March Round -Up

I am not sure if the old adage about March coming in like a lion and going out like a lamb is true around here, but there has certainly been both lion like and lamb like weather this month in this neck of the woods.

The daffodils are all blooming though, so all is right with the world.

My projects completed this month have been a bit of a mixed bag.

1. Completed Draught Excluder, 2. And Sew On complete, 3. Completed Coin Tidy, 4. Fat Stash Brit Bee block 2, 5. Fat Stash Brit Bee request, 6. Clock close up, 7. Green hearts, 8. Sashiko pouch with polish, 9. Fat Stash Brit Bee Block 1


Bee blocks, family requests, a new pattern for my fledgling Craftsy store, a Christmas gift to tuck away and a completed quilt! Do you get the feeling that I am a bit of a butterfly, flitting between projects? Well, you wouldn't be far wrong :)

Hope you have had a good month too.

Linking up to

Lily's Quilts

January stash busting

A new month already, doesn't time fly by when you are having fun? We have been very lucky not to have had the terrible weather this winter that some people have been experiencing, but it certainly hasn't been the kind of weather that you would be spending much time outside in. So, sitting snugly inside with my sewing machine has definitely been the way to go.

Definitely a mixed bag of projects too!

1. STAW Rd3 Hive 7 Block 5, 2. Wine bottle cushion, 3. STAW Rd3 Hive 7 Block 1, 4. Infinity Scarf, 5. STAW Rd3 Hive 7 Block 2, 6. Luckenbooth Cushion front, 7. STAW Rd3 Hive 7 Block 3, 8. Clamshell with chain, 9. Completed HST BOM quilt

A finished quilt though, that doesn't happen very often :)

Sign-ups for Round 4 of the Scrappy Trip Around the World Bee open today, so if you missed the boat on previous rounds sign up here before the February 6th deadline. The blocks are really straightforward to put together, and it is such fun seeing how different the block looks depending on the fabric selection. Great stash buster too!

I signed up to another Bee this month too, The Fat Stash Brit Bee, which is a monthly Bee where we will all make the same block using fabrics in our stash to complement the fabric sent out by the month's Queen Bee.

This year is definitely going to be about liberating those stash fabrics :)

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The Scrap that was June!

It seems like I have done nothing but Scrappy Trip Around the World blocks for weeks and when I look at my mosaic of June makes, it turns out that is what I have been doing all month :)

1. Scrappy Trip Block 3, 2. Scrappy Trip Block 1, 3. Scrappy Trip Block 5, 4. Scrappy Trip Strips, 5. Scrappy Chevron finished, 6. Scrappy Trip Block 2, 7. Scrappy Chevron folded, 8. Scrappy Trip Block 4, 9. Cindys Giveaway

 There's a lot of Scrappy in that mosaic!

Sneaked in at the end is the great bundle of Halloween fabrics that I won in Cindy's recent giveaway. There was also a packet of Jolly Rancher sweets in the parcel, but I am afraid that they didn't hang around long enough to be photographed. The watermelon flavour sweets were especially delicious :)

Maybe I should plan a Scrappy Halloween Trip quilt next! Although given that I had aimed for 4 finishes for Q2 of the FAL and only managed one, maybe not!

My one finish was the Scrappy Chevron Quilt

which was actually the least advanced of all 4 projects at the beginning of the Quarter. So,

The HST BOM quilt still needs to be quilted and bound

The blocks from the first round of the Sunday Morning Quilts Bee still need to be turned into a quilt top! If I don't get this one finished soon it will be joined by the blocks from the second round which have been arriving over the last few weeks!

The Paris cafe embroidery has yet to be turned into the cushion I promised myself too! No prizes for guessing what I will be working on next quarter :)

I have discovered that I am much more likely to get a project finished if it is not for me, so with that in mind I have joined another Bee with the express aim of completing some projects for me. The aptly-named Me Me Me Bee . Check out Kettleboiler's post if you could do with some Me Me Me sewing motivation too.

All of this month's Scrappiness has meant that I was in danger of falling even more behind with my Bee blocks, so the last couple of days in June saw a burst of Bee block activity. 

 

Both of this month's Bees in the Sunday Morning Quilts Bee asked for the same "High Five" block, but in different colourways. Jacqueline asked for a bright block

Whilst Martha wanted low-volume, neutral blocks with pops of colour. It will be fun to see how the two different quilts turn out.

With these two blocks in the post I am up-to-date (just) for the Sunday Morning Quilts Bee but still way behind with the Star of Africa Bee, maybe I will finally catch up with them in July!

Linking up to

Lily's Quilts

   

Post and progress

The first of the month and a WIP Wednesday that is definitely a good time to check out progress :)

The monthly mosaic definitely shows that sewing and baking were top of the list for April, could it be something to do with all those buns and cakes around at Easter, do you think?

1. Insulated pot mat, 2. Crafty Cooks Apron Front, 3. SMQ block April 2, 4. SMQ block April 1, 5. And Sew On April block, 6. Crafty Cooks Apron back


So to the WIP's where progress of a sort has been made.

I have started the quilting on my In Color Order HST BOM quilt! Only one line of sashing quilted in the ditch, but at least it is a start. (Excuse all the fluff it is everywhere!)

 

I can't decide on how to quilt the individual blocks, should I go for similar quilting for each block or a pattern that is particular to the block? All suggestions welcome but bear in mind my (limited) quilting abilities :)

I've even found the time to make a start on some paper-piecing for a block that I volunteered to test for Gemma at Pretty Bobbins. (If you love FMQ'ing Gemma has a great giveaway on her blog right now!)

With a fair wind the block will be finished this week and I can read Gemma's blog with a clear conscience :)

The last bit of progress is actually not mine but Linda's. Linda was my secret partner in the Crafty Cooks Apron and Recipe Swap and her parcel was waiting for me on our return from a trip to London at the beginning of the week.

Matching apron, teatowel and pot holder! My kitchen has never looked so smart. Linda sent me her tried and tested cookie recipe, which my son has already put in an order for so it looks like the apron will be seeing action very soon.

• In Color Order HST BOM - quilting started!
• (Almost) Irish Chain quilt basted
• 5 blocks of NY Beauty QAL completed and fabric cut for remaining 5 blocks
• 18 blocks of Craftsy BOM completed (only 2 more to go!)
• Sunday Morning Quilt Bee blocks received
• Sunday Morning Quilt2 Bee blocks sent (on schedule)
• Star of Africa Bee blocks completed and sent (1 month behind schedule)
• And And Sew On BOM - three blocks completed (one behind schedule)
• Crafty Cooks Apron and Recipe Swap  - COMPLETED AND SENT
• Umbrella Prints Trimmings Competition entry    COMPLETED
• Madrona Road quilt - waiting to decide on pattern!
• Paris Cushion - no progress

So that's my progress looking forward to seeing yours.

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Lily's Quilts