In the post today

A lovely parcel of fabric goodness arrived from JoJo this morning. Some of us have finished our bee commitments for 2012 so we have agreed to make some extra blocks as a comfort quilt for one of JoJo's friends. The block JoJo has chosen is sort of a variation on the granny square block. The backgrounds are in grey with a cross in the middle.





I will sew mine on Friday evening as part of the Friday night sew in group.

UR Priceless blog hop

Welcome to day 7 of the UR priceless blog hop - I'm here to show you the coin purse I made from the pattern provided and now available for sale here.



I decided to make a coin purse to go with the 241 tote that I completed 10 days ago.

The outside of the purse is an Echino linen print and Essex linen. It was suggested to sew the frame in using Presencia 8 which I was pleased to have in hand in the right colour.



The interior is a map print called Centre City - Los Angeles in Downtown. I purchased the sew in purse frame from a Hong Kong Ebay seller. I don't know how they manage to do free post, cheap prices and a free gift of some bag feet.

Come back on Wednesday for another completed purse which I was unable to complete in time. However you can also visit the other blog hoppers for today for more inspiring projects:

Julia P

Tina

Dachsies With Moxie

Marci Girl Designs

The Sunflower Patch

Wish upon a star

Mary on Lake Pulaski

Greco Mara

Linda M

Mack and Mabel

Dreaming in Patchwork

Judith Handmade Treasures

Kaydie

Patchouli Moon Studio

Sew We Quilt

Michelle's first quilt

Simply lovely. Michelle has been very patient as I've been delayed in finishing this due to two consecutive weeks of half term, a cold that lasted for ten days and a few machine problems.



Thread is white line king tut
Pantograph is popcorn

Now to load another quilt ready to quilt on Sunday.

Connections

At the Saturday workshop I also made another 241 bag. Using an echino bicycle print in pink (Eternal maker) paired with the natural Essex Linen (Village Haberdashery) I added a drak grey / black accent print and a fun city map print for the interior also in pink and also from the Village Haberdashery.

All of the fabrics were purchased whilst at the Alexandra Palace Knitting and Stitching Show with Claire. I used heavy woven interfacing to give body. For my first 241 bag I used wadding to firm up the strap but for this one I used a strip of the linen with the interfacing. it has a lovely firm but flexible feel due to the four layers of fabric and interfacing.

I have one more set of fabrics that I bought for another 241 bag, but I must start a project for Simply Solids which has a deadline of the end of November which seemed so far waya a few weeks ago. :)

And there is a connection between my 241 bag and this blog hop, which you'll have to come back on 13 November to see.

Christmas mini quilt

On Saturday our W I had a bagmaking workshop. I was there just to help and took a few projects along to work on. The first project was to finish the Christmas mini quilt for the swap I am in. I had tea dyed a strip of lace which I then decided not to add. Having quilted the quilt with a big stitch, I decided to change my mind and added the dyed lace to the bottom.





I adapted a pattern from Christmas 2011 by Anni Downs I made just a few alterations - the mini quilt needed to be a 12" square so I made the quilt wider. My French knots need practice so I chickened out and used hot fix crystals to replace the knots on the tree under the house and the stars on the trees were replaced with larger red crystals.

I hope my swap partner likes what Ive made. The ladies at the class were very complimentary about the mini quilt, I hope they weren't just being polite. :)

Friday night in with friends

I eventually made a decision as to what to sew to coincide with Friday night in with friends. I chose the X and O blocks for Carol our honeybee host for November. The blocks went together really quickly and I would've continued making more blocks but I ran out of the shot cottons that Carol had chosen for the central cross.





Don't the blocks look lovely.

November UFO

A successful October with my UFO finished - Vintage Holiday quilt.

Full details of this quilt this can be found here

And this month Judy has chosen: #9 which happens to be my Live Laugh Stitchery. That happens to be on my messy table so I don't have to locate it and hopefully it will be worked on and possibly completed this month.

This is my progress so far this year:
1. blue and cream stars - finished for February

2. Jan Krentz difficult quilt - Summer salsa lone star
3. rainbow squares - finished in Septeber
4. Heart stitchery
5. Disappearing nine patch - finished for January
6. Swoon finished in May
7. Modern V meets Thimbleberries scraps
8. Christmas table runner
9. Love laugh live stitchery
10. accuquilt feathered applique
11. Fat Quarter stars - just making some setting blocks
12. TQS BOM
13. Vintage holiday finished in September

I'm not sure what number is left for December - possibly 4?? I'd better not work on that one this month as it's almost finished just an hour of sticthing left, add some borders, add the crystals to replace the french knots and mount on a canvas.

Friday Night with Friends

Friday Night with Friends has been launched to add to your Friday night sewing experience. FNSI is very popular so Chryll has launched FNwF. Do come and join us at http://stitchingcubbyhole.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/i-have-permission.html



The first event is tomorrow night. All I have to do on my Christmas mini is sew on some lace and affix the crystals I've ordered. What should I do tomorrow? Some stitchery, my Hugs tapestry, start the new project for Simply Solids? I should decide today and prep tomorrow morning.

I have to take back my low expectations for our darts evening. All of the Sirens Six did well. Three won through to the second round, Michelle and Chirstine got through to the third round and Christine was a runner up overall with medal and trophy.

I completely changed my mind

Whilst surfing the net and quilter blogs, I came across a project which I could adapt for my Christmas" swap. I wasn't happy with the fabrics I was using for the vintage holiday inspired mini quilt so I made a decision to change my plans and adapt an Anni Downs Christmas project from 2011 and this is how I have got on so far. I was given a hot fix crystals wand for Christmas 2011, and this is the first time I've used it on a project. I'm pleased with my progress so far but I need first to order some more hot fix crystals in red to put on the end of each branch of the little Christmas tree under the house. I didn't have enough of anyone colour to complete the mini quilt today. I think I will make up the mini quilt tomorrow whilst Lizzie is celebrating Halloween with her friends. And then finish the mini quilt once the small crystals have arrived - hopefully by the weekend.

Tonight I'm out playing darts with some WI friends from Sirens. It should be quite a laugh as only one of us has ever played darts before. However we are making an attempt to participate in the island's W I events and so far have had mixed success. We came second in the quiz earlier this month, three trophies in the flower arranging competition and Michelle came first in the jam making competition not bad for a WI of only three years.

Bloggers Quilt Festival - Autumn 2012

If you haven't visited the Bloggers Quilt Festival yet you need to rush over and browse over 300 quilts all in one place from the comfort of your own home.

Over the last two years I have become a bit smitten with Bonnie & Camille's fabric. It started when I bought two Moda scrap bags online sight unseen. One was Bliss and I fell in love and went surfing the internet for some more. Of course I came to their lines late in the game so there wasn't much left of Bliss but I found some. Then I saw a couple of Farmer's Wife quilts using their lines and I jumped on the band wagon. Then I acquired some Ruby and made Camille's Hopscotch pattern (still in progress) with scraps being added to my Farmer's Wife box. Recently I bought some Vintage Modern to use for the new Fat Quarterly Retreat kinky bee. As those blocks came home, I added the scraps to the box.

When the Vintage Holiday quiltalong started in blogland, it was a no brainer to jump into the remaining Bonnie and Camille fabrics and piece along. I used my favourite Moda white on white for the background. This pattern is simple but effective and has become Lizzie's favourite quilt to snuggle under whilst watching television and is already on display in the lounge even though Christmas is two months away.

 

Details:

Pattern : Vintage Modern by Camille Roskelley

Fabric: Bliss, ruby and Vintage Modern by Bonnie & Camille with Moda white on white and Kona light red for binding

Quilting pantograph: Alex b2b by Anne Bright

Blogger’s Quilt Festival Stats
Finished quilt measures : 51" by 64"
Special techniques used : none
Quilted by : Sue Bone
Best Category : Throw Quilt, Photography, Scrap Quilt

Monday's happy mail

Two parcels of fabric goodness that I had been expecting arrived yesterday. First out of the bag were these beautiful Kona purples from Justine of simply solids.

Along with the ruler pictured that I borrowed from Sarah I will be making a quilt for Justine's shop. I chose purple as Nelson's house colours are purple.




Next to be unwrapped were fabrics from Carol to make X and O blocks for the FQR kinky beefor November. One of the bumble bees from the same bee chose the same block also with red crosses and it looks beautiful. I'm looking forward to making these blocks.

It has been interesting to see everyone's choices of fabrics colours and blocks so far in this bee. I'm looking forward to seeing some of the completed projects at next year's Fat Quarterly retreat.





Carol also sent us each a piece of her hand made soap. I was lucky enough to receive some lavender soap which has gone in my underwear drawer!

October FNSI

House season eight arrived in our house yesterday so Friday night sew in was never going to occupy the whole evening.

I had planned to work on my Christmas money quilt. I picked out some thimbleberries fabric. However having pieced a few pieces together I wasn't happy with the look and so I will go to a local quilt shop on Saturday morning and pick out some new fabrics.


Instead I worked on my farmer's wife quilt. I had pinned together a couple of rows during the day and I sews these together last night. Now that this corner is finished I'm not sure about the top right block. I think I need something stronger in colour so it will have to be unpicked and the block swapped with another from the middle of the quilt. What do you think?

Christmas swap

As I haven't made many of the calendar mini quilts for my lovely metalwork frame, I thought the mini Christmas swap might get me motivated over at http://stitchingcubbyhole.blogspot.com/ I've just received my partner's name and I think traditional fabrics are in order.



I loved making my Vintage Holiday quilt so I'm thinking of a mini version. I've just drafted up something using Quilt Assistant. As I haven't participated in this swap before, I'm hoping that it's the right sort of thing. Oops just noticed that the third block should have a gold top, never mind, you get the idea.

I'll have to go and see what fabrics I have in the traditional colour ways. I have loads in the aqua and red vein which is my current preference but I may have destashed all of the more traditional fabrics. I'm itching to get cutting. If it's FNSI time tomorrow, I will start it so that I'm ready to post before the end of November.

Fluffy Sheep Quilting

Did you get a copy of the Fluffy Sheep Quilting newsletter yesterday? If you didn't you have to go and sign up to receive the October newsletter with four free patterns from me, Ceri, Hadley and Dina.

My tutorial is for this sewing pouch which is big enough to carry a pair of glasses as well as your current embroidery or hexagon project.

Sweet celebration

On Thursday morning as I was starting this cold bug, I received an e-mail to say I was a winner in the recent Moda blog hop. I had no idea what I had won other than an ebook of the new Sweet Celebrations book as a non-US participant. As winners weren't announced on the participating blogs until yesterday, this morning I've been searching the 20 or so blogs to find where I won. And it was at Little Miss Shabby and apparently I have won a copy of the book and a fat eighth bundle. I was commenter 344 of 463.

Can't wait to see what fabric I've won. And even better news, Matthew is home for a week. I wish I wasn't coughing and spluttering though. Lizzie is doing her Duke of Edinburgh practice hike today and tomorrow. I hope it keeps dry for her.



Happy mail

I am definitely going down with some Bug. I received this lovely package In the post this morning.




I wondered what I have done to receive such lovely fabric. Was it really mine?




Then the penny dropped it was from Claire. Thank you for making my day. I'm also looking forward to next year!



I also received these lovely muffin cases in the mail. I think Lizzie needs to get baking again.

Vintage hexagons

I took some hexagons this morning to our quilt group. These are only 5/8 of an inch in size. I had left behind my stitchery at home so didn't have much to do this morning.




While stitching my hexagons Gladys pulled out a box which at one time had held ivory postcards from Harrods of London.




Imagine my surprise when she opened the box to find that the hexagons in the box were exactly the same size as I was working on.





These hexagons were prepared by a lady who has gone into a home and her daughter was clearing out the house. I am now the proud owner of a box of vintage hexagons some of which have already been sewn into hexagon flowers.

The fat quarterly retreat is being held in July next year in London. Last year we exchanged handmade items. I thought other ladies might like the small wall hanging from the pattern that I picked up at the knitting and stitching show last week. So I plan to make up some wallhangings from the small hexagons. Astra also had a small token hanging from her scissors to identify them and I thought I would make some using the hexagons too.

Does anyone know how to get that musty smell out of the fabrics without washing them?

Vintage holiday finish

I couldn't find more of the red and white Vintage Modern border fabric to do the binding and the Pin It and Stitch ladies we met at Ally Pally matched up some Kona light red which has worked well. Thanks too to Anne for helping hand sew the binding whilst I did our guild announcements last night.




Pattern and Fabric by Camille Roskelley.

Massive hexagon quilt

This quilt was hand stitched by Sue in creams and autumnal colours. Sue had fallen out of love with the quilt and asked me to stipple the borders. The challenge was that this quilt was already finished and bound so losing any fullness wasn't possible. For this reason I did a big freehand stipple in a variegated cream and brown thread.

Perkoimen Valley blocks

Tuesday was the third of five workshops with Carolyn Forster and the blocks were based on a split nine patch. A great variety of fabrics and different positioning from the seven attendees. With the class not being at full capacity there was much more room for us.

Sarah's blocks with Lynette Anderson fabrics

Joy's subtle blocks

Janet couldn't decide which way she wanted to position her accent fabric

Lorraine's zingy yellow and blacks and greys

My neutrals are from Sunkissed by Sweetwater, hot pink is my hand dyed fabric from some time ago mixed with a variety of greys for contrast

Jenny's stiking black, white and cream blocks. Not a blue in sight.

Jill's purple and blue batiks. Beautiful.

And Lizzie provided some lovely peanut butter cupcakes topped with homemade peanut brittle to use up two of the three pots of peanut butter in the larder.