Always the sun...

Remember the sun?  I have passed down stories of it to my children, you know, the sun you see when you break through the clouds in an airplane, the sun that, according to legend, used to shine in these parts in something called 'the summer'... in the days before the rain came.

So this weeks Zakka Style sew-along project, the Rain Cloud Mug Rug needed a pick me up... there was no way I was sewing rain!  I have had e-bloody-nough of the real thing!

So may I present my take on this project...

A fussy-cut Heather Ross sunshine, looking a bit bemused by all the clouds in the way, but trying to shine none-the-less...

You can just about make out the detail on the clouds; fancy eh?  Bondaweb, not needle-turned appliqué is my friend, if it's good enough for John, aka Quilt Dad, it's good enough for me.

On the reverse I even went a bit wild, having broken open the variegated yellow Aurifil for the rays, I machine embroidered the words to the song that has been going round and round in my head...

It was all made with scraps, and it may not be my best or favourite project so far, but it's growing on me.

In case you are in need of a pick me up or a bit of teenage/80s reminiscing too, this one's for you...

Finally, a huge thank you for all the comments left so far on the Fluffy Sheep Quilting giveaway post yesterday... there's still time to enter or take advantage of Cindy's discount code, so if you haven't already, please take a look... there will be further reminders... and what could possibly make a cold miserable day feel better than a bit of online fabric shopping eh!?

Partner's Choice...

Thank you kind folks who alerted me to my Ruby Star Spring 241 Tote picture appearing over at Quilt Dad's today - how completely chuffed am I!  The man's a genius, and I'm not just saying that!

Well I didn't get to pull all the fabric I'd planned last night, but I was able to narrow things down a bit.   Then using my new 'hour of peace' between work and school run, I am now able to give one of my Goodie Swap partners a bit of a choice.

So which do you reckon?

I need to get a move on though, as some people are all ready to mail.  Some of my potential fabric is still mid-Atlantic, so if it doesn't come soon, it'll be Plan B for one partner!

This weekend I am determined to get rid of this cough and cold that has been bugging me for the last couple of weeks, hopefully go to the Sheep Fair, weather permitting and catch up on some ironing, oh lucky me!  I hope there'll be time and energy for sewing, lots of sewing x

That was the month that was...

Hurray, I love June!  It's my favourite month, not just because I have a birthday at the end or anything like that, but have a sneaky peak at what I am not allowed to play with for another few weeks...

Today I am linking up with Lily's Quilts Fresh Sewing Day - Hello World!  Last month I linked directly to the Happy Scrappy block post, but I achieved so much in May, I thought it merited a new post looking back at my best sewing month ever!

First, there were finishes...
Happy Scrappy Quilt - inspired by the Aneela Hoey crazy scrappy blocks.  My flickr pic of the top got added to Explore on 15th May and has had over 640 views; so many comments, so many 'favourites' - overwhelming - thank you everyone!!!!!!

Sherbet Pips Confetti Quilt - Fat Quarterly/Quilt Dad pattern...

There were completed tops...
Union Jack - based on a pattern from Mandy Shaw...

Brit Quilt Swap Skull - based on a Boo Davis design - the recipient is still a secret!

And the best of the rest...
Cushions...

Bracelets...

Toys for the boys...

...and three Mystery blocks...  PS. it's never too late to join in and learn by my mistakes!

I also linked up to Fairy Face Designs' Summer Sewing Plans; wrote a list of my top 20 To-Dos and have ticked off 7 so far!  Nothing like a good list to get you focussed!

If you've popped over from Lynne's, please come back and visit again soon; if you were here already but haven't been over to Lily's Quilts, go take a look there too, it's brilliant.

I hope you all had a great May, and here's to a June full of fun and fabric x

Confetti Pips - A Crinkly Finish!

Having finished the binding in record time, I nervously washed and tumbled the Pips last night, for my first foray into crinkledom.  Just before bed, I pulled out what I have been waiting for, for a long time - a quilt just for me!  Perfect crinkles too!

The Sherbet Pips are a muted version of some of my favourite colours, and the print is probably a little 'sweeter' than I would describe my usual tastes, but there is something so relaxing about the whole collection that made me want it!  And I love it, no excuses.

It measures up at 40"x 52".  If you want Quilt Dad's pattern too, it's in Issue 5 of Fat Quarterly.

Who let the dogs out...woof woof, woof woof!

It's May already!!  Make sure you pop on over to Lily's Quilts to point everyone to your best bits from April.  

Thanks to the superb Fat Quarterly / Quilt Dad pattern, I have buckled down and in a couple of sessions ended up with this...

I am so pleased with it, and I for one am still in love with the Pips.  I am just frustrated now that I am still waiting for the grey swing yardage for the backing and that I was a bit slack in ordering some more batting.

But hey, it's not like I haven't got enough other things I can be getting on with whilst I'm waiting!

Pips away!

I got a lovely parcel today containing some of the Sherbet Pips that I pre-ordered from Prints to Polka Dots...

Having earlier succumbed to the new Fat Quarterly (Issue 5), all about pre-cuts and containing Lynne of Lily's Quilts' fantastic Dr Seuss pattern amongst others, I was set for the off.  Within the electronic pages, I'd had a 'eureka' moment, when I spied Quilt Dad's Confetti quilt made of Pips!  With the Royal Wedding looming, what a great omen!

So this evening I got on and joined trios of Pips and pressed them ready for cutting tomorrow. 

I am so happy to have found a quilt design that will enable me to confidently crack on and make something that is not going to stress me out nor require copious amounts of unpicking and is made for straight line quilting.  It will also look fantastic (well I hope!).  Thanks Dad!

I need to get some more batting and am still awaiting the backing fabric, but if I can get the top completed over the long weekend, along with maybe quilting and binding my Dresden and making a final decision on my scrappy quilt design, I will be very happy and then ready to concentrate my energy on Trudi's Bee blocks (the fabric is in the post!!), the mystery quiltalong and maybe join the Brit Swap! 

Oh lordy, seeing all that in black and white is a tad daunting!