Weekending

• some reading, I enjoyed this book and could almost imagine it as a movie.
• some cooking - vanilla custard being slowly cooked then turned into Raspberry Creme Brulee - absolutely delicious
• some baking - lots of ANZAC biscuits,some for home and some for Mr J to take to school
• some sewing - one pillow top done, now I just need to get a zipper and make the back then bind it.  Never thought I'd make more of these envelopes though.

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend too.

Scenes from my Week

From my morning walk

• sometimes the view is just beautiful

From a corner of my home

• loving this colourful vignette

From the sewing room

• making plans for  some weekend sewing  - this will be a birthday cushion

Wishing you all a fabulous weekend.

Finished - Jacob's Ladder Quilt

This quilt has been a while in the making.  But this year, has been the year of finishing those WIPs, that have been languishing in their boxes and bags.  As mentioned in earlier posts, once I sewed the blocks together (and I was amazed at how little time that took) I was inspired to get the backing and start quilting.

For the backing fabric I have used Forest Floor from the Wildwood range, I was really pleased at how well, I got the pattern repeat joined too.  An advantage of using a patterned backing over a solid fabric  I have discovered, is that it is easier to hide the odd little wrinkle too.

I can't do FMQ, only variations on straight lines, so quilting this stumped me for a while.  In the end I decided to outline stitch most of the large scrappy squares and solids surrounding them.  I used two shades of grey to match the solid shot cottons (figuring that it would camouflage any really wonky stitching).  I may still go back and quilt do extra quilting in the really large scrappy blocks and some of the four patches too.

Binding is a blue floral from V & Co's Simply Style range.   This was not done without drama either. It wasn't until I was folding it over ready to clip for hand stitching down that I realised I had sewn it onto the wrong side.  Talk about being brain dead.  I definitely wasn't going to unpick it all, especially as the shot cotton frays so easily, so the hand stitching is now on the front of the quilt. Luckily my stitching is always very tidy and discreet. (Thanks Mum, for making me redo the very first hem I ever sewed - I think I learned that lesson really well). As a bonus, I think these are the best mitred corners I have ever done on a quilt.

Details:  Grey solids: shot cottons from Spotlight
               Scrappy blocks - mainly Denyse Schmidt, Bonnie & Camille, V& Co and various others
               Finished Size:  approximately 64" square
               2.5" squares: 424
               HST 64 trimmed to 4.5"

I love how this has turned out, and  now only wish it was a little bigger.

So there you have it - my second quilt finish for  2015.

Weekending

Baking and cooking

• banana bread - with raspberries - recipe from here
• beetroot (from my garden) and kumara  ready to roast for a quinoa salad

Sunday was sewing day with Rachel and Rachael, unfortunately Deb couldn't make it today. Surprisingly we had a very productive day and a delicious lunch with margaritas.  The next day is planned for a weekend in May.

• my first ever cat and quilt photo - Angus was quite happy to keep me company and a watchful eye on our margaritas,while I was sewing binding on
• the lovely Rachael, who hosted today's sewing get-together, hand quilting her velveteen star quilt
• absolutely delicious Raspberry Chocolate Cheesecake brownie
• Rachel hand quilting her pack patch mini

Hoping you all had a fabulous weekend too.

Scenes from my Week

From the kitchen

• a tray of gingernuts ready to be put in the oven

From the Garden

• chilies starting to turn red

From the sewing room

• finally the binding is getting sewn on my quilt

From my morning walk

• sycamore seed pods hanging in clusters

From my book pile

• loving this book - so many great ideas for making a traditional block non traditional.  I feel there may be a Double Wedding Ring quilt in my future.

What have you been doing this week?

Weekending

Not much of a weekend post from me - I have been slightly under the weather for the past four days with a gastro bug, luckily today I am starting to feel lots better.

• this book kept me occupied on the sofa for the better part of Saturday.  Meg Gardiner is one of my favourite crime/thriller writers - I especially enjoyed her Jo Beckett series.
•  a little sewing and unpicking of the quilting on my Jacob's Ladder quilt has been done
• the binding has been made and is waiting to be attached.

Now we are waiting for gale force winds and storms to hit us, as Cyclone Pam makes her way towards New Zealand after tearing through Vanuatu.  

Stay safe everyone and have a great week ahead.

Wednesday WIP

After making the flower block over the weekend,I seem to have a developed a liking for making EPP hexies.  On Monday evening I pulled out some of my Anna Maria Horner 2.5" squares and started basting hexies.  Last night I managed to get three rows stitched together.  I am not sure what I will end up making with them, I do have a couple of ideas in mind, that may end up being gifts, so the finished objects may not be revealed for a little while. But in the meantime I am enjoying a little mindless handsewing and having a portable project.

Linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Weekending

• this is the first time I have ever grown a chilli plant, I am pleased to see such a profusion of chillis on it, now they just need to hurry up and turn red, before this part of the garden loses the sun.
• some more wrestling with my Jacob's Ladder quilt and my sewing machine, the quilting is just about finished all the loose threads have been buried, now I just have to find some fabric for binding it.
• could I have gotten an any brighter fabric, the back of my completed Fractal Pillow for the Great Pillow Fight Swap 
• sewing my first hexi block, which has been posted off to Australia, for a quilt which is going to be sent to Rachel after the sad news about her new baby daughter.  Tutorial from here.
• this pillow that I made in January for one of my nieces has finally made it's  appearance as a birthday gift.
• and something to watch:  Skeleton Love   

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend, whatever you did.

Scenes from my Week

From the kitchen

• I was lucky enough to be given a bag of large red onions, so braving the inevitable tears, I peeled and sliced, then caramelised some to freeze away for winter casseroles

From the garden

• my zinnias in bloom - luckily these are surviving the heat and dry, cos I don't water them at all

From the sewing Room

• My Fractal block is finished and a low volume border has been added,  quilting has been done and now it just needs to be turned into a pillow/cushion.