The Treehouse

A1 - Pinwheels Gone Awry

Learned quite a few lessons from this block! It was the first one that I started to make (because of the pinwheels of course)...on my birthday, ages ago. I abandoned it after I'd paper pieced the first two rows and sewn them together. It was too lumpy bumpy and the seams weren't matching. I pulled apart the first two rows and put them in my Rainbow Jane box for a later date.

Today was the later date - I have quite a few blocks left to make for this month's Rainbow Jane so I thought I would try to finish this one off.

It's not too bad I suppose - hopefully the lessons that I learned while making it will mean that Flowery Jane gets a better Pinwheels Gone Awry!

There was progress made on the cardigan last night - at last! Just need to cast off the button/buttonhole band and sew up the rest of seams and then I'll be wearing it - woo hoo! Would have been more but DD needed a scarf knitting - her class are sending Christmas gifts to an orphanage in Bulgaria. It was difficult to know what best to send really as there was a list of things that weren't to be sent. We opted for some fashionable woolly gloves and a scarf like the ones I showed on here a little while back, this one was lilac and grey. No picture as it's gone off to school this morning to get gift wrapped.

I bought a nice little book of cardigan patterns the other week...there are a few in there that are calling my name and they're knit in lovely soft, non-scratchy merino wool - the children don't like proper wool...it itches when they snuggle up.

A couple of diversions...

I mentioned yesterday that my Tail Feathers parcel for the month had arrived. Now I had good intentions of working on this next week however...it was bugging me that I was a month behind. I vowed not to get behind on this project otherwise I could see that I would fall further and further behind and not finish it off. Due to a mix up with fabric in the kit, I had been unable to start work on any of last last month's kit and the correct fabric arrived with this month's kit. It was playing on my mind that there was two month's worth of sewing to be done so...I thought I would just cut out the pieces for last month's block before taking DD to the library and DS to football. I cut out the pieces for both month's kits! Football was cancelled due to the pitch flooding. We went to the library where I collected the 6 - yes 6, books that were waiting for me.

Now I had some free time because of no football. I thought I would just sew together block five.

 

I went a little further and did  the applique and ironed on the stitchery designs! Those little dots were a beastly to cut out. I thought about the pieces sitting there all cut out for block six. I thought I could at least sew on the borders.

 

So I did the lot! All that is required now is the stitching and they're complete. Next week I intend to put some effort in on the log cabin blocks.

My to-do list suffered a bit because of this other enthusiasm but at least I don't feel so far behind now.

1. Print hexagons DONE

2. Finish Bluebird block (some serious effort required) - NO PROGRESS AT ALL HERE

3. Finish off cardigan (not much left to do) - NO PROGRESS AT ALL HERE EITHER

4. Make this week's DJ block - FREEZER PAPER SHAPES ALL CUT OUT AND WAITING TO BE STITCHED TOGETHER

Back to the cardigan next I think...I'm avoiding the Bluebird block as there is a boo boo that needs correcting!

Patchwork of the Crosses #1

I've finished my first POTC block - I like it! When I first bought an Inklingo collection I had no intentions of hand stitching at all, everything was going to be done on my machine. That seems to have changed somewhat now and I've become rather addicted to hand stitching blocks! The pretty fabric at the centre is some that I got on my birthday trip out - this was my first attempt at fussy cutting with the printer - it's not absolutely perfect but I'm happy with the result. Going to print out some more more hexagons tonight - I've already started block 2! 

That's one of this week's goals completed. The other was to finish a Bluebird block that I started a little while ago...and I've thought of a few more since then!

1. Print hexagons

2. Finish Bluebird block (some serious effort required)

3. Finish off cardigan (not much left to do)

4. Make this week's DJ block (freezer paper is on the fabric, just needs cutting out)

Not sure that all that is do-able but I've not got an all consuming read on the go at the moment so it just might be.

 

Arent' they pretty? I looked at them for months before caving in and getting the download and I am so glad that I did.

Aunt Elsie's Phlox - E1

Another Dear Jane block finished last night, this one is all applique. I love the background fabric on this one - so pretty.

I finished two books by Cindy Woodsmall this week. The final part of the Sisters of the Quilt Trilogy - "When the Soul Mends" and also 'The Hope of Refuge" which was...I'm hoping, the first in a new series of books. I need another one now but the only one that I've not read isn't yet available over here - "The Sounds of Sleigh Bells" so I'll just have to be patient until the paperback is published.

I'm itching to start stitching one of those Biscornu that arrived last week...but I've got a Quilt Aid block that needs some attention and a POTC block that I'd like to get completed this week...poor Biscornu will have to wait

Helping a new convert to sewing...

A couple of Friday's ago, I met Karen at Patchwork Chicks in Barrowford - she wanted to make her first quilt and thought I could help her choose the fabric. We had a lovely time in the shop and she chose some beautiful fabrics - browns, creams, blues. I was very good and only bought the binding for Matthew's quilt and the batting and binding for Catherine's quilt - that one is only cut out as yet, not sewn up but I was thinking I wouldn't be going to the shop for a while after this visit. Last Friday...we went again! Karen had sewn up all her fabric and was in need of batting, backing and binding. I gave myself a good talking to before I entered the shop...I have enough projects in progress you see. It turned out to be a waste of time! On my first ever visit to this shop I had spotted a lovely tote bag on display and had fallen in love with it - it was a sample for a class and the class was on a day that I couldn't attend. This visit though - the class had been and gone and...there was a pattern for sale. Need I say more :o

I finished it last night - I absolutely love it...those pockets on the side perfectly accommodate the little plastic containers that I use for a project's worth of embroidery silks. It's coming on holiday with me and I'm going to put my Tail Feathers block and Quilt Aid block for this month in it and maybe a little crochet as well...it's really rather roomy!

Finally...

pulled it to bits, corrected the mistakes and it's finally finished! Now to quilt and bind :) Had to stand on the wall while John photographed it!

Busy sewing week...

I've cracked on with a few projects this week thanks to the poor weather. We were supposed to go to Alton Towers on Wednesday however, a forecast of heavy rain didn't make that an inviting prospect so we postponed until a later, more sunny day! Catherine and I did some baking while Matthew hared around outside until it started to rain and then came indoors to play with diablo and football game with about 1/2 the neighbourhood's children in tow :o We girls were safe in the kitchen...with the cookies and cake!

 My aim this week was to get up to date with my Tail Feathers quilt and I'm pleased to say that I have done :D I now just have a bit of stitching left on block two and I'll be ready for the August delivery.

Block One complete except for it's little 1" squares border, I forgot about that!

 

Block 2 with the 1" square border! just needing it's stitcheries completing now. Catherine and I bought some Hercule Poirot dvds in Asda yesterday - we're both thoroughly addicted to Hercule and I see some Hercule and stitching forecast for this afternoon - it's raining again!

I even cracked on and made some of the log cabin blocks - one of them needs its last strip but I didn't have a material left in a big enough size that wasn't already in that block so it'll have to wait for the August package to arrive.

Pretty material isn't it?

Poor Matthew's quilt was abandoned...the reason? I knew there was a mistake in it and the thought of so much unpicking was too depressing, likewise - the thought of finishing it off with a glaring error in it was too depressing as well so - stalemate! Last night I got to work on fixing it and this is what it looks like at the moment...

This week's aim is to get the top finished without the mistakes! I must say I'm glad that I'm redoing it, it looks so much better. I'll be getting a little sewing time tomorrow evening while the chicks have friends round for a sleepover. I'm hoping that the weather will be kind on Tuesday so we can have an outing - not much use going to the park in the pouring rain! (and I can stitch at the park :D)

So last night, after a marathon of correcting for Matthew's quilt I decided on a quick, fun, satisfying make. I had seen a really cute little bag on Moda Bakeshop blog - that is such a smashing blog by the way, check it out if you're a sewer - lots of lovely projects and they're not all big ones. Anyway...the cute bag, I really fancied making it so I did!

Been getting on with a little crocheting too - the nice lady in the sewing shop is getting some lovely Clover crochet hooks in with a soft handle, I intend to have one or two of those. She's also getting some circular sock knitting needles in - I intend to use up my ball of sock yarn, it's too pretty to sit in the cupboard so these will be mine as well, lol!