Stitching News

Jean Hill's fabulous and finished Strippy Tote bag, beautiful colours, all Batiks! Jean started this at Lynda's recent workshop but she had decided to make her tote larger. Those beautiful buttons are a smart idea... old buttons covered with new fabrics! Toot toot toot Jean.

Rose is cracking on with her beautiful Batik blocks. She loves heather-y colours and is chuffed with her fabric choices... I think Rose might keep this project.

New Sue made a beautiful Batik table runner for a friend, I posted about it recently. Now said friend needs matching place-mats... 8 in total, Sue was surprised at the amount of binding needed for such small quilts... she grumbled about all the corners to be turned too, ha ha ha

Always up for a challenge is Christabelle... This is a pattern from Anna Maria Horner, called Folk Flower not only is it reverse applique and strips on the bias, Chris is fussily cutting all the flowers and leaves too.

Princess Jackie has all her blocks made for this second quilt from the same pattern, colours and fabric choices are Jackie's idea of pastel tones, ha ha ha.... still bright in some eyes though eh! This second quilt will not have the sashing, it didn't need it.

Quilt Tops

Both of the next two quilt tops belong to Norma. She's a bit of a character... absolutely loves sewing but doesn't enjoy too much faffing to get accuracy. She almost always starts new projects with gusto. I help her to plan a project and all goes well... until she's left to get on with it! 

Norma declared that she wanted to make Log Cabin Blocks with her quilt show loot of Batik Fat Quarter Bundles. Mathemisms were done (by my very own self) and a few tester blocks were made in class... all good! Norma took the project to our recent retreat to continue making them.

 I'm not quite sure what was in the air at Cromford? (actually I do know, but my lips are sealed) All of Norma's Log Cabin blocks ended up different sizes, varying between 7" and 8 1/2", they also turned into Court House Steps! Seam allowances were the culprits... How on earth would she get the blocks joined together?... We did it though... Back at the shop we added sashing strips of various widths with a beautifully co-ordinating Batik fabric... Wider strips at one corner (bottom left here) migrating to thinner sashing strips at the top right... very quirky and now it's all sewn together it looks like it was the plan all along eh! 

I showed you the start of this quilt on a previous post... see how the 4-Patch units look great as rectangles? Norma didn't quite have enough blue sashing fabric, she only had 2 Fat Quarters! but we found a very close matching blue Batik in my shop... so that's another quilt top rescued and ready for sandwiching and quilting.

Somewhere on social media recently, I posted pictures of a newly arrived fabric collection from Moda . It's called Safari Life. My niece saw it and declared her love!! ha ha ha. Her Nannie was contacted (that's My Mum Gwynneth) and a quilt plan was hatched. Nannie/Mum has finished the top already... It's a Safari Life Charm Pack stitched together with borders added... simple and perfect for the commission! 

Stitching News

Kate finished her strippy tote bag... started at the first of Our Lynda's workshops a couple of Saturdays ago. Made with thin strips of fabric and a piece of Bosal's In R Form and finished off with very classy looking handles. Toot toot toot Kate, a fabulous and very useful finish.

Norma was wanting another quick to finish gifting project and had two Fat Quarter packs that she wanted to use up. Rectangular 4-Patch units looked great with the limited colour choice so that's what we did. When I say we... I cut, Norma stitched!

Christabelle is very happy to be coming to the end of making this quilt top. The templates included in the pattern were the wrong size... we had to do a lot of mathemisms and email writing to the designer... but Chris's made it to the end... see the extra little detail for the corners... just the quilting to do now.

Princess Jackie has already done loads of quilting on this fun gifting quilt. The applique detail has been poooophed with faux trapunto ... it's ever so tactile!!

Foundation Paper Piecing Workshop

The Foundation Paper Piecing technic can confuse people, at least at the beginning it usually does... I always get folk to do the end of the Oh Christmas Tree workshop first off, that's why all the tree bits are in the right place for my pictures.

Once all this tree stuff is done we move on to the Baubles, Foundation Paper Pieced Baubles... they are slow going and most ladies finished three by the end of the day... 

Homework? Of course... we need more Baubles!

Belated Stitching News

Carol started a new project... it will be for gifting and the pattern is from a magazine. We had a small ponderment over the construction instructions and decided there is a much easier way to do it... that happens a lot in my world... it will save Carol some fabric... provided we pondered correctly!

Lou Lou was very happy with the way her sample of the Feathers turned out... remember she made a cushion?.. so she started to kit up more feather blocks so there will be a quilt made, a sofa throw made with very snuggley, Moda Flannels.

Jean Hill finished her lovely little, no colour quilt top (disclaimer... it's for a baby to look at!! not to be used as a baby quilt! that would be rule breaking, tut tut) Lot's of folk are wanting these No Colour baby gifts... what's going on? 

Judy purchased on of my "I Spy" Six Packs... that's 30 x 6" squares of different and interesting fabrics. She didn't want to just join the squares together so she added the four patch units, that's a good idea! She now has enough "I Spy" squares left over to make another quilt. 

Also made with one "I Spy" Six Pack we have two smaller quilts, quite possibly for babies to look at!! ha ha ha. They're both totally toot toot toot-a-bubble as they are fabulous and finished.

Fiona Too made this cute little fellow with another Elizabeth Hartman pattern, Dogs In Sweaters...  Fiona is going to make him into a cushion, with a concealed zip to boot! 

This fabric, including a great panel, had only just been unpacked from the delivery when our Pam saw it, purchased it AND ran up this fabulous quilt top. Lick-etty-split she needed to make a quilt sandwich! When it's finished, Pam is allowing me to borrow it for a little while so you will be able to see in my shop

Princess Jackie has almost finished applique stitching and the embellishing of her latest fabulous quilt blocks... Having altered the size of the applique pictures by printing them at a lesser percentage, we had to fiddley-faff with the sashing mathemisms...

More posts to follow...
I know I'm very behind sharing my pictures... I lost them again!! I had to pop back to Lilly for more instruction. Then I lost my perfect purple camera too... only to find that in the bottom of my ruck sack wrapped up in my brolly!!!
There's no hope!

Sunday 3rd November

SUNDAY FUNDAY SEWDAY REMINDER
Have you booked your place for our upcoming Sunday Sewday at Checkley Village Hall on
3rd November?  9:30am - 4:30pm

We will be treated to a fabulous menu that is going to be just perfect for this beautifully colourful, and rather chilly, Autumn weather...

The menu...
Breakfast Bars
Hot Chocolate with optional Rum splash
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Lobby (A local delicacy... Beef and Vegetable Stew)
with Crusty Bread
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followed by a perfect (optional!) dessert of
Sticky Toffee Pudding

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Tea and coffee available all day.

We are continuing with our collecting of all sorts of things to donate to the Refuge. 

They have changed the name from Arch to Glow... but it's still the same, and they still need our 'stuff'

Any new toiletries and sanitary items. Towels etc.

Good quality clothes and shoes, suitable for women, children and young people.

New toys would be great too... there's a long list so please click here for more information

Lynda's Strippy Tote Workshop

I think it is fair to say that everyone enjoyed their workshop with Lynda. It was a chatty and quite noisy workshop, which is always a good sign! At times it sounded like a sweat shop with all the machines stitching straight lines at the very same time. Below are pictures of the Totes in progress and a couple of finished ones... complete with little inner purses.

We have a long waiting list for this workshop so I've scheduled one for January 18th (which is already fully booked!) and another for 15th February... I'll keep adding dates for this fabulous and fun workshop until you have all had a go.... How's that for customer service!!

Michelle's Quilt Top

Michelle My Belle is working on a commission quilt. She always meticulously plans her projects. All fabric choosing and supply calculating is worked on and noted in a little book... all discussed with her clients.

 Michelle's customer is very happy so far, and no wonder... Michelle popped in to get her backing fabrics and wadding for this lovely little quilt top, so I asked permission for this piccy... I do that for you!!