Just a little sewing

 These are quilt blocks that I put together for one of the guilds I belong to. I requested 4 kits thinking I had time during the summer to get them done. The first one was a challenge. Those triangles (the sky) on either side of the roof had to be sewn in one way only. If they were switched, the sides were not straight. I think I unsewed them twice at least if not 3 times. As you can see, the top piece (the sky) is a tad longer. 

The block is supposed to measure 5" by 8.5" and the instructions said to use a scant 1/4" seam for all seams except the roof part which could be sewn with a full 1/4 inch. Well, try as I might, it was not to be. The 5 inches was fine but even with scant seam allowances, it only measures 8.25". I have to say that I did not cut the pieces out. The kits were pre-cut and you just had to sew them together.

The templates were all in the kit too and as you can see, the template for the roof does not match the piece of fabric that was cut for the roof. However, the piece that was cut was the correct size.

After sewing all four kits/blocks together, I finally figured out why they were not finishing to 8.5". As you can see, the sky fabric is 1/4" too long.

The 1/4" extra should have been added to the height of the piece, not the length. That is why all of my 4 blocks finish at 8.25" instead of 8.5". Apparently, no one has mentioned a problem with their kits. I don't know how many of these small house blocks were taken by the guild members because there were log cabin blocks and bigger house blocks to put together too.

While I was in England, my daughter requested a new cover for the nursing pillow that I had made her a few years before. It was made with that rainbow coloured flannel. She wanted a plain cotton on top because she felt that the flannel would be too warm for the summer. Well, I didn't buy any fabric but my son-in-law was getting rid of some brand new shirts that had logos on them. They seemed to be wide enough.

I put the nursing pillow on top of the shirt and used a pencil to draw around the pillow making sure to add seam allowances. It was all sewn by hand (back stitch for strength) since my daughter had sold the little sewing machine that I had used previously. Here, you can see that I left an opening in the outer edge so that I could slip the pillow in. I made sure to clip the curves.

All done. Not perfect but where there's a will, there's a way.

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

 TODAY CANADA IS 155 YEARS OLD.

The old and the new in England

Over the years I have made a few aprons for family members. I don't have to make any for myself since I still wear the ones that my mom made. I love her full aprons and even though I use a different pattern, they are still a full apron. I don't think I have ever made an apron that doesn't have a top or 'bib' part to it.

I found this in my daughter's kitchen drawer when I was visiting her family not long ago. I always wear an apron if I am cooking or washing dishes.

The fabric has candies on it. I still have some of it left and should really use it up. Perhaps a Hallowe'en bag? Or included in a string quilt? I have no idea when or why I acquired the fabric.

This is my latest knitting project.

It's a Wee Speedy 2 pattern - free on Ravelry. I had purchased the yarn a few years ago. I saw this little sweater in the window of my local yarn store window in a yellow/gold colour and was then tempted to go in and ask about the pattern and yarn. They had no more of the yellow/gold colour but they did have this lovely denim colour. It's cotton and thick and thin yarn. When I asked about the pattern, I was told that it was a free Ravelry pattern and so I purchased the yarn intending to make it but never did - until a couple of months ago. This will fit the little newborn who is now named Phinneaus Hunter Oak. It took quite some time to decide on a name that both parents were pleased with. I'm sure he will end up being called Finn.

Testing patterns

 For several years now I have been a tester for various quilt pattern designers.

This is my latest test pattern. I wanted to use the pattern to make it look like a flower. I finished it at 12 inches and it should have been 12.5. I may have lost some pattern by using regular photocopy paper instead of something lighter and thinner.

It's great when I get to use my stash for pattern testing. I spent a lot of time finding the right fabrics for this one. I was surprised that I had enough of the blue water fabric to complete this pattern. This took a while since it was a biggy at 30 inches square.

Both of these were paper pieced patterns.

I will point out here that I don't just test the patterns themselves but I also read the instructions over carefully to make sure there are no grammar, punctuation  or spelling errors or size discrepancies.

Number 13

The number 13 is not an unlucky number in our house. My husband's birthday, his mom's and brother's birthdays were the 13th and my eldest daughter got married on the 13th. 

I became a grandmother for the 13th time on June 15th. It's a little boy and he broke the tie. I did have six granddaughters and six grandsons but now, I have seven. Both mom (my youngest daughter) and baby are doing fine and at home. This lucky little guy has a 4 year old brother and twin 2 year olds. While the twins weren't too sure about him in the beginning, they are accepting of him now.

No name yet but he was 6 lbs. 12 oz.

Another baby quilt to be made soon...