Sunday Stash

Yummy yummy Moda Tula Pink Hushabye - arrived a few weeks ago as part of my parcel from Whipstitch Fabrics on Etsy but not blogged about.  No plans for these yet - I really am stashing this fabric line until I can get as many of the different fabrics from it as I can.  Then I may consider cutting into or maybe I will just continue to admire and stroke it!

Speaking of stashing I see some more of it in my future - a fabulous new UK shop Simply Solids has opened.  It stocks Kona solids and postage on orders over £15 in the UK is free.  To celebrate Lilys Quilts is having a wonderful giveaway click here to read all about it.

A Sweet Sewing Weekend

A day late I know but I had a very productive sewing weekend - the World Cup has made me very focused on not being near a tv. 

As well as doing my Bee Blocks for the Fresh Modern Bee 2 I cut all my fabric for my brother's quilt into lots and lots and lots of strips.  Then there was some gift making

The placemats are the final four for part of a set of 8 for my Mum.  She got the first 4 as a Mother's Day gift but I have just finished the other 4 this weekend.  Fabric is part of a Moda Sweet Jelly Roll.

Coasters are my Granny's birthday present with the same Moda Sweet Jelly Roll fabric

I made this quilt top a few months ago and then put it away too scared to even contemplate finishing it due to its vast size.

 (Anyone guess my favourite fabric line this Spring?). This weekend I made the back

I am going to baste it soon but am terrified about quilting it.  I am going to try diagonal staight line quilting and see if it will fit through my machine.  If it won't it looks like this will be my first attempt at hand quilting!  It's unironed because the photos were taken during this weekend's "Irongate Crisis".  I dropped the iron breaking it beyond repair and had to wait until Argos opened the next morning and I could dispatch husband there.  I am now the owner of this lovely iron (I like the colour most!)

Sunday Stash

I just realised I hadn't posted about these when I received them.  They are top to bottom: Moda Sweetwater Make Life Charm Pack, Moda Sanae Panache in Exclamation, Flourish and Fearless all in the Pomegrante colour way and Amy Butler Garden Maze.  Purchased from Whipstitch Fabrics on Etsy.

The Panache fabrics were used for binding on my Simple Squares Quilt and I still have another Panache Charm Pack to use up so I will add the rest of the yardage into that.  Make Life and Amy Butler just because I love them!

Bee Blocks

These are my first ever Bee Blocks for Amy aka ScruffyCat1970 as part of the Fresh Modern Bee 2. Amy requested string blocks made by paper piecing from the tutorial by Film in the Fridge.

My points don't match up quite as perfectly as I would like. Doing this block has been great for me though as I am no longer scared of paper piecing. Also it has yet again shown me that fabrics which I may not instantly like on their own, look great paired with other fabrics. It also took me a lot less time than I thought to make this which of course means I want to make a whole quilt of these for myself and as you can see below I have become quite attached to these blocks!

And now for the fun photo, we are supposed to add a fun photo to Flickr of our "blocks on tour". So I decided this evening that my block and I should bond and spend some quality time together. Does this mean watching England v US in the World Cup. Nope - I am Irish and by its colour scheme the block is honorary Irish and neither of us are particularly intersted in football. So here is my block spending its evening in the garden with a nice cold glass of wine, a stack of magazines and a netbook to catch up on blog reading.

A Finish - Simple Squares Baby Quilt

I have always loved Film in the Fridge's especially her quilts made out of simple squares. When I very first went shopping for fabric I bought some Panache by Sanae Charm Packs with the idea of making something similar. I pieced it together right at the beginning of my quilting and then whenI realised that you could still buy Panche on Etsy so I ordered some yardage to complete the backing and binding.

I made mine with only 1 charm pack so it is pram or buggy sized. The quilting is 1/4 inch from the seam line in red thread. Its going to be my "If its a girl" present for a friend who I know will appreciate a baby present in something other than baby pink.

Modify Tradition Mini Quilt Finished

I finished my swap for the Modify Tradition mini quilt swap.  Hopefully my secret swap partner likes it.  I was really bad at coming up with an idea and I have always loved this quilt on Flickr so followed it.

This mini quilt was lots of firsts for me:

1. First mini quilt

2. First time making something for another quilter/sewer

3. First time making this block

4. First time labelling a quilt (but I can't show it as the swap is secret until received)

This weekend's sewing and a lesson learned . . . .

Lots and lots of sewing done this weekend.

Sampler quilt top finished - backing below - any ideas on how on earth I would quilt this.  I'm not brave enough to free motion on somthing so big yet so any ideas gratefully received?

The other 2 quilts in the picture are either finished or I am finishing sewing the binding on tonight.  Posts of both soon.  I was 4 inches away from maching sewing the binding to the pink and orange mini quilt when my sewing had a funny moment (or an hour now that I come to mention it!).  The bobin thread was catching on the case and the fabric was getting sucked into the machine.  Cue take the machine plate off, bobin holder out, clean out the lint, put it all back together and the same thing happens again and again and again.  I try putting the bobin and bobin holder in several different times and cleaning again and again.  Then I find a huge hidden bit of lint and I think I've sorted it.  All back together AND THE SAME THING HAPPENS AGAIN. 

Change needle, bobin and just about to change the spool of thread when (1 hour after the initial problem) I notice it isn't threaded properly!! Re-thread and it works like a dream.  I think the lint initially started the problem and with all my taking apart the needle became unthreaded. 

Lesson to self: ALWAYS CHECK THE MACHINE IS PROPERLY THREADED!!!

Sunday Stash

Yummy yummy Moda Sweetwater Authentic Fabrics for a 30th Birthday Quilt for my brother.  I am going to make it following the original Quilt Along from Old Red Barn - a rail fence.

About 2/3 of the fabric were from my local quilt shop in Bath and the others I ordered online from Bramble Patch.  I was so pleased to find Authentic as its an older line there isn't much of it about anymore.  I think it is the perfect man quilt.

Last week's sewing

I finished all the blocks for my sampler class last week - these are the last few - Birds in the Air

Sailboat

Card Trick

Double Pyramid

Churn Dash

I also made a couple of gifts for my Flickr May swaps but can't show them until I know they have been received.