2018 Wk 51

Some time ago I bought two packs of fabric from Aldi.  Pretty, spring fresh colours I wanted to share them.  I thought a Linus quilt would be nice and I thought it would be a good project for Richmond and Kew.  I cut all the fabric (12 FQs) and the same amount of white into rough 9" squares and last session gave everyone a white and a pretty square of fabric and asked them to make at least 1 x 8.5" block, with the idea that they will all be put together to make the quilt next year.

For one of mine I started with a small flowery strip: I added suitable other colours and went with a Bargello sort of design.

Another flowery design got sub cut and I added some suitable strips

And as that ended up too wide and have a strip trimmed off, I added the flowery and some orange to some white

And ended up with three fun, very different blocks . . . except - "£$%^&*() - drat and fiddlesticks, there is a top strip of purple missing from the Bargello - sigh, wop-de-do, I get to do some of my favourite hobby - unsewing!!!!

 However, more fun was sewing with Sharon at home and at Crafty Church -

We embroidered this cool hare and initials onto some towels for her husband

And this stunning quilt got finished, with the same hare on the back

And then my phone ran out of batteries, so no evidence, but at least two ladies were learning EPP and making Christmas stars like this one

I'm off now to unpick my bargello :-(

2018 Wk 27 Beads, EPP and Inchies

I've been wanted to make a rain necklace out of coloured wooden beads . . .but couldn't find what I wanted, so I bought plain wooden beads and attacked them with sharpie pens.

The colour wash didn't come out quite as I envisaged so once they were stacked by colour on these sticks shoved into corrugated card I did some speed dating and these are the ones that made the grade.

I made three strands and the gave them a bit of a twist, using a stick and circle thingy as a fastener

And I'm rather chuffed with the result!

 I'm coming near to the end of the hexi and triangle EPP that I'm making at M-i-L's . .

just these last 31 triangles to be added then it can be backed and quilted

The templates will be glad to call it a day!  I only go through the template on the first and last stitch so you can see how often these have been used

I was at Chertsey Museum on Friday: a few ladies had finished their patchwork baskets and brought them for show and tell

And Friday's class was inchies: As usual, a huge variety of gorgeous creativeness - Well done ladies

  

2018 Wk 14 - Easter Weekend #1

We’ve had a few rubbish days but we are getting through them, and a bit of sewing time is always good therapy.

Day 1 of the Easter weekend saw me completing the next 1/4 of a Farmer’s Wife (or in my case a Handyman’s Wife) block: yes this block is moving ahead very slowly!
 

It also saw a name (or three) being embroidered on a quilt for this little munchkin:


(The new grandma is a clown hence the noses!). She, the baby, is called Saga, like the Norse legends, so although I added her name the conventional way


I also added it in Viking Runes and to look like Viking runes - I had fun!


Just need to stitch on the binding then it can go off in the post


And the rubbish part? We had to bid farewell to this old sea dog, my father, who has sailed off into the sunset on a solo adventure. He went peacefully, in his sleep, with a good friend by his side after a lifetime of fun and adventure and love, and a lovely nurse looking after him - can any of us ask for more?

2018 Wk 9 - A Catch Up

My work bench seems to be permanently cover with Parish Council papers and Pumpkins uniforms to be embroidered, but that’s all far too boring to even photograph let alone blog about, so here is some other stuff:

I’ve printed and laminated all the templates for the Farmers’ Wife blocks (I’m calling mine a Handyman’s Wife quilt!)


And they’ve all been cut ready for each block as I get to it (I’m currently making the blocks in order)


Number 4 is finished, and number 5 nearly finished


The girls’ kitties are suitably appreciative of quilts, especially if rolled up to make a nest for them! (Yes there are two kitties, even though Luna looks as if she’s Thor’s shadow, and half his size!)


These patches were done for a customer - I’m trying not to get too twitchy about his intention to glue (!) them onto their eventual home


And we had Stitch yesterday: welcoming 8 new members (including one very brave but lovely lad) and have a lovely pile of bag and liners ready, and next month we will concentrate on the shields.


We had two smashing teenage girls too - who now know how a sewing machine works and used one to make some liners, and also had a go on an overlocker (here on the right) . Next month they are going to make themselves a bag each!

Ireland Indeed

Not only am I off to visit Jackie in Ireland* on Friday (YIPPEE) but I've also finished making the 9 patch blocks for my Essential Irish quilt.  The next stage is taking them to mum's so we can speed date the blocks on her thankfully uncluttered floor (unlike mine) and work out how to best arrange them.

I have temporarily mislaid the sketch of the layout, so I hope I have the right number of all darks, 6 darks and 4 darks, but I do have 130 blocks made and pressed

(*baddies need not bother trying to establish my address: the rest of the family are staying home and the police, military and other emergency services are camped in the village repairing the flood damage - this must be the safest three square miles in the south east of England!!!!!)

Super Strings

When I posted my string quilt flimsy a few weeks ago, Jen messaged me to offer me some more string blocks.  She had these from a swap, but didn't know when she would get around to using them, could I use them?

Well clearly I don't have enough fabric, or UFOs (please don't look at the UFO & PHD tab) so of course I accepted, and just look what she sent me.  FAR too gorgeous to cut down to extend the previous top, and with just a few more squares will make a fab top in its own right.

What can I say? Except thank you, thank you, THANK YOU Jen