Sew Slow

Many many moons ago, I ordered the Camelot circular quilt block pattern after seeing Nicolette's beautiful blocks. I tried a block but didn't add a seam allowance and machine pieced it not realizing that it was really intended to be a hand sewing project.  I didn't like the block and put the pattern away.  

Yesterday, Alison inspired me to do some some different hand stitching from my EPP hexies (after I saw this post).  It really inspired me to do some hand piecing and so I dug out the pattern and some template plastic and made Block 1 (it looked the easiest). 

I feel like I may have conquered inset seams.

Block 1 Camelot quilt

The actual cutting of fabric takes longer than the hand piecing or so it seems, so I think this will be a block or two a month - if I'm lucky!

I want to make this from scraps and my low volume layer cake from Rebecca's recent swap - once they arrive!

Bloglovin'

We all want our readers to be able to comment without any hassle. Well today, a lovely follower mentioned to me that since she had changed over to Bloglovin' she hadn't been able to comment on my blog from her Bloglovin' reader.  I had experienced the same problem with a couple of sites when I first clicked over but some savvy peeps over at Instagram answered the problem.  It's super easy.  Here's what you do.

• Click on the heart icon on the home page and go to Settings.
• Scroll to the bottom of the page where it's subtitled Other
• Highlight the second option I don't want the frame
• Press Save Settings

Hope that helps.

A-ga-doo doo doo!

Just after posting my entry in the Bloggers Quilt Festival, hubby suggested we go away for the weekend.  I decided it best not to mention the backlog of festival posts I would have to read on getting back, ;-) packed a few things and after picking up Zaki from pre-school we headed south to Agadir.

Agadir was devestated by an earthquake in 1960 and typical of that era the town was rebuilt with little or no personality and quite a lot of concrete.  However, living in a place with bags of personality it mattered not.  It had sun, swaying palm trees and a swimming pool and we got to spend time together as a family. We had a great time.

*my husband always looks ridiculously grumpy in photos.  Actually he's not grumpy at all but hates having his photo taken with a vengeance.

We got back yesterday and I'm slowly catching up with my blog reading - the festival is as good as ever and it's lovely discovering some new blogs and getting a little inspiration overload.

Here's a little something for those of you who need an instant holiday in their lives or are too young to appreciate the music of Black Lace *shudder* Watch and learn my friends.

Blogger's Quilt Festival : Field Study Triangles (Throw Quilt)

If you are visiting from the festival then a huge welcome to this comfy corner of the blogosphere! I am a Brit living with my family in N.Africa and I have been quilting for about 3 years.

A triangle quilt has been floating toward the surface of my bucket list for a while now.  I love colour and dense saturated colour at that! When I was thinking about how I could best show off my beautiful FQs of Anna Maria's Field Study, I plumped for 6" triangles.

So a few weeks ago on a dreary afternoon and completely on a whim, I cut up my treasured 24 FQs in to lots and lots of equilateral triangles.  I didn't use a special ruler - I just used this tutorial.

I then randomly pieced them together. No solids. No negative space. Just a riot of colour and designs in pinks, purples, mustard, orange, greens, blues and brown and not forgetting a little leopard print - the way Anna Maria Horner does best.

Did I mention this is a quilt for me? Oh okay, perhaps I'll let the family have a snuggle!  I know it will be used, loved and appreciated. So I went for something pretty special for the backing; I used a gorgeous Loulouthi voile - so soft and luxurious, which I found for a bargain $6 a yard.  The burnt orange and duck egg blue Coreopsis flowers are beautiful and work perfectly with the front!

I used Dream Orient for the backing - it was the first time I had used it and it is gorgeous - a mix of bamboo, silk, cotton and botanic tencel (a man made fibre from wood pulp apparently) and it gives the most perfect drape and is super soft.

When it came to quilting, I realized I was running low on thread! Living where I do, it's impossible to buy good quality thread locally. Luckily, I didn't want the quilting to be too dense as I wanted to maintain the softness of the quilt. So I reckoned I had just enough of some taupe Gutermann thread to quilt it in vertical lines 1 1/2" apart and then go over every other line with a wavy line.  I did but only just!

I love all things blue at the moment and so bound it in Amy Butler's Folly in zinc from her Cameo line.

A couple of days ago I finished the quilt - just in time for the festival!

It measures 62" x 73" and it's being suspended here by my 5 year old son!

Unusually, it was a dull and miserable day here yesterday but the quilt definitely added some colour!

Thanks as ever to Amy for hosting this fabulous bi-annual event.

And the Winner of the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Is...

...Jessica at Quilty Habit, who said,"I follow through GFC!" Jessica, you have won my Chicopee cushion. I'm emailing you now - congratulations!

Thanks so much to everyone for the overwhelming response to the giveaway.

Reasons to be Cheerful...Part 3

*There's still time to enter the SMS giveaway here*

Welcome to my new followers! I'm so happy you clicked one of the buttons and hope you'll like what you see and stick around.

Perhaps I got out of bed the wrong side this morning but ask my husband, my mum or my newly turned 5 year old son and they'll all tell you I've been in a bit of a funk today. There were reasons but I won't bore you with them!

After having a whinge of mammoth proportions to anyone who would listen, I turned the aircon on and basted my Field Study triangles quilt. The backing arrived last night and I love it! It was silly price Loulouthi voile which I bought in a recent Pink Castle sale and it is super soft, silky and just well lovely and far prettier in real life. Now I just have to decide how to quilt it - straight line echoing I imagine!

Then as if the universe knew I needed cheering up, I found my copy of Hand Quilted with Love by Sarah Fielke lying next to the gate having been thrown over it by the postie. A quick flick through and my eyes widened on seeing this quilt. This was one of two quilts that Sarah was making for a very special person and her daughter, and I contributed blocks! You can read about it and see my blocks here.

My mum also sent me this picture of her presenting the Patchwork Wheel quilt made by the members of the Care Circle, do.Good Stitches to the local representative of  Project Linus UK. It made me smile to see it finally going on its journey to a new home.

Lastly, if that wasn't enough reason to get out of my funk I only have to look at this little one who turned 5 on Tuesday and I smile.

Whinge over.Thank you for listening. Off to look at my new book!

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day

* GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED*

It's May 6 and that can only mean one thing - Sew Mama Sew's Giveaway Day! If this is your first visit or your ...nth visit, then welcome.

So that you get a quick flavour of what I make, here are some of my latest favourite makes!

I won't keep you as I know you're anxious to see what other wonderful goodies are on offer!

I am giving away this Chicopee and low volume fabric Modern Blockade cushion/pillow cover (pillow form not included), which features in the latest issue of ezine Fat Quarterly! It will easily fit a 20" x 20" pillow form.  The front of the pillow is the Blockade block surrounded by flying geese in Chicopee and low volume fabrics. The back is a simple envelope closure in Chicopee.

To be in with a chance of winning, here's how:

1. Leave a comment telling me what your favourite quilting magazine is.

2. Followers get an extra entry - you can follow me through Google Friends Connect or Bloglovin'.

I shall ship internationally. The giveway is open until May 10 at 5PM PST. 

Help Wanted!

It started with Zaki...then my husband went down with it and a couple of days ago I got it - something between a cold and the flu.  Coupled with the fact that I sliced part of my left thumb off while chopping an onion, I had a couple of sewing-free days and I'm behind with replying to comments.

Today, boosted by brufen, I thought I would do some no-brainer stitching and make a quilt top for Siblings Together.  

I used a couple of charm packs that I got from my partner Jeanette as extras in the For the Love of Solids swap last year and supplemented them with a few of my own scraps and some low volume charms. It's a pretty mix of blues, oranges, yellows, greens and pinks. It measures 49.5" x  49.5"

*edited to add* I have a lovely helpful now - thank you so much to lovely Jude!

I'm going to put a thread in the flickr group but thought I might mention it here first.  The postage like many places now is prohibitive here in Morocco - especially when sending internationally.  If there is a UK peep who would like to help Lynne's drive for quilts for Siblings Together but perhaps hasn't got the time to make a whole quilt but could, if I sent them this top, assemble it and quilt it then please email me at ajlzeiddaratgmaildotcom. Thank you! Please leave a comment even if you can't help :)

Linking up with Let's Get Aquainted!

Done Baby!

A week or so ago I finished the baby quilt for Cindy and her shop.

A few weeks ago, she sent me a charm pack of Mama Said Sew, some Kona Snow and I used this tutorial.

I quilted it in  horizontal and vertical lines and bound it using the grey chevrons, which I think look great! Good choice Cindy.

The back is simply pieced. Now it's off to Ireland!

This is my 6th finish of the year. Linking up with TGIFF.

Fresh Sewing Day - May Issue

1. Scrappy X Block for Celine, 2. Joining Up the Hexy Flowers, 3. Field Study Triangle Quilt Top, 4. Liberty Tana Lawn Brick Cushion, 5. Aurifil Block for April, 6. A Chicopee Churn Dash for Emily, 7. Scrappy Trip Around the World Blocks 1 - 16, 8. Chicopee & Low Volume Cushion, 9. Scrappy X Block for Celine, 10. Field Study Triangle Quilt Top, 11. My Stitch Tease Quilt Top, 12. Mama Said Sew Quilt Top

April may be my favourite month of makes ever!

• I finally sliced and diced my 24 FQs of Field Study and made a triangle quilt.  I.LOVE.IT  Batting and binding are on their way from England and the voile backing from the States.  Let's hope there is a happy reunion here in N.Africa soon!

• I've started joining up the aqua, orange and grey hexy flowers and I am loving both the process and how they look.  This is going to be a gorgeous quilt.

• Jumping on the bandwagon is something I usually do as the bandwagon is careering round the corner and the trip around the world blocks proved too hard to resist.  I have made 16 blocks so far and I love them!

• Stitch Tease quilt tops arrived around the globe and mine was an eclectic mix of bright curvy blocks - I love it! Now just to work out how to quilt it...

• My Chicopee Blockade cushion was featured in Issue 13 of Fat Quarterly - and this was a really exciting highlight for me!

• April saw my 6th quilt finish with me completing a baby quilt for Cindy so that she can use it as a sample for charm packs at a quilt fair in Galway (how fun does that sound?) in June.  I finished it a few days ago and shall show you tomorrow!

• I took part in Le Challenge after making a Liberty tana lawn brick cushion. It wasn't love at first sight but it makes me happy when I see it.  It's a keeper!

• Despite this being a bee lite month, I was lastminute.com with Celine's bee blocks in the Sew-Euro-Bee-An bee.  Celine asked for lovely X blocks (tutorial here) in bright scrappy novelty and text prints.  I put them off as I didn't have a lot of either but charm swap squares together with my own stash and scraps came to the rescue and all was well.

• There's nothing better than helping someone out and I made a Churn Dash block for Emily after she posted about having been let down 6 times over in a bee.

So that's April over.  This month looks as busy as ever and Zaki turns 5 in a week so some celebrating too!

Linking up with Lynne here.