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Handmade and Timeless

15/3/2013

Have you got anything nice planned for this weekend? Well yes, I have thank you very much - on Sunday I'm off to Ipswich with my daughter Alice, to the "Handmade and Timeless" indoor market which is being held at the Town Hall. There will be not one, but two markets on at the same time. There will be vintage stallholders selling clothes, homeware, accessories, artwork anything you can justify as vintage for a big market in the Grand Hall of the Corn Exchange. On the same day, at the same time, in the same building there will also be a craft market too! I really hope to find a few bargains - will you be there too?

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Relic Earrings

14/3/2013

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I couldn't sleep last night, and was up and about in the early hours, and look at what I found on Amanda Davie's etsy shop - these beautiful Relic earrings - the beautiful gold-leafed trade beads are the focal for these stunning earrings. Finished off with kidney wires to dangle from my lobes - just the thing to have sweet dreams about when I finally went back to bed!!

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Sew Cute Tuesday 12/03/2013 No Sewing!!

12/3/2013

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Hop over to the Better Off Thread blog and see what crafty goodies are on display for this weeks Sew Cute Tuesday. Unfortunately I've had a busy week and haven't had time to create anything myself - but hopefully that's all going to change at the weekend!!

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Spring Quilt Festival 2013 - The Quilts

11/3/2013

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My day out at the Spring Quilt Festival wasn't just about browsing through fabrics and threads and notions (although of course that was how we spent most of the morning!!) - it was also about the quilts, and we spent the afternoon ohhing and ahhing and here are my favourites. The display of quilts this year was excellent, and there were several that made me think "oh if only i were that talented"! Anyway, here are my favourites - I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I did. And if you click on each picture, it will enlarge so you can see it better!

First of all, there was a spectacular display of quilts by Gwenfai Rees Griffiths, of Abergele, Conwy. She had a variety of quilts on display, in every style and colour pallet imaginable.

Shades of the Sargasso Sea - the storm at sea block was used as a background to her applique, shading the blocks to create a soft medallion style quilt. This was beautifully hand quilted.
Houston Stars - a star sampler, where blocks were made using a variety of methods, machine quilted and joined using the quilt-as-you-go method.

Cwlwm Lafant - using Japanese fabrics, the floral inspiration is from the Rose of Sharon block, which is hand appliqued using both freezer paper and the needle turn method. The hand stitched Celtic pattern is used to divide the two floral areas, and this is hand quilted.
Harlequin - a contemporary version of an Amish quilt, using the traditional Amish on-point layout. Free-cut curved borders were added to echo the curves in the central border. Again, this was beautifully hand quilted.

Another collection that I was in awe of was "Beautiful Things" by Hilary Beattie, Lincolnshire. The information that Hilary provided said that she had started working in textiles and embroidery, but had been totally converted to patchwork and quilting when she took the City and Guilds course, finishing in 2010. She has won several awards and I can see why! Hilary says she has made work inspired by all the things she finds beautiful and life-enhancing. She hopes viewers will find her collection beautiful too - well yes I did Hilary - your work is stunning! Here are just a few pictures of her beautiful work.

Asters 2 - fabrics were pained and printed using acrylic paints, and both machine embroidery and machine quilting make this a fabulous piece to admire.
Echinacea 1 - uses a mixture of both commercial fabrics and ones that Hilary has printed, dyed, monoprinted and stamped herself. Free machine quilting using Echinacea imagery and script were used as part of the patterning. Painted fabrics were used for the appliqued flowers and leaves and these were machine stitched and embroidered. A painted, bonded binding was attached with a lace insert. The second picture of Echinacea 1 shows this work in detail.

Echinacea 2 and Echinacea 3 - these were both inspired by small journal quilts.
Fritilleria - a wholecloth quilt, painted in a checkerboard of pink and green. Grey and black silhouettes were cut and bonded over stencilled flowers, then machined down to complete the meadow.

Bullrushes - fabrics painted and printed with acrylic paints. Bullrushes and leaves appliqued on top, hand stitching with rayon and metallic threads to add shimmer.
Gravey Jug - these fabrics were all hand dyed and printed using a variety of techniques, using rubbings, stamps, rollar printing, monoprints and fabric markers. Machine quilted and embroidered, then hand stitching added.
Deco Jug - Machine quilted then applique added. Machine embroidered and hand stitching.

and here are my remaining favourites - oh if ONLY I was this talented!!

Sine Nomine - Linda Turner, Downham Market, Norfolk
Fire and Stone 1 - Jean Boath, Fife
Mother O'Mine - Lesley Brankin, Malvern, Worcestershire

Moonshadow - Bonnie Kerracher
Inspired - Fusion
In Russet Mantle Clad - Catherine Millar, Somerset

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Spring Quilt Festival 2013 - The Shopping!

10/3/2013

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What a super day out I had on Saturday, at the Spring Quilt Festival which was held at Duxford, in Cambridgeshire. I had gone along with some quilting friends, and as you can see I'd taken a VERY large shopping bag with me, just incase I saw any fabrics or threads that I needed to buy. (Note to Val - next time you need to take a larger bag!!).....

.....there were lots and lots of stands to look at, and several new ones that I'd never seen before, but I had a list of favourites that I HAD to visit! One of the first stops was to say hello to Rob at the Sew and So's stand (they've got a great quilt shop in Bungay). There was a fabulous array of Lecien fabrics on show, and yes I did make a little purchase from this stall, but I'll show you that later.....

.....then it was off to say hello to Janet and Louise of Glenroy Designs. Do you recognize that orange and yellow batik quilt in the background? Yes, it's my Mango Salsa quilt that I made a few weeks ago. I bought the batiks from them last summer, and loaned it to Janet and Louise for their display.....

.....Nicky and Pam Lintott from The Quilt Room were there with a wonderful selection of beautiful fabrics and pre-cuts - and they had some stunning quilts on their stand too. These quilts really were superb, and I especially liked the chicken quilt. The Quilt Room Blog is one of the blogs I follow, and it's always nice to see them at quilt shows.....

.....and finally this is what you've all been waiting for - my purchases!!! This lovely bundle of soft green and yellow fat quarters was from Sew and So's (this collection is "Silent Cinema" by Jenean Morrison for FreeSpirit fabrics)along with this lovely tin to keep sewing things in. I was very graciously going to let my friend Sarah have it, but then Rob said he had 2 tins - result! I also managed to find some bits and bobs for bags - and lots of lace - and a LITTLE bit more fabric too! Oh and look Lesley McDonald - I some lime green ric-rac that just had to come home with me! I even managed to find a cutting board cleaner - it was quite expensive, but hopefully this will save me having to buy a new cutting board! Anyway, I had a great time, and when I finally got home I was glad to sit down with a well deserved cuppa and admire my purchases! Now I've just about got time to save my pennies ready fort he Autumn Quilt Festival in November! Oh and what about the quilts that were on display? I'll show you those tomorrow - after I've finished looking at my lovely fabric !!

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Spring Quilt Festival - Duxford

8/3/2013

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Well tomorrow I'm off with a couple of my quilting friends to the Spring Quilt Festival at Duxford - are any of my blogging friends/ followers going along too? If you are it would be great to meet up with you! My daughter Alice went there today with her friend Stella from work (hi there Stella - hope you had a good time today and didn't spend out!!) and Alice said she had a great time and saw lots of lovely goodies. There will be lots of quilts to admire, and lots of trade stands too - my friends Janet and Louise will be there with their stand Glenroy Designs, and I think they might have one of my quilts "Mango Salsa" on their stand too - how exciting!! If you're going, do pop along and say hello to them - and hope I see you too!! Don't tell Mr F but I have got my very LARGE shopping bag all ready to take with me!

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Timeless Beauty

6/3/2013

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Ohhhh - just look what I've treated myself to!! After a couple of dire weeks at Foreman Towers - firstly the boiler needed some tender loving care, then we had to call out the plumber to fix a leak in the kitchen, so I really was in need of a little pick-me-up, and this was just the thing to do that! These shards of Ancient Roman Glass are pieces from ancient vases and glassware- they were uncovered in the Middle East and date back 1000 - 2000 years. Beautiful bits of wearable history! Can't wait for them to arrive in the post from Amanda!

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Sew Cute Tuesday 05/03/2013

5/3/2013

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Since I've taken part in Sew Cute Tuesday, Tuesdays seem to come round quicker than ever!! This week I've got 2 projects to offer - a cute little cosmetic bag and some cushions. If you click on the pictures below, you'll be taken to the individual blog posts, and if you hop over to the Better Off Thread blog, you'll see lots more crafty goodies.

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Memory Cushions

4/3/2013

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I was recently asked to complete a commission for a pair of 2 "Memory" cushions. I had already made a similar pair of these cushions last year for my niece to give to her sisters-in-law as they had lost their mum - they loved them, and one of the sisters-in-law, Lorna, asked me to do a similar project for one of her friends and her friend's sister, whose mum had recently passed away. So, I set too with my box of cream and white fabrics and threads and vintage lace and trimmings and buttons. I didn't want the cushions to look identical as I never make 2 projects exactly the same, but I did use some of the same fabrics in both cushions. A plump feather pad inside and they were completed. Oh and I added a small label to the back of the cushion too. Hope they like them! Last year I made several cushions on this theme using photographs - I printed the photographs onto special sheets of fabric (my favourite brand is EQ Printables) and added vintage lace and trimmings and buttons, and used a variety of old and new fabrics to give them a vintage feel.

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Lecien and Lace

3/3/2013

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Do you remember this beautiful Lecien fabric that I bought from Sew and So's at Bungay? I made some cosmetic bags with it last week, and was patiently waiting for some velvet ribbon/lace to arrive from Little A Designs so I could make some more.....

.....well it arrived a few days ago, and it really is simply gorgeous - my favourite is the green velvet ribbon/purple lace, but it was the pale pink colourway that I used today.....

.....and here is the completed bag, nestling among the snowdrops in my garden! I used lots of rows straight line quilting half and inch apart on the front piece of the bag, and a cross-hatch design on the backing piece, and used a Clover Hera marker to mark the fabric. I used a variegated yellow King Tut quilting thread, shade 982. The pattern is based on "Anna's Sminkepung" by AnnAKa. This is going to be posted off to a friend in a couple of days - I wonder if she can guess who she is!!!

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Forward>>

Handmade and Timeless

Relic Earrings

Sew Cute Tuesday 12/03/2013 No Sewing!!

Spring Quilt Festival 2013 - The Quilts

Spring Quilt Festival 2013 - The Shopping!

Spring Quilt Festival - Duxford

Timeless Beauty

Sew Cute Tuesday 05/03/2013

Memory Cushions

Lecien and Lace

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