Three More Sleeps.......

......until I get married. There are probably 101 Things I Should Be Doing, but as we're having the lowest of the lowest key weddings in history, I'll show you some of my treats from last week's Festival of Quilts instead.........

These beautiful Liberty lawn pieces were just £1 each, and I simply couldn't resist. I have no idea what I'll do with them, but traditionally, I'll keep them for AGES, looking at them, stroking them occasionally, pop them away again...you get the picture....

These mellow scraps were a billy bargain too, at just 50p each.....and will probably be treated in much the same way as the Liberty prints.....

And then, just as I'd given myself a stern talking to, involving much pointing out that I don't need any more fabric, I walked past a stand selling Mini-Charms........

These squares are all from the same fabric collection, measure just 2.5", and are just TOO cute for their own good. Again, I have no thoughts as to what to do with them, but I defy anyone to resist their charm.....hardly my fault then, that a pack made it's way into my bag of goodies....

Well, that wraps up my spending spree at the FOQ. Quite restrained, wouldn't you agree? Of course, I haven't mentioned the fabulous new machines that I drooled over, longingly-but as I need a Lottery win in order to further those particular dreams, you've got off lightly!

Thanks for popping by, my last post in my present maiden state. Just think...the next time we meet I'll be a Mrs..........Oooo....Errrr! xx

Oh Happy Days......

A couple of weeks or so ago, I was lucky enough to win a ticket to The Festival of Quilts, when the lovely Janet ( janetclare.co.uk )was hosting a giveaway. I was so excited, as I NEVER win anything, and had also resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn't be able to attend the festival this year.
Then reality hit The Soon To Be Husband, that he'd be car-less for the day.....followed swiftly by reality hitting The Son, that he'd be stuck in for the day....I'll pause for a moment while you imagine the mithering......
It was at this moment that I had one of my moments of Sheer Genius (I don't get them very often, so I DO try to make the most of them). Football! The Festival is held at the NEC in Birmingham.....throw a stick from there, and you'll be bound to hit a football club or two. A quick search on the internet, showed that Aston Villa were at home to Malaga for a friendly match. Hooray for there being a match nearby. Double Hooray for it being The Soon To Be Husband's national team. Serendipity!
Fast forward a couple of weeks, and yesterday was The Day. I was dropped off and left to my own devices, to browse and linger to my heart's delight, for 6 1/2 hours. And browse and linger I did. To Olympic Gold Medallist Standard.
I made my way straight away to Stand G4, where Janet Clare had her stand, as I was keen to buy her latest book, and to see her before she went off to teach......

If you don't know Janet's work, pop over to her site, and take a look.....it's so PEACEFUL, and VERY pretty. Her work "in the flesh" is SSSOOOO neat......I'm wittering....
Book safely bagged, it was time to look at some quilts.....
This next photo shows a big winner. It won Best Amateur AND Best in Show. It's called "Thank You Father", and was HANDSTITCHED by a Japanese lady, Kyoko Yamauchi. The photos do it NO justice whatsoever.....the craftsmanship is EXQUISITE....

And look at this one, called "Little Stars" by Jean Ball. She absolutely deserved the Highly Commended award beside it....

There was also one that made me think of Loved Ones, not a million miles away, enjoying an entirely different day........

"Football Crazy" was stitched by Kathleen Moore...and made me smile.
By now, I'd walked up and down aisles for AGES and was reaching Awestruck Overload, so lunch was next on the agenda. At this point, I was feeling a teensy bit disgruntled. I follow a lovely blog called Fabadashery ( fabadashery.blogspot.com ) by Frances Meredith, and had watched her progress on a quilt called "Red and White Pinwheels". I knew from her blog, that she'd entered it into the Festival, and was really keen to see it. But I hadn't been able to find it.
I finished lunch, and trundled off again. And walked straight into this......

Yippee! And it was truly lovely.
There was a lot on offer, and I have to admit to more than my fair share of retail therapy (well, it would have been RUDE not to....)...but I think I'll save those photos for another day. This post is already quite long, and I've spotted a couple of you about to fall off your chairs in boredom. Plus the fact that we're going camping in the morning, and the packing needs to be done....back to earth with a bump.
Thanks for popping by. See you soon. Hi De Hi and all that..... xx

A Lovely Billy Bargain.......

Today, I had a day to do as I pleased with. Daughters 1 and 2 were at work, and The Son was dispatched with Grandma, to visit a stately home. Which left only The Partner, and he's been playing nicely recently, since his surprise proposal, and organising our wedding for less than a months time. Bless him....I think he's in shock!
Anyway, I took this alignment of the stars as an opportunity to get some fabric shopping done (I've got 60 metres of bunting to make for a client's Golden Wedding Anniversary party), and then to visit www.mollys-den.co.uk . I've wanted to visit for a while, but with my feet firmly planted in reality, I knew that A) I needed to pick my moment, and B) I needed to be Energetic Boy Child free.
It was BRILLIANT! There are two warehouses, filled to the brim with vintage paraphernalia...You name it, they probably have it. Had I won the lottery recently, I could have spent a small fortune. As it was, I came home with a Billy Bargain.
For the princely sum of £2, just look at what I bought.....

It shows a selection of the quilts held at the V & A Museum, gives a synopsis of each quilt's history, and then explains how to make them yourself, with the templates clearly printed.

The work involved is amazing, the patterns intricate, the pieces tiny....and most were made in the 19th century. It makes me feel very small....just a tiny link in the wide world of patchwork.
There was one design that caught my eye, as being strangely familiar.......

If you pop over to a blog that I follow, quiltsalott.blogspot.com , you'll see what I mean.....
Catch up with you soon. Enjoy the sunshine. xx

More Than I Can Chew.......

I think I may have done the proverbial, and bitten off  FAR more than I can chew. I normally reserve this talent for chocolate......but for reasons unbeknown to me, I thought I could branch out into my quilting life.
You may remember me blogging in the past, about my first sewing love of English Paper Piecing (EPP). You may also remember my weakness for on-line quilt alongs. Feeding this weakness, I recently joined with fairyfacedesigns.blogspot.com when she launched Swoon 2013, using Camille Rosekelley's Swoon pattern.
 Now....I didn't really have time to get involved with anything else, as I'm already working on a couple of secret projects. And I CERTAINLY didn't have time to get involved with my next bright idea. The original blocks are machine pieced, and measure 24" when complete. So, in a moment of deranged thought, and inspired by fabadashery.blogspot.com , I wondered what the Swoon Block would look like, scaled down, using EPP.
Nine hours of work later, it looks like this.....

Obviously, the red tacking stitches have yet to be removed, which will happen at some point in the future. The idea, for others in the Quilt-Along, is to make a whole quilt. Looking at the Flickr group, many have already completed their task. Using my block, which measures only 6.25" square, with pieces less than 3 quarters of an inch across, I estimate that I should have a quilt top finished by the Christmas of 2039.......Watch this space!!
Thanks for popping by. See you soon. xx

Happy Holidays.......

Yesterday saw the rather tearful, End of School Year, for me. One of the most horrible things about running a Pre-School, is that, at some point, those littlies are going to fly the nest in order to go on to Big School. You've watched them take their first steps in leaving the safety of Mummy and Daddy. You've watched them make their first steps into friendships. For 2 years, you've wiped bottoms and noses. Cuddled them better when nasty playgrounds have bitten them. You've frantically searched high and low when GaGa The Blankie has gone missing. You've gone wading into situations that would have the U. N. Peace Keeping Corps running for cover. Guided by Higher Powers From The Ministry Of Education (read that bit, with your tongue pushed firmly into your cheek), you've even plotted their progress, in the Mastery Of Scissor Skills and Paint Mixing. And then it's all over. You've done all you can for them and with them, on their Educational Journeys, and it's time to hand over the reins. Well, let me tell you......I HATE that part.....even MORE than I HATE the paperwork. Tears flowed for most of yesterday, and today I'm still feeling tender.
However, the Silver Lining in all of this, is that I'm now on holiday for 6 weeks. (When I say "holiday", of course I still get to look after my own "littlies", still do the housework, still do the shopping, still do the cooking, still do the U. N. Peace Keeping Duties......I am a mum, after all!!) And so in celebration of this, I finished my Fluffy Sheep Quilting Rainbow Charm Swap Picnic Rug. Now there's a title! It's in the tumble dryer, even as I type, getting all lovely and crinkled after it's earlier wash.
Here are some pre-crinkly photos......

If I do say so myself, I rather love this quilt. I backed it in a fun cotton print from Ikea, and bound it in a generic pink polka dot I already had. Egg mayonnaise sandwiches and sunny places, here I come...
Thanks for popping by. Enjoy your weekend. xx

A Wonky Foot......

I've finished another birthday present. Hooray! However, "fun" it was not. It looks okay.....

.....if you ignore the fact that it's grown feet. But I literally FOUGHT my way round the quilting. I was using my walking foot again, and I think it might be wonky. I'm relatively new to walking feet (other than the ones I was born with) so don't really know how to fix things. It has always been a bit clunky, but now it doesn't seem to push down on the fabric properly. When I hold it in my hand and try and move the lever manually, the middle bit of the foot is catching on the outer part. And that is the full extent of my technical expertise. Bother.
This time it hasn't rucked the fabric, at least, so that is a small blessing......

It was a battle, though. Still, I hope my friend enjoys her new small picnic rug....she certainly has the weather for it!
Thank you for popping by. I'm going to go and work on my EPP.....with not a wonky foot in sight. (Present bunions accepted.) xx

A Bit Browned Off.......

Amidst the heat, and Wimbledon excitement, work and report writing, I'd been making good progress on my picnic rug.....

As you can see, I'd decided on a simple cross-hatch quilting, using my walking foot. Things went swimmingly.
I found time to start a friend's birthday present, tweaking this pattern.....

...from this fabulous book......

I'm quite happy with the result so far.......

I should apologise for the lack of ironing, but I'd ask you to remember the title of this post, and to understand I've got a mild sulk brewing.
I've even made a fair amount of progress on my most recent EPP project........

....We even enjoyed our first "proper" BBQ with friends......

And then this evening, I sat back down with Picnic Rug, Machine and Walking Foot, happy to spend a couple of hours with these good friends, quilting back across the Rug. How wrong could a girl be?? They'd mounted a mutiny against me! I'm not sure if the photos will show enough detail, but the fabric has been pushed across the original sewing line. Look......

I didn't think this happened with a walking foot?? It hasn't before. I know the photos don't look too bad (maybe my camera is in cahoots with The Dreadful Trio??), but let me tell you, it's horrible in real life. I'm going to have to unpick. And I HATE unpicking.
I'm leaving you now to let the full blown sulk have free reign.......xx