits and thrifted pieces. Thanks for that because whats always scared me about doing quilting is that there seems to be so many rules.
    Rosie

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  13. Stunning! And so beautiful in the sunshine! Gosh you should be so proud! Thank you for the information and tips, I'll make a note of that wadding...I'm behind on my posts, so as soon as I have a stitching link-up, promise you'll link these up! Chrissie x

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  14. They will be cherished heirlooms one day, Jo, and I am certain two little girls treasure them now! Thanks for the heads up about the batting. We found some tablecloths that look and feel like linen, but they are wrinkle and stain resistant and made of used plastic bottles. They are not too costly, either. [I should sign up to advertise for them :) ] So glad the oxy soap got the wine stain out! xx

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