2024 December

 Happy New Year

I hope you had a lovely Christmas

My December in pictures looks like this:  Lisa and I are working on a quilt for Niki and George in the confident belief their flat will sell and they can buy a house..  It will mostly be white and yellow, and bee themed, but we are incorporating a few letters too:  Growing gradually it will eventually spell New Hive

The Chertsey ladies brought in finished fabric bowls for Show and Tell

And spent a session making macrame santas

and Christmas trees

I was commissioned to make an apron for the florist at Windsor Baptist Church

and a ginger with a colostomy bag!

We had loads of volunteers to help make Christingles the night before Christmas Eve

and they all got a "thank you" ginger

For Christmas I received this gorgeous duck - thank you Stephanie

And from the family  and friends I received lots of crafty things - I was sure I took a photo but apparently not🙅

The great niblings came to visit.  Master S had a great time with Brian playing computer games while Miss L and Miss N did some needle felting

 

I have actually managed some sewing this month - not for me but for Chertsey Museum for their "St Peter's Hospital Untold Stories" project.  Museum staff have carried out hours of recorded interviews, and commissioned me to lead some family learning sessions and help people decorate squares of fabric with their own images inspired by their hospital story.

I've then been joining them together for a wall hanging to go on show at the museum.  Not finished yet, but close.

2024 November

I'm working on a great project with Chertsey Museum: they have been collecting memories of Chertsey Hospital, including inviting people to decorate a square of fabric ready to be made into a wall hanging:  the squares are all still mounted on backing paper at the moment but they are looking great!

We had a lovely Willow Weaving session at the hall:

Lizzy made some quilt labels for a customer:

and I did some trial embroidery on a boot (I think I see more of this happening!)

Lisa and I are making a patchwork for Niki and George: mostly bee themed fabrics as Grandma Eileen donated the fabrics (she keeps bees) so we thought we'd make a new home quilt for when they (hopefully) move in the spring.  Difficult to see yet but it will say New Hive!

All the fabric has been cut so it will be as big as it will be!

Meanwhile Lizzie has been busy - Gingers in the uniform of the local senior girls school for their PTFA

Gingers holding Christingles for the volunteers who have offered to help make the Christingles just before Christmas Eve

And gingers holding traditional Norwegian Christmas hearts for friends and customers

And finally a very belated house warming for Lisa and Jim (Google maps don't show quite the same angle, and the roof over the front door has now been painted!!)

2024 October

Hi

I rather feel that someone has stolen a couple of months - I don't believe it can actually be November already!  

Not much to show for the month of October, but here's a few pics:

Kawandi projects at Chertsey Museum

Finished papoose pouches

I bought the centre wool in Texas, but ran out before it reached a reasonable length.  I thought I found the same wool on ETSY but clearly not 😕.  I've fallen out of love with it but at least it's finsihed!

Another finished was two Grandmother's flower garden quilts for this lovely lady's new great grandchildren.  She started the quilts in the 1970s and gave me the flimsey about a year ago and I reduced it to 2 cot sized quilts and quilted and bound them and gave them back - she was delighted!

And I was delighted . . . I love this enamel jug but the ice would all fall out in the first pour.  My lovely repair cafe man, Peter 3D printed an ice stopper insert from squishy plastic so now the ice remains in the jug.  Roll on next summer

I held a class at Windsor Baptist church making willow weaving stars  - aimed at children the adults had great fun too!

I just wanted to share this Lego envy: Jackie's daughter S has sorted by colour and it's a dream to find the right pieces!

I asked my cousin in Norway if she would knit me a traditional cardigan, and oh boy has she delivered!  I love, love LOVE this, and even a hat from the left over wool!

Well that's it for October: although I've managed to scrabble together a month's furtle* it doesn't show much that I've made . . . hopefully I'll do better next time

("Furtle" is a word that means to rummage around or search through something, often in the hope of finding something overlooked.)

SLIK and Quick Papoose Pouch

Papoose Pouches - perfect for petite possessions!

I blogged about this in September, but I have a few photos and some instructions so I have added them here

Download the template here

Cut out green line template

1. Stack lining fabric (right side up), then outer fabric (right side down), then wadding)
2. Pin template to the stack and sew the fabric as close as poss to the green lines
3. Trim wadding back to minimum (see separate instructions for open / turning section)
4. (Open section: carefully trim wadding to a straight line level with the sides )
5. Most seams: Trim fabric to scant ¼ inch, snip internal/concave corners and trim external corners
6. (Open section: finger press fabric to continue straight line)
7. Turn right side out, carefully poke corners as much as possible without damaging them.  Tack opening closed
8. Suggested quilt lines as shown in diagram below to ease folding (more quilting can be done as decoration if required)
9. Preparing to sew: Use ladder stitch to sewing lining closed.  see photo photo below
10. Fold “hood”  so triangles meet, and fold “body” so stars meet and pentagons meet to create a tube.  Clip in place.  Check
11. When sewing the hood, leave a 5mm opening at the circle (it might be easier to add the thong before you sew?). 
12. When sewing the body make a tube.  Then  LEAVE A 5ml GAP AT THE STAR CORNER and carry on stitching to the end (you might find it easier to insert the thong before closing the gap)
13. Turn right side out and use ladder stitch to sew outer fabric closed in the same way, leave gaps at circle and heart.  You can now remove the tacking stitches
14. Cut 20” of thong, thread the bobbin on.
15. Push the two ends into the circle (hood) opening from outside, pull both ends as far as they will go
16. Push the two ends into the heart (toes) opening from the outside. Check the thong is not twisted.  Reach inside and tie the thong ends into a loop knot

PHOTOS

Stage 9, ladder stitch lining together.  NB I have inserted the thong before stitching on this sample - I think this might be easier.  I stitched both lining and outer from outside, but before the thong is in place the pouch is reversible 

lining as seen from the inside

Then do the same for the outer fabric

This pic shows the ladder stitch while it is loose

And this show it starting to be pulled tight

I thought you might like to see why I think of it as a papoose!!!

2024 September

 Hello again, I hope you are well

At Chertsey we made papoose pouches: I called them this as they made me think of a papoose for a Native American baby.  These are based on a design I saw on Facebook but it bugged me that it wasn't symmetrical so I redrafted it.  If you want the instruction PDF click here

My crochet project has been restarted a number of times, but I'm finally really pleased with the result, except I don't have enough wool!  Mr Amazon has been dispatched to get me some more, but for now I have to wait 

However the red to go with this bright rainbow yarn has arrived so I have started this.  However I doubt my ability to maintain the slight offsetedness each line so this needs to be frogged and restarted!

I haven't done much making myself, but friends and I made willow stars and lavender pouches

and generally had a great time on a girly weekend away (we worked out we've known each other for over 35 years!)

Back to the papoose pouches: I gave Plum the instructions on Monday and by Tuesday she's made this!

Hopefully more making next month!