March 2025 plans

March is very busy with a full working week organising and adjudicating entries for our local Creative Arts Eisteddfod, a day trip to London for the Stitch Festival and a three-day visit to London for hospital visits. Lizzie is joining me for Sitch Festival and two days for my outpatient's appointments.

I would like to wear my Aspen dress to Stitch Festival so that has to be high on my to do list. 

The Jingle All the Way quilt needs borders, backing and binding before stitching all of the embellishments to be added to the final piece.

My March UFO for our guild challenge is number 1. I was really hoping that it wouldn't be either of my two big projects which I should start on this month to get them on the way.

I had hoped to make another Frankie top in February but I broke the blade on my overlocker, so I will finish it in March instead.

Friday finish - Jingle all the way

 

All of the sections of Jingle All the Way by Kimberbell Designs is now complete. I particularly like the shaker blocks included with the sequins.

Watching the embroidery machine work is so hypnotic.

I changed the position of the houses in the top row so that I didn't have two blocks next to each other with the same background. You'd only spot that if you knew the pattern well.

There are two borders to add before adding the backing and binding but I'm going to do just one 2" border in the red and pink Tula Pink dotted fabric.

WIP Wednesday - woven stars

 

I am keeping up with my plan to make four of these blocks each month. This is made easier by prepping the four blocks at our group meeting each month. I am using a fat quarter bundle of First Light by Ruby Star Society for Moda fabrics.

I have a total of 24 6" blocks completed which sounds like good progress but that's only the equivalent of six 12" blocks. My plan is to donate this to Quilts 4 Care leavers. So, I have found the size requirements on the website. Thus far if I sewed these blocks together it would be 36" by 24" so I am planning to put these blocks on point and perhaps even alternate the blocks with a neutral block.

Monday Make - Ruby Star anniversary quilt

 

My plan in January was to make ten blocks each month for this quilt. There are a total of 100 blocks in five different patterns. This month I again cut out a set of blocks at our Guild meeting and sewed them up yesterday. I have finished three of the five block patterns for a total of 52 blocks, so I am over halfway. The third block is called the floating star, and the stars are 4" finished. There are also 32 8" stars to be made for the last block.

Next week will see very little stitching as I will be busy with the needlework section of our local Creative Arts Eisteddfod for six days. we will also be moving into a hotel temporarily as we are having a new heating system installed. The timing is fortuitous as our boiler has been on the blink for a few months and has finally packed up. Fortunately, my father had a standalone electric radiator which is warming the house, and it hasn't been too cold. I'm going to pack the fabric for this quilt for our hotel stay and hope to get at least a few blocks cut every evening.

WIP Wednesday - Aspen dress

 

To call this a WIP, is perhaps stretching the point! I received an email from EasyJet this morning and I can check in to my flight to London Gatwick for my flight in 30 days' time. I won tickets to Stitch Festival so I am flying over for the day and Lizzie, my daughter, will travel down to London by train from Leeds.

You may wonder what that has to do with the Aspen dress? Last week I received a kit for the dress bought from Fabric Godmother. My plan is to make and wear this dress to Stitch Festival and if I like the style of the dress, I will buy some more fabric to make a winter version of the dress. So, I now have 29 days to get this sewn up! The kit comes with the pattern, fabric, black iron on interfacing, thread, buttons and the zip. A comprehensive kit. The first step is to decide on what size to make and trace the pattern.

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Strawberry sewing

 

I received a very welcome parcel from Moda last week. My request for Strawberry by Kimberley Kight was originally despatched on 31 October, but it never arrived. Moda were kind enough to despath a second box containing two layer cakes, extra wide backing and some specked for binding. This is for a pattern that will be in Make Modern this summer and Strawberry should be despatched to stores in May.

I am not a lover of green, so I have swapped out the two green squares for some pink fabric from the first line of Strawberry and I'm ready to stitch up my sample.

SCBU mini quilt

 

My virtual sewing date with Lizzie, my daughter was postponed as she was asked to play in a dodgeball match. We’re looking forward to meeting up at the Stitch Festival in London in March.I carved out some time from a busy day to finish the October 2024 Perfectly Pieced blocks into a mini quilt for SCBU. 

I sewed the blocks together, added a 1" finished border and quilted around the blue alphabet squares in the centre and around the edge. I then quilted in the border and bound it by machine for a satisfying finish.

These small pieces are perfect for playing with fabrics and especially scraps. Now I need to prioritise quilting a group quilt and I am thinking I can work on block 10 and 11 of Jingle All the Way to catch up again.

Monday make - Big Hearted Tiny Town

 

After putting away our Christmas decorations, I brought out my very few Valentine pieces. I had wondered where my finished Valentine Tiny Town was, and whilst looking for something else, I found it waiting to be framed. Fortunately, the framer I use is close to home, so I popped it to her to be framed. I like her simple system, drop it in and pick it up finished a week later.

On Saturday, I went to my father's flat which has just been painted ready for tenants, to be on site when some furniture that I had Ecycled was being collected. My sister was also picking up the smaller items to Ecycle for collection from her home. Then Dad turned up for a look at the painting which passed his stringent examination, and he admitted they'd done a good job. 

I then had to change my plans; my sister, Joanne escaped whilst I chatted with Dad. Fortunately, the couple picking up the washer / dryer had arrived early and had already left and then a friend was picking up an Ikea chair. Instead of taking a couple of pieces to a local antique dealer, I had Dad to accompany me. This little pierced scent bottle which I had never seen before, wasn't bought so I brought it home and added it to my Valentine's decor.

Not Quite finished Friday

I had my second shingles vaccine on Monday and though better than the first dose, it floored me for two days. I have also been busy with the Jersey Eisteddfod preparations. So not much crafting has been happening.

I have started working on my Guild UFO challenge for February which will be another mini quilt for SCBU using the Me Time Delivered Perfectly Pieced digital download for October 2024. I enjoy playing with the pattern and the colours and I am hypnotised by the embroidery machine doing its magic. The blocks are already quilted so I will just do a basic stitch in the ditch to add the backing fabric to the pieced top.

I only have a basic embroidery machine so made sixteen 4" blocks. They are now trimmed and looking so much nicer. I am using up scraps as I go, and I miscounted how many yellow pieces I needed so I just added in a second yellow fabric. I like how it's coming together.

I have a busy day today with flat clearing, nice lunch out, visiting my Dad and playing canasta this evening. Tomorrow I am sewing with Lizzie, my daughter, over Facebook messenger, but I have yet to any prep for the Portland shorts.

February 2025 plans

February and March will both be busy, but I am hopeful that I will get some stitching done. The number for our group's UFO challenge has been selected and it is number 8. 

Number 8 is the Perfectly pieced design for Me Time delivered from October 2024. I have printed the instructions and have decided to make another rainbow mini quilt for SCBU with 4" blocks.

My number 8 cross stitch project is Honey of a Tiny Town by Hands on Design which I bought twice!! I have some but not all of the required floss.

I have also chosen Winter Quaker by Primrose Cottage to work on this month and I don't think I have the necessary floss for this either!

I will be having a Stitch Sewcial with my daughter this weekend and she has chosen for me to stitch the Portland Shorts by Maven Patterns. I have the pattern and my fabric is prewashed, so I need to trace the pattern and cut out the fabric before Saturday.

I have ordered more of the Chicacheetah fabric from Guthrie and Ghani to make another Frankie top as I love this version. I also have my three slow progress projects to work on this month too:

The woven stars foundation paper pieced blocks;

Jingle all the way sewalong; and

The Ruby Star Society anniversary quilt.

I am probably being very ambitious as we have two homes to clear / tidy this month and a day trip to London for an appointment. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

January 2025 achievements

I have had a productive January and it feels good. I only have one project that I didn't touch this month which is Ruby and Ralph - a cross stitch project.

Our Guild UFO challenge for January 2025 was number 4. I played around with the colours of this block and made a mini quilt for SCBU.

I bound my Fraction quilt - pattern by Lou Orth and love the striped binding. I wasn't sure on the background that I chose but it has worked well.

I finished one cross stitch project this month. Pear and Partridge by Pigeon Coop Designs. I finished it in a hoop, and I'm pleased with how it's come out.

I completed the Booklet Pouch - pattern by Aneela Hoey. A great mix of Tula Pink fabrics. I even remembered to add a label and used some of the selvedge to add interest.

During my January sew date over Facebook Messenger with Lizzie, my daughter, I made the Frankie top by Tilly and the Buttons with fabric from Ghani and Guthrie. It's my new favourite top. I've just been on the Guthrie and Ghani website, and they've restocked this fabric in two colours, so an order has been placed.

I also finished my Second Cassie dress - pattern by Emporia Designs. All I needed to do was hem the sleeves and body of the dress.

January 2025 progress on slow stitching projects

I have three projects for 2025 that I am working on slowly throughout the year:

The woven stars foundation paper pieced blocks;

Jingle all the way sewalong; and

The Ruby Star Society anniversary quilt.

There are 42 sheets in the Fat Quarter Shop Foundation paper pad, and I stitched two more blocks yesterday bringing the total so far to twenty completed scrappy blocks.

I have caught up on the sewalong for Jingle All the Way by Kimberbell Designs and we have now completed nine out of the thirteen sections and there will be embellishments to stitch and add to complete. I hope to finish this during February as I added the Pumpkins and Potions to my Guild's UFO challenge and I definitely need to make some progress before that project is drawn.

I was planning to stitch ten blocks of the Ruby Star tenth anniversary quilt each month. There are five different blocks, and I completed all twenty of block one in January and six of block two. The other sixteen of block two are already cut and ready to sew. I will continue to cut out the blocks at our monthly Guild meeting as that worked well for me in January.

I have made a positive start to 2025 on these larger projects which has been very satisfying.

WIP Wednesday - Jingle all the Way

  

I was so delighted to get my Janome Atelier 7 back on Monday from being repaired in the UK. I even put away my smaller machine last night and set the Atelier 7 up. I also pinned some of the blocks, ready for some sewing on Tuesday. I am so very nearly up to date, but I have made a filler block in Block 4, 2" too small so I will make another filler block when we work on section 8. Otherwise, I am finished with sections 1 to 7.

Section 9 needed just one narrow filler block, so I stitched it along with other fillers. we have lots of blocks for future sections already complete so for section 8, we already have four embroidered blocks which are also on my design wall.

Aren't the gingerbread men in the snow globes just the cutest? Time to put away this project until the video for the next section is released.

Monday Make - Pear and Partridge

 

I am still without my Janome Atelier 7, which should hopefully be delivered today, so I focused on finishing a cross-stitch piece last weekend. This is Pear and Partridge by Pigeon Coop Designs. A small piece but there was a lot of unpicking!! 

I am lucky that my local needlework Store - Rachel's Textiles is open on a Sunday and had a 5" embroidery hoop.  I ironed some interfacing onto the back of the piece and put it in the frame, then I gathered the excess linen on the reverse. I don't like leaving the back of my work for all to see how messy I am, so I used a circle of Decovil light ironed onto a Christmassy fabric and then pressed under the edge. The circle of fabric was then glued to the back of the hoop to give a neat finish.

The plan for this week is to work on my Ruby and Ralph cross stitch, finish at least one more cross stitch piece and stitch together sections 1 to 7 of Jingle all the Way.

Friday finish - booklet pouch

 

I have had the pattern for The Booklet Pouch by Aneela Hoey for some time and I kit it up for the November Modern Quit Club Retreat, however I needed the correct zippers including a separating zipper. I ordered some from Sew Hot but the colour choice was very limited. When I was in London in January, I bought matching 10" red zips from MacCulloch and Wallis. I was ready to make my case or so I thought.

I used Tula Pink's Tabby Road collection together with a more recent rainbow houndstooth. I think I need to buy more of that fabric. I also needed double sided heavyweight interfacing which wasn't available in Jersey, so I improvised with Steam a Seam light ironed onto some Decovil light. I will try the recommended interfacing next time but my solution did work satisfactorily.

On the outside of the case, I fussy cut two cats for the front and back of the pouch and then pieced them together. Although I am not a rodent lover, I do love the selvedge that I added to the pouch, and I even remembered to add a label to the outside.

I now need to focus on two cross stitch pieces that I wanted to work on this month. I also hope that my Janome Atelier 7 arrives back from being fixed today so that I can piece together some machine embroidered blocks from Jingle all the way.