2022 Week 5

 A bit of a round up of what I've been doing!!

A tiny hand sewing project for on the train the other day: this will go on a second version of "my Small World" that Jackie is making and that I get to contribute to (only fair as I have the original!!!!

This is the tiny hexies on the original.  I'm hoping she'll let me make the New York Beauty and the Dresden plate too!

At Richmond and Kew Quilters this month we are making clothing out of patchworked pieces.  It's quite an 'in' thing (you wouldn't expect us ladies for a certain age to be on trend but there you go!).  It reminded me that mum made me a patchwork jacket years ago. I never really got on with the rounded neck so cut the binding off with an intention to change it, but it then sat in the stuff-to-be-done pile for (I have to confess), years if not decades!!!

Here is an idea of the before

And now the after

A friend of mine directed the village pantomime: The Pied Piper.  I was asked to make a Ginger of the Pied Piper himself: you can just see him in the centere of this cast photo

And here is my version

I also made a cyclist Ginger for a customer

and a World Cancer Day a few days ago and a Story Telling Day next month

 

Inspired by another member of Richmond and Kew quilters' Magic Starts quilt I started cutting up fabric.  Debbie's version used 10" squares and had light on dark and dark on light - whilst lovely it wasn't quite what I wanted, so Plum helped me find another method and evertually all of these . . .

. . .  will become a quilt of this!

I have finished a granny squares crochet blanket, and have come to realise that I do not like sewing in the ends!!!!

We were asked tpo see if a sewing machine was fixable.  The stitch width is shot but the stitch length works fine, but there was a problem threading it, one of the early guides was broken.  This paperclip now identifies as a thread guide and all is well in the world

Chertsey Museum Fun With Fabric class met yesterday: Susan brought in these for Show and Tell from December's session - what a cute family!!

February's session was a 'wrap necklace'.  This is the start of mine: I'm using embroidery threads (amout a metre gives me about 5cm of colour!  

I also took my fabric wrapped necklace as another sample and brought some magnets so people could choose to make bracelets.  They did well but the necklaces are a long project!

I have received all my January pink (carnation) hexie flowers)

And have posted out all the ones I made for the swap

2021 Week 39

 These are some of the photos from the making last weekend with Jackie: boxy pouches and semi circular ones

and a vinyl one for crochet and knitting markers

A frined / ginger fan recently ran the Windsor Marathon so I made her a ginger to commemorate it!

I was back at Chertsey Museum on Friday for the second class since lockdowns began.  We had some great show and tell from last month

And they all did really well making these pouches from an Aneela Hoey book 

I finished the straps on my bag from Jackie

And I found the remaining September Hexies - some had been attached to the flimsy I'm making with them

I've made some Gingers too: breast cancer week ios coming up soon, alkong with a children's mental health campaign

 

One customer ordered a ballerina and a book reader

 

and another order a set of the 2020 Christmas Gingers

meanwhile I am working on 2021 Christmas Gingers

2021 Week 35

 This has felt like a 'normal week - largely because Chertsey Museum was back for the first time in 18 months!!!  Woohoo!!!!

Limited numbers and only 2 to a table, but we were back . . .  and with three new ladies!

We were doing something based on what Jo Avery calls Modern Crewel (check out her book due out in November, no affiliation, just a big fan!).  I described it as colouring with thread!  My samples were the feather and this tote bag

A number of ladies started on the feathers (but I forgot to take photos!).  I also brought some funky fabric and some ladies did some colouring in modern crewel on this too.  There was a LOT of talking, so they've all gone home with their fabric, hoops and thread to bring something for show and tell next month!

I took myself out of my comfort zone and did some different colouring in - watercolours this time.  Inspired by 'the other Tara' I found Iris's box of watercolour pencils and painting this giraffe that she had helped me draw at Crafty Church in August

A friend's grand son starts 'big' school next week and she was feeling daunted by all the labels she's offered to sew on so I did them

He's a little dot but with a long name so I had to sew a lot of them on folded or he never would get his head through the neck hole!

I also made him a Ginger wearing the same school uniform!

A few posts ago (week 32) I showed you some fabric that the awesome Sharon got me in South Africa a few years ago.  The fabric is called Shwe shwe and it feel like a slightly waxed cotton.  I made myself a cross body bag (not actually finished yet - doh)

and with the strips I cut off to straighten the fabric, and a packet of sash rope (which did not work for the rope baskets but I've kept for the last half dozen years just in case!!!) I have made myself  matching necklace

There was also a  need for more Gingers!  I have been doing gingers based on my own take on Craftivism: they have been based on national days (blood donation, smear awareness, drowning prevention, chess, Samaritans etc): the latest ones have been for Teaching Assistant Day

And beach / world clean up day

And I'm all prepared for National Talk Like A Pirate Day!!!

And this chap is for a local pub

I have started sewing together some hexi flowers from a swap group ( flimsy pic to follow)

And Lisa's b/f Jim wanted cactuses (cacti?) for his birthday so I got him some seeds, a potted cactus, and (of course) a Ginger holding a cactus.

I didn't know he was going to repot the one I bought - I'd have bought one with fewer prickles if I'd known!  Here's the full WhatsApp post from Lisa