WiP Wednesday: Binding

This week has been a long one already - it's only Wednesday morning!

A combination of domestic jobs, planning and accounts has left me with little sewing time... plus I have made the decision to get my running shoes back out after 2.5 years of avoiding eye contact with them! It is a slow start of walking at the moment, but it is a start.

All of this eats into my 6 hours a day window (school hours are just not enough!)..

The major achievement of the week is finishing Maxi's curvy quilt!

I will do some close up photos once all the thread is sorted out and the binding finished..

Speaking of binding, I know loads of people hate it. It is a slow paced job at a point in the quilt when you are just desperate to get the quilt finished.

But I actually really enjoy it. It is incredibly satisfying sitting down the with quilt and finishing it off by hand. Being able to see the quilting up close, and the feel the weight of the quilt on my knee is very comforting - especially when I know it is for someone I love with all my heart... It feels like the best and only way to finish a quilt before it can leave for it's new home.

I have also managed to get started on my name tag swap for Fat Quarterly Retreat in the Summer:

I pulled out my secret stash and had a good rummage for some Liberty fabric, which was great fun, but slightly worrying that my secret stash is getting too big....

Not much progress, but great fun...back to paperwork and teaching today!

WiP: Working Away from Home!

Today I am doing a favour for a friend and looking after her daughter whilst she works.

I packed a few essential jobs into the car and I am now sat in the gorgeous house with her lovely daughter R.

R asked to look at the sewing machine I bought with me... she has now stolen the machine and is sat happily playing with different stitches and settings! I jokingly suggest we shoot back to mine so I can grab another machine and she whole heartedly agreed as she has no plans to get off the machine that she is using!

When I get a chance I am going to keep working on a block design I am trying to get the sizing right on. Made one too big, hoping I have got the dimensions right this time. Can't show you more until later in the year though!

I also pulled maxi's quilt out of the pile of UFO's to work on. Hoping Get some more done today...

I also have 4 pairs of trousers to turn into little boys shorts. This is assuming summer arrives this year and the boys actually want to wear shorts to school!

All of this depends on R letting me near the sewing machine of course!

Hope you have a lovely Wednesday and get lots of WIP's done.

Linking up with WiP Wednesday on Freshly Pieced:

WIP: Triangles!

This week has been all about triangles!

There have been 2 different types - equilateral triangles and right angle triangles!

First up are the equilateral triangles. I love cutting these, there are kinda of theraputic! I think that must be the mathematician in me!

They are coming together quite quickly, but I am running out of time! They are going away on half term and I wanted them to have it with them. Best get my skates on!

The other triangles are the right angle triangles I shared yesterday. I put the blocks together into a mini quilt top, which one of the young ladies in my after school club has fallen in love with, so it had a home even though it's not finished!

I do the umbrellas and they are very summery in my studio today, when the rain is falling!

More triangles to piece and a car to pack for class this evening!

Might need to investigate more triangles tomorrow...

Linking up with WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced!

WIP 3rd April 2013

Today has been busy, but in a kinda not actually got much done kind of way!

The quote of the day comes from mini who has a friend over to sleep over:

'Your mummy hasn't put the shopping away yet!' (said in shocked tone)

Mini: 'Oh, she is too busy sewing to do that' (said in totally chilled out relaxed way, as if it a normal part of life)

This very wise little boy understands mummy's priorities!

Onto work on the table today...

I got my March block done for the Anything Goes Quilting Bee!  It is very pretty in pink!

I have been cutting out lots of equilateral triangles! And then throwing them on the design board....

And then just before collecting the boys I started work on anew project:

More on that tomorrow!

How has you Wednesday been so far?

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WIP Wednesday

Sewing and quilting this week has taken a bit of a back seat due the Easter holidays - 3 little boys who love to fight kinda stop any productive work!

I have managed to get my sewing machine into the house and set myself up in the kitchen so have a go at some sewing...

The HST patchwork top has been basted to some lovely red flowers and I have been trying to quilt, but my needles are all old..... I have an wholesale order of needles on the way... feels a bit crappy not being able to quilt though!

So I have got out my Swoon quilt box:

This is block number 7 that is next up to be pieced! Love these flowers!

So slow progress this week....... what have you been working on?

WIP: Cushions

This week has been a long one already!

2 days of a mini monster home which followed midi monster being home Thursday and Friday, has meant my ability to work and my sanity has taken a back seat!

So today I am cracking on with a couple of projects and disappearing for some peace, and a nice lunch...

The Work in Progress this week are 2 cushion covers - I know, I have a new obsession to cover the house in cushions!

First, this is block 4 for the Bi-monthly block club:

I raided my Liberty stash and added some more Juggling Summer Ovals - I love that fabric!

It is now finished, but I need a cushion backing, which I have decided must be Liberty too so complete the look! So finished photos soon - I promise!

The other cushion on the table is the embroidery I started a couple of weekends ago:

It will be going onto my bed along with the Umbrella cushion I showed you on Monday.

Both patterns are from the fabulous Aneela Hoey so I will be edging it with her fabric again - just because I love the cushion on my bed at the moment!

So that is today... oh and I had confirmation I have been nominated as Tutor of the Year for Adult Education Gloucestershire...

I think I need lunch out to celebrate!

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WIP: Preparing for Class

As you know, on Saturday I have a patchwork class called Quilt in a Day. The aim is to make a smallish lap quilt in a day!

Not an easy task, but I had a plan!

The plan was making a simple quilt using a jelly roll. Already cut and easy to piece the strips together to give a fast quilt top!

Excuse the ugly filing cabinet - it is the only free wall space in the studio!

Using a Mama Said Sew jelly roll it came together really quickly and I just quilted in the ditch:

The idea of the class is to get to the point where the binding is made and attached. But this kind of project will only really work in a day if everyone has a machine to use... 

The class has been so popular that I have more people than machines! 

So a second quilt design is being pulled together:

The semi circles are the same height as a jelly roll so learners who bring jelly rolls can decide which design they would like to try. It is a quicker quilt because it is quilt as you go, using a no pin, no bondaweb method of fixing the shapes in place!

Yesterday I started with an hour before school pick up and managed to get all of the shapes cut out, fixed in place and have quilted! So it is a winner!

Learners will get a choice on Saturday, but it is still going to be a squeeze to get everything done... I do love a challenge!

Linking up with Freshly Pieced WIP