My Beautiful Cushion

I arrived home yesterday to a parcel awaiting me. Now I love Christmas and everything that it involves. So you can imagine my excitement when I opened my package carefully to discover that I had only peeled off the first layer. I excitedly laughed and delicately opened the next layer thinking how carefully packaged my cushion was. Then the inner child in me took over because I discovered that there was yet another layer to be opened, so I admit it, caution was thrown to the wind and like a big kid this wrapping got torn open to reveal what you see below.

Now before we get carried away I must show you the clever way the label was attached to my cushion. As soon as you unzip it you see this beautiful personalised label. I would like to take this opportunity to THANK Lynda aka quack quack 22 because the pictures I'm posting here really do not show the amount of work and expertise that has gone into this cushion at all.

Here it is the front view of my beautiful cushion. I must admit that when I saw this being created I did put a comment up on flickr stating that I loved this and I also did I Spartacus to it. (I Spartacus is a game we play in the swaps where if you see a design that you think might be for you, you say I Spartacus) Deep down I was convinced that I couldn't be that lucky to get a wonderful Christmas themed cushion like this.

This next picture is of the rear view of the cushion I received. Having said that it could just as easily be the front view because it is just as beautiful as the front/other side of the cushion. Like I said earlier these pictures do not do this wonderful cushion justice at all. Firstly the quilting is exquisite as is the stitchery. Not to mention the hidden zip (now that's really clever). The whole cushion from start to finish is just a masterpiece and I am totally in awe of the work and love that has gone into this gift for me. Thank you just doesn't seem enough.

To top everything off when I commented on this cushion I commended Lynda on how beautiful her appliqué was and on how I fancied trying it but hadn't have the nerve to try it yet. Well Lynda picked up on this and sent me the best goodies ever.

Drum roll please!!!!!

I received an appliqué kit made up by Lynda herself with step by step instructions on how to do it. Not only that but the kit she sent me has a Christmas theme. How lucky am I because I also received a bag of accompanying fabrics to use with this project.

Talk about the perfect present I now think that Santa IS female and her real name IS Lynda.

THANK YOU LYNDA

You have made me one very happy swap partner.

Brit Quilt Swap ( Pillow Fight)

Well here it is. The finished cushion created for ?????????

No chance I'm not spoiling the surprise now. I must admit I was taken out of my comfort zone for this project but I'm happy with the end result.

Thanks to Ethne who helped teach me how to attach a zip to this cushion. I just hope my swap partner doesn't mind that it's not hidden.

I also hope that my partner is happy with the cushion and extras I sent along with her cushion. I'm sure I shall find out soon enough if she likes it.

Christmas Giveaway

Hi there folks

This blog is being posted to inform you of another of Lily's Quilts fantastic give away's.

This weeks prize is two Kona Bounty of Basics Boxes.

To be in with a chance of winning this fantastic prize either click on this link; http://lilysquilts.blogspot.com/

or click on the Christmas Gifts for Quilters button on the sidebar beside this blog for more details.

I must admit that the thought of winning such a fabulous prize does get me smiling with the endless possibilities of what you could create with such a large quantity of fabrics.

Anyway it's time to sign off yet again so I can post this blog and spread the word about this exciting giveaway.

Brit Quilt Swap ( Pillow Fight)

Hi there folks.

Here it is the latest instalment on how my Rainbow River cushion/pillow is coming on.

I have finally managed to complete the quilting part and all that is left to do is add the stitchery and then cut it to size and add the zip.

I'm quite pleased with how the quilting went this time around. Well lets face it anything less than five days unpicking is a vast improvement on last time.

I must admit I'm finding this swap really relaxing and not nearly as stressful as the last one was. I think I learned from last time that most people appreciate the fact that you are trying to make something nice for them and are very supportive of each other in these swaps. The most nerve racking time is going to be adding the zip because I've never done one before and the sending of the cushion because I really really hope my partner likes it.

Anyway I better go and start dying the threads I'm using for the stitchery part of this cushion. I will blog about this once they are done.

Until then stay happy, healthy and keep blogging.

Rainbow River

Hi folks,

Here it is my first blog about The Brit Quilt Swap round 2 (Pillow Fight).

After toying with a few different fabric types and colours I finally decided to go with one of these beautiful fabrics. Fabrics that my very good friend Ethne (FlamingStitches) said I could use that have come from her secret special stash. I will at this point say thank you very much

Ethne.

I started off by piecing together cuts of fabric using freezer paper which I think is the best thing in the whole world. After a couple of hours piecing fabric together I ended up with this:

This is the start of my Rainbow River creation.

I must admit I'm quite happy with the amount I got done today.

Especially as I didn't start until half past one. I have however, left

myself with a bit of a dilemma.

What colour background fabric should I use. I was originally thinking of using black but am not so sure now because I intend to add some stitchery to my partners pillow and then there is the quilting to do as well.

At this stage it is safe to say that any advice or suggestions would be gratefully received.

Anyway I shall blog off now and hopefully I will have some more inspiration tomorrow. Until then happy quilting and blogging.

.

Prize Give Away

Hi there folks,

I'm pleased to announce that Lynne of Lilys Quilts is starting a Christmas Gifts for Quilters.

If you are interested just click on the link in the side bar.

The idea is to give people ideas of the kind of gifts that quilters might be interested in receiving.

There is also another button link on my side bar for Aurifil blogger. This is to help put you in contact with the very generous Mr Aurifil who has lots of beautiful goodies for sale. Also Mr Aurifil is the contributor of the prizes that are up for grabs in Lynne (LilysQuilts) give away.

So good luck folks and many hours of happy shopping/ hinting.

Anna's Birthday Cushion.

Just over a week ago my close friend Fiona and Her daughter, also my friend, Anna took me out for a day trip to cheer me up.

During the course of the day it was brought to my attention that on the 4th August it is Anna's 18th birthday.(Where have all the years gone?)This started me fretting as to what to get for Anna that would be special. I knew it had to be butterfly orientated as this is her favourite obsession.

I finally decided that if I got a move on I might

be able to make something with a butterfly on it because this would make her gift completely unique.

I started off by trawling through the quilters cache block patterns and eventually found the design for this butterfly block.

Then with the help of Ethne(flamingstitches), who, kindly donated a few batiks and with the aid of freezer paper I got started piecing the fabrics together.

Once I had pieced the butterfly together and tidied up the edges it was time to decide just what exactly to do with the butterfly block. Then it came to me. Anna is in the process of redecorating her bedroom and mentioned on our day out together that I could help her decorate it if I wanted.

So that was when I decided that I would make it a scatter cushion for on her bed.

I took some of my white fabric and with the aid of Dylon dyes I turned the fabric into this pistachio green colour which I feel makes the butterfly pop. I went on to do a stitchery using backstitch to personalise the cushion for Anna.

I only have to wait until Thursday to find out if Anna likes it. So until then it's fingers crossed.

Mystery Quilt Along Fabrics

After spending days hunting for the right shades and colours of fabric that I wanted to use for the Mystery Quilt Along I realised that the colours and shades I wanted just weren't there. So I decided to have a go at dying fabric myself.

I went out and bought a couple of metres of ivory coloured fabric and some dylon fabric dyes.

On Sunday I divided up my fabric leaving half a metre of the original ivory coloured fabric as is. I am using this as my base colour for this QAL.

So that my fabric wasn't all solid colours I used some shobri on some of the fabric before dyeing it.

Unfortunately this photo does not do the fabric justice as the shobri worked really well and I'm pleased with the end result.

It is my aim to start on the first block this weekend but with a hectic schedule at the moment this is subject to change.

Whenever I do get started properly I will post photos on flickr and will also blog about it here. Until then I shall hope that my schedule lightens up a little.

Mystery Quilt Along

I have recently discovered that Sheila (bluepatch quilter) is doing a Mystery Quilt Along. What it entails is every so often a post is put up with all the details you need of how to make your own quilting blocks. A different block is posted with instructions of how to make it each time.

As a relatively new comer to Quilting I find this very helpful in my endeavours to become an accomplished quilter.

If anyone out there is interested in taking part or just wants more details in general you can grab the button.

Lily's Quilts Giveaway.

Lily's Quilts is having a giveaway of some Happy Mochi Yum Yum fat quarter bundles.

I,ve had a good look around and can't make my mind up which I like best between

the stonehenge range and not just these colours all of them

and The Prince Charming range all of them.

I'm Deliriously Happy

Today people I'm deliriously happy. Why? you all might be asking. Well because I arrived home today after a meeting to be greeted by a rather large package waiting for me.

Now normally I'm not overly competitive but last night I admitted to Ethne(flamingstitches), whom I rent a room from, that I would like my quilt to arrive first in the post and low and behold it has arrived first.

First of all I would like to thank Terri(territee) for the most fantastic quilt. It is absolutely stunning. Terri also sent me a bar of galaxy chocolate, a smarties egg, a badge with a sewing machine on it, a packet of poppy 'meadow pastel' seeds, a set of embroidery needles( always useful thank you very much) and a fat quarter of the most beautiful butterfly material.

I would also like to say that the photos that territee posted on flickr of this quilt were beautiful and I liked this quilt right from the start but these photos do not do this quilt justice because as beautiful, colourful and as artistic as was shown in real life it is even more stunningly wonderful , gorgeous and picture perfect in real life.

I am planning in a few weeks time to start decorating my room and I can say without hesitation that this quilt will be getting pinned up on display once my room is complete. It is without doubt a real work of art.

Anyway I would like to thank Terri again for all the time, effort and love that she has obviously put into this quilt and hopefully it won't be too long before we have another Brit Quilt Swap.

Finished My Quilt.

Well folks it's been a steep learning curve for me but I have finished my Freedom Experiment 1 quilt for the Brit Quilt Swap. I must admit I've thoroughly enjoyed myself on this project from start to finish.

With this being the first quilt swap I've been involved in I didn't realise that there is so much more to a quilt swap than just making a quilt. There is the friendships you make by being involved and also the diverse range of discussion topics that are posted to join in with and last but not least there is the advice and support that you receive from other participants in these swaps.

It's hard to believe that it's coming to an end but I shall definitely be taking part in the discussions that take place during the Doll Quilt Swap that will be starting fairly soon.

In the meantime though I shall be continuing my QAL quilt that I started some time ago with Lily's Quilts.

Now that I have discovered the world of blog I shall be starting to blog my progress on this project and on another couple that I've started and not finished yet.

I wonder if in the world of quilting, stitchery and cross stitching it's the norm to jump from one project to another. Anyway I will blog again soon and in the meantime I shall just hope my partner likes her quilt and the goodies I shall be sending along with it.

Almost The End Of My First Quilt Swap.

Well It's been an exciting yet infuriating, relaxing but stressful, most enjoyable though sometimes really hard work taking part in my first quilt swap ever. I know that I haven't blogged about my progress for a while but between dealing with personal stuff and trying to control the sewing machine without my beloved walking foot I've had quite a lot of unpicking and re-sewing to do. Surprisingly enough though I found the pebbling to be the easiest part of quilting which probably lured me into a false sense of security and this is why I think it all went wrong and caused me four days worth of unpicking to do.

It was, however, a steep learning curve and I'm glad to say that the sense of achievement I now feel was well worth all the ups and downs. I must admit though there have been far more ups than downs.

I will be spending the next couple of days adding the binding to my Freedom Experiment Quilt then I shall be adding the label. Which is minus the name of the person it's intended for. It is a secret after all and if you are my partner I hope you like it because I really worked hard on it and tried my best to make you a beautiful quilt.

I would just like to thank everyone for all your really supportive comments throughout this quilt swap and especially the girls who have made my sides sore with laughter throughout this swap with the comments and conversations that have declined hilariously into chaos on flickr.

Anyway enough brown nosing and back to my binding.

Brit Quilt Swap 2011

After using avoidance techniques for a couple of days I decided that it was time to start adding the trapunto onto my quilt. With this being the first time I've ever used trapunto I was a little apprehensive but I have watched my mentor using this technique many times now so I had the gist of what was involved. It all started off very well with me starting with what appeared to me to be the most difficult part. This went brilliantly well so I moved onto the single parts. This was when it happened I got complacent and this lead to me putting a small cut into the front of my design.(I'm hoping that my mentor will be able to help me sort it out when she gets home from work because the thought of having to start over horrifies me but it would teach me to be more careful in future.

Brit Quilt Swap2011

The Finished front view of my quilt. Finally got those darn curves sewn together. Got a sore head trying to work it out.

If there are any beginners out there thinking of making a quilt avoid curves at all costs.

Brit Quilt Swap 2011

Today I finally got round to selecting my fabrics to use for the front of my quilt. After at least half an hour of dithering between plain, patterned, marble effect etc I decided on these. It turns out that this was going to be the easiest part of the Brit Quilt Swap process.

Once I returned home I proceeded to cut and piece together all the different sections of the quilt. It became apparent really quickly that what I thought of as a simple straight forward design suitable for a beginner to produce was in fact a total blooming nightmare as I had no concept of how difficult curves are to sew and piece together.

Brit Quilt Swap 2011

Hi there folks .This is my first ever blog so please be patient with me.

Well it's almost been a week since we were assigned our Brit Quilt Swap partners and what a week it's been.

I think I've gone through every dread and fear you can have when taking part in a swap for the first time and being a beginner hasn't helped any.

After tossing and turning about what direction to take my quilt along I finally settled on a design that I have sketched with my own fair hand.(This was an accomplishment in its self as I'm quite artistically challenged). I can assure my swap partner that I will do my best to make the actual quilt design look a bit artistic.

I must admit now that I have settled on my design it has helped to settle my nerves somewhat and today I shall be finalising my fabric choices so that I can get started on actually making the quilt. Anyway I will post another blog about this later.