Black Friday

Oh dear.  I never thought much about Black Friday before but this year I seem to be much more aware of it.  OK I am on Instagram and Facebook quite a lot and all these wonderful offers keep on appearing. So I am sitting here in my pjs and have a credit card in hand so what is a girl to do!!!!!  I am waiting for a few parcels to arrive!

I have been working on my BOM from Material Obsessions with lots of hand stitching

This is a tree for one of the borders.  Don’t you love the background fabric.  I would never have dared to use it but it works really well.  It has been whipstitched using Wonderfil’s Eleganza thread by Sue Spargo.  I really like this thread as it does not unravel when you are using quite long lengths.
I also have to make a mass of felt flowers which has been the greatest fun.  They should all be

Perfect Circles and although I am using them they are a little wonky - or as someone on Instagram said - they have character.  Why have I never discovered hand embroidery before. I always thought I was just a quilter and of course I still am but Oh the joy of just sitting and doing colonial knots and whip stitch in the evening.  I will show you some finished ones next time.

My machine is in the hospital as the top tension has been going bananas and I certainly do not need this as I am still doing the 365 day challenge and the latest Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt started on Friday.  So I have a mass of things cut out and no way to sew them but the machine should be back by Friday.

Just in case you might want to  follow me on Instagram I am Louisa Lawson and have a picture of a striped hippo  and on Facebook I am Louiisa Lawson (yes I know the spelling is different - I typed it in wrong all those years ago!!)

Happy quilting

Progress of sorts

Waiting for the start of the Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt means that I need to get a bit more organised. I am still doing the 365 Block Challenge but thankfully we have now finished the dark 3” blocks and I have put two of the borders on

How I managed to have one extra 3” block and a 6” block is a complete mystery to me but I am glad that they are sewn and the other two borders are ready.  I will have to go and measure my son’s bed and I have a ghastly feeling that the quilt is going to end up too large but hey he can always keep it until he  upgrades the bed. So all the dark fabrics are back in the stash and the pale one all pulled and sorted together.

Off to work on the flower blocks and will show some photographs soon.

Happy quilting.

Too much to do

I seem to be working on too many projects at the moment. I think the trouble started with blocks on the month.  Most of them do not take a month or even a week to complete, so while you are waiting for the next instalment you still want to do some sewing.

I am working on a wool appliqué project from Australia which is supplying all the fabrics.  There are some fundamental problems with this way of working - sometimes you do not get all the necessary fabrics or they are cut far too close for comfort and of course it does not reduce the stash at all.

On the other hand it is a really good way of deciding whether you want to continue to work with a new medium.  Yes I have now decided that I like working with wool and all the embroidery that it involves and have just watched the Sue Spargo class on Craftsy
She is such a talented lady and I am excited about using some of her techniques.  So I have ordered some wool and hopefully will be making something before too long.  I don’t think that wool appliqué is suitable for bed quilts and as I hate small quilts I think I am going to be making cushions - probably satisfying my Circle obsession and  doing a whole lot of those.  She has the most marvellous variegated threads which you can get from her website.  I will keep you posted!!

I am also coming to the end of the 365 block challenge which has involved in the insanity of making 3” and 6” pieced blocks with gazillions of pieces.  I must have been mad to start it but of course we are now nearing the end and I just want to finish it.  Please remind me that it is a really bad idea to have to create a block a day in future - all the changing of threads etc mean that it is a pain to have
to change everything to sew any other project.

Well I had better go and do some sewing.  Will talk again soon.

Happy quilting

Back again

Hi - if anyone is still out there.

I have not blogged for about four years but have now decided to give it another go.  If you followed me before, I hope you are still here and if you find me now - welcome.

I am not going to go over old ground but start from where I am today.  I have done the ultimate downsize and now live in a two bedroom flat - or at least it would be if I had not dedicated one of the bedrooms to my sewing cave.  It is small but beautifully formed.

My main passion has now become appliqué which if I am honest is rather a surprise.  Here is a picture of a quilt block that I have just completed

It is based on a watercolour I painted during the 100 Day Project Challenge

in the summer. as you can see I have had to alter the design slightly but I am really pleased with how it has turned out.  Not all the flowers and leaves I painted turned out too well but I have other ideas which I can interpret into fabric. this is all going to take some time but there is no deadline on this quilt thankfully

It is really good to be back and I hope you will enjoy my musings over the coming posts

Happy quilting