Ardingly Spring Show

DH and I had a whistle stop visit to the show today. I can't show you photos of other people's quilts but I can show you these two of mine.
Victorian Medallion Quilt
And this Turkey Red one. Unfortunately they have it hanging on the side I least prefer, the other side is Turkey red too but a different print.

Luca Antonio Monaco has arrived

I told you it would be a fantastic name didn't I? Mum and babe are very well. I've finished off the quilting and am in the process of adding the binding. So I think I might spend this evening in front of an open fire just stitching it down and burying the threads. Hopefully it will be finished for photography tomorrow morning.

I thought I'd show you the photos of the new Ikea bookcases with the toile de jouy behind the glass. I think this look far more suitable for the bedroom than rows of books and other bits and bobs.
I've added fabric to the Billy bookcases on the landing. I'm pleased with this gingham (it's a good deep cherry red rather than the harsh red of most ginghams). On side done, one to go.
This toile hasn't worked out so well. It is also a blue but this one is a blue with a purple tinge (cameras and blues are my continuing problem). Although the background of this toile is pure white, next to the off white frame of the glass it appears blue so I'm going to redo this one in the gingham as well.
Then there's this project. An Ebay purchase of a superking bed. We've decided with my hot nights (and no this is nothing naughty) we stand a better chance of getting a good night's sleep in a bigger bed. I got the bed for a song as it has some damage and as I plan to paint it anyway, it won't matter too much. (though there are one or two problems which weren't in the description)

It's a four poster but not with side and end panels along the top, just four of these delightful posts.

Front of baby quilt

Ferret nagged me about seeing the front of the quilt and I hadn't shown it because the quilting wasn't showing up in photos due to light conditions. However yesterday morning the sun streamed into the sitting room whilst the quilt was draped over the back of a chair.
Fun isn't it?

Exciting!

I didn't even know there was a Finnish magazine, so pleased to have received a copy. If any one reads Finnish, please click on the photo and let me know what they've said (good or bad),

Sinclair

I've had cats which would hunt things on the TV, however Sinclair has never been fooled by the television before. Today with Ice Age, totally generated by computer graphics, he wanted that creature, oh how he wanted it......

Flattery will get you everywhere

When I got a letter from the Guild asking me as, and I quote 'one of our well known and admired quiltermakers' , to make something for the Tombola at the Festival of Quilts, I had to say yes before they realise they're got me muddled up with someone else...

This fabric is the some of the hand dyed silk I bought at last year's Festival from Frieda Anderson and Laura Wasilowski

Lovely gorgeous stuff although more than a little slippery and I didn't want to pin it too much in case the pins left marks. So I decided to make four at the same time (it also gives you more to hang on to)
I did Patsy Thompson type fireworks on three of them (I highly recommend her DVD on feathers)
And the backs look pretty too.

More done today

It might not look as much as yesterday's but it took longer (why do I forget the outer edges are so much bigger than the centre?).
The spaces round the outside will have each of the three names and on the fourth side I'll put in the date of birth. I do know what the names are (and they're fabulous) but as this baby's sex has been determined by scan I won't put the names in until after the birth as scans have been wrong in the past.

Today's Quilting on the baby quilt

This is the back of the baby quilt thus far, hopefully it will be done by tomorrow and bound on Friday. This is urgent as I've heard today that baby will be bought on early (gulp).

Take a look

at this fabulous quilt and the fabulous quilting

Feb Popular Patchwork

A great issue for my friends and I.
Ferret has a 3 page article.

Marion has written an article on using Lutradur

and mois has a photo of Flying High.

Recent buys

This is wonderful thing made to hang up shoes but has saved me about 2 1/2 sq ft of shelf space.


And then yesterday was the annual Farnham Maltings sale. This is an annual event where the quilts shops in the south of England come to clear their excess stock. So...
The colour of this Timeless Treasure is an indigo, I love this design though it's a pity the true colour hasn't come out in the photograph. I think I got about 8 metres (just under 9 yds).
Another colour which hasn't come through true, this is a real crimson/turkey red, a difficult colour to find. All the reproduction turkey reds I've seen have nothing like the true depth of colour.
Then a few bolts of marble types....
And these two ginghams, the pink one is a shirting print and the more red one a woven gingham.
And then I bought four of these Lunn hand dyed pieces.

I think I've found what's been keeping me from the sewing room and I think it was lack of enthusiasm for making a baby utility quilt, so I've made the decision to abandon that jig saw one I started and to make the baby a wholecloth out of this piece. Much more fun for baby and me.

not the weather for dyeing but...

I have this lovely jacket from Hampstead Bazaar but because it's turquoise it's difficult to wear with anything, so I thought I'd over dye it with a more purple blue. Of course I put the gloves on too late. Then I remembered a top in the same colur made of organic cotton, so in for a penny in for a £ I added that to the bowl. Can you see the jacket is a dark blue and the top teal. It's OK as I like both colours. What I should have done is the dye in a bag method by Helen Deighan but I didn't but I did at least put them into the 1 gallon Ziploc bags to 'cook'.

I also added a feww scraps of white fabrics in the almost exhausted dye solution.

Another small problem is I've lost the newer Blogger facility with the whatyouseeis whatyouget format, so I'm sort of typing this blind. Anyone know how to get it back?

These last two photos are of Fleet Pond, frozen for days now. I don't know what the swans and ducks are doing but the heron is often seen walking up our little stream as the flowing water is not frozen.
The house leeks are still frozen after the snow last week or the week before, I can't remember how long, it just seems like it has been below freezing forever. This feels like the most protracted freeze I can remember,

Happy New Year!

Welcome 2009, I dearly want you to be so much better than last year, even though I know that for many people throughout the world, it will be financially devastating as the world recession kicks in. At the risk of sounding like some dumb beauty queen, I sincerely hope for world peace and soon with a new incumbent in the White House, there is a chance, a small chance but it's there nonetheless.

A little odd fact. I live in the United Kingdom but there is no word for this. I live in England which makes me English, England is part of Great Britain, which makes me British, but I am not an United Kingdom-an nor United Kingdom-ish. Ordering from USA businesses, I have to click on UK as my country. It is not unknown for the USPS to send my delivery to the Ukraine.

Yesterday we put away all the Christmas bling and greenery from the house. (no waiting for 12th night at Toad Hall) It seems as though life should be back to 'normal' but it isn't yet. DH goes back to work on Monday and DD started back at her holiday job last Monday.

Here in England Christmas Day and Boxing Day (26th Dec) and New Year's Day are public holidays (In Scotland they have two days of holiday for New Year). Though for some years now a great proportion of the nation takes time off from Christmas Eve until January 2nd. Shops and cinemas are open but a lot of offices have no staff or only a skeleton all for this time. It can get frustrating trying to organise various things when offices are all but closed down.