For a couple of months when I was in high school, my friends Karen and Emily and I would meet to swim laps before homeroom (we’re talking 6:30 a.m…. ouch!). Now I am not an athletic girl, or even an active girl, and by no stretch of the imagination am I a morning person, but knowing that two of my friends were expecting me to be at the pool was a huge motivation to get up early and meet them.

Sometimes all it takes is a buddy or two to get you motivated to do something you keep meaning to do but somehow never find the time, like working out, studying or travelling. I know that even though I love sewing, I can go weeks or months without doing it because life (…and the internet…) gets in the way.

But, fair readers, I think I have a strategy to help me sew more often: I’ve got me a sewing buddy!

(It’s Jordy, if you haven’t guessed.)

Jordy and I went for dinner last week and both talked about how we want to find more time to sew and make stuff. We decided to make a standing night every week or two where we meet up to gab about sewing and do sew-y things. We even gave each other little sewing challenges to do in the next couple of weeks. It sounds corny, I know, but even after one hangout I was totally motivated to organize my sewing room and start a new project this weekend.

Sewing can be a solitary hobby, so why not make it social? If you have friends who sew, consider having a regular ‘craft night’ or a Saturday fabric excursion. Your friends will likely have skills and knowledge you can learn from, and vice versa. They’ll also have different ideas and projects on the go that may inspire you. Try doing a sew-along project or take a sewing class together to learn a new skill. With a sewing buddy or two, you may find it easier to make the time to stitch and get out of that sewing slump!

I recently purchased a sewing machine at a thrift store (again… I have a bit of a problem) and quickly realized that I made a mistake and wasted $20. How do you avoid this? I really should know better, but I wanted to give you some tips so you can avoid wasting your money on a hunk of junk.

When not to buy…

1. Use your smart phone! See if you can find the manual online, preferably for free. If you’re on the fence and the machine looks super old or there are other factors making you wrinkle your nose, maybe don’t buy it.
2. Look for missing parts – refer to our Anatomy of a Sewing Machine if you’re unsure. If it’s missing a lot of pieces it might be best to leave it behind. Sometimes you can’t even buy parts for certain machines. This also may be a sign that someone has already taken parts for another machine from it.
3. Plug it in. Duh. Don’t leave without testing it out. If you smell burnt rubber, step away – it could be the motor, which is expensive to replace. If it doesn’t have a foot pedal, you can’t test it out… not great.
4. When it doubt, leave it behind! If you’re really not sure about the machine, it’s probably a good idea to leave it behind. You might be getting a deal on the machine, but trust your instincts.
5. Leave the price tags on and hang on to your receipt. I also made this (stupid) mistake. Check with the store to see what they’re return/exchange policy is. Most times you can at least get a store credit.

Last weekend we travelled to Thunder Bay for the wedding of two good friends, Dave and Annie. It was awesome to be part of their special day and our first visit to northwestern Ontario was super fun!

We gave Dave and Annie a buzz saw quilt as a wedding gift. I’ve been dying to post pictures of the finished product, so without further adieu, here she be:

Dave and Annie met while tree planting, so I chose earthy colours and fabrics so it would have some special significance to them. I was really glad they liked it, and it even goes with their place!

This quilt was a great learning experience for me, and probably the most complicated design of the 5 quilts I’ve made. The buzz saw pattern took some extra planning, but I love the result. I started it last summer so I wouldn’t have to rush and could enjoy the process. This was the first time I hand sewed my quilt binding. I had no idea it would take so long but the end result was really neat and clean. It was actually quite enjoyable to sew with a needle and thread after machine sewing for so long! I will definitely hand sew all my bindings in the future!

Here are some progress pics I took over the last few months:

If you like this pattern, check out our buzz saw quilt tutorial — you can use this technique to make any size of quilt!

…And, just for kicks, here are some bonus pics of awesome wooden crests from the Thunder Bay city council chamber, where the wedding took place! Aren’t they awesome? I want to hang these all over my house! :)

We get a lot of questions on our website and over email. We do our best to answer them all, but can’t always get to every one of them.

Here’s a collection of questions we’ve been asked in the past and our answers. If you have a better answer to any of these, we’d love to hear them – Leave us a comment below and help a sewist out!

Kelly writes:

Hi. I have a new sewing machine and have been sewing fleece, making a Hulk costume for my son. Everything was going fine then my machine stopped stitching. I re-threaded the top and bottom, but then when I tried raising the bobbin, the needle wouldn’t pick up the bottom thread. I’m new to sewing so I’m not sure what else to try. I don’t know why the machine just stopped stitching all of a sudden when it was working so well.

Sewing School says:

Have you tried cleaning the machine? Fleece is really fluffy and linty and can gunk up the machine – especially the feed dogs. Check out our post on cleaning your sewing machine here: Basic Sewing Machine Maintenance.

Hope writes:

I was wondering after you thread and place your bobbin in how do you start to sew?

Sewing School says:

After you thread your machine and place your bobbin, depending on your machine, what you usually do is hold the thread out a few inches from the needle and turn the hand wheel so that the needle goes down. Keep turning until the needle comes back up. Gently pull the top thread. It should bring the bobbin thread up with it. Then pull both threads to the back of the machine under your presser foot and you’re ready to sew. While you make your first stitches, hold the thread at the back.

We’ve done a video about threading your machine: http://sewingschool.org/2011/01/07/video-technique-how-to-thread-your-sewing-machine/

Check out the end, around 2:50 – it might be helpful.

Lee writes:

Hi there! Can you please tell me what color zipper I should use at the side of a dress which has a different coloured top than bottom? The bodice of the dress is a light cream/gold metallic thread guipure lace, while the dress skirt is a fuchsia silk underlay with gold metallic georgette overlay.
I would certainly welcome any advice you may have!

Sewing School says:

If I were you, I would bring the fabrics into the fabric store and pick a zipper that goes well with both fabrics. If you’re working with an invisible zipper, the colour shouldn’t really show through. But there must be a colour that goes well with both fabrics.

Julie writes:

When cutting a pattern, what do you do with pieces that are in a box that says cut on fold.  I have never seen this before.  The box says cut on fold, but has 4 other pattern pieces inside it?

Sewing School says:

Usually when you have pattern pieces like that you place the pattern piece on the fold of the fabric where indicated so that your cut fabric will be twice as big as the pattern piece when unfolded.

I’m not sure about why there would be 4 other pattern pieces inside. They could be other sizes of the same pattern piece? Or perhaps you just measure the box onto your fabric and cut the other pieces out of the paper pattern. Maybe the manufacturer did this to save space.

Julie writes:

I am looking at buying a new sewing machine. I want to learn how to sew. Last year I learned how to crochet and knit and now I want to learn to make quilts and little baby dresses. So I have been looking at various options out there and I am confused! Should I buy a basic machine ? Or a computerized one? One that I liked so far is brother cs6000i. This seemed to have a free arm to make quilts, a foot pedal if I don’t want the computerized option. http://www.amazon.com/Brother-Affordable-60-Stitch-Computerized-Free-Arm/dp/B000JQM1DE

I asked my friends, but they all told me it all depends on what I want to do. The main tasks that I would like to do on a sewing machine is , mending, make dresses, and quilts. Can you please suggest a good machine for these purposes ? Or maybe give me few options to choose from . I think that would be easier than to choose from hundreds of options out there!.

I don’t mind spending $100 on a machine. Please do let me know what you think.

Sewing School says:

I find that sewing machine brands don’t matter much. Everyone has their favourite brand and there are lots of them out there! I started sewing on a Kenmore that was a hand me down, but I now have a Bernina and a Brother that I love.

Your friends are right – which machine you buy totally depends on what you’d like to do. It sounds like you don’t need a fancy computerized machine with a bunch of features you’ll never use. Your $100 budget won’t get you the best computerized machine anyway, so I’d look for something sturdy.

Check out our article on buying your first sewing machine here: http://sewingschool.org/2010/12/10/ask-sewing-school-buying-your-first-machine/

There’s also this article in case you’re thinking of buying a used machine: http://sewingschool.org/2010/12/29/buying-a-sewing-machine-at-a-thrift-store/

Do your research and buy a machine that will have the features that you need. I suggest going to a sewing shop that might even give you a free lesson with the purchase of your machine. They might have some insight as to what you need as well.

Wendy writes:

Hope you can help.  While sewing, my top thread keeps coming loose from the “thread-take-up” and don’t know why it’s doing this. Thanks for your help.

Sewing School says:

It could be a number of things including tension or improper threading.

If you’ve tried rethreading and adjusting the tension and it still jumps out of the take up lever, you can always use a little cheat: put a small piece of tape over the opening. It’s not glamourous, but it should stop the thread from popping out.

Suzanne writes:

Hello, I hope you can help me. I broke my left needle while serging some pants. I changed the needle and rethreaded the machine. when I press the pedal it sounds like the machine is in neutral and will not engage the needles. I can turn the wheel on the side of the machine and the needles will go up and down. Do you have any ideas for me. Thanks so much.

Sewing School says:

I tried to look up a solution to your problem. I’m not sure that I came up with anything good.

I’m sure you’ve tried turning it off, unplugging and plugging it back in? I think it’s a good sign that you can move the needles with the hand wheel. Check to see that the hand wheel is not disengaged.

Otherwise, you might want to take it in somewhere to have it looked at.

I hope this helped even a little bit!

Suzanne writes back:

Thank you so much for replying to my problem. Another gal thought it might be a belt that has come off. Guess what???   that was the problem. I removed some screws and cover. It was so simple to pop the band back in place. At the same time I was able to see all of the inside of my Bernina Bernette Funlock 004, I was so impressed, everything was metal and not plastic. I am hoping this machine will last me a long time.
Thanks again so much.

Amanda writes:

I just had a question on how to leave a raw edge on fabrics without it fraying. I don’t want it to look “finshed” so to speak. I want sort of a rougher look for example when people leave the hem on denim shorts and if its only certain fabrics? My current project I would like to make a motif with frayed edges. Any help would be very appreciated. Thank you.

 Sewing School says:

You’ll want to be using a woven fabric. How much it will fray will depend on the fabric iteself. A tightly woven fabric will not fray as easily as a loosely woven fabric. Usually you can just pull out a few threads on the edge of the fabric lengthwise and the fabric will fray.

Faith writes:

I was wondering if you have a solution for a specific problem. When ever i use my zig zag stitch on the normal setting it works fine but when i increase the width of the stitch at all the fabric will actually start to bunch up length wise through out the whole entire stitch. Here is a photo of that the fabric is doing. If you have any tips please let me know! http://tinypic.com/r/15dhy8/6

 Sewing School says:

This seems like a tension issue. Try adjusting the top thread tension and see how that affects your stitches. It could also be that the fabric you are stitching with is very thin and might require some stabilizer behind it. You can use interfacing or I’ve even heard of people using a piece of paper behind the stitch. Then rip it away when you’re done.

As soon as I saw her beautiful embroidery work online, I had to ask Hillary Webb to do an interview! This Pop Quiz is with Vancouver’s newest textile artist, by way of Toronto and Halifax.

Hand embroidered bird on naturally dyed, waxed cotton

Tell us about yourself and work!

I’m a native Torontonian and spent the last three years in Halifax studying to be a librarian. I fell in love with the ocean air and was fortunate enough to recently relocate to the other coast to start a librarian position at Emily Carr University of Art and Design. I’ve been making and selling hand embroidered art since completing my degree in textiles at the Ontario College of Art and Design in 2004. More recently I’ve been dabbling in ceramics, letterpress, and screen-printing. I can’t stop making things. When my hands aren’t busy I get restless. As far as I can tell, making things is in my blood.

How long have you been doing needlework, and how did you learn?

My first attempts at needlework were in my teens when my father and grandmother taught me how to smock. My great-grandmother Grace moved to Toronto from England in 1919 and started a smocking school and smocking supply company. The company was passed down to my grandmother Doris, and then to my father who still sells fabric, lace, patterns and books. Using textiles as my creative medium seemed like such a natural choice.

Hand embroidered on naturally dyed, waxed cotton and a vintage horse feed sack

Tell us about the process of making your art. How much do you plan your embroidery pieces before you start stitching?

The process I developed includes making natural dyes from scratch, staining my dyed cotton fabric with wax, and drawing on the fabric with pencil and thread. Recently I’ve begun using vintage pillowcases and table linens as the base fabric. I have an obsession with collecting old picture frames from flea markets and antique shops. I especially like ones made of barn board. When I plan a piece I usually draw the basic shape on the fabric, pick the colours, then free hand the stitching.

Hand embroidered polar bear on logwood dyed, waxed cotton

Where does your inspiration come from?

In the past my work has been inspired by patterns found in nature, animals and birds, and trees. My more recent work has been inspired by architecture, geometry, and things I saw during a summer-long American road trip including houses on stilts, fire, and font.

How did you start creating your own dyes? What are some of your favourites?

I started making my own dyes after a dye class at OCAD. The class taught us about synthetic dyes as well, but I loved the idea of being able to create my own colours in my kitchen without worrying about the toxicity of the powders. I love setting up hot plates with buckets of dye in the backyard. Some of my favourite natural dyes include umbilicaria (a flakey grey lichen that makes a vibrant purple), sumac berries (pinky-beige), black walnut (rich brown), and goldenrod (yellow). These are my favourites because I get to forage for them. I love piling up the fabrics once they’re dyed to create a pleasing rainbow!

Dye pot with Umbilicaria

Do you sew?

I do sew, but not as often as I’d like. Mostly I do hand embroidery to create my art, but in the past I’ve dabbled in making clothes and bags. A recent project I did with Haligonian artist David Figueroa was a series of screen-printed felt pendant flags. I got to use some of the fancy stitches and lettering on my grandmother’s sewing machine

Screen-printed felt pendant flag by GOLD FOOLS (David Figueroa and Hillary Webb)

At Sewing School, we’re all about learning new things. What is one technique or project that you want to try out?

As a collector, I love buying fabric and have a pile I want to use to make a quilt. Quilting is something that intrigues me, but I’ve never made time to start a project. I also love knitting but have never learned how to crochet. That’s also on my list of things to try.

Who are some other artists or businesses in the Halifax craft scene that we should know about?

I met so many amazing, talented people living in Halifax. The community is a tight-knit one of sweet, supportive, like-minded artists and crafts people. Many of these people I met while selling at the Halifax Crafters market, including:

• Sarah Burwash
• Chris Foster
• Kat Frick Miller
• Joanna Close
• Bethany Riordan-Butterworth

Although I’ve moved away I still keep in touch with the people I met in Halifax and stay involved by sitting on the board of the White Rabbit Open Arts festival and artist residency that happens every August on the Bay of Fundy.

I’m excited to get involved in the craft community here in Vancouver and see what kinds of things are happening in the west coast art and craft scene.

Hand embroidered vintage postcard

Such a talented gal! Thanks so much to Hillary Webb for giving us some insight into her process and her art. Check out Hillary’s website and blog to see more of her work.

Earlier this month my husband and I went on a belated honeymoon to Reykjavik, Iceland. In a word, it was amazing. I recommend it to anyone who likes exploring cities on foot and/or nature lovers. I returned from our trip with a few sore muscles from a horseback riding tour, and a lot of inspiration from the craft traditions and landscapes of Iceland.

The knitwear!

Traditional Icelandic knit sweaters and accessories were everywhere in Reykjavik. Icelandic wool is water repellant and great for insulating against the cold. Many people were wearing wool sweaters instead of a winter jacket, and you’d even see very chic local ladies wearing chunky grandma sweaters at nightclubs (this is my kind of city!!). Pretty much everything I bought in Iceland was wool — an intricately patterned cardigan, socks, gloves, a felted brooch and some wool for a future project. I’ve never really knitted with a pattern because I thought it would take the fun out of knitting, but after seeing so many beautifully patterned knit items during my week in Iceland, I’m very inspired to give it a try.

I’m pretty sure it’s just Iceland’s answer to our chain Roots, but I fell in love with the store Geysir. They had beautiful sweaters, socks and capes and I wanted to buy most things in that store… except maybe the weird onesie things.

The embroidery!

Iceland also has a unique embroidery tradition. The National Museum had some incredible embroidered altarpieces and wall hangings dating back to the 14th century and embroidered clothing from the 18th century onward. It seemed most older shops and restaurants had some beautiful embroidered wall hangings or cushions, with the embroidery done in yarn rather than embroidery thread. I love how bold and graphic the designs are.

Source for this image is this page, which also features embroidery charts for this altar hanging

At the National Museum I was tempted by the overpriced embroidery kits but then came across a little colouring book with the patterns for some traditional motifs which I plan on adapting into a pattern for some kind of wall hanging one day!

The colours!

The most fascinating parts of our trip were the day trips we took. As far as I can tell, everyone who visits Iceland generally does the same three day trips: the Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, horseback riding, and the Golden Circle tour to visit geysers, the Gullfoss waterfall and a gap between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. These were each amazing experiences and allowed us to see some of the beautiful landscapes of Iceland. We were incredibly lucky to have nice weather and blue skies each time we did a day trip. Looking over my photos from these trips, I was reminded of the gorgeous colours and natural light we saw.

One of my favourite colour combinations are the white/grey/blue colours of winter with little pops of bright hues here and there. The rooftops and siding in Reykjavik’s buildings were so pretty and added lots of cheer to the gloomier winter days!

Overall, we had a lovely little honeymoon in Iceland. We’d like to visit again in the summer to explore more of the country. (And maybe try on one of those onesie suits from Geysir!)

Needless to say, I’d highly recommend a visit!

I’m cheap. As an example, I’d sooner wait months, or even years, for a book to be available at the library before I’ll fork over the cash for my own copy*.

(*Sewing books excepted)

And so, when I came across Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion by Elizabeth L. Cline  while browsing Chapters for future additions to my Toronto Public Library holds list, I was definitely intrigued. Fast forward to this month, and I finally got the book in my little hands. I could not put it down — this is one fascinating read!

With new clothing retailers likes H&M, Old Navy and Zara sprouting up in Canada over the last decade or so, I can easily say I spend much less on clothes now, as a 30-year-old, than I did as a teenager. While global competition and outsourcing production can partially explain this, these aren’t exactly new phenomena. So what has changed to allow us to find a cool, fashionable outfit for $10 – $30? It would be hard to even buy fabric for that amount. Overdressed explores the various stages of the clothing production process, from design to production to retailing and disposal. Cline finds that many factors have contributed and reinforced each other so the clothing industry can sustain ridiculously high volumes and ridiculously low prices. The chapter on thrift store donations, in particular, is very eye-opening. It’s fascinating to hear the stories of people working in the fashion industry, their reflections on the changing landscape and the impact it has had. On that point alone, I would recommend this book.

For me, the most interesting aspect of the book is the author’s reflection on what she learns, and the impact it has for the way she thinks about clothing, fashion and mass consumption. Although Elizabeth Cline paints herself as a pretty extreme consumer of cheap fashion, owning several hundred items of cheap clothing, I think everyone could ask themselves similar questions about what constitutes value and quality when it comes to fashion. (Or anything, for that matter!) Rationally, it’s hard to justify the low prices we can pay for clothing when we need to replace low-quality garments after a few wears or don’t wear them at all because of a bad fit, and the working conditions and the environmental impacts of this practice simply can’t be ignored. But, so many of us are suckers for a sale or a buy-one-get-one promotion. Even though I rarely buy clothing, it’s hard to spend money on one high-quality garment when I know I can multiple lower-quality pieces for that same amount.

From what I’ve seen lately on many sewing blogs I follow, particularly the Colette Patterns blog, a lot of us are trying to bring more perspective and practicality to acquiring or making new things, by focusing on quality, craftsmanship, repairability and usefulness. In addition, by learning about sewing, pattern making, alterations, mending, and how to care for clothing, we can sustain the life of our garments and will need to shop less. (I should note that Cline herself decides to learn to sew as a response to her new perspective on fashion — huzzah!!)

I really enjoyed this book and still find myself mulling over many of the questions it raised for me about fashion and mass consumption. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in business, DIY, sewing and/or fashion. Rather than rambling on anymore, here are some great resources that have recently appeared related to this book that I hope you’ll check out!

Reading List:

• Website for Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion by Elizabeth L. Cline  which features additional resources, news, and an interview with the author.
• Interview with Elizabeth L. Cline on the Colette Patterns blog
• An interesting review of Overdressed on the C Sews blog
• New York Times review of Overdressed

One of the best feelings ever: Giving someone the gift of a beautiful quilt you’ve made just for them.

One of the worst feelings ever: Finding out later that said beautiful quilt is starting to come apart!

For Christmas 2011, I gave my dad a quilt. Partly because of my haste in sewing it, and partly because it’s been thrown in the washing machine a bunch of times, some seams are starting to give. While I know my mum can easily stitch that quilt up, I want to make sure that any future quilts that I make for gifts are a lot more durable. Here are some tips that I’ll be using from now on.

Materials

• Use 100% cotton thread for strong, long lasting stitches.
• Same goes for fabric — 100% cotton fabric! It stands up to wear and doesn’t fray as much as synthetics. Higher quality cottons have a tighter weave and will generally last longer.
• Always prewash your fabric so it doesn’t shrink and bunch up your seams.
• Prior to sewing, inspect your fabric for flaws, pulled threads or holes.
• Second-hand sheets are an excellent source of cheap, high-quality cotton.
• Use cotton batting rather than polyester if you can afford it. It will hold up better to lots of use and washing.

Seams

Our latest Pop Quiz is with the talented lady behind Ohhh Lulu, Sarah Norwood of Orillia, Ontario.

Tell us about yourself and your business.

I started Ohhh Lulu in 2010. I had graduated from a fashion design program a few years earlier, and was frustrated at my job prospects. I decided to combine my love of vintage under-things, with the skills I had learned over the years and through school to create a line of lingerie! I worked from vintage pieces and patterns as well as my own designs for my first few garments, and it has just grown from there.

How long have you been sewing and how did you learn to sew?

I have been sewing for as long as I can remember. My first memories of sewing are with my grandmother, sewing dresses for Barbie and Cupie Dolls! My mom used to always sew my Halloween costumes, and it wasn’t long before I was helping her. I also grew up in a very small town, and as I because more fashion-conscious and developed by own very unique sense of style, I found that being able to design and sew your own clothes was so much more fulfilling than buying off the rack!

What kind of sewing machine(s) do you use?

I have a Pfaff Expressions Sewing machine (that is actually on loan from my mother!) and a Pfaff Serger. We have a Pfaff repair shop in my town and it is important to me that if anything happens to my machines I can get them fixed quickly. I also have a Singer Featherweight on hand in case of emergencies!

What made you decide to create sewing patterns in addition to your finished pieces?

Through my blog, I’ve gotten to know alot of sewing enthusiasts, and have been lucky enough to host a really great sew along – the Oooh La La Pin-Up Sew along with Anna from A Few Threads Loose. It was so great seeing everyone’s interpretation of the patterns that I decided I wanted to share a few of my patterns. They have been way more popular than I could have ever imagined.

What is your sewing soundtrack?

I am addicted to CBC Radio One, and Q with Jian Ghomeshi is the highlight of my day. I am also a big documentary fan, and often put on a documentary series when I’m sewing. I’m a big history nerd, but also have a soft spot for a good Bigfoot documentary!

At Sewing School, we’re all about learning new things. What is one new technique or project that you’d like to try?

I am dying to try smocking, and would like to incorporate it on some camisoles this summer.

Do you have any advice or tips for someone new to sewing lingerie?

Start out with a fabric that is easy to work with, like cotton, as opposed something slippery like satin or chiffon, and work your way up. Also, practice applying elastic with a zig-zag stitch on some scrap fabric, so you can see how to get the right tension.

What is in store for Ohhh Lulu in 2013?

I have recently left my ‘day job’ to focus on Ohhh Lulu full time, so I am very excited about what this year has to offer. I am hoping to expand my line, by introducing two new corset styles, as well as some more rompers, camisoles & sleepwear. I also have a goal of expanding into more retail stores, locally, and working with more photographers to help spread the word about my line.

You can never go wrong with great craftsmanship, vintage flair and pretty pictures! Thank you Sarah for sharing your story with us! Check out Sarah’s blog for the latest and greatest Ohhh Lulu news and photos, as well as her Etsy shop to buy some lovely handmade lingerie and digital sewing patterns.

Zack – Quilting? You mean you really are working on Farmer’s Wife quilt blocks?

Jessie – I need them…

Zack – Give me those!

Jessie – I need them! Zack, I have to quilt!

Zack – Jessie, you can’t quilt tonight!

Jessie – I can! I’M SO EXCITED… I’M SO EXCITED… I’M SO… SCARED.

So, I’m having way too much fun working on this Farmer’s Wife sampler quilt. I haven’t needed an intervention from Zack Morris quite yet, but there’s plenty more quilting ahead. For now, I wanted to share my progress!

#2 Autumn Tints

#9 Box

#15 Buzzard’s Roost

#23 Country Farm

#30 End of Day

#102 Whirlpool

…and a progress shot for good measure.

I love the way that this is turning out, although it’s a bit brighter and more colourful than I’d planned. I taped these blocks up in my kitchen to take this photo. I actually love the way they looked next to my kitchen table and patio doors so now I’m leaning towards using the Farmer’s Wife blocks to create one or two wall hangings that I can enjoy every day rather than making a blanket that I know I’ll think will be too special to use.

It’s been so fun to try different patchwork patterns in the various blocks without having to make the same block over and over again.

I’ll keep you posted on my progress… and let’s hope that it doesn’t get too Jessie Spano up in here!