Chookshed Challenge April and the last week

 Happy to say that my Chookshed Challenge is finished and I have enjoyed working on this one in April.

This is the Wild Strawberry Scissor Point Cover, kit by Sue Hawkins

I already had the magnet needle holder which I made last year and they are going to live together in my hand quilting kit bag. Sue is always very generous with thread and I am hoping I may have enough left overs from both kits to make a matching thimble holder. Watch this space.

While working on this at Quilt group I was offered another of Sue's kits by a lady who had purchased it but didn't feel up to making it. Of course I said Yes Please!

This could be one for next years Chookshed list!

Also finished this week are the Winwick Mum Trailblazer socks which I started back in April.

I made these using West Yorkshire Spinners Passion Fruit Cooler 4ply sock yarn.

I think that is enough finishes for one week! I have of course been working on my Stitch Journal every day - here is my progress since my Easter post.

Happy stitching everyone.

Wings and Pretty Things - a finish!

 Way back in February 2021, Michelle very kindly sent me her notes for the beautiful Wings and Pretty Things quilt that she was making as I had said how much I too would love to make one. I found a beautiful range of fabrics called Rue 1800 designed by Three Sisters for Moda on an English website and ordered a selection.

I added in a few fabrics from my stash that worked with them and off I went.

Fast forward four years and I have a completed quilt!

During that time we not only moved house but also moved countries. But I loved doing all the applique - each block is different - and the hexagons, slowly building to a finished top in October 22.

I worked on the quilting over the winter of 23/24 and again 24/25 adding the last stitch in March. This month it was bound and I have finally been able to get some photographs. The one above in Show and Tell at my quilt group and the following in our garden. I will just say here that I don't think I have ever been able to capture the beautiful colours of the fabrics in my photographs! You will just have to come visit and see the real thing!

All hand applique and hand quilting.

I am of course absolutely delighted with my finish and have loved every step of making this quilt and a very special Thank You to Michelle for sharing her beautiful design.

See you soon for some more finishes!

AWOL!

 Well I hadn't expected to be gone for so long! I usually write at weekends but two weeks ago I had a cold which knocked me out for a couple of days and then last weekend I had a lovely few days away in Spain.

The occasion was the marriage celebrations of my nephew in Marbella, a truly global event and a wonderful day. My nephew and his wife flew in from Brussels - Marbella is her home town - and the celebrant, my brother, drove along the coast from Gibraltar.

Niece No1 flew in from Ghana via Morocco with her daughter

and niece No2 came from Melbourne with her eldest son.

Lovely to have all the family together for a while. Other guests came from around Europe, Argentina and Africa.

The dress was very Spanish and looked gorgeous with this traditional shawl.

I managed to creep into this one - I am lurking behind the groom!

Sadly it rained so we could not be outside under the pagoda. But there was live music to accompany the ceremony.

Beautiful flowers

and the food and wine flowed! There was live entertainment - the bride has a great voice

and dancing late into the night!

Some secret stitching happened and I made this little lavender heart for the bride.

In other stitching news Wings is finished - but no chance for photos as the weather has turned wet again.

My stitch journal progresses through April

and I am making good progress with my Chookshed Challenge.

Hopefully normal service will be resumed next week, in the mean time Happy Easter and I hope you have a great week.

March Stitch Journal and Aprils Challenge

 Just so quickly another month is over. First of all a picture of this past weeks stitches and I was on a couching roll!

And here is the whole of March.

Had a really lovely surprise when I opened up one of my dye jam jars at the weekend. These gorgeous greens came from red onion skins!

The two darker threads and the darker fabric are silk which takes the dye differently. The right hand lace was an ecru viscose, the rest are cotton and linen. Very happy with these as I have not had a darker green before. Stashing these away now for next years stitch journal.

And while I am here I can show you my #4 for the Chookshed Challenge. It is this lovely canvas work scissor keep. A great choice as I have a couple of flights coming up and this small project will be a perfect project to take with me.

Happy stitching