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Showing posts with label SBS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SBS. Show all posts

Tuesday, 1 October 2013

Sylvia and the Civil War

Doing the posts on my Loyal Union Sampler and seeing the LUS blocks popping up on blogs and in the yahoo-group I feel my fingers itching to stitch little 6" blocks again. I'm a member of both the yahoo-group for Sylvia's Bridal Sampler and The Loyal Union Sampler. Both groups are doing a block-of-the-week program, so I'm gonna join in the fun using a layer cake and some cream fabrics from my stash:



Not sure how far they will take me, but at the moment it's just about having fun with some blocks along with everyone else. Perhaps they someday might turn into a Sylvia and the Civil War quilt?

This week's block at the LUS-BOW group is B-2 Camp Curtain:



Hugs and stitches from Anne Ida

Saturday, 21 September 2013

Loyal Union Sampler and Sylvia's Bridal Sampler

Elin posted a question on my previous post about the Loyal Union Sampler wondering if there were some of the same blocks in this sampler as there are in Jennifer Chiaverini's last big sampler quilt, the Sylvia's Bridal Sampler.

With the pattern for 140 blocks in one book and 121 blocks in the other you might think there are some doubles, but no there aren't any of the same blocks. The theme for the two quilts are very different. The SBS being a wedding quilt with blocks symbolizing love, marriage, everyday life and friendship. The love and friendship you also find in the LUS, but the dominant theme is the American Civil war.

However there are blocks that look similar at first glance, and there are some blocks that have the same construction but the colour placement makes them different.

In the SBS there is a classic two colour Ohio Star (M-5):


In the LUS there's a three colour block that is a combination of the star and a cross making the Happy Home (E-4):



There are also variations of this star with different piecing in the corners than the simple squares in the two above. One example SBS B-7: Swamp patch


The pieces for the LUS block Oregon (H-6)...:


...is made up of the same pieces as the LUS block Nevada (G-11), however the corner units of the block are turned the opposite  direction:


In the SBS the Sister's Choice block (C-4) has the same over all look as the Oregon block, but the constructuon is different:


You will also find there are examples of blocks within the same quilt where the piecing is the same and the colour placement is what makes the difference:


LUS Kansas Star (F-5)


LUS Chambersburgh (B-5):


SBS Boy's Nonsense (D-10):


SBS Gentleman's Fancy (K-6):


 There are also some blocks that are very similar in construction and can look rather similar, but still there are a bit of a difference:

LUS New York State (H3):


SBS Key West Beauty (M-10): 


LUS Indiana (F-1):



LUS Gettysburg (D-10):



And, as it should be (in my opinion), several variations of a sawtooth star:

LUS Abel's favorite (A-1):


LUS Diamond Star (C-8):


LUS Missouri Star (G-10):


LUS Pinwheel star  (H-10):


LUS Union Star ((J-11):


LUS Spurs (I-10) has the look of a sawtooth star, but is constructed differently:


SBS Sarah's Choice (H-3):


SBS  Sawtooth Star (J-1):



Hugs and stitches from Anne Ida

Tuesday, 17 September 2013

Loyal Union Sampler - the beginning

Some years ago there was a pink/brown swap on the then-existing Sylvia's Bridal Sampler mailing list run by Elm Creek Quilts author Jennifer Chiaverini. Unfortunately I was unable to participate in the swap, so when I got offered a chance to make The Loyal Union Sampler, I fairly quickly decided I would use pinks and browns as my focus colours, and to use the yardage I had from Jennifer's fabric lines The Winding Ways Quilt and Johanna's Collection

During my first little sewing session I went a little overboard and stitched up 11 blocks (not the most complex ones)  in one sitting: 


I-3: Resolution Square, A-10: Broken Path, B-2: Camp Curtain, J-6: Twin Star
F-8: Libby Prison, K-6: Windmill, E-9: Hourglass, H-8: Pennsylvania
D-8: Friendship Square, C-3: Crosses and Losses, G-10: Missouri Star

Looking at the blocks and looking through my stash I found I had pinks and brown pieces from other Elm Creek Quilts fabrics and would bring a bit more life to the quilt if I mixed and matched from the various fabric lines. I also wanted to bring a little sparkle to the quilt so I figured I would add just a touch of gold/yellow :-)
Hugs and stitches from Anne Ida

Wednesday, 25 March 2009

It's here!!!

Big grin on my face opening the mail tonight - because this was in there:

I have been eagerly awaiting it; and of course I just have to share!!! *lol*

A full page picture of my SBS quilt on page 83 and some of my blocks have been used as illustrations.


Update: I just had to share another pic !

I feel so proud! And I'm so honoured and grateful to be a small part of this beautiful book!

Hugs and stitches from
Anne Ida

Friday, 11 July 2008

A finish - thanks to quilting friends

My blue couch has now got a brand new red and white cushion! And all I had to contribute was some sewing thread and a pillow form, and of course some fun work :o)

May Britt gave me the fabric for the Two Brown Chickens stitchery pattern by Leanne Beasley already marked, and she also included the embroidery floss. It was quick and really fun to stitch! I decided to make it into a cushion rather than a wall hanging - because a couple of my old cushions are kind of worn out *lol* I framed it with a 1,5" strip of a dark red fabric that Elin got me for a fabric swap a little while back - and look, it has tiny chicken tracks all over it:

I love this fabric, and it's so perfect for this project! The large floral was a present from my SBS friend Shelley -it's the fabric she used this for the backing on her beautiful SBS swap quilt from the 2006 swap (Shelley, I hope you don't mind me linking to your quilt!). I still have some more of the fabrics, so there might be a matching cushion coming sometime in the future...

Thank you so much ladies!
Sincerely, Anne Ida
***
PS! To all you Elm Creek fans out there: Valerie has started a blogring called "Quilts through the pages" for fans of the Elm Creek Quilts series who also enjoy making quilts from the books - I have signed up, Erica has signed up, will you too?

Thursday, 3 July 2008

Elm Creek Samplers

For a long time I have wanted to make "Sarah's Sampler" from Jennifer Chiaverini's first pattern book Elm Creek Quilts - this is the quilt as it appears in the book (picture borrowed from http://www.elmcreek.net/):

(Ok, there are lots more quilts from these books I want to make!! *lol*). If you have read The Quilter's Apprentice you know this is the sampler Sarah makes when she first learn to quilt - and the storyline of the book is connected to each of the blocks in the quilt. But I have held back a bit on starting this one, partly because of the work of the setting but perhaps more because of the size. Then the other night I thought, why not make it as a mini? Ok, so I haven't eliminated the amount of work, but a wall quilt I can find room for :o) So I have drafted the blocks to 4" instead of the 12" in the pattern, and I think it will fit nicely over my desk! Tonight I sewed my first two blocks:

Yet again it's blue and white *lol* Maybe I'll mix in some other colours... I still have lots of small blue scraps, and the white is the cut offs from the baby basket... we'll see how long it lasts.

My heading says samplers, and the reason is that this morning FedEx rang the door bell, and they delivered my SBS! This was a lot sooner than I had expected, but I'm so happy my "baby" safely home again!

This weekend I'll be going to visit Inger Lise along with Hanne and May Britt - we are going to work on our Angel's Story quilts - I guess we are going to have lots of fun, and I hope to have some fun pictures to show when I get back :o)

Happy Quilting!!!
Sincerely, Anne Ida

Wednesday, 18 June 2008

The BIG news I promised...

Thank you so much to everyone who left a comment on my sick quilt! Sorry I haven't gotten around to replying to all your sweet messages yet! And I'm happy to report that I am feeling better :o)

At the end of yesterday's post I said I have some news to share... and to me this is huge news!!! If you have been reading Jennifer Chiaverini's Sylvia's Bridal Sampler website, you have probably seen that next spring this book will be published:

A little while back Jennifer asked for pictures of completed quilts and quilt tops made from her SBS pattern - and I sent her a picture of my quilt. Last week I got an e-mail asking me to send the quilt to C&T Publishing to be photographed!!!! Packing it up last Thursday to send it to California was a nerve wrecking experience (thank you Hanne and Rose for your support!), and I'll probably feel the nerves twitch every now and then until it is safely back home ;o) Fingers crossed all will go well!

I love this quilt so much! I fell for it the moment I entered the website the first time! The world of Elm Creek, and the SBS community has brought me so much pleasure since I first discovered it in the summer 2006. And now, to have a chance to be part of this book!!! I'm thrilled, I'm nervous, and I'm honored beyond words!

Sincerely, Anne Ida

Uppdate: I received a message today letting me know the quilt have arrived the publisher - puh!!

Monday, 5 May 2008

Big finish

Yesterday afternoon I put the final stitches into my Sylvia's Bridal Sampler! This is how it turned out (the picture is clickable):


This quilt was begun on the 4th of November 2006, the first two blocks was the Shoo Fly and the Lemoyne Star. Nine months later - on the 4th of August 2007 I made my last two blocks, the Mariner's Compass and the Oklahoma Dogwood. It took me another nine months to actually finish the quilt.

Working on this quilt has been a fantastic learning experience! I can see how my skill have improved while stitching the blocks, the latter ones are lots more accurate than the first ones. I have had the opportunity to try different ways of appliqué, paper foundation piecing, english paper piecing, hand piecing and machine piecing, Y-seam construction, curved seams and other challenging ways of setting pieces together.

I have added three blocks to the back of the quilt - the extra Chinese Coin block (some might remember I made it when I thought I had lost my original one), a cream and green Friendship star on which I have written the dates for when I worked on the different stages of the quilt; and a Square in a square block with the text: "'Sylvia's Bridal Sampler', Pattern by Jennifer Chiaverini, Pieced and quilted by Anne Ida Røkeness, 2006-2008".


Happy quilting, everyone!
Sincerely, Anne Ida

Sunday, 6 April 2008

Sylvia's Bridal Sampler

Wohooo! Two posts in one day, don't think I've done that before! But on Friday I promised some more quilty news that I wanted to share, and now I have some time to blog about it. You might remember me working on the Sylvia's Bridal Sampler a while back, and not too long ago I posted a picture of some split Lemoyne Stars; this is what they were for (sorry the pic is so light):


This picture is from Thursday when I brought the quilt top, some backing fabric and a pack of king size cotton batting to my parent's house. With some help from my sister I cleared off the living room floor and layered and basted the quilt sandwich. Yesterday I bought some quilting gloves and today I have started quilting it with a gorgeous shiny army green thread my dear friend Rose got me for Xmas:


Quilting from the top

Quilting from the back

As it is quite heavy I will only be able to do a small section at a time (that arm! -and the neck and shoulders needs looking after).



But if you don't hear from me for a while, Bernie and I are quilting!!!!
Sincerely, Anne Ida

Monday, 13 August 2007

All sashed up

When I came to work this morning I was met at the main entrence by the janitor and security; saying that there was no electricity in the building, and that it wasn't expected back untill between four and ten tonight. Needless to say nothing much to do there, so I went home again and had a half efficient work day on my lap top, an early dinner, and finishing touches on the sashings for my SBS:

While doing the sashings I really have seen that my skill have improved over the time I have worked on this, and it's rather fun to see :o) Unfortunately was some of the early blocks so poorly made that they were impossible to make them fit, and I had to do them over; I have ripped out stitches and re-made five blocks - not too bad out of 140.

Next will be the the borders - they will probably take quite some time to do. And I need to work on some small projects for a while - my arms and shoulders need a rest (they ache like mad at the moment), and my sanity need to see something get finished within reasonable time *lol* Perfect for this will be the project for the Four Seasons Quilt Swap, and I thing I will start thinking of what to make for Chookyblue's Christmas Swap! I'm signed up! Are you? :)

Sincerely,
Anne Ida

Saturday, 4 August 2007

The final three

Nine months ago today (on the 4th of November (Rose: I checked the date)), I made my first two Sylvia’s Bridal Sampler blocks; A3: Shoo-Fly and L7: Lemoyne Star. I had just finished sewing together the top of my Autumn Star quilt, and felt I needed to do something “small” - *LOL*. Today I made the last two of the 140 blocks of the sampler. In the picture you see:

G6: Grace’s Friendship (which I did on thursday), G2: Oklahoma Dogwood, and G5: Mariner's Compass.

These are the blocks I have been dreading all along; small and narrow points, appliqué of “strange” shapes, I bit the dust and foundation paper pieced the G2 and G5, and cut a corner on the G6 with using Vliesofix and buttonhole stitched on the machine.

Happy thoughts from
Anne Ida

Wednesday, 1 August 2007

Blocks

It has been a few days since my previous post, and I don't have all that much to show for for this time. This weekend I spent at the summer house with my family; relaxing, playing cards, and enjoying some good food :o) I also managed to stitch up a couple more SBS blocks:


This is G-9: Modern Tulip and I-10: Rocky Road to Dublin -I've almost got them all done now... and am contamplating what to do for borders once I've pieced them together.

I have started on the second set of Bright flowers on black-blocks, seeing as I was able to buy some more Vliesofix on Monday. But I haven't stitched around the shapes yet, so I'll keep them for myself for a little while longer, and show you a picture of them as soon as they are done. Instead I'll show you a picture of the first blocks I have received in the swap. These lovely blocks are from Nina and fell into my mailbox on Monday. Aren't they pretty?

Hope you are having a productive day!
Sincerely, Anne Ida

Tuesday, 24 July 2007

Ten days in the Norwegian mountains

Three hours after I had come back to my flat in Oslo on Friday 13th; my Dad had dropped in with some of my clothes and hiking boots and we had eaten a pizza while I repacked my bags, I was picked up by my friend K and her Dad to be taken to their family cabin in Rondane – a mountain range in the central part of southern half of Norway. When we arrived we were met by K’s Mom and Grandmother who had prepared one of my favourite traditional dishes “rømmegrøt” (porridge made from sour cream, flour and milk) – need I say more than this was a wonderful start to a relaxing and great holiday? Lots of fresh air and lovely food and no worries what so ever made this a great week! Their lovely cabin is situated just a couple of hundred meters from Bjørnhollia tourist lodge, and the access to hiking opportunities are fantastic.

A cultural element on the first day was the gallery of Sverre Morken situated not far from the cabin. This is the man responsible for art most Norwegian sees every day; his work being on our money and stamps.

It was so great to walk around in his exhibit and hear him talk of the way he works, from the picture or painting via the engravings to the final product.

The weather was mixed over the time we were there, but we took every opportunity to hike in the area around the cabin, walks for everything between a couple of hours to six seven. The neighbour had their daughter’s dog with them, so we brought him with us when we had the opportunity. We even took him out for a walk on the Tuesday in pouring rain and fog that left the sight 15 meters – but that walk only lasted an hour *lol*. I thought I’d share some of my pictures from the days I spent up there, and let you see some of the beautiful landscape:

Sunday 15th: we went on a hike to Musvolsæter. The weather was ok, and we had a good walk with the dog playing along the trail.



Monday 16th:
we went on a hike to Langglupen, a fabulous water feature in the valley beneath some of the grand mountain tops.

On Tuesday 16th the weather was horrible, we managed to walk the dog, but no pictures were taken with all the fog. I managed to stitch a bit on my SBS in the evening, though. These three blocks are all I can show for over the last few weeks *lol*, and some work on the rest of my swap blocks.


On Wednesday 17th
we took a walk onto the nearest top, Musvolkampen. We even signed the book kept on the top as a record of the visitors :o)


Thursday 19th we hiked into Villmanndalen (Wild man valley). This is a special botanical area, with loads and loads of plants that are not supposed to survive in those hights. Unfortunately the rain that had come down over the previous weeks the area was difficult to walk in - the trail beeing flooded several places. We ended up walking quite a long way along the ridge of the valley looking down into it, and had to wade across the flooded stream a couple of times.


Friday 20th K and I conquered Svulten; a top 1570 meters above sea level. It was stone on stone on stone and quite hard to walk (worse going down than up) seeing as it is not a part of the regular tourist trails - but we did it. As you can see there was quite a lot of snow in the mountains.


Saturday 21st we went on a hike to Vulutjønn - a lake about 2,5 hours walk from the cabin. All in all we were seven people on this hike. we had a wonderful lunch wit coffee made on open fire. The scenery was fabulous, the guys got in some fishing (only caught one, though) and I got a gozillion mosquito bites *lol*


On Sunday we went home... I hope you have enjoyed my little holliday diary, and I leave off this post with one more picture of the beautyful area I got to visit.
Sincerely, Anne Ida