My First Quilt

It’s just going to be a little blog post this week as all of a sudden I have started to

struggle with the heat. It is again ( as it was like this in the same week last year)

much hotter than it would normally be in the UK for the time of year. The last few

days I have been struggling with muscle weakness. One day I found myself

unable to chew - must be my idiopathic hemifacial spasm playing up….

***sarcasm*** because it went with an additional dose of mestinon. Obviously

the placebo effect ….**sarcasm**

Around the middle of May I posted about my trip to the dentist and the fabric shop,

where I chose the fabric I was going to use for my first ever proper quilt. Not a quilt

as you go where the blocks are all laid out for you but an actual proper quilt.

I had seen a quilt design I liked called “Floating Triangles” in a magazine called

Simply Sewing designed by Janet Goddard. I loved the minimalist look of it and

thought I’d love to make something like that.

So that was it, on a whim the fabric was bought and then it sat on my

shelf in the kitchen until June 2nd, when I decided to start cutting it out.

A few days later I started to make the half square triangles (48 in total).

I must be strange as I enjoy all aspects of sewing, it's the cutting out I find

hard but that’s been made a lot easier with my new creative grids stripology

rulers. However for all the squares I had to cut out I couldn’t use my new

rulers as they needed to measure 4 ⅞ inches. Typical! So I ended up making

a cardboard template. I am useless at drawing straight lines, I really need to

buy myself a set square to help in situations like this. I have already invested

in a compass for the centre of my Dresden Plate designs!

The following day I started adding the strips to my half square triangles.

Unfortunately I was a little over eager on my trimming of my half square

triangles and found that I had to remake a load of half square triangles

as they were so much smaller than the others and it would have made

the rows wonky. I think in total as further down the line I had to make some

more blocks I probably had to remake 10-15. Its annoying but I have kept

them all as I will sew them together to make a bag, as I love the fabrics

I chose for the quilt. I also had to buy more backing material due to my

many cock ups with measuring. Thankfully with the new rulers those

should be less!

Oh I forgot to tell you about my EPIC mistake of accidentally having

two rotary cutting blades on my cutter. How did that happen? Well I bought

some expensive blades and they were all covered in oil. I am guessing

when I replaced a dull blade I didn’t check properly that it was just one

blade. So it cut all my material as if a hoard of hungry mice had been

chewing the side of it. Thankfully most of that could be hidden in the seam

allowance. I am telling you this because some people seem to think everything

I do is perfect and I never make a mistake. Of course I do! If I didn’t make

any mistakes I’d never learn anything. I want you to know mistakes

are ok, even if I am known on Instagram now to some people as

“Two Blades Rach”. It’s quite funny really!

Once I had made all my blocks I sat down and worked out the plan of my

triangles. It was important that I did this so I knew how my rows would

go together. I also wanted to place certain fabrics together so they had

a bigger impact rather than drowning each other out. I did a full size

quilt plan and then I broke that quilt plan down into two.

Once my blocks were made I then put them away in a box and cracked

on with a lot of makes for other people, birthday presents, thank you gifts

and of course father's day. I made Jay an Owl soft toy for father's day which

you can see on last week’s blog post. I also made him this lavender pillow

I kept putting off making my quilt as I was terrified all the blocks would be

all the wrong size and it would be a disaster. It is quite common for me to

ignore a project for a bit if I am feeling anxious about it. I also have to be

in the mood to sew certain things. I have to be in the mood to make clothes

- I find it boring and hard work because I have such a skills gap. I have to be

in the mood to quilt as it takes a long time and you can be doing the same

thing over and over. It also involves a lot of pressing which in this heat you

really don’t want to be doing. It wasn’t until I started making quilts that I

learned there was an actual difference between ironing something

and pressing something.

Last Friday I decided to bite the bullet and put this quilt together. I really

hate having WIP’s ( work in progress) hanging around and I don’t do

UFO’s (unfinished objects). I have a small house so projects need to be

completed and gone rather than hanging around collecting dust! I checked

all the sizes of the blocks and as I said earlier realised that some weren’t

good enough and needed to be done again. So that added more time

onto getting the quilt completed. For me it seems like it’s taken an absolute

age to get done but Jay assure me to him it feels like he went to work

one day and came back to a completed quilt!

I only managed to sew the rows together that day, as a lot of planning

had gone into each row. Checking against my quilt plan I put all the rows

in order using post it notes on each - with the fabric order on also, so that

the chances of me making a mistake were minimal. I have made mistakes

before with my quilt as you go quilts, where I have decided on an order

that the blocks would go in. Taken photographs, only to realise once its all

been sewn together…………..3 blocks have been sewn upside down totally

ruining the pattern I had wanted to create. At the point of discovery of

my mistake it was too late, I had sashed and bound it by then.

Lesson learned, this time I over planned!

On the Saturday I started to sew my rows together.

As it was only 8 rows it went together very quickly, however disaster

struck on the 8th and final row when I realised I had sewn the blocks

together in the wrong order. Out came my trusty seam ripper and the

blocks were then sewn in the correct order. I am so glad I managed to

catch that mistake before continuing as it would have stuck out like a

sore thumb otherwise the final row would have been completely different

to all the other. If I am honest there was a lot of unpicking as the rows were

sewn together as I managed to sew triangles together in the wrong position

etc. I never let this wind me up though, I’d rather find a mistake at this

point than like the quilt as you go first quilt I made.

I then cut ( using my stripology ruler) my borders for the quilt and sewed

those on. At this point I was just totally in awe of what I had created. My first

ever quilt top was sewn together. This was a huge moment for me! I then

decided **ck it and decided I would baste my quilt. Basting is basically

putting on your wadding and backing fabric, to the quilt top. As I didn’t

have much room I did it in two halves not ideal but there was nowhere

with enough floor space for me to work. I did it using the ironing board,

it wasn’t perfect but it was done. I used a temporary glue spray and safety

pins around the edges to ensure it was secure.

Sunday was the day I decided to quilt my quilt, that sounds bizarre but

a quilt isn’t a quilt until you have sewn all three layers together. This quilt

had a very basic pattern just straight line stitches that went through every

second row of triangles. I managed to get some floor space in the lounge

whilst everyone else was asleep and I marked out the quilting lines with a

fabric marker and my huge ruler ( another creative grids one). Thankfully

I had set my machine up the day before, so my extension table was on

( I discovered a neat trick as my extension table can move a little, especially

when I bash the edge of it by accident, so I used masking tape to keep it in

place just taping from one edge of the table to the other sticking it on the

bottom of the throat space of my machine - avoiding the needle plate. I only

used two strips of tape). I had also ensured that I had rested as much as

possible, as I wont sew when I am tired. I started quilting on Sunday

afternoon whilst Jay watched the England match. I was finished just

after half time. I forgot to say I used my walking foot. I had to unpick

a couple of little bits due to puckers and re sew them but its the neatest

quilt back I have ever sewn.

Yesterday (Monday) I decided I would make my scrappy binding and

then attach it to my quilt. I machine sewed the front of the binding in

place using a tutorial from Lucy Brennans

https://www.charmaboutyou.com/ blog.

It went on very easily and then I had the afternoon to slow sew

the binding onto the back. I finished late yesterday afternoon

( lots of frequent breaks as I have been really struggling with

double vision the last few days so that makes threading a needle

an absolute nightmare).

I had made a label for my quilt on Sunday evening but my eyes

were so bad by the time I had finished sewing the binding on that

I had to stop. I sewed my label on this morning at around 7am as

I had been up for an hour or so by then.

Once the quilt label was on it was time to give it a wash to get rid of

the temporary glue and the fabric marker from the quilt lines.

I am so pleased with this quilt I am still in shock that I made this!

And obviously I lied when I said it was going to be a little post,

hubby brought our huge fan down from the loft this morning and

put in the lounge for me. What a difference that’s made for me

and the dogs!

Sewing Secrets

I am officially one of the worlds worst secret keepers!

How I have managed to keep the following items a

secret over the last few weeks is beyond me. When

I make something for someone I always want

to give it to them immediately  or I accidentally let

slip what it is. This time however I have been strong

even though it has been incredibly hard.

A few times recently in blog posts I have said that I

have been unable to share what I have been making

that week due to it being a present. Thankfully I can

now share with you my makes - which I am incredibly

proud of as these two birthday girls have received their

gifts.

Imogen will be 21 on 23rd June and is incredibly special

to both me and Mr Myasthenia Kid. I discussed with him

months ago what I would like to make for Imogen's birthday

and he was in full agreement. It took me a little while to source

the material as I wanted all kinds of Unicorn fabric but I also

wanted it in Pink and Grey so it wasn’t over the top girly.  

The first item I made was a 20 inch square cushion

cover in a Dresden Plate design

I had a bit of a nightmare with the cushion pad as although

it was sold as a 20 inch cushion pad, it was actually a lot

bigger. I, being a novice and idiot didn’t think to measure

the cushion pad before I started making the cushion. I just

presumed that if something was being sold as a 20 inch

square cushion pad that is exactly what it would be.  So when

I placed the cushion pad inside the cover it looked terrible

- in fact stuffed sausage would be an accurate description.

I was almost in tears as I had worked so hard. So I decided

to measure my completed cushion cover and make my own

cushion pad to fit it. I used my overlocker to do the edges

of the cushion pad and the ladder stitched it closed once I

had placed the stuffing inside. I took apart the bought

cushion pad and ended up with two nice squares of white fabric

and a little excess stuffing.

I also wanted to make Imogen a quilted patchwork Tote bag.

I had already made one as a project in my subscription box

was this exact thing and they had sent out 42 charm squares,

lining and webbing for it to be completed. I had really enjoyed

putting it together and couldn’t get over how much I was using

the bag as it was so roomy yet so light weight. So I made my

own charm squares and bought the webbing online and

knocked up one for Imogen.

I scotch guarded both the cushion and the bag to

help resist stains. Imogen can be a little clumsy the same

way I can. I also gave washing and ironing instructions with

each.

Last week on the spur of the moment I decided to add

something extra to Imogen’s gift. I had been doing some

redwork for my other friends gift but want to change it up a

bit so I found a  unicorn design online, unfortunately there

is no attribution for this work so I can’t give credit to the artist.

I did change it up just slightly by putting a heart around it and

not using the words that had been printed under the design.

Here is the finished item

I have filled the inside of the cushion with a mixture of stuffing

and dried lavender. It smells divine and the whole house smelt

of it for a few hours as I filled several lavender pillows that day.

I again provided washing instructions / care instructions just

in case. Imogen was given her gifts on Saturday. The message

she sent me after opening them was so lovely it made me

cry, then Imogen's mum Helen sent me a message in the

evening which was really lovely too and that made me

cry as well. It’s really nice when you have spent hours

working on an item and the person is overwhelmed by

it and is truly grateful for them.

My oldest Exmouth friend Ellie also has a birthday

in June ( not until the 30th but with works schedules

etc it was difficult to know when I would see her next) .

I gave her the gifts I had made this morning.

This is a redwork lavender pillow. The redwork design was

free from a site called https://www.birdbraindesigns.net/

which has some really lovely designs on there. I

added my own embellishments to the design and also

added Ellie's initial to make it even more personal.

This has again been filled with stuffing and lavender.

It’s a lovely small size that could be placed under a

pillow or in a drawer to leave the scent of lavender

behind. I have really enjoyed doing the redwork and

have made several more as gifts for people. They take

me several hours to do but I really enjoy sewing them.

The stitches on these and the unicorn cushion are

very basic just a running stitch, back stitch and french

knot are all that are needed to create something

that can look quite stunning.

The second part of Ellie’s gift had been in the planning

stages for ages. I was scared to start it as it was something

different than I had ever made before. Plus I kept adding

to the level of difficulty. It was the first time I had used the

product Odecoat which ( depending on how much

you use) can make something totally waterproof. I did

enough to make the item water resistant / stain resistant

inside and out.  This was also the first time I had used

my machines embroidery functions, I also used the

memory function. I used an iron on stabiliser as

well and proper embroidery thread. So it was a project of

firsts. The pattern comes from Lucy Brennans

blog / website https://www.charmaboutyou.com/ and

the pattern is the #pieceofmepouch. It’s so stunning

and once I had my head around it not difficult to make.

I also have to say a massive thank you to Lucy who

helped me out when I was being a bit dim and not

understanding the pattern. Lucy is always so encouraging

and supportive, I can’t thank her enough.

This week I also had to make my dads father’s day gift.

This had been rattling around in my brain for weeks. I knew

I wanted to make him something that was special and a one

off but what. I decided after gaining confidence making the

piece of me pouch that I could use aspects of that and make

my dad a bag to carry his (clean and empty) dog poo bags.

I decided that I wanted curved edges on the top, that I

wanted it to be 3D rather than 2D. I wanted a loop on the

back so he could attach it to a belt and I also wanted a

clip on it so that should he not be wearing a belt he could

attach it to his belt loops. It also had to be small

enough that it would impede his walking.

In my mind's eye I could see exactly what I wanted

so last Wednesday morning I sat with an empty bonio

box (dog biscuit) in front of me and made my template.

I used Odecoat again to help make the fabric water resistant

and to make it a bit stiffer. Also when I quilted it, I made the

lines much closer together as I knew this would make it much

more rigid. I am delighted with the way it's turned out.

Unfortunately due to a series of events out of both of

our control I have been unable to give it to him as yet.

I am pretty sure he doesn’t read my blog - mum does

so I will be safe posting it here.

My last make of the week was this Owl stuffed toy

for Jamie, it was his father's day present from the dogs.

I absolutely adore this and it looks so cool on his bed!

So far the dogs have left it alone.

* * *

Health wise I have been up and down. The heat had

been causing a lot more ptosis than normal. I can really

feel the mestinon wearing off after a few hours so I

have had to been really strict with my dosing schedule.

As once I get full blown ptosis it can be difficult to shift.

I managed to have a large abscess develop under my

breast due to the chronic skin condition Hidradenitis

Suppurativa. Tuesday afternoon this decided to erupt

and immediately go into cellulitis. My breast was so

painful I couldn’t wear a bra. Thankfully the antibiotics

had it gone right down within 3 days.

A few days over this last week I have been woken

up in the night in a lot of pain with a headache

( not a migraine) . I managed to work out on Sunday

that it had been due to the position I had been holding

my neck in whilst sewing. This was causing me pain

through my collar bone and deep into the soft tissue of

my neck. This was then causing me to have awful

headaches. I actually got very paranoid that my CSF

leak was back, until Mr Myasthenia Kid pointed out that Leak

headaches don’t start when you are lying down, they start

on sitting up. This headache was with me whatever position

I was in. It was not a leak headache more poor posture

due to the heat making my muscles weaker than normal.

This morning I woke up with a bad pain under my sternum

and a burning feeling in the back of my throat.

I immediately worked out that when I had taken my

4am antibiotic (despite drinking loads) it had become

stuck in my gullet. The tablet had dissolved in the back

of my throat and burnt the tissue. I have been drinking

gaviscon straight from the bottle and drinking only water

to settle it down. It is feeling better than it was but there

is still a burning pain. I have had issues with taking

capsules for years due to problems with my swallowing.

This just highlights again how much weaker this has

become during the heat.

So although it may seem like I must be doing ok because

I have sewn loads don’t let appearances fool you. Everyday

I am on the maximum amount of painkillers I can take as

my back is so awful at the moment I have been having pins

and needles in both legs. I’m either too hot and feeling faint

or feeling cold thanks to my wonky Autonomic nervous

system. I am just determined to do my best every day

and be the best that I can be and let the creative juices

flow. It is what makes me happy. It doesn’t take away

all the shitty  health conditions I am living with.