Flowery Wreaths: a Finished Quilt

 It's always nice to finish a project and then have someone crafty to share it with:)......so i am very happy to share the new flowery wreaths quilt here in my little space with my crafty friends today...

 ...........those of you who read my blog regularly will probably remember this quilt as a work in progress......below is one of the pictures i took as the applique shapes were being cut out to make the wreaths...........each one uses the same shapes but arranged a bit differently........

 ...............i liked making this and choosing the different backing fabric for each block....

 .............the shapes were applied using fusible web and then stitched round by hand with blanket stitch and matching thread........peaceful work perfect for the evenings........

 ............i chose a check backing and binding and plain kona cotton in pink for the sashing.....

 .............and it was longarm quilted for me by the lovely debbie holland here.......we are both loving twirls and curls at the moment and this one is our favourite sticky buns pattern.......

 .............all the family use the quilts i make and i love having them around the house....quilts often feature in my pictures as well as in actual quilt photo shoots..........

 .............this one has my little grand daughter daisy's name on it......she loves pink and has a real sense of joy in colour just like i have (and my daughters too)......

 ..................here is lolly the bunny still wearing her sundress, but glad to have a cosy quilt nearby too.....

 ..............and here are a few real flowers..........always my inspiration and endless source of pleasure...

 ...........the sweetpea plants are still producing gorgeous blooms but i know their days are numbered now...better enjoy the scent and colour while we can.....

 ................a simple jug of flowers from the garden............happy to have cosmos and snapdragons flowering well too and to add them to my sweetpea posy............

..............thank you for dropping by dear readers and sharing some crafty times with me.......and for leaving me such sweet comments...next week i am taking a little blog break but will be back the week after that as usual............wishing you a wonderful time in the meantime with sunny days and plenty of happy crafty inspirations.....................back soon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Flower Garden Quilt

 Today we are enjoying a floral theme......this summer our flower border has been especially colourful and it's a pleasure to make little posies of these bright blooms to enjoy around the house.....

 ............one of our favourite quilts is the flower garden quilt shown here.......

 ..............i made it years ago, inspired by a flower power project i did for a magazine......i love bright applique flowers on a white background and the lovely texture the quilting creates..........

 ..................here it is in the potting shed for a quick photo shoot of the whole thing (practising for when i go out 'into the wild' with my quilts :)............

 ................in the garden now, on the metal bench.........

 .............i might make a version of this quilt again using some of my current favourite fabrics.....

 ..............this one was a real scrappy quilt and i used anything i could find at the time to create the bright flowers, including cutting up a recycled dress.............

 ..............it's nice to still be enjoying it...........below is a picture of the gorgeous snapdragons in our flower border.......

 ..............and we have masses of these sunny daisies (i think they are heleniums).....

 .............below is a new work in progress.............the scrappy stars quilt is well underway now.....

 .............it's fun to do because each one is different and the variety of blocks should make a very lively design when it is all sewn together..............

 .............we are having a fun summer here indoors and out, with family and friends......i am fitting my work in too and have a lot of new things in the pipeline which i will be able to show soon..........

...............thank you for dropping by lovely readers and for the sweet comments you leave me.......wishing you a wonderful sunny week ahead filled with happy days and crafty inspirations......back soon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Summer Blues

 Happy new week everyone...and happy new month too.......today's theme is blue as you can see....

 ................i love blue and white together any time of year but especially in summer.......

 .............the blue and white cushion i made last year is in use a lot this summer both indoors and outside in the garden.........here it is with the beautiful blue agapanthus flowers which are having a good summer here on our patio.......

 ...............here is the blue and white checkerboard quilt also having an airing in the garden.....

 ......i haven't yet tried taking pictures of my quilts 'in the wild'....the garden is as adventurous as i get........but i think i'll try and go further afield soon :).......

 .............blue lavender.......one of my favourites and now it is time to cut some for drying to make lavender sachets again.......

 ...............adding more hearts to my red and blue hearts quilt each week as well as working on a gazillion other projects......

 ..............this time of year is super busy for me as i look after my grandchildren for some of the holidays too.....they are so adorable and such fun.........

 ..............making these little heart blocks using hand sewn applique is a quick crafty fix.....and they soon sew up into a bigger block by machine when a few have been made......

 ................next i have some exciting news.....here is a peek at the christmas design i created for sew and so's secret christmas stitchalong......if you join the modern folky inspired stitchalong you'll have a handmade cross stitch piece ready for the start of the season.........

 .....a new motif will be released weekly (12 charts in total) and a materials pack is available to pre order........find out all the details at sew and so here............

............thank you lovely readers for dropping by to see me here and for leaving such sweet comments.......wishing you a wonderful week ahead with lots of happy crafty times......back soon xxxxxxxxxxxx

Summer Brights

 Here is a post filled with summer colour today......both indoors and out we are surrounded by summer brights..........

 ....i've been making lots of english paper pieced diamonds inspired by my star quilt (on the cover of my book below) and using the same templates but with a few tweaks for a different effect......

 ............using old fabrics, new fabrics ....exploring my fabric stash anew and even snipping bits off long hoarded favourites i am making a huge scrappy diamond collection..........

 ...............and then turning them into scrappy stars.....and then hexie blocks with some solid fabrics....

 .............and a little applique circle in the middle, a bit like a dresden or a flower.....

 ................having a lot of fun with all the pattern and colour...........

 ..............and still in between times working on our garden........lots of flowers and colour inspiration there like these daisies......

 ..............and the border becoming even more lush after the torrential rain we had last week.....

 ..............and look....we have a hollyhock.....it has grown to a wonderful height (and has only a tiny bit of snail and slug damage to the lower leaves!)......so happy we grew a hollyhock and now we'll get more......

 .............here's a close up...........it looks so beautiful with all those petals though i love the simpler kinds too............love these flowers...they look like pom poms.....

 .................a quick picture from the greenhouse below with busy lizzies and geraniums flowering in the heat..............

 ..............and now here we are already at the end of july....it has gone so fast my star-spangled birthday month.........looking forward to august though with lots of time with our little grandchildren....seaside....gardens......outings....friends............lots of crafting and sewing.....

.................thank you so much for dropping by dear readers and for the lovely comments you leave me..............wishing you all a very happy august wherever you may be with lots of sunshine and plenty of crafty inspirations........back soon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx