2017 Wk 42 - birthday bash

Very little making happened this weekend (although I have high hopes for next weekend) as on Friday the girls *finally* got their keys (so we all got cleaning- I think the kitchen has been done 4 times now!)

And then Saturday and Sunday were spent celebrating this amazing woman (my mother-in-law)'s 90th birthday!!!!!

(Do you like her sash??)

We didn't get a group picture - we should have done - but there were 17 of us: all her children and grandchildren (all with partners) and all four great grand children - and we had a really lovely time!

Even though it was her birthday I got two awesome gifts. One was my birthday pressie from one of the nephews and his wife - these gorgeous FQs

And the other (be still my beating heart) arrived by post - from Amo, in exchange for the doggy patches I made her a few weeks ago. So I made these

And in exchange I got an Amo original that far exceeds anything I was even hoping for!

Amo my friend you are a very talented lady!! As I look at this on the wall and these bowls in front on me . . .

. . . And think of other goodies I have received as swaps or gifts from Kathy, Amo, Plum, Avril and Jackie (to mention just a few) I am filled with pride that I have been "deemed worthy" of receiving these wonderful things - and thank you all for being part of my world, and allowing me to be part of yours!

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Good Things Come In . . . Fours!!!!

After the excitement on Wednesday with my two packages, I've now had a further TWO donation deliveries!

One came from Kathy in Oregon USA. Kathy works for the US post office: she usually blogs about planes, yard sale finds, and sewing projects, but also blogs about the rural postal count each spring. Posties are paid based on the post count during a two week period, so Kathy does swaps and Pay-it-forward this time of year. I sent a few packages to her, and today I got an amazing package! (Kathy knows how to get the most out of her postal fees)

She sent me lots of fabric squares and triangles, and some map envelopes,

And loads of blue and yellow scraps as well as HST blocks, 4 patch, and flying geese

AND ... A kit to make a pop up clutter catcher (see her own version here) and a lovely hand made card!

Thank you, thank you, thank you Kathy!

The fourth package . . . I'll show you tomorrow!!!

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Back to School

Sadly the week's holiday is drawing to an end and I'm back to alarm clocks and 40 hours weeks at schools from tomorrow!

I've finished the embroidery, and I've trimmed and actually quilted the Sweet 16 quilt

I've machine washed (40 degree wash) my Blue Glue Batik and I'm loving the vividness of the colours

Once it dries I'll join the ends and see how it feels as an infinity scarf

Finally I've sorted half a dozen London themed fabrics

A member of a quilting group on Facebook was asking for some i-spy fabrics for a quilt for her children. When she sent me her address I realised she lived in the same small town as the lovely Kathy from Running With Rocket - what a small world - I've now introduced them to each other!

La Passacaglia Progress and Pretty Post

I have tacked and joined some of the La Passacaglia templates, and a shape is beginning to emerge.  The question is do I take it with me as a travel project?  I'm worried all the shapes will fall off and I'll get confused again

I might try some fussy cutting later, but for now I'm happy using solid scraps from the HST quilt a few months ago

Some fab post arrived from the lovely Reene in Oregon, USA.  She is making a Bow Tie quilt - she's making 700 (yes SEVEN HUNDRED) of these blocks, and is trying to make them all out of different fabrics

I sent her some charm squares and scraps that I had got fed up with trying to use,  and she sent me these to add to my sweet sixteen blocks - I was delighted - ALL of them are new fabrics tome

She also sent me a barrette (translates to hair slide this side of the pond!) that her husband had made.  It's really beautiful - made of modern dicroic glass (developed by NASA). 

I had several attempts at photographing the slide in my hair, using mirrors . . .

 But finally managed to get this

I did decide to have a go at quilting the Light House Quilt.  Its been a very long time since I tried FMQ, so I had a practice, and was happy with it

And then had a go on the real thing - not so good :-(   This isn't brown bobbin thread pulling through, its fluff from the brown fleece I have backed it with.  I think I'm going to have to hand quit this one

Off to mum's for the night tonight, then back to teach advent calendars and marbling onto fabric tomorrow . . . and off to Jackie's for FOUR days on Saturday, 

YIPPEE!!!!

And I'll have hours and hours to wait at the airport so I'll catch up with reading other blogs!

Seaside and a Swap and a Soporific Subject

The Lighthouse quilt is progressing.  It may not look any different than in previous photos, but its now all attached rather than just laid in place

I used Katy's suggestion, and  stitched the applique down with a machine blanket stitch - it's all lovely and crisp.

I'm now thinking about borders and the possibility of getting this long arm quilted.  I can see in my mind how the rocks and the grass and the sea and the clouds should be quilted, but I know I don't have the skills.

Postie brought me a super squishie this morning - Sue had decided to make some too, and by swapping we all get more variety of fabric - thanks Sue, I'll get yours to the post office early next week

This weekend sees the 800th anniversary of the signing sealing of the Magna Carta - a charter agreed by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. (taken from Wiki). 

Legend has it that it was sealed on an island in the Thames, near Runnymede.  Since then the Thames has moved south west, towards Runnymede. . .

. . . and therefore the island must now be part of Wraysbury. . . so claim those in Wraysbury who are interested.  Runnymede has its own claim, and so does Old Windsor and a lot of other local villages.

They all seem to be ignoring the fact that the charter was good for the rich but not so good for us common folk, and the one sealed 800 years ago was so rubbish it was replaced a year later and in 1217 AND 1225 and 1297.  There are probably hundreds of event celebrating this anniversary - in Wraysbury we have had a flower show and are having tea parties, theme village fairs, concerts etc.  Runnymede has a big event which needs this enormous construction

There are flotillas on the Thames, a visit from the Queen, all sorts of riverside gardens being opened to the public, serving cream teas, and at least two fabric related creations.

The Magna Carta Quilters have created a huge collection measuring 30 foot by 7 foot.  I'm sure it is beautifully made, but I have to say I prefer our Wraysbury Wall hanging which is now hanging in St Andrew's Church.  I haven't seen it framed and up myself, but was sent this photo

Hope you have a good weekend!  Apart from the village fair I'm hoping to avoid anything that has the MC words associated with it!

Woven Windup

A few days ago I assembled the woven blocks quilt, and (since this photo) got the binding machined on, so it just needs the second side hand stitching down.  I used a new fleece from Ikea, a lovely marl grey

 I'm really pleased with the effect of it, although some seams didn't match too well

I actually had enough fabric that it could have been a bit bigger, but I'd run out of fleece so it stopped at Ikea's standard size: 51x67", but that left me with fabric, and I'm trying to finish project fabrics.

Having enjoyed making the white Sweet Sixteen blocks I decided to start one with the leftover Woven strips

I joined together quite a few strips, pressed them, and cross cut them

I'll need to arrange them a bit more randomly, as my *actually* random attempt has too many fabrics near their twin.

I shall have to used Avril's planned random method - she calls it Randoku - random, but not repeating in a block, column or row!

Success and a Crafty Consequence

I'm delighted to report that the lighthouse embroidery went exactly as planned

It stitched well

Lined up perfectly with the horizon

And fits the top of the tower just so

Phew!

Yesterday I popped round to Lynn's with the bags for her sister Ann.

She had emailed me as to how much she owed me, but I took a deep breath and asked for a swap, or even a partial swap . . . Lynn works mostly with clay, and makes the most amazing things.  she had an Open Studio event a few years ago and I fell in love with (actually lusted after) a, um, *building* with a bright blue and a bright green glaze made from glass from a sherry bottle and a wine bottle!

She spent ages this afternoon telling me what she saw as faults in all sorts of creations (her 20+ inch lighthouses are fabulous) then offered me *the* building I remembered from two years ago

Plus a beautiful potted plant (just look at that one red and white flower!)

And tried to give me money as well!

I am so in love with this!!  Brian and Niki think it's wonderful too, and have decided it cant just go on the grass - it needs to be on the table where it can be seen.

Niki says "I'm not dissing your bags mum, but that really wasn't a fair swap, you'll have to make her loads more bags to make it a fair swap"  I think she's right!

Sweet Sixteen Scrappy Blocks

I may have got a bit carried away making these sweet 16 scrappy blocks:

I made five pairs . . .

 Than another five . . .

And I have some single blocks plus lots of strips left over

Don't they look fab together!

Ive made 30 odd so far and have plenty of scraps left, and Jackie is making some too,  and Sue is sending some over to be swapped with duplicates, so by the time Jackie comes over in early July we'll have enough between us to make a top each

Sweet Sixteen Scrappy Swap (and Stupidity)

Jackie had a really good idea - we should do scrappy blocks, but make two of each and swap the spares.

We discussed various blocks, and finally decided on a 16 patch where alternates were white ish, and the others are using up whatever we've got - it would be fun to see if we can have each patterned square as a unique fabric.

Jackie started yesterday with this one

and I had a play this afternoon (rubbish day at work so I needed therapy!)

I rooted through my far-too-full strips box

And paired a whole load of strips with fabric that was white or certainly low volume

And joined them together and cut them up and rejoined them:

So a 16 patch needs to be 4 x 4 yes? And I need to think double to make one for Jackie too?

Well in my mind that was a lot of doubling. It was only after I'd joined each one to white and pressed them that I realised I had enough not for TWO sweet 16 blocks, but FOUR!

Anyone else want to make and swap some sweet 16 blocks????

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