2018 Wk 34 - catch up

I've been doing the boring pre-school embroideries, but also some hand sewing, embroidery design and prep for the next few Chertsey Museum classes.

This mandala pattern is one that I designed and stitched using variegated thread - I've since made the satin stitch wider, so we'll see how that comes out.

I finished the edges of the two interchange wall hangings:

And I created this celtic cross embroidery design

It needed several tweeks, but I've now stitched it on the purple stole fabric and the two sides are ready to be stitched together to make the reversible stole

At Crafty Church we have started getting ready for our Remembrance day (100 years) display.  We've decided to go with poppy shapes.  (or rather approximately poppy shapes - I see a red snowman, but I have been assured that when I see loads of them I will see poppies - and to be fair they are very similar to the British Legion poppies!)

Janet is taking the sizzix and the circle dies to cut poppies for all 36 from the village involved in WW1

 I'm teaching Quilt As You Go hexies at Chertsey early September, so I sizzixed these

and made some of these

 
 which will be joined into this sort of shape

And finally, not me, but Jackie made this and I think it's far too gorgeous not to share! Perfect for a baby girl's essentials - a few nappies and a pack of wet wipes: and a pocket for mama's phone too

The one where I knitted on a loom

Do you remember the french knitting gadgets we had as kids, or knitting Nancys?

I bought a 21st century version of it as a gadget for Kids' Crafty church . . . but thought I ought to learn how to drive it before I introduced it to the kids

Rather addictive!!!!  (especially for someone who cant knit!), it grows quite quickly

My monster family has grown too!

I'm now off to a baby shower - mum-to-be wants to decorate baby clothes with fabric pens, and wants guests to make a baby quilt; she doesn't know that I've made three already (they are adopting three sisters, age 1, 2 and 3) but I'm more than happy to help cut and sew another one this afternoon!

Sarah's Saturday

I didn't tell you, I joined the strangest party on Saturday- a Baby Shower for the lovely Sarah who blogs [here] and who is having a baby soon.

Sarah lives on the Shetland Isles, but Rhonda from Cumberland Gap, USA, decided to throw her a baby shower . . . despite there being nearly four thousand miles between them - so it was a virtual baby shower!!!!!

We tried a video conference call, but some of us couldn't join with video. I managed to watch and listen to the others and could join in with typed messages. Sadly Sarah had no broadband, so she joined us by landline phone, not able to see anyone, or show us what she was opening, but as soon as she mentioned whose present she was going to open next, Rhonda whizzed to the appropriate photo from the Flickr so we could all see what was being opened.

The hand pieced, hand quilted ISpy brick quilt I sent seemed to go down well: some really super gifts had been sent to her.  It was a great party, thanks Rhonda, and thanks to Sarah's mum who took lots of photos of the present opening

The rest of my Saturday was largely spent finishing piecing my Christmas vanishing 9 patch and machining the binding to the front: I have used the softest chenille fleece on the back, it's going to be sooooooooo snugly!

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PHEW!!!!

Ben's quilt has been quilted

Ben's quilt has been bound

And Ben's quilt has been washed and tumbled

 and nothing went wrong! 

Phew - ready to be delivered on Friday

Baby Ben

After Harry's disaster (now finished and delivered, phew) I need to be sure that I could see a project through from start to finish!

I went to a 40th birthday bash back in November, and we kind of hi-jacked the birthday with a baby shower as the birthday girl was also 8 months pregnant with her first baby.  I had cut 30 x 8" squares, and taken along fabric pens for the guests to decorate a square each.  Baby Ben arrived a few days before Christmas, and I then waited until I received a good photos of him, plus photos of his mum and dad as babies.  These then got printed onto photo fabric, and then got pushed to one side to work on other projects.

I'm actually going to meet Ben, and get my first cuddle next Friday, so it was time for his quilt to go back to the top of the pile

I'm really pleased with the way is has come out so far (pieced, basted, quilted in the ditch, and binding attached at the front)

 

I love the binding, and think it works really well with the colour pens used, but there wasn't quite enough.  I then remembered a blog post I had seen a while ago (sorry, cant remember where or find the origin) where the binding included a plain section, and the label is written on the binding.  So I added a white strip at the busiest block (the red number 23) and now have to steel myself to write on it after I have stitched it down

Weekend Round Up

I've had a busy few days: Fun With Fabric on Friday, Church Craft and Christmas Fair, followed by a baby shower on Saturday, and sewing today. 

I didn't get any photos of the 'homework' from last month at Friday Fun With Fabric but I did get plenty of moans about how difficult the binding had been!  I did remind them that we had been working with fairly small units, and that binding a large quilt would be much easier, but promised them something easier for this session.

As I hadn't finished my sample, I took them on a Magical Mystery Make instead!  Based on a tutorial from Lis at Piece 'n' Peace, (thanks, Lis) I got them making Christmas Coasters that DID NOT NEED BINDING!!!!  Just for fun I didn't tell them what they were making, just gave them one instruction at a time!

Ready for some photos?

Saturday was mostly spent setting up and then attending the Church's Christmas and Craft Fair.  I didn't take anything to sell as I don't have any stock, but I have an order for a Christmas sack for next year, and I was also promoting the church version of Fun With Fabric, and got some interest in that.  I also managed to finish the binding on Swirls, so when I unpack the bags that can go up on the wall, yippee (only 15 months!)

From there I went to a friend, Lisa's's, 40th birthday Champagne Tea Party.  As Lisa is also 34 weeks pregnant with her first baby (Congratulations Lisa) we turned it into a bit of a baby shower too.  I had cut 36 8" squares, and had the 'girls' decorate them with fabric pens.  After the baby arrives I shall stitch them together into a quilt.  Most of the squares are fab . . .

 

 

I knew I would late arriving, so I had done a sample block to remind them that they had to leave me some seam allowance - I thought I made int fairly clear, but these six blocks will need some creative work to be able to include the words that went right to the edge!

 

Ho hum!

Anyway, today I managed to get some more ticked off from the list: the draught excluder / door stop for school - done

 

A very girly baby quilt for Jane who became a Great Aunt - done

 

 with Amelia's name (need to wet that water soluble pen mark in the middle of her name!!!)

And a name onto a knitted blanket for another customer (yuck - knitted blanket are 'orrible to embroider onto!)

Now off to do some work of a bag for S-I-L and a play patchwork for nephew

Design Bed problems

I tried to arrange the red blocks today, but the largest (clear) horizontal surface surface at home is my bed - and that isn't big enough to lay out all the blocks!  So the red "Cricket Stumps" quilt will have to wait until I can either get to mum's or to my nearest patchwork workroom.

I did spend a bit of time preparing some cotton for a quilt project a friend is planning.  I cut the cotton into 8 inch squares and have bundled them up with fabric pens for people to decorate before I get them back to join together.

  
Hopefully nothing significant will be lost in the seam allowance .... do you think they'll get the message!