2014 Part 2

As it turns out, returning to work after maternity leave, juggling part time work and motherhood, moving house, sewing AND blogging are pretty incompatible, at least for me, anyway. I've been getting my fill of the social side of this hobby of ours via IG (and there's a whole debate to be had there about the role of social media....) but I wanted to record the last 6 month's work here, for my own benefit if nothing else!

There was a cushion for my nephew Jack - this makes a full set with all 4 of them having their own:

A snuggly little blanket for a school friend's little boy:

This was backed in minky from Plush Addict, so soft!

A little basket for O's gorgeous little friend's first birthday - these two are little terrors together, but super cute!

On the theme of little makes, I made a drawstring bag for a friend's 30th, filled with chocs of course.

My slight obsession with Blueberry Park / Karen Lewis fabric continued with the first of two lampshades for our new bedroom:

All those seams to keep tidy were a bit of a nightmare, might EPP the next one!

I finally finished the Cottage Quilt, a St Louis 16 patch made with a small palate of my Flurry winnings. It hasn't photographed very well, but there is more definition in the neutrals than it might seem! It's backed in some fabric that we found in Hub's grandma's stash, and bound in a print from Tsuru (I think)

(please excuse the sideways pics, don't know what that's about!)

My one and only Christmas quilt was for my Gran, who's 93 next week. It's made from a layer cake that Mum chose, and backed in a Riley Blake brushed flannel. As Gran doesn't like anything heavy on her legs, I left out the wadding and just bagged it out, with some hand quilting to tie the layers together.

And last but not least, two Geranium dresses to finish the year for two lovely little girls:

(No finished photos of this one, but I'm proud of these French seams!)

Here's hoping that 2015 brings more finished quilts!

Wishing all my friends a very happy and prosperous New Year, with lots of sewing,

Sarah

Butcher's apron for the family baker

I really don't know why I've been stalling on this for so long, this apron was a really quick and satisfying finish.



Dad asked for a butchers apron months ago, and in fact I think it was on my first FAL list as it was supposed to be his Father's Day present. He requested a navy and white stripe fabric, and I found this heavyweight fabric in Rolls and Rems in Edmonton for £4/m - bargainous!



I added straps made from measuring tape print ribbon - chosen by Mum and perfect for a draughtsman.



Dad has always been enthusiastic about science, so I thought this print would do nicely for a little secret pocket lining.



I'm looking forward to our next baking session - his lemon drizzle cake is legendary!

FQR 2014 Recap

Better late than never....

FQR this year fell on the weekend before I went back to work after maternity leave (albeit for three days before the holidays started), so I was a bit unsure about leaving the boy for the day. However, FQR was so relaxing and energising that I really shouldn't have worried.

I'm so late with this, I'm sure that you've heard all the details before, but suffice to say, the atmosphere was great, the event really well organised and the freebies very well received!

My first class of the day was the Wiksten Tank class with the ever patient Rachel. We worked through break and lunch to get the top as close to finished as possible, and I managed to get the French seams completed. Considering that we spent a long time fitting the pattern (which worked out as a mix of XS, S and M on me!), and that I cut my cheap fabric on the wrong fold, I think that's really quite admirable. Rachel deserves a big thank you for the number of times that she answered the same stupid question, and my classmates were wonderful too. Di was particularly good at keeping me on track!



My second class was Large HSTs with the incredibly inspirational Thomas Knauer. We spent the first section of the class listening intently to his theory and philosophy of quilting, and had a mini trunk show of some quilts in his current series.



The blocks came together really quickly, and the layout possibilities are endless. I got really quite giddy as I was rearranging my blocks - I certainly think that I provided more entertainment for Kelly, Sarah, Jo and the rest! I love the offsets within the blocks which emerge. I've nearly finished the quilt top, which is ridiculously quick for me. It's going to end up as a wedding present so I'm hoping that it'll progress quickly from now on too.


The social side of the day ran really smoothly this time, and I really enjoyed spending time with far too many lovely people to mention. I was gutted to have to duck out before the end of the festivities, but I knew that I would be up early with the boy!

We move house this weekend, but I'm very much hoping that I can show you a finished quilt and top in the very near future, because FQR really did leave me feeling excited about sewing again.

The Honest List - FAL Q3 version

My posts are like buses at the minute, none for ages....

Here's my updated list, unsurprisingly it's very very similar to last quarter. I imagine that these will get carried over, but if they're not on the list, they don't count! (cf the knit skirts - written on the paper list, not blogged because I thought there was no chance of getting one done.... Reader, I made three.)

1. St Louis 16 patch - I finished this top during Q1, and have the fabric picked out for the backing and binding 
One of many jobs that will need to be completed after we move due to lack of space - if we're not in by the end of September I will be seriously unhappy!

2., 3., 4. And 5. Giant Star Quilt - 4 of these are needed at some point, and I've had the fabric for ages, so hopefully there'll be some progress during Q2
Feature fabrics have been cut, more Kona Bone is on its way. This is the sneak peek sent to the parents.



6. Quilt for the little man - every else is getting one! I've got lots of novelty prints and I'm planning to use the Picture Box pattern from SewFairyFace
No progress so far.

7. Apron for Dad - needed for his Father's Day present, he wants a butcher's style apron, I'm going to use a Martha Stewart pattern
The fabric I'd bookmarked is our of stock, now on the hunt for navy butchers stripe cotton.

8. Hub's tshirt quilt - I found this buried in the WIP pile,  half pieced - I'm quite tempted to unsew some of it
No progress so far

9. My sampler Cuzco quilt - I made 3 blocks last year and would love to finish 
Not on this one was either, but I did stroke the fabric the other night!

10. Liberty DWR EPP quilt - made from fabric inherited from Hub's grandma, I've got the EPP papers ready. I think this might be my new car project when the crochet is finished 
Very little done on this

11. Scout camp blanket - a never ending project in reality, but it'd be nice to get it up to date with the pile of badges from the last few years sewn on
Halfway there!


12. Nephew's cushion - this is so nearly done, just needs the last finishing touches.


13. Wedding present for a couple who have requested a handmade present - I've (literally!) dusted off the embroidery from my FQR class last year. They get married on July 26th so may be getting an IOU...


14. and 15. More minky blankets for school friends and childhood neighbours who are pregnant. This baby boom is getting silly!

Schnitzel and Boo Mini Quilt Swap

PARTNER - I'm sorry that I forgot to add my email to your card, I hope that you received this safely

This one wasn't on my FAL list, but I couldn't resist signing up for the Schnitzel and Boo mini quilt swap. It's gone in the post today, so I can't say too much about what my partner requested, but hopefully they will think that it fits their request!

In a bit of a first for me, I didn't really follow a pattern and I enjoyed the freedom of deciding what  would fit in with what my partner wanted. I'm not definitely adding a medallion quilt to my "maybe I'll make this one day" list.

The mini finishes at about 18.5“sq, and is made of a mixture of red and LV prints from my stash and from the Village Haberdashery's stall at the Square in the Fair in Highgate last month.

My partner is a fan of FMQ and I included a bit of pebbling in the centre, but stuck with my favourite wavy line quilting for the outside edges (after my first attempts had to be unpicked!) Now practice is definitely required!

Fat Quarterly Retreat 2014 - Hello!

I proved that I have no self control whatsoever, and caved on the FQR tickets as soon as the day tickets were released, so I really should introduce myself.

Last year I looked like this at Retreat:

(actually, I think I was a bit more whale - like)

This year I'm a bit slimmer but a lot more sleep deprived. (hence why I've not joined in any swaps this year - you can excuse forgetting that you've joined a swap once, but I don't think I could get away with it twice!)

I'll be there all day Saturday, taking Rachel's Wiksten class and the Large HST class. I'm a lot more shy than I look so please come and say hello! Oh, and I think I've persuaded Hubs that I can stay out for dinner too, so let me know if anyone has plans.

The first item for my new sewing room wall: Starburst

As mentioned before, we're in the midst of moving home. What I may not have told you is that I'm going to have half the spare room / loft conversion as my very own sewing room!

Job number one (in my head anyway....) is hanging some mini quilts, and this little one will be the first up on that wall.  

I started this in January 2013, and finished it right at the end of Q1, although the phone photos I took were rubbish, hence why I'm sharing again. The pattern is Six White Horse's Lone Starburst paper pieced, and the fabric a mix of my Simply Solids Stash Crew, and various scraps and bits from swaps.

I hand quilted and machine quilted this for the texture  although this means that it sits quite proud. Nothing that a few drawing pins won't fix!