And the Chickens are getting ready for an Easter Egg hunt.
I have made these fun chickens for Alice and Robyn as a quirky alternative to an Easter Basket. Now I need to work out how many eggs I need to hide.
Easter this year though may be a little difficult as we are in the middle of a conservatory renovation. So far the old one has been demolished and the garden looks awful. However to cheer me up the ducks came visiting this morning and the cyclamen look beautiful. I think most of my bulbs have been dug up and eaten by mice and what does appear is eaten by slugs. I am trying to ignore the mess and spend time in my studio, which is always a happy place.
Christmas is a distant memory, but unfortunately cough and sniffles linger on. So it is time to look forward to Spring. Shoots and buds are appearing in the garden and I am looking forward to see what has survived the winter or not been eaten by mice. They seem to have a liking for allium and tulip bulbs. I think next year will have to plant twice as much and hope that some survive.
I couldn’t let a horrid head cold get the better of me so have taken the time and updated my daffodil foundation piecing pattern.
The pattern is a single daffodil with right and left facing options and has a finished size of approx 7 x 10 inches. I couldn’t resist making it into placemats for Easter and have included this as a bonus pattern.
I want to thank my pattern tester Sue Watson, who has never tried foundation piecing before. She said that she enjoyed learning a new technique and made a lovely block using batik fabrics. Have you had a go at foundation piecing yet? I find an “Add a Quarter” ruler helps with the placement of the patches.
And now back to the sketchbook to update the tulip pattern.
Yesterday was the last session for the Folded Fantasy quilt at Tudor Rose Patchwork. It has been 6 months of hard work from my students and the results of their efforts can be seen in the beautiful quilts tops they have made.
I love seeing how different the pattern looks in different colour ways. All of them quite dramatic and unique, Quilt works of art.
They were just completing the inset borders to add the final finishing touch to the quilts as the lesson finished. I love this border and can see it appearing in more of my quilt designs.
Whilst writing this blog post my sister rang, She asked if I was going to make another mystery quilt next year as it is fun watching the designs develop as they are a mystery to me as well as everyone else until they are finished. Over the years she has watched blocks being moved and arranged, changed and discarded, on my design wall . All I can say is watch this space – it’s a mystery. There are quite a lot of ideas percolating in my head at the moment.
In the mean time I am going to develop the workshop notes into a pattern which will be available early in the new year on my etsy shop RoeMayo
Teaching patchwork and quilting over many years has left me with lots of samples and demonstration pieces. Some are more complete than others and some are step by step “Blue Peter” type part finished samples. There comes a time when all of these part finished samples need to be made into something.
A couple of years ago I made Robyn a bedding set for her dolls cot. I had designed a Sunbonnet Sue and Overall Sam for a class earlier in the year and thought that one of the samples would make a perfect dolls cot quilt. It was the right size, but for some reason she thought the quilt was too small as it didn’t cover her dolls head. I still can’t quite work out how a child’s mind works as I am too far removed from that age. I think it looked great. I am hoping that at some point her dolls will not need to have their heads covered if they are asleep!
I wonder if Alice will have the same reaction when she opens her Christmas present this year. I also hope she like purple.
I can’t believe it has been so long between posts and I have to apologise to anyone waiting to hear more of my story. You will know that the last few years have been full of downs and ups and it has taken me quite a while to get my mojo back. I have been keeping busy with teaching and I love seeing what my students come up with to challenge me. I also love seeing how they take and adapt my patterns and projects.
We have been kept busy with the new addition to our family, another beautiful granddaughter, Alice and as you can see her big sister is besotted with her too.
This years mystery quilt has been a folded fantasy sampler quilt.
It has been challenging but fun and we are now at the end of the course.
I thought last years mystery quilt was challenging as it focussed on curves. I think I was called all sorts of names by my students, but all the quilts looked beautiful.
I am not sure what names I have been called this year but I can’t wait to see how their quilts turn out. In the meantime it is back into the studio for patchwork and more pattern writing.
I have recently returned from a wonderful safari experience to Kenya. Although the main focus of the trip was the wildlife of the Samburu, Masai Mara and Lake Naivasha National parks, I couldn’t help but to hunt out some traditional African textiles. As we had travelled with only hand luggage we were limited on packing space for anything that took our eye. But I couldn’t resist this cute screen print Zebra for Bobbi. Although I thought it would be nice for her bedroom wall, I think she may use it as a dolls blanket.
We saw a lot of these tourist pieces at many curio shops on the journey round the country. This one near Lake Naivasha had the best coffee too, so was a win-win for my sister.
Sandgrouse Curios and Art Gallery
I made another impulse purchase at the Sandgrouse Curio & Art Gallery when we stopped for a break on the way to the Masai Mara, and found out that I am not good at negotiating. However I ended up with 6m of wax print fabric. I would have loved to buy more but would have had to buy another suitcase.
When we stopped again on the way back to Nairobi I had the opportunity to chat to Angela about her fabrics and clothing. She gave me permission to photograph her textile section of the gallery for my blog. Unfortunately we didn’t have long to browse all the wonderful textiles, but we really enjoyed seeing the clothing and the bolts of fabric. There were some wonderful batiks too.
We also had the opportunity to visit a traditional Masai village where we were greeted with a traditional welcome by both the men and women of the village. It may seem strange visiting a village like this, but it was explained to us that the money we paid went towards the children’s education. Again it was the traditional dress that interested me. We were told that the red checked and striped fabric worn by the men was to ward off the lions and other animals. I am not sure that is the case but the vervet monkeys at the lodges moved very quickly when they saw the guards approach.
So why did I buy this piece of fabric instead of the more traditional gold, red, and green kente cloth?
The answer to this question will be in a future blog post
This course started in February at Tudor Rose Patchwork and I can’t believe that we are already half way through the blocks.
The pictures in the gallery below, show how beautiful the quits are going to look just from these first two blocks. There is such a variety of colour schemes, from cool and monochromatic, dramatic accents to fun primary brights. Each quilt will have a distinct personality and I can’t wait to see them finished.
BevAnnaChrisSarahJuliaBarbaraLynnSue
There will be sashing and cornerstones between the blocks allowing each one to shine in its own right.
Ambleside Quilt 2020
Ambleside Quilt 2021
Each year I work a quilt alongside the group. I used a beautiful collection of fabric designed by Lynnette Anderson for the 2020 quilt. For 2021 the fabrics were from the Rainbow colours and Brighton collections by Stoffabrics. This year I am using Big Sky by Annie Brady for Moda, and Bumbleberries from Lewis & Irene. I haven’t decided which thread to quilt it and have three very similar ones to choose from. Two Superior Thread King Tut collection and one from the Masterpiece collection. I will have to do some auditioning and sampling soon as I can’t put off the quilting for ever. It is a nice dilemma to have though.
Just before Easter June purchased the Greta Table Runner pattern from my Etsy shop. Off the pattern went from the UK to Kansas, and I wasn’t expecting to hear anything unless it didn’t arrive. Well, it must have been sent by the fastest carrier pigeon the postal service had, as it was only a few day’s later, when June contacted me regarding the bias binding.
I make my own 1/4″ (6mm) bias binding with a fusible tape backing. This is a great way of matching your bias to your project and the fusible tape holds it whilst it is stitched in place. I cut 5/8″ wide strips on the bias for the 1/4″ (6mm) bias tape maker.
June chose the lovely spotted green fabric to make her matching bias edging
And added a red border before layering and quilting round the fan blades.
June’s finished runner which is absolutely beautiful.
It has been such a pleasure, and rare treat to share in the story of one of my patterns, especially across the oceans. I would like to thank June for sharing the quilt journey with me and giving me permission to share it with you.
The Star Table runner has been one of my most popular patterns over the last few years, and so it is time to give it a makeover.
It was previously named Borrowdale Star, but it is now just Borrowdale and it has been given a fresh look using the dragonfly fabric and the blue and green fabric combination.
This atmospheric picture was taken on a visit to Keswick looking down the lake towards the Jaws of Borrowdale
looking down Derwentwater towards the Jaws of Borrowdale
Borrowdale Valley lies at the southern end of Lake Derwentwater and extends to Honister Pass. It is a valley of spectacular scenery with rugged crags and oak forest. It was once an industrial area with copper and graphite mines, iron smelting and charcoal burning. Remnants of the industrial past can still be seen with old mine workings. It is a lovely area to visit with great walks and friendly tearooms. I am looking forward to visiting again soon.
Now it is time for the updated pattern to go to the printers and It should be available in a couple of weeks. Whilst I am waiting for this pattern to arrive it is on with the next project.
As a patchworker, quite a lot of time can be spent choosing just the right fabric for a project. This week I bought some fabric – just because I liked it – and now have the task of trying to match it with fabric from my stash.
Dragonflies – Lakeside Fun by Clothworks
This lovely print gives lots of choices for fabric matching in shades of greens and blues.
But whilst choosing fabrics the old saying ” Blue and green should never be seen unless there is a colour in between” keeps echoing through my head. Where did this saying come from? How true is it?
Nature loves blue and green together you just have to look at all the lovely blue flowers and their green foliage to see that, so the origin must be from something else. Blue and green lie next to each other on the colour wheel, are they thought to be too tonally similar to be seen together? When viewing a distant horizon there is a point when the green of the land merges into the blue of the sky. There may be also be a nautical origin to the saying – it was though to bring bad luck to paint a boat green as it could not be seen easily if it capsized.
Whatever the origin of the saying, I love blue and green together.
Are there any colours or colour combinations you would never use in a quilt?
Bev Mayo 