Ode To Green Tea & Sweet Beans...

Love love love!!!

It started with two small blocks, selected with Sonia, back at FQR in Jen Kingwell's wonderful hand stitching and appliqué class, and then grew…

Although I desperately want to make the whole Green Tea & Sweet Beans quilt, I decided a cushion, pillow-sized (just to confuse the pants off non-Brits!), was just the ticket to start with.  I had never hand-stitched before the class, and only since hand-quilted one cushion, so this is a practice piece, to keep me going for now!

I so love it when a beautiful plan comes together!

I backed it with a lovely spot, which I know was a bolt end of an extra-wide backing from Village Haberdashery.  The binding is my all time favourite Liberty Lifestyle print; if you know where I can get any more, please let me know, my precious meter is now down to significantly less.

So there you go.  A long time coming, but I definitely think it was worth the wait.

Oh and a FAL tick - woo hoo!

PS. If my posts become even more speedy/sporadic over the next 10 days or so, it's because crazy birthday season will be in full swing, starting tomorrow with a girly sleepover whilst dear son spends the night at the museum.  No. sleep. for. anyone!

Back at it...

Blah blah work, blah blah school run, blah blah rain.  One of those Mondays!

The only stitching I have to show you today, other than Cub badges, (and I know the novelty of those has worn off), is the back of my Ode to GTSB…

I'm expecting no prizes for exciting photography, but bear with me, I am hoping to get it made up into a cushion this week and then I'll show you the front!

My hand quilting still needs a lot of practise, as you may be able to tell if you have your glasses on, but I am loving the process.

I think I need to get a new quilt made, just so I have something to hand quilt over the winter… time for a cunning plan me thinks!

Her Indoors...

We waited in for the delivery, it came at about 3pm; I finished the pair of Sew Together Bags, but as it never actually got light today, no photos yet, sorry.  And I stitched all my Ode To Green Tea cushion top panels together.

So this rainy day wasn't a total wash out, I got to hand quilt to my heart's content.

I can't even tell you how far I have got; I am loving it and just want to keep adding more. I already know my first round of outlining all the main shapes and blocks just won't be enough!  Can't wait to show you.

Handy...

I managed to finish my flower block today, multi-tasking a Percy Jackson DVD with the kids, whilst a thunderstorm clattered about outside.

So here are all my hand-stitched blocks together thus far…

Not masses, but I am quietly pleased with myself.

I also pieced a few hexie flowers, but one wrong move and I am now suffering from a rear-entry needle wound, so I'm indulging in a little R&R and putting a packet of plasters on my shopping list x

Passing glance...

Today we were back at the library first thing, for the last of the summer reading challengers to receive her medal and bounty, and then we made the most of the morning's nice weather and headed up country to the adventure playground…

Oh how I love that I no longer have to keep both eyes, and the ones in the back of my head, glued to the kids as they go off and play.  This has been the first summer when I have been happy to just locate them every once in a while and know they will be back when they are hungry; which admittedly is about every 5 minutes, but coupled with my wish list of hand-sewing, it's been a blessing.

Today I went from this…

… to this…

Almost done.

I really do need to think about where I am going with these blocks.  I haven't gone with the actual pattern block sizes, so I will have to stop sooner rather than later and then start again, properly.  I am thinking more pillow than cushion or maybe even the most labour-intensive tote bag in the world.  Time will tell.

Good 'un...

A little while ago dear husband asked for a pencil case to hold his drawing pens.  OK, he may have had to ask a couple of times, but yesterday afternoon I grabbed a quiet half hour and got stuck into my Spoonflower/Heidi Kenney Nuns!

I obviously used my method for the flat pouch as per this month's Love Patchwork & Quilting, adjusting the measurements to fit the pens, and it turned out rather nicely.  It's gone down very well too,  and that's what matters.

Today there were haircuts for the girls, a trip to the Library, an afternoon in front of the TV and I have just prepped another little block for my Ode to STGB…

Today another light went out; RIP Robin Williams xxx

Fun with fabric...

Yep, I indulge in that most days; here are some little hand-stitched blocks that are being put aside for my Ode to GTSB…

They need squaring up and stitching together, but that will be part of the fun when I get to trying to decide on a layout.

I also received a speedy parcel from Jessie; ordered yesterday lunchtime, here today!

I am joining the glue-basters, as I am keen to spend as much time actually sewing as I can, and those clamshell templates, well they just fell in my basket in a moment of bravado!!

Today the kids got to play with fabric too, it's only fair!

I chickened out of going the full screen-printing hog with them, so we plumped for decorating calico bags with fabric paint…

There may have been sharing disagreements, and a little upset about going outside the lines, but all in all everyone was happy in the end…

I think they did pretty well; my only role was as brush washer and fabric-presser.

Think of this as a sweetener though, tomorrow they have the dentist to look forward to!