some like it simple & sweet

Lilac and caramel, pinky peaches, blush and rose

... I'm using a mix of these sweet combos

"Shopping" my stash & scrap baskets has provided lots of treasures ...

Each time I start something simple like this sweet scrap quilt, it makes me smile 🥰

until next time, Linda

cross quilt pt 2

And it’s a finish

... well, except of course for {wink wink} the backing, the quilting, etc. 

I tend to conveniently forget the other steps!

❤️❤️❤️

There's so much I love about this quilt ...

the fun colour story

the contrast of the solids with the prints

the little bit of animal print

the way {almost} all of my seams nestled together nicely when I was joining things up

Working out my block maths, then playing with these colours to get a little bit of cohesion happening = one super challenge! Great inspiration quilt from the brilliant "Unconventional and Unexpected" book by @roderick752.

Linking up with Cynthia here for 'oh scrap'.

Until next time,

Linda

cross quilt

I started an improv quilt simply called 'cross' and the inspiration came from the brilliant "Unconventional and Unexpected" book by @roderick752. 

After a little research, I decided to approach this by using a log cabin style block that gets sliced up, it works better for my smaller scraps. I faffed around working out the maths and made up a trial block. Super pleased with how things were looking, so I ploughed ahead with making a few more blocks. 

I am going scrappy with these blocks, using just what I have on hand – a combination of random bits of stash, including some vintage fabrics. I've narrowed down my colour story though with the fabrics that I pulled out, working with a range of pinks-plum, teal, blues, sage, orange, and yellow-golds.

And right now, I'm really enjoying mixing it up with both prints and solids, there's lots of opportunities to put together fun fabric pairings.

Not all my seams are perfectly matched but considering the nature of the original design I'm happy going a bit rogue.

                                                                                                                                                

 

and on the design wall, in no particular order yet...

 

Anyone else had a go at this quilt? I see {now!} there's a tutorial here at film in the fridge for something similar. 

Until next time, Linda

a little sunshine to brighten your day

I’ve been sewing stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️ for the last couple of days, inspired by a mix and match pattern by
Christine Vlasic called 'bright star'. It's a great idea, using each fabric *3 times within the sawtooth star blocks. It creates combos I wouldn’t have thought to put together, but surprisingly they all seem to work together.   

*Full disclosure: as I was using scraps & stash plus a selection of FQs, I didn't have enough of some stash fabrics to repeat, but I improvised. 

I had started out with more of a muted colour palette in mind, but then all that lovely retro sunshiny yellow goodness snuck in. So, I went with it!

It was also a bit touch & go with the borders, I had to join smaller bits in a couple of places as I was running out of long-ish lengths. Et voilà, a border with AMH's bright yellow 'social climber' for the final touch ...

I love how all these vibrant colours mixed up together! Sure to bring the sun into any home… guess now I’ll have to get it quilted to say it’s finished, yes? 

Linking up with Cynthia for 'oh scrap' here
Until next time, Linda

pinwheel with a twist

- a binding appreciation moment 

- a scrappy backing for the win! 

My 'bonbonerie' quilt is completed. I started it in back in November 2020, it was such fun to make and I'm really happy with the result!
I used Christine Vlasic' pattern #bonboneriequilt with some modifications, a scrap quilt combining plains and prints to make a classic pinwheel, set on point to create lots of movement and visual appeal.

I used all different genres and eras of scraps in these scrappy pinwheel blocks. There's a great selection of low volumes in here too, it's my favourite way to replace the background fabric of a quilt and instantly gives the quilt a vintage feel.

I also used a selection of mixed floral fabrics for a scrappy backing too. I decided to send a couple of quilts out to Leeanne for longarm quilting, and this was one of them. I just love how the circular element contrasts with the straight lines of the blocks.
And I found a Kaffe stripe for my binding, it really pulls all the reds & warm colours out nicely.
Finished quilt measures 50" x 62". Linking up with Kelly for NTT here

******

My daughter is very good at giving away my quilts! 

As some of you know, she is a nurse at the Hospice in town and often asks if I have any quilts I can part with. Not just for the patients but for any staff member who may have had a stressful day too. Yesterday evening when we dropped one of our grandchildren home, she came out with a box for me. It was a gift from a doctor who had received a quilt from me/my daughter recently. 

Eight delightful little paper vintage dresses,

all I need to do is hang them on "the washing line" and I'll have a sweet bunting for my sewing room.

Such a thoughtful thankyou gift.

a mix & match sort of day

My scrappy loving heart shoved everything else aside this morning and I started pulling out a selection of scraps & random FQ’s! I just love making quilts with no plan, mixing & matching as I go along!

For most of these sawtooth star blocks, there's a feature fabric with co-ordinating geometric stripes & spots. I'm being quite random with the placement of my all fabrics though, lots of colour and value differences to keep my eye engaged. I have made a few quirky combos too just for fun! 

So happy with this super combo of a traditional block with a retro vibe. These nine blocks are just randomly thrown down on my design floor, enjoy the progress photos ...

 auditioning border ideas ...

and a bird's eye view of a bunch of blocks ...

It's been a mix and don't match sort of day here.

One more sewing session, one more set of blocks, 

and then I think I'll be ready to start playing with placement, see what's missing & decide on my final layout.

And from my booklist this month ... 

A remote French island. 

A crumbling villa. 

A reclusive film star. 

And an inheritance Saskia never expected.

I've just finished reading "Dreaming in French" by Vanessa McCausland. An intoxicating story of travel, love, friendship and betrayal, this was a book I read in just a couple of evenings. Beautifully written, the perfect read to drift away in time & place, page after page. 

Enjoy your weekend,

Linda