Sunday 31 March 2013

Happy Easter and WIP Quilts

Happy Easter Sunday!
 
I don't believe it.....the sun is shining here! It feels like Spring at last!
 
Here are the tete a tete daffodils in my garden when yesterday I ventured out to retrieve my seeds from the shed.


Tete a Tetes

I also noticed another flower in my garden and realised it was my Christmas Rose/Hellebore....it's never flowered before.
Christmas Rose/ Hellebore
Funny having a Christmas Rose at Easter ;)
 
So I planted my seeds yesterday morning and I decided (after last year's disaster in the greenhouse) they are all to be nurtured on the kitchen table by the window. The sun is nice and strong there in the morning so they should grow.


I already have some seedling tomatoes that seem to be doing well.....


Yesterday afternoon, I really enjoyed working on the baby clothes quilt I am making for a customer. I had already basted it so it was ready to quilt.


I say basted but I really mean pinned....using these curved safety pins. I find this is the best method to pin the layers.


I had completed the quilting by mid evening and I'm pleased with the results....


And using those safety pins and my trusty walking foot means no puckers!


Here's a little peek at another quilt I'm working on.


Using scraps of home decor weight fabric, I am loving doing this crazy patchwork......

 
......and including wonky log cabin style blocks.......



This quilt is, of course, going to be for Spencer!....He needs another quilt for travelling :)
 
And it's a good way to use up the scraps my Mum gives me from her lovely sewing projects.
 
I made Spencer a similar one last year......which he loves and is still going strong.



The other WIP quilt is my Fractured Pinwheels in the summery strawberry and roses fabrics.....



Hopefully it'll be finished in time for summer!
 
I hope you have a lovely Easter with lots of crafting!
 
Maggie xx




Friday 29 March 2013

Reminiscing upon March last year

To compare the weather, I've just been taking a look at my posts from March last year and it certainly looks a lot warmer than this year.
 
At the end of March 2012, I remember now from looking at this post, the weather was sunny and Chris was on Exmouth beach in his shirt sleeves!


Exmouth Beach March 2012

Aww .... Spencer was so tiny then......his first visit to the beach...
Exmouth Beach March 2012
We ventured onto Dartmoor the same weekend and Chris is again is in shirt sleeves....and look at the gorgeous blue skies!

Dartmoor March 2012
I also found some photos from another post, dated 22nd March 2012 showing my aubretia in bloom......

Blooming Aubretia March 2012

and my washing blowing in the breeze with lovely blue skies.....

Washing with blue skies March 2012

From my post dated 10th March 2012 called The Sun is Shining ! Look at these lovely Spring flowers......



....and Max is happy to be outside sunbathing!



But never mind, we will light the woodburner and stay cosy and warm.....
 
I need to catch up with a spot of housework this weekend...but I'm hoping to plant a few seeds (indoors) and quilt quilt quilt..... I am working on three quilts at the moment......a baby clothes quilt for a customer, my summery strawberries and roses quilt (from this post) and a quilt for Spencer from scraps.....I'll post some photos over the weekend :)
 
Of course, we'll be wrapping up to take Spencer for lots of nice walks..
 
Have a lovely Easter weekend, keep warm and eat lots of chocolate!
 
Maggie xx


Monday 25 March 2013

Socks and Stockings

Hello. I hope you've had a good start to the week :)
 
I've just found these wonderful vintage threads amongst my collections.
 
From the days when our grandmothers mended their nylon stockings..and darned our grandfathers' socks...
 
for hose mending
Vintage Nylon Hosiery Threads

I love the names given to the many shades of brown!.....Tunis, Whippet, Otter brown, Cedarwood, Zanzibar....it reminds me of paint charts nowadays where the manufacturer has 20 names to describe 20 shades of cream!



I found these threads in a sewing box I bought at a local auction. When I buy things at auction, I often wonder about the previous owners and what they were like. The lady who owned this sewing box must have either done a lot of mending and darning or had good intentions to do so!
 
Chadwick's Darning Wools
Do you think her husband wore green, blue and grey socks?!
 
 


I love sewing but I'm glad we don't have to darn socks anymore. I'm ashamed to admit it but I'm not a fan of the mending type of sewing... like replacing a button, turning up hems etc....and I've never ever darned a sock!
 
What about you? 
 
Maggie xx

Friday 22 March 2013

Lifting the Mood with some Summery Patchwork

We're having some really miserable weather here at the moment. This morning we took Spencer for his walk on the Common and it was so windy we were nearly blown away! As soon as we came home it started raining and hasn't stopped since. At least we're not having all the snow that other parts of the country are having.
 
I decided to batten down the hatches this afternoon and stay in and do some sewing. I'm working on a baby clothes quilt for a customer at the moment. This afternoon, having spent some time on this, I remembered a quilt I'd started making last summer. I'm not sure if I have shown you the blocks in a previous post. They're called Fractured Pinwheels.....There are two blocks using the same fabrics but in different positions....


I had already made six blocks of each...


So this afternoon, I decided I would sew the blocks together to make the quilt top......
 
First into strips of four blocks each...


and then I sewed the strips together and pressed the whole thing to complete the quilt top.....


Working with these gorgeous summery fabrics with pretty roses and strawberries really lifted my mood!
 
It didn't take too long to complete the top. Let's hope I don't take another ten months to quilt and bind it!
 
I hope the weather's not too bad where you are. Have you been battening down the hatches too? If so, have you taken some time to do some crafts?
 
Maggie xx
 
 

Thursday 21 March 2013

Elephants and Chickens! New fabrics in stock

Gorgeous new fabrics in stock.....all 100% cotton......
 
'Ramya' Elephant ......I love this and want it all round my house! Maybe new curtains for our bathroom?

Ramya Cotton

'Constance Chicken'......so cute in a country kitchen...

Constance Chicken cotton

This beautiful 'Juliet' print makes me want to make a quilt with large squares to show off the gorgeous deep pink roses...

Juliet Cotton
The lovely shabby chic 'Olivia'.....for very pretty cushion covers......

Olivia Cotton
And for summery picnic napkins.....the delicious 'Cherry Smoothie'......

Cherry Smoothie Cotton

All available in my eBay and Etsy shops soon! Or email me at maggiemoore@aol.com.
 
Have you any ideas for these lovely fabrics?
 
Hope you're having a wonderful crafty day......what are you making today?
 
Maggie xx

Monday 18 March 2013

Nautical and Union Jack Flag Ribbons

Back in stock!
 
Nautical Ribbons with anchors and stars...
 
in red...navy blue.....and antique white....
 
 
And good old Union Jack flag...
 
 
These lovely ribbons are now back in stock in my eBay and Etsy shops.
 
Thanks for visiting,
Maggie xx

Sunday 17 March 2013

Beach Crochet

Thank you so much for all your kind and lovely comments on our wedding post!
 
I've been very busy recently and I'm finding it difficult to find the time for blogging. Also I've hardly had time to do any crafts so not too much new to show in that line. I'm also missing reading your lovely blogs. I'm sure life will slow down a bit soon and I will have time to catch up with you.
 
As there is a distinct lack of current projects, I will show you the crocheted squares I made whilst on holiday.
 
I knew I would want to do some crafts whilst I was away, so I packed my suitcase with balls of yarn, crochet hooks, knitting needles, cotton fabrics and a sewing kit!

I found that crochet was the easiest craft to do....I could take it to the beach or the poolside....it was very portable......as I only needed my hook and a ball of yarn. You can't see it very well in the photo but my sister, Clare, gave me this gorgeous bag for my birthday and it was perfect for carrying my crochet!

 
I only took one crochet book away with me.....20 to Make Crocheted Granny Squares by Val Pierce....which I had received as a Christmas gift from my parents......it was ideal to pack in my case because it was slim and light.


I wanted to try all the different patterns in the book that would make a similar size square in the hope of sewing them all together to make a pretty cushion or cosy blanket.
 
So here are the squares I made:

Alpine Meadow Square
 
Tudor Rose Square

Nursery Granny Squares
Poppies and Daisies
Pinwheel Circle
Traditional Granny Squares
Some patterns I enjoyed more than others. I enjoyed making the pin wheel circle but didn't like the look of it when completed!  I made lots of good old traditional granny squares as I didn't need to follow the pattern :)
 
And here's all my holiday crochet together....


As you can see, they didn't all end up the same size......and look at all those ends!
 
I think I'll sew them together to make a cushion :)
 
Maggie xx

Saturday 2 March 2013

Our Lovely Wedding on the Beach

Chris and I got married on the beach.....
 
We are so happy....
 
The start of this year has been such a whirl....
 
Our wedding day was so beautiful.....I can't put it into words.....
 
I wanted to share this with you......

 
  
 
 
 

 

Maggie xx