Thirty blocks on the wall at last

A quick post today because I have the blocks for UANDUQAL finished!!!

Up on the wall here - all in place.

Bear in mind that these are just roughly pinned on the wall.

Yes, quite bold and full of saturated colour compared to the original but I focused

on the pattern rather than the softer fabrics used in the book.

I am so pleased to have them completed because I decided on the border fabrics

six weeks ago and can't wait to have these blocks sewn up

and borders on. I'll say now that the main 

fabric of my choice is naturally a little different.

Before I head off  once agin to catch up on reading your blog posts - going

back to my old routine of heading to the computer in the early morning with

a cup of tea to read new posts in future - here are two more

photos of roses in the garden.

.

Perle D'or

Princess Anne

All for now, enjoy your weekend and happy quilting.

Maureen

Back at the machine and enjoying the garden

Back to playing with fabric again, at last!

I'm taking it slowly on the sewing machine and just made one block each day

over the past five days.

I've also purchased a new 'toy' to save the strain on my hands and arms and

had a quick practice with my new 1 and 1/2" cut square die

four 5" squares on the die

two passes through the machine and I have 72 squares!

Only a little waste left over and I 

 have a project in mind using lots of 1" finished squares.

On to the new blocks for UANDUQAL

and just three more to go then I'll have reached my goal of 30 blocks.

Hopefully I will have these finished early next week in order

to have all blocks up on the wall ready for arranging and I can then get

onto the borders.

Whilst having my enforced break I've spent time reading, planning and

enjoying time sitting on one of the garden benches and taking photos of

early Spring blooms.

Rose -  Buff Beauty

Rose - Jean Ducher

Wisteria, not sure whether the Chinese or Japanese one

Fuschia or to give this plant a name from childhood
'Ladies Eardrops'

One day I had a visitor as I was photographing the roses

a beautiful wee ladybird!

This post is short on words and heavy on photos 

but I'm being careful of the time spent

on the keyboard for another week.

I'm signing off with a favourite quote of mine from Oscar Wilde:

With freedom, books, flowers and the moon,

who could not be happy?

See you all next week - happy quilting.

Maureen

Taking a break

I haven't posted now for two weeks due to bad hand and arm problems

I;m splinted up and hope to see my rheumatologist asap

I'll be back soon and will be reading blog posts and leaving comments when able.

Maureen

More blocks and a Block of the Month adventure

Five more blocks done for UANDUQAL, I would have had them all sewn up by today had

it not been for developing tendonitis in my left forearm!!!

Here are the latest five

I need to get all the blocks sewn so far up on the wall and find a good balance before

making a start on the last seven.

The inspiration quilt had mixed strip borders but my border idea is a little different

and I've already decided on the fabric, I think.

You see there is a Block of the Month mentioned in my post title, I hesitated for ages

before deciding to go with this.

Kathy Doughty at Material Obsession

always has a stunning choice of BOM projects by different designers.

Deciding to try something outside of my comfort zone I went with

Flying in Circles

by Sue Rose

Block 1 below

lovely movement in this block and the idea of a hexagon flower in the

centre appealed - then the envelope arrived with fabric and pattern and the

papers for the hexagons 

and gosh are they tiny!!

Hopefully if my arm is more comfortable I can make a start this coming week.

So, it's been a quiet week for me on the  sewing side but I've been catching up with reading and

re-watching my Downton Abbey series before going off to

see the film tomorrow. I'm a huge fan!

Gardening has been a no-no of of course but I had a wander around
the garden and took a few Spring photos.

The Japanese Maple is just breaking into leaf

and we had a trip to the local garden centre, I spotted something I had

been hoping to have in my garden for ages. 

Michelia Gracipes

Delicious scent, Winter and Spring flowering and just look

at the colour of the cover on the new flower buds, they feel like silk.

Such a delicate flower

I'll post a photo of the plant in the ceramic pot I bought to
plant in when I next post.

Got to dash now I'd forgotten I had a programme I really needed to watch on TV

so see you soon!!
Happy Quilting

Maureen

Scraps on Friday and other things

No actual sewing has happened since I last posted, I decided to begin

the organisation of my studio by sorting my scraps.

A huge shock was in store for me because I had six

of these bins below tucked away under my large extension table.

You can see they are literally bursting!!

Scraps date from present day to way, way back.

Each of these cardboard bins are full, I weighed each one,

 12lbs give or take a few ounces under or over,  I calculate

that within each bin sits approximately 36 yards of fabric!!

By my reckoning six bins gives me approximately 

216 yards of fabric scraps.

I am drowning in scraps!!!! I was so overwhelmed that I 

promptly replaced them under the table to sort next week and moved on to

opening a package in the mail - not more fabric - but I think

the most delicious book I have ever seen!

From QUILTmania comes

this treasure below,

text in both French and English and is a book about the collector

and his quilts.

Just look at this quilt below

I saw this book pop up on Instagram a few days ago and was hooked.

If you do have the chance to turn the pages of this book you will see why.

Time will be set aside each week to spend reading in a quiet corner.

More fabric selections for my UANDUQAL quilt

have been selected and will be under the machine next week.

A walk through the garden yesterday revealed below

one of my clumps of bluebells. These harbingers of Spring, along with crocus,

are the flowers of my childhood days playing in the fields at the side of

my home in Lancashire.  Nostalgia sweeps over me when I

see and smell these blooms.

Dawn is here much earlier now and I love to be up 

watching the sunrise. At 6.30am yesterday I took this photo

of the sun hitting the bare oak branches giving them a golden glow,

sights like this are the perfect start to my day.

Happy Quilting

Maureen

Spring 2019 - planning projects - top heavy on photos

Yes, Spring is officially here!

Down at the beach on a beautiful day, the water looks so inviting

but still on the chilly side so I'll wait until Summer before paddling.

My sewing studio is in quite a mess and desperately in need of tidying

but I'm still pressing on with more blocks for

Unconventional and Unexpected

I love the zigzag fabric around block 4.

Just 12 more and my target of 30 will be reached and I

can begin sewing up the rows.

Project planning - my head is full of quilts

I really want to get on with and after the five blocks from yesterday I

had to have a little play with two of the new fabrics from Philip Jacobs,

pattern and results below of the beginnings of a mock up of

Hex Star

a pattern from Victoria Findlay Wolfe

and I'm intending using PJ's big, bold prints for the stars.

 Continuing on with the floral theme in the two fabrics above

are three photos of soft, pale flowers in bloom in the garden right now,

colour quite the opposite of the brightness above.

Camelia Lovelight

Arum Lily

Ranunculus

I bought three of the plants above and we're heading off again to the garden centre

for a few more, I have a lot of gaps to fill in our front garden bed.

Off now to cut more blocks so see you soon.

To readers who are presently in the unpredictable path of

Hurricane Dorian you're in my thoughts, keep safe!

Maureen