The guest room

I like having guests to stay, I really do.

But equally, I like it when they've gone and the room becomes nice and empty...and opportunistic.

Empty double beds make very enticing design walls

And because you know the bed is not going to stay empty for long...

...you know you have to crack on with the quilt.

And all that empty space on the floor needs filling up too.

Blocks received so far from my month in the Twist on Tradition Bee

I like guests but equally, I like it when they're gone.

Just because

Just because.

I came across another charm pack that needed to be used up.

 

And I wanted to use it up quickly without thinking too much about where the quilt was heading, so I started aimlessly making half-square triangles.

And I had some Moda cross-weave that I wanted to give a go and I thought it would go well with the charm pack. And if I was more organised I'd tell you the name of the colour but I'm not so I can't.

And just because I have to have something to do if I am watching TV in the evening (especially as there are waaay too many advertisement breaks in Desperate Housewives) I thought I'd hand quilt it.

And just because I then found some backing fabric from the same line as the charm pack I thought that would do.

So it's kind of a 'just because' quilt rather than 'I have to make' quilt which is fine because sometimes I am just as content with the journey as I am with the end destination.

Just because.

Woof Woof

(I resisted using that as a title for all of 30 seconds before caving in.)

A work colleague who sits next to me has been brewing a baby who was most definitely going to be needing a quilt. I wanted to use the new line from Laurie Wisbrun - Pooches and Pickups, except I didn't know if it was going to be a boy or a girl. I figured the odds were quite good so I took a punt and set to work on a 'boy' quilt.

I loosely based it on a pattern in Elizabeth Hartman's book which is a snowball block with several rounds. I thought it would be a good way to show off the fun prints.

To stop it getting too matchy matchy, I raided my scrap bin and used random bits of green and brown and black, making sure the prints were quite graphic and 'non-flowery.'

Kona Taupe is the plain fabric used throughout the quilt front

For the back I had some lovely Essex Linen in Putty with some random squares, which if I had been less random and more precise in my placement, would have lined up perfectly on the vertical line.

And my punt paid off, as baby Leon made his entrance into the world last week.

Just need to put a label on and then it is off to its new home.

Spicing Up The Kitchen Swap

I'm all done with the Spicing Up The Kitchen Swap on Flickr.
I loved my partner's likes as they are pretty similar to mine so it was a good excuse to break out the Loulouthi:

I can't give you explanations of use for any of these because her 'would like to have' suggestions were quite specific and I don't want to give the game away:

Hand quilted. All cups and subsequent tea pots have been quilted around to make them stand out

 My husband likes the next one.

Thinks we should keep it.

Doesn't quite get the old 'making something for a complete stranger that you are most probably never going to meet' scenario.

I am pondering that point.

This one is hand quilted in various perle cottons. 

I think it's kind of obvious what these are, especially if I tell you I used two layers of batting.

Think I like this one the best

All Anna Maria Horner fabrics seem to go together, no matter which collection they are from

This was a fun and quick collection to make.

Although not that quick partner -  I still ignored a fair few 'muuuuuum, I'm ready to come out of the bath now' yells.

Hope you like them.

 

PS. A heads up for the ladies from Fresh Modern II Bee. It's me next month and I've become obsessed with this particular fabric from Loulouthi so you'll all be getting to share in the love.

Out with the old and in with the new...

The old knackered ironing mat thingy I had on my sewing table...

...has been replaced with a rather nice (imo) ironing board:

Yes, that is a different iron in this image...dropped the one in the last photo, resulting in an untimely end.

I used this tutorial which was excellent. She calls it a 'pressing' board. I call it an 'iron the b*gger out of it board' but it fulfils the same purpose. The only thing I did differently was not using the canvas she used as the outer covering. I didn't have any, so instead I used a scrap of home decor weight and it seems to be holding up fine.

Then it was out with old childrens clothes...

Sold on Ebay = nice pot of money in Paypal account

 ...and in with Loulouthi, Anna Marie Horner's new line:

Bought with aforementioned pot of Paypal money. Guilt factor = big fat zero

I originally bought a couple of fat quarter sets from Hawthorne Threads but they are so gorgeous I needed wanted more. So I bought a half yard of the complete set from Fabric Palooza. I've never ordered from Karen before but she is to be recommended. It came in two parcels, both of which were tied with a long piece of fabric (since gone into a string quilt I am working on) and in each package she also included an extra surprise piece of fabric. A nice touch.

They didn't stay gathering dust for long:

And my cutting mat.

It lasted six years before it stopped being self- healing. I have no idea if that is good, bad or OK but I clearly had a penchant for 15 inches as that is where the first hole appeared.

This is completely off topic but we had computer problems this week. The man who came round to fix it wanted to check the sound was working properly so he went to his 'go to' video that he uses on Youtube. You know when you think something is so naff you actually start enjoying it. I think I've reached that moment, along with the other 30 million that have already watched it.