Wednesday 26 June 2013

Let's Get Acquainted

Welcome to my stop on the Let's Get Acquainted New Blogger Blog Hop! Hopefully you're enjoying becoming acquainted with some other new bloggers, as I am! You can find the whole list here, or by clicking on the button in my sidebar to the right.

I struggle now to remember how it was exactly that I started quilting. I've sewed since high school, making some of my own clothes, not very well, though there was always the odd project that was good enough to inspire me to make something else; and there have been years when I haven't done anything, but when I had little kids (they're teenagers now) I enjoyed sewing a few clothes for them.

A recent finish- a Baby Cross Quilt

My mum isn't a huge sewer- really sewist is a much better word isn't it! But she has definitely sparked my interest in sewing, shown me how to follow a pattern and given me those little skills and pieces of knowledge one tends to take for granted. She has made me some lovely things over the years.  One of the most ambitious must have been my school graduation dress, an 80's confection in soft silk with ruffles and a boned bodice! And Mum and Dad gave me the sewing machine I still sew on for my 21st. Read all about that here. There's also a link to a post about the perspex extension table Dad made for my machine.

I think the quilting passion started when, for some reason out of the blue, I decided to make a quilt for my Grandmother's 90th, either that or it was when my son needed a new duvet cover and I spotted a log cabin design I liked and it turned into a quilt instead. No photos of that one, my son has it away at Uni. Actually I think he's close in the line up for a new quilt, since both of our styles have changed since then. But there's something special about those early projects, even though I don't love either of them now. In the mosaic below there's a gratuitous shot of that first quilt for my Granny...


Another significant early project, in terms of inspiration, were these very simple cushions, I saw this fabulous Marimekko fabric and just bought a little of each. They were hard to cut into I remember, but an example of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts I think! Besides, I could never have chosen just one or two! We've had these on our sofa for over ten years now I'd guess, but I still love them.

I have an American friend in NZ where we lived then and I think she has more sense of the quilting heritage, which in turn influenced me and we used to get together to sew from time to time, which was great. We also went to a weekend workshop, with different speakers and classes. That was really inspiring and although we were feeling our way into something that seemed like there more older women doing it, there was an undercurrent of freshness and some new fabrics that were the beginnings of the Modern Quilting movement. It felt like the edge of something new.

L-R Top to Bottom: HST Quilt, Improv in Pyjamas ; Gum Tree Quilt, My First Ever Quilt -for my Granny, Close up of Gum Tree Quilt, StripQuilt for my Sister, Baby Crosses, Mum's Quilt and Sophie's Vintage whole cloth Quilt


But quilting has really grown for me as a hobby in the last few years and especially since I started my blog last year. Since I've been in Australia I've loved the chance to sew regularly with my friend Liz. We were chatting at an MTB event both our sons were involved in and both said we wanted to make time to do more creative things in our life, so agreed to meet on Fridays whenever possible to carve out time for that. It's been gold. Once the machine's out at the end of our dining table;  and the cutting board and piles of fabric are erupting further along, they tend to sit there and it's easier to do a little. We do have a long table fortunately, so it can get shoved to the end half and there's still room for the family to eat! I love to sew while people are around and about, but I think the ideal solution is a room close to the action, where the door can also be shut!

L-R Camera Case, Liberty Zip Pouch, Table Mats, Table Runner, Zip Pouch, Computer Sleeve


Blogging for me is the other part of carving out a creative space; really a kind of accountability to myself for making something and a way of contributing to this amazing online world where I gain so much inspiration. If you like you can read more about my reasons for blogging and how it got its name here.

I'm off to read some of the other posts now and discover something about others' inspiration!

Camilla

Wednesday 12 June 2013

Hexagons Bee Done and a new Blog Hop

Over the long weekend I managed to complete the June blocks for do.Good Stitches Cherish bee.
Hexagons and bees in Pale yellows, blues, creams, greys and white were requested, but hopefully the darker grey centre will sneak through!



I had a lot of fun with these. The paper pieced bee was courtesy of a free pattern from Amy at Badskirt




Also I want to let you know about the great blog hop going on over at Plum and June's, if you haven't already heard. There are a few blogs to visit each week until the end of July. A great way to find some new modern bloggy inspiration- not that there's any shortage of that, but it's always fun to discover someone else!

Friday, June 7th
Nancy @ Owen's Olivia
Amy @ 13 Spools
Casey @ The Studiolo 
Nanette @ Yeah, I Made That

Friday, June 14th
Julie @ Jolie Maxtin
Melissa @ Melia Mae Quilting
Adrianne @ On The Windy Side 
Molli @ Molli Sparkles
Laura @ Little And Lots
Valerie @ Between Quilts

Friday, June 21st
Leigh Anne @ Ella's Cottage
Stacey @ The Tilted Quilt
Sarah @ Quilt Candy
Jackie @ NW Patchwork
Erica @ Happy Fabric
Stephanie @ Simple Sewendipity
Lauren @ Seraphym

Friday, June 28th
Green @ So Sew Green
Gwendellyn @ The Rainbow Revolts
Jessica @ Stitched In Thyme
Amira @ Little Mushroom Cap
Kathy @ Kayak Quilting
Michelle @ Factotum Of Arts
Paula @ The Sassy Quilter
Kris @ Sew Sunshine
Camilla @ Faffling that's me (copying from Adrianne)!

Friday, July 5th
Friday, July 12th
Friday, July 19th
Kelsy and Amanda @ Everyday Fray
Ella and Nesta @ Ella & Nesta's Little Room
Nicole @ Modern Handcraft
Aylin @ AyliN-Nilya

Friday, July 26th
RobinSue @ RobinSue Quilts
Elise @ Lovelea Designs
Elizabeth @ In The Boondocks

Linking up with WiP Wednesday and Plum and June's  again being hosted today by Lucy at Charm about You!

Monday 10 June 2013

Happy Birthday Your Majesty!

It feels like such a treat to have an extra day this weekend for Queen's Birthday. Most of the time I forget we're in a Commonwealth country, but I won't say no to an extra day off. That combined with no kids sport has meant a chance to do a bit more sewing.


I finished off the fabric bowl (Nova's Nesting bowls pattern) for my friend who gave me her grandmother's fabric






and got a few more wonky crosses done 




I've even had my son's help with some hexie maths and consequently got a bit more work done on my bee blocks. I'll save that to show you when it's finished.

Linking up with Plum and June's Monday Let's Get Acquainted Link up hosted this week by Laura from Little and Lots


Plum and June

Tuesday 4 June 2013

Road Blocks

A friend gave me this quirky fabric recently.

 


Or more accurately I saw it in her hall in a pile of things waiting to go to the op shop! I think it belonged to her grandmother and she's held onto it for years trying to think what to do with it. Not being a sewist (for fun at least) that task is even more daunting. Of course it's very hard for me to pass up the opportunity to hoard stash more fabric, so I happily defrauded the op shop of the income.

It's quite unusual and quite a large piece too. It might make a fun quilt back on the right project, but I'd like to make a few small things to give back to Julie. First up I've just bought Nova's nesting fabric bowls pattern. I thought this might go well with some red and blue linen to make a bowl for all those myriad storage needs.





In June all the proceeds of the sales of Nova's patterns are going to the trust fund to support Kathreen Ricketson's children who were tragically orphaned recently. Do check out Nova's post and her lovely blog.

I thought a drawstring bag for say, shoes for travelling, or something might also be a good use. And perhaps even a cushion combined with the right fabrics? What do you think it'd be good for?

I'm slowly plodding away on cross blocks. They're fun to do, but I haven't had much sewing time lately  and Liz, my dear friend and Friday sewing buddy, is away so I haven't been making time. There always seems to something else I "should" be doing!







So- that said I'm off to tick off a few jobs so I can allow myself some time to sew, perhaps even today- on a Tuesday-quelle horreur!


Linking up at Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday


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