Folk Art and Fantasy

New Beginnings

2012-01-22T20:54:00.000Z

At the beginning of March we are expecting a new addition to our family, a young lad who we will be calling Sparky! Here he is today, one week old with his Mum, three sisters and his brother.

Today we met him, his Mum and siblings. Also his Grandma, Great Grandma and his cousin with whom he shares his Dad. All his relations were really pleased to meet us, they were friendly, lively and full of fun. We're going to meet him again in a few weeks to see how he's getting on and to get to know him a bit better, then a couple of weeks or so after that he'll be moving in with us.

Ladder Stitch Tutorial

2012-01-16T13:48:00.000Z

I often need to close a hole invisibly on a turned quilt or craft project and my stitching always likes to show where it's not wanted.

There are lots of really nice tutorials and free patterns on Quilt Taffy and here's a link to a well illustrated guide to the Invisible Closing Stitch.

Recycling Shirts - Creative Textiles DVD

2012-01-14T10:26:00.000Z

Colouricious have been around a while now and they produce really good quality videos. I particularly liked this one - you don't need to buy anything to experiment with the ideas here, just put some old worn out clothes to good use. I have done some printing on fabric - I used stamps left over from my card making attempts and I have lots of acrylic paints - it's so easy to do. I have mediums which I could mix with the acrylic paint to make it into fabric paint and it would dry softer - for a wall hanging it doesn't really matter about it drying stiff. Rather than sponging the paint onto the stamp which I find a bit messy, I squeeze paint onto a polysterene plate (you could use a tile or piece of glass), spread it evenly with a brush then press the stamp gently onto it - then stamp the fabric. Acrylic does dry rather fast but you could mix it with Extender to keep it wet a while longer - or just work fast!

Just Hands On TV

2012-01-06T18:34:00.000Z

I subscribed to Just Hands On TV about six months ago. For £6 a month you get to see two new videos each Friday. This sounded ideal - Friday is my day off and to settle down with a cappuccino to watch two quilting videos after showering and dressing sounded like the perfect relaxing way to start my weekend. (You can get to watch a limited number of non subscriber videos for free if you choose not to pay the £6 fee.)

On the first Friday I couldn't find my two subscriber videos so emailed the owner to ask what I was doing wrong - what I had found was a lady talking about an exhibition which I thought was an advert to get you to visit and a further video showing how to use a particular plastic ruler - for that to be of use you would have needed to buy the plastic ruler from the web site so I just took that for another advert. The response from the owner was that those two videos were indeed my two paid for videos. Over the following months there were a few videos of interest to me but some were quite short and usually finished before I got to the end of the cappuccino. In December one of the offerings was a very poor quality video showing someone talking about mini quilts and I decided to call it a day. My decision was more than confirmed when one of last Friday's videos was a 1 minute 24 second demo of how to sew a quarter inch seam with your sewing machine.

I consider myself to be an intermediate quilter who is working on improving more advanced techniques and I would reiterate that some of the Friday videos I saw were very interesting, but I don't feel there is enough advanced material to hold my attention. Some of the videos are introduced as a "quick and easy" way to do something - I don't want quick and easy. I want to continue stretching myself - I can find quick and easy quilting projects all over the internet for free.

I don't want to dismiss this website completely because if I was a beginner it would be a fabulous place to learn all sorts of "quilty stuff" and give you lots of tasters to inspire and develop your own ideas to begin your quilting journey. Give it a try and see what you think, you can cancel your payment at any time if you use Paypal and there are lots of videos to browse through when you join. We're all different and what doesn't suit me may be just the thing for someone else.

When I decided to spend this £6 a month it was to be instead of buying more and more monthly quilting publications and I can confirm that I stuck to this and haven't bought a quilt magazine since last June - pat on the back for me for sticking to that!!

Christmas

2011-12-27T21:07:00.000Z

Christmas was a bit low key this year - we were all missing Benji and while he was ill all the Christmas planning and shopping had been put onto the back burner. Anyway it's a family time of year and the five of us were going to be together for the celebrations and it was great having Tim back for a few days. We enjoyed each other's company, Mum and Dad came for Christmas lunch and we relaxed, opened our presents and managed to eat all sorts of bits and pieces.

Very last minute getting the Christmas tree but Paul managed to get a nice one.

Goodbye Benji

2011-12-22T21:52:00.008Z

Benji has been with us since 18 February 2008 when we adopted him from the RSPCA. He blended into our family immediately and became our loyal, loving and constant companion. We never suspected that when he went lame, four weeks later, we would be saying "Goodbye". It all happened so quickly. Our own vet and three others tried their best to make him better but eventually a large tumour was found on his spine and there was nothing could be done. He left us on 13th December and we miss him so much. We could not have wished for a better dog to share our home.

Ben had his own blog of fun times and days out

http://blogwithbenji.blogspot.com/

Christmas Card from Canada

2011-12-12T05:03:00.001Z

What a lovely surprise - this beautiful Christmas postcard arrived in the post from Mary Lou in Canada as a "Thank You" for organising the monthly swaps on UK Embellisher Swap group.

Thank YOU Mary Lou - I was delighted to receive this - it really cheered me up after a week of being a bit under the weather.

Quilt Shopping

2011-12-11T23:02:00.000Z

Looking for Osnaburg with no success I saw some ricrac in many colours so I bought some red, blue and green to have on hand. I often see it used in projects and have never got round to getting any.

Here's an unusual fabric - it's a bit like jelly roll by the yard - lots of different design stripes across the width of the fabric. I thought this might be good to use as sashing around my redwork squares.

Here's my first attempt at redwork.

Here's my second square - still needs the water soluble pen marks removing.

Lastly a nice piece of sewing themed fabric to add to stash - the camera flash has made it look much lighter than it really is - think darker blue!

Quilt Binder Set

2011-12-11T05:25:00.000Z

Janome Canada have really gone to town with this accessory and produced several excellent tutorial videos on the Quilt Binder Set. When I first saw the binder (and the price) I was sceptical about how well it performed and how it would work with mitred corners. It's not a big deal putting a double fold binding on by hand, in fact it's nice to have a straightforward hand sewing project to sit and relax with, but it is time consuming, and I don't have that much spare time. Click here for all the videos.

There is a learning curve with the binder and I think it will take some practice getting into the swing of it but the video shows that a neat job is achievable. There's never any shortage of help from my husband when there's a technical issue to sort so if I can't get it set up, he will. There's one in stock at my local shop and I've put my name on it for after Christmas. With Christmas and birthday money and a bit of help from next pay day I should have it up and running in the New Year.

Ferret Workshop

2011-11-26T17:38:00.000Z

I need a lot of leaves for this wall hanging, I have a growing number in the box and the other two photos show the veins being free motioned on in the second batch of fabrics. It is taking some time but Paul has improved the lighting in my sewing room so I can work on the dark evenings and it is really giving me lots and lots of practice with the FMQ. My confidence is growing and I am so relaxed whilst working. I feel ready to work on a full size quilt now.

Yorkshire Puddings

2011-11-20T17:20:00.000Z

I can't believe how long it is since I blogged - I've been busy with other things but I have been creative as well - I'm doing lots of sewing and I will catch up with the blogging soon.

So here's a recipe to be going on with.............

When I first married and had a straightforward oven I could rule the world with my Yorkshires, however a move of house and the previous owner's gas oven, follow by a new kitchen and a fan oven saw very sad and disappointing Yorkshire puds and I took to buying them instead. Not at all like the real thing.

Lately I've had time to research and fiddle about and unfortunately I haven't taken a picture, but here is my own recipe which took everyone by surprise today and went down a treat.

4oz Plain Flour
3 Large Eggs
1/4 pt milk
1/4 pt water

Stick blender until everything is well mixed and bubbly on top. Leave to stand for 1/2 an hour or so.

Muffin tin with 1 tbspn sunflower oil in each of the outside holes - leave the inside two holes empty.

Heat the oil in the muffin tin for about 8 minutes until it's really hot, then remove from oven and as quickly and as safely as possible put 1/2 cup measure into each hole - it should sizzle in the hot oil when it goes in.

About 25 minutes at 220 C fan oven until they are well risen and golden brown.

Enjoy as a starter with gravy or on your plate with a full roast dinner.

Fusible Applique

2011-10-27T23:23:00.000+01:00

Before

A while back I bought Laura Wasilowski's book "Fanciful Stitches - Colorful Quilts" and embarked on dyeing fabric to use with the ideas in this book and on other projects. Here is a little quilt inspired by Laura's book.

With some sort of new found confidence with free motion quilting - probably from Ferret's workshop yesterday, I decided not to hand embroider and popped it under the needle and painted away with variegated thread. I made my usual mistake of going too close to the edges so I can't make anything with it - next time I'll leave borders. It's OK for a practice piece.

After

Ferret Workshop

2011-10-26T15:20:00.043+01:00

Work in progress photo - I'm hoping it will look much more splendid when finished.

Here's a link to Ferret's finished version

Click Here

Only managed the morning and lunch at Ferret's workshop at the Royal Hotel in Bridlington, but it was enjoyable all the same. Had to dash off to the eye hospital in the afternoon as things are not going well in that department.

The food was delicious and Ferret was very attentive and helpful. Above is my background to Autumn Leaves wall hanging. You could machine quilt it in straight lines or take the more challenging option of free motioning adjoining leaf shapes. Well, what's the point of taking the easy route? I could stay at home and quilt in straight lines. Once my machine stopped breaking threads (Ferret sorted it) I set off at a pace as I was already lagging behind everyone else - not unusual for me at these events. I wasn't impressed with my leaves as I was stitching them, but once out of the machine and viewed at a distance they weren't really that bad. Everyone at home identified what they were at first glance when asked, so they are good enough for me.

I made a start on the binding - a Ricky Timms method taught by Ferret but it is still to finish off. Fiona from the Royal has kindly offered to help me finish it off if I can't do it from the instructions Ferret gave me before I had to leave.

I'd definitely do another Ferret workshop - she's very lively and chatty and I liked her teaching style.

More quilting workshops at The Royal in Bridlington

http://www.royalhotelbrid.co.uk/Whats%20On.php

If I didn't live less than 20 minutes drive away I'd definitely consider the residential options - the hotel is spotless and comfortable, lovely hosts, on the sea front and the food is awesome! Actually if I was feeling flush, I'd probably go stay there anyway despite the proximity to home as it would make it even more enjoyable.

Back to Norwich

2011-09-25T15:32:00.010+01:00

Jon's back to UEA (University of East Anglia) for his second year. He has a new house just across the road from the Campus, a couple of minutes away from Tesco Express and the Co-op so he wants for nothing!

Lucky on Freecycle

2011-09-18T20:00:00.000+01:00

About a month ago I was lucky enough to get a beautiful sewing cabinet, which seemed to be made to measure for my Horizon MC7700QCP sewing machine, from a lady on the local Freecycle. Today she was offering a Simplicity fold away cutting table and I was extremely lucky to be chosen again to receive that. Actually I was more than extremely lucky as there were some other things I was given along with the table which were surplus to requirements and they are great additions to my sewing room.

Made in Australia from corrugated cardboard, this table is as solid as a rock when set up. In the box it will fit neatly under the bed.

A June Tailor Quilter's Mate - this is a large cutting mat perfect size for taking to classes.

A small Fiskars cutting mat.

A new aluminium yardstick.

A June Tailor Shape Cutter ruler - which I used to cut the borders for the Stained Glass quilt and it's a really nifty gadget. Takes all the pain out of cutting strips, and according to videos on You Tube it cuts great squares, rectangles, diamonds in large quantities so it'll be a big time saver.

This is another nifty gadget - videos on You Tube demonstrate this Square and Circular Pillow Template cutting pillows quickly and easily any size from 12 inches to 24 inches.

There was a travel iron too - another useful thing to take to classes rather than queuing for the ironing board.

Aren't I lucky?

I also got to see this lovely lady's beautiful quilts currently under construction. They were gorgeous and so precise, not to mention perfect colour combinations.

Last but not least I got a guided tour and demo of the all new singing and dancing Brother embroidery machine. I'm not going to go into details but it was AMAZING - I never thought I would want to pursue machine embroidery, but I could well be tempted if I spent too much time looking at that machine. Needless to say this lady's embroidery work was exquisite.

Stained Glass Workshop - Borders On

2011-09-18T19:24:00.000+01:00

The black bias has been sewn down - I used a twin needle which worked well and the only glitches were operator error. I have to admit it isn't easy to keep on the bias when you can't see straight lines, but I can't help that. I slipped a pale green border in before the main red one and I think the colours look good. All the fabric is dyed by me - except the cream background of course. Next step is quilting. I need to think about how to tackle that. The pattern I have used has stippled all the cream - wonder if I dare?

20 Years old!

2011-09-17T19:12:00.001+01:00

My youngest son Jonathan - 20 years old today.

He'll being going back to uni this week. I'll miss him.

And I'll miss his laundry.............and the amount of food he can eat while I am out at work.

He had his friends round for a piece of birthday cake and followed that with a night out. He's going to see Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy for his birthday treat tomorrow!

Bit of Knitting

2011-09-14T20:02:00.000+01:00

When we went to Tim's graduation in Brighton back in July, I bought a ball of fancy yarn to make a scarf. Here it is. I started it a couple of times and didn't feel it was right, then Mum found a video on You Tube and it clicked into place. Once I got going I made it in one evening - about 3 and a half hours. I like wearing scarfs at work in winter - if my neck is warm, the rest of me is too. It's laid down in the photo but when I'm wearing it, it's like a waterfall.

Stained Glass Workshop

2011-09-13T20:49:00.000+01:00

It's a long time since I've been to a workshop at Hutton Buscel and it was lovely to see old friends again. The photo shows how far I got on the day, the rest is to finish off at home as and when I've got time. A wall hanging entitled "Glasgow Rose".

Sashiko Panel - 2009

2011-08-28T10:49:00.003+01:00

This sashiko panel was started at a Susan Briscoe short workshop at the Great Northern Quilt Festival, Harrogate in 2009. It's been languishing in the drawer now for two years. I came across a piece of dark blue batik whilst rummaging this morning and the two cried out for each other. I cut a 1" strip of cream fabric, folded it in half and ironed, then it was sewn round the edges of the panel as mock piping. Borders of batik applied finished it off.

Next step is some "tasteful" quilting and it will get a cream double fold binding. As it is one of my rare pieces of hand work it will become a wall hanging. That mock piping is so simple and really sets a piece off.

Hunter Star

2011-08-27T22:19:00.001+01:00

I subscribed to "Just Hands On TV" last month, it's too early to say whether or not I will stay subscribed. The idea was that instead of paying a ridiculous amount for a couple of quilt magazines each month I would invest it in a subscription to this web site and be able to view lots of quilting videos - "New videos uploaded every Friday!" I've been disappointed with a few "new videos uploaded" as they seem to be either very short indeed or an advert for something they are selling and only two each Friday, just narrowly scraping into the 'plural'. That said last Friday there was a very good workshop on dyeing fabric in plastic bags - that subject being of great interest to me at the moment. So, I'm reserving judgement on JHO TV and will give it a bit longer and see if there is enough to keep me interested.

Anyway, back to the point of this post. There is a competition on JHO TV where you make any kind of star block and send it in - your name goes in a draw and the blocks are used to make a charity quilt. Couldn't sleep last night so went looking for quilt blocks patterns and found this brilliant site which has loads of free block patterns and absolutely excellent straightforward instructions for making them up. The site is Delaware Quilts and there is an alphabetical list of block names, then the blocks are listed in finished sizes so it's easy to locate what you are looking for.

Above is my first effort - a block called Hunter Star. I was very pleased with how it went together but devastated when I measured it to ensure it was the stipulated 12 1/2 inches - it is only 12 1/4", which means my seam allowances must have been just that bit too big.

I've got quite a bit of this leftover fabric so I'm going to make more blocks and create my own Hunter Star quilt. I daren't send my non regulation sized block off to the quilt experts - but I can easily jiggle minute differences in sizes into something acceptable. The prize is a sewing machine and I really don't need any more......... Who knows if I make enough blocks one of them might just turn out to be spot on size-wise.

There were many places in this block where lots of seams intersected and points met. The Horizon was coaxed carefully over these using the O2 foot, stitch no 93, pressure 4, stitch length 1.8, slow speed and a very firm hand. It performed acceptably but not outstandingly.

Quilting in Progress

2011-08-26T17:11:00.002+01:00

The Sue Briscoe Super Strips quilt started in April this year has moved into the next phase. I've chosen to use Hobbs Polydown wadding from Creative Grids. This is the first time I've tried 100% polyester and I might be converted. It's a big quilt - the biggest I've attempted to machine quilt (I think) and I'm managing it well in the large throat space of the Horizon. Already I can see the loft of the polyester is giving a much more defined texture to the quilt and it is light and easy to manoeuvre.

Here are a couple of pictures of the semi-quilted state - only the borders to complete and then I can work on the binding. I've used the piano key style border as suggested by Sue Briscoe but have had to deviate on the mock mitred corners as I ended up just a little short of fabric. With a bit of thinking and fiddling I decided to run each set of piano keys into the corners and it looks fine to me.

The colours of the Bali Pop really make this quilt. When time allows I'd like to do this quilt again in a different colourway.

Hope to finish this one up and post a picture in a couple of days.

Click on Picture to Enlarge

Digital Images

2011-08-23T21:10:00.004+01:00

I've become interested in working with digital photographs and printing them onto fabric to incorporate into my quilts. I opted for Paint Shop Pro but the salesman advised that the memory on my computer was not sufficient to run this programme properly. It has just cost £100 to repair and have the operating system replaced so now is not the time to spend any more money on a computer which is in excess of 5 years old. What the chap did recommend was Photo Explosion Deluxe Version 4 and this appears to run very well on my antique PC. My daughter has just stepped in and had a play with Photo Explosion - she says it is just like PSP which she uses all the time in her A level studies - Great News ............. I've got someone to help me through the maze of features.

Early days and you can't get more novice than this.............

Thistle

With vignette

Scabious

With some distortion

I can see potential already for some really interesting fabrics...................watch this space!

Crazy Quilt Complete

2011-08-23T15:36:00.000+01:00

This quilt was started a long time ago, it may have been three years or more - I can't remember. Some of the fabric I recognise as being more than 10 years old. The quilt started at a Beryl Frank workshop at Hutton Buscel and I came across the completed blocks last week when having one of my regular forages for fabric in boxes and drawers. With the addition of a bit of sashing, backing leftover from another quilt and random decorative stitches along the seams in crazy patchwork style it all came together.

PS - Last week I exchanged an old gift token and a bit of cash for what I am told is a very powerful image editing programme.........can you tell? I've played a bit with the above photo but not sure that I've improved it. More about that in a future post.

Quilting Workshop Invitation for You!

2011-08-20T09:30:00.004+01:00

Philippa Naylor, an award winning quilter has agreed to teach another workshop at the craft group I run in East Yorkshire - post code of venue YO25 6TT

Friday 2nd March 2012 - 10am to 4pm - £26 - bring your machine and a packed lunch. Full supplies list will be provided after payment received.

Sometimes we come home from a workshop with an unfinished quilt and wonder just how to give it a professional finish. Philippa will cover precision piecing, piping and binding to help us confidently deal with all those UFOs. She also gives lots of hints and tips in her interesting dialogue throughout the day and will answer your quilting questions.

Email me for a booking form - places are limited - £10 deposit required by 30th September 2011.

If you need accommodation I can supply a list of local B&B and hotels.

Love to see you there!

Go to Philippa's web site for more information about her quilts and workshops

Tea Cosy

2011-08-19T09:03:00.000+01:00

We were asked at Pick n Mix craft club last month to make a tea cosy for McMillan so here's my effort. It's made completely from leftovers and embellished with lots of different decorative stitches along the seams.

Christmas in July...........and August

2011-08-04T18:16:00.000+01:00

I bought some felt from Cocoon in Brighton when visiting my son last week, with these Christmas ornaments in mind. The tutorial is excellent and easy to follow and can be found on the Art Threads blog which is one of my regular reads. They didn't take long to do for a totally amateurish embroiderer and apart from the felt everything else was available from my supplies.

Also to be found at Art Threads are some fantastic recycling and re-purposing ideas - I'm well impressed with what this lady does with charity shop finds.

Cocoon is small but beautiful with some lovely hand knitting yarns and ideas. There's also quite a lot of haberdashery in there too. Just round the corner from my son's new home so it's a nice place to wander when visiting.

Mum and I bought some very fancy yarn - more on that later - she is making much better progress than me as I haven't fathomed the instructions out yet. Watch this space!

A Proud Day - My Son's Graduation

2011-07-27T10:16:00.003+01:00

Timothy Jack Dean BSc (Hons) Environmental Sciences

University of Brighton

Well Done Tim!

The Proud Family

Me, my son, my dad, my mum and my husband!

Climbing Rose

2011-07-25T00:18:00.000+01:00

I've long wanted a climbing rose and this year Jon and Rachelle gave me one for Mother's Day. The front garden is undergoing a makeover so the rose is still in its pot. Here's the first bloom - perfect and a beautiful colour.

Embroidered Applique

2011-07-10T22:37:00.000+01:00

In preparation for working on some Laura Wasilowski inspired designs using my hand dyed fabric this is a sample, post card sized piece of work using scraps from my stash. It's been a project I've worked on in front of the TV - great carry around project

Dyed Fabric - Results so Far

2011-06-26T15:09:00.000+01:00

I can now say I have a stash of my own dyed fabric, there's getting on 50 pieces so I think it qualifies as a"Stash".

The photos were emailed and I can't seem to control what order they appear in the blog post so it's a bit of a scramble but I'll say what they are under each picture.

Above a two colour gradation from blue to cerise.

Above a one colour gradation of petrol green

Two colour gradation from golden yellow to turquoise - on calico

Spectacular results from folding, scrunching and squirting concentrated dye onto white cotton above and below. These are my favourite pieces.

Above is a random mixture with a base colour of lemon yellow - leftovers from the gradation work has been dripped over the scrunched or folded yellow fabric. I don't like to waste the leftovers and it's exciting waiting for the results. If they're bad they can just be dyed over again later.

Above pastel colours from the first attempts at mixing the dyes.

Above - stronger jewel-like colours on white on white fabric.

A four step gradation of turquoise

A four step gradation of yellow.

I wish I could get my camera to capture the true colours, they really are much stronger and vibrant in real life than these pictures show. My digital photography skills are still a work in progress.

More Dyeing

2011-06-19T12:18:00.000+01:00

White on white fabric from Scarborough Sewing Centre dyed with Procion Petrol Green. The white printed pattern doesn't take the dye so it gives an interesting effect.

Gradations of turquoise on cotton lawn.

Gradations of turquoise and lemon yellow on cotton lawn.

In the pots at the moment are gradations of cerise through to blue and several pieces of fabric which have been random dyed with leftovers from the gradation pots - I can't wait to see how these come out. The colours look so rich when they are wet, hope they don't wash out too pale as they dry. More on that later......

Dyeing - Part 4

2011-06-12T16:34:00.000+01:00

I love this result - the pile of fabric looks like it came from a shop. I'm definitely into dyeing!

Two colour gradation from Golden Yellow to Turquoise following the instructions in Fast, Fun and Easy Fabric Dyeing by Lynn Koolish.

I need to buy a supply of fabric and continue to experiment and produce a range of colours so I can move on and start turning the fabric into quilts.

Dyeing - Part 3

2011-06-12T15:44:00.000+01:00

A two colour gradation from Turquoise to Golden Yellow. Here they are after the final wash, but not yet dry. The colours will pale some as they dry.

I used one cup of water in each container and then added the amounts of pre mixed dye to each cup. A piece of soda soaked calico and soda soaked poplin went into each container, just pushed down, not mixed around. Hoping to achieve a textured appearance by not stirring everything around. The fabric remained in the dye for approximately 18 hours, then rinsed in cold water, again in the washing machine followed by a warm wash with Ariel colour liquid.

The pre-mixed dye was 1.5 tsp to 1cup + 1 tbsp of water.

Dyeing - Part 2

2011-06-11T18:31:00.000+01:00

Today's dyeing session consisted of some fabric shopping - I only found cotton poplin at £3.25 and it's not great but something to keep me going through the experimentations. I have some samples from Whalleys in Bradford and if I decide that I really want to do more then I'll get some PFD fabric (prepared for dyeing) or whatever is suitable from them.

I've made up another gallon of soda ash solution and soaked the poplin and quilting fabric from Scarborough Sewing Centre.

Using my new book Fun Fast and Easy Fabric Dyeing by Lynn Koolish I have followed the instructions for doing a two colour gradation - the two colours being golden yellow and turquioise. The photos show the 6 dye mixes and I already know that little can be known about the end result by looking at the colour of the mixed dye. How it looks wet and then how it looks when it is dried and ironed can be very, very different. This will be seen in a future post with photos of the fabrics I dyed yesterday.

It's a bit messy but I'm enjoying playing around with it all in the summer house. I've had two major spills and it doesn't matter in there. Great place to work when it's not too cold.

I did try to upload the photos in order showing the gradation from Golden Yellow to Turquoise but they haven't appeared in order. It's too time consuming to try and rearrange them so I'll leave them as they are..

Dyeing - Part !

2011-06-10T23:32:00.001+01:00

I have six colours in my Dye kit and using the bottles purchased on Ebay I've mixed up a medium strength of each. Using dry calico which has been pre-soaked in soda ash each piece of fabric was scrunched, knotted, twisted or rolled into small containers and various combinations of coloured dye poured and / or squirted upon

Everything was left for more than 2 hours before being squeezed out and dipped into cold water and now it's drying - can't wait to see how it turns out.

Do You Knit?

2011-06-04T17:22:00.000+01:00

I do a little - there's a waistcoat and a cardigan on the go and I pick them up and put them down as and when I feel like it. It may be a long time before they're finished, but knitting is something I can take with me and do at the same time as talking.

I've just stumbled on Knitty where there is a wealth of lovely patterns - it's a newsletter too and the link takes you to Issue Spring & Summer 2011 and you can access back issues from this page as well.

Getting Ready to Dye

2011-06-02T18:16:00.001+01:00

Metal measuring spoons

Procion MX Starter Kit from www.kemtex.co.uk

Funnel, dust mask, plastic containers

3 gallon bucket on a plastic, protective tablecloth.

Soda ash, otherwise know as sodium carbonate or washing soda.

The book I'm relying on to show me how it's done.

Lots of bits of calico have been soaked for 20 minutes in soda ash and hung out to dry. Tomorrow will be spent playing with colour, mixing dye and and applying it to fabric. Fingers crossed I will soon have some bright fabric to try out some of Laura Wasilowski's patterns.

Home for the Summer

2011-06-01T18:13:00.003+01:00

Jon's home for the summer. We've had a couple of days in Norwich enjoying the shops and restaurants then collected Jon from his flat and headed home. Went to Anglian Fabrics in Magdalen Street for some curtaining, really helpful staff and a great choice of home dec fabrics.

Wish I had four months holiday in front of me................. no wonder he's smiling !!

A New Direction

2011-05-29T14:18:00.000+01:00

Click on the picture to visit the author's web site.

For some time I've been think what to do next - of course there's still a pile of quilts at various stages of finishedness (is that a word?) but how many quilts can a house take? Occasionally I have commissions but they're not really my pleasure - not yet anyway. They make me nervous - when I ask what colour, what style, even what size, the person who has asked me to "do them a quilt" sometimes waves dismissively and says "whatever you think", "they're all lovely", "You Choose". That leaves me in a state of anxiety throughout the whole mission - will they like the colour, will they like the size, will they enjoy the design? So far everything I've done for money has been greeted with enthusiasm and a cheque book so maybe I should drop the panic attack status and adopt the philosophy that whatever I do will be acceptable........mmmm I tend to think that's some way off.

Anyway to continue my quilt journey I need to downsize, not everything that is big is beautiful, it often causes a storage problem. For most of my life I have not been interested in frills and fancies and things without a purpose hence my sewing has been dressmaking things to wear, then quilting things to keep one warm or decorate a rather plain sofa. Making bedding and curtains to achieve a better quality and uniqueness than you can find in the shops and protectors which cover beautiful table tops which really deserve to be uncovered so we can appreciate the natural splendour the tree gave up its life for.

I saw this book reviewed Fanciful Stitches Colorful Quilts and despite it was so "Not Me" I bought it and loved it. It's currently out of stock at Book Depository and quite expensive on Amazon. I purchased through Amazon Market Place and got a better price - however, the Amazon seller was Book Depository so not sure why it is OOS on their own site......a mystery not worth delving into here of course.

Laura Wasilowski's style is bright colours, small quilts, fused together and embellished with hand stitching - look at the book, you may find a Google Preview under the image on this page so you can look inside and you'll get the idea. Perfect for preparation at home, then it can travel with me to be embellished as much or as little as is required. They can end up as a thing of no purpose, a wall hanging, a book cover, a bag flap and countless other items which float in and out of my mind.

Here is the author's blog with some videos of embroidery stitches to help me on my way. I'm finding handwork easier with the arrival of some quality daylight lighting (thanks Mum!) last Christmas. Then there's information on thread types and sizes and appropriate needle types and sizes. Fusing tips page and another on combining embroidery stitches - I have enjoyed reading this blog but have barely scratched the surface so more time needed there. If you like the look of these quilts, you'll love the blog.

This looks like bright, simple and FUN!

All fired up with enthusiasm to make one of these quilts I gazed in disappointment at my extensive stash. I've been a dull, earthy toned girl most of the time with what I've made so whilst my stash could compete with the best of the rest, there's not much in there to brighten up my life.

At the back of the book there are adverts for other C&T Publishing titles and Fun, Fast and Easy Fabric Dyeing by Lynn Koolish caught my eye. Might that be a possibility? How can I justify buying lots more fabrics in lots more colours? I'll leave all that for another post......

Quilt University

2011-05-21T22:06:00.000+01:00

I've just completed my first Quilt University course - Machine Quilting. It lasted four weeks staring April 15th, followed by three further lessons released at weekly intervals on Friday evenings 6pm local time. The lessons containing instructions for what we needed to work on were well written and the tutor was available via the discussion forum every day. Questions seemed to be answered very quickly and were available for all to see. There's also a class gallery where students can post what they are working on, or examples of finished projects or problems which need advice. Also I've done some work on machine quilting and attended a Philippa Naylor workshop, there were still some bits and bobs I found useful being information which was new to me.

There is a more advanced class to sign up for at the end of this month, but I'm too busy to do it justice right now so maybe I'll catch it when it comes round next year.

I think the courses offered by Quilt University are good value for money and let you work through at your own pace. The classroom closes about 3-4 weeks after the last lesson so you need to print out the lessons as they become available if you can't finish it in time. You can click here to find out what courses are currently open for registration.

The picture is a sampler of different techniques I have practiced during the course. The central motif is a continuous line design marked with a stencil. Around the centre is meandering, stippling, freehand lines and some pebbles.

Smooth lines and not getting yourself stuck in a corner you can't get out of will come with practice and I need plenty of that.

The Janome Horizon 7700 QCP really does the job with free motion quilting.

Sew Creative - Fabric Shopping

2011-05-08T16:32:00.004+01:00

I had a day trip to Norwich yesterday to return youngest son to uni. For a bit of relaxation before starting out on our return journey we went off to Wroxham Barns for coffee and cake and that meant a visit to Sew Creative.

I bought some batik fat quarters which I thought might be good to use on projects in a new book - more on that in another post - and a bigger than one metre square piece of hand dyed. I thought the hand dye would be good to back the Susan Briscoe Super Strip quilt, but on reflection I think it's too good to go on the back of something so it may become part of a Ricky Tims convergence quilt.

If you're in the Norwich area and want to buy or look at top quality quilting fabric it's worth a visit - don't confuse it with the shop of the same name in Norwich city or you will be disappointed. Wroxham is just a few miles out of Norwich and at the Barns complex there are various craft shops, restaurant, coffee shop, garden centre etc, etc.

Here's a link to the quilt shop http://www.sewcreativequilts.co.uk/

and you can see what else there is at Wroxham Barns here http://www.wroxham-barns.co.uk/norfolks-must-visit.phtml

Holiday Heatwave - more photos

2011-04-26T22:04:00.000+01:00

Arundel Castle - we wandered round this lovely town on Good Friday, enjoyed ice cream and people watching.........much too hot to do anything else.

Sat by the River Arun - I'd like to explore more - on a cooler day............

Holiday Heatwave

2011-04-25T21:17:00.000+01:00

We've just been to West Sussex for a short break visiting my eldest son Tim (on the right). He's busy doing his dissertation and the deadline is approaching so we decided to go see him for a couple of days instead. He stayed with us for a couple of nights and we all had a good time catching up and visiting a few different places.

Here's my boys and their sister Rachelle. We stopped off on Worthing sea front for fish and chips before delivering Tim back to his house.

It was really quiet at Worthing despite being Easter Saturday - unlike Brighton where I think half the world had congregated to worship the sun.

Super Strips Workshop

2011-04-10T18:11:00.000+01:00

Yesterday I enjoyed a Susan Briscoe Super Strips workshop at the Royal Hotel in Bridlington. I used a Hoffman Bali Pop (Sherbet) and with Susan's help on what colour should go where it is taking shape well. Next job is to make the piano key borders. The colours are gorgeous. Click on the links to see the other attendees quilts - one design, so many different looks! Not complaining but the strong sunlight has made the colours of my quilt look a bit washed out - they are really much stronger.

--

Short Break in Norwich

2011-04-09T14:10:00.000+01:00

Paul and I have just had a couple of days in Norwich. We decided to stay over and start exploring the city - up to now we have not been able to stay long when dropping off or picking Jon up from uni and it hasn't been the weather for sight seeing really. What a glorious day for wandering. We headed towards Magdalen Street where there were three fabric shops - fabulous home furnishing one, a dressmaking one and another which sells sewing machines. I'm taking measurements back to choose curtaining from Anglian Fabrics for our living room which is on the list for a makeover. If you're interested in dressmaking you wouldn't be disappointed in Anglian Fashion Fabrics selection. On the other hand, Sew Creative in Magdalen Street had a few bits and pieces and some machines - they also told me that Sew Creative at Wroxham Barns had closed - very disappointing.

We have lots more explore on future visits, it's a lovely place - lots of history, good shopping and places to eat.

We walked around the cathdral and through the grounds then along the riverside.

HOWEVER despite the city Sew Creative telling us that Sew Creative Quilts had closed, we went to Wroxham Barns anyway and found Sew Creative very much alive and well in bigger and better premises and under new management. If you're a quilter GO THERE. It's not massive but it has a wonderful selection of quilt fabrics displayed in ranges so it's easy to pick and choose and know everything will be co-ordinated. I bought a fat quarter pack and some yardage from the Phoebe range as I have some little girl quilts to make. Their sample quilts felt soft and light so I asked for the same wadding they used so I can try it for myself. Their web address is http://www.sewcreativequilts.co.uk/ and they are situated a few miles outside Norwich amongst several other crafty type shops, garden centre and childrens' play area. Click here to find out what else is there. Don't confuse it with the Sew Creative shop in the city - despite what their website says they do not have a selection of quilt fabrics - just some Christmas stuff and a few fat quarters on a shelf.

My Fabric House

2011-04-06T13:04:00.001+01:00

My Fabric House is where I bought this selection of pink fabrics - a nice pack of fat 1/8ths for £8..99 and free postage. They came very quickly with a small thank you of satin covered buttons. I'd quite happily use them again if I see something I like.

Lazy Girl - Claire Bag

2011-03-26T08:59:00.000Z

The Claire bag from Lazy Girl Designs finished last weekend. It has two central pockets on the outside and small pockets all around the interior. Not particularly difficult to make and it looks nice finished. It's not very "sturdy" and any weight inside distorts the shape. If I made it again I would use a much heavier weight interfacing. It's wide open top gives no security for the contents but there is a small optional flap in the pattern which would keep it together in the middle. It uses a different fabric combination on each side and requires 7 fat quarters, fusible fleece and interfacing.

I think it will be useful for carrying my packed lunch to work - not secure enough to carry anything of value. Just dropping it on the floor would have things dropping out all over the place.

Interior showing internal pockets

Other side showing alternative colour way.

A Rainy Day in Great Yarmouth!

2011-03-13T21:38:00.003Z

Expecting a run down and grotty seaside resort I was pleasantly surprised with Great Yarmouth. Even in February it was clean, tidy and not at all run down. We've never done seaside holidays but enjoy a good walk along the sea front now and again. Jon didn't realise how close he was to the sea, about the same distance as he was when he lived at home. We all found the journey interesting from Norwich to Gt Yarmouth - really flat waterlogged land with quite a few windmills which we presumed were involved in drainage rather than milling wheat. Jon chose fish and chips for our meal before we took him home and then drove back to Yorkshire. Too cold to eat outside we went into Harry Ramsden's and had the worst, most expensive rubbish we had ever eaten in the name of fish and chips. NEVER again - I think Jon will be really looking forward to coming home at Easter and some decent F and C !!! Apparently he can't aford them on his student income and has yet to find a F and C shop in Norwich so is msising the occasional treat.

A Visit To Wroxham, Norfolk

2011-03-12T21:34:00.001Z

During half term a visit to Wroxham Barns turned up a little quilt shop with a very nice selection of fabrics but more on that in a future post. The village (or is it a town?) of Wroxham looked like it was a major part of the the Norfolk Broads with boat hire, fish and chips and a couple of cafes. The rest of it was owned by someone called Roy..... There was Roy's foodhall, Roy's McDonalds, Roy's Boutique, Roy's long stay car park, short stay car park and so on and so on. Roy seems like a really big player in that part of the world. The whole place, with the exception of Roy's premises looked like it had seen better days - houses boarded up and a large, once grand, hotel stood empty and falling into disrepair. We decided we would come back the next day with Jon, our son who we were visiting, and hire a boat for an hour or two. That was not to be - when we returned the next day it was raining heavily and we reluctantly decided that an hour or two in an open topped boat would result in soaking wet clothes, freezing bodies and frayed tempers. Instead we headed for the famous coastal resort of Great Yarmouth, somewhere we have never been and with a view that Jon should see a bit more of Norfolk than the campus of UEA, Norwich city centre and the inside of night clubs.... and if it continued to rain heavily we could view the seaside from inside the car.

Japanese Circles and Squares

2011-03-11T19:00:00.001Z

This quilt started at the Susan Briscoe workshop at the Royal Hotel in Bridlington is finished.

It was quilted the day after I went to the talk given by Ferrett in York - I didn't feel able to stitch in the ditch or cover it in straight lines after seeing her magnificent work so I thought outside the box..........circles, land of the rising sun etc and came up with a large circle in the bottom left corner with lines radiating out around it to the edges of the quilt. I drew round a dinner plate for the circle and free-handed the lines using a yardstick and chalk. I used a brown/cream YLI variegated thread on top and a brown/orange Gutterman variegated in the bobbin. It needs a hanging sleeve then it will be on the wall somewhere in the house.

I used a Japan themed fabric for the back, rather bright but it's not on show on the wall and I'm beginning to wonder, with the rising price of cotton, if a quilt is being made for display then should it be backed with a quality calico. It isn't seen and costs a fraction of what quilting cotton costs.

I'd make this quilt again. It's not a difficult one and lots of different looks can be achieved depending on fabric / colour choices.

Prepare to be Amazed.........

2011-03-08T22:34:00.000Z

Having dedicated last Friday to the completion of module 5 of 8 in the management training I am doing - deadline for all 8 to be completed by 31 March - you would have thought I would have had better things to do than browse the classifieds ads in the local rag. Hunger must have made my mind drift as it was around lunch time. Anyhoo.......... I just happened to see "Singer Treadle Sewing Machine in Cabinet". Before I knew it I was speaking to the owner and making an appointment to view.

Cutting a long story short my husband and I nearly did ourselves in moving this beautiful piece of history out of the owner's summerhouse and into our hall today. We only went that far as it needed a try out before being manhandled any further into our home.

I had a quick look in the instruction book which is in very good condition, inserted a bobbin and threaded it up. Having practiced "treadling" before threading I had got the hang of the rhythm and away I went on some scrap fabric. I diddled about with the top tension and after two or three lines of stitching produced a near perfect stitch quality. Will have to find it a permanent home now.

I need to do more research but I think it is probably older than me - possibly circa WWII (World War 2) but that is very much a guess at this stage. It's in beautiful shiny condition and folds away into a neat wooden cabinet. I am delighted with this purchase.

Only moments after arriving home with it someone called to see me - they looked it over - you can't miss it just through the front door - then said if I decided to sell it I should let them know as they would like it.

I am amazed to be the owner of this piece of history and I'll enjoy getting to know it better and also finding out more about it's past.

Next to the instruction book there is a Singer box which is full of attachments.......there's a ruffler, edge stitch foot, a zipper foot, a bias binding attachment, a gadget for scissors to help cut bias strips......to name but a few. There are more and I'll look at these more closely sometime soon and talk more about them.

10 Inch Squares

2011-03-07T11:44:00.002Z

After visiting the Quilt Museum and Gallery in York we walked towards the minster and I popped into the Viking Loom - I came out with these two sets of 10" squares. I thought they would be ideal to go with the pack of purse/eyeglass case snaps I bought at the museum.

EuroJapanLinks Bag Kit

2011-03-06T10:42:00.001Z

Here's a kit I bought at the Quilt Museum and Gallery in York. It was put together by Euro Japan Links. There's a bright red cotton lining, waxed cord for the handle and the main bag fabric is a kimono fabric I believe. There was a natty trick in constructing the lining part which I couldn't figure out from the instructions so I did what I thought best - It's a good job the inside isn't visible and it looks fine from the outside so I'm well pleased with it.

The finished bag.

Ferrett at Elvington

2011-03-03T17:50:00.001Z

At my quilt group yesterday evening it was mentioned that Ferrett would be giving a talk at Evlington, York tomorrow. The temptation was too much, Penny offered me a lift and that was that. Ferrett's quilts are amazing, she is an extemely talented lady and an interesting speaker too.

This is a small segment of one of the many wonderful pieces of work she brought with her - click here to visit her gallery of amazing art quilts. Photos are no substitute for seeing the real thing - if you get a chance to see them - take it!
I'm booked on one of her workshops in October and this evening has really whet my appetite!

Liberated Log Cabin

2011-02-24T11:46:00.006Z

I bought this book at the Quilt Museum and Gallery in York - a new take on an old design. It will go on my to do pile and I'll be looking out for fabric on my travels.

Tim's 21st Birthday

2011-02-07T17:59:00.006Z

My eldest son Tim turned 21 today - he couldn't with us as he is in the midst of exams so we wished him a happy day from 300 miles away. We'll be going to see him over Easter so we can catch up then.

Just because I haven't blogged lately..............

2011-01-31T17:59:00.001Z

doesn't mean to say I haven't been creative.

Since September i have spent a lot less time on the computer - I really am busy in my real life and I think keeping my creative side going by actually doing things when I have spare time is better than spending time blogging about what I would like to have done but haven't...........

That's my excuse for now - I have so much to blog about and I'll to get some of it out of my head and onto here soon. It's half term now so I will have a bit more time.

Watch this space!

Storm at Sea Block

2011-01-21T08:38:00.000Z

One of my Christmas presents was the Storm at Sea ruler from Creative Grids. Using some Japanese themed fabrics I have knocked up a trial block and it has gone together well. The photo is taken with the block in three strips - these need sewing together to complete it. I'm always afraid of points but the ones which have been sewn so far match up. I'm on the look out now for some fabric to make a full size quilt in this pattern.

Susan Briscoe Workshop

2011-01-16T17:02:00.001Z

I had a really enjoyable day with Susan Briscoe and her Japanese Circles and Squares workshop. It took place at The Royal Hotel, Bridlington where there was lots of room and more than enough excellent food to keep us going all day. You can find pictures of the day on Susan's blog here

Wool Throw

2011-01-03T18:27:00.006Z

This gorgeously coloured wool throw was with my present from Mum and Dad.

Made on the Pfaff E6000 (I think), it has a lovely neat back with no floaters

Book Review - Embellish with Anything

2011-01-02T17:04:00.003Z

I bought this book several months ago from Book Depository - Embellish with Anything It sparked off all sorts of thoughts and whilst I have not made any of the projects exactly as laid out in the book, I have incorporated the techniques into my own projects. All too often the requirements for projects in some books are not to hand, are expensive or have to be mail ordered as there are no craft outlets in my area but with this book I could find almost anything required from in and around the house and my craft stuff.

The first and most important thing to me which I learned from this book was how to get a much better satin stitch around the edge of my embellisher projects - postcards, ATCs etc. It had been niggling me for some time that everyone else's always looked better than mine. It was a really simple technique and it has made a big difference. There are lots of other things I want to try, paper beads for one and there are some really neat ideas for using things I would never have dreamt of using to embellish with.

Lots of good, up close illustations and well written advice make this book a keeper for me which I keep going back to and discovering new information each time. Well worth asking the library for or treating youself.

Embellishing with Anything Fiber Art Techniques for Quilts - ATCs, Postcards, Wallhangings and More

Embellisher Christmas Cards

2011-01-01T06:46:00.000Z

One of our new overseas members at UK Embellisher Swap has not received her Christmas card despite her partner posting it off the first week in December. She wants a replacement so I thought I'd dust off my embellisher and cobble something up. I know a lot of work will already have gone into the original which has gone missing so I hope my contribution will help out. I know how disappointing it is when you don't get a swap and it must be doubly so when you've spent time making something and it disappears without trace.

I'm a bit sorry to part with these as they turned out well - much more sparkle than shows in the pictures but they have given me several hours practice, particularly with the free motion embroidery, so it was a worthwhile project.

More Daylight

2010-12-31T11:15:00.000Z

This great present was from Mum and Dad for my Christmas and Birthday. It's exactly the right height to stand by the sofa or the sewing table and the swan neck directs the light down on to whatever I'm working on. There's also a magnifier I can pull in for stitching and embroidery which is getting more difficult for me to see. I wouldn't have been able to sew during winter if it hadn't been for my daylights, I can sew and knit as long as I like now with this large lamp flooding wherever I am with light.

Markal Paintstiks

2010-12-30T02:12:00.003Z

Great birthday present from Annette - Markal paintstiks. I've been wanting to try these for a long time. Here are some very hurried dabbles on calico and denim - they have worked well on both and are in the drying stage now. My experimentations will be good for using as backgrounds for postcards and ATCs - I am hoping to join in more of the swaps that I organise - too much on during 2010 - maybe there will be more time in 2011.

Rachelle's Ice Cream

2010-12-29T16:37:00.000Z

One of the things Santa brought for Rachelle is an ice cream maker - here is her first batch of very delicious low fat version. Next on the list is something richer with eggs and double cream - cant wait !!!

Update - no photo but fresh raspbery ice cream is to die for.......... Rachelle's second batch had double cream and a large quantity of frozen raspberries. IT WAS DELICIOUS!

Paul's Pressie

2010-12-28T11:04:00.000Z

This is a photo of me sat at the computer in my sewing room - first photo taken by Paul on his Christmas present from me - a new mobile phone! It's looking a lot tidier than usual as all the machines and other bits and pieces were taken upstairs to make way for Christmas - don't worry they're all coming down again gradually so I can get back to work.

Markal Painstiks

2010-12-26T16:12:00.000Z

Lovely Jubbly present from our friends Annette and Andy - some Markal paintstiks. I've gathered some fabric together this morning and will have a dabble this afternoon. They need 3-5 days to dry and then they can be stitched on. There are so many uses for these I don't know where to start !

Peacock Quilt

2010-12-25T00:23:00.000Z

Finished at last - the Peacock Quilt for Daisy (my eldest son's girlfriend). I hope she likes it, it took some doing!

Happy Christmas Daiz!

Another Thank You from UK Embellisher Swap

2010-12-24T00:18:00.001Z

Chrstimas Eve and what a great surprise. The post man brought me this beautiful card all the way from Mary Lou in Canada - hand embroidered complete with bear and star sequins. Aren't I lucky getting these little pieces of art from such creative folks.

Thank You from UK Embellisher Swap

2010-12-22T19:00:00.000Z

Eileen from UK Embellisher Swap group has sent me this lovely winter landscape Chrstimas card, made on her embellisher, to thank me for organising all the swaps each month. It glistens and sparkles and it was a nice surprise.

Monika who lives in Bavaria sent me this super card, again as a thank you for organising the monthly swaps. There is a delicate gold thread running through the top layer of fabric which catches the light beautifully.

Thank you ladies, I am delighted with them and so pleased you enjoy the swaps.

Philippa Naylor Workshop

2010-12-13T18:36:00.000Z

I had a wonderful day at our Philippa Naylor workshop on Friday. She is a lovely lady and an excellent teacher. The quilts she brought to show us were amazing. The rather poor photos are of the 24" x 24" trapunto sample I started at the workshop and finished at home. I'm pleased with it - a million miles from being perfect but I don't think I made a mess of it either. I hope we are able to arrange another workshop next year.

Christmas Table Toppers

2010-12-13T18:29:00.000Z

Small table topper I made with leftovers from one the Christmas quilts - they go on the little tables we have around the house and they're handy to stand drinks and dishes on. I did a bit of FMQ in the shape of large holly leaves. These little projects are handy for confidence building with the FMQ.

Christmas Gift Quilt

2010-11-23T02:07:00.002Z

Here's my first Christmas 2010 gift quilt complete. I've chosen and flannel backing and sashing this year - very snuggly. I wonder who will get this one?

Cath Kidston Book and Bag

2010-11-22T16:08:00.002Z

Here's the bag I made with this book - details here

All the fabric is pre cut ready and included along with the buttons required. All you need is a sewing machine and thread - or needle if you're a hand sewer. I bought it from Book Depository for £7.57 Not a bad price for a Cath Kidston bag never mind a large book full of other great ideas for gifts, toys and lots of other bits and pieces. The fabric, which was cotton duck is lovely to sew with. If I knew a young or beginning sewer it would make a super gift.

Two Block Quilt Bound and Complete

2010-11-21T03:10:00.000Z

The September workshop's two block quilt is finished. I'm not sure why it's called Two Block - in fact I'm beginning to wonder if I've been using the wrong name. Wouldn't surprise me at all - I sometimes forget my own. There's only one block in the quilt and its orientation alternates to make the pattern. Any way it's done and I love it. There's Hobb Heirloom 80/20 in there and it's a lovely weight. Not sure where I'm going to use it but it it wouldn't be too small as a overlay for our king size bed.

Advent Calendar Quilt

2010-11-20T16:17:00.000Z

It's a while since I made one of these - probably 15 years or more when my youngest was a baby. I couldn't resist buying this panel at the Hutton Buscel workshop last week. It didn't take long to sew on the little pockets, quilt and bind it. I've sewed a rod pocket in with the top binding so it can be hung up easily. Need to remember to buy sweets for it soon.

Calico Christmas Tree - Part 2

2010-11-07T12:40:00.000Z

Now it's really finished. I'd forgotten to add the "bright check" I think it's called - a lovely gold garland. That really lifts the piece altogether.

Calico Christmas Embroidery

2010-11-07T11:30:00.000Z

Yesterday's workshop was this Calico Christmas Tree designed and taught by Beryl Frank of Leven Crafts. I'm not an embroiderer, nor do I rush to sew by hand, but I really enjoyed this project. It will look good mounted and framed. No more Hutton Buscel workshops for me until March. I've got one booked in December with Philippa Naylor on free motion and trapunto and another booked in January with Susan Briscoe to make a quilt. With all the other things I've got on the go that will keep me going.

Quilting The Complete Guide by Darlene Zimmerman

2010-11-04T06:41:00.002Z

Before I consider the contents I have to say I like books which come hard bound and spiral so they will open and lay flat by the sewing machine or chair and you can look and work without continually losing your place when the book closes up of its own accord.

Of course you shouldn't judge a book by its cover - however it is clearly written and beautifully illustrated. At the beginning there are Quick Reference Guides - standard sizes for batting, mattresses, bedspreads and so on. Formulas for cutting shapes, setting and corner triangles, formulas for backing and binding. I think these are extremely useful and I have used them to help me finish off quilts which have been started at workshops and I haven't been able to understand the finishing instructions.

The rest of this book contains a huge amount of information and gives a clear understanding of how to tackle many techniques, blocks, binding methods and embellishments such as applique. Some good edge finishing including how to mark and bind a scalloped edge - the book is packed with info and I was delighted with it.

Definitely a keeper which I will continue to dip in and out of.

All Set for Life's Next Chapter !!

2010-10-31T23:14:00.001Z

We took our youngest son Jon off to university at the end of September - after a few weeks to settle in we visited him last Saturday and found him well and happy. Here's a photo of the quilt I made him to go with and it matches perfectly with the new bedding I bought. It's really quiet without him and his big brother Tim. I'm looking forward to us all being back together again at Christmas.

Freecycle comes up Trumps Again !!!

2010-10-29T00:06:00.000+01:00

This time it's for Paul. He's fancied an organ for years and one came up on the local Freecycle on Sunday. Arrangements were made and we went to collect it from a village just outside town on Monday. It has been stored in a garage for a long time and had the cobwebs to prove it. Extremely heavy to move but it cleaned up very nicely and is now stood in the hall. We're not going to struggle to get it much further into the house until Paul has decided it's something he is going to keep. It needs a bit of work on the inside but otherwise it's OK and the sound is excellent considering it's about 30 years old. PS he is a pianist so his experimentations are quite pleasant to listen to.

Philippa Naylor Workshop

2010-10-24T22:49:00.001+01:00

My friend Chris and I are organising a Philippa Naylor workshop - Free Motion & Trapunto - Friday 10th December 2010. It is priced to cover the costs, not make a profit.
There are a few places left for anyone who would like to come. The workshop runs from 10am to 4pm in Driffield, East Riding of Yorkshire and is £25. You need a packed lunch and a sewing machine which can have its feed dogs dropped. There is also a supplies list which is available when you book.
Philippa is a well known award winning quilter - you can see her on this video which was filmed in May at the Houston quilt show. The second half of the video gives a taste of what is on offer at the workshop.

http://www.thequiltshow.com/os/shows.php/episode/606
Please email me lynnedean1@gmail.com if you are interested in booking a place. I can supply hotel / B&B details for anyone who wants to stay over.

http://www.philippanaylor.com/index.html
Fabulous Free-motion Machine Quilting With Trapunto
Full Day - All Levels.
Exploration of free-motion machine quilting begins with discussion of materials, equipment and the techniques Philippa employs in her work. After demonstrations students then produce a range of samples (stippling, contemporary feathers, leaf and line designs) to practice free-motion work, before moving on to a small trapunto sample piece which will illustrate how well trapunto adds sculptural dimension to a quilt. Students will leave class confident and inspired to continue developing their free-motion skills! Patterns are provided.

You do need to be familiar with your sewing machine, how to set it up and drop the feed dogs as Philippa is unable to spend time during the workshop with individuals who can't do this. You should be able to find out all the info you need in your instruction manual.

Two Block Quilt

2010-09-23T20:45:00.001+01:00

This is the pieced top which was started at Quilts for All, Hutton Buscel at the September workshop. It is a fairly simple project to cut out and put together and I like how the bright pinks and yellows have come together. Need to buy in more supplies of wadding and have a trip to the qulit shop to choose a backing fabric to finish it off.

Christmas Tree Applique

2010-09-22T20:40:00.001+01:00

Here's the start of a Christmas wall hanging - I saw it in an old Patchwork and Quilting magazine "Filigree Tree Hanging" by Mary Mayve and it took my fancy. I've used Heat n Bond Lite Sewable and I don't like it - it's so lite it doesn't stick very well and parts company with the backing every time I attempt to sew around the edges. I've got Steam a Seam and good old Bond a Web so will be using that for repairs and the rest of the project.

Freecycling my Sewing Room

2010-09-21T21:15:00.001+01:00

I picked up a very nice sewing cabinet on Freecycle last summer and two school tables which were desinted for the tip just before the summer holidays. A couple of weeks ago a set of Billy bookshelves came up on Freecycle, which matched those already in the dining room - or should I say Dining and Sewing room combined. Perfect addition and I've got lots of sewing stuff on them now. Freecycle has really come up trumps in the sewing dept. Pity I missed the cutting table a while back!

Rachelle's creation inspired by Kat Von D

2010-09-13T21:01:00.000+01:00

Here's the video which inspired Rachelle's remodelled T Shirt. This is a picture of the HIM T shirt before Rach started.

And this is the finished result.....

Not bad eh?

And more tea cosies

2010-09-06T10:47:00.007+01:00

I've had some leftovers from a quilt made a year or so ago which have been into the bin and then rescued several times.....I just love the colours. They were all the cut off scraps which I randomly sewed together. At last I have a use for them. More tea cosies for MacMillan!

I've used the needle, thread, scissors pictograms to finish off the bias binding on these two.

Thank you Julie!

2010-09-05T20:30:00.000+01:00

For the info on the paintsticks...I think I'll look around for some and put them on my Christmas list. They do sound like my sort of thing - I don't mind messy!

Lazy Girl Runaround Bag

2010-09-05T15:40:00.000+01:00

I think I have to say this Lazy Girl Runaround bag is just too lazy for me. The concept is good - I wanted something which was fairly unobtrusive and could carry valuables such as money, cards, keys and specs around at work without having to take the big bag. It's just too simple for me, size is perfect but I want more detail, pockets, zips maybe and I'm quite capable of making something more complex.

If I made it again I'd interface the handle to make it a bit more substantial and I'd probably also lightly interface all the bag pieces too. All those layers would give the Horizon something to think about !!!

1/4" seam foot and lots of layers have not made a happy marriage on this amazing, wonderful, fabulous new sewing machine of mine. Janome Japan have announced they are making a new 1/4" foot and it will be free to all those who have bought the Horizon and included with the machine in future.

Might not make this one again, but I like the little Maggie bag I made and it could have several uses so a good way to use up leftovers of nice fabric. I will be adapting it though - sewing on the hook side of the velcro by hand was a bitch and the eye end of the needle went into my poor finger several times. I will work out a way to stitch it on before the main seam is sewn..............and YES I do have a thimble(s) and NO I couldn't lay my hands on it/them at the time. I should have known better as I'd already impaled my left forefinger on some extremely small and sharp applique scissors and caught the blood on my white T shirt rather than my sewing project.

Great Northern Quilt Show in Harrogate

2010-09-04T10:43:00.000+01:00

I had a pleasant day at the show yesterday. We got there early to book into the workshops which I had spent a long time studying. Eventually settled on Barbara Howell using photographs for inspiration. This was really interesting and I thought it was something I could get into. Definitely a way for me to get away from patchwork quitls and into art quilts. I learned a lot in the 45 minutes and the course was free.

Next workshop was Maggie Davies using Abaca Tissue and Fabrico pens to make a lovely poppy picture. Foils and heat activated glue all came into it to complete the picture. It was a demo not a workshop so it was free, but another one to be enjoyed and I got lots of ideas to take away.

My last workshop was advertised as using paintsticks, which I've wanted to try for ages. When I booked in the chap said it had been changed and we would be doing this......gesturing to a small wall hanging with stamped and embroidered flowers, a bright border and completely bound around the edges - was that alright? It looked lovely so I didn't mind the change of medium or paying £6.50 to make one. What actually happened was we were given a small square of fabric, a few carved wooden stamps and acrylic stamp pads and a box of Fabrico pens, some of which didn't work very well and the lady leading the workshop said they had been badly treated by previous workshop attendees - preumably at another show as this was the first workshop on the first day at Harrogate. We were told to play around on the fabric and stamp all over to get a feel for it. 15 mins into the 45 mins workshop I'd done as much as I wanted to do to the square of fabric so I ventured to ask about paintsticks. I was told they were messy, very, very messy and if you didn't use them for some time then a skin formed over them..........................I was disappointd with this workshop. I've done fabric stamping and pens before and the finished item fell short of what I expected. My own fault, £6.50 doesn't go far these days!

My friend went to the Sally Holman session which was £6 and they worked on a kit to make a seascape card and got hints and tips for completion from Sally. They came away with the whole kit to finish at home.

The rest of the show..........well it looked like the same stalls, in the same places, selling the same things as last year and the year before but there was one or two new ones to look at. I bought a Rennie MacKintosh pattern and fabric kit for a wall hanging from Patwork Creations. I bought Lisa Lam's new book Bag Making Bible. Lastly I got Christmas fabrics from Scarborough Sewing Centre for a pattern I want to do from an old quliting magazine I found in my pile.

Lovely day out, not sure if I'd go next year unless I plucked up the courage to actually enter a quilt in the show.

Calico Cats Tea Cosies

2010-09-04T10:28:00.001+01:00

Another two tea cosies made this morning. I bought this Calico Cats fabric a long, long time ago from Fabric dot com. I ran out of bias tape so made my own from calico and it is stitched down with a pictograph stitch from my Janome Horizon - rows of little cats!

Well Done Rachelle!

2010-09-01T21:10:00.002+01:00

Well done Rachelle - fabulous results including 5As and 3Bs 1C and a Merit. All that hard work paid off and we are all very proud of you. Enjoy 6th Form!

And then there were two...........

2010-08-28T17:59:00.000+01:00

No 2 tea cosy completed - this time I've finished the bias tape ends in a tidier manner. No more "Delft" type fabric left so will raid the stash next for sizeable pieces of fabric. I have loads of cheap poly wadding which I would love to be rid of and these are a great project to use it up on.

Bias Binder Foot

2010-08-27T14:59:00.000+01:00

I can't remember when I bought this foot but it came to mind whilst I have been thinking over the purchase of either the quilt binding set at over £100 or a Janome bias binder foot for around £12. It has to be more than ten years, in fact I think it will be nearer 15 years. It came from Jaycotts and has the price label on the bag of £11 - quite steep really all those years ago. It didn't take nearly as long to find it as I thought it might amongst my extensive range of sewing paraphernalia.

All those years ago I tried all ends up to get some bias binding round something or other and make that foot pay its way but I remember tossing it to the back of the sewing box regretting how much I'd spent on another gadget which didn't work.

I've watched a lot of videos on various bias binder feet in action recently and armed with that knowledge I snapped this foot onto the Horizon, slotted the tape through, pushed the quilted tea cosy edge inside the tape and away I went. I moved the needle position over to the right a little to make sure the edge of the tape was being caught at both sides and Bob's your uncle.

As far as I am aware I do not have an Uncle called Bob, but I do have a foot which makes a very acceptable job of attaching binding.

I don't think it will do big, thick jobs and I'm not sure how long the plastic will hold up - could be a bit brittle with age but it stands out above the Janome metal foot as this one is adjustable and it can take a wide range of tape widths - I'm guessing here from the gauge on the foot - 5mm up to around 20mm - and that's after folding. It says low shank on the packet but the Horizon is a high shank and I can't see it matters on a snap on foot anyway. Jaycotts still sell it for £18.33 and there is a choice of snap on or screw on.

What a satisfying find amongst the jungle of my sewing supplies! I'm still thinking about the bigger quilt binding set but I don't need the smaller Janome binding foot as long as this one holds out.

McMillan Tea Cosy

2010-08-26T21:50:00.000+01:00

I've been asked to make a tea cosy for a McMillan Cancer Charity appeal so here it is. It didn't take long and if I can find some suitable fabric I might do another one. Paul and Rachelle thought this one looks a bit Deflt.

Complete and Gifted

2010-08-21T19:46:00.000+01:00

The Christening Quilt, In the Pink, has been wrapped and delivered - hope they like it!

The colours here are closer to real life.

Lazy Girl Maggie Bag

2010-08-21T19:33:00.001+01:00

Here's my first Lazy Girl bag. It's a Maggie (large) which is just right to carry a camera or a phone or anything else of similar size. I liked working with this pattern it was clear and well written and the little bag went together easily.

What I would do differently next time - use thinner batting. I used some left over Sew Simple cotton which I thought was thin enough but no, it would be better with something finer - a polyester I think and I have some good stuff in that line so it won't be long before the next one is coming off the production line.

Quilted in the Pink!

2010-08-20T09:36:00.001+01:00

Off with the standard foot and on with the Open Toe Accufeed - it would be nice to just press a button but you have to remove the shank and screw on the Accufeed, less than a minute and the results are well worth it. I chose a wavy line for the quilting to contrast with all the rectangles. I spray basted the quilt but I don't think I need to - next time I'll try pinning and be more environmentally friendly. The Accufeed keeps the layers so precisely together I should be OK.

First printed label I've made, in fact it's the first quilt I've ever labelled. I'm told that all quilts should bear a label, so maybe I should get into the habit. I used MS Word and made the background the same colour as the backing fabric. Found a giraffe in clip art to tie in with the backing fabric and then wrote a few words. I got my printable cotton sheets from Crafty Computer Papers - it's supposed to be washable and I will be washing the quilt as soon as the binding is on to get rid of any remaining adhesive so fingers crossed.

Colour is a little better today but I'm in the shadow - shouldn't complain about the eye piercingly brilliant sunshine!

Crisis has arisen as this quilt is made of left overs I have nothing to bind it with. After a frantic search late last night to avoid a mad dash to Scarborough Sewing Centre today, Paul produced the bag of new fabrics I bought for the upcoming September workshop. The background I chose for that is lemon so that ties in well with the backing so fabric shopping trip avoided - what a pity!

Well Done Jon!

2010-08-19T21:16:00.000+01:00

Just interrupting the sewing to announce Jon's A Level results...........

Philosophy & Ethics A
History B
English Literature B

Congratulations Jon, we're all very, very proud of you.

All set now for University of East Anglia and a joint honours degree in Philosophy and History

May all your wishes come true!