This week.....

This Field Journal stitchery is now completed.  Rather a sweet dainty one

A few years ago I joined in with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge....  I am going to try and keep going this year and use my new Crazier Eights rulers.  I bought a pattern book too (not cheap and got soaked in the wet post ride so is a mess but still usable)  Anyway these fish is one of the patterns so I am going to make them up and use my lighter blues for background water.

I had a bit of a spell sewing smaller pieces and cutting lots of the bits I need for the 'water'....  and have 2 fish ready.   A lot of my scraps are small pieces so some of these are joined.

A few online friends are making PopStar together (free pattern from Fat Quarter shop) and these are my four January blocks....

As you can see with all the star points I am gathering rather a lot of HST's.....  another collection happening!

Another block for Civil War Bride is completed too.....  

... still a long way to go.

Righto, Gotto Go..... there is coffee to be had!

Hope you all have a wonderful rest of the week....xx

      

Friday Night ......

Many of you already know about a couple of online events for sewing together..... 

On the first Friday of each month Cheryll hosts FNWF (Friday Night With Friends) and anyone can join.  Just register on her post which she puts up a couple of days before ... have a virtual sew in and in the next couple of days blog about it so anyone can come and visit....  It's a lovely way to catch up on blogs and see what others make.... 

On the third Friday of each month Wendy does similar - FNSI (Friday Night Sew In).  Same thing as above and anyone can join.  There is also a Facebook group which is nice for the non-bloggers and can be as chatty as you feel like.

Last night for FNSI I kind of sewed most of the day....

The little pinwheels blocks were all put together and a border added....  

It is a small quilt and the pinwheels were made from the little corners trimmed off when I made this quilt last year

Both quilts are going into the Waiting to be quilted queue now!

I have started a new block for From The Heart.  I needle turned the hill down last night. 

Then I added a few more little flower outlines to this little Field Journal embroidery....

Righto, Gotto Go.... I want to prep up the next bits for From the Heart... it is a house and tree.

Have a lovely weekend..... xx

Dutch Treat Quilt....

I finished all 196 blocks in October 2018 - I think it took a couple of years to do them all as it was hand reverse applique ....

Then last year I quilted it but this year I have done the binding and now it is a finish....

I used a lovely new cotton sheet for the backing....

I had a peeper round the edge of the joined blocks ... and then added another peeper before I sewed on the binding.... hand sewn binding down on the back....

Different coloured hand dyed fabrics were used for the backs and a soft Tilda was the main fabric

Simple quilting just outside seam lines on the squares and then some ruler work in the border

Finished at 74" square

I'm very happy with how this quilt turned out..... 

Righto, Gotto Go.... sorting out those disaSTARs today.... I think I've worked what happened!

Hope you all have a wonderful rest of the weekend

Stitching Happening.... and unhappening...

I've had a fairly busy sewing week with one thing and another....

As much as I am avoiding going out to busy places as much as I can.... I am still having my small group sewing days with friends while we can....

Tuesday hand-sewing I glue basted a bunch of half hexagons ready to start sewing into pairs for my Inner City quilt ...

Then I sewed a couple of pies .....

Wednesday machine sewing I started by doing some machine applique on blocks that were part of a BOM last year...

They still need quilting as it is a QAYG project...

Then I started on my stars.... and being the clever thing I am I decided to get several done at once and chain sew away happily.....  I realised pretty soon I had made a big cutting error and not cut enough of what I needed but too many of what I didn't need.... Not sure what I did as I am usually so careful about cutting but I think I got the different fabrics mixed up.....

They are in a box whilst I sulk and get brave enough to take them out and see what I can salvage.... I am making this with a few friends and there have been some good ideas passed on.

So then I got onto my pretty little pinwheels and made them into bigger blocks.....

These bigger blocks (6 1/2") are not sewn together yet and there still needs triangles to square it up.

I mentioned I am basing my plan on a quilt Jennifer made... she has done a blog post showing hers HERE if you would like to see.....  

Today I did some handsewing... and maybe too much talking....

Shopping is done, went to specialist butcher and greengrocers, more expensive but at least we could get everything we wanted... 

Righto, coffee is drunk and I'm working up the energy to try and sort out my Star DisaStar....  I did say a few bad words.

Keep Safe, Keep Smiling and Keep Stitching

 

Home Stay

Limited going out is meaning more time in my sewing room!

I have 80 little 2 1/2" pinwheels all trimmed and ready to go....

Background is purchased.... a soft buttercup yellow floral design and this is the basic idea... thanks to Jennifer who shared pictures of her lovely quilt made with lots of little pinwheels...

My quilt made with the Sew Kind of Wonderful quick curve ruler has been quilted .....

It's all in batik fabric (purchased on a trip to Bali years ago) ... including the backing....

I've added the binding - just need to hand sew it down now...

I still enjoy some sit down quilting and did this 12 1/2" block ....

Close up the quilting is a little bit messy in places ....  I do very little with contrasting colour

A new project is cut and ready for sewing on a Sew Day next week..... I am using the free PopStar pattern by Fat Quarter Shop and sewing along with a few other friends....  plan is one block a week if we can.....  If anyone else wants to join in feel free....

All tucked into it's own project box ready for pick up and sew...

I have hand stitched down lots of little flowers and leaves into the mini baskets...

My accuracy is not amazing and it shows in little blocks far more than in big ones....   

Another block for Civil War Bride is my evening sewing at the moment....

Righto, Gotto Go... time to research our evening meal ....

Have a lovely weekend....  keep safe, keep smiling and keep stitching ...

Dancing in the New Year

- well I was in bed fast asleep for the actual event but I am very thrilled to have finished my dancing girls quilt

Introducing Mama Tembu.....

93" x 84"

The African Queen block was drafted and shared freely by Sew Preeti Quilts for International Women's Day in 2017.  Find it HERE....

Coming from Zimbabwe, Africa and danced my way through my youth (and maybe a bit more) I just had to make some blocks with some Africa style fabrics I had in my stash....

 

Some have hands in demurely, and others facing outwards rather precociously....

Quilted on the Sweet Sixteen....

Mama Tembu's Wedding is a song that I danced to so much in the 70's and 80's - the African beat is hard to not dance to. (sung by Margaret Singana with Ipi 'NTombi)

So my African Queen dancing girls is called Mama Tembu.  I very seldom name my quilts but this one is my youth ... so it gets a name.

A lovely bold blue backing and orange binding.....

Righto, Gotto Go..... I had a long day of binding... all 354" of it... thanks to the Tuesday girls for keeping me company...