Monday make - Spring

You really NEED to sign up for the Primrose Cottage newsletter. Once a month they release a free pattern for free stitch Friday. The May pattern is a cutie. I lost my focus and needed an easy stitch to take to group meetings, so I started the project. Not that I got to take it to any group meetings!

I had all of the DMC threads and substituted Weeks Bubble Gum for the called for pink variegated Dinky Dye Works.

I have even finished it into a little pillow for spring decor using a scrap of yellow and Bonnie and Camille white spots on pink. The mini ric rac was from Gisele's sale of stash, but i should really have changed my thread colour to yellow.

Do I kit up another of these patterns for group meetings or get back to Frosty Tiny Town?

Friday finish- pumpkins and potions

 

I have been focusing on section1 of Pumpkins and Potions by Kimberbell. I am using my own choice of fabrics but purchased the embellishment kit. This size of quilt is something different for me and it has my head spinning with options. I have browsed Amazon UK for extra wide quilt ladders but am coming up blank at the moment, I might have to ask Nick to make me something suitable.

So far, I have completed section 1 of 5 together with all of the pieced blocks and the filler blocks. Next is section 2 and I already have four of the eight blocks completed. However, the potion bottle uses water soluble stabiliser which is new to me. I am liking the pop of pink in the quilt too.

WIP Wednesday - Ruby Star Society anniversary quilt

The Ruby Star Anniversary quilt was my second project that I was doing monthly during 2025. I focused on this project over the last few days and especially trimming the flying geese units for block 5. I found the trimming tedious but got there in the end.

I have a design wall in my small sewing space which was not quite big enough to organise the blocks for the project. With a few pins used on each end, I was able to display most of the blocks and whilst stitching up the sawtooth stars, I started to piece the rows together starting top down and left to right.

As well as my design wall, my home-made alphabet pins came into their own and I labelled the rows with a pin in the first block of each row. I love all of the designs in the anniversary panel. Look at this little turnip or is it a radish? 

Monday make - woven stars

 

I started this project in January 2025 as a block of the month by myself. I used foundation papers from Fat Quarter Shop and a fat quarter stack of first light by Ruby Star Society. I planned to make four blocks a month and take it slowly! However, these 6 inch blocks are very addictive and I have now finished the 40 blocks needed for a quilt for the Quilts for Care Leavers charity. 

I used a number of different off white background fabrics from Ruby Star Society for this quilt and my process was simple. I cut strips of fabric for the stars and kept them in a plastic bag and then cut squares for the corners and triangles. I stitched four blocks at a time and cut more strips for the star points as needed.

I used a digital pantograph called Malachite by Urban Elementz combined with a king tut in Grey and Black. The Quilting is quite bold, but I like it.

My usual quilt assistant is away for two weeks visiting family in the UK. So, I have had to improvise for these photographs. The quilt is about 40" x 70" and I used squares of leftover fabric from the fat quarter stack to put the blocks on point. Thus, making it bigger quicker.

I found a perfect black and white spotted fabric for the binding in my stash. This was originally purchased in France a couple of years ago. The backing is a neutral also from my stash. I keep my backing separate to my working stash so it is quick to find something that will fit the brief. This will now be packed away ready to handover to my friend Gill in July as she does a lot of work with this charity.

Friday finish - Guild UFO challenge

 

I was inspired by the border fabric to only make two blocks and make them into a butterfly to match the butterfly border. I then added jumbo ric rac to make the body of the butterfly and embroidered the antennae.

I even remembered to add a tag to the reverse of the quilt in the binding. I was glad to have an easy make for our guild UFO challenge for May but now I need to work on pumpkins and potions as I have a lot of work to do on that UFO. 

April 2025 achievements

April was a busy month with a two-day trip to London, a trip to Nantes for Pour l'Amour du Fil and the Modern Quilt Club retreat at the end of the month. I have no planned trips for May so hope to finish a few projects.

Twice as nice pouch by Aneela Hoey with strawberries.

Easy duffle bag by Sweet Cinnamon Rose with more strawberries!

Spring Quaker by Primrose Cottage. I really need to finish some of these pieces to put on display.

Another mini quilt for SCBU was my Guild UFO challenge for April.   

May 2025 plans

I have no planned trips in May, and my husband is also away for two weeks visiting the children and his family. I have big plans for stitching this month and finishing projects.

Woven stars - I need 40 blocks and have made 38 so far. At the retreat fabric was being offered by Hantex for quilt backings for charity quilts so I now have a peachy backing ready to go.

I haven't progressed much further with the Ruby Star anniversary quilt but only have block five to cut out and complete. I will put it all on my design wall once the woven stars are complete and I can start piecing the blocks together as leader and enders whilst piecing block five.

I was awaiting the announcement of the Guild UFO challenge with some trepidation as none of the larger projects have yet been selected. I had already decided to recommence work on the Kimberbell Pumpkins and Potions ladder quilt in May as that's probably the largest of the projects I've selected for the UFO challenge.

Fortunately, this month's project is another small project which will become another SCBU mini quilt.

I have a small start of one house for the Winter Tiny Town by Heart in Hand but I would hope to finish it this month too.

Retreat make - easy duffle bag

 

More strawberries! I made and quilted the outside panels before leaving for retreat. All I needed to complete my bag was a zipper. I purchased a metre of zipper tape and two zipper pulls from Modern Quilt Club for £2.40 - a bargain. I also purchased pink D rings from Laura of Sweet Cinnamon Roses and will decide at a future date whether to add a long strap.

Jane of Cheshire Designs was selling some of her products and pouches and I thought this cute pom pom decoration was perfect.

I did make the mistake of cutting 3" squares in each corner, which was the size for the smaller version. Never mind, the shape is slightly different but equally as spacious. I did stop another lady from making the same mistake as me.