Sweet Mary

This morning as I listened to the weather report for the next few days and realised that I would probably not be finishing those last few jobs in the garden, I quickly realised that a rainy weekend would be the ideal time to sit and quilt, maybe get a few good DVDs in as well. Back in May I blogged about the delights of the "five inch square" and the simple but colourful quilt I was making with these squares. Yesterday I layered the quilt sandwich and basted it with bright green thread, figuring the green would stand out amongst all that colour. This afternoon I will start on the hand quilting with embroidery thread which is a first for me. I got the idea from here and have decided it will give that vintage look that I so love about hand stitched quilts, especially after they are washed and get that "pumfy" look.

For my birthday this year my sister gave me a book voucher. I knew straight away what I wanted to buy with it so I put my order into our local Poppies bookshop. Within the week this fabulous book by Jane Brocket was waiting for me to pick up. I follow Jane's blog anyway and had read her tantalising snippets about her new book. She has a very special talent with words and pictures. The book is beautifully photographed and Jane writes about quilts in such a way that I found myself constantly nodding in agreement. The front cover is printed to resemble a quilt. Can I say beautiful again? Naturally, I am inspired to make another quilt, this time for myself. Surprisingly, I have never made one for our bed although I have made quilts for family and friends. My favourite combination is red, white and blue so I have been pulling out some of my stash to get some ideas. Last December I used up a lot of my red fabric stash on Christmas bunting so I think I may just have to collect some m...

At work this afternoon making lavender hearts in bulk for the spring and summer fairs coming up where I will be running my Sweet Mary stall. I will post dates and venues as they get confirmed though I do know the first one will be Porangahau Spring Fair at Chapelwick Coastal Estate on Sunday 27th September. These are the first two quilts I ever made. The left for my daughter and the right for my son - as they are 20 and 23 now I can happily say that my sewing and quilting skills have greatly improved over the years. These quilts have been washed and used many times and bring back such a wave of great memories. I was inspired to post this photo after looking at this blog - click here . All winter I have been keeping a look out for fabrics to use in my Sweet Mary business - these gorgeous ones arrived today from the U.S. Shopping for fabric online opens up a whole new world but one where you have to have to be a tad careful. It can feel a little like being a kid in a sweetie shop. L...

I love collecting things and I especially love collecting fabric and things made out of fabric. Some of these quilts were bought new and some were made by myself and one or two of them have been rescued from secondhand shops. The second shelf down holds two small quilts on top of two larger ones. These are the most precious ones in my collection as they are the two I made for my children when they were very small. They were my first attempts and not very well made but bring back so many good memories every time I handle them . Even though they have been washed many times I am sure I can still smell my babies on them. When not in use my quilts have often been hidden away but not any more. I am now the proud owner of this lovely piece of furniture bought from Redcurrent . Every time I pass I have a quick glance over my quilts and smile a bit to myself. My sisier-in-laws birthday today and as she had given me the idea for this style of peg bag I thought she should receive the first one....