what a crazy day
I was working today and that was the only shop I entered, it was all very sensible because our sale isn't until January. Today is that day of amazing discounts and sales in lots of shops but it seems people go a little bonkers... apparently in Manchester a television fell on a lady's head and people have actually been hitting each other, or so I heard on the news. Obviously that is extreme behaviour but I do like a saving too, so online shopping is my way to avoid that craziness. I may have partaken in a few purchases today ;)
If you've been shopping today, online or in real life, I would love to hear what you bought... yeah, I'm nosy like that!
Here are some fabulous deals from my sponsors...
The Fat Quarter Shop have 25% off and the discount is automatic, hurry it ends Saturday! They have such a huge range so now is the time to stock up on the things you need and the things you want.
Minerva Crafts have 80% off a range of haberdashery and crafting goodies; including yarn, buttons, bias tape, cutting mats and much more. This is a 'while stocks last' rather than a black Friday promotion but there are so many bargains I thought I would point it out and they also have sale fabrics too!
And right now there's a brilliant 30% off at Pink Castle Fabrics using the code BLACKFRIDAY30, valid through Monday. I love the Japanese fabrics they stock and couldn't resist some Lecien and Yuwa!
So did you bag yourself any fabric?
while away the hours
I am doing a lot of hand piecing, English Paper Piecing and hand quilting and am loving it more and more. I think I need to turn my machine on just to make sure it's ok but I'm content spending my evenings curled up with a needle and thread for now.
I've done more green tea and sweet beans blocks, here are my first two Garden Paths (just one more to do):
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I did some epp and hand appliqué for a cushion I hope to be teaching and of course I'm going to hand quilt it! I've chosen my perle thread and hope to crack on with it tonight:
But I couldn't stop at one and I've started another cushion (can you say addict?!!) with some lovely Chicopee by Denyse Schmidt:
Oh and I did manage to find the name of the fabric I bought at work the other day...
It's quite hard to get hold of but obviously we have some at Patchfinders and we do postal orders, so give us a call if you fancy some!
winner of Fat Quarter Shop notions!
Sorry for the little delay in announcing the winner but thank you to everyone that entered and here goes...
Random chose:
who is:
Congratulations Patti! I have sent you an email :)
You can get all my recommended notions and many more at the Fat Quarter Shop!
XX - le challenge
~~Enter my favourite notions giveaway, open until 15/11~~
Life is crazy chaos at the moment but despite that I actually have finishes to show! This month the le challenge theme was X, we had a brilliant guest post from Mr X Stitch and it was the perfect excuse for me to get back to doing some cross stitch. I had some amazing favourites on Etsy but decided to stitch up this great pattern from Plastic Little Covers:
It seemed so appropriate for my life right now and I think it's really pretty. I changed the recommended colours because I'm loving peach at the moment and I will be framing it and hanging it above my dressing table.
I have my eye on more of Lauren's patterns - especially this one. Do check out her shop, she has beautiful patterns, hilarious quotes and I want to make them all! Also the pattern printed really nicely and was nice and large so easy to follow. I did mess up somehow but it was worth unpicking it and I'm really happy with my finished stitching!
If you like modern cross stitch patterns you might also want to look at the following shops (I haven't bought from these yet but they all have patterns I've 'favourited' so I can buy them in the future!):
StephXStitch (warning - there are rude words!)
Now this was completely unplanned but I also finished binding my Arizona + x quilt this week. It's actually living at work at the moment because I'm teaching a class next week and I only had time for a couple of quick snaps and couldn't get the whole quilt in one picture:
I've decided I don't like the machine quilting I did though. I used slightly lofty poly wadding and it just went too puffy for my liking so I will be unpicking that and doing more hand quilting on it instead... any excuse!
So have you finished anything with a X theme recently? If so come and link up on the le challenge blog for a random chance to win a $25 gift certificate to the Fat Quarter Shop to spend on anything you like and a rainbow bundle of zips from Rickety Rose Crafts - you get to chose any 25 colours and sizes of the closed-end zips!
Linking up:
at Quilt Matters this week,
so check that out but you have to see the hilarious video linked on the TGIFF blog - Taylor Swift + 80s aerobics = hilarity!
and finish it up friday at crazy mom quilts
Linking up:
happiest with fabric and a needle in my hand
~~Make sure you enter my favourite notions giveaway! Open internationally, ends 15/11~~
I realise I've said it before (and I'm sure I am preaching to the converted) but quilting really is the best therapy. With my husband busy curating an exhibition, I have sat and sewed while watching tv*, trying to relax as best I can. I have to say I am very pleased with the results and these little patchwork flowers and blocks bring a smile to my face.
The flowers and leaves are destined to become a cushion that I hope to be teaching in a class next year. You can see the progress of my attempts at English Paper Piecing curves going from left to right on the top row:
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Next up more hand pieced Propellar blocks for my Green Tea and Sweet Beans quilt, only a couple more left to do before I stitch them together:
Tonight I'm finishing up binding my Arizona + x quilt, so hopefully I will have a finish for Friday, and should I get that done I will be straight back to sewing more gtsb blocks because they make me happy!
*currently still catching up with Law and Order: Criminal Intent, loving Gotham and maybe slightly more than obsessed with Scorpion (which could be my favourite show since Buffy!)
stash and a new project
*If you haven't already make sure you enter my favourite notions giveaway!*
At Patchfinders the other day I needed to get some interfacing and then I couldn't help but bring some of this gorgeous print home to add to my green tea and sweet beans quilt fabric stash. Silly me has totally forgotten what line it is so unless someone knows and can tell me I will check when I'm next in work! There's something about it that I really love, though it's not my usual style and I generally don't even like red?!
This week I was thrilled to have won a copy of Craft A Creative Business by Fiona Pullen at Lily's Quilts. Thanks Lynne, Fiona and Search Press! Once I've had a good read I will be doing a review so stayed tuned for that.
I also got myself some Paper Pieces. I usually cut my own but I'm going for some small and more complicated shapes and let's face it these will be way more precise:
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I made a start today and I'm hoping this will become a project that I can teach... we'll see!
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Molli Sparkles hasn't been well :( but I'm Sunday Stashing anyway because it helps me keep track of what I've bought. Hope you feel better very soon!
A few of my favourite notions!
**GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED**
Of course I consider myself a fabric addict but there is more to sewing than just fabric and we can't forget the handy notions that make it all possible and help us create beautiful things.
The Fat Quarter Shop are kindly sponsoring a giveaway of my chosen notions. I picked the ones I use a lot, wouldn't want to be without and would like to share with you because I know you will love them too!
So here are a few of my favourite notions:
- A pack of 50 Clover Regular Wonder Clips You don't know how brilliant these are until you start using them. Excellent for holding down binding, useful for bag making or any instance where you need to clip things together. I regularly use them just to keep my EPP or hand sewing pieces in order.
- Aurifil 50 wt thread #2021 The most fabulous thread in beautiful Natural White. I use this colour a lot and it is perfect for piecing.
- Clover White Seam Ripper I would like to rid the world of rubbish seam rippers, using a really good one makes a horrible task so much easier. The larger handle and sharp ripper make all the difference!
- Sewline Styla Water Erasable Pen I use various methods of marking for different projects but one of the most reliable and useful is a water erasable pen. I use it for quilting, embroidery and hand piecing.
- Clover Patchwork Pins I have used lots of different pins but glass head pins are my very favourite, there is something so charming about them and these extra fine ones are perfect for patchwork.
When I shop online I like to be able to add haberdashery items to my basket and the Fat Quarter Shop stocks a fabulous range of notions along with their vast selection of beautiful fabric, so don't forget to check out their Notions and Thread section when you are shopping!
**GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED**
The giveaway is open internationally, it will end on Saturday 15th November and the winner will be chosen by random.org.
You will not win if I can't contact you so please check you are not 'no reply' and to be sure leave your email in the comment e.g. ilovesewing (at) gmail (dot) com
Good Luck!
p.s. Thank you to Daniar from the Fat Quarter Shop for the beautiful product picture :)
chuck it in
After making bee blocks at the beginning of the week I was on a log cabin rush and spontaneously decided to make some quilt as you go blocks.
I usually spend a bit of time picking fabrics and thinking about how they go together but I did something I've never done before... when I'm working on a project I put my scraps to the side and then sort them later (or when I can be bothered), well I just grabbed those scraps and turned them into this quilt as you go basket!
I've been needing a thread catcher next to my machine after the beautiful pottery bowl I was using fell off and smashed. Sad. This one can't get hurt though and I used this tutorial for the overall measurements to make it and it's the perfect size!
I used a scrap of binding I had left over from a quilt and it makes me smile seeing those pretty little flowers.
Hope you're having a nice start to the weekend and I will be back tomorrow with a giveaway so make sure you stop by!
blocks and blocks
So despite all the blah feelings of late and the fact I've got lots of other things I should be doing, I have managed to make some progress on my hand pieced Green Tea and Sweet Beans quilt.
Here are my 2 Lozengers blocks:
Not sure why I jumped ahead to do those but I'm going to do the blocks in order as they appear in the pattern book because I think it will help me keep track of where I'm up to.
I've got lots more of these to do but here's my first 3 Propellar blocks:
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Those of you familiar with the pattern will notice the block on the left is wrong, yes I didn't keep my template the right way up - despite clear instructions in the pattern to do just that!! I'm not re-doing it though, this will be one of those cute quilty errors.
Here's my progress so far, I'm loving it:
I also managed to (belatedly) get my October bee blocks sent off to Catherine. I love log cabins and this was just the fun kind of machine sewing I needed :) I hope you like them Catherine!
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And if you haven't already heard the Fat Quarter Shop currently has a fabulous offer of 20% off all Art Gallery Fabrics with code AG2014. There's loads of gorgeous collections but I'm a huge fan of Arizona, Gramercy and Littlest, grab some while it's on offer!
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