When in doubt...

make a zippy pouch!

I'm starting to think I must have been a marsupial in a previous life.  All of these have been gifts and the recipients have loved them because they have all been made with them in mind.

Be warned - there are lots of photos to follow!

First up, a bag for a friend who is moving to Japan.  I got to use my Drunkard's Path die for this project to create the Japanese flag.

The other side is a mixture of Japanese and British.  Last year at the Festival of Quilts I bought this sushi and tempura fabric on a whim.  It turns out it would come in very useful.  All the other fabrics are redolent of Britain (weather, food, icons etc.)  My friend loved receiving this!

 Next up we have a leaving gift for someone who loves his cats.  I have made a created patchwork images of his cats as I did for my craft room.

The ginger boy has a black growth on his mouth, which I wanted to capture.  My friend sussed this straight away (phew!)  The black and white cat is like their girl cat as well with her white splodges and white chin.  He was thrilled with this, though I suspect I enjoyed making this project even more!

More purple and more cats in these next two pouches.

It's just so nice to put together random fabrics and to have a project very quickly.  Simple patchwork and straight quilted lines are always going to be popular with me.

Thanks for visiting!

Mid week much to report

Only a few days have past since I last posted and already there are new skills to show off and new projects to share.  At the weekend I went on a "curves course" with Lynne at Craft Den with some of my sewing friends to learn how to sew Drunkard's Path and Apple Core blocks.  I'd had a bad experience with curves before but I have been determined to have another go and it's one of my resolutions to make a Drunkard's Path quilt this year.  I feel quite smug now,  Not only did I enjoy myself immensely, but I produced two acceptable blocks and I am sure I could incorporate these blocks into my quilting repertoire.

Lynne used a Sizzix Big Shot Die Cutting machine to cut the individual pieces.  Guess what I now want to purchase?  It just removed all the stress and effort of cutting pieces and meant we could get on with the sewing.  I know I am coming to the party late as these gadgets have been around for ages, but it would make my Drunkard's Path quilt much more of possibility.

 I am meant to be sewing my stash this year, but spending a day in a craft shop meant I had to buy some fabric.  I fell in love with a Lewis and Irene Bumbleberries jelly roll and in no time at all I had sewn it together in a "loose" rainbow order.  This is without a doubt the softest quilting cotton I have come across.  It has an amazing texture to it.  From what I understand this is a relatively new company but their stuff is already making an impact and I love the fact that this is a British company.

This quilt is going to live in my craft room, where I am trying to have a rainbow theme.  My fabrics are organised into rainbow order and I've almost sourced all the right colour boxes to reflect this.  I like it when my husband comes and chats to me in the craft room, but he likes to lounge about and isn't a fan of sitting upright at the craft table.  At the weekend we bought a chair for him and this is going to live on top of that.  As it's for my fella I decided to buy some Lynette Anderson Pocketful of Daisies as he's a keen gardener.  I bought a lovely grey Lewis and Irene fabric for the binding.  I think these colours are so subtle as to keep the focus on the rainbow effect.

Just so I don't feel too guilty about all these fabric purchases I will show you that I am working through my stash and have been persevering with my scrappy blocks.  Last night I cut 125 2½" orange squares to make the last five orange blocks.  It's tedious at times but I am slowly getting there.

Thank you for visiting.