Lucy made me do it!

Thank you Lucy!!!

As soon as I saw Lucy's beautiful Rose Star EPP blocks last year I just knew I had to make my own. And I have!

If I am honest I actually finished this months ago, the binding was sewn down whilst spending time with my husband in hospital. I just haven't had the chance to share it with you until now.

Of course for such a special quilt that I knew I would be working on for hours over months at a time I decided I had best use some precious fabric! I used my one and only fq of Snow White from Heather Ross for the center hexies and the lovely Kate at M is for Make sweetly dug out a couple of scraps for me when I realised I would be 2 short!

And there was no question that I could do anything but hand quilt it was there, despite the fact I had never hand quilted anything larger than a cushion!

I brought myself a large quilting hoop and decided very quickly that I hated the pesky rigid thing! I spent several weeks with sore holey fingers because of my stubborn dislike of thimble, spent evening after evening basting and piecing the hundreds of boring background blocks. But do you know what, it was worth it and i'd do it all again! My only regret is I lost patience and didn't make more blocks to make a bigger quilt.

Heather Ross, Denyse Schmidt, EPP and hand quilting, perfection!

If you haven't tried EPP yet, I urge to you give it a go. It is highly addictive and very portable! There are great tips to be found here at Flossie Teacakes, great tips from Lynne too and if you like a book to read I can highly recommend Hexa Go Go by Tacha Bruecher.

The one that got away

You may remember this little project?!

It fell victim to a chewy puppy last year and sadly didn't make it to my Brit Quilt Swap partner as intended.

I kept the pieces and after some healing time ;-) I unpicked the damaged parts and started to rebuild.

So now it has been hanging out on my sofa for a few months, creeping into the odd photo or two I decided it was time to give it the reveal it deserves.

It is hand quilted onto an old remnant of woollen blanket and bound using the cutest ever black pin dot fabric, I love this cushion and I am so glad I {eventually} had the patience to resurrect it.

Next month I am teaching a series of workshops at my lqs on epp, this cushion will be coming along with me, as will the rose star quilt....which I am hoping will be quilted by then!!

Suffering for my art

I am in pain, lots of tiny holes and flaps of loose skin on my fingers as I've been trying to sew together all my rose star epp blocks into a quilt top.

Trouble is now the holes are there the needle keeps sliding into them when I try and push it through the fabic - ouch! I must naturally use the same spot over and over. I need a thimble I guess but I cant find anything I get on with.

I've been going since Sunday night, it feels longer and I need a break! But, I am so desperate to get this done, aside from the fact that it is in a very delicate state now and I have no where to lie it out except on the floor - where the dog keeps walking over it! I think it will be much safer finished and basted...if I ever get there!

All my background pieces are cut and basted and I just have one missing block to make up, I feel so close to being done yet so far!

Giving my fingers a little break tonight with something slightly larger than my epp needle - a crochet hook. I am trying to teach myself a little more crochet and finish a ribbed cowl in some lovely alpaca blend yarn, hopefully in time to wear when the snow arrives. We haven't had any yet so I am not holding my breath, its not called the English Riviera here for nothing!

Last week in pictures

As promised here is the insane amount of sewing I got done last week!

Excuse the instagram photos (whoops, I forgot to mention, I fell for instagram! You can find me @lovestrawberrypatch)

From top to bottom there is:

1. Fractured Oakshott Finished
2. Christmas Table Runner Sample for Workshop finished
3. 2 patchwork chair pads for the girls made
4. EPP Rose Star Cushion made as sample in preparation for teaching epp class at LQS
5. Same cushion but used as a table mat/mini quilt
6. Liberty Mini Finished
7. Another rose star block made (that's 7 now)
8. Bruce the Buck phone case made
9. More + and x blocks made
10. Infinity scarf made from my Melody Miller I won from Kelly back in May (finally!)

I am embarrassed to say there was more but I just didn't take photos (these were bad enough, there are only so many naff pictures I want to clutter my blog with ;-)

This week seems to be heading the same way...I 'may' have just started a swoon quilt on a whim whilst Mary was here for a sewing day on Monday, ahem. Well I have finished a few wip's so I figured I was entitled to start another (technically two as I've been sewing up all of the hst cut offs to use at the same time).

I've just got the log burner fired up so I think a cuppa and a biscuit are in order before braving the Arctic conditions in the sewing room again!

I am not really here!

Well, just for today I am as a wonderful friend has loaned me their laptop :-)

I should be back to normal in a few days when the laptop part arrives now that I have been able to order it, phew!

Despite being a little cut off interweb wise I am still reachable from the outside world and I had some lovely post yesterday from Kelly, she is awesome, I love her!

Lovely little piles of scraps from each of Aneela's range, now I am sure to be able to get my quilt finished along with the charm pack of Sew Stitchy on its way from the USA. Thank you SO much Kelly :-)

Speaking of which I guess the Aneela quilt was really my only WIP, I have managed to move it along a bit in the last few days

All of the embroidery blocks for the top row are now complete and I just have 5 sampler block to make and then sash everything. The pieces of paper are noting which blocks are going where, so far I have decided on a constellation star (seeing as the one I made Hadley went down so well!) a dresden plate and a wonky star 9 patch (from Shape workshop for quilters). I just have to come up with 2 more...that's the bit that is slowing me down!

I have also managed to add quite a few projects to my WIP whilst having all this internet free time on my hands!

I blame Lucy for this one! I have finally caved in a decided to start a rose star quilt, I held off for so long as I don't usually do long term project but I just couldn't resist any longer! I got one made yesterday, I adore it and there is even brown in it. Perhaps making Hadley's joke mini has done something terrible to me, eeek!

I was so excited by my rose star block that I went and pulled all my most precious fabric from my stash for the rest of the blocks. I seem to have a lack of aubergine/browny prints though and I need more text fabric on a creamy/snow background...if anyone can suggest any current lines that might help? I am not sure if the sweetwater print I used is still available.

I have also made a new block for the Liberty Mini, just two more to make, these will come when inspiration strikes! Thanks to Lolly for being my churn dash muse, I couldn't not make some little ones after seeing her Brit Bee blocks popping up everywhere!

Finally, I have been asked to make some Christmas stocking for a friend - 6 of them! I can't believe I am sewing for Christmas so early but it was fun choosing fabrics with her. We settled on these prints from Kate Spain's Joy line.

That's not including 2 lots of bee blocks also to do this month. All in all, a lot more going on than I usually like, being a virgo and all that (read neurotic about having half finished things laying about!). Lets hope that laptop part does take a few days to get here so I can get a head start!