Back to blogging

Was it really October 2015 when I last blogged?  The difference 19 months can make...
The reason I stopped blogging was because I wasn't doing nearly as much sewing and quilting.  The reason I wasn't doing as much sewing and quilting was because I was pregnant and I now have a lovely baby.

I did manage to do some sewing during my pregnancy and I am doing the odd bit of sewing now and then, but now that baby is in more of a routine I am finally getting a little time to myself on an evening and can get my beloved sewing machine out on a more regular basis.  Hurrah!

I can't possibly mention the many different things I have worked on and finished between my last blog post and now, but I will tell you about a big quilt I am currently working on.

I got a request from a family member to make a huge baby quilt for a friend having boy triplets.  The triplets' mum had seen other quilts I had made and was desperate to own one and use it as a backdrop to the many future photos of the triplets.

I am calling this quilt The Power of Three because I have based much of it around the concept of three.  I have pieced three different shapes in the three primary colours.  I have shadow-quilted these shapes three times.  I have quilted numbers 1, 2 and 3 as well as the letters G, H and J, which are the boys' initials.  The rainbow border also has three colour coordinated three shadow-quilted lines.

I like this quilt because it has all been made from stash fabrics.  I am further on with it than these photos suggest.  I have put a black binding on it to make the rainbow border stand out.  The backing fabric is a fun Space fabric which I think is vibrant enough to match the primary colours on the front.

Here's hoping you come back and see the finished item.

Liberty Squares Quilt: A quilt in progress

In an earlier blog post I showed off some Liberty fabric purchases from the Festival of Quilts.   Normally I squirrel these fabrics away and save them for a suitable project, but this time I didn't stash all of the fabrics away.  Instead I started cutting some of the prints into 2½" squares (what else?) and adding them to other cherished Liberty fabrics.

Working with tana lawn is a real joy.  Believe it or not, it has been a pleasure to cut up 1000+ squares - the feel of the fabric, the colour combinations, the patterns.  I reckon there are over 100 different prints included here.  It surprised me that I have so many different prints, but it has been an opportunity to remind myself that I am very fortunate to have such a wide selection of such a quality fabric.  In this quilt I have now used up some prints from stash and I don't know if I will be able to get hold of them again.  That doesn't feel sad, in fact it feels really satisfying.  I am going to keep hold of this quilt for me and knowing that there are some fabrics making their "last outing" will make me treasure this quilt more.

This quilt is now ready pinned and ready for  and quilting.  Let's hope I can get that completed speedily so this quilt is keeping me warm very soon.

Scrappy Snowballs and Squares: A quilt in progress 2

The piecing of my current quilt is finished!  I cannot express how relieved I am to tell you that.  This quilt is turning into a mammoth project where my ambition has been running ahead of me and I have only just managed to catch up.  This quilt was originally going to be for a single bed for one of my nieces, but as I enjoyed working with so many different fabrics I decided to make it much bigger and to keep it for me and the husband.  Worry not - my niece'll get another quilt at a later date.

I have used so many different fabrics in this and it has been great to raid my stash.  Some of the first fabrics I ever purchased have been included, as well as some of my all time favourites, a handful of Liberty prints and donations from my sewing friends.  It's such a hotchpotch of colours, styles and images but I think it works.  I am getting much better at using up my stash and mixing it all up.

The low volume snowballs are a revelation.  Initially I had thought these would just be plain white but I am glad I mixed it up because it makes the quilt more interesting and a lot less predictable.

The quilt is made from 1388 2½" squares.  I must be crazy!  There are also 196 half square triangles.  That means there are 1584 pieces that I have sewn together.  And, just to confirm my craziness I am now wondering whether to add a chequerboard border to frame the quilt.  I need to think about that and see if I can face more cutting and piecing.  If not, the quilt top is already plenty big enough and will look amazing on our bed.

Have a lovely weekend!

Scrappy Snowballs and Squares: A quilt in progress 1

This week I am working on another scrappy quilt and I have chosen to work with my current favourite sized square again - 2½".  This quilt will alternate between patchwork blocks and snowball blocks.  It's a very simple design but I hope it will have visual impact as I have picked out some of my brightest and boldest fabrics from stash.

There are some pastel shades in amongst these blocks but by and large the fabrics I've picked out are bright in colour and bold in pattern.  Many of the fabrics also have white backgrounds or patterns.  I have also included lots of fabrics with black backgrounds, which is not common for me, but I think they complement the bright fabrics.  Some of these fabrics have also come from friends, who have seen what I am making and donated a suitable fabric.  This is the joy of the 2½" square - other quilters will gladly share some of their stash with you!

I have not been exacting in how these fabrics are sewn together.  I have done lots of chain-piecing and hoped for the best!  This has made it quicker to sew together and also more "random" in composition, which I think works well in this scrappy quilt.

The snowball blocks are not yet made.  I have cut many of the low volume fabrics, but there are still many more to cut.  I decided against having a pure white contrast.  Instead I have used different cream and lightly patterned fabrics as well as white fabric.  Hopefully this will make the quilt more interesting and less predictable.

I have made a start on piecing the half square triangles for the snowball corners, but there remains still more to do.

Thank you for visiting!

Scrappy Dresden Plate: A quilt in progress

Last month I started sewing some scrappy Dresden plates with the intention of making a quilt.  I really enjoyed making the plates and had good fun using the ruler I purchased.  I knew I wanted to turn them into a quilt but when I realised I would have to do some handsewing to make the middle of the plates my progress came to an abrupt halt.  I just don't like handsewing and instead began work on my rainbow quilt.

This week I've decided to resurrect this project and complete the very small amount of handsewing involved.  The handsewing was completed on an evening and the progress of this quilt has progressed as a result.  Yay!

I pinned the Dresden plates to a plain white fabric and then basted the whole of the quilt as usual.  To secure the plates I have quilted them with the walking foot to create a slightly thicker quilt sandwich.  I know others may have handsewn them to the white fabric but with my aversion to handsewing that was never going to happen!

I have just sewn lines where the fabric seams meet and I am sure they will keep the plates in place.  I have double sewn the points of the plates, which creates both a nice look but is also good at keeping everything secure.

As ever, I am quilting with my Aurifil threads.  White on the front and the most beautiful turquoise on the back, which matches the backing fabric perfectly.  The quilting I have done is creating a lovely flower-like pattern on the back of the quilt.

This project is now progressing at a pace, though I am now wondering whether I should add some smaller scrappy Dresden plates to the corners where there is currently a lot of white fabric.  Hopefully this will be finished this weekend.

Happy sewing everyone!

Rainbow Scrappy Quilt: A pieced quilt

The rainbow scrap quilt is now pieced.  I had spent ages putting the fabrics in the correct order, but in the end I moved some fabrics around and I am pleased with the final placement.  I am very short-sighted, but this ended up being an advantage with this quilt because I kept taking my glasses off and even my blurred vision could make out the rainbow effect.  If it looks like a rainbow when I'm not wearing my glasses, I must have got the placement right!

This quilt is fast becoming a favourite of mine and I am savouring the time I spend on this project.  I loved how I could see the rainbow coming together with each row that were pieced together.  

This quilt has lots of different fabric prints in it, which is a reflection of my stash: solids, near solids, stash builders, florals.  But there are still lots of novelty prints, especially with animals which I always seem unable to resist.  Some favourites to mention here are: Socks the Fox by Patty Sloniger, Chicken Party by Creative Thursday, some Briar Rose prints by Heather Ross and Wee Wander by Sarah Jane Studios.  Is there anything nicer than combining your favourite fabrics together in a quilt? 

I think not!

 

I made a mid-week visit to Craft Den for the backing and binding and I love my choices.  I'll share them with you when the quilt is finished.  Tomorrow I'm going to baste and begin the quilting.  A lovely sewing weekend awaits me!

Rainbow Scrappy Quilt: A quilt in progress

Not so long ago I made one of my zippy pouches in rainbow scraps.  I found putting the rainbow order together really satisfying, so it was only a matter of time before I would be inspired to make a baby quilt with rainbow colours.

It took two days to cut out all of the 520 2½" squares but by Sunday evening I was ready to start piecing the squares together.  It took me quite a while to arrange the fabrics into the correct rainbow order and I decided to take poetic quilting licence and include pinks in the rainbow, even though technically pink is not present in a rainbow.  (That does make me wonder whether pink is a colour or not, but I digress.)

My husband rarely comments on my quilts until they are completed.  He says he cannot imagine what they will turn out like until they are finished, but he commented on this quilt off his own bat when he saw the squares on the bedroom floor and he says he can tell it will be lovely when it is finished!  High praise, indeed.

Better photos to follow later in the week.  Have a happy sewing week!

Scrappy Quilt finished...almost

Do you remember that commitment that I would have my scrappy quilt finished by today and also blogged about?  I've got very close to completing it, but I have fallen at the final hurdle.  The quilting is done and the binding is on and I've even taken a couple of photos, but there are just so many threads that need sorting by hand that I cannot possibly finish this quilt by the end of today.  I've decided to give myself a little leeway for that final task.

My husband picked the colours for this quilt because he likes "earthy" colours and I am thrilled with his specification.  I quilted squares in matching threads for each of the 25 mini square blocks.  It seemed to take forever to do that but I like this kind of quilting - its repetition is meditative and I like to tally in my mind where I am up to after each square has been quilted.

I mentioned in a previous posts how I had used scraps to get the backing to the right size.  I was very "freestyle" in my piecing, which explains that funny angles and not straight stitches, but I am pleased with how it has turned out.  I have used up lots of fabrics and scraps in the process, which is what this quilt is all about.

You can't see it so well in the photos today (but I will show it in the final post about this quilt) but the binding has curly hearts on it and I love that touch as this is for my hubby.  (Fear not, the soppiness is over, that's as slushy as I get!)

Friday, definitely Friday, it will be finished.

Scrappy Squares Quilt WIP

I really shouldn't be surprised that my scrappy squares quilt is taking a while to finish, but each day I think I'll make more progress than I actually do and then my anticipated completion date gets put further back.  I need to have some patience, but it feels I have spent a lot of time with these fabrics and this quilt and I want to make some new fabric friendships.

This quilt is about 62" square so my backing fabric was never going to be enough.  I wondered about putting two large strips down the sides but then I thought that I was missing a trick to get down more of my stash and scraps so I opted to piece together random fabrics of random quantities and I think it adds to the overall scrappy feel.

I haven't worked out the total amount of fabric I've used in this project, but both the front and back felt heavy when I was getting them ironed and basted, and this was very satisfying.  

There are 49 blocks in total and I have decided to quilt each block with a square with a coordinating thread.  At one point I had creative ideas of quilting different shapes (cats, carrots, a house) but then I reverted to my dependable quilting style.  I have now quilted 33 of the total number of blocks, so I am two thirds of the way through.

Tomorrow and Sunday I don't have much planned, so I am hoping that this will be finished then.  There is another Sew my Stash challenge over on Project Leasa taking place this month and it's a "Precuts Party".  At Christmas a friend gave me some 5" Liberty squares and I really want to get them sewn together now.  I feel I have not even got my glad rags on and yet everyone else is already sipping the champagne.    When this is completed I will be hitting that Tana Lawn and joining in the fun straight away.

How true to my word am I?  Here's my commitment - this will be finished and blogged about on Monday,  Ooh er - I've got to finish it now!

Elephant quilt: A quilt in progress

Last week a friend had a baby boy and I am going to meet him on Sunday, so I need to get a quilt made.  I've had these elephant and dot prints by Birch Fabrics for a while and had been holding on to them for a special project.  These cottons are all organic and they feel fantastic; you can feel the quality immediately.

I'm putting together two different kinds of blocks, log cabin and what I call the  "Battenberg" block.  The log cabin blocks are finished and look cute.  I will work on the Battenberg blocks today and they will be made from all the elephant fabrics.

It's all rather simple, but I think it is going to look lovely.

Thank you for visiting.

Sunday Stash #3 and a quilt in progress

This is just a quick post to keep you up to date with the different projects I am currently working on.

First of all, here is a sneak preview of the fabrics I am using in a future baby quilt tutorial that will be published online.  I cannot contain my excitement!  The patterns and colours are dreamy and I will get to work with fabrics from one of my favourite ranges, Far Far Away by Heather Ross.  In the words of Forrest Gump "that's all I have to say about that" (for now.)

Yesterday I was incredibly industrious.  I cut 99 5" squares, pieced them to make a quilt top and then basted this, meaning today I am ready to quilt and bind.  I wanted to make another quilt from stash and scrap fabrics, and was determined it would be for a boy, because I am aware that I seem to make baby girl quilts more often.  There is a imbalance in my stash in favour of girly fabrics, so it was difficult to put these fabrics together.  I felt I was scraping the barrel at times, but it is looking alright in the end.  There are lots of transport related fabrics here, and I think the pirate fabric matches this as well because of the connection to ships (tenuous, I know!)

I'm just going to quilt some simple tramlines and then this will be a quick project.  Today should be a satisfying Sunday.

Thank you for popping by.

If at first you don't succeed... cheat!

Once a month I attend a "block a month" group at a local patchwork shop.  There are four of us who attend and we always learn lots and have a laugh.  We seem to have diverted from our "block a month" title recently because we are all keen to learn as many techniques as we can and often what we want to learn doesn't fit in a traditional sampler quilt.

Today the aim was to master "apple core" on a sewing machine but it really didn't happen for me.  I just could not sew the curve and I ended up having such trouble that my shoulder ached and I had to have an impromptu massage in the shop from Doctor Amy (I told you we had diverted some what!)  About an hour and a half into the class and I felt I had achieved nothing.  I was still having a good time, but I was a little frustrated at my poor efforts.

Enter Bondaweb!  It was time to do some cheating.  I cut out my apple cores, affixed the bondaweb and ironed them to some calico.  Voilà - I now have the beginning of a cushion front.  There has been no sewing so far and I feel really guilty about not sewing but this just wasn't going to happen for me otherwise.  

Most of these fabrics are scraps from my recent Quarter Square Triangle Quilt so at least I wasn't cutting up and wasting new fabric in my earlier attempt.  When finished this is bound to go beautifully with that quilt, though I won't tell the recipient of the swizz I've pulled off today.

Thank you for visiting!

Quarter Square Triangles Quilt: a quilt in progress

At the moment I seem to snatching odd moments at the sewing machine.  I am juggling work, home and my social life so I have to plan my days really carefully and be sure to squeeze in a bit of sewing time, even if it is just an hour, here and there.  Today I've been out for a meal, but before going out I managed to get an hour at the machine and finish piecing the quarter square triangle quilt I started just over a week ago,

This quilt is proving to be a pleasure.  I was glad to be using fabrics from other quilts but I have now joined these with four bold solid colours (yellow, turquoise, green and cerise) and I love how they work with the patterned quarter square triangles.  Solid fabrics are also considerably cheaper, which for someone on a reduced a fabric budget is also a good thing.  My husband, Ezzie, says he likes how this quilt is taking shape, which is an unusual comment from him; normally he likes to see a quilt complete before expressing a view.  (Or maybe being surrounded by all this fabrics and quilts is finally beginning to pay off and he can start to envisage the final quilt before its completion.)

The backing and binding fabrics have already been chosen, so I hope to make a good start on the quilting tomorrow.  I've used these fabrics in previous quilts (though not together) but feel that they will complement the fabrics in the quilt, as well as make the back a bold statement in its own regard.   I love both these fabrics so it will be nice to work with them again.

Thanks for stopping by.  Let's see if I make a Friday Finish.

Quarter square triangle quilt: a WIP

The best projects can be those that are the least planned and the most spontaneous.  Today I went sewing with friends and had no idea what I would be working on.  I grabbed a load of random fabrics (most of which I had used in other quilts) and set off.  During the five minute drive I started to wonder about making quarter square triangles and by the time I had got the machine set up and the fabrics out it was as if this was a long prepared quilt and that these fabrics had had this destiny all along.

I have made about half the QST blocks.  There are other fabrics that are going to be added.  I am pleased that there are so many colours in this quilt because I think the final effect will be both striking and bold.    Some of these fabrics are making their third outing now, but each and every time they have been used in different patterns and alongside different fabrics.  I like seeing a fabric take on different characteristics in this way.

I am going to put these blocks next to solid fabrics to create a checkerboard effect.  The solid fabrics I don't yet have but I am going to include bold, happy colours and avoid pastels and shades.  I am thinking of adding colours like green and royal blue, which don't actually figure in the colour scheme yet, but which would be sure to mix it up!

It's back to work for me tomorrow so this little project is going to motivate me to finish my work quickly and get home and on to the sewing machine.  Have a great week!

Work and Sewing Life Balance

This week marked the end of summer for me because since Monday I have been back at work.  Having six weeks off in the summer is the best perk of my job and I like to make the most of all that glorious time.  This summer I was really fortunate to be able to spend time with friends sewing, usually two days in the week.  I love sewing with others.  I get to admire other people's fabric choices, take a look at their ideas, share and learn tricks and tips and it's always good fun (we do have a world to put to rights as well as all this sewing).  I find that sewing with my friends increases my creativity and improves my sewing.  

I'm already missing the luxury of time.  Today is the first day since being back at work that I have touched the sewing machine and I felt that I just had to sneak in a couple of hours and plod on with an ongoing project, rather than get my creative juices flowing and start some new ambitious project.  Work is already reducing the time I can devote to my creativity.  I know time with my sewing has done me good today so I am determined to find the time tomorrow to do the same.  For me, my work life balance has to feature sewing.

I learned to make Cathedral Windows in June.  Since then I've seen two of my friends finish adorable Cathedral Windows quilts, whilst mine has been a "dip in and out" kind of project.  I love the look of these quilts; I think they are as charming as a quilt can be, but there is just so much preparation and the progress is slow!

In July I started my quilt.  I chose a simple and cheap pink with white dot fabric for the "lead" and low volume fabrics for the "glass".  I like the way these look together, and I am pleased I made the lead in a colour because I think it makes a change from the typical white fabric I see all over Pinterest.  I am certainly pleased I used a cheap fabric for the lead.  I have two metres of this dedicated to this project, yet you see very little.  It easily uses twice your normal amount of fabric.  Now I understand why people tend to make Cathedral Window cushions; cushions don't eat up lots of fabric and are a lot less time-consuming.  

I have had to add low volume fabrics to my stash for this project because I didn't have too many of those before.  As someone who loves novelty fabrics, this is a great project for showcasing them by making them the centre of the circle.  (Incidentally, this is just a small section.  I have done way more of this since July than you see here.)

As I am now back at work, progress with this quilt will probably be slow but at least I have taken back some control today and asserted that sewing time is important.  Regardless of my work commitments, I have to spend time at the machine to feel balanced again.

Thank you for visiting.

Normal Service Resumed

I am now back to quilting and blogging after returning from a lovely, relaxing holiday in Austria.  I had a great time and worked on a couple of projects (Briar Rose hexagons and knitting a pair of socks) but I missed the sewing machine and within my first 24 hours back home I have worked on two projects.  Sewing hexagons and knitting socks make for relaxing and therapeutic projects but there is nothing like hitting the sewing machine and making fast progress.

I am on a bit of a money-saving mission at the moment because I really do want a long-arm quilter at some point, so I am going to try to work with stash fabrics for the next few months and become reacquainted and fall back in love with some earlier fabric purchases.

At the recent Festival of Quilts (did I mention I went?) I bought some Liberty Lifestyle Bloomsbury Gardens fabrics to add to some existing fabrics I already owned from the range.  I bought two metres of backing as well so this fits my money-saving mission as I have everything to make a complete project.  To make this quilt a little funkier, I have also added some other fabrics from my stash (elephants and CND symbols aren't original to the range.)  I have already made two projects from this range (a quilt and a cushion) and I love these so I know these are going to be fun fabrics to work with again; the pinks, blues and greens are the prettiest ever. 

I am making string blocks and so far have made 30 4" squares.  I like the look but think I am going to make a chequerboard quilt with white squares.  I have plenty of white fabric in my stash so I still won't need to make an additional purchase for this quilt.  I think this quilt will be ready in no time so I am determined to get a Friday finish this week.  That's almost a promise!

It's not me, it's you

Last year my nephew, Romeo, made a request for a quilt.  His sisters had already received a quilt each and he was quite clear that it was now his turn.  He wrote a list of things he wanted in his quilt and I promised I would make it.  The list read: football, elephants, lions, trucks, cars, Manchester United and the colour red.  That's quite a quilt!  And I don't think these things go easily together, but a promise is a promise and I began to source fabrics and put them together as two large log cabin blocks.

So far, so good, but then I lost momentum and did not want to work on this quilt.  I wanted to work with prettier fabrics where colours work well together.  I procrastinated and used the excuse of no Manchester United backing as my excuse for not completing it.  However, it turns out Romeo had not forgotten his quilt and mentioned it a few times to my sister (his mum) and my Grandma to remind me.

Then last week my sister sent me this photo and I was guilt-tripped because poor Romeo is using his sisters' quilts because he does not have his own!

I quickly got my act together, bought a duvet from eBay to cut up for the backing and have now begun the quilting.  I do not love this quilt but I do love Romeo and I know this quilt is probably the most eagerly anticipated so I am determined to finish it as soon as possible so when I next see him he receives it.

The long and short of it

My favourite part of making a quilt is the quilting.  I love getting the walking foot on the machine and choosing variegated thread and putting a pattern on the quilt, usually one which defines the piecing of the quilt.  I do know that on my sewing machine and with my experience, this is rather limiting and I would like to be able to quilt in a much more original and exciting way and I am always struck by the workmanship that can be seen on a quilt that has been long-arm quilted.

I keep mentioning long-arm quilters to my husband but the possibility of getting one is made immediately prohibitive by the need for serious cash, a lot of space and a concrete floor.  There's also been the issue that I have never had a go at long-arm quilting so any thought of buying all this kit would be a shot in the dark.

A friend found a second-hand frame on Ebay this week and I was interested in purchasing it.  This would not be as comprehensive as a top-of-the-range long-arm quilter, but it would be an opportunity to develop my quilting skills at a more affordable price.  I was interested and spoke to Lynn at Craft Den, who has one such frame and seems capable at any craft she touches.  We had a chat, she looked at the offer and I decided this was not my time.  Lynn, keen for me to make an informed decision, instead offered me tuition on her frame, which I immediately took her up on.

What fun I had!  I can't say I am an expert yet, but I think I showed potential and as I expected, I really enjoyed it.  Here are my first attempts at drawing pictures and creating different shapes:

And, then I had a go at long-arm quilting a baby quilt I started last week, and I am pleased with the progress I made.  This does not look like any of my regular quilts, where I am limited to straight lines.  I am glad I have had a try but I want to make the right decision and am going to use my trip to The Festival of Quilts next month to approach stalls, ask the right questions and consider the finances and commitment.  After having a go I am definitely very interested in owning one at some point.  I am so grateful to Lynn for letting me have a go!

So, that's my "long" news.  My "short" news comes in the form of a cushion I am making using Liberty Tana Lawn.  The pattern is from Quilt Now and uses small half square triangles and quarter square triangles.  It's certainly piecing on a small scale and I tend to avoid that.  I'm hoping to finish it tomorrow.

Thank you for visiting.

Social sewing

Before sewing there was knitting.  I taught myself to knit about ten years ago with some metal needles, cheap yarn and a simple book.  In no time I was hooked and knitting accompanied me everywhere.  I have photos of me knitting at the top of the Empire State Building, on mountain summits in the Alps, as well as at the top of the Eiffel Tower.  But knitting also accompanied me on train journeys, in a waiting room, in a traffic jam and at some family gatherings, much to some relatives' disdain.  I still love knitting and always have a pair of socks on the go so any moment of inertia or waiting can be made purposeful.

Knitting also allowed me to meet people who I otherwise would not have.  In Sheffield we have a local knit night on a Tuesday in a pub.  It started off as an opportunity to share a hobby with like-minded people but now it's more about meeting the people and the fact we have knitting in common is just a bonus.

I knew sewers and I admired their work but I just couldn't imagine putting down the needles to learn a new craft.  Also, knitting is the perfect hobby to take with you anywhere.  As I knit mainly socks all I need is a ball of wool, four double pointed needles and my counter and off I go.  When I got the sewing bug I was worried that the cumbersomeness of the machine and the paraphernalia needed for sewing would mean sewing would be private and not something I would do in public.

But at our Tuesday knit night there is a revolution taking place because last night (and for most of the past few months) I was sewing in public.  English Paper Piecing, especially hexagons, are ideal for social sewing.  It's extremely time consuming compared to machine sewing but there is always a wow factor from hexagons because of the beautiful patterns and tessellations.

I've been working on this quilt for a few months on and off.  I know it's not a quick project but piecing these hexagons together is deeply satisfying and can be done with little fuss and whilst talking to others.  Hexagons are to sewing what socks are to knitting: repetitive, meditative, simple.  You also don't need much stuff; fabric, hexagons, scissors, thread and needle.  A little bag keeps all these things together and sewing suddenly becomes more portable and sociable.

The fabrics here are Briar Rose by Heather Ross for Windham Fabrics.  These fabrics were out a while before I came across them.  I think they are absolutely gorgeous and love the mixture of bright colours and pastel shades.  Spending a long time on a project is no problem when the fabrics are so mesmerising and enchanting.

Look carefully at the quilt, however, and there is an irony here.  Today I've spent this post convincing people sewing is as great as knitting and yet this one little bee is knitting away.  The bee doesn't agree!  Clearly the fabric is reminding me that sewing is fun but so too is knitting.  I think working on this project for a while will send me subliminal messages to get out the socks again.  I don't suppose it's a competition.  Some days I want to knit, other days I want to sew.  Aren't I lucky to have two crafts to enjoy?

Circus quilt - WIP

I really love making a quilt from small amounts of novelty or patterned fabric and combining it with largely plain or sold fabrics.  I think that this combination makes the novelty  fabric pop when this fabric may be the smallest component.

A lady at work has asked me to make a quilt for a grandson who will be born shortly.  I had some scraps of fabric I bought cheaply last year which I thought would be suitable for this project, but I knew there would not be enough to make an entire quilt.  I think the fabrics are from Timeless Treasures.  I made a quick dash to my local patchwork shop and decided three largely solid fabrics would work well here.

I cut the circus fabrics and some solids into 2 1/2 inch squares and then pieced them together into these squares.  I was quite random about how I did this so none of the pieced squares looks the same.

Then I decided to bulk the quilt out my bordering the pieced squares with the solids.  I really like how these look together.  I think the solids really make the circus fabrics much more interesting and exciting.  On there own, they didn't really wow me; now I really quite like them.

I have quite a bit of the solid fabrics left so I am going to make my first scrappy binding.  I want this to be a project with very little left over.  I've had a look at some scrappy bindings on pinterest and I think they can work beautifully, I think especially if the scraps are not too long.  Unfortunately neither of the two local fabric shops in Sheffield opens on Monday so I cannot finish this today.  I haven't chosen the backing yet so that will be a fun shopping decision on Tuesday.