Little Boxes

This week, the knitted gloves have been put down for a while.

 

Earlier in the week, I treated myself to a wonderful quilting book by Amanda Jean Nyberg and Cheryl Arkison. It's called Sunday Morning Quilts and is all about using up your fabric scraps. As I hate throwing anything away, I couldn't resist it.

Also I follow Amanda's blog Crazy Mom Quilts which I love reading and find it gives me lots of inspiration.

So this bank holiday weekend, I've been sorting my scraps and making little patchwork boxes (from a pattern in the book) to store my scraps in.

 

The boxes are made using scraps of the colour of the scraps they are going to store .....if that makes sense!!

They are great fun to make!

 

So far I've made a purple one....

See all my scraps neatly folded....kind of!

and a pink one....

 

 

......and I'm halfway through making a blue one :)

 

 

All my favourite colours first :)

 

Once I've made enough boxes and sorted all the scraps, I am looking forward to making some of the lovely quilts from the book.

Hope you're enjoying these last few days of August.......it's raining here today......good excuse to make some more boxes!

See you soon,

 

Maggie xx

Fab Floral Finds!

We've just come home to find this gorgeous gladiolus flower! I thought I had moved the corms to a different part of the garden and since then they haven't done so well. But this was the one that got away (or stayed where it was!) :)

We've spent a lovely few days away in Devon with Chris' family.

Terrible weather but lots of wonderful crafting :)

I tried out silk painting for the first time. I really enjoyed it but didn't get on so well with the gutta (the waterproof outline) so I made a simple tie dye scarf. Here's a glimpse!

I still need to iron it under paper to seal the paint (and remove the creases!) I need lots more practice but it's definitely a craft I would like to try again.

Whilst away we managed to fit in a spot of shopping and found a couple of second hand/vintage shops along the way. I'm so pleased with a couple of gorgeous retro 70s duvet covers....here's a peek...

I love the colours.........

and I love the huge flowers!

Here they are freshly washed, hanging on the line.....

They'd brighten up anyone's day, wouldn't they?

I also took the opportunity to make a couple of patchwork blocks for my holiday quilt. I knew they would have to be simple blocks to cut and piece as I wouldn't have too much spare time.

So I chose to make the Neck Tie block....spotty tie with a checked shirt?!

And I also made the Whirlwind block as I'm sure there was a whirlwind outside our bedroom window for most of the holiday!

So now I have five blocks for my holiday quilt :) A few more to go yet but I'm so enjoying choosing and making the blocks!

I'd just like to say thank you to you for reading (and hopefully following) my blog. I love receiving your lovely comments :)

Maggie xx

Cute and Cosy Flannel Baby Quilt

So here it is......my completed (very cute and cosy) flannel baby quilt.......

Made from these gorgeous flannel fabrics......

...chosen by my lovely customer.......

Aren't they soooo sweet?

Cute little blue booties....

Adorable little baby clothes hanging on the line....

Playful bunnies....

Co-ordinating with cute spots, stripes and checks......

I love the cute backing fabric.....

....little teddies, romper suits, booties, vests, bibs.....

I'm so pleased my lovely customer is thrilled with this cosy baby quilt........

....so warm and snuggly for a winter baby :)

I'm also thrilled with it and I so loved making it....

.......working with these gorgeous fabrics was an absolute pleasure....

I hope you like it too :)

Maggie xx

Suddenly Obsessed with Knitted Fingerless Gloves....

Firstly...

Just a word about Spencer's Sunday Hats....

Spencer wanted to let you know that he really enjoys his Sunday Hats and sends a big woofy thanks for all the support you have given him. Due to the fact that we have run out of hats for the moment, he has decided that this will now be an occasional rather than a regular feature ;) 

In the meantime, Spencer wanted to remind you of his personal favourite.....the naval officer's cap!

Secondly....

Yes I know it's the summer and I should be thinking about making beach bags and summer skirts.....

But some reason I've become a little obsessed by knitted fingerless gloves!

I've made nearly four pairs in the last month!

I know why it is.

I haven't done any knitting for years.

And then I found this lovely easy peasy pattern on Ravelry by Roxanne Richardson....

In fact, I found it via one of the lovely blogs I follow. But I can't remember which! So if it's your blog or you know which blog it was, then please let me know and I'll mention it here :)

You can find Roxanne's lovely easy pattern here.

It's got me back into knitting as they're quick and easy and not too daunting :)

So my first pair I gave to Chris' Mum, Dorothy, as a birthday gift. They were light green and I hope she liked them!

Since then I have made two further pairs :)

Although I must admit I haven't sewn them up yet ;)

A pink pair.....

 A lilac pair.....

 And I am currently knitting a lemon pair......

I've especially loved knitting these gloves whilst travelling about in Harvey J as I don't have to think about the pattern too much!

I thought I might add crochet flowers or pretty buttons...

Something like this but smaller!

I think we all know what everyone is going to be getting in their Christmas stocking!

Yesterday evening I decided to search for some more patterns as I felt I could try something a bit more challenging.

Not too challenging mind, just a bit of variety..

And these are a few of the lovely (easy) patterns I found.......

These sweet Seed stitch gloves with a thumb wrap by plzsendchocolate on instructables.com....I might try these next ..... you can find the pattern here.

These gorgeous moss stitch hand warmers by Doris from I am what I knit ......

A bit more adventurous....these dainty diagonal eyelet hand warmers from Creative Yarn....so pretty and feminine...I love those little buttons :)

And this sock yarn looks really fun to use in this pattern from scarlettknits.........

Well I think these should keep me happy for a while! On the knitting front anyway!

Just click on the links above for any of the patterns :)

Now back to patchwork for a minute......this weekend I've been completing a gorgeous snuggly flannel baby quilt...here's a sneak peek....

I'm hoping to show you more when I've completed the quilt :)

Enjoy your Sunday!

Maggie xx