2023 March

I think back on the bloggers I used to follow, and many have stopped blogging: I guess some have gone to Instagram, or Tiktok or whatever else is 'hip' these days but I am in my comfort zone here and find this is a great place to be able to find photos of things I have made if I want to show someone an example of a technique or something I have made.

So here is March's roundup even if it's just for me and maybe a few lovely followers!

Chertsey Museum class made Japanese Rice bags, but I forgot to take photos until nearly everyone had left, so we just have one pic for evidence!

I got a thank you card from a little munchkin who received this quilt

And I am making for for this little munchkin who arrived a month early so I wasn't ready! (yes that's my daughter cuddling her, but not it's not her baby :-(

But this *is* part of her crochet: she is making two, one of for this baby and one is for another one due in April

I managed to get the Chertsey Meads wall hanging commission finished, and it is now up in the Museum (although this pic is from our Centre Parcs villa where I finally finished it!)

My lovely S-i-L got me some Tula Pink Parisville fabric: I stroked and loved it for a while then went shopping for some suitable solids . . . watch this space: I have a cunning EPP plan that should showcase the fabrics, fingers crossed

I have been commissioned by the Mayor of Runnymede to make a banner that she can gift to the towns Runnymede is twinned with around the world - this is the first draft and I have been given the approval to make a final version

I was gifted a whole load of kite fabric and didn't really have a plan for it so took it to Crafty Church: we cut loads of red, orange and yellow into triangles and have been making bunting with it

These are Twist and Go pots that I have created for Chertsey Museum for April's lesson - they are big enough to hold a project and thread and twist down to about 1.5" high

Then we went to Texas to see dad and Eileen.  While we were there we went to Eileen's great grandson's 4th Birthday party: he's into bugs!  I couldn't find anything suitable in WalMart but picked up a plain t-shirt and fabric pens. and was able to gift him this buggy t-shirt

Luckily it was a success!

2021 Week 26

Sorry - photo overload . . . you have been warned!

I know this is mostly a crafty blog - but I did make this gorgeous girl!!!!

#2 daughter is still best friends with three girls she met at school (aged just 5) and two of then are getting married this year . . . and having the other 3 as their bridesmaids.  The first wedding was last Saturday.  

This little minx is the next bride to be in a few weeks time

The bridesmaids and their partners (just the groom missing!)

We found the groom

Niki wanted a photo with "Mumma and Papa P" - the brides' parents.  

He started his speech by thanking the bridesmaids and how they'd been in and out of his house so often throughout their childhood he thought of them as extra daughters - that set them all off sobbing . . . luckily I had made plenty of tissue cases so they could dry their eyes!  (Talk to Me ginger is nothing to do with the wedding, he just wanted to be in the photo!)

I made tissue cases with white embroidery for bride and groom (or may have forgotten the change the thread but keep that under your hat!) which went down well too . . . as did the ginger bride and groom!

I was given one of the table displays and am currently drying all the flowers - I'm experimenting with resin but they need to be dry first - 

I've also got some flowers being pressed, and one bud (hopefully) drying in salt

There was a bit of dress lining and a fair bit of dress fabric left after the (very traumatic) taking up of the dress so I made a rope bowl, maybe to put the resin results in.

2020 Wk 18 - how to find your Mojo

I realised today what had enabled me to start sewing again after last week's slump: look at the computer and see that there is lots to do for the Parish Council (actions from the auditor's report, get quotes for new website and new insurance) the village hall committee (write agenda for and arrange a virtual meeting and finish all my actions from the last meeting), the vicar (safeguarding training and a list by month but not year of the parishioners who have died in the last 3 years, plus write agenda for and arrange a virtual meeting), and start a new post as hub lead for the Parent and Family Hub for the villages' voluntary group. (I cant believe I have never needed a procrastination label before!)

No idea where to start or how to prioritise these jobs (Amo feel free to organise me) so I did some sewing instead!!!

For the lovely Tara who comes to Crafty Church I made this (she is a scene of crime officer!  Hi Tara, thank you - SOCOs are still working and get to dress like this all year round, nothing to do with COVID 9!))

I made this guy in army camouflage, and a Mrs Mop - another two groups who are still working and doing a great job

 But now I'm out of the right shade of brown, so production has halted

I have had to stop making masks as I'm out of elastic too, but I have been giving virtual lessons, and helping out with fabric

I think I've has this 'Very Hungry Caterpillar' fabric for at least 10 years, with no particular purpose for it so happily gifted it to my friend Jane, whose daughter Polly (who you have met before on the blog) is a teacher in, wait for it, Caterpillar class!!!!

I managed to de-stash, to a good cause, and even better I got flowers and some of the world's best flapjack - still warm from Jane's oven!!!

And a lovely FB comment "With B’s guidance and fabric I managed to make these for daughter, a reception class teacher (caterpillar class!) if she has to wear masks when they go back hopefully she won’t scare the little ones any more than normal"

Also from FB: I made the bus Ginger to acknowledge our super 305 bus driver, but he wasn't on the group where I've been posting the photos.  Someone took a screen shot of it for him and this was his comment

"Just when U think life couldn't throw u another surprise u are immortalised as a ginger gingerbread bus driver.  Thank U very touched"

And yes there is more (obviously really struggling with what to start with for work)  Two nesting felt bowls (for useful stuff)

Delicious fluffy scones from plum's recipe

A super post card from Avril "We may be behind our door and windows but we are still connected"

I've started Hexi flowers for the May Hexi Swap Challenge, and have really enjoyed fussy cutting the fabric

And finally have repurposed a too big lining from a wooden crate into a useful big square bag for crochet or other "stuff"

Crafty Calendar

Niki's friend Polly is a teacher - a scary thought for those of us who have know here since she was 5, but these things happen!

She inherited a classroom with a lot of rubbish - but one of the things that survived a major clear out was this calendar

However, not only was it seriously out of date (see the years), but some numbers, most days and a season and a weather patch were replaced with either a laminated one, or a very basic stitched one

So I've embroidered the next six years

All the numbers

All the days

And the missing season and weather, so she and her mum can make new patches and recommission it

Rain and Winter - pah, can I choose Summer and Sunshine instead?

La Passacaglia and Polly

My La Passacaglia EPP block has been progressing: I took the very brave step to add some fussy print fabric into the solids.  I'm really pleased with the way it is progressing

A few days ago Polly, a friend of Niki's, came over.

Polly had mentioned she had a load of t-shirts that she wanted to make a t-shirt quilt with, could I help?

We started with a pile of t-shirts, and a couple of metres of fusible interfacing.

We reckoned the maximum square we could get from the t-shirts was 12.5", so cut the interfacing to 14" squares and ironed it to the inside of each t-shirt: after a few false starts and a bit of fusible fused to the iron rather than a t-shirt, we then set to cutting.  Polly was new to using a rotary cutter or a 12.5" square ruler, but got the hang of it pretty quickly, so soon we had a good sized pile of t-shirt squares

We then did a bit of speed dating until she was happy with the layout, and she then learnt the easiest way to make a quilt: Stitch the squares into five columns, arrange column #3 in the centre of a fleece blanket, pin #2 to its left, pinning through #3 AND the fleece, then stitch along the pinned line.  Press #2 open, spray baste in place, and then pin #1 in place and repeat until all done: 4 lines of stitching has assembled the quilt, and has adequately quilted it.

A further two lines to baste down the two outer edges and within seven hours she has gone from a pile of t-shirts to a quilt (OK, "coverlet") she can sleep under until we get time to cover the binding lesson

The pic of Niki and Polly is from a few years ago, but its a lovely pic of them both, and that t-shirt is included in this quilt (left hand side, just above Polly 14)

And here is an up to date pic of Lisa: The sign says "You are standing at the Northernmost point of the Australian Continent"  She got there!  Now sadly she is heading back south, further away again :-(