Works in Progress - Treadle Piecing and Machine Quilting

No finishes to share yet this month, but certainly some fun in progress happenings are going on. First, I'm in love with my grandmother's treadle machine which returned very recently to working condition.

I'm making a scrappy trip around the world quilt using Bonnie Hunter's tutorial. I have a basket of strips next to the machine and every time I have a few minutes to spare, I sit down and sew a strip or two. This is going to be a fun, long term project that will hopefully, make a great dent in my scrap pile. My family is a little bit nervous about this one, since I am intentionally using fabric that might otherwise sit neglected for years. My husband, Duane, isn't so sure he wants to be sleeping under ladybug fabric, but he knows better than to judge a quilt by just one block. I'm looking forward to seeing how this one develops.

My other major work in progress is this triple Irish chain quilt.

I want to say this is the third quilt top I ever pieced, back in the 1990s, but I'm not positive about that. It's at least among the first five. My stash was very limited then and I remember deciding on the color scheme simply based on which color I had the most of. I pieced and layered this quilt, then promptly set it aside. The quilting step was way too scary back then. 

Since this is a year for finishes, it was time to get this one done. Also, the quilting step is becoming one of my favorite parts of quilt making these days. I decided to quilt a large flower in the center of each block. It is from Leah Day's Flower Ball free motion pattern.

The rest of this quilt will be taken care of with my walking foot. I plan to cross-hatch all the cream squares in the Irish chain, and then think about how to quilt the borders.

This shouldn't take too much longer to finish. I'll be sure and take some daytime pictures once this project is completed.