Thursday 30 June 2011

Winners! and runner up special!

OK, I tried inserting a Random Generator here, but it didn't work quite how I was hoping!
 
However I can tell you that Mr Random Generator came up with :
 
No 7
 
and
 
No 13
 
Sooooo.......
 
No 7 -  Jo said...
Both mags look wonderful I just thing the projects you showed are great! Count me in for the giveaway!
28 June 2011 01:27
and  

No 13 -
Blogger gill said...

Count me in please Trudi!
Is the Inspirational Projects magazine coming out soon???
28 June 2011 08:48


So ladies, if you would like to e-mail me with your snail mail I'll be happy to get a copy of each magazine in the post to you :) 

And for everyone else that entered there is a Runner up Prize from Traplet Publications just for you  - 

"receive a copy for
£6.99/us$13.99  p&p/s&h if they call customer services on 01684 588599 and quote code PQTRUDY. "

This is a limited time offer so be quick.  A new issue of the Inspirations Magazine is currently being put together and will be released at Festival of Quilts, I understand.   The July issue of British Patchwork and Quilting Magazine is in the shops right now!

Thank you to Traplet Publications for the magazines and special offer, generous indeed  :) 

I'll be back soon with a finish! 

Happy Quilting!




Monday 27 June 2011

Inspirational Indeed!

I told you last week about the package I got from the lovely people at Traplet Publications.



well.....

They asked me to do a review of their latest magazine "Inspirational"  and I was thrilled to be able to sit down and have a good read this weekend in between all that jam and chutney   :) 



There is wide selection of projects which will interest the broadest of quilters 



Each project is well laid out, with a profile of the designer, all the usual requirements along with clear instructions


a staged picture showing the project at it's best as well as a layout shot of the whole project.  This is always useful as so many of us work in such different ways.   The visual reference is, in my humble opinion a winner for all


As well as some fabulous projects, there are some great stories from the magazine contributors, I particularly enjoyed reading about other quilters stash's  - something I find fascinating,

there are plenty of projects to whet the appetite ...


Carol, (aka Mamacjt)  :)  this one made me think of you! 

I love the quilting on this Art Deco purse, although this one is hand quilted I can see the possibilities for machine quilting and so much more!  And the pattern is included too!

Inspirational indeed!

So, if you are still with me, do you fancy a GIVE AWAY?

You do? 

Well, I have two copies of Inspirational Magazine,

AND

two copies of July issue of British Patchwork and Quilting Magazine

If you'd like to win a copy of each (yes 2 winners!) 

Leave a comment, just one comment each,

if you want to blog about it, shout out to your friends, then feel free ...

Come back on Wednesday and I'll announce the winners and maybe something else too!

Happy Quilting! 



Sunday 26 June 2011

A Sticky Farmers Wife!

Sticky is sticky does! 

Why did I choose this weekend to make 3 Lb of Tayberry Jam, 3 Lb of Gooseberry jam, 6 Lb of Strawberry Jam and about 6 lb of Gooseberry Chutney? 

Mad?  Definitely, considering it hit 30 degrees today!  Talk about a sticky mess! 

But I finally, after digging my way out of my studio, got to play Farmers Wife for a while! 


Look, it has it's own box!  I've gone with the Prince Charming FQ's, and will mix in a good dose of Amy Butlers, and anything else that takes my fancy :) 


So these are my first two blocks.  And now I know why everyone is saying how addictive these are! 

If you are one of the few people out there in Blogland that hasn't taken the leap, head over the the Flickr page and take a good look at all those fabulous blocks  ...  then head to your favourite book store or site and get a copy if you don't already have it nestling in your quilting library!  (Tell me I'm not the only one with a personal quilting library - right?) 

I tried to load other pics for you, but Blogger wasn't playing, so they will have to wait for another day, which means you'll be back soon, right? 

Happy Quilting!


Friday 24 June 2011

A bit of a Dilemma

If you didn't read about it last time round, you can read about my quilty dilemma here today  :)


Heather and Megan asked me if I would share a post with them a while back, and of course I was delighted to be asked!

There's a button over there on the right, go take a look around their very inspirational blog, I promise, it's worth the trip :)

Happy Quilting!

Thursday 23 June 2011

Surprised? - I was gobsmacked!

When I got home from my little soiree to the capital, ...

speaking of which, did I mention how weird it was being shown round by a New Yorker? Ironic right? 

Well, back to the point, I got home to a couple of messages about this ....


Yes, that 'sme, right there!  In full blown technicolour print! 

I have been featured in the July issue of British Patchwork and Quilting Magazine, in their regular feature of Wandering the Web. 

And the lovely people at Traplet Publications have sent me a little package that arrived today!


So, what's the catch I hear you asking, well no catch, come back soon cos I'll be giving you a chance to win those there magazines for yourself. 

and maybe a little extra!

Tuesday 21 June 2011

Catching myself coming the other way ...

You might need to settle in for this one!  It's been busy around here!

I got the binding on the bricks quilt ...


and I'm half way round hand stitching it down ...

I got my siggy block for Victoria made ...


deadline looming and I got to hand deliver!

Went to LQS last week and made a pile of these lovelies ...


oh... and there may have been some new fabrics involved ... 


did I really need to start a new quilt ?  Yes, of course, what's one more right?

On Friday I hopped on the train and sped down to London to hand deliver that siggy block above to V!


We hopped on the tube and shopped, Hamleys, Liberty's and VVRouloux,  I haven't got any pics of the booty yet, I must go do that for next time.

We went to the Natural History Museum..


Great window, huh?

And the V & A ....


and were surrounded by inspiration everywhere!

It was a hoot!

Monday afternoon at the Many Jeans I was hand sewing the binding on the bricks, and then at the Pea Room we had a session on Kantha....


yes, me hand stitching!  More work to do on this ....

And today I was at a workshop with Sheena Norquay, doing shining circles...



Doesn't look much... but I was thrilled at how the metallic threads played happily in my Bernie...



still a lot of work to be done on this, I'll update you when I'm done,....

In the mean time, I need to go sort out the fall out...





with so many projects on the go, work in the morning, and feeling like I've not stopped for the last couple of weeks, I really need to get this lot back into order ....

but...  whilst I was down the allotment yesterday morning I came home with these...


lots, and lots, and lots .... that all need topping, tailing washing and freezing, jamming, chutney'ing

I have other news too....

More on that later  :) 

So whats first, ironing, gooseberries, or tidying the studio?
(when all I really want to do is finish hand stitching that binding down!)

Happy quilting till next time!


Saturday 11 June 2011

Christmas Quilt Along - Part 4

Time's up!  Well for me anyway  :) 

I got my Stars made ...


I'm really enjoying this quilt along, thank you Sue and Cathy :)

And this is the jam I made this morning...


1.5 Kg of strawberries freshly picked from the allotment yesterday evening.  Now it's ready to remind me of the summer long after it has gone  :) 

I hope you all had a productive day! 

Happy Quilting!


Christmas Quilt Along - Part 3

Now these are better...


I had a rummage in the scrap bin and my hand fell on the little selvedge strips from the It's a Hoot strips I had from Seamstar that made the quilt from this morning. 


I've been wanting to try this for ages, I sewed them onto a calico backing first.


I didn't want them both to be same, well, they're not, but you know what I mean....


So using a little inspiration from the last round of the scrappy mug rug swap...


I added a little alternative....

which has given me another idea! 


These new ones have wool wadding and walnut shells in them, and that's so much better!  The shells give them a nice weight too! 

The Diva is home from a shopping spree in town and it's time for a nice cup of tea!  This evening I'll tackle my Scatty Christmas Stars  ....

And maybe Plan B! 

Christmas Quilt Along - Part 2

Ok, I know I said pincushions, but I finished the quilting on this one first. 




Honestly there was only an hours worth left to do, so now it's off the frame, trimmed and ready for me to make the binding and get that sewn on.




Bonus!

Ok, you really want to see the pincushion, don't get too excited, it's not my thing really, and I'll make my excuses now ... lol   I could not find any poly wadding to use for stuffing at all!  Really can you believe it!


So not the bestest pincushion in the world,  since Hobbs 80/20 isn't the best thing to be stuffing a pincushion with.  Ooops, prior planning needed for this task.


And as you can see, it's not the worlds biggest either! 

I have since found a little (minuscule) scrap of wool wadding which should work wonderfully, and I have some crushed walnut shells for the next one  :) 

or perhaps I should resort to Plan B!

toodles for now!


Unseasonal June

It's that time of month again to join Sue over at Quilt Times for the Christmas Quilt Along!

I'm almost ready, all the washing is done, and on the line, and hopefully will be dry before the rain showers start, another batch of Strawberry jam is cooling on the side, and like Sue, I may or may not waft a little dust around before I head on down to the bottom of the garden for some sewing action! 

The Teenage Diva is still in sleep mode, so I may get something done before the she wakes  :)

The plan?  Oh yeah, I need one of them!  Pincushions!

Don't forget to go check out the Linky to see what everyone else is doing, and come back later to see how I'm doing!

Happy Quilting!




Friday 10 June 2011

Nice quilt ... BUT!

I promised a finish, and a finish I give you ....


This Portuguese tiles quilt has been a top for at least a year!  But it's quilting time had come!


I'm really pleased with the all over quilting design, and how it looks and plays out on the quilt design...


... and I just LOVE this little design the Emily and I fell upon at the last quilt retreat....

But.....

... when I put it on the bed ....


it just didn't make me happy.   I mean, I love the quilt, but it's just not a summer quilt is it?  I'm the sort of girl that changes the quilt on the bed with the weather, my mood, well, just because I'm bored with it and it's time for a change.  Are you the same, or is it just me and my quilts? 

So this is what was on the bed beforehand....


pretty, flowery, summery, nice enough....

But I was ready for a change, and the new quilt just doesn't holler from the roof tops to me at the moment, so it was back to my all time fave!


Gotta love Amy Butler fabrics to make you happy! 

So now I'm looking for the perfect pattern to make a summer quilt with these....


Oh, did I forget to tell you ....  Ooops, they made me buy them!  Really they did!

Happy Quilting!