Quilting is a method of stitching layers of material together. Although there are some variations, a quilt usually means a bed cover made of two layers of fabric with a layer of padding (wadding) in between, held together by lines of stitching.
The oldest products of this type of embroidery technique were found 3400 years BC in Egypt and later throughout Europe, but nowadays this type of handicraft has become very popular in America and the UK.
This was a client's bed cover without any embroidery. I tried out a new quilting technique called the pantograph design technique. In this technique, a pantograph pattern and a laser beam are used to precisely repeat the pattern. This technique can be used when large areas need to be filled with embroidery. This quilting method is quite labour and time-intensive, but the result is good.
This was indeed a challenging project right before Christmas! I was thrilled to have completed it in time for the holidays. So far, this has been one of the most difficult and labour-intensive projects. Many small details require a lot of time and patience.
This is a custom design from the client. As her great-grandfather was a hunter, a camouflage fabric was chosen. Matching fabrics were used to depict the bear Teddy on the quilt. The quilt blocks feature the granddaughter's name, birth year, and date.
The blocks were created using foundation paper piecing and appliqué techniques. I found the process of making this quilt fascinating, as it gave me new experience that will definitely be useful in future projects.
New garden chair covers with Latvian pattern symbols have been created: Laima's cross, Sun, Well and Ūsiņš. I'm still learning, so I use recycled fabrics that can still serve humanity for some time, but in a different form. Let's live green!
The kaleidoscope design block technique is very interesting because it's unpredictable. You can play with it during the process, creating a variety of design combinations. I had fun sewing it, and I hope others will like it too.
I've finally gotten my hands on a sewing machine that allows me to complete the finishing touches on quilted products. It's the Q'nique 15pro Midarm Quilting machine from the Grace company. It operates in tandem with a Bernina frame, which now allows me to embroider quilt covers up to 3 meters wide.
I started with small tablecloths to understand how to work with this machine. The tablecloth with the Latvian pattern "Austra's Tree" is one of my first attempts. Upon completing it, I realized it wouldn't be my last piece. After that, two cushion covers and another tablecloth with the pattern name "Nord Star" were made from the same fabric. By the way, the fabric was taken from old bed linen that had served its time. Isn't it nice to see how something mundane and tiresome becomes something new and interesting?
Quilted throws are made from the remnants of men's cotton shirts, with the idea of using everything left over after the shirt wearer is no longer in this world. It's fascinating to observe how something unnecessary becomes very useful to someone else and continues its life, reborn in a different form!
One of my ideas to make the quilt more Latvian, was to add an ancient Latvian symbol to it. This is how my first quilt was made from a design idea to a finished product.
It depicts the Cross of Mara. It is said, that the special energy around it protects, heals and brings good luck. This is a symbolic sign of protection by Mara, in exchange for her blessings and supervision over a person’s life. Sometimes this cross is also called the Cross of Laima. This cross is also widely used in women’s clothes and jewellery.
Fire cross is related to Sun, Laima and Thunder, so this sign was popular to cut into the beds of children and to interweave into belts for new-born children to wrap them in. In Latvia, up to this day it is used for shirts, gloves, socks for protection against evil eyes. I used it as a design element in this blanket as it was my tribute to my granddaughter with the hope that this quilt cover will protect her from all evil.
I started to focus on this sewing technique because it gives a second life to clothing or textiles. I had sun-drenched garden chair mattresses that didn't look very good anymore, but still good enough to sit on. From my old curtains, my old dresses and my husband's old shirts, I made these new colourful chair covers.
