Good Things are Worth Waiting For

In my last post I was having a small overwhelmed moan about how much hand quilting I had to do and how long it all took. I said I wanted to start machine quilting. You all said, but hand quilting is so lovely and special. And you are right. Next time I'm at that inevitable lose hope stage when hand quilting - it's a little past half way, but before the end is in sight - just refer me to this post won't you? You see I always forget just how fab it feels when the quilting is done and the binding is starting to smarten it all up, and the quilt's real potential shows itself. This afternoon I was sewing binding, in the garden, looking at all the long awaited bulbs starting to bloom, and thinking how Good Things are Worth Waiting For -I suppose that's what makes them so good.

If anyone fancies making a quilt like this, I used the Creative Grids Circle in a Square ruler, and the fabrics are a mixture of Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett, Momo Wonderland and Oakshott Shot Cottons, the backing is Amy Butler Love and the binding is Oakshott. The circle ruler is so easy to use so don't be frightened of circles! I loved making it so much I am already building a little fabric pile for a primary colours circles quilt using the same ruler......

p.s I'm thinking I'd probably better check out those long arm quilters just in case!

Daisy Chain Days

The sun has been shining and we've had nothing better to do than to enjoy the garden, make some daisy chains to decorate the blossoming fruit trees, read Jane Brocket's beautiful new book and dream of summer. Bliss.

I did make a start on cutting out my Little Folks quilt top. Am still dithering, but progress is being made, oh and another 6m of HubbaBubba quilting completed!

There's not much time in modern life where dreaming is prioritised, do you think unexpected sunny days in early spring exist solely to remind us that sometimes its best just to BE?

Enjoy the sun wherever you are x

Going Around the Bend

The kids are still enjoying their Easter holidays and the sun has been shining so there has been lots of long days in the garden which is just heaven after the winter of snow and cold we have had. We have Nana here for the week too so the vegetable patch is getting licked into shape ready for summer.

So there hasn't been all that much new progress in MyFrontRoom sewing room. I am still going round in circles hand quilting HubbaBubba. It's looking fab, but its a surprisingly huge amount of quilting! I have measured out that each circle requires 1.5m of quilting to make up each spiral ( nerdy alert!) and I have 42 circles to quilt so 63 metres of continuous hand quilting round and round in circles, no wonder I'm going slightly around the bend!

I do have the indulgence of looking over at my new love, Little Folks fat quarter pile. At the moment I have about a hundred different ideas of what to do with them, but I suspect that the best thing would just be a straightforward patch quilt? They are just too pretty to cut into to have a play and see!

HubbaBubba HandQuilted

HubbaBubba quilt has been pieced and basted and I started hand quilting it at the weekend. I decided to do spirals as a welcome break. I have been quilting away on BabyButtonsBigBedQuilt for a week where I have been dutifully outline quilting each little Heather Ross square. I love hand quilting but even I am finding it a little deadly. I usually favour big free form shapes for quilting, but the Heather Ross blocks are so detailed already I feared overdoing it.

Anyway, HubbaBubba is just whizzing along in a swirl of spirals. I had the perfect background in the stash, an Amy Butler Love purple fabric with circle flower motifs. I knew it was perfect as it seems even the circles line up on the back ( lucky co-incidence, but I will of course now claim it was planned!)

I am a huge hand quilting fan, I quilt all of my quilts by hand. There seems to be a bit of a resurgence in interest in hand quilting; this week alone I have been reading posts in praise of it here and here. It's fascinating to see how many different ways people approach it. Perhaps I'll find time for a little post on the subject soon as it's the quilting element of making a quilt that seems to be the stumbling block for so many people in starting a quilt. Anyway, it is the Easter holidays the sun is shining and dens are being made in the garden and mummy is required so don't hold you breath waiting for it!

HubbaBubba Quilt

I have been playing. Just playing. Not planning and drafting, or measuring or agonising. Playing.

I have been reading Gwen Marstons fantastic book Liberated Quiltmaking II. In a section called 'Quiltmaking as Play' she says "See this as 'playtime at the sewing machine.....I think your chances for doing something innovative improve when you just plunge ahead. Just start making something. Life is short. Do your own work, have a good time, and be nice to everybody...including yourself"

I love Gwen, I want to go around to her house on Beaver Island and have a nice big cup of tea and chat quilts. She sounds so lovely, don't you think?! Anyway, I have been doing quite a lot of slightly stressy sewing recently, you know the sort, for a deadline, worried about how it will be received, fun but not LOADS of fun, yeah? Well yesterday I walked into my sewing room, turned over the piece of paper with the list of Things To Do on it and just started messing about with colours from the stash.

I have a new toy, a corner to corner curve ruler, so i just started cutting into some fabrics just to have a go with it, well an hour later I am back in the room and look at these beauties. I am totally in love with this colour combo, it's so bubblegum, not at all my usual pink, but i seem to have loads in the stash, humm.

Anyway, turns out Gwennie is right, Quiltmaking as Play is fun and you make fab stuff you might have otherwise overlooked. Have a go!