POSITIVE STEPS FORWARD

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’re all having a great day. It’s been a bit productive around here today. We’re starting to experience positive steps forward. Now that the tips are open again, I have been sorting and tidying. I expect to make my first trip to the tip this weekend. I’m going to fill the car full of rubbish and recycling and make the trip worth it. My utility room, which housed plenty of surplus to requirement stuff since lockdown began is now looking much tidier.

Today, I will show you my 44^th art journal effort. Today’s theme is under the sea …..

It started off like this …..

I didn’t do too much more to it apart from adding the fish which were cut out of a dictionary page, a bit of pen doodling and water colour shading.

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to splodge some paint of fabric with the idea that I would add a bit of fabric appliqué and some simple quilting. Well here’s how it looks after a little bit of stitching …..

You will note that I kept this piece very basic. Even the stitching is very basic. All in all, I am pleased with the piece. My goal is to turn it into a wall hanging of some kind. The edges need finishing first. Normally I would add binding but I want the piece to look rustic. So, I’ll have a little think before I do anything else to it.

After finishing joining all my hexagons together and adding a border, I switched to a hand quilting project. It’s been going quite well. I have so far marked and moved my quilting hoop three times over two evenings making great progress. Here’s a little peek …..

It’s been a while since I’ve done any hand quilting. Once you get going and if you’re in the mood it goes well. This quilt is for Christmas. I hope to get it finished in time for Christmas this year.

The sun has been shining on a off all day here. The temperature seems to be climbing again. Although I must admit that we still need to dress for cool temperature today.

Well, my friends, that’s my news for today. I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something interesting. Remember to stay safe, safe alert and be well. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching and messing around with art supplies.

Lucie x

DAY 42

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’re all safe today. We all seem to be going into the next phase of something. I’m not sure if we’re going to be safe or not but we have to move forward somehow.

So, today is day 42 of my self-imposed messing around with art supplies challenge. I’ve still got a few ideas on my list. I must admit that I seem to add one or two ideas every day! This challenge is eventually run out of steam but for now it’s keeping me focused on something other than the invisible enemy. Here is how my today’s effort started off a few days ago …..

 

This is what it looks like now …..

To this art journal page, I added a bit more paint, some water colour pencil stems, leaves and shading and some pen doodling. Bish bash bosh, voila! Actually, that makes it sound like it only took five minutes but it actually takes a bit longer than five minutes. Not to mention clearing up the mess after I’m done. Mind you, the time it takes is time that I’m focused on something good. Therapeutic.

I am very happy to tell you that I finished securing the last border to my hexagon quilt. I will be thinking about the backing fabric. I think the shops will open again some time in the next six weeks. So, I think I’ll set the hexie quilt top aside until I can get out to choose backing fabric. It will be a pleasure to see fabric up close and in person. In the meantime, I have some hand quilting to do. So, it’s onto the next big thing for me. I shall post photos of that progress soon.

Well, my lovely friends, that’s my news for today. I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something you truly enjoy doing. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching and messing around with art supplies.

Lucie x

ALL CHANGE

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’re all well and in good spirits. Like most of you I’m having ups and downs but thru it all I recognise that I am grateful for all I’ve got. Sarah and I feel safe at home and we’re in reasonable health at the moment.

We both step out first thing in the morning with our Maisie girl dog. We go early in order to ensure we don’t meet too many people. Yesterday morning we came across some chalk markings along the way …..

And …..

I think this describes our current situation nicely.

And then on our way back home past the little play park …..

We found this sign on the entrance gate to the park ….

And this padlock securing it shut for the duration …..

I don’t need to comment on this because it’s obvious that it’s for everyone’s good. Normal service will eventually be resumed.

It’s all change on the current project. I switched from hexagons to some hand quilting …..

I’m hand quilting in circles. I am keeping it simple by quilting concentric circles. I quite like this type of quilting design. It’s easy peasy to mark by overlapping every which way. And by using matching thread, you don’t see the uneven stitches, only the texture which is what I’m aiming to produce.

Here, at happy stitching manor, we’re keeping busy. I still feel a little distracted but I am confident that in a few days the isolation will become the normal and I will be back on track and being creative again. I’m currently jumping from one thing to another and not getting much of anything accomplished. I managed to spend several hours hand quilting over the last couple of days. I think things are improving.

So, I guess that’s my report for today. I hope you’re all getting on with doing things you enjoy doing. After all life has to go on while we fight this invisible enemy. Until next time,

 

Let’s all keep on stitching.

Lucie x

NEW PROJECTS THIS AUTUMN

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’ve all been enjoying the autumnal weather we have been experiencing. I am still crunching leaves underfoot in the morning while walking my Maisie. This morning the sun was shining beautifully showing off the naked branches of the trees. Comfort food is the order of the day. I have made one or two pots of soup and serving warm breath with it. It’s the perfect warmer for this time of year. Casseroles and pasta bakes go down really well too. Are you doing any comfort cooking right now?In my last post I ran a giveaway draw for 5 pairs of tickets to the Knitting & Stitching Show being held in Harrogate which is running from November 28 to December 1, 2019 in the Harrogate Convention Centre. The winners are:

Ann Burch – Newcastle Upon Tyne
Heather Smith – Northumberland
Jayne Davey – Lancashire
Bal Bailey – North Yorkshire
Chris O’Rourke – Newcastle Upon Tyne

Congratulations ladies. I would appreciate it if you could all supply me with your home addresses so I can submit them to the organisers who will forward your tickets. For those of you who missed out on entering/winning tickets and would like to attend the show you can book tickets online and by using code ONE19 you will get a discount.
So, let’s move onto sewing progress. Last time I showed you a part constructed Cathedral Window panel. Well I finally finished the panel …..

And appliquéd the panel to the back fabric …..

And layered up the Cathedral Window quilt top ready for a little hand quilting around the borders …..

For those of you who would like to try this traditional technique and think that it’s far too difficult, please do try it. The trick is to take this technique one step at a time and it makes it much easier to digest. Even if you only ever make one panel, do try it. It will use up some of your stash and you might even turn it into a gift for someone. I’m definitely going to gift mine for Christmas.
My UFO inventory is dwindling away. And with that in mind, I decided it was time for me to have a stab at something new and different. I think my new project will be or perhaps is already trending. The project is English Paper Piecing and it’s called Brimfield Awakening. Here’s a look at what I’ve pieced so far …..

The most difficult part of starting any project for me is choosing fabric. I was determined to use what I’ve got in my stash. So, I opened every drawer containing fabric and pondered what would go together. Well the task is so difficult now that my stash is dwindling away to nothing but I did find some very fine, lawn like fabric produced by Lecien that I purchased a few years ago which I was saving for Sunday best. Well baby, Sunday has finally arrived and I have cut into the fine fabrics and they seem to be working quite well for this particular project. For purposes of photography I have laid the blocks out on soft bamboo wadding in the vane of showing the colours of the fabric prints. Once I have pieced a few more blocks I will be able to decided what colour background I will need. Pinterest has a really good selection of photos of Brimfield projects. There’s something quite satisfying about working on English Paper Pieced projects because you know that your project will be accurate and neat. So, for now, I will alternate between my Brimfield project and my current knitting project as my evening armchair work. For today though, my washing machine is whirring away getting my bedding clean and I will step out to rake an enormous pile of leaves into my garden waste bin in readiness to be collected by the council tomorrow. It’s a bright but very cool day so I will no doubt come in from my outdoor adventure in the garden with roses on my cheeks and my glasses fogged up so that I can’t see where I’m going.
I love autumn. I love the crunchy leaves. And I love crisp sunny days in autumn. I love wearing woollies and chunky boots. This is my perfect day.
So that’s my news for today. I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something you truly enjoy doing. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching; did you know that one quilting stitch at a time makes life better? Take it from me, it does.

Lucie x

SUNNY CATCHUP ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’ve all had a superb weekend. Storm Hannah was supposed to be rumbling thru but it seems she has missed my little corner of the northeast of England. I have no doubt that some kind of bad weather will come thru at some point this week. I am quite appreciative of the lovely sunshine today but a few days ago it was dark a dismal out so I decided to make my own sunshine …

The Dresden Plate happens to be one of my favourite blocks of late. I am currently designing and piecing a new project for which I need a sun. So, I decided to use a yellow Dresden. The Dresden Plate is such a simple buy rather effective block.

With the coming of the good weather, I have been hankering after planting up my planters with summer annual plants. I bought some but I’m still a wee bit worried that we might get some frost at night, so I’m holding off for a few more days. We’ll be entering May in a couple of days and by then we should be past the risk of frost. Although I haven’t planted any annuals yet, I did add three herbaceous perennials to one of my front borders.  They were an absolute bargain and they were calling my name. I will need one or two others to fill in the blank patch in said border but I made a good start for now. My Clematis is starting to bloom nicely. I gave it a really good prune and was worried that it might not reappear this year but it has. Lucky me!

It seems Fridays are the day of week that changes everything in my little quiet world. I was sitting quietly in my little den answering some correspondence when a helicopter came into view. It was hovering over the houses across the road and making its way to the green space just a few doors in readiness for landing. This has happened a few times before. The last time a helicopter landed in the green space it was because one of our Royal family members was bestowing a visit upon our neighbourhood. It was Prince Edward visiting Bede Academy which is just a few minutes away from my home. In previous times, I wasn’t quick enough to grab my beat-up old camera in order to take photos of the event. Well this time, I got a couple of snaps. So, here’s a photo of the helicopter shortly after landing and a photo of Prince Edward walking from the helicopter to the waiting car ready to take the Prince to the school.

 

A couple of weeks ago it was hunky firemen and this week it was a Royal!!! I wonder what will happen this Friday???

With summer looming, life just seems so much better. I look forward to every single day. That isn’t to say that every day is a great day but I pick and choose all the positive aspects of life to focus on. I am on another creative journey at the moment. The project I have been designing is coming together nicely. I’m making plenty of time to concentrate on it. Creativity is my drug of choice. I stay away from drama and toxic people. They seem to put a damper on life which I don’t appreciate considering that I do my best not affect anyone else in adverse ways. Life is simply too short.

Well that’s my report for this week. I am so looking forward to seeing what my garden is going to look like in six weeks time. So, tell my how does your garden grow these days??? I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something you truly enjoy doing. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching.

Lucie x

SUNNY MOTHER’S DAY

Hello my lovelies on this glorious sunny Mother’s Day.  It’s the perfect day here in my little corner of the northeast of England. The sun is shining, the birds are singing and I’m just mooching about doing something and nothing.

I have a wee bit of sewing news. I am slowly making progress on my latest hand quilting project. I am thoroughly enjoying the quiet repetitive soothing hand stitching. Everyone should hand quilt at least one patchwork or whole cloth quilt in their lifetime. So, feast your peeps on this …..

Contrary to popular belief my quilting stitches aren’t all even. And my chosen quilting design won’t be to everyone’s taste. And I’m sure the quilting police would have plenty to say about my appliqué work, however, this project wasn’t designed to please anyone else but me. I have learned not to take life too seriously. I think finished is much better than perfect. I am so pleased with the result of this project so far, that I will be hanging it on the wall for all to see. Warts and all.

I had a little stroll in my garden this morning. My garden isn’t huge, so when I say a little stroll, I’m not kidding. The sunshine and blue sky makes me feel like I live in a castle, albeit a small one. I digress, the point is, I found some lovely growth. My tree peony has flower buds on it …..

I never really liked this tree peony but it fills quite a large space in a back border and also gives me some privacy from the neighbours. Also my peony shrub is making good progress …..

My borders are in need of a little more pruning and mulching. All in good time.

As I mentioned earlier, today is Mother’s Day in the UK. So, to all the special mamas today, I wish you a very special day spending time with your children and grandchildren of all ages.

 

Well I guess that’s my report for this week. It’s been quite an interesting week. And good progress is being made in all aspects of my life. I hope you’re all having a super cosy day doing things you truly enjoy doing. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching.

Lucie x

SUNNY SUNDAY SPECIAL

Hello my lovelies on this super-duper sunny Sunday. It’s bright and breezy here in my little corner of the northeast of England. It was so lovely this morning that I stepped out and did some digging and pruning in the garden. I had a Clematis that needed some tender loving care. It looks a lot less wild and woolly now that I have given it a short back and sides trim. It always feels so good when you see the fruits of your labour. My garden is going to be a wonderful place this summer.

I have been a little busy in the sewing department this past week. I recently found a little pile of UFOs which I have made a start on finishing up. Today’s particular show and tell is a whimsy that I designed and pieced 2012/2013. I can’t believe that I didn’t finish it at the time of piecing of it. I added the finishing touches, a few buttons to embellish, a few days ago. And it now hangs in my living room. I am so pleased with the finished result.

So, the moral of this story is don’t give up on your UFOs. You may lose interest in them but once they are finished, you will have a great sense of accomplishment.

I have another little bit of progress to show you. Most of you will know that machine quilting is my preference but this little UFO is being hand quilted …..

I have kept this hand quilting job simple. I have used rulers and circle template shapes to mark the quilting. And so far, it’s looking pretty good. I can’t wait to finish this job so I can show you. I think everyone should have a hand quilting project on the go at all times. It’s a wonderful quiet technique that looks so good once it’s finished. It’s a relaxing occupation that brings much satisfaction. Once again, I will have a great sense of accomplishment once this one is finished.

So, tell me. What have you been working on lately? Have you got some hand sewing on the go or are you a machine girl like me? After this little taster of hand quilting, I think I will make a conscious effort to do more. The secret to my enjoyment is to keep it simple, choose your own quilting designs and use a nice thread.

Well I guess that’s my report for this week. I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something you truly enjoy doing. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching.

Lucie x

A TASTE OF HAND QUILTING

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’ve all been enjoying a fine spring day. We’ve supposedly seen the back end of Storm Gareth but the wind is still mighty strong. I stepped out into the garden this morning to pick the litter blown into my borders and that wind was soooo strong. When I finished my little litter picking session my garden was sparkling clean. My new garden waste bin is almost full and will be ready for collection next week.

I have done a little more sewing since I last posted. Every new quilting stitch, whether by hand or machine, brings me closer to a better life. So, working on my big bag and putting the finishing touches on it feels great. I used some of my very favourite background fabric and some funky bright fabric to piece this big bag.

And of course, I added a bright half Dresden Plate to jazz it up and some bright side ties. All in all, it’s a pretty simple project but very useful for what I want to use it for. Can you guess what I’ll be using this bag for? No?

I will be storing my hand quilting project in it while I’m not working on it …..

This is a UFO from years ago. I came across it while I was searching for something else, quite a happy find. I have started the process by stabilising the centre block and its patches.

I’m planning on giving it a simple quilting job. I am a great fan of geometric designs. So, I will be hand stitching nesting circles all over the centre block. I’m not sure how I will proceed with the rest of it yet. By the time I have finished quilting the centre I will probably know exactly what to do with the next section.

So, it’s been a good day in my little world. All little work and a little play make for a happy well lived life. We all have a different definition of a well lived life. My definition is to stay away from drama, be the best me that I can be and I keep my expectations at a reasonable level. I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something you truly enjoy. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching, it really does make life better.

Lucie x

DAFFODIL FIND

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’re all enjoying the tail end of winter. Because I have friends and family in Canada, I know that the weather has been horrendous lately. In Québec, they have had so much snow and then rain and then snow and more rain. When things start to thaw, they’re going to have fun and games. While here in the UK today, we’ve had super brilliant sunshine. I went outside to take a photo of my daffodils and I could hear the birds singing beautifully. It was up rather uplifting listening to the birds for a few minutes.

While I was outside, I spotted these lonely snowdrops sitting there looking pretty sad. I think I’ll plant a few more snowdrops to keep these lonely ones company in years to come.

It’s been a busy company of weeks. We’re finally putting the house back in order after a decorating job. Deciding what pictures to hang where seems to be our most difficult decision at the moment.

I do have a little bit sewing to show you. I have been doing some hand quilting recently. I finished the job over the weekend. Have a little look at this simple but interesting hand quilting.

I took a couple of simple circle templates and used them over and over again to produce this quilting design. Sometimes it’s the simplest things that bring interest to a project. Now that I have finished this little project, I have a hankering to work on another hand quilting project. So, watch this space.

Now that spring is just around the corner, I’m feeling so much perkier. Quite a while ago, I decided that I would always choose to look at the positive aspects of life which I believe enables us to lead happier lives. Never expect someone else to make you happy. You have to choose to be happy.

It’s been a pretty fulfilling weekend in my little corner of the northeast of England. The days are getting longer and the temperature is rising. I may be wrong but we may have escaped having anymore winter storms. Autumn is my favourite time of year but spring comes in a close second. I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something you truly enjoy. Until next time,

Let’s keep on stitching, because a little stitching makes life better.

Lucie x

 

TIME TO FRAME

Hello my lovelies. I hope you’ve all had an enjoyable day. I’ve spent most of my day mooching about. I did a few chores and I did a little bit of sewing.

Let’s start with the little bit of sewing I did this morning. I believe Susan asked in one of her comments if my Sarah and I would be working on projects together. This next project shows how we work together. This simple apron which I stitched up today was made using one of Sarah’s designs which we had printed up. This cotton twill is the perfect weight for aprons and bags. This apron is a little gift for someone who needs cheering up at the moment. I’m quite pleased with the finished result. I’m planning on making one or two more aprons using Sarah’s fabric in the near future.

I’ve been missing fine hand appliqué work. My latest whimsy is fusible appliqué and there’s no hand stitching involved. Just to prove to myself that this latest whimsy would look just as good done using freezer and fine hand stitching I did one block …..

And I went on to add a little hand quilting in the ditch and blocked it ready to frame in a shadow box frame. My Sarah added a little colour to my plain wooden frame and it’s drying now. I’m looking forward to seeing how my little quilt will look once in the frame.

I was tracing template shapes on Bondaweb this afternoon. Before I put the templates away I placed them on the layout sheet which I drew a couple of days ago. My drawings look so much better with colour on them. Even cereal box cardboard templates look good! In fact, my blocks look a lot better than my drawings. Colour and pattern bring everything to life.

It’s been a lovely day in my little world. We’ve had a steady blustery breeze blowing all day due to Storm Hector but the sun has been bright and cheerful. I enjoyed the time I spent in my sewing room creating something using Sarah’s fabrics. I wonder what tomorrow will bring. Being creative is my passion.

So, I guess that’s my report for today. I hope you all have a super cosy evening doing something you truly enjoy doing. Until next time,

Let’s all keep on stitching.

Lucie x