What does a quilter do with her evenings?

You have to love mondays!

My organisation skills are SECOND TO NONE!

Well, if you're anything like me, after giving the house a quick tidy and lovingly serving up dinner for your DH and two adult DD's, you settle down with your obedient mewing cat and enjoy some light reading...

OR

you realise that it's the 14th of the month....and that favourite block you've been talking about isn't done...and you grab your most unglamerous cosy cardy and sit down and get working in your still (slightly less so, but nonetheless) messy sewing room. As you can see, I've resorted to completed this block on my sewing machine because my extra large studio design table is otherwise 'engaged' with all those great ideas I was blogging about last week. To add a touch of elegance to this scene, you may opt to throw on your favourite strand of pearls...

it's all in an evening's work....

Sorting Through Inspirations ...update

Having read the comments to the post below has got me thinking two things....1, that I need an assistant as it just isn't likely I'll get through all my ideas in my quilting lifespan...and 2, why do we quilters always have so many projects on the go? I would love to be a quilter who starts a project, buys just enough fabric to complete it and doesn't start anything new until the quilt is finished. Are there ANY quilters out there who actually do this? if yes, PLEASE ADVISE on the secret! Until then, I'm still sorting and re-sorting my quilting and stash busting priorities.

Sorting Through Inspirations

The year is not yet over (although I do keep asking myself, where is it racing to so quickly??)...and that means my New Year's Resolution to quilt my way through my stash is also not over.

I have made some headway through my mountains of fabric and I have been very good (except for the very odd occassion!) and tried not to add anything AT ALL to the shelf...my rule has been - it can be purchased if it is going to be used immediately - which is not the same as the 'immediate' or 'near immediate' future. I have had to get quite tough on myself as I really do have a weakness for collecting beautiful fabric and convincing myself that I am going to use it....and then convincing my husband to install another shelf.

As stash busting years go, I think I've done OK so far, but I could definitely improve. So with just a few months left of the year, another round of birthdays coming up (have I completed last years birthday batch of quilts? No they are all still UFOs!) I took out this years batch of journals ( I have filled 8 so far) crammed with ideas and have spent the morning writing up a list of what has to be done and picking over my designs and opting for ideas that would best suit my stash shelf.

Naturally, I was attracted to the designs that required lots of lovely new fabrics but they will have to go on the backburner. I am still commited to seeing my shelf lighten to 4 rows of neatly folded fabric and 1 or 2 tubs of colour assorted fat quarters. This is my goal and I am still working towards it.

At the moment my shelves are groaning with fabric - just going through it is an event as you have to remove so many layers to get to what you want. When I feel like some fabric shopping would be 'just the thing' to kickstart a quilting session, I only need go through a single shelf - every time I do, I find fabric I forgot I had, it's really quite amazing how much a quilter can collect.

Another afternoon of organising ahead, I'm hoping this will be one of the last as it's really time I got into some serious near year's end busting.

Civil War Bride Quilt

I’ve been an admirer of the Bird of Paradise quilt which was made during the American Civil War in 1858-1863 and have always wanted to create a replica of this amazing quilt.

However, Corliss from Threadbear has beaten me to it and this year at Showcase I found her beautiful pattern. It is not an identical replica, it is her interpretation of the piece which is just as lovely and I am sitting in awe of this quilt, thinking about how to go about deciding on fabrics. Vintage? Hand dyes? Or my all time favourite….reds. I am tempted.

My stash hasn’t diminished to a single shelf yet and I have a lot of beautiful reds that need a good home and should see the light of day. When this pattern arrived in the post, I rushed out and bought two suitable backgrounds…

although now I’m not so sure anymore. I really don’t know what way I will go with this quilt. I do have an instinctive feeling for red and making it different in this way…however print are so charming….dilemma!!!

I have sent in my request to join in the fun of this quilt with like minded people at The Civil War Bride Quilt Blog.

There are some great examples up there….so I will make a decision (or maybe just flip a coin) and get into it.

If you’re interested in seeing the original, you can do so at the American Folk Art Museum Textile Page http://www.folkartmuseum.org/default.asp?id=1523

What have I been up to?

Lazy days and much ado about nothing I’m afraid. I’ve been pottering around from one chair to another with some great books and just relaxing with some new ideas and inspirations.

It’s been a hectic year and it’s time to reboot. My mind is full of new ideas. Red Delicious my mystery BOM is coming to a close next month and with that I’ve been thinking about the next BOM. Of course I still have a backlist of quilts to get through as always.

Every time I finish a quilt I have to put my studio back into order….it starts out neat but when my inspiration runs wild, I charge through fabric stashes, open boxes and it’s all gets very messy. Somehow, whenever you clean up, the inspiration starts to flow out of all the little nooks and cranny’s you’d forgotten about.

I am delighted to have found an old Lone Star quilt (cut up and everything!!!) waiting to be made. I will post it when I am closer to finishing it. Right now I have temporarily diverted my creative energy to the Civil War Bride Quilt…ahhh

Ruby Tea is launched

Ruby Tea is launched!

Every month I feel like I'm repeating myself...so here I go again - where is the year going? I can't believe that next month will be time for the final block. I have mixed feelings about reaching the conclusion of this Mystery BOM - first and foremost, I'm delighted, it's so great to know that you are out there taking part in this mystery and making each block each month your very own. This is just so rewarding. Secondly, I am suprised how quickly the months have flown by. I admit, there have been some late nights each 14th of the month and some software and printer glitches - but it's all been well worth the work and learning curve, thank you so much to everyone out there taking part in this BOM.

Now's a good time to sit down with some red tea and think about where Red Delicious is going to take pride of place - a wall? a bed? a table? I have the perfect spot in my home and my red scrap shelves are now a little lighter thanks to my Use The Stash commitment.

For those of you who have joined Red Delicious late, there will be a Red Delicious complete pattern pack made available when the Red Delicious mystery is completed.

For those of you who are having ongoing troubles with Scribd.com, may I suggest that you join the Red Delicious Yahoo Group? It's free, downloading is EASY and you have an opportunity to share, discuss and upload Red Delicious related pics. The next Mystery BOM will be through this Yahoo Group exclusively, so there's never been a better time to join in!

If you've missed out, all missed blocks can be purchased via my Etsy shop. All links are on the left side of this page.

Happy 15th ! Happy Quilting!

Workshop Work

This weekend I'm tutoring a workshop at the Ouyen Retreat. It's a 6 hour drive, so I have to be really organised as there's definitely no chance of popping back home to collect some forgotten item....

So, what do we teachers do before a workshop? We prepare, prepare, prepare!

Kits, packing, weighing paint, preparing laser cut stencils, etc.... it feels like I always forget how much work goes into pre workshop work - but it's always worth it and always rewarding. I can't wait to meet the ladies attending Ouyen and getting down to some serious and inspiring stenciling.....