Hi, it's me again

I know it's been a while.  But I've been doing things and I don't do much fast, at least not standing up I don't.  I takes me ages because I can stand for a bit and then I have to sit again for twice as long.  Anyway enough about that.  I have some things to share with you.  Did you say finally???  Umm well yes.

First I won a competition that Micki was running.  Boy was I ever happy.  And this is what she sent and boy did she send a lot.  THANK YOU SO MUCH Micki because I love it alll.

 First is an Irish Quilting Magazine which believe it or not

I have NEVER seen in England and it is truly wonderful

 A Tablemat for Christmas which is just lovely

And I think I will make a Mug Mag for my son-in-law just

like this because I love it so much

 A pot holder which is EXACTLY the right colors

for my kitchen

Anyone would think that Micki had been in my house spying 

because all the colors are completely right.  These are Coasters

which match my living room exactly.

Then she sent me a hat with Ireland on it (yes I know you can see it)

A bar of chocolate which I have still managed to resist - okay only because

it is on the window cill and I had forgotten about it but still I think

it's good.  And finally an Irish Calendar which I shall treasure forever.

THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING Micki xxx

Now when I started Cross Stitching about 14 years ago I bought loads of things.  I mean every hoop and stretching implement known to man.  I bought, and sold, at least 4 lamps and loads of silk threads on a whim when nothing called for them.  I also bought so much stash you would have thought I would live to be at least 125.  Anyway now with quilting so far I have not wasted one single penny.  Ok I know I have loads of time to do that.  Anyway I bought this, after seeing it on eBay, and then looking for it on the web and seeing that there was a Plus version of it for the same money the one non-Plus version was going for on eBay.  

What is it you ask?  Well it's the June Tailor Shape Cut Plus ruler and it is THE BEST thing I have ever bought.  It is so easy to use (says she before she has put the blocks together and seen how accurate it is) it just made my life much simpler but I did have 16 strip sets to cut into loads.  Out of most strips (apart from the ones I messed up) I cut 17 2 and a half inch strips so that's a load of strips ready to be made into blocks on my beloved sewing machine.  So here goes and have a look at it

You have a Zero line at the bottom and a cutting

line where it says Zero and your (I wanna say angle grinder) but
I have finally remembered it is my Rotary Cutter!

I joined in The Postage Stamp Quilt Along that Natalie is running and here are some photos and thank you Natalie so much for running this as I am really enjoying it.  Well up until now anyway when I have to make the blocks up.  Yes I know I should have done that last week but it has taken me a while to cut up the 2 1/2 inch segments.  I didn't use the fabric that Rachel used because I had bought jelly roll ages ago to make something else and never did so I used that and it is from Moda (of course) and it is by Basic Grey and called Blush.  So here are some photos:

Here are the raw materials.  One Jelly Roll in Blush and one in White

Here are two photos of them cut but not stitched together

into strip sets

(and I forgot to take a photo of them stitched into strip sets - sorry)

Here is where I have cut the 44" x 9 1/2" strips sets

there are loads of them trust me and I have

them together in groups of 

The top group is print/white/print/white/print

The bottom group is white/print/white/print/white 

And now I'm going to be putting them together

again in blocks so

Please wish me luck that I haven't mucked up all this fabric.  If I have no problem because I have another two waiting in reserve in case I have.  But I really hope I haven't.

I am also going to be doing the Bloggers Block-A-Palooza that Quilt Dad is running and today I have ordered most of the fabric for it.  But I need to get some more so hopefully somebody has it in stock.

Until next time

Lots of Love

Patti the displaced Yank xxx

Blimey I Didn't Realize it had been so long

Wow it seems like yesterday but it was actually like 3 weeks ago.  So what have I been doing?  Oh you know this and that.  Made dinner Christmas Day with the help of my darling daughter-in-law and it was great had a houseful and then New Year's Eve came and had just as great a time with great friends in a wonderful new Chinese Restaurant not far from where we live ... if you live near Bushey in Hertfordshire it is called The Imperial Chinese and it is on the A41 opposite the Hilton and the food is to die for.  We made the mistake of ordering set menus and there was much too much to eat.  Never mind we know for next time.


I have started making something and I have pictures - unheard of for me to show things that are not finished but there you go a new, and hopefully improved, me for 2011.


So I have started making a cushion I saw made on a Channel 4 (in the U.K.) program with my heroine in it - Kirsty Allsop.  Now Kirsty makes a few programs, mainly ones about buying the perfect house for people who are searching for them, but last year and this year she got to make THE MOST incredible hand-made things with experts who taught her.  Oh sometimes I wish I was her, okay let's be honest most times I wish I was her because she gets to do these incredible things.  Anyway this year one of the things she learned to do was make a handmade cushion and you can see how she does it right here.  Anyway my version of is isn't completely hand made because I got out my sewing machine after I had purchased the fabric for the backing and the Charm Pack that went with it.  I am too new at this to think I can choose fabrics randomly (all photos are clickable to make bigger IF YOU MUST).  Anyway this was the fabric I chose because I know that the person I am making this for likes autumnal colours (which I don't much):

The Charmpack is called Awesome (well any idiot (including me) can see

that from the darn package) and the backing came from

the same collection by Moda

Then I thought oh I want to put at least one heart on it too so

I went to trusty eBay and bought myself these Heart Stencils so now

I'm all set and ready to go.

Well I stitched the four pieces of the Charm pack that I had chosen together

with one of my cut out hearts.  Now I didn't exactly get it perfect when

stitching the four pieces together but figured oh that's okay I have

the heart to hide it.  Then I made the fatal mistake of thinking I could

stitch the heart on using my sewing machine and what a mess of it I made

so I had to start again

And being the darn perfectionist (I know this doesn't have to be

perfect but it does for me) it came our great and

now I am stitching the hearts on by hand and will show you

what I have made later on in the week.

So until then I will leave you with ...

Lots of Love Patricia xxx
American by birth and MOUTH

Some Freebies and a Giveaway

Hi whoever you are that is reading this blog - for all I know I might just be talking to myself.  So what else is new I hear you asking (or is this my brain talking to me?).

We what is new is HomeSpun Threads are giving away their patterns (charts) for FREE.  I just went there and got five of them.  I know, I know ... I'm greedy.  But this quilting bug has really gotten to me.

Secondly my new friend Chris over at Learn 2 Quilt Online is having a wonderful giveaway ending on Christmas Day with the winner being announced before the New Year.  Now I really shouldn't be blogging about this because I really want to win it - big time I want to win this, but I just thought after you have entered her contest if you go and look at the rest of her Blog it really has some great tips and quilts blocks that are free to start with and then cost just a few dollars - like $3.00.  But her instructions are really great.  I found them to be so much better than going to a class, and trust me last year I did and it cost big bucks, and I learned nothing but enough said about that.

OH BOY I almost forgot to blog about the GREAT giveaway on Fabrics N Quilts website. This link takes you straight to the prizes but be sure and look at her store because it is truly MAGNIFICENT!!!  Now I don't have to worry about this one because they are giving away 4 prizes.  When you ask is this one over.  Why tomorrow (that's Christmas Eve) so you'd better be quick.  You also have 12 chances of winning.

So good luck one and all but I'm warning you THIS ONE I'M GOING TO WIN and if you guys don't enter it I surely will and it would be a shame to miss and a shame especially to miss her site.

Lots of Love Patricia xxx
American by birth and MOUTH

My first Posting

Well I've taken the leap.  I have stitched for a long(ish) time and enjoyed it enormously, and blogged about it.  But now I want to quilt too.  I have collected fabric for quite a while for finishing the things I have stitched but as all of my followers of my main Blog know I HATE finishing with a vengeance and will do it only when I absolutely HAVE to.

So now I'm taking a foray into quilting - I hope.  I have loads of - okay not really loads but quite a bit, of cloth I have purchased over the last couple of years and would now like to make some things out of it all.  Machine stitching I love doing and hand stitching well I love doing that too, and quilting does not involve my stitching something on a large piece of linen and then cutting it too small to finish it properly.  In fact the last piece I finished was really small and yet even thought I stitched it on a piece of linen that was large enough to finish four things I still managed to cut it too small and had to bodge it.

I will be making something small soon and put it on both Blogs so that people know I have a second blog.

So until later.

Patricia (yes I've now grown up) xxx
American by birth and MOUTH