Loving a bit of Holiday Sewing....

The best part about going on holiday,

besides being by the sea,

was staying in a cottage with no internet!

This meant I got a chance to do

LOTS of handquilting.

I started this quilt in 2006!

(Eeek! that IS 10 years!!!)

It's is my 'BQL Ostrich'

The story of it can be found here: 

http://sewkalico.blogspot.co.uk/2007/05/ufo-of-week.html 

I don't hand quilt much anymore

when I can longarm quilt my quilts

in a matter of days.

But it is very enjoyable now and again

to have something in your lap

while you unwind 

from a day of unwinding on the beach ;o)

Making More Memories

I have so many wonderful memories of my Mom,

so many little things that make me think of her...

I hope my daughter will have the same...

She likes to sit on my lap when I sew...

But more than that she loves to 'snip'!

Crazy, but true, I trust her to 'snip' the chain threads

on my quilts and blocks.

Start them young! :o)

*****

I have been trying to get another UFO to flimsy stage.

These are the blocks laid out for Bonnie Hunter's 

Criss Cross Applesauce pattern

from her book: Scraps & Shirttails II

And here is the top

(without borders)

laid out over my sewing machine.

The snowy and wet weather is not great for photos,

but I'll get one soon I hope.

*****

I'm also trying to get another UFO finished.

This is my BQL Ostrich started in 2006.

I started hand quilting this years ago

and I had contemplated finishing it on my Longarm machine,

but I'm just sitting in front of the TV in the evenings

adding a few stitches to it as and when I can.

Hopefully it will get done soon

because I remember now why I don't like hand quilting!!!

Started: 2006... Finished: Not Yet!

Ahem...

This quilt top was started in 2006 

as part of the BQL(British Quilt List) Ostrich Challenge

.

Every month we were given something to do to add to the quilt,

until this became a top....

I started handquilting it some years back, 

but soon lost interest :(

 Now I'm wondering if I should load it on my Longarm

quilting machine and just get it finished??

It's weird how it's sort of red-ish and green

and quite Christmassy 

which is not what I had had in mind at all!

Watch this space...

It may get finished one day!

I'll stick to sewing

Bouyed by the finish of my Berry Crush, I decided to resume the hand quilting on my BQL Ostrich Quilt from 2006.




I just do a few stitches here and there, but it's very relaxing so hopefully it will get finished sometime (this year if all goes well...)

The bees and butterflies are still enjoying the last of the Buddleia's flowers...

Even our humble weeds are an attraction to this butterfly :-)

And here is a photo of my gardening mastery, cough cough, sigh. Clearly not the green fingered sort, I have managed, no thanks to all the endless rain we've had, to produce about 5 red strawberries. Luckily they are tasty, but not enough to make any jam.

I'll spare you a tomato photo! I had so hoped, I'd be swamped with tomatoes and be able to make chutney, but alas I haven't got any that are edible yet ;-(

Guess, I'll have to stick to sewing LOL

Seasons change

What is this hard white stuff I find on my car in the morning? The stuff I have to scrape off before I can drive DS1 to school? Frost???? Normally we are like the Swallows who fly South, but this year we are the Robins...



Are we crazy??? It's bloody freezing! I just hope it snows properly so that we get that 'white Christmas" the kids are dreaming about.

As the Seasons and this house changes so does what I can acheievably create. With the arrival of my Mom, I will focus on handwork. Piecing together my hexagons and handquilting my BQL Ostrich.

There is still sickness in this house. I am finally, after 10 days of cold, feeling better, but poor DH is still going through his share of it. Better go make him a cup of tea!