It's quilting, I think!

If you have been around here long enough you will know that on the 25th of each month we celebrate our attempts at any new experiences we have had that month.

So, welcome to another New to Me link party!

A couple of weeks ago my EG branch held a workshop on quilting with paper so, naturally, I signed up.

This is the example of the technique we were shown, it is definitely not something that I have ever attempted before!

The paper used in the example was ordinary brown wrapping paper scrunched up and layered together, hence the quilting. The class tutor had also brought along some sheets of the paper that you often find filling the space in the large boxes that a well-known online retailer uses for the smallest of items.

I decided to use that instead of the brown wrapping paper and instead of being inspired by tree bark as in the example above, was inspired by some of the walls that I have photographed on my travels, such as these in the Lake District.

Here is where I have got to so far. You can see that as well as the three scrunched up layers of packing paper I have added a layer of tissue paper to the top before hand quilting.

I have a lot of stitching yet to do and will, at some stage probably add some FMQing to the piece too, but I am surprised to find that I am enjoying working with this paper. The more that you work with it the softer it gets and the more like fabric it begins to feel.

I probably should have started with a smaller piece, but that is a lesson for another time :)

My other New to Me this month is not sewing related and is the eventual take-up of a birthday present from last year.

Salmon Ceviche

Chilli chocolate pot with Churros

A day Mexican cookery class at the Cook School Scotland! The class was a mixture of demonstration and hands-on cooking and was a great way to spend a cold Friday in February. With chillies in nearly everything we cooked and ate, there was no shortage of heat in that kitchen :)

So, that's my New to Me's for this month now it is your turn to share your triumphs and disasters as you navigate the uncharted territory of brand-new experiences. As ever the link party will remain open until the end of the month, so if you need a nudge to try something new that has been lurking in your mind for a while consider yourself nudged!

An InLinkz Link-up