I love you bolster

How often do we express our affection for someone with a heart motif?

I did so in 2014 for my youngest daughter with this quilt, pattern by V & Co, which I made with some Oakshott Ruby and Kona White.

 

She has been asking me for a while to make some cushions for her room.  

I have had this bolster cushion for some time and when she suggested making cushions to match her quilt I thought I could use it.

I had some of the Oakshott left and Kona White.   I started by making some 4" wide geese using the no waste method and made the top of the hearts using 2 1/2 " Oakshott squares and small 1 1/2" white squares for each corner.

Then I added some alternate white squares and rectangles to make up the panel to the required size.

The panel was quilted simply by outlining the hearts and stitching down the column.  Then I made it into a tube by adding a zip which stretched the length of the pillow.

I added quilted circles at either end.  And handstitched a double heart in red cotton perle on each one.

I didn't have a clear plan to start but am rather pleased with how it has turned out.

This is my fourteenth finish from my FAL list!   I'll be linking it up at the end of this quarter.  

Here is my original list.

Big wool, big scarf

I cannot remember how long ago I bought this gorgeous wool but I'm pretty sure I bought it in John Lewis on a trip to London.

It is Highland Alpaca - which is 50% alpaca and 50% new wool.  It is classified as super bulky and knits up really quick. When I took this project up again I had done a few rows of rib - that's all!   

I can't remember what it was going to be but I had an inkling it was meant to be a scarf to go with my Green Boden coat. I love this coat - the colour, the cord, the cut so I'm sure that was what I had intended to knit...

Anyway I thought this stuff is so bulky it wouldn't show up much of a pattern so I ended up doing moss stitch.  Which my good friend Helen thinks is a really boring stitch to do.  Normally I would agree but this stuff knits up so quickly I didn't get a chance to get bored!  And I love that chunky texture.

And here it is finished!  

 This is my thirteenth finish from my FAL list!   I'll be linking it up at the end of this quarter.  

Here is my original list.

Siblings Together Again

And here is the last one.

All the blocks are by the same person.  I'm struggling to work out who sent them to me but I think it was Anna - difficult to read the writing sorry.  Please contact me so I can thank you properly. 

She used batik fabrics and made some of my tile blocks and then some improv pieces.   I rather like how it works together.  I used the rare bit of batik in my stash to sash the blocks - this time I didn't want the sashing to shout and I think it works!

I'm linking this one up here:

And it is another finish from my FAL list - number twelve!   I'll be linking it up at the end of this quarter.  

Here is my original list.

Siblings Together - another one

Hot after the last quilt finish I realised I had got back into putting these QAYG quilts together.   I had two left to do.....

So of course I put another one together!  Sashed in purple because I thought it would bring it all together.

I'm linking it up here:

And it is another finish from my FAL list - number eleven!   I'll be linking it up at the end of this quarter.  

Here is my original list.

Siblings Together

I have made quite a few of the quilt as you go tiles quilts for Siblings Together, with lots of help from you lovely quilters.

Well just when I thought I had got to the end, more blocks arrived!

Unfortunately I was flagging a bit in energy levels by then and also had lots to do as a parent - you know there were exams and the end of term - so I didn't get around to finishing the last few quilts in the block drive.

Yesterday I got back into the swing of things and finished one of the three quilts I had left to put together - here are the blocks 

Here is the mistake I made - it does not always go to plan 

And here it is finished....

Better view here I think 

  

This quilt will join the others sitting in my dining room.  


 I will label them all up and then let Delma from Siblings Together know they are ready and she will come and pick them up from my house.   I'll be so glad to see them start on their journey to meet their new owners and it will be nice to free up some space - ready to start next year's campaign!

I'm linking this one up here:

And it is another finish from my FAL list - number ten!   I'll be linking it up at the end of this quarter.  

Here is my original list.

Superman in a bag! Finish no 9

My eldest has always enjoyed dressing up.    Now in her twenties she still does!   The excuse being going to the London Film & Comic Con.

This weekend she is supergirl!

A while ago as I was writing up my FAL list I spotted this superman canvas fabric and thought I would offer to make her a bag. 

  And so I did!  Progress shots....

I love that little superman symbol I added to the lining.   What you cannot see is the superman in the flush zipped pocket...  The top right photo is the back of the bag.  The photos on the bottom row are on the front - flap down and flap up!   That superman really did get everywhere!  

This was my first time adding twist locks and it was very scary making those holes in the flap as if they didn't line up I am not sure I had the materials to make another flap.  The answer was making small holes until I was sure it would line up.  That part of the process may have taken the longest time.

It was also my first time making an adjustable strap but that was really easy. In fact I quite enjoyed using all the hardware and am now familiar with this pattern and may want to make another smaller version!  

The final article....

Made with help from Lisa Lam's Bag Making Bible and supplies from her shop u-handbag.

For my daughter the weekend could look like this....(should have moved those recycling bins)

Have a great time at LFCC!

And that is another finish from my FAL list - number nine!   I'll be linking it up at the end of this quarter.  

Here is my original list.

Scraptastic Tuesday - my new sampler

I am looking forward to making a start on this quilt next month, which I have drawn up in EQ.  The blocks are 12" in size, and placed on point.

 
 I bought this grey patterned fabric (4.25 metres of Prisma Elements - Matte Zirconia) from The Village Haberdashery.  I will be using it for the setting triangles and alternate squares. 

The rest of the fabric will come from my scraps or stash.

Here is my quilt with my chosen fabric in place - EQ is quite clever that way! 

I will be sharing a tutorial for each block on #scraptasticuesdays and I'll be starting with this block: Kansas Star - I will need four of these for the quilt.

 

It is a nine patch block made up of snowball or square in a square units.  

I will be making nine of these units though the colour placement will vary to make the star pattern.



So why not join in next week and make some Kansas Star blocks along with me?  

Pyjamas!

I have been wanting to return to making clothes for a few years.

In my twenties I used to make clothes because it was fun, it was cheap and allowed you to make more of a variety of things.  Once I even made a dress in one day to wear that same evening!   I also made a dress as my going away outfit after my wedding.  I wouldn't say I was super skilled but I was fairly confident (perhaps wrongly so?)

I didn't really make clothes for my children but I did make lots of dressing up clothes.   They loved dressing up and I made lots of costumes for school plays when they were in Primary School.  A bit pressured ( all last minute stuff at Christmas time) but great fun.

So I have finally got the courage to give it a go again.

What better project to start with than a pair of pj pants?

I bought this pattern...

Teamed with these cute kitties in flannel which I bought from Plush Addicts - there was a discount!

I have made all the rookie mistakes in this return to garment sewing.   I didn't have my pattern to hand when ordering the fabric so I looked at another pattern and thought it would require about the same amount.   Wrong!   I only had enough for one and a half legs!   Not much use....

Fortunately I was able to get some more of the same fabric though my kids were trying to encourage me to have kitties on one leg and dogs on the other!

And here they are finished !  I used a scrap of Cotton+Steel as a trim - it's narrower than the pattern photo because I didn't have any more but long enough for my short legs!  

I didn't have a wide waistband elastic either so I used two lengths of a narrower elastic having divided the channel in two!  It feels nice and comfy.  Can't wait for some cooler weather to wear them at night ....

I'll be linking up this finish (no 8) to the Finish-A-Long at the end of the quarter.

Here is my original list.

A bit of retro crochet and my 7th finish this quarter!

I bought this book : Cute and Easy Crochet by Nicki Tench, probably in 2011! 

 

 I made a crochet cushion and my next project was to be this bag!

Well a few years later and I have gone back to this neglected project....

I made more granny squares and stitched them together .....

I ran out of green yarn so used a different colour to join the blocks in the gusset and to attach them to the back and front.   I think I prefer the blue contrast.

Next came the handles

And then the lining

And this is it finished!   I wonder why I didn't do this sooner....?

I'll be linking up this long overdue  finish (no 7) to the Finish-A-Long at the end of the quarter.

Here is my original list.

Finish-A -Long Winners

 

Today is the day we are privileged to announce the winners for the Second Quarter of the Finish-A-Long. 

All of us who hosting this year have been inspired by all the finishes of the first quarter - an amazing 677!!

So if you are low on inspiration or maybe your sewing mojo has been missing lately, we highly recommend you visit some of the finishes from Q2.

Rhonda is going to email all the winners around the time of this posting. Rhonda will need to hear back from the winners by Sunday, July 24 so that she can arrange to get your prize to you, and if she does not hear from you by that date she will pick an alternate. Please email her (gap{dot}rhonda{at}gmail{dot}com) so you don't miss out on your wonderful prize from our kindhearted sponsors.  

Thank you again to our generous sponsors. Without further ado, the winners - each picked by the random number generator - of the Q1 FAL prizes are:

 

The winner of the €25 (25 Euro) Gift Certificate from Fluffy Sheep Quilting goes to QuiltGranny who blogs at GRANNYcanQUILT and made this gorgeous beautiful baby quilt:

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The winner of 3 patterns from Clover & Violet is @limeleaf74 on IG who made this french press cosy:

 

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The winner of the Oakshott Fabric £75 Gift Certificate goes to Sophie who blogs at Luna Lovequilts and made this adorable tote bag:

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The winner of 3 patterns from Tartankiwi goes to Jennifer (@crimsonconfection on IG) and also has an etsy shop by the same name and made this amazing cross stitch:

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The winner of the $50 Gift Certificate to The Intrepid Thread is Kirsty (@kqdesign on IG) who also has this great weebly site and made this great quilt:

 

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The winner of the choice of 3 patterns from Happy Quilting is Kat who blogs at Kat's Craft and made this bright and beautiful C&S coin quilt:

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A $25 gift certificate from Green Fairy Quilts goes to Heather who blogs at Quilting and Beyond who stitched this fold-it bag:

 

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A copy of the full Aurora BOM Pattern from Blossom Heart Quilts goes to bee who blogs at Buzzing Around and finished this great Warhol-inspired mini:

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The $40 gift certificate from Mad about Patchwork goes to Genevieve (@theorlaproject on IG) who made and gifted this beautiful dresden quilt:

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The winner of the signed copy of The Ultmimate Guide to Machine Quilting from Christa Quilts goes to Samantha (@zipperoonihere on IG) finished this beautiful quilt:

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A $50 Gift Certificate from 7 Acres Cleared Fabric Shop goes to Angela (@angela.bacon on IG) who made a gorgeous Disney mini swap but IG won't let me copy the pic - you can find it here. If Angela sends me a copy I will add later.

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A 6-month subscription to Make Modern goes to @asquaredquilter on IG who made this great paper-pieced pillow as a birthday gift for a friend:

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The first winner of 3 patterns from Porch Swing Quilts is Izzy who blogs at Dizzy Quilts and finished this super cute mini with some great quilting:

 

The second winner of 3 patterns from Porch Swing Quilts is Abigail who blogs at Cut & Alter and made this beautiful mini (love the quote from Romeo & Juliet):

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The $30 gift certificate from Sunny Day Supply goes to Gretchen who blogs at 120 Blocks and made this cute table runner:

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The winner of a copy of Windy City Bags from Sew Sweetness is Judy who blogs at Sew Some Sunshine and made this super cute quilt:

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The $25 gift certificate to Sew Sisters Quilt Shop goes to Christina who blogs at Christina's Handicrafts and made this eye-catching table runner:

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The $50 Gift Certificate from Mariner's Compass Quilt Shop goes to Jantine (@urbanstylejantine on IG) who knit this great shawl by testing a pattern:

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The winner of the Pattern Pack from On the Windy Side goes to Karen (@karenlovesepp on IG) who made this great orange peel quilt:

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The $50 gift certificate from Fat Quarter Shop goes to Jo who blogs at Create the Point and finished this sweater after almost 2 full years (THIS is what the finish-a-long is ALL ABOUT):

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The winner of 2 pin bowls from Laurel Bee Designs is Pippa (@pippaspatch on IG) who made this gorgeous Siblings Together Quilt:

 

 

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The winner of the $40 gift certificate to Imagine Gnats is Nicole who blogs at Quilting like a Maniac- Relaxing through Quilting and made this Stunner:

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The winner of the $20 gift certificate from Sew Me a Song is Cheryl (@moyersminions on IG) who finished my this beautiful quilt:

 

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The winner of the $30 gift certificate to Knotted Thread is Ella who blogs at ThrowAWrenchintheWorks and finished this pouch and MANY other things:

 

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The winner of the £40 (40 Pound) Gift Certificate from Simply Solids is Francine who blogs at MochaWildChild and practiced on EQ7 by making these great pouches:

 

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The $25 gift certificate from The Quilt Ranch goes to Vera who blogs at Negligent Style and made this spectacular pillow (you really should go read the story behind the blog title): 

  

Hosting the FAL, with all the other global hosts, is an enjoyable experience. It is working for us and seems to be working well for you, with record breaking finishes for Q1, and Q2 was especially great.  We are now looking forward to a spectacular Q3 - could we make it even better than the first quarter?  With 46 projects on my list I am hoping so!

Congratulations to the winners and thank you to the sponsors!! This wouldn't wok without you.