Moving House

It is hard to believe after all the waiting but we have been in our new home for nearly four weeks. I could probably write about the move itself but we've all been there... and it's stressful. Trying to remember everything feels overwhelming, what to leave behind, what to pack in the last minute box, not to mention the several hours cleaning everything as we emptied each room. That was a complete waste of time as the new occupants of our old house haven't moved in but instead are gutting the place. Bathrooms, fitted wardrobes, carpets... you name it, it's all coming out. Wish they had told me... the place hadn't been that clean in years! Despite only being a mile and a quarter away from the last house, and us both having friends in this village, not to mention all the activities we already do in here, it does feel completely different... and we love it!

 

The view from our front door looks right across the road to the beautiful church and we love hearing the bells as well as the hourly clock chiming. It kept us awake the first night and we did wonder if it had been a mistake to move into a house right opposite a church, but we really haven't heard it since and I have already managed to get myself on the clock winding rota.

We're lucky that the house itself doesn't need anything doing to it. It's clean, well maintained and the decor is very neutral so we can take our time putting our own stamp on the place. However that doesn't mean that we are all unpacked and sorted... far from it! We thought we had done a really good job of clearing and getting rid of stuff, after all we were doing it for long enough. But we still have far too much stuff so the decluttering continues. And I no longer have a studio, so everything that was in my previously spacious studio is now in boxes scattered all over the house, which makes gathering things for teaching an interesting experience to say the least. The plan is to replace the rather tired looking garage at the end of the garden with a purpose built studio and shed, but all in good time. The garden also needs a complete overhaul but I have decided that waiting a year to see what comes up etc will be the sensible approach. Which of course is just a ploy to put it off for a year! At least it is looking a little greener today after all the rain than it does in the photo below.

One of the major changes I have had to adapt to is cooking on an Aga. I have never been one of these people who have longed for an Aga or the lifestyle it implies. I couldn't really see the appeal. I also happened to love my electric/gas range cooker and knew that would be the one thing that I would really miss in my old kitchen. But I admit, the Aga is a thing of beauty and I have started to get the hang of it.

Meals tend to be oven roasted combinations that all go into one pan and get cooked together.

Virtually anything goes and so far everything has been a resounding success (although I have yet to be brave enough to bake a cake). But... and it really is a big but... I just hate the fact that the thing is hot for twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, using electricity and pumping out heat when I might use the oven once a day if that, I boil the kettle a few times a day and sometimes make some toast. Maybe in the days of having four teenage sons at home when the oven always seemed to be on it would have been fantastic but with just two of us I am struggling to see how it can possibly be cost effective or in the least bit environmentally friendly. And so although it feels like heresy, I'm not sure the Aga will stay. The jury is out and there won't be a rushed decision, but I'm not convinced it's an asset.

 

Despite my doubts about the Aga I rather like the rest of the kitchen. There is a central island that has the sink, dishwasher and a fridge fitted along with some cupboard space. There is a free standing larder and these fitted shelves. I managed to find a real bargain in a closing down sale and bought this sideboard that fits snuggly underneath  the shelves. Except the cupboard is painted off white and the shelves were a sludgy looking green. Actually I'm guilty of heresy again... they were painted in Farrow and Ball "Vert de Terre" which I'm sure is very classy but just happened to look a bit dark and dingy! There is no before photo but I have spent the past three days painting them off white to match the cupboard and I think it's a big improvement. I might be over sharing here but it was so hot in the kitchen during the heat wave this week given that the Aga was also throwing out heat, that I was stripped down to my underwear to do the painting. Fortunately there was no-one but the dog to see me because it was not a pretty sight and there really was paint everywhere!

 

It has certainly brightened up this little corner.

The squashed bucket thing on the wall was left with the house and I was all for getting rid of it. It caused a bit of a debate on Instagram and suggestions were made that it could be used as a planter (too many holes), it could hold dried flowers (no way... dusty things), it could hold utensils (potential in that one) or it could be a magazine holder, which is what I have opted for... for now. The thing still doesn't really 'spark joy' as they say!

And so there we are... we have moved, we are happy, there are lots of changes we would like to make but we are also in no hurry. Just don't ask if we have unpacked yet!

In other news, I am off teaching at the Festival of Quilts next weekend (it has been a challenge finding all my resources to say the least) and with the move etc I complete forgot that I have some complimentary tickets to give away. If you are going to the FOQ and don't have a ticket please email me and let me know. If I post them on Monday you will still get them in time!

I'm Still Here!

I feel I'm in a time warp. It's weird, the days are long and don't feel particularly rushed but the weeks are whizzing by with so much to fit in. Blogging as ever seems to have taken the back seat. We've had a birthday, well there have actually been four family birthdays in the past three weeks but only one for which I needed to bake. Stewart opted for a cheesecake over anything else so that is what he got. Lemon and raspberry which was rather delicious since you ask!

I am acutely aware that in two weeks time my home will be open for Cambridge Open Studios once more. At least I don't have to clean and tidy up, having the house on the market has done wonders for my standard of housekeeping. And Stewart has become quite the gardener. Weeding and grass cutting a speciality.

In between various other activities I have snatched moments at my sewing machine to make some small items for sale. Of course three months ago there were grand plans for all sorts of gift items to be stitched. But  they haven't really got beyond the planning stage. The bag of forty zips I bought for making a collection of little zipped bags will have to keep for Christmas... or possibly next year. There have been a few lavender bags finished off though.

However it is next week that it will be all systems go. I have a wedding cake to cover and decorate, no. 3 son to collect from Gatwick before we all head off to Greece for no. 1 son's wedding... Gatwick again at 5.35 am! We will be back home just in time (with three additional house guests) for my first weekend of Open Studios, then a small family only civic ceremony when son no. 2 gets married,  followed by punting on the River Cam and dinner. There is a small matter of 150 cupcakes to bake and decorate before we then have a big wedding party to celebrate son no. 2's wedding. And all this before 14th July! That's not even mentioning house viewings etc.

So when my lovely friend Terry asked did I want to join another couple of ladies learning to make mosaics with her, I jumped at a chance of a day out doing something exclusively for me. It was a lovely day where we worked in the garden under the shade of a tree. Not only did I finish this rather quirky bird but I managed to use up some paua shell that I'd brought back from New Zealand six years ago. If it had been the first time I tried mosaic I might have been able to clock up another 60 x 60 but it is the third time!

The first time was when I made this very well used, hence grubby, coaster that came as a free kit with Inspirations magazine. I used to love that magazine that was always packed full of fabulous stuff to make and interviews with really interesting makers. But it disappeared years ago. My coaster however lives on!

Then many years later I met Terry at Open Studios and a bond was formed over common interests of sewing and amateur dramatics. And she very generously gave me a one to one session where I made this plaque. It wasn't that long ago but I'd forgotten everything, despite wanting to make more mosaics (I never did of course), so it was lovely to spend Wednesday learning all over again.

And once again I would like to make more mosaic... although it's not going to happen over the next couple of weeks. I fact over lunch recently Terry said she didn't want to see me blogging over the beginning of July until all weddings etc are over. She has a point, realistically I probably won't have time but I might sneak back with an odd photo or two. You'll want to see photos of our gorgeous Mamma Mia wedding won't you?

I also found time to go off and do what will probably be my final 60 x 60 (although it is actually only no. 53) yesterday afternoon as my 61st birthday falls between these two weddings. I tried Circle dancing for the first time. It was outside in a beautiful garden where we spent a couple of hours dancing gentle rhythmical dances to lovely music, celebrating the arrival of midsummer. The whole chakra, lei lines, priestess, airy fairy floaty stuff wasn't really my cup of tea so it's not an experience I will probably repeat but I did thoroughly enjoy my afternoon. I won't mention the fact that I don't seem to be able to distinguish my left from my right. The strawberry and cake afternoon tea was rather good too!

And finally, I haven't forgotten... that Festival of Quilts ticket. I did a random names in a hat type of thing and the winner was Jee... I'll email you Jane.

Have a lovely weekend and you'll know where I am if I'm not writing here!

Quilting

I was reminded last week that one of my resolutions or intentions for 2018 was to finish off all those half finished or just started projects I have lurking around... and there are a lot of them which I'm not sure says much for my attention span!

Long time readers will know that I'm not really a patchwork and quilter although I'm often irresistibly drawn to beautiful piles of fabric and lured into believing that I will be able to make something fabulous with them. This was the case a few years ago at the Festival of Quilts when I bought these gorgeous shot cottons from Oakshott Fabrics.

My intention was to make a table runner with some place mats but I forged ahead without much of a plan and cut out lots of rectangular pieces to make log cabin blocks and at the time I may have even made up a couple of the blocks. And then it was all put into a bag and put away in a drawer while I plunged myself with enthusiasm into the next thing to grab my interest. Occasionally it would come out again and I would have to remind myself of the process all over again and try to remember if I had a plan for the end result but I never got very far until this week.

I finished all the blocks, twenty one in total and it was time to decide how to put them together. It was then I realised if I wanted a runner plus place mats I probably should have had more of a plan before cutting out the fabric in the first place. So instead I just stitched them all together and decided to see what I ended up with. To be honest I was just happy that things lined up and corners more or less came together.. for an ex-mathematician my accuracy in cutting and sewing up leaves a lot to be desired!

And so here it is... possibly the wrong proportions for a table runner (without mats unless I invest in more fabric), certainly too small to be a quilt but maybe it will end up as a wall hanging? All suggestions most gratefully received! Of course, there is still the small matter of quilting, lining and binding so I'm nowhere near having finished this project but possibly a little closer than I was.

And talking of quilts does lead me very nicely into what I really need to tell you and that is I will be back at the Festival of Quilts this summer teaching two one hour workshops for Husqvarna on Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th August. We will be making little needle cases decorated with free machine embroidery - everything is supplied, you just need to show up!

And what is more... I have a free ticket for the show to give away. If you would like a chance to win the ticket then please leave a comment and I will pick a name at random this time next week. Leave me a comment even if you don't want a ticket... I need ideas of what to do with that log cabin patchwork!

And while you are about it please remind me that I do not need to buy any more fabric at the Festival of Quilts this year!

Fabric Purchases!

Since I was last here I've been away for the weekend. I went to the Festival of Quilts for two days with a couple of friends, staying overnight in Birmingham... old news really as there have already been plenty of blog posts about the show. I usually only go up for one day, so it was rather nice to have the luxury of not feeling like I needed to rush around packing everything into a single day as well as being able to spend time with my friends. Although if I'm honest I had pretty much seen all I wanted to see, bought what I needed to buy and even took a 1 hour workshop all on the first day.

 

 

There were some fabulous exhibitions of work in the galleries from established artists but the one that stood out for me was the solo show by Hungarian artist Eszter Bornemisza, whose delicate, fragmented pieces crossed that boundary from quilts to fine art... actually I'm not sure they could really be classed as quilts but they were stunning.

 

I was also rather taken by the quilts of Ineke van Unen just for their exuberent use of colour.

 

Unfortunately not so many of the competition quilts really grabbed my attention. Maybe I'm just getting too critical but despite some exquisite workmanship, I felt many were let down by design... and far too many look as though they should be on beds, not walls! My preference is for the abstract rather than pictorial and I did rather like this winner of the contemporary quilt category... all made from old shirts and ties!

 

My shopping on Saturday was limited to what I actually needed and I bought a few Kaffe Fassett shot cottons in shades of purple for a cushion I'd been commissioned to make. I spent most of yesterday cutting them up and combining them with some of my stash to make this patchwork cover based on Janice Gunner's wonky log cabin designs.

 

Today it was quilted, piped and made up into a cushion which I'm now a bit reluctant to part with...

 

It matches the sofa in my living room rather too well. But if I keep it I'll only have to make another and I don't really think I can be bothered!

 

My other necessary fabric purchase was to find something that looked vaguely like cat fur. Jacob rather likes the cat pictures by Louis Wain and wanted a tea cosy for his small teapot that matches his tea mug. I made the tea cosy this afternoon but I'm not entirely happy with it... there's not really enough definition. Back to the drawing board with that one...

 

 

But probably not just yet... because I've a third fabric purchase to deal with. This was not on my list of fabric that I needed to buy, but of course having the luxury of a whole extra day to wander around meant I spotted some totally unecessary fabric that I just had to have. This is destined to become another reversible skirt...

 

Watch this space!

Quilts not Monsters

If you have dropped by today expecting monsters... then sorry, I have dragged you here under false pretences. The monsters will have to wait until tomorrow because I had such a lovely day at the Festival of Quilts with my friend Catherina yesterday that I needed to tell you all about it.  As ever the hundreds and hundreds of quilts on display just felt overwhelming. I find it impossible to pick out favourites or to even discern those that are well constructed. Most of the time I don't understand what the fuss is all about.  But there are one or two things that stuck in my mind (closely related to the very few of my photographs that actually came out!)

 

 

I really loved the mixed media work of Stephanie Redfern (pictured above) which appeared so fresh and modern.

 

We were both quite taken with the work of Mandy Pattulo, pieced together from various recycled fabrics. Her wall hangings and garments were fabulous and so rich with texture and history.

 

Catherina and I are both interested in Art to Wear but mostly we were disappointed with this year's exhibits however we both loved this soft wool jacket with its beautiful kantha stitching by Pauline Macauley. I would happily wear this!

 

And I also loved this back and white quilt constructed from the most beautifully mono-printed fabrics by Sarah Welsby. It relates directly to some of the work I've been doing with Spectrum as well as some plans I have for new work which is probably why I found it so appealing. But the highlight of my day... the lovely Kaffe Fassett who spoke to me! There he was surrounded by glorious colour and a posse of admiring women just gently knitting. When I asked if I could take his photo he replied "Sure"... that counts as speaking to me doesn't it?

 

Which leads me on to my purchases... quite modest considering what was on offer.

 

We each bought a bundle of these beautiful shot cottons from Oakshott fabrics - inspired by both the colours and a lovely table runner that was on display. I don't particularly want a table runner... and I don't make quilts... but now we have set ourselves a challenge to each make something from our fabric purchase. 

 

But my best buy... this amazing Kaffe Fassett ribbon. Who even knew he designed ribbons (not me obviously). I limited myself to just one metre but could have easily bought masses in all the different patterns and colourways.

 

So it was a wonderful inspiring day... except for the ridiculously overpriced cheese sandwich which was frankly quite disgusting! I wished I'd bought another couple of metres of ribbon and had gone hungry.