Handmade buys

Happy New Year!  I seem to have become a bit stuck at blogging.  I started blogging 7 years ago and have done so regularly, right up until last year when my life fell apart and I broke my shoulder!  Things are on the up and it's about time I started blogging again as I have missed it.

I have been a bit rubbish about taking photos, so I'm going to ease myself back in by showing you the presents I bought for family and friends (and myself!) at various craft fairs in and around Nottingham last December.  I managed buy almost completely handmade last Christmas - exceptions being my brother (I couldn't find handmade whiskey!), my dad (so hard to buy for) and my nephew (who got some toys as well as his handmade goodies).

These cards are Stuff and Nonsense by Corrina Rothwell.  I saw her at a lot of the fairs and she's so talented.  I hope you can read them if you click on the photo?  These three cards sum me up perfectly so I bought them, then a frame and they're proudly displayed on my living room wall.

Jessica Wilde has some gorgeous botanical prints and jewellery pieces.  I picked this one up for my cat loving niece.

Hello Sunshine made these fab Gin bottle earrings, and the picture is by Sarah Turner Eco Art and Design.  The pictures are made from real cans.  My sister-in-law is quite fond of gin so these were destined for her.

Hannah Stevens is another talented local illustrator and these pictures suit my nephew down to the ground, so I bought them and then some frames to put them in.

This wasn't all the presents I bought, but I seem to have forgotten to take photos of the rest!

I've been so tempted to join in some of the 2018 challenges I've come across around the blogosphere, but I don't think I'd be able to keep up.  I'm still easing myself back into crafting and blogging and perhaps should keep the pressure off.  Maybe next year!

Festival of Quilts 2016

Last weekend was the Festival of Quilts at the NEC - a large exhibition centre in Birmingham.   I think this is probably the biggest event of its kind in the country. I only live about an hour away from Birmingham and in the past we've travelled down and back in the same day.  Last year my car broke down and so we missed a lot of the show.  This year we decided to go for two days and stay over.  It was the best decision, we had plenty of time to look at the quilts on display, buy the odd(!) thing and do two workshops (I'll tell you about them later in the week).

I'm going to show you some of the quilts that caught my eye.  There were plenty of others that I saw on Instagram but didn't actually see in the show so I think we missed a bit of the exhibition.  Maybe we need to go for three days next year!

Helen Godden OMG#4 UBER (modern quilts)

Fiona McIntosh - Sursum Semper (Modern Quilts)

Claudia Pfeil - The Magical Mermaid's Castle (Pictoral Quilts)

This quilt was amazing, it had thousands of tiny flat-backed Swarovski crystals on it.  One of the white-gloved people showed us the back and it was an exquisite thread painting.

Emma House and Natalia Bonner - Ocean Delight (two person quilts)

Vera Skockova and Skocek Ctibor - Wallachien Colours (two person quilts).

Kathleen Moore - Little Lollipops (modern quilts)

Anne Lilliholm Jorgensen - Bubbles of Joy (Modern Quilts)

The quilting on this was amazing.

Helen Butcher - Modern Sampler Quilt (modern quilts)

On the first day I didn't actually buy much, I certainly remedied that the next day!  Here is my haul.

I bought the boy's clothes kit for the Luna Lapin, as I've already made Luna, I have the pattern so I just bought a piece of the felt to make Alfie - and his clothes of course!  I bought the pretty zips as I've seen them around and felt I needed some!  They were only £1.  The threads are a selection from Stef Francis, some gimp, some ribbony, some cotton.  There is also a Sashiko printed panel of a bunny to embroider, some bunny buttons and a bunny hanger.

That's it.

Oh, except of course for the fabric!

Most of it is blenders as that's what I use most, most of it was cheap and/or on sale.  There are 46 Fat Quarters and 2 half metre pieces there!  Not bad going I think.  We'd met a couple of ladies at breakfast who were talking about spending a lot of money and I said that if you don't spend all the money you bring with you, you have failed.  I'd like to confirm that I did not fail!

Festival of Quilts

Yesterday I took Wonderful Mum to the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham.  The day did not start off well.  Just as we were pulling into the NEC complex, my car broke down.  The power steering went and I had to drag that car round a roundabout and several turns to get to the disabled car park.  

Suffering from severe depression and anxiety as I do, wonderful mum understandably thought I was going to fall apart and turn into a sobbing mess.  To be honest, so did I.  But I didn't.  I calmly called the AA (breakdown service) and was told someone would be with us at 11.45 - the time of our workshop.  I still didn't crumble.  We went into the show and had a bit of a look round, then I went outside when the AA man arrived and called me.

My power steering fluid is leaking, but he couldn't see any on the ground or in my engine so we don't know where it's leaking to. There was some mention of crank shafts (possibly) but that's as much detail as I can give you!  He said he would take the car home for me and would my mum be OK in the van.  But I didn't want to leave!  I'd only just arrived and it was 11.50, I could still make the workshop (I'd sent mum to the workshop when I came outside).  I said we'd make our own way home and off I went.  Calm stayed with me the entire day.  I also had a bit of a sense of unreality and a slight numbness which I assume were my meds kicking in to keep my sane.  Despite these feelings, we had a brilliant day!  I didn't spend as much money as I'd budgeted for, knowing I have a car to repair.

Mum picked up some gorgeous half yard pieces to make table mats with (I might be bringing her over to the dark side!), I asked what line they were from and it was Block Party by Sandie Gervais.  As I loved them so much, I bought a jelly roll, on offer for £25.  I've never had a jelly roll before and have no idea what to do with it. Suggestions for jelly roll patterns (and not a jelly roll race) would be appreciated.

I bought these fat quarters of Colour Theory with the vague notion of making myself a bag.  When I got home I checked and I have a charm pack of this line.  It was fate.

Mum bought this piggy thread catcher pattern and a fat quarter of piggy fabric for me to make up for her.  She hasn't arrived at the dark side yet.

As I'm enjoying my Rowandean embroidery so much, I bought another one.  You have to turn your head to see it.  Blogger, photos, need I say more?

I also picked up these two photo mounts for the embroideries and a pair of scissors as mine are becoming blunt.  I suspect you can sharpen scissors.  I'm too lazy for that.

The workshop we took was Embellish a Bag with Rag Rugging techniques.  We learnt to do a circle of yarn loops using a kind of crochet hook with a thick shaft.  Then we did a circle of fabric scraps using a prodding tool.  Or maybe a prodging tool.  Not quite sure, at that point in the instructions I was having a quick panic that the man I'd given my car to might not really be from the AA as I hadn't asked for ID...

And here's a terrible shot of the bag.  It's nowhere near complete and I didn't buy the tools as they were quite expensive.  I'll have a look online or try using my ordinary crochet hooks.

I did look at lots of lovely quilts, including our EMMQG entry.  I forgot my camera so didn't manage to take any quilt photos at all.  Hopefully plenty of other bloggers did and will publish posts for us.  I did take a photo of our quilt on my phone, but can't figure out how to take it off Instagram.  I'll work on it and show you later.

I haven't told you the most exciting thing.  Wonderful mum (and wonderful dad) bought me my birthday/christmas-for-the-next-26-years-present.  I don't have it yet, it will be delivered in a couple of weeks but I won't be given it until November.  

It's this amazing sewing machine!!!  It's got 8.5" of harp space, a knee lift control, extension table, tons of different stitches and different settings, auto thread cut, comes with loads of feet and a 5 year warranty.  I think I also get a load of thread with it!  How cool is that??  Bear in mine my current machine doesn't even have a needle-down setting...

I enjoyed playing with it!  So excited!

Festival of Quilts 2014

Good afternoon, I think I'm back!  The horrendous side effects seem to have abated and, fingers crossed, the new tablets seem to be doing their job.  A small light has appeared in the distance and I'm hoping it's not another train...

I've been meaning to write this post for a while, so this will serve as my first post back.  A few weeks ago I went to the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham.  It was my first time.  I took my mum and met Kerry there.  Due to a torrential downpour, the road was flooded so it took us so long to get there that we didn't have much time.  I did, however manage to do some shopping!

I fell in love with this bunny and with her beautiful coat.  There are other clothes patterns available.  Before you say "another bunny you're never going to get round to sewing", buying this actually encouraged me to start the one I bought in Harrogate that is my ALOYF goal for the month!  More on that soon... and hopefully a finish by the end of the month.

The finished hare quilt above was hanging in this booth so I had to buy the pattern, though I will call them bunnies.  It's fusible bias tape so I need to get started on the Mackintosh one I bought at Harrogate first!  The kit on the right is a gorgeous embroidery.  Hopefully it will be gorgeous when I've finished!

Continuing the bunny theme...

Bunny fabrics!  The Eternal Maker turned out to be a great source of bunny fabrics, and the two middle ones that look like aliens at first were from a cheap stall.  All destined for my bunny quilt - which I now have an idea for!

I loved this map fabric, but when I tried to buy it on the first stall I found it on, they said I had to buy it in 60cm increments... which lead to the top of Russia being cut off! (the continents aren't lined up, they're "tossed" onto the fabric).  I refused as I wanted Russia - I'm intending to embroider the places I've been and considering I crossed the length of Siberia, I think that's an integral part.  I bought it from another stall who said I could have whatever measurement I wanted.  The little blob things to the left fell into my basket after I tried to convince myself they were bunnies.  I drive a blue Mini with a checkerboard roof and checkerboard stripes on the side.  This fabric ALMOST has my car on it, so it had to come home with me.

I think this is worthy of Sunday Stash, so I'll be linking up with Molli.

Want to see the quilts that caught my eye?  I have no details of who made them (with one exception), so if anyone wants me to credit their quilt, leave me a comment and I will gladly do so.  Quilters featured here - your quilts are amazing (as were a lot of the others but we only saw about half the exhibition).

   

  

 

  

This one is by Kerry!