Needles, Pins and Baking Tins

To market, to market

2013-05-12T10:41:00.000+01:00

It just occurred to me that less than one week from today I will be in one of the coolest towns in one of the coolest countries in the world. Yep, I'm off to Quilt Market, in Portland, Oregon.

I'm so excited to pop my Market cherry ;-) And to be going on behalf of one of my very favouritest fabric shops, The Village Haberdashery, well... does life get any sweeter?

There's a whole bunch of stuff that I personally want to see while I'm there:

The new Cloud9 designers and lines. Especially Koi, by Rashida Coleman-Hale... I'm loving that plus print, AND its coming in voile. I'm thinking it would make a perfect Washi dress no?

Jeni's new line for Art Gallery Fabrics - I'm loving the colours so far from the glimpses Jeni has shared!

Photo by Jeni Baker on Flickr

Violet Craft's new line, Waterfront Park, for Michael Miller - Madrona road is/was one of my favourite lines last year... I hear there are swallows in this one... swooooon! EDIT: I found pictures.... OMG LOVE!

I actually cannot wait to spend a whole 5 days out from the day job, and completely immersed in fabric land. You know that book, Chicken Soup for the Soul... Fabric is my chicken soup.

So, I will be taking about a million more photographs than is really necessary, and instagramming and tweeting (I'm @laurajane7789 if you don't follow me already!). Let me know if theres something YOU are particularly excited about and I will try to get some pictures, okay? Later gators x

Patchwork pouches please!

2013-04-29T13:21:00.000+01:00

So last week was 2 of my best gals birthdays, Justine and Trudi.

I made them some patchwork pouches, because no sewing person can ever have enough pouches! I just had to share them with you because, well, I can. And I miss sharing stuff with you guys! Its been approximately 5 million years since my last proper blog post, so you know, I forgive you for forgetting what I look like ;-)

Inspired by 2 central pieces of Liberty fabrics that I got from Jo Organic Stitch Company, I pulled prints that matched the colours. I then made 2 simple 10" quilt-as-you-go improv patchwork panels and sewed them up into zippy pouches using a 12" zip and the method that Florence describes so well, here (but without the zipper tab ends).

For Justine, that car print that she loves so much:

A purple zip:

And backed in Melody Miller Vintage Flowers:

For Trudi, a classy carriage print:

A yellow zip, and backed in her absolute fave, Art Gallery fabric:

I love that Art Gallery print too. Its the perfect yellow. It goes with everything. I should get more ;-)

Briar Rose

2013-04-19T13:02:00.000+01:00

Have y'all seen Heather Ross's new line for Windham fabrics?

I'm sure you have by now.... It's so very lovely. Look at the strawberries, crickets and lady bee's!! How adorable! AND its being printed on quilting weight cotton again. Perfect!

Anyway, there's a presale and competition going on at Pink Castle Fabrics. All you have to do to enter the competition is design a quilt using these fabrics and the Threadbias quilt design tool!

It's so much fun. I just did it on my lunch break, and here's what I came up with. I called it Lilly's Pad.

I like it. I think its pretty damn cute actually. If the fabric gods are listening, I would quite like to win the fabric to make it. K Thanks.

P.S. There is a massive 20% sale at Pink Castle Fabrics this weekend, use the code BUNDLE20 for 20% off ALL PRECUTS AND BUNDLES!

Retreat Classes

2013-04-08T13:34:00.000+01:00

Now that the cat is very definitely out of the bag, I can share with you that I am teaching at the Fat Quarterly Retreat this summer!

Retreat was in my top 3 moments of last year, so I'm super excited to be going again. Seriously, if you've never been to a sewing meet-up, hang-out, drink-beer, laugh-a-lot, cry-a-lot type of thing, I really urge you to consider it. The first 10 minutes are totally insane, and then it all settles down and it's like you've known everyone your whole entire life.

I'm teaching 2 classes, firstly an absolute beginner's crochet class. We will be making crochet granny squares, which are uber popular at the moment and such a cute way to use up leftover bits of yarn. Its a perfectly portable project as well, a bit like EPP, so good for the daily commute. In typical blue peter style, here are some that I made earlier:

And here are some others that I think are cute:

Source: loveit.com via Rubyrose on Pinterest

Source: luvinthemommyhood.com via Karen on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Madebyafriend on Pinterest

My second class is a slightly more complex pattern, not massively so because really with crochet, once you've learnt the basics it's downhill all the way! We will learn how to make crochet flower squares, which hook up into a really cute pillow! This is the one I made years ago for my step-moms birthday:

And here are some other versions I found which I think are awesome:

Source: flickr.com via Naomi on Pinterest

Source: craftster.org via Joyce on Pinterest

Source: followpics.net via Janice on Pinterest

I hope to see some friendly faces in my class! It will soon be time to choose your classes if you're planning on attending this years Retreat, and if you have any questions about mine, feel free to email me! If you're interested in who else is teaching, Tacha is running an expose on all of us throughout the week on the Fat Quarterly blog.

I'm EPPing again

2013-04-04T10:03:00.000+01:00

Hellllloooooooo!!!

I hope everyone had a lovely relaxing easter holiday? It was all over a little fast for my liking, but still it was a nice break. I spent most of it sewing my heart out!

There's lots and lots of stuffs going on chez moi, most of which is either unshareable, or so mind numbingly boring that you wouldn't want to know about it anyway! You know what life is like... it takes these little turns every now and again.

But, there are a few things....

Firstly, I'm EPPing again. I decided to cut into my precious precious Henna Garden FQ bundle, and use my low volume charms for the background. I think it's gonna be a bolster pillow... but I might change my mind and go big (like maybe a quilt size...???? Scary stuff!)

They are 1" side hexies and jewels, and some 60 degree diamonds filling the gap. I'm sure you can get pre-cut paper pieces for all those shapes, but I just drew them out on that funny triangle paper. Which again, I'm sure has a proper name but I can't think of it right now.

And secondly, my tickets for quilt market arrived from the lovely Annie this week!! Not long now!

Yes, I'll be representing The Village Haberdashery while I'm there and you can bet I'll be all over instagram and twitter showing the new fabric lines! If there's anything anyone would particularly like to see, give me a shout. I'll remind you again nearer the time of course.

Which leads me nicely to my last point... I appear to be living my life very much through instagram right now. You can find me over there, even when I'm not blogging so much. I'm @laurajane7789 on both twitter and IG.

Seriously, if you're not on IG yet, GET ON IT! It's the most fun. Loves xx

Easter Egg Bunting tutorial - A Sizzix Blog Hop!

2013-03-20T08:49:00.000Z

Welcome to my stop on the Sizzix Easter blog hop! Yey! Bunnies and eggs and lambs and flowers and... easter stuffs!

Here's the line up for the rest of the week...

Monday 18th March - Katy
Tuesday 19th March - Carolyn
Wednesday 20th March - Me!
Thursday 21st March - Hadley
Friday 22nd March - Anna

To make the week even more exciting, you can enter this exclusive competition to get started with your patchwork and quilting adventure... Click here to enter! The closing date is 28th March at 10am GMT. Go go go people!!!

So let's get this show on the road, yes?

I confess, I am somewhat addicted to bunting. I just counted, and I have no less than 5 chains stuck up around my house. Including in the bathroom. It's just so cute! And such a simple way of bringing flashes of colour to an otherwise dreary corner.

And speaking of dreary... how about this gorgeous spring weather hmmm?! I'm praying for some sunshine, soon, before I go stir crazy!

To make this cute easter egg coloured bunting you will need:

Sizzix die 657622 Isosceles & Right 4 1/2" Triangle.
Sizzix die 658328 2 1/2" Strips.
Coloured Fabrics: 15 x 5" x 12"
White Fabric: 5 1/2" x WOF

When choosing your fabrics for the pennants, make sure to go for really cutesy and sweet pastel shades, just like traditional easter eggs. I chose 5 colours; Blue, Green, Purple, Pink and Yellow, and cut 3 flags in each colour.

Step 1. Take each of the coloured rectangles and fold, right sides together to form a rectangle 5" x 6". Layer 3 of these onto the triangle die, and roll through the machine. Repeat to make 15 pairs of flags.

Step 2. Sew down both long sides of each triangle pair, right sides together, using a 1/4" seam allowance.

Step 3. Turn through, poke out the point with a pair of scissors or turning tool, and press.

Step 4. Using the strip die, cut 2 white strips from your WOF piece. Join at the short edge to make one long strip and press in half, right sides together. To make the double fold binding, open out the fold you just created and press each long edge in to meet the centre. Then press the whole strip in half to hide all raw edges.

Step 5. Arrange flags in desired order, then, starting with the flag that will be in the centre, pin inside the double fold binding. Slide the raw edge of the flag 1/4" inside the fold and pin in place. Take the next flag and position so that its left hand edge is 2" from the previous flags right hand edge. Use the marks on your cutting mat to help you. Pin in place. Continue until all flags are pinned.

Step 6. Sew all the way along the length of the bunting, 1/8" from the edge of the fold, removing pins as you go. When you have finished sewing the length, zig zag over the short raw edges of the bunting chain to secure them.

Step 7. Find somewhere in need of a bit of colour, hang and admire! Hoppy Easter everyone!

An unexpected gift

2013-03-17T17:48:00.000Z

So I was at my Grannies house today, talking about sewing as I usually do and she mentioned an old sewing machine that she had, and that my Grandad used to use regularly, collecting dust in the attic. I was kind of expecting a grotty plasticy thing from the 80's, and was prepping my "thank you for the lovely gift face" (you know, the one you usually reserve for weird christmas presents and donated net curtains...) when she brought out this:

My heart was in my mouth when I opened the box.

This is Mabel.

She's a spritely 122 years old, having been manufactured in 1891.

She's a little rough around the edges, but damn.... she's still got it.

An afternoon of frantic googling has led me to the following conclusion. This is a 1891 model of the Singer VS3 or 28K machine. It has whats known as a Vibrating Shuttle, which is this little bobbin casing thing that swings back and forth from a pivot under the plates.

From what is left of the decals, I'm pretty sure it is the Primrose variant of the Painted Roses standard, which I'm lead to believe is quite rare.

So yes. I'm kind of in love. Now to figure out how to thread her.... I may here be some time ;-)

Socks for Emily

2013-03-13T15:00:00.000Z

My second ever pair of socks are now finished and on their way to Emily!

These are the "On Hold Socks" from the Socks from the Toe Up book that everyone (including me) loves.

The light was crappy this morning, and the yarn (Buffy in Nightscape by Juno Fibre Arts) has such depth of colour that I could not capture it fully. Although this next picture comes close...

Can you even begin to count how many different colours are in that little slip-stitched heel? It's beautiful.

I'm loving the toe-up construction method for getting a good fit, although knitting to the size of a foot not attached to your own leg does have its difficulties. I'm hoping they fit. Really really hoping.

The lace pattern was not too complex, and I LOVE the little extra lacy bit up the side of the leg. I think that looks awesome, and I plan to do it again. A cable there would be nice too.... Hmmm, decisions!

I've started my next pair. Simple diagonal lace pattern, in the most beautiful gold colour, for a most beautiful friend. Watch this space, as they say!

Scrap hiccup

2013-03-12T13:00:00.000Z

Without wishing to get bogged down in the details of how hiccups relate to vomit, lets just say, it worked in my head.

This is my Scrap Hiccup mini. I made it for the queen of Scrap Vomit quilts, and one of my best best friends, Katy ginger monkey. Its her birthday see, and I was meant to knit her some socks. But unless she's has teeny tiny mouse feet, they won't be finished in time. I have started them.... but at this rate they may be a Christmas present ;-)

But that's okay. Because it meant I got to play around with 1" squares all afternoon. I used the fusible web grid method to make life easier, but lets be honest...1" squares are never really that easy to piece!! So fiddly to press the seams, and OMG so bulky!

It was super fun though. Especially trying to choose and fussy cut the teeny tiny little pieces (all 121 of them) so they would show in the finished 1/2" blocks. As crazy ideas go, this one definitely went!! There's all sorts in there; a bit of leopard print, snippet of Nancy Drew, couple of chilli peppers, flip flops, deck chairs... even something that looks a little bit too much like a meat-n-two-veg if you know what I mean? ;-)

I'll be gifting this to Katy today, while chatting incessantly about fabric and eating too much cake, because that's what birthdays are all about. I hope she loves it because I loves her.

Finally... a Swoon

2013-03-04T09:00:00.000Z

I've been waiting to show you my finished Swoon for aaaaages now, but finally this weekend I managed to snap some pictures. Cat fluff and paw prints included.

I made this quilt at the beginning of December last year for my parents for Christmas. I think I finished the whole top in about 3 sessions. It helped that I did all the cutting at once, and sorted everything I needed for one block into little ziplock baggies so I could just grab and go! I was trying to chain piece and production line the blocks, but I think I discovered 4 was my limit for one day. After that I got bored and started making mistakes. 2 at a time is the optimum amount I reckon ;-)

I wanted to make it bigger than the 80" x 80" original patterns, so I cut my sashing at 3 1/2" and added corner stones. I also added a skinny 1" border around the whole things to make sure the edge corner stones stood out (that was Audrie's idea. Clever girl), and then a 5" border in my favourite print around the whole thing. Oh yeah, and I mitred the corners on each border. Fancy huh? ;-)

The whole thing finished up around 95" x 95", which I was NOT going to quilt myself (especially with the time constraints) so I sent it to Long Arm Chris to work her magic. Which she of course did and it looks fabulous. I chose a leafy/feathery traditional kind of design to complement the organic-ness of the prints. It just melts into the background which is exactly what I was after.

For some crazy reason I got it in my head I wanted to hand stitch the binding. So I practiced on my (much smaller) Christmas quilt, and got stuck in. 380" is a lot of hand stitching let me tell you!! I thought it would either make me or break me, you know? Luckily, I totally fell in love with the look and process of a hand stitched binding, so unless I'm in a bind (bad bad pun), I wont be machining it again!

So there we go, a finished swoon quilt. I can say hand-on-heart it won't be the last swoon quilt I make. I have one planned for me using my Flea Market Fancy and grey Moda Crossweave. Sigh. So many quilts, so little time.

Quilt Stats
Size: approx 95" x 95"
Fabric: Field Study for blocks, Ruby Dot in Cream/Grey for background

Pieced by: Me

Quilting: Feather leaves by Chris.

Stellar Stars Progress

2013-03-02T17:56:00.000Z

Regrettably, I am not down in Sevenoaks today hanging with the rest of my Brit Bee ladies. It sure looks like they are having a good time though, *le sigh*. You can see their antics on Instagram with the hashtag #britbee.

Anyway, I had a couple of hours today, so I caught up on my Stellar quilt blocks. This is a sew along that Justine Simply Solids is hosting, using a pattern written by yours truely. You've already seen my purple blocks, and today I finished the green:

And the Orange:

Love them!!!

Here's a shot of all my blocks together so far:

I've got my fingers crossed that this time next year, its going to be fabulous darling!

I love looking at how other people are making up the pattern too...

These belong to Helen, Elizabeth, and Trudi!

Cool huh?!

I sewed!

2013-02-16T14:01:00.001Z

Yep, I turned on my sewing machine today for the first time in what seems like forever. It was fun actually. I might be swinging back into my sewing-mad phase, rather than my knitting-mad phase. The fact that I have nearly 4 socks and a cowl to finish knitting is besides the point.

I had to make a birthday pressie for my Stepmom, so I rooted around and found all the HST's that were left from my swoon quilt. "What swoon quilt?" I hear you say... You know, that giant swoon quilt which I made in about a week just before Christmas, gifted and never took any photo's of. Yep, that one. Well I gave it to my parents so I figured a matching pillow would hopefully go down well.

A bit of fiddling around and arranging and I decided on this layout. I'm not really sure what it is, but I like it :o)

I did a teeny tiny stipple in the background to make the prints stand out, et voila! Done and ready to gift this afternoon. Which reminds me, I need to go get ready. Like now. Happy weekend peeps!

Hey peeps!

2013-02-14T15:21:00.001Z

Happy ♥ day! Hope you and yours are having a sufficiently loved-up day :o)

You can catch me over on the Pink Castle Fabrics blog today (well it was actually yesterday but nvm). I'm waxing lyrical about stash taming, and if that doesn't sound like a euphemism, I don't know what does!

Go check it out!

New Couch Cushions

2013-02-07T12:58:00.002Z

Or pillows, or whatever it is that we're calling them these days. I get so confused!

Last night I whipped up these 2 cushion covers in a little over half an hour. They're not quilted or anything, but with this gorgeous canvas weight print (Moda's Odds and Ends), they don't need to be.

I love the scale of this print. I picked up a little of it in the quilting weight cotton last year at Sewing Summit, which is cute and definitely more suited to blocks and quilts etc. But I just LOVE this larger scale which I got this week from Pin it and Stitch.

The texture on the canvas is really lovely too. You can see it, and my poorly poked-out corners, in this picture. That reminds me... must poke out those corners a bit more tonight!

It's perfect for bags, pouches and of course pillows.

This was my first time trying to put invisible zip into anything. I followed the advice on this tutorial and it was pretty simple. I would say though, the whole measuring, marking, and matching the points kinda bamboozled me. It was mostly my fault, for using a different sized zipper and pillow form but if you have any experience with zippers at all, I would just ignore all the measuring stuff and simply centre the zipper in the middle of your fabric. When you come to sew the second side of the zipper, just match up the edges of your pillow front and back. Seems somewhat easier to me!

I will also say, I gained new respect for my zipper foot with this project. I've always thought they were a bit useless, and more of a hindrance than a help. Especially with the one for my Janome (less so on my old machine, a Brother). But when I came to sew the invisible zip I noticed a tiny little ledge on each side of the foot, which slotted perfectly over the zipper teeth and enabled me to get a perfect seam. Winner!

I will definitely be making these kind of cushion covers again... with just a yard of fabric, 2 zippers, and half an hour I made something which makes me incredibly happy. Of course... that might be somewhat down to the little "Happy thoughts" in the print. "Eat more chocolate" resonates with me at the moment ;o)

Yey, Socks!

2013-02-02T11:18:00.000Z

My first pair of toe up socks are finished and blocked! Yey!

I couldn't be more pleased with myself right now. I loved knitting these socks. Okay, it's a super simple pattern, but I needed that for a first go.

Wow, its hard to photograph your own feet. Also - Hey there pale legs ;-)

They literally flew off my needles because of the thicker yarn, but as I mentioned before, it was a slightly uncomfortable knit. I've just cast on for another pair in a much lighter weight yarn and so far it is feeling much better.

I ran out out yarn, like literally had a couple of inches left, else I would have added more ribbing on the cuff. Next time I want to add a bunch more; I get the feeling these are going to be a bit slouchy!

Now, I was planning on gifting these to a friend, but it just so happens that they fit me PERFECTLY. What are the chances?! (Insert evil laugh here) I suppose I'll have to make her another pair!

Sock Stats

Yarn: Dream in Colour Classy - Beach Fog

Needle: Addi Lace 2.75mm

Pattern: Van Dyke Socks

Methods: Toe up, 2 at a time.

Rav Link

On Fabric and Yarn

2013-01-28T12:08:00.000Z

In the absence of any sewing of any kind, there is of course, always time to play with fabric!

I appear to have completely lost my sewing mojo. No particular reason I guess, I'm just busy doing other things, seeing people, going out and about. You know, the usual.

I did have a lot of fun pairing up these prints with my Sew Solid Crew Stash bundle this month. I can't wait to make some more stars for my Stellar quilt (which is a free download, from SimplySolids.co.uk - check the left hand sidebar).

And I got my favourite Stash Stack bundle yet from Brenda - Pink Castle Fabrics. Good purples! Squeee!

Just FYI - There is a big 25% sale at Pink Castle Fabrics (with code BUNDLE25) that ENDS TODAY! Also, international shipping goes up today, so HURRY HURRY HURRY!

I have also fallen back in love with my first craft - knitting. (This may be why I'm not sewing so much... I cast-on on Saturday. Yep. Addicted much?). I've been wanting to knit a pair of socks for ages, but was a bit scared about the tiny tiny needles and super fine yarn.

So I set myself a challenge to learn how to do it, and I think I'm doing pretty good! These are my practice pair (which I'm hoping will be good enough to gift anyway), before I knit a pair as a commission for a Emily.

This weekend I taught myself Judy's magic cast-on for toe up socks and the magic loop method of knitting two socks at once. Oh, and how to rescue my stitches when I accidentally dropped one about 15 rows back. That was a fun hour... not!

The yarn I'm using is Dream in Colour Classy (colourway Beach Fog) which on Ravelry is classed as a worsted weight yarn, and I admit knitting it to the gauge specified in the book does feel a little weird and tight, but I'm just gonna roll with it and see how I go. I'm trusting the book!

I hope it turns out okay because I have 2 more skeins, in Wisterious (the pinky purple above) and Peacock Shadow (that swoon worthy navy/black/blue) just waiting to be knit up into more socks!

Stellar - a sew along!

2013-01-18T14:56:00.000Z

Hey friends! How's everyone's week going? I've been doing very little sewing this week... I appear to have caught the swimming bug, if that is a thing... And I'm loving it. But it doesn't half tire me out, so all I'm really good for of an evening is a bit of knitting and watching crap on the telly.

Aaaaaaanyway, I'm here to tell you about the Simply Solids sew along!

Who else is in the sew solids crew? It's such a brilliant idea; a monthly parcel of loveliness turning up on your doorstep. I joined because, as anyone who regularly reads this blog know, I'm a ho for a print. I don't use solids that much, mostly because I don't buy them, because I never know where to start! This way, the hard part is done for me!

So Mrs Simply Solids, Justine, and I have been working away at a pattern to use up the lovely rainbow of solids that will be arriving over the year... And here it is, Stellar:

Funky right?!

And here are my first blocks:

I'm making mine a little differently, and using a print for the centre square. Because, you know... I couldn't not. And because it's so much fun picking something the coordinates with each of the solids.

This month was interesting for me because purple is the least represented colour in my stash. I'm super excited to start on next months blocks... Greens! Lovely!

You can download the pattern from the Simply Solids website today!

Scrappy Trip Along - Done!

2013-01-13T19:15:00.000Z

Yey! Scrappy trip along! She's finished! I love love love love love it.

And so here I go showing you more pictures than is really necessary...

If you are looking to get your sewing mojo back, THIS is the project for you. Seriously. Once you make once block you'll be hooked. Which is why this is one of my first finishes this year, not anything else that I might have had planned.

It is one of the quickest quilts I've ever made, and probably, hand-on-heart, my favouritist. I've always admired anything patchworky with 2.5" squares, and always thought I didn't have the patience for it. But with the nifty strip piecing method you don't even notice. Before you know it you have 4 blocks, and then 4 more and then 36.

The quilt is pieced entirely from scraps and stash. I basically got about 1/4 of the fabric I needed from scraps, then pulled some bright rainbow colours from stash and cut a few 2.5" x 16" strips. When the top was done, I felt it was quite heavily on the orange side, so I chose to bind it in a dark teal (Kona Glacier) to bring out the aqua's and cooler colours.

I quilted it, on Leanne's suggestion, in concentric circles. I started off-centre to make life a bit easier and sewed rings 2" apart. When I was finished I thought it needed more quilting, so I went back around again inbetween each line, meaning they ended up 1" apart. I LOVE the quilting. It really makes the quilt. I used Aurifil 50wt in colour 2000 which is fast becoming my favourite when I want this type of "melt into the background" kind of effect. The quilting can't be too fancy on these types of quilts I think. It has to just sink it and give a little bit of texture.

For the backing, I used the only thing I had enough of on hand. Which just happened to be perfect for it. That Ikea Numbers print that everyone loves. I need more of this before it disappears completely.

Besides how much I love the finished quilt, I have THE MOST fun making it. The whole quilting community on IG and twitter joined in, and it felt like one big sewing retreat with us all making them. I also love how organically it grew from Brenda and Megan to over 2000 pictures. Crazy right?!

And how each quilt, although made from the same pattern, is a really true reflection of each person as a quilter. I'd never really noticed that before, but you really can tell who's is who's just by looking at it. This picture, from friday at Lynne's proves it!

Trudi, Me, Karen and Katy

Quilt Stats
Size: approx 72" x 72"
Fabric: ALL SORTS!
Pieced and Quilted by me

Pattern: Scrappy Trips

Baby Lattice Quilt

2013-01-07T09:47:00.000Z

This weekend was super productive for me! As well as finishing up my Scrappy Trip Along quilt (which hopefully I will show you next week - I'm waiting on binding fabric), I made a baby quilt!

Thank jeebus for the Moda Bakeshop and the lovely Amy - Diary of a Quilter!

I spent about 5 million years working out corner triangles and sashing layouts and blah blah blah. And then I found exactly what I needed... Amy's tutorial. Phew. Perfect. Easy. Exactly what you want when you need a quick baby quilt for a commission.

You just need 50 charm squares (I used The Simple Life by Tacha Noel for Riley Blake, available here, here and all over etsy) and a smidge of yardage for the sashing. I used a cutesy cutesy pink that I had on hand and I believe started life out as an ikea sheet. I can't be sure though.

The backing is definitely from Ikea. I remember buying it. It's also very definitely pink.

I'm really pleased with the quilting on this one. Okay its just a Free Motion Stipple, but it looks super perfect. No tension issues, nice gentle curves, and the thread (Aurifil 50wt, colour 2000) melts into the background but still has a little bit of a sheen. It's beautiful really.

It was a fun little project which I am sure will be well received :o)

Now I've cleared out my absolutely-have-to-sew list... what's next?! This. This is next. Eeeek!

Patchwork Weekender Bag - Part Deux!

2013-01-06T16:49:00.000Z

I decided, in my infinite wisdom (or severe stupidity) to make another Patchwork Weekender Bag, the weekend before Christmas. This time, for my Mama. She loved my last one so much... I thought she deserved her own. And since it's been gifted and in use for a while now, I can share it with you! Yey!!

I learnt so many things making the last one, that the age old "I'll do it like this next time I make it" was actually put into practice. And just like mine HAD to be navy, Mom's HAD to be purple.

Last time, I used 2 layers of batting in between the patchwork pieces and a thick cotton, which was a bit of nightmare when it came to the corners. THIS time, I used the proper cotton duck (which is just canvas to anyone in the UK who, like me, had no idea what this was!), ONE layer of batting, and the same patchwork pieces as before. It was so much easier! Seriously... this is the way to go peeps!

I made thicker straps this time too. When I was lugging my weekender bag around airports and road trips and sewing summit, the straps began to get on my nerves. And I was worried they would split because I didn't use peltex. So I made them about 2.5" wide this time, and rather than using interfacing, I actually put thick webbing inside and stitched right onto it. I think they'll probably hold up better... they certainly look more beefy!

All the little fussy cut pieces are kind of special to my mom. There's a bike on there, and she loves cycling. There's maps of Manhattan and other reference to countries she took us to as children. Little phrases and texty prints that look cute. My sister and I's dates of birth etc etc. I had so much fun picking these bits out. That's my favourite part I think.

I also put a lot more effort into the lining this time. Firstly, I chose a heavier weight Japanese linen, and I added a thin interfacing. I put in a zipper pocket a la this tutorial on one side...

and, since I had some piping left over, I put in another piped pocket on the other side. I just cut 2 more main pocket pieces, added the piping and stitched down the middle straight onto the main lining piece.

And here they are together... sisters, not twins, since mine appears to have stretched out of shape a little bit.

I don't think this will be my last one. I'm a bit addicted!

Happy Scrappy New Years!

2013-01-03T10:04:00.000Z

I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas and New Years! I had the most wonderful relaxing time with family over Christmas, mostly just nibbling on yummies whilst watching movies and knitting. It was bliss. Then for New Years, we headed down south to Cornwall for a big family party. So.much.fun.

I tried to blog while I was there, I really did, but it just wasn't happening. So... a couple of days late and perhaps a few bucks short, COME JOIN US IN THE SCRAPPY TRIP ALONG!

It's absolutely the perfect project to get your mojo back after a couple of weeks off. No thinking is required, you basically can't fuff it up, and they're such easy blocks you can do them in your sleep. Trust me. The whole time I was away I was dreaming about it (and pining for my sewing machine).

The tutorial can be found here: http://quiltville.com/scrappytrips.shtml

It all started with Brenda and Megan getting their cool on. And theirs, which you can see here and here, are still 2 of my favourites. Then Rita and Katy and Megan and Emily and Lorena and Audrie and Trudi and a whole bunch of other people. I just LOVE how different everyone's looks.

This right here should be a selection of pictures from the pool on instagram. It should refresh each time a new one is added. Cool huh?! To follow along with us, just instagram a pic with the hashtag #scrappytripalong, or come and join the flickr group. And of course, you can click through to each picture to see who's is who's!

I made 13 blocks last night (in a couple of hours.... yes it's that quick!), which brought my total up to 25. I'm definitely going up to 36, but may in fact go bigger. Or I might just make a second one.

The colours are probably closest in the first pic up there, I'm battling poor light with only having taking pictures on my phone. Sorry! But with any luck, I'll have a finished top by the weekend. I'm thinking of straight line quilting through each of the squares on the diagonal.

Somebody persuade me that's a bad idea... please?!

From my house to yours

2012-12-24T07:03:00.000Z

Merry Christmas. I hope you have a magical time, however you like to spend it :o)

Catch you in the New Year! xxx

A Christmassy kind of weekend

2012-12-23T08:02:00.000Z

I'm nothing if not predictable. Just reading my post from this time last year proves it.

Last year I set myself the target of an entirely handmade Christmas, and achieved it, and felt super proud of myself. So of course I decided to do it again. On the whole, I'm making less presents this year, but some of them are pretty big things... I promise, come January, I will show you. I thought I was doing pretty well for time, and then decided to sneak in a couple of last minute makes...

Like this table runner, for my BFF's parents. Who are kind of my second parents.

These stained glass window cookies for our work Christmas lunch. You have no idea how hard it was to find boiled sweets! Foxes glacier fruits were the only thing I could find after going to eleventy million shops! Who knew that boiled sweets were a thing of the past?!

These cute little iced cookie thingys which I made with leftover dough.

I'll just tell you... I used this recipe. And the cookies were divine. Divine I tell you!

And this cute little zippy pouch for a cousin. Narwhals and turrets... That's all I have to say about that.
I also finished wrapping and labeling all of my gifts this weekend. All but one of them are hand made. I'm considering that a win.

And made this years little extra's for friends and fam. I followed this recipe, but scaled down the quantities for a 12oz jar. Which I'm hoping makes 4 mugs of cocoa. It's untested. In hindsight, I should probably have tried it first.

All of this was done in between working and visiting here there and everywhere! I am a busy little elf at the moment and so looking forward to Christmas eve so that I can stop, relax, and appreciate the 10 days off work I have coming up. Bliss!

A tree skirt

2012-12-10T09:07:00.000Z

This weekend, on Saturday night, I helped my mom put up her tree. It's one of my favourite traditions, and even though I don't live at home any more, she can't escape me helping ;-)

I noticed, however, that she had the tree sat on some grubby old piece of carpet, and it lowered the tone of the whole thing! So Sunday morning, what did I do?

That's my tree up there. Just trying it on for size.

I made her a tree skirt. I had to leave the house at 12.30, so if you move at lighting speed, you really can get this done in 3 hours.

The tutorial is by Sew Crafty Jess. Its an awesome tutorial. So simple to follow, and looks great.

I changed up the pattern a little bit, because I didn't have many half yard cuts of christmassy fabrics, so I wanted to make it Fat Quarter friendly. To do this, cut your initial pieces at 5" x 18", and then follow jess's instructions from there. It means you can use the short side of a FQ, of which I have plenty. It still ends up plenty big enough at around 45" across. I think. I didn't measure though.

I just FMQ stippled it, because it was quicker than straight line quilting, although I think that would have looked great. Maybe I'll make another next year and straight line quilt it.

I swear I have never sewn a binding on so quickly. I was really cutting it close. And then my guesstimate of how many strips I would need was 2 short so I had to cut more. Fabric was flying I tell you!

But I did get it finished, and she loved it. And I think she genuinely loved it, not just in the way that mothers love all things made for them by their children. At least I hope so.

On my Christmas list

2012-12-06T11:50:00.000Z

(and by "my" I am probably generalizing for a whole bunch of quilters like me, so husbands, take note.)

I would be more than a little bit happy to find Tula's latest line, Salt Water, in my stocking this Christmas.

And you know what? You can preorder it now from Pink Castle Fabrics. It's not quite released yet, but that's okay. I'm very happy to wait. You can slip me an IOU in a card. Kthanks.

That picture up there doesn't even begin to do the line justice... Have you seen Tula's free patterns? They are the bomb. Seriously. I need to make these pillows:

And I NEEEEEEEED to make this quilt (and have Angela Walters quilt it in exactly the same way, because she's incredible):

I have visions of myself in my anchor dress, wearing my anchor necklace with my anchor scarf and my anchor socks all wrapped up in this anchor quilt. This needs to happen.

The great thing about all these free Salt Water patterns is that they have these handy dandy shopping lists at the front. So you know exactly how much of which print to order to make the quilt. Or the cushions. Hint hint hint.

In case perhaps you need a second option, something that would arrive well in time for Christmas, I am loving loving LOVING the sketch rainbow bundles.

Don't we all right?? You can buy that one up there (20 Fat Quarters) from Pink Castle Fabrics (ships to the UK in about a week, so you've still got plenty of time to suprise me you're quilty significant other).

Or this one (13 Fat Quarters) from my friend Alice at Backstitch (which is a UK shop with super fast shipping, in case you are cutting it a bit fine!)

And if none of those take your fancy, I have always always always wanted this needlepoint cushion kit. Like always. I don't know why I've never bought it for myself. A bit frivolous perhaps. Aaaaanyway. I ♥ it. I think it would look awesome on my sofa. You can get it from my friend Annie at The Village Haberdashery.

Or directly from the designer, Emily Peacock... AND SHE HAS AN ANCHOR ONE TOO!!!

Wow. I hadn't seen that before today. I'm in love. I'll cross my fingers and hope it fits in a stocking ;o)