WOW: Paint Brush Fabric Roll Done!

WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays

A few years ago I realized that I was spending far too much money on paint brushes that I could somehow never locate. Whenever I needed them, they were nowhere to be found. I'm sure I left a few at workshops here and there, but the rest simply vanished without explanation and I wasn't happy at the constant replacement expense. Back then I was buying them after much fussing and deliberation in art stores. I thought that if I put together a 'set' I would have many long years of enjoyment from them and that, this way, it would be worth the investment. Ha!

Since then I've purchased paint brushes everywhere - the supermarket, paper shops, toy stores, newsagents and discount variety shops. I have a whole assortment of them now and most of them work perfectly fine for my uses - which is fabric painting. My latest collection came from Ebay and it's actually better that the expensive art set I had beforehand. But expensive or not, I have had enough of constantly replacing them, so I've finally gone ahead and sewn up my brush roll WIP. This is one of many 'little' projects that I know would be so useful if I actually got around to doing them...but usually I leave it for a few years before I bother. Well, no matter how long it took, I have zipped up several for my different brush sizes and grades and even offered to make my DD a cosmetic brush roll (which was rejected). Yes, it's been a productive WIP day.

Done!

And just in the nick of time too, I'm taking a class this weekend and expect to put them to use with some fabric touch ups. For once, I'll be the student and not the teacher so I am glad to take a back seat and allow myself to play around a bit.

What's Your WOW?

An InLinkz Link-up

Happy Easter 2017

Wishing you each 

a thoughtful and peaceful Easter this weekend 

Diamond Hill: Part 4 is Launched

What an April it's been. And now, it's time to launch Part 4 of Diamond Hill. Wow, these Hill quilts are shaping up to be real beauties, I just love seeing the progress each month over in the Group. 

                

For those of you who haven't joined the Group, you can download Part 4 right here and right now by clicking on the bade below, the download will start as a PDF instantly.

How To Make: the 'Tickled Pink' Block

This is my first Tickled Pink block (and it hasn't been ironed yet) 

but as you can already see, this block really shines!

Once you've decided whether to opt for the 16 x 16 inches or 20 x 20 inches block, it's time to make a start on your block. Here's how I made my own Tickled Pink.

'Map out' your block before sewing anything and make sure you understand the pattern arrangement. It's really important to follow the grain indicated on the pattern pieces to prevent buckling and warping as you sew your pieces together too, so pay attention to these pattern details. I think it makes a real different whenever you are piecing stars to pay extra attention to grain lines.

Tickled Pink Is Launched!

Tickled Pink is a one block beauty - you simply decide what size block you want to make and then make it, sixteen times. Voila! Isn't it striking? I love the satisfaction of a perfectly pieced block and a touch of applique for the stems and leaves adds a nice finishing touch too.

I've been meaning to make this quilt for years and right now I'm feeling completely smug that I've managed to cut and bundle the entire quilt up into stages to make it an ongoing 'slow quilt' for those times when I'm in the right mood and place for an 'installment.' This is one of those quilts that's been in my design folio for years and I am over the moon to be finally sharing it with you today.

The finished quilt size is either 68 x 68 inches, or  84 x 84 inches, depending on whether you want to make 16 x 16 inch blocks or 20 x 20 inch blocks.

Tomorrow I'll be posting how I made my Tickled Pink block, step by step. So be sure to come back and see it for yourself if you're interested in this quilt.

WOW: Tickled Pink

WOW = WIPs On Wednesdays

Can you believe it's Easter already? This month feels like it really snuck up on me. Today I'm getting the dining room ready and generally tidying up (and putting away all my fabric piles from around the house) so that the weekend and meals to come can flow as smoothly as possible. I'm so pleased to have finished my latest pattern, Tickled Pink, just in time for the Easter weekend.

Be sure to check back tomorrow when I post my step by step guide to making the Tickled Pink block. 

What's Your WOW?

An InLinkz Link-up

Tickling for some Slow Quilting

I've been thinking about a Slow Quilting project for ages. Well, yes, I might have hundreds of UFO's on my WIP pile, but that's different. I wanted a specific project all cut up and ready for me to pick up and put down as when the mood and location suited. And I had just the pattern in mind too - a classic pieced block repeated over and over to assemble a gorgeous quilt top. And I was thinking about this project on and off when I saw the perfect fabrics for it:

This range is Marseille by Robyn Pandolph. It's much brighter when viewed on screen, almost neon actually, so opening the package that arrived late last week was a bit of a surprise - but a good one. These tones are gorgeous. I've been using a lot of Robyn Pandolph fabric just lately, I really love the colour combinations, especially in Marseille. Well, the minute I saw it I knew it was the perfect range for my Slow Quilting Quilt which I've named Tickled Pink because I'm hopelessly in love with pink and green colour schemes in all their tonal variations and also because the block itself just looks tickled pink, if you know what I mean!

So I've gone ahead and made a block which is stunning and now I'm all excited to have something to pick up and put down. It's a great project and yes, I really am going to take my time and do it whenever the occasion arises. Today I finished all the cutting for the entire quilt. I really think packaging up the various stages is the best way to take on Slow Quilting. Now I have bundled each block with all it's bits and pieces and I'll just grab each block at a time, until I've completed 16 of them sometime in the future.

I'm so pleased with myself today. I got this project all cut up and bundled and I did it just in time for Easter too. Phew! What a week it's been.

If you're interested in your own Slow Quilting Project, come back tomorrow as I'll be putting my Tickled Pink pattern up for sale. And like always, it will be heavily discounted for 48 hours to allow everyone who's interested in it an opportunity to have it for the price of a cup of coffee.