April Roundup

It's the end of the month, so it's time for a round up of how I'm doing for all the challenges I decided to join in with in January, shortly after I'd sworn not to join any...

Needlequest
As I was already working on the applique I showed you in Monday's post, I thought I'd double it up and make it my needlequest challenge.  The theme was spring.  I fully intended to finish this, then start work on a crewel piece I have that definitely screams spring.  Why do I always think the month is about 300 days long?

Anyway, one piece is enough so a success!

Sew Kitschy paper piecing bom 
Completely failed yet again.  I do want to do this though as I want to use the teapot motif as a coffee mat...  It makes sense to me!

2014 FAL 
I set myself 5 goals, hoping I'd finish one.  I'm doing a lot better than I thought I would!

1. Chair cushions for dining room - done!

2. Finish the latch hook - I am half way through!  How did that happen?  I'm pretty sure the latch hook fairies came round in the night...

Edited to add: Please, please, please, please do NOT refer to this as a "Union Jack" in my earshot.  It is NOT a Union Jack.  I have NO plans to take this on a ship and hanging from the mast.  This is a major bugbear for me.  It's called the Union Flag.  It is only a Union Jack on a ship.

3. Silhouettes x stitch - not only did I make a start, I've done more than half.  Those latch hooking fairies are also a dab hand at cross stitch.

4. Jacob's quilt - this hasn't been touched yet.  I was going to FMQ it but still haven't replaced my broken foot.  FMQ foot, not my actual foot.

5. Mosaic tray - grouting and painting - it's sadly sitting waiting.  Painting the kitchen was enough for me this month.

So one of out five, 2  more past halfway, and only a third of the way through the 3 months.  Let's call that a success. 


Something Old, Something New
For my "old" project, said I would finish half of the latch hook rug.  And I did!  Success.

Edited to add: Please, please, please, please do NOT refer to this as a "Union Jack" in my earshot.  It is NOT a Union Jack.  I have NO plans to take this on a ship and hanging from the mast.  This is a major bugbear for me.  It's called the Union Flag.  It is only a Union Jack on a ship.

For my "new" I made my silver-smithed bunny necklace.  Double success!

Something New for 2014
Again, this was silver-smithing, another success.

A Lovely Year of Finishes
My UFO for April was the chair cushions.  Done!

Craft Book Sew along
I reviewed and made a project from Jewelry for All Seasons,

And Wild Blooms and Colourful Creatures

Another success, can you believe it??

Rainbow Scrap Challenge

I completed my purple blocks and have since made the scrap bucket, I'll show you that later.

Smalls SAL
I cross stitched Mr. Colin Bunny 

So a quick tally up... that's 10 successes out of 14.  Resounding success considering I only failed at one challenge as the FAL is still going on for this quarter.  Keep it up Wendy!


Related Posts

April goals
March review
March goals
February review 1
February review 2
February review 3
February goals
January review

Craft book review - Wild Blooms and Colourful Creatures

Good morning ladies.  Just a quick clarification on my last post. The blocks were supposed to be wonky. So thanks for the comments saying they don't look wonky, or they do but they still look alright - I was aiming for wonky as they were wonky improv blocks!

I was given access to a pdf download of Wild Blooms & Colorful Creatures (affiliate link - if you do click over and buy something, I'll get a few pence towards an Amazon voucher) to review for you.  This post is also my challenge for Needlequest January, which has the theme of "spring".

(source Amazon)

I was given a review copy of the book by C&T Publishing however this review and all opinions are 100% my own, I was not told what to say.

I showed you this sneak peak a few weeks ago.  This is my applique pieces all laid out and ready to go.  There are 15 projects in the book and I would happily make each and every one.  As I like to make a project from books I'm reviewing, I chose one of the smaller cushions, though I'd happily make any one of the quilts in the book.  Seriously, hop on over to Amazon and have a look inside the book.

The book opens with basic information about using wool fabrics and some applique techniques to get you started.  I chose Still Life Pillow as my project, though I didn't copy the exact layout or stitches.  I used wool felt on a background of cotton, the vase is cotton too, though you could make any of the projects entirely from wool or from cotton.

The vase is needle turn appliqued, the first time I've tried this technique.  I really, really enjoyed it.  The flowers and stems are all decoratively appliqued with embroidery floss and beads.  I enjoyed every second of this project.  Oh hang on, that's a lie.  I didn't enjoy being jabbed 50 million times (no exaggeration) by the pins I used to hold it together.  Next time - Bondaweb!

Next come the projects, ranging from quilts and cushions to a couple of bags and some ideas for embellishing shop bought (or hand made though no pattern is provided) items.  At the end there are 38 pages of full size patterns for all the projects.

So what do I think of the book?  I think the applique section could be a bit more informative, I had to turn to another book I had to learn to needle-turn applique.  Apart from that, I love this book.  The projects are truly gorgeous and would be so easy to alter and personalise, as I have done with this project.

I actually wish I had a hard copy of this book, I know I'd sit and flick through it time and again.  I'd love to make one of the quilts in the book, and maybe one day I'll find the time!

If you'd like a copy of the book, you can buy it here: Wild Blooms & Colorful Creatures

(affiliate link - if you do click over and buy something, I'll get a few pence towards an Amazon voucher).

I was given a review copy of the book by C&T Publishing however this review and all opinions are 100% my own, I was not told what to say.

I'm linking up to: 

Craft Book Sew along and Something New for 2014 (rather tenuously, though this was my first go at needle-turn applique, however small!)

purple improv

This month's colour for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge is purple.  On Easter Monday I thought it was about time I got these done and dusted.

Out came the purple scrap bag, out came the tablet with 24 (I'm on episode 17!  Only 7 more, and then another 6 series to go!!), and on went the sewing machine.

I made wonky improv log cabins.  I forgot they were wonky at times, as you can see.  I just used whatever was at hand and which fit, no thought for value or design or anything.  Yeah, that's how I roll!  (It's called laziness in case you're wondering)

They all ended up 8.5" square.

I added borders either side, borders top and bottom and at each edge to make them up to a panel of 13" x 33".  These babies are set to be my next scrap bucket.

I did get a bit further than this, I quilted, cut to size and interfaced before sewing the shell up, but forgot to take photos as I was more interested in why Terry had amnesia...

Then I had to stop.  I was painting the kitchen at the weekend and Mr CA came home with more paint... damn!  

FAL and ALYOF finish!

Yep, that's right, not only have I finished my April goal for A Lovely Year of Finishes, I've also finished my first goal for 2014 FAL (2014 Finish Along), you can see my original, goal-setting post here.  I was #98 in the ALYOF link up.

And what is this finish?  It's the chair cushions for my dining room that I started about 2 years ago.  I made one patchwork panel which I've since lost.  It was time to start again as I'm sick of eating my dinner with my hands above my head (slight exaggeration, but they table is too high for the chairs, all second-hand).  I wanted to take some in-situ shots, but due to the privacy film on the windows, I couldn't get a decent shot.  So out to the garden we went, me and my chair.

Ta-dah!  Filled with a 2" thick foam pad which is only slightly too big for the chair (ahem!), the cushions tie onto the back rungs to keep them in place.

If I'm feeling particularly short, I can pile them all up together, and maybe put a pea underneath.  Would I feel a pea with my fat arse? No chance, I probably wouldn't feel a vegetable garden, even without the cushions.

The photo shoot caused some curiosity...

"Tiff, Tiff, what's going on Tiff?  Mum seems to have a chair and she's taking pictures of it.  Does this mean we've got to go to the vet?"

"I don't know Harry, but I'm very, very suspicious.  No, I don't like this at all..."

This was the final panel to be pieced, started and finished at the EMMQG meeting earlier this month.  I used the random HSTs left over from the other cushions.  I put the border on to make it up to size, unfortunately it got cut off later.  Why unfortunately?  Because I mitred it!  Yep, Y-seams!  You know what, they're not hard at all!

Each panel was made to 18" x 18", layered on 2 layers of fusible fleece, then quilted with random blue threads I had bits left of.  Due to the broken darning foot, all are straight line quilted.

See?  I quilted 3 of them at the meeting, and it wasn't until I started to make them up into the cushions that I realised I'd made the panels too big!  Oh dear.

I'm sure no-one will notice the cut off blocks!

I think I showed you these flying geese before?  They were quilted with a continuous square spiral.

This one doesn't look so bad with the corners missing, but I wish I hadn't put all that brown in the middle.

My favourite was these friendship stars.  I want to make a quilt out of these blocks, I love them.  

I was at a bit of a loss on how to quilt them, Mary suggested orange peel/dogwood, which I didn't realise I could do with a walking foot.  I love this quilt design!  I will be using this again.

Alas, the friendship stars did not survive the cutting process.  I'm a bit mad about this one.

And last, but not least, we have the Plus blocks, another possibility for a future quilt.  I don't seem to have taken a quilting shot of this.  I echo quilted the centre cross all the way out to the edges.

I made the construction up as I went along.  It all happened on Good Friday.  Mr CA was ill in bed and I have just discovered 24 (yes, I have been hiding under a rock), it's on Netflix and I'm hooked.  I worked all day on these, stopping only to take Mr CA cups of tea.

Not the most polished construction ever... do I care?  Not a jot!

They are all backed with this print from Lily and Will.  It seems I bought about 253 metres of this print as I've still got loads left!  It's making me think place mats... I also have a good yard or so of a blue with brown spot, I think I intended to add piping to these, that is also untouched.

So, one goal from 5 of the FAL is done, 2 others are well on their way, it may just be a successful quarter!

Hello Mr. bunny!

Last month I failed to complete a cross stitch small for the Smalls SAL.  This month, I'm on my game!  I actually finished him at the beginning of April.




The pattern seems to be a free cover gift from Cross Stitch Crazy, but I got it in the Travelling Stash that I joined in with last year.  The pack contains charts, a couple of cards and some stickers, but no threads.  I stitched from stash so ignored the recommended threads.

All of the bunnies on the chart are honey brown, but I'm going to stitch one for each of my buns, this one is Colin.

Speaking of bunnies, I got the most wonderful, generous surprise from my lovely friend Susan.  The yellow is perfect as I have so few yellow bunny fabrics, and I love the lilac Posy.  Thanks Susan, it's very much appreciated.

Whilst making my chair cushions, I picked out two layer cake slices featuring bunnies from Lily and Will.  It's a shame I used the cream one without noticing, and who knows if there are others which I used in making the panel that is lost?  Ah well, at least I have these to add to the collection.