Happy Christmas Day!

I wish you a very Happy Christmas Day 2012!  Enjoy!

NB: above, Paul Hollywood Mince Pie as per the Christmas Bake off - excellent pastry!

Last blocks of the year

Christmas has crept up on me at an alarming rate this week!  It was the last week of term at school and Monday and Tuesday just dragged.  As for the rest of the week, it was over in a blink and despite being very organised I still have a mountain of jobs to do!

Yesterday afternoon I tidied the spare room where I usually sew - the fabric was put in boxes and my machine packed away.  I won't have time for sewing between now and Christmas I expect, so I will indulge in a spot of, more sociable, festive knitting instead.

The Farmer's Wife blocks I want to share today are probably the last two I'll manage before the New Year.  In total I've managed 20 blocks since September which I'm really pleased, if not amazed, about.

Puss in the Corner

Despite posting this picture upside down (flowers and cherries do not grow in the above formation), I like this block (albeit wonky) a lot.  It's a deviation from the festive red I've been drawn to, but it is fresh, pretty and girly.

Northern Lights

More red I'm afraid but I do so love these to Lecien prints together!  This one was very quick to cut out and piece - instant gratification!

My parents are coming over to spend the day today so I've a few festive jobs to be getting on with this morning.  The weather is vile outside so I hope the ladies (Mother, Myself and the Big Girl) will indulge in some knitting this after afternoon.  It's what wet, grey days were made for!

More blocks!

I wasn't expecting to complete two Farmer's Wife blocks this week but somehow I managed it!  I think one child having two sick days at the beginning of the week probably helped - I cut out the fabric while we were cwtching in, then sewed them up when the Busy Boy (sadly not really a Baby Boy any more) had a marathon nap yesterday afternoon.

Spool

This is my second attempt at this block - the first was early on in the quilt along and basically made it into the scrap basket quite quickly.  I originally found the half square triangles hard to match up and disliked the fabric selection.  Over the ensuing weeks I think my cutting and piecing has improved and I am much happier with this version of 'spool'.  The fabric selection works well and I really like the contrast between the colours and the large spots against a background of small spots.

Streak of Lightening

I was ever so slightly daunted when I cut out the fabric pieces for this block as there were many little bits.  Thankfully there were no point or seams to match up so it was very straightforward.  Needless to say I'm not relishing the prospect of many tiny triangles which feature in a lot of the future blocks!

Love the red and white fabrics - both by Lecien - they compliment each other well.

The Most Wonderful Time...

I am starting to feel a little more festive - the cold weather has most certainly helped this feeling, not to mention the fact my Christmas tree is up!

This was taken in the late afternoon sun, earlier in the week.  My husband went on the tree buying expedition on Sunday afternoon with the Big Girl who wanted a 'Norman Tree' - turns out this is a Nordman Fir.  'Norman' must be about 8 foot tall and is very, very fat :-)

I've indulged in a little more afternoon Christmas sewing this week too:

A Christmassy cushion cover, made with 2.5 inch fabric strips to fit a 12" square cushion.  I'd like to make another Christmas quilt this year but I think I might be running low on time.  What I really need is a couple of snow days ....unlikely I say. Very.

Last Week's Work

As I alluded to in yesterday's post, I did manage to complete two Farmer's Wife blocks last week!

Churn Dash

I love churn dash blocks - they are quite straightforward to make and I think they look lovely put together.  I'm really pleased with the colour combination and how the central portion stands out against the paler fabric.

Flock

I was a bit apprehensive about this one when I came to it because of all the small triangles, so I was surprised when it turned out as it did!  It could do with a good pressing (I sewed the individual square blocks together in the wrong configuration to begin with) and the Bambi prints are accidentally upside down but you live and learn and I WILL NOT take it apart again!

I'm still using a lot of red and white spots in this project - at the moment I'm blaming the festive season!

Christmas Sewing

My Christmas sewing has finally begun!  This is a Christmas gift for a very special Aussie baby and is currently on it's way Down Under. 

I found a bib tutorial at Chickpea Sewing Studio - home of lots of lovely pictures and sewing ideas.  The fabric I think is from  'Countdown to Christmas', which was one of Moda's Christmas ranges last year.  I've been saving the fat quarters for a while.  I love the reindeer print - it has the names of Father Christmas' reindeer's printed on it and is sooooo cute.  My favourite part of this bib is the fastening!  I bought the non sew variety and I think it gives it a very professional finish!

On the Farmer's Wife quilt front, I did unexpectedly manage two blocks last week.  I shall photograph them later for sharing.

Have a wonderful day!

Slightly Behind

Last week I fell behind - I only managed one block of my Farmer's Wife Quilt.  Oh dear. 

Broken Sugar Bowl

However, I do have another block to share - I guess it's ever so slightly cheating as I didn't make it last week ....but it is all my own work!!

Rainbow Flowers

I made this block in the early weeks of the project but didn't include it as I wasn't entirely happy with it.  The slightly wonky gingham pattern makes the pieces look as if they're not cut properly, and the top left corner square has certainly had some seam allowance issues along the way - well it's not quite a square is it!?

On balance I decided I do like it so I'm (naughtily) including it as the second block of last week.  Now I have to find the time, and it's Wednesday already, to make this week's contribution.  I think it is quite likely to be one block only this week as Christmas is marching up on me VERY quickly and I have sooo many lovely festive fabrics waiting to be used!

Have a Happy Wednesday!!!

Challenging Myself

I've tried to challenge myself a bit this week as regards to the Farmer's Wife Quilt.  When selecting blocks to make I tend to play safe - mainly choosing blocks that I either like the most or I know I will be able to make!  This week I decided to go for blocks that scare me a little - those ones with lots of little pieces.  I chose 'Hovering Birds' and 'Whirlpool'.  The success rate was 50 % - 'Hovering Birds' was completed, 'Whirlpool' was abandoned! 

Hovering Birds

As 'Whirlpool' remains in little bits on my sewing table, and to keep up with the two blocks a week demand, I chose another block to make:

Windmill

 A far more straightforward block!!  I think I will try and make one out of the two weekly blocks a more difficult one thus avoiding being landed with all the technically challenging ones at the end!

Birthday Cushion

We have a birthday party tomorrow afternoon - my friend's little girl, Phoebe, is turning two.  I'm finding it increasingly difficult to buy for children's birthdays these days.  It seems they all have pretty much everything and their tastes change with the wind it seems!

I decided to make something for this particular party - a more personal touch I think.  So I present the Birthday Cushion:

As is obvious, I absolutely love quilting, but I don't often embark on smaller, quicker projects which is rather silly considering the pleasure and satisfaction this little project gave me - made during naptime yesterday afternoon.

The basic assembly of the cushion, which is of the envelope backed variety, was inspired by this tutorial, although the front of the cushion is different and constructed by myself.  I had to use my brain and do the math though as my cushion pad was a different size.  To be honest I am quite impressed with myself as I find constructs in my head don't always work in practise, especially when calculations are required!

The fabrics are mainly from a Robert Kaufman line called confections - they are 2.5" strips sewn together.  The plain pink fabric is by Amy Butler and I embroidered Phoebe's name in a running stitch onto it.  A little bit of quilting completes it - just straight line quilting with my walking foot a quarter of an inch from each seam.

I loved constructing this cushion so much that I think I will make some Christmas cushions in the same way!

Dreary Days

It has been grey here - mostly wet and windy - all week.  It's dry at the moment but Radio 4 predicts a deluge at midday!  This has been the view from my sewing room most afternoons:

  Ordinarily the sea is visible above the houses, and the 'skyscraper' (ahem ...) clearly seen, but this week it is grey, grey grey, and the grey sea and the grey sky are one!

It's lucky that I had these cheery fabrics to brighten up my days:

I bought this fabulously colourful jelly roll whilst at Quilts UK in Malvern - Oh deer! by MoMo for Moda.  It is the one item I specifically had in mind to purchase when I went.  The prints are so funky!  I've just been swing the jelly roll strips together as I couldn't bear to cut them up - the plan is to create a border with the left over strips.

However, the basting and quilting is unlikely to happen anytime soon.  I'm trying to be slightly more austere as we approach Christmas so I'm limiting myself to very little fabric or batting purchasing.  Completion is therefore, to some extent, dependent on what I already have in my cupboard!

More blocks

I managed two blocks again this week which was very surprising.  Well, if I'm honest it's nearly two - one of my blocks is missing a small piece of fabric which needs to be ironed on with bondaweb.  This week's blocks have largely been determined by which templates I already had in my possession - the printer has been having technical issues so I had to make do with what I had.  My Very Useful Husband has now cured the problem and thus template heaven will ensue.

Flower Basket

Well it will be a flower basket when the handle is added!  It is to be a curved handle applied to the large white floral triangle on the upper left.  I should get this done over the next couple of days.

Practical Orchard

I ADORE this block and I am so pleased with it :-) all the corners seem to match up!  I love the pretty fabrics too.

Got other little projects on the go as well and these should hopefully make an appearance this week.

Pro12 rugby beckons soon so Happy Saturday!

Farming

I managed two more Farmer's wife blocks last week.  I'm not sure if I've ever been this disciplined about a long term crafting project before.  However, I did struggle with finding the time to post on here though.  We're into our second week of this school term and it feels like much longer.  The Christmas term is a manic one and my daughter is already rehearsing for the school Christmas concert!  What with looking forward to all the Christmas activities at church and all the preparations at home I have a sneaky feeling this project may dwindle to one block a week soon - but I'm really hoping to keep the momentum!!

Last week I made these two blocks:

Firstly Big Dipper

I love the little hourglass blocks (or half square triangles if you prefer!) and I can't seem to get away from using red fabrics.  I decided to add variation by using two different red and white fabrics and i really love the result.

The second block I made was Friendship Star:

 Loving this one too - especially the red and white polka dot fabric :-)  I used two yellow Lecien fabric in this block, but decided to fussy cut the central square to make the most of the large print.  I think the polka dots frame the central square really well and the rosebud fabric surrounding the star finishes it off nicely.

Two done and shared - now to make this week's two.

Princess Millie Quilt

I love freshly laundered, crinkly quilts and here is a brand new one straight from the dryer .... and it is scraptastic!

One of my pre-Malvern promises to myself was to use up as much stash and scraps as possible.  I've bought sooo much fabric over the years and most of it has remained unused so figured I should try and make a dent in it before I accumulate more!  The 'Princess Millie' quilt is testement to this and was great fun to make.

My starting point was a fairy princess fabric panel which I cut into individual squares - these formed the centre of each block:

I didn't do any strict measuring with this one, just bordered the central squares with various 2.5" wide strips and kept going!  I added some white sashing and pink squares inbetween to make the blocks stand out a little. 

This is a gift for my friens Mel's little girl, Millie.  I've been promised her a quilt for months, especially given that the quilt I made for her sister, Sienna, is one of the first quilts I ever made!  Very appropriately, Millie was 2 last week so the finished article has been well (albeit accidentally) timed!

I took a break from stippling this time and quilted this one with horizontal straight lines - a washa nd a dry later and it is all lovely and crinkly!

Half Term

We've had a lovely half-term here - the weather hasn't been great but we've enjoyed cafe trips and grandparents visiting and playdates! I even managed to use some of my end-of-summer 'harvest' to make an apple and blackberry crumble!

I had a lovely time at Quilts UK in Malvern last weekend, despite the cold weather it was easily the best day of the holidays weather wise.  A few purchases were made and I will endeavour to get these blogged soon.


I've continued to make good progress with my  'Farmer's Wife' quilts blocks - so far, so good.  I'm not entirely convinced I will keep up this momentum  now that the Christmas term is looming, especially given all the Christmas projects I'm contemplating...

Here are this week's offerings - firstly 'Snowball'

Not the best photo I'm afraid,  also I was trying to move away from red fabric in this block so it's a bit washed out compared to the previous blocks.  However, I love the fabric, which is by Lecien, and I hope to incorporate more of it in other blocks.

The second block for this week is Calico Puzzle:

I won't lie - this one was a challenge for me what with all the corners, but I think it is one of my favourites so far.  A little busy, some may say, but I love the over all effect.

Let's see if I can keep up this week!  Happy weekend!

Keeping Up

Happy Friday everyone!  It is a very happy Friday in my house today as it's the last day of the autumn term, the sun is shining and it has become that little bit colder thus signalling the start of snuggling season!

I've been keeping up with my Farmer's Wife block - I am absolutely loving making the blocks.  Working on one unique block at a time from start to finish gives me a sense of achievement and also accomplishment - many of the blocks incorporate traditional quilting designs, many of which I've not attempted before.  it's educational as well as pleasurable!  Here are this week's offerings:

Attic Windows

I loved making this one!  It's the first block in the book and the first one where I've physically made use of the templates to cut the fabric.  For the previous blocks I've measured the printed template and accurately cut to those measurements.  This may be shocking to the purists out there but my logic was that if I repeatedly use my template how can i make sure I'm not shaving off bits of it during the cutting process and therefore changing the dimensions?  With this Attic Windows block I had no choice but to use the templates as they were all odd shapes and I am very happy with the result.  Incidentally I printed out the templates on acetate so they were a bit more sturdy.

Contrary Wife

I absolutely love the name of this block!  I think my husband probably thinks I fit into such a category!  I cut a few corners here (not literally!) by making half square triangles rather than using the templates.  I love the contrast of the red and white fabrics.

Tomorrow I'm leaving both children with my husband for a whole day to go to the Autumn Quilt Festival at Malvern.  I hope to find some lovely fabrics to share next week!

The Farmer's Wife Quilt

When I was a little girl I always wanted to marry a farmer.  I cannot recall why this was and I ended up marrying a doctor instead!  Over the last year or so many, many crafty people I admire in blogland have been partaking in this:


The project is based on this book:

 


Basically it involves 111 different quilting blocks inspired by a collection on 1920s letters to 'The Farmer's Wife' magazine as a response to the question 'Would you want your daughter to marry a farmer?'

I've been stalking several blogs over the last few months trying to decide if I would take the plunge.  As I am a bit of a serial starter when it comes to projects I didn't really want to bite off more than I could chew.   I bought the book and fell in love!  The blocks in the book are in very traditional 'civil war' type colours but easily lend themselves to a more contemporary colour palate.

I bought the book for a friend as a birthday gift, and together we are going to try and make one or two blocks a week.  The idea is by doing it together we will provide each other with inspiration and motivation, as well as giving us something fun to do now that the weather is properly autumny and the nights are drawing in.

Here are my first two blocks:

The block above is called 'Autum Tints', while the one below is 'Basketweave'.  I've changed the arrangement of the block slightly  in the latter, preferring it to the book's layout.

I think this may become addictive.....

Birthday Weekend

It was my birthday last weekend.  Of course, these days I never divulge such events until after they have passed!  I'm officially in my mid-thirties and half way to 70 as my husband has repeatedly told me.  Lucky for me, he'll get there first ;-)

I was very loved and spoilt and got lovely pressies and a fantastic meal here

My girly friends organised a surprise tea party for me complete with scones, jam and cream and these fantastic cupcakes:

My family also ordered a birthday cake - beautifully made by Natalie and inspired by my favourite Emma Bridgewater design: Starry Skies:

I'm so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends!!

Summer Days Quilt

There was a little pile of 9 patch squares all over my sewing table for a lot of the summer months.  Work was in fits and starts and a birthday deadline was missed in spectacular style!

Finally the quilt is completed - referred to as 'Summer Days' in reference to the time of year and the lovely fresh fabric prints used.  The fabric line was a Moda favourite for me - 'Oh Cherry, Oh' - sadly no longer available.

The quilt is a modern take on the single Irish chain quilt - I love the way the fabrics automatically 'chain' by alternating 9 patch squares with plain white fabric.  I also love the scrappy look achieved by using a jelly roll:

The back is pieced from various pink and green fabrics I had in my stash as well as a couple of leftover jelly roll strips.  The binding is pink and spotty :-) :

It was a long awaited birthday gift for my good friend Lois, but I think she thought it worth the wait!

Baby Quilt

I think I need to start naming my quilts.  Every time I finish a quilt or project, the blog entry is titled 'another finish', 'finished' or 'baby quilt'!!!!!

This baby quilt was finished about 2 weeks ago but the whole September-back-to-school-thing happened and life has been a bit chaotic.  You would think I had more time to upload photos and write a blog entry with one child back at school, but alas, no!

I love little baby quilts as they are so quick to make :-).  This one was made by framing a 5" square with 2.5" wide strips.  It's for a little boy, hence the predominantly blue colour scheme and little cars and fire engine prints.  Lots of spots and squares as well.  The quilting is simple stippling - so quick and straightforward on a little person's quilt.

I'm hoping to reorganise my time now school has restarted - I have a lot of works in progress that really must be finished!

Tortilla Love

My Baby Boy doesn't really like bread.  This is a nightmare in a house where the rest of us would happily live on bread, brie and red wine - the latter obviously for the adults ;-).  He will eat toast occasionally but his not-fussed-on-bread habit provides me with a lunchtime challenge.

I've been making my own bread for ages now - it is infinitely tastier the shop bought variety - and now I'm in a bread making routine, it's no hassle at all.  I ditched my bread maker a long time ago (not a fan of the texture or sweetness) in favour of a largely hand baked variety - ok I do cheat a leeeeetle by doing some of the kneading in my kitchenaid.  The River Cottage bread book has provided a wealth of recipes and advice and my friend Natalie, who is a Bakery student, has been great with troubleshooting.  I've even tried sourdough - an absolute must.

This week I came across a section in the book that I had largely ignored - it contained recipes for some things I had baked in the past, like scones and soda bread, and other recipes I had never even considered baking for myself.  Here I found the  recipe for tortillas.  My first reaction was that life is too short to be baking homemade tortillas.  My opinion after baking them is that I will never, ever buy a shop bought flour tortilla again.

So easy to make, and so tasty and fresh.  The recipe calls for 250g plain flour, 5g salt and 150ml of water which are mixed together and then kneaded - in the kitchenaid in my case.  The dough is then rested for half an hour in a bowl covered with clingfilm.  After this time the dough is divided into eight balls and then rolled out thinly into circular shapes.  Mine weren't that circular to be honest.  To cook them you simply heat a dry frying pan and cook on both sides for 30 seconds or so (I did mine for a bit longer).  The tortillas can be kept warm in a clean dry tea towel while you cook all eight. 

We've had tortillas with various fillings probably every day this week - the Baby Boy in particular is a big fan :-D

Complete

I completed my Rainbow Bright Blanket!  It only took me two days - must be the quickest thing I've ever knitted from start to finish.  Recovery from illness brought productivity! I snapped this Instagram photo in the midday sun today - two hours later and it is hosing down.

I love knitting, but making this blanket made me realise how much I LOVE knitting.  Even though it is August, I've started thinking about - ahem - Christmas.  I've dug out a load of sock yarn I've been hoarding and I'm wondering how many pairs of socks I might make as festive gifts.  Always better to plan these things early!

Rainbow Bright Recovery Blanket

I loved Rainbow Brite when I was growing up, hence the inspiration behind the blog post title!
This project is a brightly coloured rainbow blanket I'm making for a friend's baby:

I saw an amazing baby blanket while browsing on Pinterest earlier in the week and decided I had to make it or something similar.  I'm using my leftover stash of Rico Creative Cotton for it.
The word 'recovery' in the blog title is a reference to why I'm sitting around knitting during the school holidays when I should be rushed off my feet.  I alluded in a previous blog post to a challenging time in my life.  Three weeks ago I had my fourth miscarriage and it has been a devastating and difficult time.  Given the school holidays and my husband starting a new job I opted for a 'watch and wait' policy rather than any medical intervention.  Despite the events of this week, I still maintain this was the right choice for my family and myself.   On Monday afternoon I started bleeding heavily and this persisted into the evening.  After three near faints at home I was admitted to hospital.  They thankfully managed to deal with the cause of the bleeding but after fainting twice due to the blood loss, I ended up staying two nights in hospital and having a blood transfusion.

I am now home and on the mend, albeit very tired and a bit weak!  My parents and my amazing church family have been great in helping with my children and words can't even begin to describe how fabulous my husband has been.  I am resting up, hence plenty of  knitting time and the project is progressing well.  Bizarrely my friend had her baby while we were both in the same hospital at the same time but obviously in very different circumstances.   It seems appropriate that what has been a bit of an outing to say the least, a  is channelled into something positive!

Feeling Groovy

The groove is back!  I have actually managed to channel my restlessness into some creative energy.  This is a completed quilt top that I've made for a friend's baby:

It is very simply made with 5" squares framed with 2.5" strips.  I'm not entirely sure I was concentrating when I did the colour placement, but with only three main colours there wasn't much to play with!  I think it works and I'm sure the binding and quilting will make a difference.

I'm also working on a project for another friend - this time a birthday gift:

A nice pile of 9 patch squares - 18 in total!  There's a way to go with this one and I'm yet to decide on the final design of the quilt top :-/  I know it will be based on an Irish Quit design but there ends my decision making thus far.  Two weeks to decide and finish - it will be fine, it will be fine...!

Restless

I'm experiencing a bit of a challenging time in my life currently.  Consequently I seem to be extremely restless - I'm finding it very hard to maintain interest in any of my usual enjoyable, crafty pursuits.  My work room is covered in fabric - I've started three projects in as many days - but I have no inclination to finish anything.  I hope this unnatural phase will pass soon!

I snapped a few pics of my snowball quilt last week - just to show the detail.