Something you don't hear everyday!!

My banana plant has a flower on it....Never thought I would say that!  We have had it for years and this is the first time it has flowered....wonder if we will get any bananas?

 

 

I have finally finished my hexagon quilt top.  Just need to quilt and bind it now.  I am a bit daunted at doing it all by hand, but not sure how it can be done on the sewing machine...do I zig-zag down each row? 

 

 How lovely it looks on the washing line this morning, each hexy like a precious coloured jewel.

 

Mind you that was this morning....and this is the scene at the Fairyglade this afternoon.  It is pouring with rain and soooooo chilly.  Hector Dog has the right idea and the best spot in the cottage. 

 

 

Does my nose look big in this???!!!!!

 

Dev x

What a Scorcher!

Well, what a scorcher of a weekend it has been, and if I am honest I have found it almost unbearable. The apple tree has been a god send and has enabled me to spend most of the time outside without overheating. I cannot remember the last time it rained. Watering the garden is taking hours and we are just managing to keep it all from dying in the baking heat.

The geraniums don't seem to mind the heat.


The figs don't either and are starting to swell and ripen..yum..yum!

The grapes too are thriving and producing tiny clusters of fruit which will hopefully be delicious when they ripen.

Oh, what have we here, can you see it snuggled there under the vines in the early morning sunshine? Oh my, it makes me go a bit giddy looking at it, and no it isn't too much sun! Just lots of gorgeous hexagons slowly coming together into a quilt top.


Would you like a closer look perhaps? Oh, go on then, as you are asking so nicely.....

I just never seem to tire of sewing these together, so much so, that I am also working on the second one for the Littlest Fairy.



This is just to give you a flavour of what it will look like when it is done. I have also sourced some new fabrics from Moda. I so love this material, everything they do is gorgeous in fact.

This is the Santorini range and is available from here. I discovered this site on ebay and have to say that her service is second to none. I ordered on impulse Thursday night around 9.30 pm, [having spent several days drooling] and it was in my letterbox on Saturday morning. She also has a Moda sale on right now, so all in all, fan dabby dozey!!

This will be for my third quilt. I love this design, it is called the Tumbler quilt and have seen several versions now. I also think it would look lovely in christmas fabrics too.

www.modabakeshop.com/2009/09/sweet-baby-quilt.ht

It was our village fete on Saturday, and despite the soaring temperatures, Littlest Fairy and I donned the sun lotion, hats and sunglasses and ventured down to the village green to see what goodies we could find. What do you think about this beautiful vintage apron?

I say vintage, it might not be, but it just looks the part I think. The fabric and the colours just scream vintage to me. It is handmade, 100% cotton and cost me £1. I would love to know what the material is if anyone has any ideas?

Then I spotted this lovely shoulder bag, such a beautiful shade of green suede, sort of applely. It doesn't look to me like it has ever been used and a bargain at £4. I have a friend who is going to be "green" with envy when she spots this one! Ha ha, too late, it is all mine!!

I spotted this pretty on the jewellery stall. It was a trimming removed from a dress so I was told. I thought it might come in useful for something and most of the stones are intact. [Note another piece of Moda fabric underneath].

Anyway, I am away now, the garden desperately needs another watering and I have a basket full of gorgeous hexagons with my name on them.

Dev X

p.s. Has anyone else been getting these japanese/chinese comments? I seem to have a couple each time I post. I don't seem to be able to block them except by moderating my comments before they appear on my blog. Still doesn't stop them coming through though. Such a nuisance and was wondering if there is something more sinister in them? Any advice??

Love it!

I thought it was time to show you an update on my hexagon quilt which, I have to say, is now so lovely it makes me want to sing and cartwheel around the garden shouting yippee at the top of my voice. Of course, I am much too much of a lady to do anything so outrageous...and besides, I would probably seriously injure myself in the process and then where would my lovely quilt be then?

So, at the beginning of the week I had neat little piles of 6 hexagons, and by midweek they then became rows of 18.

As I explained in my last post, I was really struggling with the layout of the quilt. I just couldn't seem to get it right. I decided that I did want it random after all and just joined everything together and crossed my fingers. This afternoon I rushed home from work and took the plunge. I have very little floor space, so decided on the bed as that is where it will end up.

In the end, it was easier than I thought it would be. I only had to swap a couple of rows around to avoid duplicates, but essentially, it just fell into place and I have to say I Love, LOve, LOVE it! YIPPEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, what do you think, go on be honest, do you like????????? Please say that you do. I still have a way to go yet sewing all the rows together and then actually quilting it. I haven't decided on the material for the back or the binding yet. First things first as I still have a lot of sewing to do..and on that note, I'd best make a start.

Dev x

Dilemma!

Such a Dilemma with a capital D am I having over the layout of my new hexagon quilt. I have cut out 324 templates and tacked/basted 324 pieces of scrummy fabric and now I am ready to sew them all together one by one, with tiny little stitches into something that is pleasing to the eye. The only problem is.....How!

I started by picking them out of the basket in a totally random way....The first half dozen look like this and I wasn't very happy with it....

Next up, just place them side by side randomly and see what happens.....

Don't like this either. Next idea was to put them in piles according to colour and see if that inspires me....

Nope, definately nothing happening at the moment. So I know, I will make flowers shapes up in each colour and put them together like that......

This started to make a bit of sense, so I made some coloured piles....

The problem with this idea is that I don't have enough different designs in some of the colours to make them up as I have several repeats...AARRGH!

Who would have thought that it would be such a difficult thing to do. I just want it to look right and at the moment it doesn't. Maybe it is just a case of laying it all out on the floor and playing with it until it fits. So, where do I go from here? Anyone out there who has made one of these who can offer some advice......Well, I am all ears!

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Now, this quilt on the other hand just feels right. I am making two, simultaneously by the way, because Littlest Fairy also needs a new one apparently!

This time, 308 templates cut out in a slightly different hexagon shape. This one is smaller and more elongated.

What is strange about it though, is that I am using mostly the same fabrics for this one as mine..and yet this one just looks so much nicer....mmmmm....can't work it out? I have my next quilting group on Tuesday, so will ask for their advice I think.

What do you think?

Dev x

Quilts Galore

The weekend saw me in a tiny hamlet of houses not far from our village at their Quilt Festival. It is held in the church of St Laurence every three years. The words stunning, beautiful, inspiring, breath taking, vibrant all spring to mind as I review the photographs. I am truly in awe of the women who can produce such wonders! This was one of my favourites, though there were so many to drool over.

This is a stunning version of the Cathedral Window and was draped over the choir stalls. I love this design but have never tried it, but would love to have a go.

The angle of these was a bit awkward to photograph as they had been suspended from the beams in the church roof. This quilt was entitled "Freya's Quilt" and the one below is Xander's Quilt. Both are grandchildren of the main organiser of the event. She is a prolific quilter and craftswomen, and hold classes at her house. Sadly, although I would love to attend these lessons, they are held during the working day...deep sigh! Maybe one day when I am retired!

I loved these little girly quilts, as did the littlest fairy.

A gorgeous nursery rhyme quilt and one for a first grandchild...so cute!

I particularly loved this one as well, made from satin, silk and old fashioned lace and part of the makers wedding dress. I love the crazy patchwork style of the squares.

Just so many beautiful quilts....... a pity it is a triennial event!

So, what else did I get up to this weekend...well I finished a couple of projects myself, not on the same scale I have to admit, but I am pleased with them all the same.

This Stanley fabric from CK is just so darn cute, don't you think? I made this pretty crochet roll and needlecase

Both these items are available in my shop.

Back to the ripple tomorrow me thinks, has been a while since I got all hooky.

Dev x