Fabulous give away at Stitching Cow

Just  a quick note to let you know that I have just launched a fabulous give away on the Stitching Cow blog.
Head on over there right now to discover how to improve your sewing skills and go in the draw to win an amazing prize worth over $100.
 Good luck!
Warmly Lenna

Tacking or Basting a Quilt

Tacking or Basting a quilt is an exciting step because it means your quilt is almost finished.

I'm very excited to let you know that my new nursery rhyme block of the month quilt was at this stage a few weeks ago.

Here it is on my worktable as I was hand tacking it in preparation for hand quilting. I always start down on the floor but it is agony on my knees (I have floor boards!!!), so once I get a few lines of tacking in place I put it up higher.

 

 

Speaking of tacking out a quilt for hand quilting, I thought I would share a few  tips with you.

If you have tacked out a quilt before you will understand that after a while your fingers become very sore from picking up the needle. A tip to avoid this is to use a teaspoon (yes you heard me right). When your needle comes up from the back place the teaspoon underneath and you will find that it is much easier to pick up. Because the pressure is on the spoon and not your fingers it takes all the discomfort out of it. 

Although use an old teaspoon rather than one out of you best cutlery set because it can get scratched from the needle.

Another tip is to use a contrasting thread that is easy to see. This will make pulling out the tacking much easier at another stage. I also work from the centre out and always knot off into the border of the batting rather than the quilt top. Working a row close to the outside edge is another tip which will ensure that your binding goes on without a single pucker.

Hope you have found these tips for tacking or basting a quilt useful.

Warmly Lenna

www.stitchingcow.com

Story by an Obsessed Quilt Maker

We patchwork and quilters are strange creatures aren't we?
Well perhaps not strange but amusing.
Last week my youngest sister brought into the world the most precious little girl you can imagine.
Our family was overjoyed, it has been years since we had a new baby to enjoy and fuss over.

Of course my mind immediately turned to designing something special to help celebrate the occasion.

My fingers were literally itching wanting to create something wonderful.
I had been holding off until we knew whether a girl or boy quilt was in order.

My sister had visualized us having a sewing day together,
which was to take place when I visited from interstate. She had planned an occasion like this before and
I knew from experience that the truth of the matter was that I sewed frantically while she made coffee and chatted. Not being a sewer herself I think my frantic cutting sewing and deliberating over fabric choices amuses her although she is always very appreciative of my efforts and we manage to
talk constantly over the whir of the sewing machine and share some special hours, so I do not mind the arrangement at all.

Keeping all this in mind I literally dived head first into my sewing cupboard and started grabbing fabrics that I thought would be suitable for the new quilt. Trouble was the pile of fabrics started growing so tall that I knew I could never fit them all into my suitcase or hide them from my hubby who would have shaken his head in disbelief and considered me a bit mad I'm sure.

I soon realized that a quick email to my sister was needed to help determine a colourway to design with.
Thank goodness she had taken the lap top to hospital which meant that my problem was soon solved and the fabric pile was reduced to half. I was then able to stuff the piles of fabric between my socks and bras before hubby could notice.

Then of course there was the rotary cutter, rulers, cutting mat, threads, needles...etc etc.
Luckily I zipped up the suitcase before he entered the bedroom, hence avoiding any uncomfortable questions.
although he did comment in disbelief that I had chosen the biggest of our suitcases to take on the trip despite the fact I was only going for a weeks visit. 

And of course there were more comments as he heaved the heavy suitcase out to the car.
Truth is he even made me weigh it as we passed the scales in the bathroom so as not to face an excess luggage charge when we reached the airport.
Thankfully I was just under the limit and did not have to unzip my luggage and reveal my deed and secret fabric stash!

Before long I was on my way, nestled in the comfort of the aeroplane seat, fabrics tucked in safely below.

As I closed my eyes to rest my thoughts turned to the wonderful feeling of cuddling a new born baby and the special quilt we would create together just for her.

Block of the Month Quilt - Block 8

Being a keen gardener I had heaps of fun sewing the last block for my new Block of the Month Quilt design.

The nursery rhyme Mary Mary Quite Contrary was always of interest to me as a small child. I remember pouring over the illustrations seeking out the flowers that had been depicted. It amused me that cockle shells were in Mary's garden because I was a country girl who lived far from the sea. I wasn't familiar with shells and the thought of having them in the garden seemed strange. Now living in Tasmania, a small island surrounded by the sea, the idea of using cockle shells as a garden edge doesn't seem nearly so strange.
Although I chose not to include shells in my design I wanted to include Mary and of course a watering can.
I came across some wonderful photos of old watering cans and thought I would share them with you.












Aren't they amazing!
I have an old watering can that I use for my garden which is the one I used for inspiration for my block design.





















And of course there are some flowers with little Yo Yo centres.





















And some embroidered Fox Gloves
















Now it's time to work on the border .
Until next time.
Warmly Lenna

Block of the Month Pattern Hickety Pickety

When I was a little girl my grandparents had a few chooks to keep them in eggs. They started with three but as the years went by only one remained. She was a homely little black chook that went by the name of "Murtle".


Unfortunately I do not have a photo of Murtle, but this is what she looked like although I think she was a little plumper.

I have very fond memories of Murtle. When visiting, my Grandmother would invite me to check for eggs. This was always an exciting job because we did not have any chickens at home. Discovering a warm egg in the nest was a thrill!

But the best part was that Murtle was always happy to see me. She was not the kind of chook that chased you around the chicken coop, and she was not the kind to sit on her eggs all day long. This pleased me immensely because reaching underneath a chook to gather eggs was far too much of a mystery for a small child. Who knows what I would find or accidentally grab.

Murtle seemed only too happy for me to collect her egg when I visited. And what made the exercise even more memorable was the little hand woven basket my grandmother had made for the purpose. It was barely large enough to hold 3 small eggs, and made of thick twine so that the eggs were cushioned from the clumsy nature of small hands.

Murtle lived for many years and was a comfort to my Grandmother while she lived on her own. Then one day Murtle died.

A few years later when my Grandmother passed away we returned to her home. While sorting through her things I was delighted to find the little basket, a little swashed but still in good condition.



Its uncovering was perfect because I now had small children of my own and some pet chooks, one for each of them. They were exactly like the ones shown in the photo here. Their names were Fluffy, Scruffy and Peck.

So the little basket came home with me that day and into the hands of the next generation of egg gatherers.

But each time I see it I think of my Grandmother and her black chook Murtle.

In light of this story you will understand why I had to include Hickety Pickety in my new Nursery Rhyme Quilt design.
Hope you like her.


































Until next time.
Warmly Lenna

Block of the Month Quilting Pattern - Twinkle Twinkle

I've just finished another Block for my new block of the month quilting pattern. This week it's all about Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
Truth is I was not happy with my fist idea for this block so went back to the drawing board and came up with a new design.

Stars are such wonderful things aren't they? Its no wonder that they inspire so many craft people.
Here are a few photos for you to enjoy.

Star in wool, is he knitted or crocheted?



Timber button stars, wish these were amongst my button collection!



Knitted stars ready for felting



Hand pieced stars in lovely fabrics



Which brings me to my star inspired block.
With a few hand pieced stars of my own...













and a small village on the hill.




































Twinkle Twinkle Little Star has always been one of the favourite nursery rhymes. I have very find memories of my children when they were younger beaming with delight as they performed the actions as I sang along. I can still see their chubby little fingers being twinkling stars.

Have you ever incorporated stars into one of your sewing projects?
Feel free to leave a comment and share your project ideas with others.

Until next time!
Warmly Lenna
www.stitchingcow.com

Kids Sewing Ideas from Little Green Cottage

This month Creating Country Threads Magazine has a kids sewing theme which I am very proud to be apart of.




I strongly believe that teaching kids how to sew is very important. It's a skill that they could benefit from for the rest of their lives.

From a very early age each of my three children showed an interest in learning how to sew. This probably had something to do with the fact that their mum was often sewing and hence they wanted to be a part of the action.

At first they were happy just to play with the contents of my ribbon box and then soon progressed to threading buttons onto string and then to sewing around a design that was drawn onto cardboard. Before long they were sewing with felt and then fabric.

For years I enjoyed teaching groups of kids how to sew during school holidays. My classes were always full to over flowing and I enjoyed seeing the delight on their little faces when they creating something special. This lead me to designing some simple kids sewing patterns which can be found on the Stitching Cow website.

When Creating Country Threads contacted to ask if I would like to contribute to their kids sewing special naturally I was thrilled. I designed a simple project suitable for a little girl's bedroom. It incorporates fusible webbing and simple appliqué. My kids always loved sewing on buttons so I decided to add this element into the design as well.




































I also designed a cute angel ideal for hanging on a door knob.





















So if you have a little person in your life who would like to learn how to sew, then you must grab your own copy of Creating Country Threads this month.



















There are some fabulous kids sewing ideas for you to discover.


















Feel free to leave a comment about the types of projects you have enjoyed whilst sewing with kids.

And don't forget to check out the other kids sewing pattern ideas in the kids section of the Stitching Cow website.

Until next time happy stitching!
Warmly Lenna
www.stitchingcow.com