A Lovely Year of Finishes - JUNE

Ahhh - it is done. I completed my Lovely Year of Finishes June goal (as linked here) which also means this is a TGIFF post, a Whoop Whoop finish and a Finish it up Friday post.  And I just realised it was a 2nd Quarter Goal with Leanne over at She Can Quilt too!  That's a lot of linking for one quilt but it deserves it!  P.S. Sorry for the late night photo - I will try to get a picture tomorrow if it stops raining!

Yes, it is my 'King Kong Wonky'!  This is a king size quilt that 21 people contributed blocks to and it took me over 12 months to complete [due to procrastination]!  Thank you to the girls in the Bee Europa 2012-2013 group and the Kinky Bee Honey Bees group for sewing me loads of blocks, and thank you to John Adams [aka Quilt Dad] for teaching these blocks at retreat and starting my wonky log cabin quilt on its journey!  And of course a big thank you to long arm quilter Debbie for quilting this beast so I didn't have to!!  Mr Toyota sends you a hug!!

I went with a scrappy binding because I love scrappy bindings!!  I love wonky log cabins - shame the colours don't show up true on the screen.  I used several different shades of greens, greys and purples plus a few white on whites for my quilt and these pictures don't show that. 

I love the on-point square grid quilting - I can't wait to see how it washes up and crinkles!  This is by far the most expensive quilt I have ever made once you factor in the postage costs to get the fabrics to people across the world plus the long-arm stitching.  This quilt is also the biggest quilt I have made to date which I am pretty proud of.  I am excited to have it on my bed so I can snuggle under it and know that it was handmade and homemade - the best things usually are :)

I of course left it to the very end of the month to complete but hey - it is COMPLETE.  Finito benito.  Done.  Finished.  Hallelujah.  I think I will wash it tomorrow and dry it so it goes all crinkly and then I will sleep under it for the first time.  Sweet dreams!!



Linked

Happy village

vil·lage (v l j) noun. 1. A small group of dwellings in a rural 

area, usually ranking in size between a hamlet and a town.

_______________________________

This week, several new dwellings have been built sewn.  A few new trees even grew popped up!  A week or so ago I begged asked if anyone out there wanted to make me a wonky house or a wonky tree to help my little community grow.  Can you believe I had nineteen amazing volunteers!  Thank you - you will all be entered into a draw at the end of the summer.

Thank you to Muriel for building me a perfect(ly) wonky house.  The roof is very cool!

 Thank you to Jo for growing me these totally happy wonky trees that seem to be dancing and wiggling!

 And thank you to Turid for building me a solid pair of houses and growing this perky pair of trees!

This is already shaping up to be quite an international village - I have wonky houses/trees from England, Norway and the Netherlands.  Thank you so much!!  I can't wait to see what is built next!  

Happy wonky... I mean Wednesday!

P.S. If anyone else would like to sew a wonky house or a wonky tree to help expand my little village, please let me know in the comments and I can send you my address!  Let's have a house party!!!

Linking to Freshly Pieced

May I make you something?

Today I received the most lovely package from Charise Creates.  Her blog is so lovely.  Truly lovely.   You may know here from her amazing paper pieced patterns.  She also has a real knack at selecting the perfect combination of fabrics for her projects!

Anyways, I signed up to her 'Craft it Forward' a year ago so I was totally thrilled to receive this package from her today!!   She made me an apple hot pad/trivet with embroidered seeds and a fussy cut stem (very cool) and...

...she also included a card of vintage green buttons [I think everyone knows how much I adore buttons - and the colour green!] and a lovely journal perfectly sized for my handbag.  Charise is such a sweetie!  Here is the back of the apple - totally reversible with the apple print fabric! 

Thank you so much Charise - I love it!!

So now it is my turn to Craft it Forward!  If you would like a handmade gift from me, add a comment below.  Maybe tell me your favourite colour too!!  I will make and send you a gift to the first five interested individuals. You will receive your gift within the next nine months.  You, in return upon receiving your homemade gift, will create a blog post showing what you received and then ask for comments in the post for five interested and willing participants.  You then have nine months to make something for them so they can 'craft it forward' too!

**I'd love to make something for you.  If you are interested, please leave a comment below**

Have a great day!

23rd June

Every year on this day I do something that I think my mom would like to do with me, in case she is near me in spirit.  I like to think that she would rather me be busy and doing something fun or interesting than just sitting and thinking.  Sometimes I have a quiet, thinking day, but this year I am going to hang out with some friends, eat cake and sew. 

Thirteen years go by very quickly.  Days like today I wish I could be at home giving hugs to my sister, Nana and dad.  I love you guys.  Thinking of you all...

Miss you mom...

Amy
xo

Sunday Stash (on a Monday)

I'm actually linking up to Sunday Stash (over on Dreaming in Patchwork today) on a Monday this time (last time it was a Wednesday - oops)!!  Sunday day evaporates so that is my excuse!  However, I don't have a stack of fabric - I have just one to share!

Yesterday On Saturday, I took the car for a run out to charge the battery (it had gone super flat and I had to be boosted by a nice AA man) and I found myself in Hemel Hempstead outside of Patchwork Corner.  The car seemed to just know where to go so when I arrived there I thought "I should go in and see what new fabric they have" -- so I did!!  I did not expect to treat myself to some fabric that:

a) I did not need
b) cost too much
c) is very yummy

Stof  'Nature Marks' in blue

C'est la vie eh?  Yes, I came away with this yummy Stof cotton/linen blend fabric to make another Schoolhouse Tunic.  I couldn't resist it!  The lovely denim-y blue and natural colours are 'me'.  The colour is between a Kona Cadet and a Kona Delft - but not quite either of those.  The fabric is sort of scratchy so fingers crossed it softens up when washed...gee, I hope that it makes a nice shirt -- it cost me enough so it had better!!  I may even have enough left over to make a wristlet so I can have a barfingly cute matching thing to wear with the shirt on a day out!

Happy stashing!

P.S. If you haven't read my post about making a wonky house for me, click here and join in the fun!!  There will be an exclusive giveaway for all of those people who participate!

____________________________________

Thank you to Kristy at Quiet Play and to Fat Quarter Shop for my Happy Go Lucky charm pack!  I will drool on it for a little while before using it!!!  Also, a belated thank you to Creative Chicks at Play/Simple Girl Simple Life who sent me a 100 Quilt Blocks magazine in  May.  It is a great resource to have and one I cannot buy here in the UK.

Photo from Fat Quarter Shop

Tea towel; modified Zakka

Zakka 2.0 is just finishing Week 2 / Project #2: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner tea towels.  I love them in the book and love what everyone has linked up but I just didn't see me ever using tea towels with those words on them so I improvised... again!

I did a little bit more of the free motion stitching onto a tea towel and put a tea cup and the word TEA on it.  I bought some vintage-y fabric from Annie and I think it is the bees knees for this project.

Sorry for my photos - my little notebook computer laptop thingy that I use will no longer accept my little memory cards from my camera.  Weird.  And very inconvenient!  So I figured out how to Bluetooth pictures from my phone to my little notebook laptop thingy and here I am, adding bad photos of a cute tea towel!

Linking up to LR Stitched - in the nick of time too!

Happy Sunday night!!

Busy shabby-chic'ing it

This is what I am up to - a bit of 'drawing in stitches' practice:

I have a long way to go to perfect it but I am loving the effect!!  Even Mr Crafty Shenanigans loves what I have made which is something, let me tell ya!!

Happy sewing experimenting!

Modern Mini Quilt Challenge

Modern Mini Quilt Challenge 2013

The challenge was to challenge yourself!  Try something you have not tried before and have fun with it.  So I did!  I made some SUPER MINI paper pieced flying geese!  Trying something new isn't so daunting on a small project so I just went for it and ended up with a flock of really tiny paper pieced flying geese.  I started this random project as a challenge to myself in March and I only just finished stitching the hanging corners and binding on!!  I am such a procrastinator!  Here is a 1p coin to show you the small scale of the geese:

For this mini quilt, I also tried some dense straight line quilting.  The end result is lovely and tactile and I am tickled with the effect!!  I love my mini even though it looks like a place mat!

I tend to save all sorts of tiny scraps so I was happy to use these tiny red scraps for the geese.

For the binding, I auditioned several different fabrics and the red and white stripes were just so fun so I went with that!  And I am happy I did!!  Reminds me of candy!

Dimensions:
Mini quilt:17.5" wide x 13.5" tall
Geese:  1" long x 0.5" tall
Fabric used: Kona, various red print scraps, Michael Miller
Thread: Gutermann
Flying geese paper pattern from Quilter's Cache but not printed to scale!

Linking up to:

Yay - this was one of my 2nd Quarter goals with She Can Quilt
 
 
Linking to June Finishes

Wanna help me make wonky?

Hey there!  I'm wanting to progress one of my WiP projects and thought that maybe you might like to help!??  [if you don't ask you don't get, right?]

Here is what I have created so far - just a few wonky houses from scraps:

Plus a few wonky and wild trees:

The houses and trees are quite small - the biggest is about 4" or 5" tall (tall skinny tree) and I think the smallest house is about 2" tall.  I would LOVE to have lots of different houses/apartments/trees in different shapes and sizes to make a 'village' or 'town' and maybe a forest on the outskirts! 

So, if you feel like sewing me a wonky house or wonky tree to be included in my Wonky Village, please get in touch with me!  I would love to add them to my project (and get it completed once and for all!!).  I will be having an exclusive giveaway for all of those people who contribute.  This giveaway will take place in August so you have plenty of time to sew something and for it to arrive here!  I am in the UK in case you were wondering and I am happy to post the prize internationally!

I look forward to hearing from you!  Cheers!

LINKING TO Freshly Pieced WiP Wednesday

 

Zakka Zakka Zakka

[said in the tune of 'Marsha Marsha Marsha' from The Brady Bunch]

Happy Zakka everyone!  Book 2 - can you believe it?  Last year, the Zakka Style-A-Long was my very first experience of a 'follow-a-long' and of Zakka.  Because of the link-ups every week, I met lots of other bloggers too.  Just like last year, each week we make another project from the book and link it up.  I love seeing how each person 'interprets' the project and how they all look with such different fabrics.

First up: a set of Bell Pepper Coasters.  These were a great project for me to rummage through the scrap baskets of odd pieces of fabrics to find what I wanted!  However, in true Zakka-style, the first pattern in the book lacked diagrams and clear instructions.  On the very first instruction I was baffled and scratching my head in frustration!  In the end I just did something that sort of made sense but certainly wasn't what the pattern had written to do but it worked.  For those of you who know me, you will know that I struggle without photos or clear drawings to help me understand the words!      

I persevered and quickly made a set of four cute Bell Pepper coasters and I quite like them!  I understood the rest of the pattern but made notes to clarify some of the instructions in case I want to make another set another time.  As I didn't have a piece of brown felt for the stems, I substituted some brown fabric instead.  

Be sure to check out the Flickr group to see what everyone else has made!

Happy Zakka'ing!

Linked to LR Stitched 

Sew Sew Modern 2 -received

Lucky me :) 

Gee I love swaps!  Quilty Doings was my partner in the Sew Sew Modern Swap round 2 and she sent me the most amazing tote and fabric basket.  Can you see little sausage dogs there on the basket?  Yup - just like my little Jax!! 

Jo stalked me like a professional!  Lime green, blue, crisp white, dachshunds, buttons, zippers, fabric basket, hand stitching - yup, it is like she could read my mind of what would be the coolest swap things to send me!!!  One side of the tote is a scrappy trip along block and the other side has pinwheels and BUTTONS!!!  Yum!

Tote and basket made by Quilty Doings

Her hand stitching on the front of the tote and on the fabric basket is absolutely perfect!  I envy stitches like that!  She also sent me some of the fab dog fabric, three zippers in my favourite colours and some French ribbon too (did she know I went to Paris in May??) and some yummy rock.  Awesome parcel Jo - thank you so very much!!!! 

May in review

May started slow for me because I was EPP'ing a Heather Ross hexie cushion for a swap plus having a short holiday in Paris with my dad and his wife, but once I was home and the cushion was completed, I quickly gained momentum and stitched a few things (and missed taking photos of a few things so they aren't in the mosaic - oh well):

Two items from the above mosaic are things I kept (for the moemnt anyways) - all the rest were for swaps, bee peeps and gifts!  I loved sewing itty bitty flying geese and the New York Beauty pouch but I would say my three favourite items from May were:

• Growth wall hanging for 'Challenge 4 Art' group (sprout pattern from Sew Mama Sew)

• My hexie Heather Ross pillow (and Scottie dog applique tea towel)

• And my Whimsical bird and wonky flying geese zippy pouch (in the style of Syko)

I have a big list of things I want to sew in June and finally cross off from the huge WiP list.  Fingers crossed I can get something done!!

What did you get up to in May?

Linking to Fresh Sewing Day.

A Lovely Year GOAL for June

Another month and other project to [hopefully] cross off the mahoosive to-do list!  I achieved my May goal yay) but missed the deadline to link up.  Silly me.  That's what I get for juggling too many balls at once (especially since I don't know how to juggle)!

My June goal will be to attach 400+ inches of binding to my 'King Kong Wonky' quilt.  I had it long-armed by Debbie thank goodness but now I have the arduous task of stitching the binding on.  By hand.  400+ inches.

Quilted in an on-point square grid.  Should wash up wonderfully!

Wish me luck!

Linking to ALYOF June Goal Setting party
.

Challenge 4 Art: Growth

____________________________

All growth depends upon activity. There 

is no development physically or intellectually 

without effort, and effort means work.  

Calvin Coolidge

 ____________________________________

When the very clever and talented 'Ellie Q' of Color My World asked me to be a part of a small group who would create a mini quilt to a theme four times a year I jumped at the chance!   The idea of this challenge group was inspired by the girls of Four in Art Group who make amazing projects!  Challenge 4 Art, as our little group is called, consists of four fab people: Ellie Q/Lisa of Color My World, Claudia of Machen und Tun [who I met at Fat Quarterly Retreat last year where she taught me how to make a zippy pouch], Susannah from fiberchick - and me!!

Our first theme was 'GROWTH' and I thought of all sorts of things that I could make that represented growth but I also wanted to show my 'growth' as a patchworker/quilter. How would I show that?  Through paper piecing of course!

[Amy's] Crafty Shenanigans

My original plans for my mini quilt definitely 'grew' and evolved as I sewed it.  Originally I wanted to have three rows of three sprouts but I broke away from the group 'rules' of a 24" maximum mini and made a long skinny rectangular mini.  I'm the naughty one in the group!   The dimensions are 34.25" long x 7.75" wide.
[Edit:  the rules were for a maximum perimeter of 100"]

[Amy's] Crafty Shenanigans

A year ago I had never even heard of paper piecing and my first few attempts at following a paper pieced pattern had me in tears, literally!  Fast forward to me today and I am a paper piecing pattern tester, I am in two Block of the Month programs all to do with paper piecing and I now LOVE making paper pieced things!  I think it is fair to say that I have learned a new skill -- I have grown - and shown GROWTH - as a crafter.

Ikea fabric for backing of the wall hanging

I used several different white on whites to create the background.  I wish I had used white wadding instead of the natural because you can see the natural behind the white.  My scrap bins overfloweth so I used lots of different greens (I would say it is one of my favourite colours) for the sprouts and stems.  A piece of Kaffe Fassett Aboriginal dots was used for the binding.   I am practising my quilting and did some dense organic straight lines (aka wonky straight lines) which is my new favourite quilting design.

I hope you have enjoyed seeing how I interpreted 'growth'.  I love my new paper pieced skinny-mini!  Be sure to visit the other girls over the next day or so to see what they have created for the same theme! 

Happy sewing!!

Linking to Paper Piecing Party at Quiet Play!