MQI exhibiton : A Patchwork Hoop – a quick fun project!

The Modern Quilters Ireland group are having our first exhibition and its been all go working on finishing up projects for May 8th delivery to Dublin.  Made it just in time and it was close what with finishing the quilting, hand sewing binding, hanging sleeves and preparing labels!

That's one of mine peeking our from behind the announcement.  I'm so looking forward to the opening on the 4th and taking some photos of the finished quilts to share with you all.  If you are in Dublin over the course of June please pop in and have a look!

MQI members were allowed enter 2 quilts each and a hoop with an inspiring word if we had the time to make a small something extra.    When I think of a hoop I think of embroidery.  It never occurred to me to make a Patchwork hoop as a wall hanging.  Fiona gave us some inspiration links here on Pinterest to get some ideas going and I was immediately taken by the cute hedgehogs and bicycles and thought I just had to try this.

You might have seen this on Instagram and I thought I’d share more about this easy scrappy project with you.  My Husqvarna Viking machine has an embroidery module to it and when I first got the machine I bought some patterns for it but never used them!
 
One of those patterns was a patchwork balloon from Embroidery Library.  I still like the image so decided to grab some scraps and some fusible paper and made a scrappy balloon.

This was fun and easy and I think could be something really fun to try with kids.  Imagine helping them make something like an airplane and their name underneath or something cute like a teddy bear to decorate their room.


Using stitch ‘n tear stabiliser on the back to give some support I sketch stitched around the outline with a dark color and added in the balloon lines.  To finish it off I hand embroidered some text. We were taught by Sister Margaret in sixth class (about 12 years old!) to always have your embroidery as neat on the back as on the front and not travel between motifs with thread.  Funny the things from school you’ll never forget!



I used this little project for a tutorial on Modern Quilters Ireland to show how to finish the back of the hoop if you are interested and named this one “The Sky’s the Limit”.



Thanks to all who helped with names for the exhibition quilts.  I appreciate all your help!

I think I have finally settled on “Good Morning!” for the triangles  and “Scrap Happy Too” (as there is already a Scrap Happy) for my Modern Irish Bee quilt, that to some looked like flags and others fields and to me happy scrappy colour! Thank you to my Bee mates who made such lovely blocks!

Linking up to Thankful Thursdays and  the Friday Finishes!