A couple of years ago I taught some classes at my local quilt shop, Quilters Haven - which were part of a collection called The Breakfast Club - all the quilts were made using 2½" strips of fabric. Most of these were made with Jelly Rolls, which are great to use as they are already cut into strips and contain a whole collection of fabric, giving a wonderful scrappy, but co-ordinated look to them. I love this pattern, and it was a perfect choice for a very special quilt that I needed to make....

.....this quilt pattern is called "Mexican Fiesta Eggs" and this time I have made it with a Balipop, which is a bit like a Jelly Roll, and some fabrics from my stash - bali batiks, in shades of brown and grey and black.....

.....I made this quilt using a 4x4 block layout, but I wasn't sure what to do for borders, so I sought some inspiration from the brown and black bali batiks that I had already bought.....

.....as you can see, firstly I  added a narrow border with some brown and black batik.....

.....then I added a second narrow border, using 2½ inch strips of this black and grey batik.....

.....followed by a wider 6½ inch border of this beautiful brown floral batik, which I had already used in some of the blocks.....

.....I chose a mottled black extra-wide fabric for the backing, and Janette suggested using a black wadding too. Janette picked out a beautiful bronze quilting thread for this one, which looks stunning in this design called "Fire Flower". We both thought the flower in the quilting design echos the shape of the flower petals in the batik....

.....here you can see a close-up of one the blocks. This bronze thread blends beautifully across the quilt, and really shimmers.....

.....I cut 1½" strips of the leftover backing fabric, which I then folded in half, to make a piped edge - this was sewn to the outer edges of the quilt. Then I cut 3½" strips of batik to make a double-fold binding, which I sewed ½" from the edge to make a deeper binding. I chose the same batik print for the binding that I had used for the border. It was machined to the front of the quilt and hand stitched to the back.....

.....as you can see, this quilt looks absolutely fabulous.....

.....and finally - finished with a "Foreman Flourish"?? Of course. Job done! Although this quilt looks beautiful on my bed, it is being packed away as it is a wedding present for a very very special person - can't say who she is yet, I don't want to spoil the surprise!!

Whilst browsing the internet, I happened to come across these really absolutely gorgeous earrings in my favourite Etsy shop, Amanada Davie. Firstly, I saw these stunning "Pink Waterfall" earrings. These are pink hued earrings featuring lovely cut Cherry Quartz, Czech glass, and antiqued bronze finish charms, including a tiny bird and a lovely leaf.....then I spied this pair - I had already added them to my "favourites" and as they were still for sale, I thought that must be a sign that they were meant for me!! These are called "Choose Truth Mantra Earrings" and feature Amanda's signature word charms, and wonderful bead and charm accents. Lever back ear wires keep these beauties secure. Just look at those beautiful carved flowers with stamped brass hand charms in green patina. Stunning!  

When I saw this I just had to share it with my blog readers - thank goodness it doesn't apply to modern day times!! MR F would think he's got a new wife if he came home from work and saw me looking so glam while I was sitting with my Bernina!!!

Well I finally got around to making myself one of these bags to keep my clothes pegs in - "Klädnyps-strut". This was a Swedish pattern from a quilting magazine called FatQuarter, issue 02/2009 (available from Lapp-Elisa) - and no, I don't speak Swedish either, just incase you were wondering!! I can tell you, these instructions were a bit tricky, as I don't read Swedish, so I just used the photo diagrams!! As you can see, I have been using some Flower Sugar II fabric. This range is by Lecien, and I absolutely love it, especially when it is trimmed with some extra wide ric-rac. It always makes me think of Cath Kidston florals, a little bit retro-housewife. I had made several of these peg bags a few years ago as gifts for friends, and never actually made one for myself!! So, out came the sewing machine this afternoon and I set to work. When I made these before, I found the base a bit floppy so I used a double layer of pelon fusible wadding and lots of quilting to give it a stiff bottom.....

.....today I tried using some stiffer interfacing than I have used before, to give the main part of the peg bag a bit more "body" but found it quite difficult to sew with, especially trying to sew the main part of the bag to the base as it wasn't very flexible. Next time I'll just use the stiff one in the bottom. Despite it being more than a little bit tricky to sew, I was really pleased with the overall result - and it's MUCH more exclusive than Cath Kidston!!! - and fancy that - my clothes pegs co-ordinate with the Flower sugar fabric perfectly!! It even has a special hook to clip it onto your washing line. And I think you'll all agree I really do have the smartest washing line in Suffolk hehehe!!!

These were the quilts that I really liked at the Stitch and Craft Show - the quilts that I would love to have made myself. I just love these patterns and fabrics and colours. This was called "Klimt Curves" by Janice Gunner, and was inspired by a Makower fabric printed with Klimt like designs. This was based on a "Curves in the Cabin" technique  - and was machine pieced and machine quilted.....

.....another quilt by Janice Gunner, called "Papaver" and was made using the "Log Cabin with Attitude" technique, again machine pieced and quilted.....

....."Sunset" by Diane Giles - Diane wrote that these colours were inspired by sunsets. This quilt comprises of five panels, which were made for her final project when studying for the City and Guilds Patchwork and Quilting Level 3 certificate with Janice Gunner.....

....."Free Spirit" by Jane Turner - made for Marsh Quilters' exhibition challenge 2011, and features raw edge applique with machine quilting and some hand embroidery..... 

.....and another quilt by Jane Turner, this one is called "Snail Trail" and was a scrap quilt for Project Linus. It was machine pieced and quilted, and the snail trail blocks were foundation pieced. I feel really inspired now to get creative and make one of Janice's designs! Now, I'm sure I have her book, called "Liberating Log Cabin: Exploring Contemporary Textile  Techniques" on my bookself somewhere - wonder if I've got enough fabric in my stash to makwe one of these quilts??!! ....

A couple of weeks ago, I was browsing the internet - I was ONLY having a little look - honestly - and I thought these earrings looked FAB-U-LOUS darling - and, well, yes - I have been tempted again by the very talented Amanda Davie.....

.....and who wouldn't be tempted when a package like this arrives in the post - a little brown box - tied up with paper and string - and a cute little charm. Now - what could be lurking inside?.....

.....the most delightful earrings - "Dream Big No. 2", Mismatched Mantra Earrings to be precise - a beautiful faceted quartz crystal heart, blue coral, glass, abalone, and Amanda's very own handmade word charms! These really are simply STUNNING and I shall love wearing these in the summer.