I changed my mind about posting about the Bernina 830 on this blog. Later this week I will post about it on SewFlakes blog, I may link to it, but I want to keep this blog for my personal projects. Why bore you with advertisement-like posts when I can bore you with personal stories? Right?

I currently have two projects going, if you don’t count all the UFOs sitting on my shelf. These two projects I’m going to finish before starting another one though. (Famous last words, I’m sure!)

The first one will be a sample for the shop. I decided to test out some personal embroidery.

Placemat embroidery project

This tiny embroidery and the other 3 just like it are going to be pockets on some quilted placemats. I’m using two pieces of the “Make Life” line from Moda. I think they look pretty darned cute, but they aren’t finished yet so no pictures.

My other project is quite ambitious and has a deadline.  I’m not sure when the deadline is because the rules for the contest aren’t posted yet. However, I’m working pretty diligently on it because I want to be sure to have it completed.

The contest? The Tulsa State Fair quilt exhibit.

The project? A baby quilt completely hand done. I’m doing a simple baby log cabin block, similar to the “Plume scraps” block previously pictured, but with different fabrics of course. I figured that a log cabin isn’t going to even earn an honorable mention since it is so simple. However, I thought that if I hand pieced the blocks and then quilted it by hand that it might, just maybe, stand the chance of winning something.  I don’t have my hopes up to high, but I think its worth the effort to try.

It is going to be a baby size quilt using somewhere between 16 and 20 blocks (each 4 1/2-inches big when finished) with sashing, so its not going to be finished anytime soon. I hope to have the blocks ready within the next couple weeks. Then I should be able to sash everything and start quilting by the end of May. I figure the deadline is somewhere in/near August, so I plan on having the hand quilting done by the end of July.

The good news is that I’m pretty confident that once I get to the quilting part it will go pretty fast. The piecing, I think is the hardest because I’m having to match of the pieces and make sure I’m using 1/4″ seam allowances, which isn’t as easy to do by hand compared to the machine.  I hope it turns out great. If it doesn’t then at least I will have tried. Sounds like a good plan to me.

I will post pictures of this once I get some of the blocks done, and will continue to update you on the progress.