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Thanks to signing up to the Aurifil Colour Builder club at Oh Sew Sweet Shop I've been able to add to my collection of Aurifil 40wt threads. Sumatran Tiger is this month's selection and these orange threads - shades 1104, 1133 and 2214 - really are beautiful and are great for machine quilting. 
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Here's the Retro-style sling bag - pattern by Kandou Crafts - that I made recently! This bag was a gift for my friends husband - last year when we were all on holiday together, he'd requested a bag he could use for his manky bits and bobs - and finally, a year later, I managed to make it for him! So here's the completed bag in action, modelled by my friend's husband!  Here's a better picture of my progress so far with George and the Donkey, a mystery BOM by Lynette Anderson Designs. It's really coming along nicely. I just need to finish the hexie borders whilst I'm waiting for the pattern for the final block to arrive.  Block 6 - All A Flutter - is the next installment of the mystery quilt George and the Donkey by Lynette Anderson Designs. This block is filled with cute little bees, stitched with colonial knots. I'm using a selection of variegated Valdani embroidery threads for this project The suggested colours are printed on the pattern for block 1, however you can use whatever brand embroidery threads you prefer...
...these pretty Suffolk Puffs are made with a selection of fabrics from a variety of collections also designed by Lynette Anderson Designs. The muted tones from these fabrics all blend well together. Suffolk Puffs are simple to make and add a lovely texture to this quilt block, along with an embroirded circle which is simply appliqued into position on top of a flower stem...
...the original pattern has an embroidered snail, however I chose to applique mine, and just embroider his shell. The butterfly is also appliqued, and the blanket stitch arount the upper wings are some of the tiniest stitches I've ever sewn...
...blocks 4 and 5 have fields made with a variety of green fabrics, whilst this block has blue clouds - each one made with a different fabric. Once the blocjk was finished, it was pressed and stitched into place. I just need to finish the hexie border then I can wait patiently for the pattern for the final block to arrive!  For the past year I've been using a double-sided basting tape for holding zippers and trimmings in place prior to securing them by machine. Unfortunately, when I ordered more I didn't have the same success, as the tape didn't seem to adhere to the fabric and had a dreadful chemical smell, even though it was the same brand. Then I saw an advert for this one - I've been very impressed with other ByAnnie products, so I'm very keen to see how I get on with this one! I managed to find a UK supplier - Sew and Knit Shop - my order arrived promptly and I'm keen to start a new project to see how I get on with it!  I needed a gift for a special little girl, and this floral Tanya Whelan fabric, teamed with a spotty fabric for the binding and prairie points, was just perfect for what I had planned! I also added a piece of vintage lace trimming to make it look even prettier. The bag pattern is Anna's Sminkepung by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa and is available to buy from quilt shops in Scandinavia. This is my favourite pattern for small bags, and although the instructions are written in Norwegian, I simply followed the diagrams. This is now ready to fill with a few girlie bits and bobs and send off in the post!  I'd initially purchased this pattern back in March 2022. Designed by Kandou Crafts, this PDF pattern has very detailed instructions with lots of photographs detailing each step. The instructions include full size templates, and as suggested by the designer, this was the only part of the pattern that I printed out. The designer has also suggested using Emmeline Bags hardwear - swivel clips, strap slider and d-rings - which I ordered from Sew Hot along with the webbing for the straps...
...rather than buy more fabric, I recycled some denim from a pair of Mr F's jeans that were destined for the rubbish bin. I even managed to unpick the label from the Jean's and stitch it onto the front of the bag. For topstitching the front flap, I used Aurifil 40wt thread in a dark blue colour on the top to blend in with the denim, and a right green colour in the bobbin to match the lining fabric. I used a Schmetz Jeans needle size 80 for all of the construction, which worked really well...
...this shows the D-ring in place on the back of the bag with the swivel clip clipped in place. The strap was relatively simple to construct, as the pattern instructions and accompanying pictures were very easy to understand...
...this bag has several pockets both inside and out so is really handy with lots of room for a purse or wallet, mobile phone, bottle of water etc. I couldn't resist stitching one of my Kylie and the Machine labels in the back pocket!...
...so here's the front and the back of the bag. Now I just need to fill it with a few essentials, and wrap it up as it's a birthday gift for a special friend. I just hoe he likes it!
Here's my progress so far of the mystery quilt George and the Donkey by Lynette Anderson Designs. I just couldn't resist putting a few more bits together! Parts 1-5 (George and the Donkey, Garden of Flowers, The Honey Patch, Field of Horses and Baa Baa Black Sheep) have all been hand embroidered with a selection of variegated Valdani stranded embroidery threads and hand appliquéd. These fabrics, all from a variety of Lynette's collections, really blend well together. Hopefully I've got enough scraps to ensure each of those hills is a different shade of green. Thankfully I've got quite a large collection of her prints! Now this has been put together, I can't wait to see what surprise Lynette has for the next block!  This arrived in the post from Poppy Patch at the beginning of February - it's Block 5 - Baa Baa Black Sheep - which is the next instalment of the mystery quilt George and the Donkey by Lynette Anderson Desgns.  ...I was still playing catch up when the pattern arrived, and was still working on block 3. However, as you can see, I've been concentrating on catching up with these blocks rather than stitching anything new, and I'm making very good progress! I have to say, these sheep were the cutest things I've ever made...
 ...this long, narrow block has ben rather tricky to photograph, so I've had to do it in stages. I've added a few close ups of the details - this really is such a pretty block. I can't wait to start putting these blocks together!
 Block 4 - Field of Horses - the next installment of the mystery quilt George and the Donkey by Lynette Anderson Designs - arrived in the post from Poppy Patch at the beginning of January, and when it arrived I still hadn't finished block 1. Anyway, I'm slowly catching up, as I've managed to keep focussed on stitching the blocks for this pretty quilt. There are lots of hexagons required for this part too, which as you know they really are my nemsis, so this time I decided to stitch them first, before I started the embroidery part. Incase you were wondering, this is what 308 cute little half-inch heagons look like when they're joined together to make a total of 44 hexagon flowers. Don't worry, they're not ALL needed for this block - this block only required ten hexie flowers, with 7 hexagons in each flower - so that's only 70 little 1/2" hexies! In keeping with the hexies from the previous border, I've used the same red fabric for the centre of the flower and each flower is made with a differnt fabric for the petals...
...I delved into my stash of Lynette Fabrics to find an assortment of green prints for the hills. I'm determined to use as many scraps as I can, and hoping to use a differnt green print for each hill! The hand embroidery is all stitched using an assortment of variegated Valdani stranded embrpoidery threads...
...this block is tricky to photograph as it's long and narrow - one end has a mare tending to her foal, while a handsome stallion is at the other end, reaching up for one of those delicious looking red apples...
...this block will be put in a safe place along with the 4 Honey Patch cornerstone blocks and the hexagon flower border, ready to be assembled once parts 5, 6 and 7 have been stitched.  |
 About me...Hi - welcome to my quilting blog! My passions are my family, my dog, my friends and sewing, not necessarily in that order! 
 
 
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