Lawson and Lotti

Still Sewing - Not Packing

2012-02-27T10:00:00.000Z

Only because I had a few essential bits to do!

I had to finish Sofias baby quilt, she was born last Monday, I cant wait to meet her and give her a cuddle. Hopefully she enjoys her quilt.

Its backed in a lovely flannelette and is soooo soft. I did a self binding too. When I start up Tutorial Tuesdays again then I will be doing one for this type of binding. It was so quick and easy, I had the whole thing bound in about 30 mins!

And the sun shined today, it felt like spring, it was wonderful

I also had to change one of my bee blocks. I originally made this block for the 4x5 bee with a white background because I was too hasty and didn't check colours properly! Re-made with Kona Ash and it looks much better

Starting my mini

2012-02-26T18:35:00.002Z

Have you been enjoying all the eye candy thats been popping up in relation to Jennifers Modern Mini Challenge? I know that I have, wow some people are so talented and creative, It just makes me wish that I had time to create everything that pops into my head.

I have however found a tiny amount of time to start on a mini for me, for Jennifers challenge. I really wanted to join in on this but then I thought for a while that moving continents might get in the way of that. However I have now started and hopefully I will finish (I keep putting off the packing though, I guess I should do that and then sew!)

Recently I have been loving art with a washed out, muted palette, and im finding that im really influenced by illustration. I have been pinning alot recently, these are just a few that I love

Source: ffffound.com via LawsonandLotti on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via LawsonandLotti on Pinterest

Source: google.co.uk via LawsonandLotti on Pinterest

And its these that have influenced my mini.

Its got a long way to go and im not even sure that its going to turn out as I imagine it, but its definitely going to remind me of home if nothing else!

P.S Im not doing to well on this not sewing or blogging in exchange for packing! I have however booked tickets, we fly out next Sunday!

Sundays Sewing Space - Very Kerry Berry

2012-02-26T06:00:00.000Z

This week I have a lovely colourful treat in store for you, the workspace of Kerry from Very Kerry Berry. Im sure most of you are familiar with Kerry's fabulous work, she puts colours and fabrics together brilliantly. It was seeing some of her amazing work that got me interested in Paper Piecing, Kerry does a lot of foundation piecing and has some great tutorials and links on her blog.

And not only is her work vibrant and colourful but so is her workspace, lets go have a poke about

Where is your Sewing Space?

I am in the backroom. It would’ve once been the dining room but now is multipurpose as a music room, office and sewing space. We live in a small house so this room is jam packed with a piano, desk, computer, phone, radio, printer, cutting table, storage, books and work stuff!

What 3 words do you feel best describes it?

Light, messy, busy

What are your most important things in there?

It gets a lot of sunlight that makes it warm and bright, great for sewing. My most important thing is a floor standing daylight angle poise so I can sew easily when it gets dark! I do love my sewing machine, won in a competition at the The Sewing Directory.

How is the room laid out?

I have my sewing/ironing/cutting all close together in a U shape. The ironing board is a portable cheapo Ikea purchase that sits on top of an old wooden trolley on casters so it can be moved around. I use a travel iron rather than a full size as I find them too heavy. I also store threads, scrap boxes and stamps in the trolley. My sewing machine is on a vintage Singer sewing machine cabinet that also has built in drawers and secret cupboards. The cutting table is 1960s Formica kitchen table with folding flaps. Occasionally I can even see the crosshatch pattern on the Formica, but most of the time it is covered with ‘works in progress’.

Do you have anything in the room for inspiration?

I have a lot of sewing swap gifts, pouches and pincushions from sewing friends and I like to have those around me. I use the pouches to store different supplies and I like to be able to see them too so I have stuff arranged all around the room. I keep all my sewing books in here as well vintage paper ephemera, old cookbooks, magazines etc and boxes of vintage aprons, tea towels and sewing notions.

Where do you keep your fabric stash and how do you organise it?

I tend to have small amounts, half a yard or less and I keep it in a multitude of boxes and drawers and sewing boxes. All my vintage fabric is kept with other vintage and the scraps are sorted into themed zip loc bags. My modern stash is kept in themed drawers- cute/text/patterns/Suzkuko/Kumiko /solids/linen etc. I do seem to spend a lot of time getting bits out and putting bits away but I do know where everything goes and generally where to find it. I cringe when I see the pretty pictures of sewing rooms with fabric neatly stacked on open shelves. It looks so lovely but all I can think of is how it will fade and weaken.

Do you have any top tips to do with work spaces?

Good lighting and a comfortable chair with adjustable height. Near the kitchen for tea and a digital radio is essential for me.

What would your ideal workspace look like?

I am always attracted to the aesthetic of a white, airy space with a white wooden desk, a lone vintage sewing machine and the odd stack of carefully selected fabric but in reality it would take me 5 minutes to cover the place in paper, pencils, fabrics, quick unpicks and scissors. I thrive in a busy, messy environment with stuff everywhere.

Wow I think I could spend ages in there rummaging around and trying to steal all of that fabric, what an amazing stash! That quilt on the sewing machine is lovely and I definitely need to increase my pouch storage after seeing yours! Thank you so much for showing us around

No Tutorial Tuesday Day

2012-02-21T23:08:00.001Z

None today as packing and sorting is going ahead in a major way here. I will leave you with this fab link for a great folded fabric basket tutorial over at Mon Petit Lyons. Great project, I think I will need loads of these to try to be organised once I have moved, now I just need to get my hands on some fabulous Heather Ross fabric!

On the move

2012-02-20T19:43:00.001Z

Posting is likely to be very few and far between for the next few weeks. Things are go go go with our move, visas are sorted, passports in date and packing has begun. We are officially getting ready to move from England to Australia and are hoping to be off there next week.

We plan on going for a year to test out whether its right for us or not, its a big move but nothings permanent and if its not for us then we will be happy living here, so off to test the waters we go.

Things are so manic here at the moment though, I think that getting the chance to sew, let alone blog is going to be practically impossible. So dont delete me, I will be back from pastures new (hopefully with better photographs due to better light!)

I have some really interesting projects coming up. As soon as I get to Oz, the fabric will be out and I will be sewing up a storm hopefully, it just depends on how much fabric I can ~~stuff~~ ~~hide~~ fit in my suitcase once I have packed clothes, toys, books, husbands work tools!!! I dont think fabric rates highly on the rest of the families priorities for packing.

Luckily my MIL has a studio with everything I need, I will just have to wait patiently for our boxes to arrive sometime after Easter with my lovely fabric (oh how I will miss you in the meantime!)

So I will leave you with some eye candy, my newest purchase which is one of the few bundles that will definitely be coming with me. Just look at this text fabric I got from here on Etsy

Oh and im thinking ahead to the flight, does anyone know the rules on taking sewing stuff, needles, small scissors etc? I have always assumed its not allowed but I have seen people writing about stitching while on their flights so anyone know what is allowed and whats not?

I will be back for Sundays sewing space but Tutorial Tuesdays are on hold for the next couple of weeks. See you Sunday

Sundays Sewing Space - Lily's Quilts

2012-02-19T08:06:00.000Z

Well what a treat I have in store for you today, Lynne of Lily's quilts is going to show us around her space. Im sure all of you know of Lynne and her amazing work and for those of you that dont then let me tell you a little about her.
Lynne is an fantastic quilter, part of the Fat Quarterly team, wife and mother and to top it all off, a Beyonce look a like!

Thanks Lynne for letting us nose round, let the fun begin

Where is your Sewing Space?

I have taken over the dining room in our house because it is between the kitchen and the sitting room so I'm right in the middle of family life when I'm sewing. I can even see the tv from where I sit! We bought our house four years ago from a guy who was very dramatic in his decorating so the dining room is decorated in black red and gold with a huge octagonal table in the middle and high backed red leather chairs all round. We've had 18 round that table at Xmas - it's a huge space to work on and great for basting quilts.

What 3 words do you feel best describes it?

James Bond Casino

What are your most important things in there?

I have a little shoe box next to the machine with everything I need constantly in it - pins, needles, seam rippers, scissors, tweezers for tweaking out recalcitrant threads and facial hairs, thread and also usually some cookies in case of emergencies.

How is the room laid out?

The colossal octagonal table takes up the whole room and I sew at that. There is room for other machines at it too so sometimes my sewing buddies bring their machines and we all sit round it sewing and talking. Who am I kidding, we just talk. Then behind me there is a kind of little dresser thing and on top of that I have a Primark beach towel which I iron on and then a cutting mat there too. All around the walls are stacked boxes of fabric, thread, batting and WIPs.

What sort of sewing machine do you have and how do you feel about it?

My husband was strong armed into buying a Janome 7700 Horizon for my birthday two years ago. There was a deal on at the time, £500 off so I pounced. He was in Singapore on business when the decision needed to be made and the line kept going fuzzy when I told him HOW MUCH so he was blissfully ignorant really. I cannot say enough good things about my machine, I love every thing about it, the stadium lighting, the thread cutter, the button you press so the needle always finishes down or up, the many feet, the huge quilting throat, blanket stitch, which is my all time favourite stitch and the fact that it FMQs like a dream.

Do you have anything in the room for inspiration?

No! nothing at all. My husband and I are still in denial about this being my sewing room - we're still half kidding ourselves that we will one day "dine" in there again so I have not gone the whole hog and converted it into my den. I have mini quilts hanging up in the kitchen though, to brighten my day.

Where do you keep your fabric stash and how do you organise it?

My stash is kept in various IKEA plastic tubs. Ten small tubs for colour sorted scraps. Ten larger drawers for FQs and half metres, again sorted by colour. Then a separate big box for solids and a teetering pile of yardage for quilt backings. I don't normally buy yardage except for quilting backings so I only have four or five fabrics in this pile.

Do you have any top tips to do with work spaces?

Only that, if you press on an old towel, it seems to me to do a way better job than pressing on an ironing board. Also, that if you buy some IKEA tubs to sort your stash, you will use your stash way more than if it's all messed up in random piles here and there - I use my stash way more now than I ever did before sorting.

What would your ideal workspace look like?

It would be painted in a light colour and there would be lots of storage on the walls for threads and rulers. There would be more light - my sewing room is quite dark although I have a lovely view from the window. And there would be minions doing the boring bits for me - so I could just do the fun bits of every project.

Wow what an amazing space, loving the James Bond casino and im seriously jealous of that sewing machine. Thank you Lynne for showing us around, your answers made me laugh out loud, which often happens when I read your blog or tweets, so cheers for taking part and giving us a giggle

Bee Blocks

2012-02-17T20:00:00.000Z

Wow did I get loads done today, as well as Sofias' baby quilt and finishing my SOL Zipper block, I got my bee blocks done for the 4x5 bee

Well now unfortunately I did one wrong and need to do again (wrong background on this one, it should have been grey)

While the boys are tucked up in bed then I am hoping to go and work on the design for my Sew Out Loud 12th block. Its a competition and the prizes are amazing! Have you seen the pattern and the ones appearing in flickr? They are amazing. I need to design my block for this months Piece Bee With You too, the theme is under the ocean - Im thinking of doing a lobster but we will sea (haha sorry!)

Oh and I really need to get started on my mini for Jennifers modern mini challenge too. So much to do, I really better go get on!

Sew Out Loud QAL - Zipper

2012-02-17T15:53:00.003Z

I changed my mind, instead of bee blocks I finished up my SOL block and im so pleased with it.

Are you joining in the Sew Out Loud QAL? Even if your not then you should check it out, there is some serious talent joining in on this one and some amazing people designing the blocks.

Block 1 kicked off this week with the wonderful Julianna designing this amazing zipper block

Now as I love text fabric and I love paper piecing then I knew this was a QAL I definitely wanted to join in with.
I have been rooting through my stash since this QAL was announced (I had to make a few extra purchases of course!) dividing up fabrics and trying to decide what fabrics/colours etc. I have a few text fabrics but the styles of them all vary so much and some are cotton or cotton linen mix in differing percentages, I felt I didnt have enough that really went together. So I have decided to make some of my own.

As soon as I saw this block I knew what fabric I would design for it and what colours I would go with - Pink and Green!

And I made zip related text fabric. Im really pleased with how it turned out. I did make mine slightly differently to Julianna, I left the green fabric (cosmo cricket, tailor made) whole instead of paper piecing these in strips, I sewed curved seams instead. I also did this with my zip text fabric.

Im not sure whether I will do all blocks in this colour scheme, I think I will see what speaks to me for each block, if they all go together then thats cool, I will do a quilt, If not then the blocks will pop up in all sorts of other projects. I am going to aim to use my own fabric in each block though. I cant wait to see next weeks block now, I wonder what Kirie will do?

Sofias' baby quilt

2012-02-17T12:30:00.000Z

I whipped up half of this baby quilt the other day, and as Buddy is having his lunchtime nap at the moment I thought I would quickly finish up the top.

A very easy, simple one made of 5" squares, but oh so pretty for a new baby girl.

My friend is having her second baby any day now and they know its a girl and they are calling her Sofia, so a pretty baby quilt for a baby girl with a very pretty name.

The sky is grey here, but this does prove that the sun is actually out

Now while Buddy is still asleep maybe I can get my 4x5 bee blocks done! off to sew, bye

Wow thats Amazing mummy

2012-02-16T08:40:00.001Z

That is what Lawson my ~~sometimes~~ adorable 3 year old said to me as I took this off the sewing machine yesterday morning

He then saw the back and said 'wow love hearts, I have love hearts in my tummy' to which I told him that it was in his chest and pointed it out to him, he then put his hand to his neck and said 'im holding my love heart mummy'. Somedays I cant believe how much I utterly adore my boys ~~somedays I want to kill them~~ yesterday they were both adorable and cute and funny, and they let me sew.

There were 2 birthdays at crafty campers last night so I was frantically trying to finish off pressies in time. I made this wall hanging from some cotton doillies that I bought from a charity shop and I dyed them with various cold water dyes, leaving them in for different lengths of time to get varying shades.

I did an invisible binding which I think looks good on wall hangings, stops them from looking so much like a quilt. I was originally going to make this a table runner and just stitch the doillies together and not bother backing them. I then realised that table runners need quite regular washing and I dont know how colour fast my dyes will be so I thought a wall hanging would be better as it never needs to be washed hopefully!

As well as recycling the doillies I also used an old merino wool blanket instead of wadding. I often do this, whenever I find old pure wool blankets in charity shops I snap them up to use inside quilts. Lovely and snuggly and much cheaper than buying wadding (although maybe thicker than I liked for a wall hanging)

My second present was this shopper bag, I killed 2 birds with one stone as it was a WIP that I have had sat in a box for ages, I jazzed it up with a pinwheel patch pocket and fully lined it in some lovely soft deep red fabric.

( I apologise for the truely terrible photos, it was dark by the time I had finished and as they had to be given straight away I had no time to wait for light!)

I think that both pressies were well received. Now I need to get on with my bee blocks and work on some projects that are actually for me!

Tutorial Tuesday No. 7

2012-02-14T05:00:00.000Z

Another week gone past, this year seems to be flying. This week for my tutorial I gave you

Scrappy Improv Cross Block

Now what about you, have you written a tut, or used one and posted about it? It must be fabric related! If so link em up

Scrappy Cross Block Tutorial

2012-02-13T21:14:00.000Z

I have a nice simple but effective one for you today, scrappy and a bit improv. By the end you should get something like this

Ok so for this you will need:

Background fabric, cut to the size you want your block to be (mine is 12.5")

Variety of scraps in colours of your choice, width depends on the size you want your cross to be, mine were approx 3" wide

Firstly sew you scraps together in any order that you want (sew with a 1/4" seam throughout), you want to end up with 2 scrappy strips, each measuring a few inches longer than your desired block size (mine measured about 16")

Press seams and trim sides

Chose the angle that you want to cut through your background block, cut using a ruler and rotary cutter

Sew one of your scrappy strips to one of the cut edges of your block, press, then trim away any overhang (this makes it easier to line up the other part of the background block)

Line up the other piece of the background, sew and press

Decide where you want the next scrappy strip to go and cut.

Sew your scrappy strip onto one side, press and trim

Because you want to ensure that the strip you have just cut through lines up on both sides of your new strip, your block will not line up on the outer edges, this is fine, we have allowed plenty of extra so we can trim down to size at the end. Line up strip and sew the other background piece on. Press and trim

and voila

Nice and simple but looks great.

This block can be done with so many variations, you can keep adding strips and build it up further

Or how cool would it be to do a giant version of this as a quilt instead of individual quilt blocks

I have started a flickr group so if you do ever use one of my tuts then please post photos, I would love to see

Its happened so fast!

2012-02-13T17:41:00.001Z

Good morning, hope you are well on this lovely Monday morning. I opened up my laptop this morning and was amazed to see that I have exceeded 200 followers. Hello to all my new friends and lots os love to all of my older friends, I love sharing this sewing corner with you all.

At the end of last year I had just over 50 followers and in about 6 weeks things have really grown around here. I love my followers, your comments always bring a smile to my face, its lovely to know that I have people to share my makes and my projects with (rather than just my husband who very sweetly pretends to be interested but just doesnt get my need to make, and definitely doesnt understand why I NEED to by more fabric!)

Anyway so what Im trying to say is Thank you, for being here and listening and encouraging and bringing smiles to my face. So for all of my lovely followers I think I better organise a giveaway to show my appreciation. I will have a think and get back soon with it.

I better show you some of what I have been up to

Practice block for the 4x5 bee. A tutorial for a similar block will be up later today. Love the scrappyness and simplicity of this one

Scrappy strips ready to become blocks for the 4x5, havent my hive chosen wonderful colour combinations

5" squares in strips for the start of a really simple baby quilt, I had this lovely flannelette that I picked up in Australia and thought it would be lovely for a quilt for a baby girl so I choose all my fabrics around this backing

Bunting for a baby girl, this is a late baby gift as she is now about 4 months but oh well, better late than never.

I used a zig zag stitch and a variegated thread, I quite like how it turned out, more interesting than my normal straight stitch

And a solid rainbow log cabin baby quilt, started a long time ago and finally finished and given. I love this one and its got soft snuggly train flannelette on the back. Another late baby gift as this little munchkin is now 6 months

Can you guess that Im trying to finish off lots of WIP's before we head off to Oz, more will be appearing soon!

Head back later for the scrappy cross block tutorial and dont forget tomorrow is Tutorial Tuesday so hopefully some of you have something to link up.

Sundays Sewing Space: Ellison Lane Quilts

2012-02-12T05:00:00.000Z

Time for another snoop, this time we are nosing around the lovely Jennifer of Ellison Lane Quilts work space. This is a wonderfully colourful space, lots of eye candy coming up!

Thanks so much Jennifer for letting us peak in

Where is your Sewing Space?

I sew in what is technically my formal dining room, which is just off the kitchen and flows into the living room/ playroom.

What 3 words do you feel best describes it?

Location, location, location :) It's the only free space in our house- we use every inch of our house!

What are your most important things in there?

My new sewing machine- without that nothing would get done! Also, my iron and my fabric. The dollhouse is just an extra bonus. The kids like to be in there with me all the time so my sewing table is usually cluttered with princess barbies, trains, baby dolls and crayons.

How is the room laid out?

I sew on the dining room table facing the playroom. I only iron when the kids are not around because my children are so young and my little boy pulls on everything. When they are napping or at night, I use a small portable table-top ironing board which sits on top of a rolling cart near my table. My design wall is to the right of me, and it is just batting pinned to the wall. At some point I would really like to have design wall boards but at this point, this is working.

Do you have anything in the room for inspiration?

I am working on that! I have two minis on the wall and have another one in the works. I would like to have a bulletin board of pictures that inspire me- one of these days I will get to it!

Where do you keep your fabric stash and how do you organise it?

I keep my fabric in a big rolling drawer cart. I am pretty sure it should be hidden from the light but I am not sure where else to put it. I have it sorted by color and if it is big enough to fold then it goes in the drawer. If it is about 10" or smaller, it goes in the color-coordinated scrap tubs. Really small scraps go into a central bin. The bookshelf is a catch - all for notions, scrap bins and patterns.

Do you have any top tips to do with work spaces?

Gosh I wish! I need someone to come redo my space in a proper work zone. Seriously though, I am grateful to have the space to sew and a husband that doesn't mind and encouraged me to turn our formal dining room into my sewing room. I love the light my sewing room gets.

What would your ideal workspace look like?

I would love to have one that had a table in the corner for quilting big quilts.

A big design wall and enough storage for everything. I am really a tidy, organized person by nature so lots of storage space would be great. A comfy chair, a computer, and iPod speakers would be great too!

Jennifer all those projects around your space look amazing, and your fabric stash certainly looks like one I would love to have a rummage through. Thanks again for sharing, its been lovely

Tutorial Tuesday No. 6

2012-02-07T05:00:00.000Z

This weeks tutorial I posted was for Quilting as you Go. I used this on my first mini quilt but as long as you think about the order in which you sew on the blocks then it should work for all size projects.

I have started up a flickr group for anyone that makes anything from one of my tuts, so if you do then add some pics, i'd love to see them. Its a great place for you to give me some suggestions for future tutorials too.

So how about you, have you written or used a fabric related tutorial this week? If so then link em up. If you need a reminder of the rules then click here

Quilt as you Go Tutorial

2012-02-06T20:43:00.002Z

I made my first ever mini quilt the other day for the Flickr swap For The Love Of Solids. I had the design sketched out for ages and finally got round to actually making it. I think I may become addicted to making minis. Practically all done in 1 day!

I decided that I wanted to quilt each of the different sections in different ways and I wanted dense quilting in the central solid panel. I also realised that if I quilted this in the normal way then I would have about a thousand ends to bury and im far too lazy for that!

So I decided quilt as you go was the way forward and this is how I did it (and its really easy)

I started with my central solid block, layered it up with wadding and a backing and quilted (this picture shows 3 blocks, each sewn to the other in the same manner that I am about to explain)

In order to add another block I laid my next block pieced top right sides together. Line up the pieced edges and pin in place.

Next flip your work over and lay your backing fabric right sides together (I cut my backing quite large so I laid it up against the edge as I was less worried about wastage)

Turn back over and machine in place with a 1/4" seam allowance on your block (leave your wadding a little larger, I left mine an extra 1/4")

Take your wadding for this block and butt it up against the quilt block. Change your stitch type to zig zag and set it nice and wide. Stitch together making sure that the wadding is butted up to the block but not overlapping

Fold your pieced top out over the wadding and press.

Do the same for the backing.

Baste in place if desired and then quilt as you please.

Repeat for any more blocks you wish to add.

Have you done any QAYGing? what method did you use?

If you use this or any of my other tutorials then I would love to know and see some pics. I have just set up a flickr group for anyone that does, click here to check it out (hopefully I wont be alone there forever!)
And dont forget to come back tomorrow to link up to Tutorial Tuesday
Linking up today with Sew Modern Monday

Sundays Sewing Space: Where The Orchids Grow

2012-02-05T05:00:00.000Z

Im so enjoying checking out everyones Sewing Spaces, its giving me some great ideas and inspiration for when I move and hopefully get my own room!

This week we have Leila from Where The Orchids Grow and her newly decorated space. Thank you so much for sharing Leila.

WARNING - This space will make you drool!

Where is your Sewing Space?

I am lucky to have a large spare bedroom downstairs next to the kitchen. It is actually the master bedroom in the house but since my boy is still little I prefer smaller sleeping quarters upstairs with him. The room was never finished, unloved and used mainly for storage.

I moved my sewing things in the room but never got round to making this a proper sewing space until recently.

What 3 words do you feel best describes it?

I only have one word - Mine

What are your most important things in there?

My sewing machine, fabric and music.

How is the room laid out?

I have a table in front of the window where I sit and sew. Next to it is a small cupboard that holds all sorts of bits and bobs. My fabrics are housed in an old bookcase that I repainted. Then there’s the ironing board and cutting table. I would like a storage unit under the cutting table to hold my fabric scraps and a shelf for more storage.

There is one big empty wall space that one day this will be my design wall. There will also be an old wooden ladder that I am going to use as a quilt display.

Do you have anything in the room for inspiration?

Yes, I always have some treasured pieces up on the walls that were given to me in bees and swaps. I keep my books in here and most importantly music. I always listen to music when I create. I am rather autistic in my music choice, meaning I’ll play three or four CD’s over and over and over again for three to four months. I sing along as well (my poor neighbours!). I’m in my Laura Marling season now ;-)

Where do you keep your fabric stash and how do you organise it?

I have a modest sized stash consisting of mostly small cuts. I keep them in an old bookcase, it looks tidy now because I had to take a photo, normally this looks a lot messier! I pull everything off the shelves every other month or so to refold and reorganize. It never stays tidy for long.

Do you have any top tips to do with work spaces?

Get one! Claim a room in the house, take the garage, the shed or even rent a space. The only requirement is a door that closes. It is wonderful to be able to shut that door and be in your own creative space. And then shut that door again when you are done, leaving your unfinished projects on the table ready for the next time you will open that door again.

It does not have to be the large, light and airy dream space that is just picture perfect on Pinterest and will be the envy of all your sewing friends. As long as it is yours and has a door you’re good to go!

What would your ideal workspace look like?

My own room - perhaps with some improvements - is the ideal workspace for me. It may not be as beautiful and tidy as some of the other spaces I have seen but I don’t work well in beautiful and tidy. Whenever there is room for improvement (no pun intended) I feel more need to create. Creating for me equals mess, it is how I work. I can’t stop to refold the fabrics that got pushed aside once I finally dig up the one I really needed. Cleaning up can always wait!

Didnt I tell you that you would drool! Such a gorgeous space with such pretty things in it. Those mini hanging lines with pegs are such a good idea and those hoops are adorable. A blackboard door is a fabulous idea too, maybe it would keep my boys entertained so I could sew!

Thanks again Leila for showing us around, its been so much fun

Challenging QAL's

2012-02-01T22:27:00.000Z

Have you heard about the Sew Out Loud QAL?

I think this is one that I may have to take part in. It contains so many things I love - text fabric, some amazing people designing blocks and a competition, whats not to love!
And what about Jennifers Modern Mini Challenge, another great one to join up and enter

I have a couple of mini quilts that im now starting and a mug rug (Ive never made a mini or a mug rug before) so this is perfect timing. There is going to be some fab inspiration and prizes so Im definitely joining in
Looks like my To Do list may be getting longer!

To Do First Feb

2012-02-01T00:50:00.001Z

Ok this year I want to do lots of things, 1 being loose weight, get fit and look hot, but 2 is to be more organised. So this is the start of it, a monthly To Do List for the month ahead, Im going to use Lee's WIP Wednesday to keep a weekly check up and Lynnes Fresh Sewing day to see if I achieved and then my To Do First to set out the month ahead.

Want to join me? Im making it into a linky party for anyone else that wants to use 2012 to be organised!

If so then read the rules here and grab the button from the side.

So To Do in Feb:

Bee Blocks:

Sew Bee Joyful - Not yet been given any info on this months block but hopefully I can do it at the start of the month - due by end of month

Piece Bee With You - This months theme is Under the Sea, its going to be bright and fun, looking forward to this one - due by end of month

Swaps: I signed up for a couple of swaps and need to get these done asap

Mouthy Stitches - Zipper Pouch Swap, this swap is so much fun and is great because its designed to be really chatty which I love. I have started this pouch and have used my Katherine Wheel Block and some fussy cutting for this one - due 25th Feb

For The Love of Solids - Round 2 is underway. I have picked my fabrics and drawn up my design but need to get sewing. I might make this into a mug rug to use as my something small to send with my main item - due 1st March

Tutorials:
Need to write a tutorial a week for Tutorial Tuesday Linky party - due every Tuesday

Quilts:
Wedding Quilt for each sister - I want to at least have the tops done by the end of the month.

So thats ok, not too daunting, I think I can achieve it. So now its your turn, what are your To Do's and deadlines for the month?

2012 So Far

2012-02-01T00:50:00.000Z

January is over already! Where did it go? I got a lot done and I decided to be organised.

For anyone that wants to join me in being organised I have set up a monthly To Do linky party so after you have posted about what you achieved last month at Lily's Quilts, you can write what you need to get done in the month ahead. Want to join in? Write your To Do List for Feb and link it up here

And as for what I achieved in January, I think I did quite well

Nothing for me, all swaps, bee blocks and pressies but a fun and productive month. I set out to achieve the following in Jan:

Fashion Competition Dress - This was for Sew Hips Fashion Designer competition (my sketch was featured in the magazine) and was done and posted in plenty of time, fingers crossed I hear soon whether I got through to the next round

Bee Blocks:

3x6 Bee - I did a checkerboard block and posted a tutorial on how to foundation piece one of any size

Sew Bee Joyful - This month the theme was owls and I went for an origami inspired snowy owl

Piece Bee With You - The theme for this month was Mid-Century Design so I used some real life inspiration and went with my own sewing caddy

20 Superhero Costumes - Lawson turned 3 and had a superhero party for which I made 20 superhero outfits and 3 villain outfits. So much fun, definitely worth it

Alice in Wonderland quilt for Emily - This has been put on hold as sadly Emily is no longer with us. I will make this in the future for Emilys husband when things are not quite as raw

Write a tutorial each week for my new linky party Tutorial Tuesday. I've done pretty well with this, A Christmas Stocking tutorial, a quilted pouch tutorial and I have designed my own quilt block called the Katherine Wheel and written a tutorial for this too. I even set up my own flickr group, so if you use one of my tuts then id love you to add your pics here

Wish List:

Start at least 1 of the 2 quilts I need to make for my sisters belated wedding pressies (anyone else see a theme here!) - I didn't manage to do this

Extras

I did make the Horny Whale Cushion for the Crafty Campers Christmas pressie swap (have a close look at the pic to see why he has been given this name)

Head over to Lilys Quilts and see how everyone else got on in Jan

Liebster Award

2012-01-31T22:39:00.000Z

Have you heard of the Liebster Award? Well I got one, how exciting is that. Courtney at Mon Petit Lyons awarded me one after she won one herself. Congratulations Courtney and thank you soooo much. Courtney said such lovely things about my blog, it has given me the warm fuzzies all day. She has some great things going on on her blog at the moment, a really good one to check out.

If you dont know what the Liebster Award is then here is a bit more about it:

Liebster is German for favourite or beloved and it is an award that is designed to share some love around this here blogland.

There are a few rules that come along with this award, basically you must pass the love around. So if you receive one, here is what you have to do

*choose five up and coming blogs with less than 200 followers

*mention them on your blog

*let them know by sending them a message that they have been nominated

So here are the five blogs that I love and that I think deserve an award and really think you should check out if you havent already:

First up we have Chase of 1/4" Mark, Courtney found me through the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway and this is how I found Chase. Her projects are gorgeous, great fabrics thats she puts together beautifully and some really sweet insights into her life

Next up we have Charise of Charise Creates. Her projects are seriously stunning, she does some amazing paper piecing and uses fabric beautifully. Very inspiring

My next award goes to Alli at B. Yazoo. Alli and I are in 2 bees together at the moment and her work is lovely, she always makes cool blocks (check out her chairs for this months Mid century Modern Theme) and she recently made a super cute fox baby quilt that I am in love with.

Have you seen the work of Ethne over at Flaming Stitches? She certainly deserves an award her work is incredible. I was lucky enough to be her secret swap partner in The Brit Bee Pillow Fight and the cushion that I received from her is unbelievable. Seriously talented indeed.

And my final award goes to the lovely Kelly of Zerbert who I have got to know through the bloggersphere and flickr. Her work is great and she is too. I love her blog as you get a real sense of her, there are always some snippets of what is whirling around in her head and I love that you get a sense of her, even though we are oceans apart. How great is it that we make such fab connections through blogging!

I hope you enjoy checking these blogs out and find them as inspiring as I do.

Tutorial Tuesday No.5

2012-01-31T00:29:00.001Z

Wow 5 weeks into this already, time is flying by way too quickly! So my tutorial for this week is my Katherine Wheel Block here. I think its a really versatile block that hopefully can be used in loads of different ways. I made my first one for a zipper pouch and the second one is going to be a mug rug but I thought it would be fun to mock up what it could like like as a quilt

So thats my tutorial for the week, how about you, have you used a tutorial or written one of your own, if so link up

Katherine Wheel Quilt Block Tutorial

2012-01-31T00:27:00.002Z

I have recently created this for my partner in the mouthy stitches swap and I have had so many lovely comments that I thought I would make it my next tutorial. So here are the instructions on making your own Katherine Wheel block.

This block involves piecing and applique.

You will need:
central fabric
1" strips of 6 other fabrics
Backing fabric

Firstly cut out a paper hexagon the size that you want the finished centre to be

Hexagon Outline (clipped to polyvore.com)

Line up your first fabric strip against one edge of your hexagon, making sure you have 1" overhang at your starting end and 1/2" at the other end (we will trim later), now the key to this is to sew 1/4" in from the edge of the hexagon so that you leave this unsewn.

Sew your next strip on, this time sew from edge to edge, fold strip back, press and trim off excess

Repeat until you have 5 stips sewn on

For the 6th strip you need to do things slightly differently as it has to finish under the first strip you attached. Fold back the excess of the first strip and pin to keep it out of the way. Line your 6th strip up along the edge of your hexie and sew. Un-pin your first strip, open it up and lay it flat (as flat as you can as you have sewn a seam over the other end). Sew into place, press to check everything is as it should be, then trim excess.

Trim excess off the outside of the hexie

Repeat the above stages for sewing on strips, making sure to leave extra hanging over the edge for each first strip and not sewing that first 1/4". Continue until your katherine wheel is one set of strips away from the desired size.

For the outer strips keep them much longer than the previous strips. This time when you sew them on, you need to start each one 1/4" in from the edge of the hexie you have created. This will allow you a 1/4" seam allowance along the length of each strip.

Turn the edges of all strips in by 1/4" and press.

You are now ready to sew your Katherine Wheel onto your block. Decide on your block size and Katherine Wheel placement and pin in place. (I forgot to take a picture of it pinned in place so here is a picture of the first Katherine Wheel I made)

Now there are a number of ways that you can do the next stage, you could simply machine stitch it in place, you could turn edge applique it so that no stitches are visible or you could do a quilt as you go method.

I am layering some cotton wadding and a back with mine and will quilt as I sew it in place because I am making mine into a mug rug. I guess how you do yours depends on what yours is going to be.

And here is the first one I made (for the mouthy stitches swap on flickr), just a bit of hand quilting needed

And what about a quick mock up of what a quilt could look like

So there you go, a Katherine Wheel block. If anyone makes one I would love to know, maybe I will start a flickr group for anyone that makes something using one of my tutorials.

Dont forget to come back and link up for Tutorial Tuesday or just check out the tutorials that other people have been writing or using.

Sundays Sewing Space: Im a Ginger Monkey

2012-01-29T05:00:00.000Z

Feeling nosey? Ready for a snoop? This week Katy from Im a Ginger Monkey has kindly agreed to show us around her studio. Katy is currently running the Swoon a long and im loving seeing these blocks pop up everywhere, its such a gorgeous block. Head over here to see some things to make you swoon.

Lets check Katy's space out

Where is your Sewing Space?

I rent a small studio in a media centre about 15 minutes drive from where I live, it's in the basement of an old mill, it's only tiny, and there's no natural light. It's a bit like a cave, I guess, but it's mine and I can lock the door and know I'm not going to get disturbed when I'm there.

What 3 words do you feel best describes it?

quiet, calming, mine. It's nothing fancy, but the fact it's quiet and mine is the most important thing. I love to go there, even if it's just for a half hour a day. It helps me relax and chill out.

What are your most important things in there?

a radio, my design wall and no internet. I don't have any wifi in my studio so I can't get distracted at all. It helps no end.

How is the room laid out?

I have a big desk where I do all my cutting, and sewing. My ironing board is tucked away until I need it. The room itself is T shaped, so I have my desk area in one end of the T and my fabric shelves at the other end. My design wall is along the wall in the middle.

Do you have anything in the room for inspiration?

The room itself is enough of an inspiration, just for the peace and quiet and the fact it's mine! I am slowly making it look more pretty and filling the walls with mini quilts and hoop art.

Where do you keep your fabric stash and how do you organise it?

My fabric is stacked on an ikea shelving unit, although I really need to be more organised as a far amount has crept home and is starting to clutter up the house again (much to husband's annoyance). I organise by collection rather than colour - I find it's easier to find what I'm looking for that way. I tend to remember fabrics better by which collection they were in and when I need something specific I can find it much faster that way.

Do you have any top tips to do with work spaces?

Keep it tidy. It's more inspiring when it's not a complete pig sty of a mess. You can go right at it without having to tidy stuff away before you start. I'm not a naturally tidy person so it's tough to keep that rule, but it is something I stick to - in my studio at least (at home, not so much). Make it homely, make it a place you want to go to. And buy the biggest desk you can fit in there.

What is your ideal workspace like?

Oh, if I could have my dream workspace it would be in a huge loft with masses of open space and natural light. There'd be bare brick everywhere, a huge design wall, a massive tailor's cutting table and haberdashery cabinets. I'd live there too, but the studio would be separated from the main living space by huge sliding doors. We'd have a lift down to the street. And the kids could ride their bikes around the whole loft. Maybe there'd be a skate ramp in one corner, and a recording studio for my husband too. Obviously it'd be in New York, or maybe East London somewhere. To say I've planned my dream space out in amazingly fine detail is an understatement. I actually dream about it. I can picture it exactly in my head...I probably should stop day dreaming about it, because there's no way it's happening unless I win the euromillions....

Wow Katy, what an amazing dream space, who else would imagine having a skate ramp for the kids in your studio!

Thank you Katy for letting us have a rummage around. Im loving those shelves stuffed with fabric, the cool tins and boxes for organising bits and pieces and the coke rug. Cant wait to see what ends up filling those hoops.

Dont forget to head back later in the week for the linky parties Tutorial Tuesday and on the 1st Feb for To Do First, hopefully we can get organised together

Winter Stitching Check in

2012-01-27T23:02:00.001Z

Its time to check in and see how we have all got on with our planned sewing for the winter, we are about half way through now so lets see if i'm halfway through my list!

1) Pouch for the Pretty Little Pouch swap - Done

And I got this, isn't the embroidery wonderful, such a beautiful pouch from Leila (needle and dime)

2) Pincushion for Sewn Spaces Swap - Done

A sausage dog, I designed (I hope to put up a free pattern for this soon)

And I got this cute toadstool from Ella (shimmy blister), aren't those pins adorable!

3) Cushion for Brit Quilt Pillow Fight - Done

And a little something extra, a travel sewing wrap

And I received this amazing one in return from Ethne at Flaming Stitches, it is unbelievably stunning, she is a absolutely amazing FMQer, you have to check out her work, serious talent! The colours and design are so beautiful, these pictures do not do it justice at all

4) 2 Pressies for birthdays at the crafty campers - one done and given, one in the pipeline, due to be given mid Feb

5) Make block for a friends birthday and assemble the quilt made up of blocks from each of the crafty campers - done and given

6) Catch up on Skill builder - Not touched, no progress, seriously behind!

7) Catch up on Farmers Wife blocks - Same as above

8) New Christmas Stockings for the 4 of us - All started, 1 finished, 2 almost finished, 1 needs quite a lot of work and 1 tutorial written

9) Quilt for my sister - no progress

10) Quilt for my other sister - no progress

11) Bee Blocks for Piece Bee With You - Up to date

12) Bee Blocks for Sew Bee Joyful - Need to make this months block before I am late but other than that am up to date

13) Blocks for 3x6 Bee - Done and posted

14) Finish our living room curtains - no progress, am reluctant to finish them as we are moving

15) Finish our 4 roman blinds for the living room - 2 finished, 2 nearly finished

16) Create fabric for the handprinted fabric swap - done, posted and received some lovely things in return

Extra things that were not on the list that I have made since Winter stitching started:

Cushion to go with the collaborative wallhanging I put together

Cushion for crafty campers christmas pressie swap

Cushion for Sew Mama Sew giveaway

Pouch for Sew Mama Sew giveaway

Cushion for my sisters Christmas pressie - No picture taken

3 x earphone pouches for Christmas pressies - No pictures taken

Union jack for my mums Christmas pressie so she can re-upholster a foot stool

Signed up for the Mouthy Stitches Swap - I've started designing for this and loving how fun this swap is

Signed up for round 2 of For the Love of Solids - I've picked out my fabrics and drawn up my design, very excited to make it up, not sure I will want to give it away although they are not normally my colours at all

Made superhero fancy dress for 20 children

Made a quilted zipper pouch and written a tutorial

Entered a fashion design competition and made a dress for my entry

Made 2 charity string blocks and a block for the back of the charity quilt

Made an improv quilt for myself

Sorry for the massive post, cant believe quite how productive I have been, still a lot to do though, especially with my new Tutorial Tuesday linky party and writing a tutorial for it each week, time consuming but fun!

Check back on Tuesdays for Tutorial Tuesday and dont forget that To Do First is starting up on the 1st of Feb, hopefully it will keep us all organised so head back then to link up

Oooh and I started Sundays Sewing Space - a peek into some great bloggers work spaces