Blogger's Quilt Festival

Today I am joining in the fun and games over at Amy's Creative Side and the Spring Blogger's Quilt Festival.  Can you believe the number of awesome quilts that have been linked already!?

So which quilt am I going to enter?

Wrong!

I did think long and hard about taking the obvious route, but actually I thought it would be a nice change for everyone if I picked my somewhat overlooked Cherry Star...

I love this quilt to pieces; I finished it so close to the Brit Bee Constellation that it has been playing second fiddle ever since. 

It's just such a happy quilt, and actually took quite a lot of effort (for me!).  Do you do that, make something, get embroiled in it at the time, and then look back and wonder how you had the time and inclination to get something so right?

Now if you are coming over here from the Festival, and don't know me, please note, I sew on the dining table, and have to shift every mealtime, I have no design wall and 3 'helpful' children, so getting the layout for this was a logistical feat in itself.

I played along with Chelsea's Made In Cherry QAL, having fallen in love with Sarah Fielke's pattern after seeing photos from the Fall Quilt Market, I was hooked.  It was a no-brainer when it came to using all the Rainbow Swap charms I had gathered last year.

Having completed this quilt way back in January, when the garden was less than pretty, I thought it was only right to give it another airing especially for the occasion...

Full details:
60" x 60"
220 unique 3.5" rainbow charms
IKEA number fabric background
Grey fleece backing
Made In Cherry pattern - Sarah Fielke

Thank you for stopping by, I will be busy looking at everyone else's entries later today - it may take some time!  And if this is your first time Chez FB, thank you, please stay a while have a look around, the natives are friendly x

New Year Stars!

Well as is customary, pinch punch, first of the month and time to link up with Lynne and all the Fresh Sewing ladies (and gents?).

So after the manic end to 2011, I spent the best part of January 2012 working on big quilts, and it has been wonderful.

My Brit Bee Constellation quilt has got to be my favourite finish ever, I have gushed thanks and posted many many pictures here, but never one to miss the chance of posting another picture, or two...

Then there was my Cherry Star; made using rainbow swap charms and buoyed on by Chelsea's QAL, this is already a chilly-day/night favourite!

There were also some Brit Bee and Bee Blessed blocks for Judith...

And of course the start of the Mouthy Stitches zippy pouch swap...

I also made it to the final 8 of the completely brilliant Quokka Quilt's Blogger's Choice, which I am really proud of...

I think that can be counted as a pretty good start to the New Year, and February is already looking like it is going to be a bit of a Leap Year bonanza!

I hope 2012 has started how you mean it to go on too x

Star light, star bright!

I told you that I had completed the Cherry Star top...

Well then I went ahead and finished the whole blanket...

I'm opting for 'blanket' rather than quilt, as it has a simple dark grey fleecy backing, and minimal quilting just to keep it all in place.  I sewed it up, right sides together and turned through.

I top-stitched just under 1/4" around the edge in dark grey, and outlined the star the same way.  Simple, but effective.  This is for the times when we, or rather I, really want to snuggle down and be cozy.

Without batting, it is really light, especially compared to the whopper Constellation!  But it is beautifully warm, I know, I sat under it yesterday evening and it was great.

So, do you like the background?  Be honest.  I know it won't be to everyone's taste, but I love love love it!  Its an IKEA classic which I had been waiting to use.  I sort of envisaged counting the stars in the sky, and it made me smile as soon as I auditioned it.

Thanks must go out to Chelsea for running the Made In Cherry QAL, it focused my mind on using my rainbow charms on a superb pattern that I had pinned as soon as I saw it; and I am, once again, surprised and thrilled with how it turned out.

I think I normally play things a little too safe; so much time, effort and expense is usually being invested for me to risk making a big old faux-pas by getting all adventurous.  But I want to change that, and make things I will love, and reflect the look I really want to be creating, not just making the things I know will look OK from the outset.  Does that make sense?  First attempt, I will deem a success.

So onto my Mouthy Stitches partner, who will also receive a leap of faith, with 3/4" finished HSTs.  I wasn't too sure I could pull it off, but Lucy's excellent and timely use of the brilliant method from Elizabeth 'Oh Fransson!' for piecing small squares set me on the right route.

I can confirm that it worked a treat; I won't talk you through it, the original does that way better than I can, but all you need to know is that I gridded some light-weight iron-on interfacing with 1.5" squares, pressed on my trimmed HSTs and off I went...

I really hope my partner likes the Cherry Star off-spring panel, otherwise this Mama will happily keep it! xxx

Taking a break...

... but only from the sewing machine for today!!

The plan was that all the kids were heading off to their friends' house for tea after school, and I would have 3 or 4 hours uninterrupted sewing after work.  However a tummy bug is working its magic throughout school, and the tea had to be cancelled as one of said friends was incapacited!

Hey ho, the 'marmite' will wait, so to speak!

So I only got a brief few quiet minutes to concentrate on my Mouthy Stitches swap. 

I posted this 'basic' purse/pouch sketch in the group pool yesterday, and it seems to have gone down a treat; so I pulled 48 of the Cherry Star charm off-cuts, ready to be made into the mini HSTs.

I am hoping my secret partner is up for some scrappy magic!

Cherry Star...

Today, having made a couple of dozen paper dragons at school for Chinese New Year, I dusted off the glitter, came home and got cracking on my Made In Cherry.

The star pieces are complete...

I am 99% pleased with how this has turned out; with 220 different fabrics, I reckon there are 2 or 3 squares that should have been moved a little or swapped out, but without a design wall, minimal natural light and only having space to make it in 'quarters', I am actually surprised it worked so well!

It is completely inspired by the fantastic Kati, thank you Kati; if you want to see colour graduation in a different league, please pop over and take a look at here, and here!

I have a bit of a 'different' idea for the background fabric of this 60"x60" quilt using some great fabric I bought last year.

I will hopefully get that sorted tomorrow; it might be a bit marmite, (love it or hate it, no in-between!), but I am determined it will look exactly how I was hoping, especially with its fleecy backing and minimal quilting, I need a bit of minimal quilting!

And In The Green Corner...

I promise to keep it short this evening, as I seem to have rather a lot of comments from both here and flickr to respond to!!  Thank you all for all the wonderful compliments, I owe everything to the awesome Brit Bee ladies xxx

So not content with just an fantastic finish yesterday, I started trimming my Made In Cherry charms to 3.5", and pieced one corner...

I have actually pieced a second corner this evening, but no photos yet.  You like?

Right, I need to get replying and put in some stalking hours for the Mouthy Stitches Swap - I have a few ideas, and I just want to see if they are heading in the right direction before dipping my toe in the flickr pool.

PS.  I didn't place in the Quokka Quilts final selection, nor did any of the MS ladies which was a double shame, but still, a wonderful feeling to get so far.

PPS.  I'll be back tomorrow with my 'Winter Stitching Plans' update, linking back with Sarah and the Fairy Face followers, how have you got on?

Day Off...

Today I am blogging early as I am on my day off, not helping at school, but not sure I will have the energy to blog tonight as I am exhausted already and still have the school-ballet-Beavers runarounds to look forward to!

I have already re-sealed the bath, sewn on a Beaver's badge, done 2 loads of washing, quilted a little more of the Constellation (such hard work!), and made this...

 

The old zipper tabs are not so technically perfect, but it used some of my stash and has a much needed purpose, so that's good enough for me.  It measures up about 10.5" square, and is a pretty nifty size for a storage pouch.

I used some of my old Kokka Matryoshkas, lined it with the same Klona Teal as the Constellation and uses one of my new 9" zippers.

And this is my current view...

I am sorting the charms required for my Made In Cherry, and making the most of the floor before the kids get home, so can't stop, must get back on my knees xxx