Ladder Stitch Tutorial

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.

Fusible Applique

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

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

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!

Embroidered Applique

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

Calico Christmas Tree - Part 2

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

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.

Big Drum Roll

We have a local Agricultural Show in our town, been running over 100 years and is the largest one day agricultural show in the country - so it's quite famous in its own right.  School children are allowed the day off school to go, but that doesn't stretch to the staff so most years I miss out, no different this year.  Anyway a bit of a brag - my daughter's teacher entered Rachelle's GCSE textiles project unbeknown to Rachelle and it won FIRST PRIZE so we're both very proud.

This is the only photo we have of the wall hanging, Rachelle took it with her phone before rushing it to school in time for the moderation.  Hopefully when it comes back home I'll be able to take a better one.

Well Done Rachelle!

Shopping Trip

Went to Hobbycraft for a glue stick and came out with such a lot of shopping.

The plastic boxes sold for peel offs are the perfect size for storing my Gutermann/Sulky rayon thread, and I bought another 10 colours to supplement my stock.  It's being used quite a bit more often now I'm into the free motion stitching.  Four hanks of variegated cotton pearl, two packs of beads I just couldn't resist, ear ring backs so I can wear my new ear rings again, some self adhesive ribbon which Rachelle took a fancy to and, of course, the glue stick which is the only thing I went for.

Colonial Cushion

Due to enforced inactivity - off work with a chest infection, I have completed the Colonial Cushion top. I really wasn't looking forward to this workshop, but it turned out so much better than expected. I've bought another hank of thread and packet of seed beads, in a slightly different colourway, to make another one. Most of my sewing activities take place upstairs and alone, but this is something I can do anywhere - never thought I'd be into embroidery!!

Rough Around the Edges

I'm catching up on a few projects, albeit slowly. Feeling a bit rough around the edges due to the worst cold I've had in a long time. Over the worst, but can't hear a thing which is making me miserable. Made some headway with the hand quilting on my Colonial Cushion yesterday and I feel like doing some more today.

I've a quilt workshop booked for Saturday so I hope I'm feeling better by then. All the quilting left overs have been out and cut into 36 ten inch squares ready for "Crazy Quilt". It was suggested at the last workshop that the fabrics should be sort of co-ordinated - unfortunately my stash isn't big enough (thank goodness) to be able to choose a colour theme, so it's a hotchpotch of everything left over from what I have made at the workshops over the last 12 months. It won't be the best looking quilt I've made, but it will clear my conscience if I have used up all the bits and bobs. That frees me to buy new fabric for next years quilts.

Colonial Cushion Workshop

Yesterday's workshop at Hutton Buschel "Quilts for All" was the "Colonial Cushion" - tutor Beryl Frank from Leven Crafts. The exclusive pattern was designed by Sandie Lush and can only taught by Sandy or Beryl.

It was hard going transferring the dotted pattern from paper onto the neutral coloured background and I only got a few knots worked and two tiny areas of beading done by the end of the day. I came away thinking that this would be added to the pile of UFOs (unfinished objects). However, I've been back and forth to it several times today and it is coming along nicely - more than half of the way through the knots now. I'm using a variegated cotton Caron Thread colour "Flagstone". There were lots of colours to choose from - hard decision, and Flagstone is a combination of soft purples through to greys. As usual I was drawn to the purples. The beads I chose are a slightly irridescent pink. There's a small amount of hand quilting to finish it off, but I'm not at that stage yet.