Susan's Fabulous Finish

Susan made this wonderful diamond quilt for gifting to her very own daughter... Carefully chosen fabrics with very favourite colours should make it a hit. It's a tricky design only because of lining up all those sashing strips.

Left over diamonds have all been used up for this backing making a double sided quilt.... I've just had a daft thing pop into my head, and now I'm singing... Double Diamond, Double Diamond, Works Wonders!!! Can you remember that advert?  It was for beer (here's a link) gosh isn't the internet fun!!!! Anyways... toot toot toot for your fabulous and finished Quilt Susan,.

Stitching News

A Party of Princesses? Gail is working on the borders now so this will soon become a Princess sandwich with flower garnish... sounds delicious! oh dear... I must be hungry as I write... ha ha ha

Pam's used a beautiful King Tut, variegated thread and a fancy stitch to embellish the mane on this next Unicorn, making it very magical indeedy. Stars will be quilted on the starry background next.

Christabelle had warm knees... with this method of Apartment Quilting you can choose whether to machine stitch or to do it by hand... most people choose hand stitching, I thought that was to be more accurate and to give fudging space but now I think it's to keep warm!

Princess Jackie decided to make up her own patterns for two Advent Calendars. We had a bit of a brainstorming session which involved making a practice pocket or two... I don't know where the storm went but we ended up with single pockets and a completely different plan ha!

Hilary Hat has been playing with applique... what a cute little puddle duck who only needs a couple of little embellishments, like an eye maybe? This block will be made into a cushion for a special gift... Hilary has plans for many more applique cushions

At the very same time, Hilary Hat is working on this Twister Wreath. She had no idea how it was made but had decided it looked really complicated... now she knows just how easy the Twister method really is.

Enid's table looked like a play school crafting morning.... Lots of tracing and gluing and cutting out. She has seen Farmer Lynda working on her Birds On A Wire quilt and just wanted one for her very own self... and so she will.

Sister Susie continued blanket stitching her applique letters with metallic thread. It's beginning to look a lot like a fabulous festively Christmassy cushion now eh!

And Fiona Too was stitching with metallic thread... it makes the cushions look  much more festive... If you can't add bling for Christmas... when can you?

Sunday Fun Days

Today I will have to confirm numbers for our next Sunday Fun Day

Sunday 25th November 9:30 to 4:30

You don't have to sit doing patchwork or quilting to enjoy a mini retreat.
We have folk who knit, crochet, make felt birds and animals, curtains, dressmaking and a few Teepees have been worked on too.
Sunday Sewing, Patchwork Parties ...
Sunday Fun Days  the next ( after this one) will be January 27th 2019

Every time we meet for our Sunday Sewing Patchwork Parties, we encourage folk, if they want to, to bring along toiletries, towels and anything that could help support a fleeing family... Given that they arrive at a refuge with only the clothes on their backs, everything is needed and appreciated. We had a great collection of useful things at our last Sunday sewing day. Everything including many toiletries and potions, toothpastes and brushes, shopping vouchers, slippers and teddies. It feels good to help!

An Amazing Advent Calendar

Luna Twearly finished her a m a z i n g Advent Panel!!! 

Such a lot of work...

Now this was one, long term project, but that's not how it started. Way back in August Luna purchased the panel and a few threads with the intention of stitching it all together during her summer holiday in France. She usually has very creative thoughts while making... and this was no exception. She returned from France with it unfinished... Since august she has continually worked on the detail. Millions of tiny French Knots on every leaf. Metallic thread embellishment on every snowflake and...

Each of the 24 pockets has been layered with wadding and backing fabric before they too were  embellished and quilted with metallic thread and more French Knots! The background panel was quilted some before the pockets were stitched in place so that made it a bit easier... Luna has left her Advent Calendar with me in my shop so, if you would like to see it, it's hanging there for your visit. You will be amazed just how many French Knots there are!!! Toot toot toot-etty-toot Luna Twearly... It's a fabulous and finished, new Family Heirloom for the future.

Fabulous And Finished

I can't even begin to tell you how happy Carol is with this extremely festive project.  She purchased the pattern during our Pilgrimage to the Festival Of Quilts in August, from Dandelion Designs, It's been fun choosing and gathering all the fabrics and felt and little things she needed and it's been even fun to make... that's what Carol says...

Just look at all the little details.  Carol started on this at our September Sewing Retreat and Finished it on Monday this week. Hours and Hours and hours. It's an absolutely fabulous and finished wall hanging... toot toot-etty-toot Carol.

This is what Princess Jackie calls something quick to make for gifting!!! As always with Jackie's beautiful quilts, lots of bright colours and expertly appliqued. Toot toot toot for a fabulous finish that will be gifted... not sure I would be able to part with it!!

New Sue was inspired by the reading pillows some ladies have been making... great gifts!! There's a lot of work in these Unicorns and every one made has been so very different... I'm sure it will be a great hit with the little lady who will receive it.

A little pocket on the back of a cushion and we get to call it a reading pillow, it sounds so much more luxurious, don't you think? ha! Toot toot toot New Sue, it's yet  another totally fabulous and beautifully finished project... I'm wondering... Do you actually sleep??

Stitching News

Merrily brought in a big bag full of favourite, well worn T-Shirts, not hers though, they belong a family member, they are extremely precious! they will be a quilt... but the owner doesn't know!!! Making a loose starting plan... this is only the start!

New Sue finished her lovely and quite 'girly' Unicorn cushion top. 
Each one of the Unicorns is so different...
Elizabeth Hartman's top selling pattern in my little shop!

Gail continues with her Princess block production. All the little cuties are having their characters put on now, with the smiles and eyes... Hand Stitching I think. Gail has been making 4-Patch units and flower applique blocks to be used in her borders.

Luna Twerly has a little neighbour who's company she enjoys immensely. She helped out his Mummy during Half Term by offering to mind Little Neighbour. To entertain him one day, they baked... A LOT ! Luna made him this little cooking apron. How Cute is that!! 

Lots of stitchers, including Sister Sue and Fiona Too, are realising that it's almost sewing prevention season...   YES...   Just now, only now....  realising that time is running out! Tisk!!! This smart and festive Bunting Cushion has been a popular make during the year

It's quite a quick make really as the applique stitching is done through the wadding/sandwich so no need to go round the letters twice... nifty plan eh! Not only that... there's no need to finish off all those ends too neatly as they will be hidden inside the cushion.

Enid loves to stitch applique with Blanket Stitch. She's happily-happy with her improvement of accuracy and is really getting to grips with fabric and colour selection... it's great stitching with a group as seeing other folk's choosings can be very inspiring.

All Day Di started yet another project... Look at those fussy-fun-faffing Holly leaves... having cut the leaf pattern through the middle, Di was able to get a great effect with the fabric's printed stripes.

Beryl is stitching the last few quilting lines on her almost 2 mile long, Festive gifting table runner. She's used quite a lot of metalic thread so the stitching shouts out Happy Holidays!!! well... it does to me... If you can't Bling-Up at Christmas... When can you?

A Lesson Learned

I've had full permission to tell you about this.
Long ago, Linda used to make quilts but, like many, hasn't tackled one for years. Inspired by an upcoming Diamond Wedding Anniversary, and the urge to gift something very special, she embarked on this journey... and she's enjoyed it very much. 
Almost every week she's been popping in to my wonderful shop, bubbling with enthusiasm, for a conference about the next round, design possibilities and fabric choices then leaving with a good/great idea and perfect new fabrics.
Excited to crack on with the quilting, a sandwich session was booked.
We did all the prep... taping and clipping the backing to the table TNT (Taut Not Tight!)... smoothing out the wadding and teasing it out to get a great even result... Then, starting in the centre of the quilt top, we smoothed out in preparation for the hand basting as this beauty will be hand quilted.

Can you see what we discovered?
Did you measure the borders Linda?...
Oh dear, she forgot about that technical information.

We talked and decided that it was going to be easier in the long run, to get that all corrected before proceeding. A blow to the enthusiasm but Linda did it. Unpicked the offending borders, obviously not all of them, the last thin border had been stitched to the bias of the triangle, (that was the main problem) and then the piano keys, all  re-measured and re-attached.

Now, I'm not telling you this to criticize, not to Name and Shame at all... it's to remind you to ALWAYS measure your quilt through the centre to make sure your borders are the correct size. Just stitching on a border without that little but very important step can lead to very wavy edges.

Just one week later, having removed and re-measured and discovering that there was about 6 inches of extra border on each side... YES 6"!!! A sandwich has now been made and it's all beautiful and flat... so the Hand Quilting can begin. Hat's off to Linda for persevering.

Sandwiches

This superb sandwich belongs to Angela. Every patterned piece fussily cut from one large print fabric, with amazing results, and the addition of the lovely delicate background blue. It's been hand pieced over papers and will now be hand quilted.

New Sue is thrilled with her Bargello wall hanging... sandwiched and ready for quilting. It has us all wanting to make a festive WOW for our walls... maybe not for this next Christmas though... I'm going to add another workshop to the plan in 2019.

This brightly coloured bear quilt also belongs to New Sue but it was sandwiched on a different day, I know I am quite behind with posts (don't ask!!) 

Stitching News

Our Monday Sheila is a character. She makes an incredible amount of stock to sell for various charities and always has lots of stitching requests to help others. At the moment though, she's making a new, reversible coat, all for her very own self. It's fun watching it come together and to see steam coming from Sheila's ears... she's having to follow a pattern and that's just not her chosen style!!

Carol has finished all the big jobs on her Mandy Shaw, festive wall hanging. There are little doo-dads to still to be made... as you can see there's plenty of hand stitching. The doo-dads will be used to embellish the tree I think... it's already very busy, but if you can't bling up Christmas projects.... !

Annbacan works on several projects all at the very same time and in inbetweenies, she makes these Mile-A-Minute blocks. Always a riot of colours and great fun to fill in little stitchy gaps of time.

Susan finished all the quilting in just one day! She chose to shadow quilt the diamonds with co-ordinating threads... It looks really good... purple-y going one way and rich turquoise going the other way... what a great idea! Wonder who came up with that? ha ha ha

Jean Bean has whipped up another of her favourite quilts. This Henry Glass fabric couldn't make it any simpler for us. I managed to get another bolt, much to Beano's delight! I don't think this quilt is for Andrew though... he has to wait a little tiny teeny weeny bit longer.

Stitching News

Susan was able to make her quilt sandwich so that she could make a start on her quilting. She was really warm with all that beautiful sunshine pouring in through the newly cleaned windows! We had a ponder over possible quilting lines and a simple design was chosen.

Sporty Sue was squealy happy with her little Bunny head...
The Elizabeth Hartman patterns have made a lot of my customers very happy indeed. There are lots of little bits to cut and label which seems a little daunting at first, but the blocks take shape splendidly.... right before your very own eyes! 

A really fun quilt with lots of quirky little details to enjoy... Sporty Sue has been working on this quilt in between other projects. This is the first time we've seen the blocks stitched together and the Attic Window setting is so perfect... keeping the little pooches separate to avoid those awkward Doggie encounters that can happen!!

Susan started work on this applique block during our recent retreat. She's happy with the result so has decided to continue to make all the other blocks in the set. She's using a Moda Linen & Cotton blend, it's so very lovely.

Rose's Stag Do?

It's no secret that the ladies who come to class on Tuesdays are prolific quilt makers. They inspire each other with design, pattern and colour and the sheer joy of making quilts for other people, most at quite a pace too.... marathon pace in some cases.

This ammmmmazing quilt has been made by Rose, a Tuesday lady (she's a bit of a cake goddess too!!) She picked up a pattern while on our Annual Pilgrimage to the Festival Of Quilts (yes, our coach is booked for 2019) Anyway, Rose didn't much like the whole quilt pattern/design but loved the applique designs for the Stags. Once her main Stag applique blocks were ready, we got our heads together and Rose was happy to 'Wing It' for the joining/filler blocks.  Quarter Log Cabin blocks and 16-Patches... very effective indeedy... Didn't she do a great job!!!

The quilting is better seen from the quilt's rear view and look at the great use of leftover and rather rich and beautiful Batik fabrics... a double sided Stag Do? ha ha ha
Congratulations Rose. It is an absolutely fabulous and finished gifting quilt. Toot toot toot-etty-toot!

Kate's Compass Quilt

Kate asked a family member what design might they like if she were to make them a quilt... Always a risky question, in my opinion, Ha!!!... and it was... Said family member flicked through the internet and settled on a Mariners Compass... I rest my case... just don't ask!!! 

Rising to the challenge and using the beautiful and bright floral fabric as the starting block, Kate just got on with it... deciding on the border designs as she stitched, which is a method Kate uses a lot! It's sideways on in my photo as the quilt is quite enormous and I didn't have any quilt holder-uppers tall enough to help hold it the right way up...

With a backlog of large quilts to be sandwiched and quilted Kate decided to have this one professionally Long Arm quilted by Amanda with this simple wave design. After hand stitching the 3 miles of binding, Kate is about to proudly gift this beauty to its new owner... Toot toot toot Kate, it is a fabulous finish indeed. 

Merrily's Tea Towel Quilt

Now this is a fabulous finish.... 

For hundreds of years, Merrily has been collecting Tea Towels... they were to be memories from her various travels and memorable events in the UK. Of course some of the collection had been gifted to her by family members from their very own travels. Merrily decided that the collection needed to be used up... No point having all those wonderful memories folded up in a draw. Quilt-As-You-Go and Apartment joining with the addition of that beautiful Batik Hand Dye fabric has made such a wonderful , memory filled project.  

Fussily cut Tea Towels have been used for the backing too. We all spent quite a while listening to Merrily's tales "This one was from here... That one has a funny story, Oh yes and  this one was...."
It's a truly fabulous and finished quilt. Toot toot toot-etty-toot Merrily.