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.