I mean the “Forest and Loons” quilt. I hope not ‘cuz this is one enjoyable quilting (for me!). I finished the leaf motifs on the cream (checked), tone-on-tone blocks and did half of the remaining center blocks (that had fairly “busy” prints on them) with a repeat of the swirly vine stitching. That motif will be done in the outer leaf printed border, also. The narrow brown border is SID (Stitch in the Ditch) and will be left without further stitching to give the quilt a place to “rest the eyes”. Here’s a photo of the whole top, as a reminder to what’s been goin’ on……………
You may, also, visit yesterday’s post here. The vine was stitched in those outer green(ish) corners and in the blocks between the brown HST (Half Square Triangle) and the solid cream blocks.
Maybe it’s a bit easier to see from the back………
Here are the threads I’ve been using: 
I’ve laid them on the blocks they were used on and, in the photo below, is the thread used on the very center and the outer vines………………….. The thread below and above (on the green plastic cones is Isacord poly and the red plastic cone is Aurifil cotton. The thread on the blue is Marathon poly # 2276
The thread used in the bobbin, as always, is Connecting Threads Essential Pro poly, 70 wt.
Remember….”clicking” on any photo will enlarge it.
That’s it for this week. A long weekend is ahead……the camper awaits……….. til Monday, my friends. Have a good one…..
Treadlemusic 
Thanks for tutorial! Do you do this on each block of fabric; seems like that would take a long time. Sure looks beautiful! Kathy
It does take a bit of time (although, I do get a rhythm going and minimal marking suffices after a few motifs) but so much fun!!!!!
It is fabulous and worth all that time!
I like your test muslin piece where you marked the spines and leaves first…I must try that approach again. Simply lovely stitching Doreen – do have fun at the river!!
When trying a new motif that may be a bit more complex, I sketch/mark it on a test piece and stitch over the markings to get a “feel” for it. Tutorial coming soon…………
Enjoy your camping weekend. Sounds like the weather should be perfect.
Yes……and nicely cool!!! Wishes for a great weekend for you both, also!!!!!!
Lookin’ lovely! Quick question, did you mark your spines on the white blocks or the center? Mostly just curious. I think I’d have had to at least put a dot in the center to get them looking as good as you have them.
In this post ( https://treadlemusic.wordpress.com/2015/06/30/brainstorming-er-auditioning/ ) I have a close-up photo of a muslin test block. You can see the markings I did for this design…..marked the diagonals and quadrants……that’s all that’s needed. The rest is free hand thread sketching……so much fun!!!!! The individual leaves don’t look like much til the veins are added. I’ll do a photo tutorial next week (after the holiday!)…………………..
The quilt top’s composition is really lovely, as is your quilting.
I’ve wondered about your machine. Well, mostly I’ve wondered about the benefits of a smaller machine. I have a BIG 24″ long-arm, which is wonderful from the standpoint of covering a lot of ground. But a smaller machine might be a lot easier to control and maneuver for fine detail. Have you tried larger machines and have any opinion on that?
I have not tried anything larger. Because of space constraints, a “sit-down” machine is my only option and, at the time I got the Sweet 16, a 16″ reach was the largest for this type. Now there are longer reaches for this style. I actually prefer to move the fabric, not the machine, so a frame-mount was never a consideration! The idea of standing at a frame for hours does not suit me.
I want to echo Doreen’s comment above – I have the same Sweet 16 machine, an older model but same machine. Since I learned to FMQ on my domestic machine, it was an easy transition to the larger throat sit-down machine. At the time my reasoning was same – space constraints. Then after using for a while, I sure did enjoy the sitting down part versus the standing. We had a 24″ throat HQ machine on large frame at the shop and I did use it occasionally, but since I’m a smaller height person, I wasn’t comfortable standing and trying to reach, etc.
It’s gorgeous (as always!)