Trusty Tablemats

My first quilting lesson took place on the first of December 2012.  As it was the beginning of advent I decided to make a Christmas table runner.  I still have it somewhere but I won't be using this Christmas or any other Christmas because it is hideous - awful fabrics, terrible piecing, poor quilting.  It was good practice and a great introduction to patchwork and quilting and my table ware obsession was born.

It's a bit of a joke in my local patchwork shop that if I see a new fabric and ask "what could I make with it?" the lovely Saturday girl, Emily, suggests "tablemats!"  I have tablemats for the different seasons of the year and have no doubt that at some point I will increase this to twelve sets, one for each month of the year.  Tablemats are just a great way of adding colour and interest into your life and are quilts on a mini scale so easy to put together.  I also think they make a great gift and the ones I have made this week are going to Marion for her seventieth birthday.

Marion helps my husband at the allotment shop.  She is a great gardener and a lovely person.  She is always cheerful and optimistic.  She likes a laugh and enjoys life.  I think these fabrics are perfect for her because they have the gardening theme and have a bright, happy look which reminds me of Marion.  Like me, she enjoys her crafts so I think Marion will appreciate and enjoy using these.

I decided to do some simple tramline quilting.  The thread is by YSL and called Havana Market.  I like it because it contains all the different colours of the flowers in the middle of this mat.   The binding I finished by hand, but I want to learn how to make binding by machine to speed up the finishing.  I am really pleased with these mats and I am also pleased that they are finished long before the birthday bash.  For once I am not up against it, trying to meet a deadline.

Later today I have a friend coming around to sew with me.  I am looking forward to that.  I will be working on a simple baby quilt which I began cutting last night.  This quilt is being made from random fabrics in my stash and uses simple squares and rectangles.  If I press on, I should be able to get this finished reading for a Finish It Up Friday with Crazy Mom Quilts.

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