Sewing set

The sewing set

Needles/ scissors/ thimble/ pins

Thinking of Christmas presents, [YES I know it's only February!] I have decided this set would be great for a number of my sewing friends, so intend to make some more.

Bletchley Park Quilt Show

 

 

Saturday and Sunday saw the wonderful quilt show at Bletchley Park. Penny and I were booked in as Stewards from 9.30 to 11am. This was great timing as the show did not start until 10am, so we had time to look around and take a few photos. By 11am the place was so full there was a long queue waiting outside to get in!  It was very well organised and there were some very interesting quilts in the "Secret Messages" room.                                                                                                   

Poppy Patch day

Christmas BOM

Linus Quilts

 Thursday was my regular sewing day at Poppy Patch Gt Doddington, where a group of us meet to sit and sew for the day.

I took along my latest machine embroidery Christmas design for the show and tell.


Table mats



Oven mitts


Quite a succesful sewing day as I managed to finish 3 Prem Baby Linus quilts [ OK one of them is a bit jazzy, but a young mum might like it!]. I also completed 7 oven mitts [ holes just need sewing up] and 5 table mats [ I had already sewn the leaves on ].

Hamtune Quilt meeting



Self Portrait



Janet Cook



Hamtune Quilters met last night to a full house, with a number of visitors from a nearby town.
Janet Cook was our speaker and showed us many of her wonderful quilts / dolls and journals.

For more pictures take a look at
http://hamtunequilters.blogspot.com/

Machine Embroidery BOM version 2



BSK BOM 2

 Yesterday I decided to have a go at making this machine embroidery block in Christmas colours.

The block required EIGHT !! moves of the frame, but I managed it reasonably OK, and I'm pleased with the result.

Thursday

The children have gone home and I started a BOM course at BSK Bedford. It was a most enjoyable day learning how to hoop up a project a number of times. The finished block will be 14 inches and I cannot wait to do more.

The hooping up is definitely an art I am yet to master, but by the end of 12 months I hope to be good at it!

Wednesday



Fun with the button Box



A visit to Billing Garden Centre



 Wednesday, Chris had a day off work and we all went to Emmaus for lunch, the girls buying very noisy toys in the toy shop! On the way back home we stopped at the Garden Centre to buy bird food and look around the Pet section.  The large lion covered in paint pots was too good to resist.

Back home Gt Grandma's button box caused hours of fun, sorting into colours and cutting any that were on cards off.

In the evening I attended a Church Relief Society meeting and managed to make three Linus Prem baby quilt tops.. a very tiring day.



Tuesday

Tuesday Abigail is on half term and staying with me. The request had been made for an Egyptian costume to be used at school, so with little time I used a white sheet to make the "dress" and fabric with Egyptian Hieroglyphics to make the front piece. Next to make a collar.. a piece of heat resistant wadding [ nice and stiff] seemed to work well with a bought hair band. Not sure the pink socks go with the outfit!

In the afternoon we had a visit from Olivia and Jenny and made more lavender hearts.. well it was Valentine Day.

Early evening Eleanor arrived to also stay the night.

Monday



Annette



Abigail



Penny & Estelle



Sue & friends

Monday saw Penny, Abigail and myself attending a workshop at Bedford with Sue Sewell. Helen Spence was the teacher for those of us wanting to learn something new. Abigail worked hard making a heart and square lavender bag. Penny worked on a wavy block and I made two cathedral window blocks. It was a great day.. thanks Sue for organising it.

Snow

We sure are having some cold weather.. this photograph was taken of my rear garden a couple of days ago.. it always looks so nice covered in snow!

My resident blackbird seems to love the bubbling stone near the front of the pond and likes to sit on it like a jacuzzi !  He always gets a treat of mealy worms when I see him.

Yesterday our outside temperature was -11 that is just too cold !

Another bird

Another bird  foundation pieced. I really liked making this one.

Lavender Heart workshop



Shopping



Lavender heart



 Last night was the Hamtune Quilters meeting, and the horrible snow and ice did not deter many of the members from attending. Maggie Wise from SunFlower Fabrics brought along her wonderful fabric and gave us all a mini workshop making a Valentine Heart Lavender bag. I actually managed to finish mine on the evening .. even though it was all hand sewn [hand sewing is not my thing!]. A most enjoyable evening.

Wee Hummingbird in pieces



Missing fabric

 In 2009 I bought a set of Wee birds kits from http://www.silverliningsoringinals.com/ and I really enjoyed making the first two, but the third one I tried to make just did not have enough fabric to complete it.

I asked the company to send me a small piece so I could finish the bird, and received the sample shown above the birds head... hopeless colour match.  I now have the missing piece and the bird is complete.