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Thursday 23 January 2014

Crazy Quilt Along 2014

The closest I have come in the past to any crazy patchwork was when I made these two panels from a slection of hand dyed fabrics and threads.

































For some reason I had never considered traditional crazy patchwork even though it combines the two things I love - patchwork and hand embroidery.

Some time last summer I came across Jennifer Clouston's blog Sew So Crazy!. I thought her work exquisite and enjoyed following her posts about her students work. In December Jennifer published her first book and I have treated myself to a copy of it. Her work is superb and there is so much inspiration in it.



Then in the autumn I was paired with Caroline Heinrich of Good Earth Quilting for a Christmas postcard swap. Carli is a great crazy quilter and sent me this beautiful postcard.


When she told me that she would be hosting a Crazy quiltalong starting in the New Year I signed up straight away!

And so finally to the point of this blog!

The Crazy Quilt  Along 2014 has started! We are going to make a wall hanging using four 12" blocks, one for each of the seasons. The first block, appropriately, is winter. I have chosen this picture of frosty cotoneaster as my inspiration.


Although I have to say there is very little frost around here this winter and this picture was taken last winter.

I have put together the patchwork background of my block.


And plan to do all the stitching in white or silver to make it look frosty.

I am a little unsure about the size of this - possibly a 9" block would suit me better - so I have marked a 9" square on the surface and will aim to fill that first and see how I feel about it!

I have been through all my threads and beads and have come up with this selection to work with.


So now it is all going in a box ready to take away to Spain with us in 10 days time when I hope to have some time for hand stitching.

I have another four new followers - welcome to Heather, Teresa and Linda from the Crazy Quilt Along and also to Karen. Thank you for dropping in.

Meanwhile I am looking forward to FNSI which is tomorrow.

Happy stitching

Lin


10 comments:

  1. It's a nice project. Hope to see it on your blog.

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  2. what a gorgeous new project, looking forward to seeing it come to life.
    Your new blog background is beautiful..

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  3. Hi Lin. Jennifer's book looks amazing and your postcard from Carli is just sweet. This quiltalong will be a great learning experience and lots of fun. I love the photo of all the embellishments you will use. Very pretty!

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  4. LIn, this blog post is so special and I just love how you've laid it out, much like this excellent start to a 'winter' block.
    Carli

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  5. Hi Lin I love the winter image really beautiful. Cant wait to see how to decorate the block with the treads and beads. Have a great time in Spain, hugs Susan x

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  6. Great start to your crazy quilting block. I think the embellishments you have chosen is lovely .

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  7. Visiting from FNSI. It's always fun to try something new and experiment. Lovely winters colours in your blocks.

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  8. A great idea to use a photo for your inspiration for your block. I am ready to gather my threads and beads for the embellishment. I am quite excited about this project. Looking forward to following everyone's progress.

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  9. Hi Lin,
    Thank you so much for this post! I will pass the message onto my students. I hope that you enjoy working with the book. Please share some of photos of your work with me.
    Regards
    Jenny

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  10. I love your hand dyed fabrics!! That sounds like a great project to me and you're off to a good start. Enjoy your trip to Spain and take lots of photos to share :-)

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