My Small World QAL (& Giveaway Winner!)

Following on from last weeks bloghop for 50 Fat Quarter Makes: Fifty Sewing Projects Made Using Fat Quarters I have a winner for the girls twirly skirt bundle!

Using random number generator, there were 23 comments (24 actually but the 24th was spouting spamming nonsense about about my post being helpful and insightful, thats gotta be spam!)

And the winner is comment number 10 who was SewLittleToSay! Congratulations! I will be in touch for your address!

Thank you to everyone that entered and for all the lovely comments about the book. Don't forget you can buy 50 Fat Quarter Makes in all good bookshops, or here on the publishers website where you can also buy an e-book version for your tablet or iPad. And of course you buy from Amazon!

You can also find a video tutorial for the gathered skirt, Satchel bag and nesting bowls in my new '3 projects in 30 minutes' film course over on Craft Daily. In the video I will take you through step by step how to make each project so its great if you feel you need a little extra help! While you are there why not take a look at the other video tutorials Craft Daily has to offer, there is something for everyone!

When I have had any downtime recently (which isn't often as you may have guessed!) I have been mostly working on a new project, My Small World Quilt.

Image from VeryKerryBerry.blogspot.co.uk

The quilt is a design by the talented Jen Kingwell published in the Spring Special 2015 edition of Quiltmania magazine. The QAL is being hosted by VeryKerryBerry amongst others and full details of the posts and support available can be found here on her blog.

I LOVE Jen's style and have had it on my 'to make' list for an age to make one of her quilt designs. However until now I never seemed to find the time. I think I saw them as long term large scale projects, with the challenge of lots of new skills in the different piecing techniques. So, it kept on being bumped to the bottom of the list despite my passion for the quilts

Step up 'My Small World'. It just fits the bill and my life so perfectly, the time I have to 'selfish sew' and my family and ethos. The size (at 33"x52") means it is a manageable project to take on, the new skills I need to hone will be practiced on a smaller scale so somehow feel more achievable. The size also means I can use the ample stash of scraps I have, with no need to buy more fabric which is always a bonus in my mind, not least because I can dive in and sew whenever the opportunity arises without waiting for supplies.

low volume stash explosion!

My Small World also struck a cord with my emotional connection I often seem to develop for quilts. The children have loved looking over the pictures and finding new hidden treasures in the quilt each time they look, I really enjoy it when the quilt and the making becomes a real family activity. Our world IS small. We live in the rural countryside, with everything being fairly close. School is a mile up the lane, I work from home only occasionally travelling to teach. I like life this way, it suits us well and we are all happy and secure.

This quilt just seems to reflect that so well. Whilst my life is lived in a small world my connections are huge, thanks to social media I am connecting with likeminded people from all over the world everyday.

 

It seems that this quilt has struck a cord with many people, although perhaps not everyone will read as much into it as I! What can I say, having come from a family virtually devoid of heirlooms I seem hell bent on creating as many as I can for my children and their children and more generations to come. And so ingraining meaningfulness in them from the very first stitches makes them all the more special straight away, compensating for not having decades of family heritage in them.

So far I have completed part 1 of the quilt. I am thoroughly enjoying playing with my scraps, the challenge of the needle turn appliqué was equal parts frustration, agony and delight! So much so that I decided to hand piece the curved section in the bottom left corner over machine piecing it.

Some of my point are pretty horrendous, the seams don't match in places. But it doesn't matter. This is a quilt made for enjoying the process and the using, for showing favourite fabrics and inventing  stories to go into it.

I will keep you updated with my progress!

I'm following the leader, the leader, the leader

its happened again, I've been sucked into the latest Instagram QAL craze, this time + and x blocks.

I had made up a few (8) blocks last year and totally loved them, but knew I probably didn't have the patience to make a whole quilts worth. Trouble is I loved them so much I knew only a quilt would do.

Then hot on the heels of the scrappytripalong came the idea from certain persons that the + and x block would make the ideal replacement, for those whose lives were lacking in a crazy haze of piecing having finished their scrappy trip quilts.

How could I resist. It seemed perfect. I had also been toying with asking for this block in my bee next month and when Januarys queen asked for AMH feather blocks (my other option in my head) I knew it was destiny.

So hopefully 20 blocks from my bee buddies (perhaps more if they love me and/or get carried away, I won't say no!) plus the 8 blocks I already had, I reckon I needed to add another 20 to this myself to make it a decent size quilt. I have a big workshop this weekend with lots of prep to do, the studio must be clean and clear, so I've set myself a target of 5 a day to get them done and give me time to do prep/cleaning before Saturday. This is where I am at so far

Love love love them! I have 10 left to do but I am starting to run out of low volume/fresh light colour fabrics. Hopefully I can eek it out.

Over the weekend I finished off my crochet cowl and have been wearing it ever since, so cosy! I have started a jumper for Jools. A little experimental and I am not sure it will work but if it doesn't I  can always turn it into a cushion cover ;-)

I've also been doing a spot of dressmaking, IG peeps will have seen already but I will hopefully get some good photos to share soon. I hadn't realised how much I missed it, I have fabric on the way for a washi dress and can't wait to get started.

I have to go clean and organize and plump cushions as we have a rental inspection tomorrow (groan) and hopefully squeeze in some xplusalong-ing!

Last week in pictures

As promised here is the insane amount of sewing I got done last week!

Excuse the instagram photos (whoops, I forgot to mention, I fell for instagram! You can find me @lovestrawberrypatch)

From top to bottom there is:

1. Fractured Oakshott Finished
2. Christmas Table Runner Sample for Workshop finished
3. 2 patchwork chair pads for the girls made
4. EPP Rose Star Cushion made as sample in preparation for teaching epp class at LQS
5. Same cushion but used as a table mat/mini quilt
6. Liberty Mini Finished
7. Another rose star block made (that's 7 now)
8. Bruce the Buck phone case made
9. More + and x blocks made
10. Infinity scarf made from my Melody Miller I won from Kelly back in May (finally!)

I am embarrassed to say there was more but I just didn't take photos (these were bad enough, there are only so many naff pictures I want to clutter my blog with ;-)

This week seems to be heading the same way...I 'may' have just started a swoon quilt on a whim whilst Mary was here for a sewing day on Monday, ahem. Well I have finished a few wip's so I figured I was entitled to start another (technically two as I've been sewing up all of the hst cut offs to use at the same time).

I've just got the log burner fired up so I think a cuppa and a biscuit are in order before braving the Arctic conditions in the sewing room again!

Whoops missed my blogversairy!

Oh dear, whoops! Little bit of an anti-climax was my blogversairy, so busy working on VIP's (very important projects) was I that I completely missed it! Still, sewing had to be the best way to celebrate it!

Hmm, a little disappointed nobody sent cake ;-)

For anyone who is interested it all started a year ago on the 17th June with this post. I am amazed daily by the kindness and support of the online quilting community and so honoured to call some of these wonderful people my friends *grin*. Had you told me a year ago that I would be going to London for a weekend of sewing with these talented bloggers I would never have believed you!

Thanks to each and every single one of you for reading my ramblings, giving kind and encouraging words and telling me off and giving me a kick when I need it, ahem Nicky ;-) I actually love you all, you make me a better, stronger more adventurous person and I wouldn't be where I am now without you (although my husband may have something to say to you about the amount of time I spend in my studio now!!)

Anyway, what have I been so busy on? Well killing two birds with one stone (there is a pun there, honest, you'll get it in a while!) I have been working on the last two outstanding items on my FAL list. My mother in laws birthday is this weekend and I wanted to make her something VERY special because she is special. Without her help I wouldn't have been able to come to London and I love her so much. BUT I can't show you for fear she will see it, you will have to wait until next week!

So the other item on the list was to do  my Birdie Stitches block for July. You may have read before now that I have a love/hate relationship with these birdies (read as hate!) So I decided I was going to do something about these annoying little blighter's, see the pun now??!!

Yep that's right I decided to get rid of these winged creatures of torture by finishing the quilt top! I still hate it AND with over a years build up to the quilting I.AM.DREADING.IT! Not least because I managed to make the quilt grow in size a good several inches by adding what is becoming my signature scrappy and white boarders. I also have a very sneaking suspicion that in my haste to get it done and over the top is now less than flat and is going to be a b***er to baste and quilt without getting puckers. Oh listen to me, what a whiner! 

I think deep down I do love it really, this was the first big project/qal I joined in with when I started blogging, I was also the third ever quilt I started making (it is all Cindy's fault btw, I saw her sewing along and had to join in!)

In other news, seeing as the big day is passed I can show you what I made my Dad for fathers day. I used up a remnant from Juliette's old blackout blind, an odd shoelace and a toggle (hehe for presents from rubbish!) to make him a shoe bag for his running shoes. 

I printed off a line drawing of some running shoes, transferred it onto the material and free machine embroidered it. I am still having trouble with the heat transfer pencil, it did work a little here, but I couldn't hold the iron on any longer or the fabric would have melted! And due to the waterproof/blackout coating I couldn't put it upto a light source and trace it. Still, I think they do look like running shoes. Dad was pleased with it at least, he sent me a comment on facebook hahaha ;-)

As for my husband, I didn't make him anything, not because I am mean but because we have enough handmade stuff around the house and I didn't think he'd like a zippy pouch or cushion lol! So I made him a very special lunch instead. A day out on Dartmoor with banger sandwiches cooked al fresco, we had a wonderful day indeed :-)

The quilting's the star!

Today I am tired, Easter holidays are tiring! So I'm going to give you lots of photos and a few words. Probably best that way!

Hugest thanks to Jenna at Sew Happy Geek, without her awesome QAL this wouldn't be here :-)

everyone casually drapes their quilts over the garden bench - right? Well they do when the 7 year old on hand is too short to hold it up!

Circle quilting, may not be the last time you see this!

FMQ squiggly lines

Ooops, so those quilt labels I printed are not washable after all ;-)

Obligatory folded quilt shot!

Backed in a £1 charity shop flannel sheet that took days of hunting for!

Quilt details:

Sew.Happy.Quilt QAL

Top Pieced in Denyse Schmidt Hope Valley

Hobbs Heirloom 80/20 batting (single layer)

Backed in Cotton Flannel Sheet from Charity Shop

Machine quilted in a circle pattern and FMQ squiggly lines in borders.

I have another quilt finish for you tomorrow! (no wonder I am tired hehe)

Sewing to make you warm and fuzzy

What a wonderful weekend I had, I hope you did to!

Saturday brought an unexpected surprise. My daughter had a friend to sleep-over and we ended up having an impromptu sewing lesson. Her mum had only asked a couple of weeks before about arranging some beginner lessons for her but this was totally unplanned. If it had been planned I may have panicked about letting a minor loose on my precious machine and not enjoyed it so much ;-)

Not wanting to change a winning formula we made another pouch, this time a smaller purse size. She picked the fabrics and fussy cut, helped with the rotary cutting and aside from a brief demonstration did all the stitching herself with a little assistance.

I think she is going to be a natural!

Here she is with her creation, very proud!

The finished purse

Not wanting to be left out my daughter spent the time I was sewing with her friend busy sketching a design for her own pouch, which she wants to give to her school teacher. She also showed a blatant disregard for the limit of my skills and chose to make an egg shaped pouch. Cue me panicking about putting in a curved zip!

We did it!

She chose a fabric that is somewhat reminiscent of a psychedelic speckled egg, heaven knows how it got into my stash!

After all that fun we made pancakes and gingerbread men and rounded out the day with a very wholesome walk in the woods by a tumble down castle, ah perfect!

On Sunday I threw away all plans of a day by myself at the local quilt show in favour of more warm fuzzy feelings. I had come across this the previous evening and before I knew what my fingers where doing I was jumping in with both feet.

Lynne over at Lilys Quilts has done an amazing job rounding up many talented quilters (I'm excluding myself from that comment haha!) with the aim of making 50 quilts by the summer for the children of Siblings Together to take home from their camp to remember their experience by. Siblings Together brings together children separated by the care system. Having 2 siblings myself I know how special the bond is and was immediately moved by the work of the charity. I have pledged to make 2 quilts, possibly 3! But wanted to do something immediately to get the ball rolling so I made a few blocks for the group projects.

First up were some simple log cabins, although I must have had my sleepy Sunday head on as I kept getting the configuration wrong!

Then I moved onto a granny square, I only had enough white solid left for one of these, good job too as I could have spent all day making them, I am hooked! I had to get this one packed up as soon as I finished it or I would have had a hard time parting with it.

If you want to help head over to the flikr group here. You don't need to make a whole quilt you could make a few blocks, donate some fabric or wadding or backing. Perhaps even offer to put together a quilt from a top for someone who doesn't have the time. Anything will help.

Having topped up my warm and fuzzy feel good level to the brim I became wonder woman for the rest of the day. I grabbed my Sew.Happy.Quilt top and set to basting, quilting, binding and burying thread and had a finished quilt by 10pm last night! She is in the wash and I'm hoping to get her dry today to snap some pics before we loose the sun for the rain tomorrow!

Rainbow Swap Kicks off, More Spaces avaliable in Round 2!

SWAP NOW FULL

(Edited 11.1.12)

Wow, what a busy weekend! We have been dry-stone walling, painting barn doors, gardening and a little sewing was squeezed in! I managed to make up my first two blocks for the Sew.Happy.Quilt QAL with my new Hope Valley fabric. Had to use it quick or it would have stayed on the shelf to be stroked!

Woven Block

Snowball Block

The Rainbow Charm swap also filled up really quickly and by Friday I was giving the green light to all the ladies to go shopping for their very own little bit of rainbow.

In fact the response was more than I expected and I have several ladies who missed out on spots. Because they are all so keen to take part I have promised I will run a second swap group if we can fill the 28 spaces again. So If you missed out on the first group here is your chance! Comment to sign up, make sure if you are a no-reply blogger to leave your email.

Full swap details are in the original post here

You are more than welcome to take multiple spaces if you fancy getting yourself a bumper stack of rainbow charms, just remember you will need to purchase 1 meter for each space, so if you want 2 spaces and 112 charms you need to buy 2 meters in you assigned colours (each a different fabric).

Please help the ladies get round 2 off and running by spreading the word and blogging the swap. Im sure they'd be really grateful.