Sofa so good...

I have been cracking on with my FQR finishes, which includes my hand-quilted cushion that I also presumptuously put on my FAL list…

After a couple of false starts and a little unpicking, I found my hand-quilting rhythm and stitch size, and then there was no stopping me!  I even flukily managed to maintain quite a decent backside, if I do say so myself!

I used a Hera marker to guide my stitching, and as one of many firsts on this cushion it, I was rather impressed that even with all the scrunching up the top got whilst quilting, I could still see where I was going.

I backed my cushion with some Clarke & Clarke home dec weight spots, put in a concealed zip and used some of my favourite Liberty Lifestyle print for binding, and I don't use that unless I am particularly chuffed with something!

I need something else to hand quilt now, honestly I am going to make things just so I can!  I have even pulled out my Midnight At The Oasis today, which has lain unloved for about 6 months, and got my appliqué action on at last.  I think that one certainly deserves the hand-quilting treatment.

So onto the rather over-crowded but oh-so-pretty sofa it has gone…

I should photograph the view from the sofa really, to assure you that I haven't covered the whole house!

Well the weather has cooled a little this evening, we managed about 45 minutes at the park earlier, before the thunder started, and made it home just before the rain.  Not sure what this weekend has in store, but I am guessing it won't be a patch on the fun and games of last weekend.

Secrets...

Brit Bee Secret Santa is always fun, and this year was no exception and we all made cushion covers for each other.

I was secretly making for Ceri.  Back when I was first feeling poorly I needed an EPP project, so I pulled some Oakshotts, white Essex Linen and Boo Crew fly-screen, and set myself up for a bit of Triangle City-building.  When Ceri posted her 'Dear Santa' wish list, it couldn't have been more serendipitous!

A nice bright cut of Joel Dewberry home dec for the back, and a concealed zip(!), and this Santa's work was done.

That last little keyfob went in the parcel for Felix too, and both, I am relieved to report, went down well.

And what did I receive?  Jackpot joy!

Santa-Pops made this perfect beauty for me.

Please excuse the ill-fitting cushion pad, but I wanted to use it before getting an insert that actually fits!

So that was a bit of the secret making that was going on here undetected; I'll get a snap of the last of the secret Christmas makes to show you tomorrow.

My parents will be taking the kids to the Saturday morning Panto, and hubby and I will get a couple of hours to regain our sanity!  I haven't been more than 500m from the house in over a week, which, given the conditions out there, is not a bad thing, so a little non-family interaction will be a novelty.  I better go find something to wear other than slippers!

Eeek!

Some days you know you will treasure forever.  Some days make you beam with pride.  Today I had one of those days.

The girls got behind the sewing machine for the first time, and they were thrilled!

We ran a few errands, and dropped dear son off at his friend's for the day, and needing a couple of bits from the little local sewing shop anyway, I thought, why not!

They were given free rein of the £1 FQ box and the discounted sparkly Disney princesses, and then we came home to sew.

Simple envelope back cushions were the pick of the day.

I did the cutting and pinning, they were in charge of the start/stop button, needle up/down and speed control.

There's ric-rac on the back, because I had some, in the right colours.  We even used the fancy combined straight/zig-zag stitch (no.11) to join the front and back pieces.

Within a couple of hours, and without any raised voices, we had cushions!!!

We even popped back to the sewing shop to show the lady, who was suitably impressed and a complete star with them!

When the weather changed for the worse this afternoon, they snuggled up on the sofa, and watched ET on DVD.

Now they are tucked up in bed using them as pillows.

A good day; a good mummy day.

Cushions cushions everywhere...

I pondered for a while, I wrote a huge To Do list of so many other things, and in the end sadly I didn't sign up for round 2 of the Brit Quilt Swap - Pillow Fight.

However I will be making a cushion this month for my Grandma, as it will be her birthday at the beginning of November.  So all those mosaics in the flickr group have been mighty lovely to look at and very inspiring.

But here's the thing.  The lady will be 90.  She likes blue.  She doesn't like fussy.  She lives in a nursing home.  The décor of her room is 'eclectic' florals.  She will not realise that I have made it.  It will probably end up hidden on a chair under a dressing gown.  What do I do?

I really want to make something to celebrate this 'milestone' however I know that I will probably come away a bit deflated if I put my heart and soul into it.  Am I taking the wrong attitude?  What would you do?

These are my previous ventures...

I pinned some cushions which I would class as simple enough to make but would look 'the business'...

This one by Lynne was an obvious 'go to'...

Source: sewwequilt.com via Hadley on Pinterest

Then I saw this...

Source: thehappyscraps.blogspot.com via Hadley on Pinterest

But this one I thought I could change into a birthday cake...

Source: flickr.com via Hadley on Pinterest

With a 90 on top!

Oh I think I am going to have to sleep on this one, even though it's a cushion, not a pillow x

A very welcome Tick!

I got my head and cushions all straight, sorted and back in order last night!
No.10 Make the covers for the final 2 cushions I have been procrastinating about for too long.  Tick.

The ill-fated corners are not perfect, but they will be squidged and fought over by the children, so I shouldn't worry too much!  They are from a Sugar Pop charm pack and some extra Lollipop yardage, just in case you were wondering.

My Mystery Quilt fabric is being posted out today with the Sherbet Pips backing, so I won't touch those projects until next week, however the fabric I ordered for my Dad's Union quilt has arrived from Backstitch - how beautiful was the packaging never alone the contents!

The Avenues print is one of the new Heather Moore Cut Out & Keep for Cloud 9, and it is gorgeous, and I have been waiting for it to be released for a long time.  I also bought a Klona (with an 'l') swatch card, which is great as I am so bad at choosing/matching solids, and the Klona cottons are a great price, so I will definitely be ordering some soon.

Lynne at Lily's Quilts has just posted a mini Union flag tutorial using 2 FQs, so I might have a practice run first with some of my old stash, just to get a feel for the cutting and piecing, as it is very similar to the Mandy Shaw pattern I am following.

But first things first, Trudi's Brit Bee blocks will be this weekend's project of choice.  Have a good one x

Cutting corners...doh!!!

So I got the cushions covers pieced together and had the binding attached, but in trying to ensure I had enclosed all the many layers, my seams were a bit over the 1/4" and 6 layers thick in some places, making the binding a little too snug to wrap around comfortably.

Oh I'll trim a little off the edges, sounds reasonable enough; do the deed, only to then discover that...

I had sliced off all 4 corners waiting to be mitred, not just one, the whole lot!!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAArrrgh!.  Cue a lot of swearing and going off to bed in a huff!

Only saving grace is that I discovered this before I got to slicing up the second cover. 

So tonight I will finish the cushions, even if it results in me pulling an all-nighter, I want them done!

May the Forth be with me!

Well today I'm going to point you off in the direction of others, and beautiful things may come your way.

Firstly my lovely online friend Victoria at Boutique Uniquely.  She has a new baby, a new home, a new name and new look for her blog, and is currently setting up her Etsy store!

In celebration, she has a cute giveaway with a couple of the DS Quilts spotty fabrics from Jo-Anns, which to me, in the UK, seem to be the fabrics that everyone in the whole of America has been buying for the last couple of weeks (it's not fair!).  So to right this geographical wrong, pop over and take a look, but again, I have to urge you not to enter and reduce my chance of winning!

Secondly, I have signed up for a tea-towel swap - no sewing pressure, and worldwide loveliness!  Take a look at Leonie's blog Kiwi At Heart for the full details and join in!  There's a linky on the left.

As for me... a sneek peek for you of the cushion covers I will finish tonight...  I only had the time and energy to cut the backing, lining and sort the binding last night...

That'll be another one off the list, and with my perfectly sharp new rotary blades having arrived in record time, Trudi's Brit Bee blocks are within my sight!

And I couldn't resist, just for my geeky followers 'Happy Star Wars Day'.