FINISH!!!!!

This was the MAMMOTH New Year's Day 2015 mystery quilt. It is bound, labelled and washed (as I marked it with washable markers) and it is going to my mum next week - my dad has been nagging me to get it finished so I have.

Gone, but not forgotten....

Two tops posted to Ani in Devon for a quilting challenge in February next year when, at a quilting show, the challenge is to quilt ten quilts a day for charity.

Two finishes - must be approaching the end of the year....

A tumbler quilt - made Leaders and Enders style for Mark's Dad and a bit of a boring one but quilted with a dog panto. And Mark has bought himself some new slippers....

Retro finish

This is what happens when you aren't paying attention and put a whole row of Ani's heart pattern upside down - you get a space invader....

Winner, winner, brocholli and cream cheese bake dinner

We had a challenge at Rocheberie, we were given half a yard each of the red and blue fabric and wadding and were told to make what we like. My quilt won 3rd prize out of 39 quilts! I won a package of four fat quarters. Tonight I am like the cat that got the cream!

Full moon

I received an email at work today telling me there might be some disruption as some building works were carried out to the outside of the building. I looked out of the window to see this:

Not my idea of a Diet Coke moment....

Doorstop

In my bid for Total House Domination, I needed a doorstop for my Fabric Stash Room - so I had to make one.

Learn and move on....

A while ago now I signed up for a patchwork competition - it was for the Make and Mend festival in Leicester. The outline was to make a practical patchwork item from recycled fabric. I made my City and Guilds bowl from shirts:

The festival was yesterday and I dragged Mark over there so I could pick my bowl back up. The place was packed -people everywhere - some of them unwashed. We had to ask where the competition entries were because we couldn't find anything to be told the winning quilt had already been taken home. We went to look for my bowl - couldn't find it. There were about 3 quilts and one shopping bag on a wall -no bowl. Had to ask again and the lady took us back into the room and produced my bowl - still in the cardboard box I had posted it in - from under a chair. She said she really liked it but was worried about displaying it. Mark and me came out laughing but I won't do that again.

Lutterworth Piecemakers Exhibition

I have not been a member of this group for over two years but I still managed to get a quilt into their exhibition!

Two more reasons

Why I sometimes struggle with doing binding

Fred FARTing

My Dad will tell anybody who will listen that I am into Patchwork and Quilting - I don't know how he gets it into the conversation but he does. When Mum and Dad (Fred and Wilma) were out walking Max the other week in a wood in Wales, they met a lady called Mary who told them about a local patchwork shop that was closing down - they were shutting the shop but going into business more on-line. Long story short, Fred told me and I sent him on a Fabric Acquisition Road Trip:

I requested purple. Mum paid. They did good! I think it was a sympathy gift as I have been in the wars. 6 stitches on my foot which has been VERY painful and I struggled to hobble round the house for a few days. Getting better now though.

Bridlington again and Total House Domination

I have just come back from a retreat at Bridlington. Jan Hassard - the same as last year which means I have added another three UFOs to my ever growing pile..... Day one was Infinity Squares:

I did 4 our of the 12 squares on the day but have noticed an error which I have decided I can't live with and will alter (most unusual for me). Day two was Undulations:

On the day I got row 1 and row 2 mixed up and had to unpick and sew them back together, only to realise that I had done exactly the same thing again and sewn them round the wrong way..... More unpicking to do.... Day three was Twisting Triads:

and I haven't spotted an error in that one yet...... Before we went away, my attempt at Total House Domination began - progress so far:

Festival Finish

This was a pattern I bought THIS YEAR at the Festival of Quilts and it is finished! It is a Beth Studley pattern and is called a "pod". It went together really well, even though it is lots of darts....

Basket case

This was a free tutorial for a quilted basket from Geta Grama. She is in Romania and I love her stuff. I substituted an English Paper Pieced panel for her pieced one. I had to do my handles a bit differently though as I forgot to attach them before the lining (spanner). I also had to unpick the lining and do it again as I got it the wrong way round but I won't mention that (double spanner).

Another Rocheberie mystery finish

I made another one. Rather than using two colours, I used left over bits and orphan blocks etc. I thought it would use up a bit of "stash" but all it did was make getting the lid back on the box impossible because I had rummaged in the contents so much.

Finish in time for Halloween

I can't be too early with my Halloween finish - there is stuff in the shops already.... This was a mystery class at Rocheberie earlier this year. It was 10" squares and strips. I made one in Halloween fabric as Mark says - when it comes to my stash - I have a Halloween problem. I quilted it with a panto called "Along Came A Spider".

Fortunate finish

Fortunately, I have finished a quilt which means the Godzilla photo can move down the screen. I made this top a couple of years ago but have just quilted it and done the binding. I "cut the bits out" using the log cabin die from Accuquilt. I've just been cutting another one out from my scrap bin in an attempt to use some stash.....

Godzilla

I keep a small bucket on the floor in my sewing room by the ironing board. I drop loose bits of thread in it and then empty it into the bin every so often. Today, it contained this:

Liz, I'm surprised you didn't hear my shreek from across town........ Mark says I have a definite "spider shreek" - closely followed by me shouting his name. This spider is definitely destined for eviction - as soon as Mark gets home.

Silent Sunday

I am keeping busy....

I have put together my Bonnie Hunter Leader and Ender project - this is Rick Rack Nines and is HUGE..... Mark had to stand on a chair in the garden and he is 6'2".

Ironing it will be a mammoth task, never mind quilting it.

Willow

Night night Willow. I will think of you everytime I punch out paper hexies for my English Paper Piecing as you always grumbled at the noise. Love you.

A finish - they are like buses.....

No finishes for ages and then two at once.

This is Ani's heart pattern and, with Ani's permission, I did a demo at Rocheberie quilters yesterday. I had the quilt made in 1 1/2", 2", 2 1/2" and 3 1/2" squares to show what it looks like in different sizes. I had printed instructions and asked for donations to Rugby Pawprints and with the £5 for doing the demo, I raised £16.43 - not bad! When people asked how much they should donate I told them 10p if they don't like dogs and more if they do.....

Bramble non event

Me and my big gob, I am now 7 blocks behind with the Bramble mystery......I kept up until June though - good for me! I have been busy elsewhere. I am doing a demo at Rocheberie next weekend (with Ani's permission) and have been quilting my samples production line style....

May's Bramble blocks

I am glad I am keeping up so far....

Prize Winning Quilt

It's official - I have a prize winning quilt. It was a competition on facebook by Ani Catt. The first person to post a picture of the completed mystery quilt top won a prize - and that was me!!!!! My prize was four very nice fat quarters which are sustaining me through my self enforced fabric diet....... I have quilted and even done the binding - get me!!!

More Brambling

The next Bramble blocks.

Done, done, done, done....

Had to post a picture of this as I am so pleased with it - new blind in Nessie's room. Hated the previous one but this one is perfect - husband is my hero. Also, Nessie is empty which means New Year's Day 2015 is done - well the quilting is finished..... Next finish is the Bramble Patch mystery blocks - this is an extra block called Spring (I think Summer, Autumn and Winter will follow throughout the year).

Close, but no cigar...

Almost there....

and Penny is currently on her THIRD bandage after needing staples in her leg for a nasty cut - don't know how she did it but it was probably on something sharp in the brook - can't keep that girl out of water....

the end is nigh.....

10 blocks done, 3 to go.....

and, 2 years and 9 months later, vase is nearly full but somebody has a use for them so time to empty it again. Also, when the vase is this full, the spools don't make such a satisfying sound when you drop them in.... Little things matter.

slow progress

I think I am just about halfway.....

South Sands Hotel, Salcombe, Devon - sewing retreat

Have just got back from a week long sewing retreat with Ani Catt in Devon - had a fantastic time. I think we all laughed non-stop all week. Lovely group of people and we all got on really well. It was a longarm retreat organised by Ani so some of us knew one another before going so that helped. This was the first photo I took, just before arriving at the hotel.