#schnitzelandboominiquiltswap

Over the weekend I was able to put the finishing touches to my #schnitzelandboominiquiltswap mini.

If I go into the details about the why, then it might become really obvious who I have made for, so I will save the backstory for once it has been gifted.

However as Nicky quickly, (and thankfully) noticed on instagram, it is meant to be quilty DNA!

I EPP'ed the pieces, which I had drafted with dear son's school compass and an empty cereal packet, and then appliquéd onto the LV patchwork background.  Getting the photo in the last of the summer sun has cast all sorts of wonky shadows, sorry about that!

I used variegated perle cotton to hand quilt simple randomly spaced lines, which was the perfect accompaniment to the Rugby on Saturday.

It measures up at 18" square, and I am really pleased with how it turned out.

I have also made a Liberty Lola pouch to accompany it, and I will no doubt add a few other bits and bobs nearer to mailing day and will show you everything then, promise.

And if the lovely person who is making for me is popping in, I can pretty much guarantee that I have not acknowledged anything you may have posted, asked or shown.  As much as I love swapping, the sheer number of swappers (almost 1000!), and all the photos appearing on instagram, makes it all rather overwhelming, so I have shied away!  Please accept my apologies x

trash!

Well getting a little more in the FQR spirit, I made and sent my partner's name tag on Monday.

The Royal Mail in their wisdom decided not to bother updating their track & trace beyond telling me that I posted the item - thanks then!  But I am happy to report that the name tag is safely in the mitts of the recipient, only the swap-meistress herself trash!!

So no sneak peaks allowed, she would have known they were for her, so straight in there, made and sent...

Seeing that she is the official Ents officer, I went back to basics, with the need to be able to actually read her name at 20 paces in order to be able to approach/avoid as required ;)

So I used some Liberty for the lanyard and bonda-webbed letters, and I gave her a star, in true McDonalds stylee, for 2012!

There's also a tiny pocket, big enough to hold a room or credit card or list of places to be, people to see...

Jobs a good'un.

I have been battling with my sample swap items today too - I have racked school-boy errors up to new heights and may just get a seam ripper grafter to my right hand, because it would be more useful than my thumb right now!

But I think I have it all under control again, and hoping for some more reveals soon xxx

Liberty hoopla!

Another FAL finish folks!

This one has actually been up on the bedroom wall for a few days, much to husband's dismay, (oh well); I think it looks great!

I pieced the hexies over the Christmas holidays, pondered what on earth to do with them, then browsing my photos from a trip to Liberty back on my birthday in June, this seemed the obvious choice...

I used a 7" hoop; the Liberty scraps were from Jo and Ali, and they were pieced with Aurifil 50wt 2021, no surprise there then.  To back it, I simply fused a circle of Vilene fleece the same size as the outer hoop and trimmed to about 1/4" round that; I stuck some double-sided tape to the inner ring before tightening it all.  Neat!

My Perfect Quilted Tote is all finished too, but no photos today, sorry.  I am 98% pleased with it - why is there always a niggle!?  But considering I feared it would take me ages, I could even be tempted into making another.

Happy Valentine's Day xxx

Liberty Lawn + Kelly's Pattern + Essex Linen + Matchstick Quilting = True Love

xxx

Excuses excuses...

I was going to come up with some big excuse, along the lines of helping a friend; a pregnant friend who just doesn't have enough room in her house, what with the stomach 'n' all, and she really needed me to take some of the fabric off her hands to make her life, and that of her family more comfortable...

... but you wouldn't believe me!

You never know though, you could avail yourself too, 40% off Liberty, this is not any old fabric folks; help a friend in need, and tell your husbands, partners, gullible acquaintances, and feel like you have done a good thing too.

There has been sewing though, definitely stitching up more than I have bought, pictorial evidence to follow tomorrow xxx

Crafting It Forward... At Last!

I am not going to look back at the exact date for shame, but last year I jumped at the chance to receive a Craft It Forward gift from Charlotte.  She treated me to some gorgeous fancy chocolate mularky, and in return I put out the call for 5 bloggy types to receive a gift from me.  In return for doing likewise, when they receive from me, they will blog, make, and so on and so forth, sharing the love ad infinitum.

So with 365 days to honour my side of the deal, I kept a 'CiF' entry on every month's To Do list that I wrote this year.  I even showed you progress at the end of the summer when I added them to my Q4 FAL list; so now, with a clear(ish) conscience, I can show you the finished pressies...

These should be landing on doorsteps of the surprised victims recipients, who I'm sure must have given up all hope, and been too polite to ask...

Just in case you like to know the details of these things, these needle books were inspired by some that I coveted over at Krista's, and all were made with Liberty 1/2" hexies, Essex Yarn-dyed linen in Denim, lined with Alison Glass' Sun Print Text, and felt from Eternal Maker.  Everything was pieced and stitched in Aurifil 50wt.  There's a handy clip for scissors, or to attach to a zippy pouch, and I think they measure up at about 4" square when closed.

I added some chocolate and a small button badge to try to get me back in the good books, and the postmaster popped Christmas stamps on the UK ones, so it even looks, for all intense and purposes like they are early!

I will link back to the recipient's CiF posts, so you may get lucky and be on the receiving end of their crafty generosity some time soon.

Linking up now with Liz, even though it's not Thursday.

Right, back to the next thing on the list xxx

Blogger's Quilt Festival Fall 2013

Well after the week I've had, I wasn't sure I'd get to enter the fun and games over at Amy's...

But I hate missing out, so here I am!

Since the Spring Festival I have had a lot of finishes, but it came down to a choice of two...

or...

Gah!  So hard to choose.  BUT then I spotted in the small print that you can enter two, so I will enter one today and the other tomorrow, as I am not getting much done right now, and what the heck!

Firstly I went with my Liberty Marcelle Medallion, entering it in the Scrappy Quilt category; purely for the amount of work, piecing and fabrics that went into this one.  I had never made anything as complex before and stuck to a pattern, and I love the sense of achievement it has given me...

I love this quilt so, so much.  And the fact that I managed to get the lovely photoshoot over at my parents' means that it's only fair it gets another airing on my blog.

The Details:
Pattern - Marcelle Medallion by Alexia Abegg from the book Liberty Love
Fabrics - lots and lots of Liberty lawn, and Liberty Lifestyle mixed with complimentary prints and low volume scraps
Finished - 57"x 57"
Pieced and quilted - 50wt Aurifil in 2021
Quilted - continuous spiral from the centre
Backed - IKEA Britten Nummer and more Liberty

If you are visiting for the first time, hello, welcome and please do have a look about and come back again tomorrow.  I do make a lot of stuff, usually!

Sunday Roast...

When I saw Kerry's XOX pin cushion over at the Liberty Craft blog last week, I immediately wanted to make an OXO one, because that made me laugh!

Apologies if you are not familiar with the nation's favourite stock cube, as you probably don't know what I am talking about, so here's a picture!

I pulled some Liberty red, white Essex linen and a 3/4 hour later I was popping in the stuffing!

Mine turned out bigger than Kerry's, not sure how, but not a problem.  My points were pretty spot on, which, with 1.5" pieces, is a miracle for me.

It finished up at 3"x 9", I put a piece of Vilene H640 on the inside, and backed it with some natural Essex linen, all stitched together with Aurifil 2021 50wt.

I know, I have about a squillion pin cushions, and only about 8 pins that have not fallen victim to my sewing machine needle, but they all look pretty, and don't eat anything; I have already made another one from 500 Quilt Blocks, which I will show you tomorrow!

Goody goody!

I have a finish, in fact I have two from my Q4 FAL list already, but one is a secret squirrel make that will be revealed at some point in November.

But what I can show you, from my cosy weekend of sewing, are the girly goody bags.

I used Jeni's tutorial, and just matched my measurements to the smallest piece of fabric that the girls had selected, I stuck to the main principals but didn't box the corners...

So these can be put somewhere safe for a few weeks, and then loaded with sweets, left over from Halloween no doubt, to be swung about by the three little ladies when I take them for lunch and Build A Bear!

And added to the sewing rain yesterday, my day started even better than expected with an email from lovely Lindsey saying I had won her giveaway of Megan's awesome Hemispheres pattern.  I may well have spent this evening cheating with my Sizzix, cutting and sewing drunkard's path blocks, using mirror ball dots, and white Essex linen, it wasn't on the list, but it will make a cute Christmas present!

Away!

Dear husband and I managed only our second night away from the children, together, last weekend.  I would love to say that we cannot bear to be away from them, but truth is, we just can't bring ourselves to foist them on my parents en masse more frequently than every 3 years!

So having dropped them off, we were on the train to London at 10am and just after 11 hubby was installed in a man-seat whilst I was stroking selecting Liberty in Shaukat!

I was very restrained...

That's a 1/2m of the pinky-red needle-cord, 3 x quarter meter cuts and a couple of smaller pieces.  Probably going to make another bag from the needle-cord, but no real plans so far!

We then went to the V&A, nipped round the Club to Catwalk exhibition, and had a spot of lunch.  Then there was the shop; I love that shop!

I bought a full meter of the fabric that got me into this here game of quilting and hoarding in the first place!

When we last/first went away for the night sans kids, on my 40th birthday, I went round the Quilts at the V&A exhibition, and have never looked back.  I bought my first few FQs there and then, and have not been able to bring myself to use them; so when I saw the meter cut, it was in my basket quick as.

A little washi tape and a re-cycled bracelet had to come home too; they matched, what else could I do?

We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering the shops, trying to avoid American Football fans who had taken over Regent's Street, and not buying anything in Liberty!

After an early evening meal, we went to see The Book of Mormon.  Follow the link if you want to know more, but honestly, it will not be to a lot of peoples' taste; although Prince Harry went to see it last night, so it can't be as rude, crude, blasphemous and shocking as some may think, eh?  I thought it was fantastic, and a have a frog to prove it!

After a night in the fancy Radisson Edwardian Hampshire, we strolled around town, there was more shopping, and this winter I will be sporting these...

But most excitedly, I will be wearing this little beauty...

I have been holding out for the real thing for so long, and thanks to my wonderful husband I now have one.  I am a very happy lady!

All too soon it was back to reality though, home with the kids, school bags and lunch boxes; but you know I wouldn't have it any other way.

Picky...

You all know the score.  The evening before you head off on holiday, and you have to be up at about 2am, all the bags are packed, spare keys hidden, fridge emptied and time to relax, then you decide you need to make a new iPad cover, because you just have to!  Right?

Well I did.

I had been eyeing two different patterns, Ayumi's from Patchwork Please! and Alexia's from Liberty Love.

I plumped for a mix, the Liberty and Echino combo of Alexia's, and Ayumi's pattern, minus the accessories pocket.

I stitched up a storm until I had the binding attached and ready for finishing.  Gah!

I had used my walking foot to do everything, so although the binding looked great on the outside, when it came to stitching it down, the wider than necessary seam meant the mitred corners were horrendous and I had to pull it quite tight to cover all the raw edges.  The clock was ticking, so I persevered.

It looked OK, but it didn't look great...

As it turned out, I didn't even get my iPad out of the case the whole time we were away, but it niggled me nonetheless.

So on the night we got home I unpicked the binding, trimmed the whole case down by 1/4" all round, as it was a little on the large size too, then re-attached and re-finished the binding.

I had to use a straight seam to join the ends as I had previously cut them on the bias; it was making my head hurt to try and re-cut to the right length, but I am more than fine with the outcome...

So now I am a happy bunny.

Looking at the After picture above, it still looks wonky as I'd just plonked it on the floor, but in reality, it is all good!

The pattern was easy to follow, and really quick to put together, even with all the quilting.  I will make more in the future no doubt as it is not a fabric-hungry pattern, and I am all about the co-ordinating tech!

A little Liberty...

... goes a long way.

Remember this little bundle of joy I bought at Shaukat...

Well the big floral print is a scrap quarter meter of silk that I picked up for whole £5.

Last week I trimmed the edges and turned it into a skinny, lightest of light, infinity scarf in about ten minutes.

I literally put it on as soon as I had made it, and then forgot about it until I went to bed, as it is pretty much weightless!

I stitched right through the final joining seam, as hand-stitching the closure on that fine silk would have been near on impossible, and to be honest, pointless.

I love my little scarf; I think I may definitely need to go back and rummage for more.

Brain like a sieve...

I showed you the lovely pin cushion I received from Emily on Friday, but completely forgot to show you a picture of the mini needle books I made for her and Nicky...

A little Liberty Lifestyle, yarn dyed linen in denim, (oh how I love thee), JD and Aneela, and some real chunky wool felt.

I added the hooks to either attach to a small pair of scissors or to keep the needle books safe or at hand.

It took me 20 times longer playing with fabric combinations than actually sewing these up.  Isn't that always the way?

They finish up at 3 1/2" x 2 1/2" folded.

I may have to make myself one too!

On a side-note before I forget, Hubby is now off work for a fortnight, so I plan to only blog every other day to make the most of family holiday time.  It's pretty quiet in blogland right now anyway, so I think I am going to take advantage too.  So please excuse my lack of interaction over the next couple of weeks; normal service will resume after the August Bank Holiday xxx

You said you would!

Having asked if anyone would be interested in buying some Liberty key fobs at Retreat, the positive vibes meant I have been cutting, stitching and clamping away and have come up with these...

They weigh a tonne, and having played a little with my proposed baggage, I really am thinking again!  Travelling handmade is all well and good if you are an octopus, and not considering the train, Tube and anything the weather can chuck our way; but right now, a big wheely suitcase is looking very tempting!

Hope you are enjoying the weekend; I have ordered new specs, Gok Wan if you please, and spent a bit of time in the garden.  Tomorrow will incorporate all the boring stuff, but hoping to get a BBQ in before the Wimbledon men's final.

PS.  I am hoping this will appear in the Dashboard pretty pronto, as it seems recently that there is an annoying time delay going on, but hey ho, today I am sweating the hot stuff, not the small stuff xxx

Shopping...

Well I can't quite believe that it is the last day of June already; it only seems like a few weeks ago that the electric blanket was a necessity, and the idea of falling asleep in the garden and waking up a little redder than you were expecting, was just wishful thinking!

So whilst I sit here, a little delicately, I'll show you my wares from yesterday.

First there was Liberty.  The lady in the fabric department told me that they will no longer be stocking the quilting cottons; they only had the two prints that I bought, and the brown (loads of brown!) left.  She was not even sure if they will be doing further collections just to be stocked elsewhere!!! 

Bit of a shocker of a picture, sorry - the sun was so bright, and now it is too late to move off the sofa!

I didn't buy any proper Liberty, as I hadn't really thought through what I would make, and how much I would need, and it is way too expensive just to buy a meter and then hope for the best!

I did buy an iron-on 'H', then a trip to the stationary department, and a tin of pencils had to come home with me.

We headed to Covent Garden as I wanted to take a look at a Fossil bracelet that I had spotted online; it was in the sale, so now it is mine too...

I love the London Transport Museum shop; and just because it would have niggled me not to, I got an anniversary mug; I am the same age as the Hammersmith & City line...

I got the tape measure on sale in Cath Kidston, as I have a bad habit of slicing off the stoppers so they retract right back inside, so now I am forearmed; and a last minute pick up of the US quilting magazine I also got passing through Victoria station last time, on the way home from Susan's.

I have to admit that it is a rare day that I have both the time and money and actually find things I really want.  Success!

So that's me; no sewing to show you, but I have plans; plans I have been really good about not getting on with until all my other 'To Do's were done.  I have 3 sets of Bee blocks to make in July, and the key fobs to finish for FQR, and then it's me time.  I have skipped this weeks Patchwork Please! project, as I have an idea for a moneybelt-apron, and I want to make it at my own pace, and with the makes for kids coming up, I will skipping those for the main part; so the pressure is off.

Apologies in advance, as there will be a bit of deja vu for the regulars over the next couple of days,  as I have my Fresh Sewing post, an FQR introduction and my second quarter FAL round up all to write this week, but I am sure I am not the only one; so no time to get into mischief, what with swimming x2, Cubs,  a recorder concert and the school fair to fit in around work too.

I wasn't going to mention Google Reader, as I never used it, but hey if you do/did, don't leave me hanging! 

Let the long week begin folks, deep breath xxx

Tired, in a really good way!

This morning we dropped the kids off at my parents' and got the train up to London.  Considering how near we all live, it is quite surprising how infrequently we head up to town.

Anyway, today was an extended birthday celebration; we went straight for lunch at the tiny Pizza Express on Upper James Street, and spent a fun hour watching Security turning tourists around who were trying to take a shortcut through Golden Square that had been closed for the UK Black Pride group.

Today was London Pride, and with perfect weather there was a really great atmosphere and tonnes of colour in town; so many roads were closed, but we were able to get about on foot and by tube with no problems, and we even ended up in Trafalgar Square with the masses at the end of the day...

I see a potential quilt in that logo!

We did spend a large proportion of time here though...

I did buy a few bits and pieces, and will get some photos tomorrow for your delight.

We then headed down to Covent Garden, via this photo opportunity...

... and then back in time to have tea and cake at Mum & Dad's and rescue them from their day with the kids.

Home now, and my feet are aching, the grime has been washed off and I am looking forward to a bit of shut-eye.

3 weeks time and I'll be back up in that there London, and it can't come round quick enough xxx

Oops forgot!

Now I showed you the great FQR name tag that I received from Julie last week, but blow me, I didn't show you the full reveal of the one I made.

I did flash it up on Instagram, along with the fab self portrait of the happy recipient, but I got caught up in blog hops and other commitments and never showed you here.  Sorry.

I made for the lovely Sonia, who, between receiving her details and mailing her name tag, we both joined the Siblings Together Bee - yay!

I kind of had a plan before I got my partner assignment, and with a little stalking decided to go with it.

I did the teeniest of embroidery, which probably means you will have to invade Sonia's personal space to read her name, but I can live with that, (Sonia, you have no choice, unless you accidentally leave it at home!) .

I really enjoyed the tiny Liberty piecing, and getting in the FQR spirit; not long now chaps!

NB. It is now 2 hours after I 'posted' this and Blogger is not playing nicely, so hope you can see it soon xxx

Da da daaaaah!

There's nothing like a visit to my parents' and a potential pretty photo shoot to get me to put the pedal to the metal and get things done.

My Marcelle Medallion has been a long time coming since the top was completed, very out of character, but I wanted the quilting and backing to be perfect.  I think I sussed it.  I love this quilt...

OK, I took loads of photos, and here they are!!

The Full Details:

Pattern - Marcelle Medallion from Liberty Love by Alexia Marcelle Abegg
Top - mix of Liberty and other high & low prints, mostly from here, here, here and here
Back - IKEA print plus Liberty and low volume charms
Binding - Tula Pink - Prince Charming Fern, in Indigo
Pieced & Quilted - Aurifil 50wt 2021
Spiral quilting from the centre out
Finished size c. 57" square

You don't need to hear me rave on and on, but I have to say this is the quilt I am most proud of; that I didn't rush for the sake of a finish (and a FAL tick), and that has cemented my love for Liberty completely! 

Randoming again...

I've been feeling a bit snowed under the last couple of weeks, and the kids have tended to get on my nerves rather than fuelling my random posts!!

But we're all back on form...

Moo!

Random continents!

The mouth that bankrupted the tooth fairy!

Mub & Grub

And not a lot makes me smile more than my kids on a good day, but...

My beautiful winnings!

Talking of which, I have finally quilted and attached the binding to my Marcelle Medallion quilt, and am heading towards, what I am hoping to be, a Saturday Reveal.

Linking with Cindy and the Randomeers once again xxx