No Time to Sew!

We have had friends staying with us for the last 10 days which has been lovely. We have had some great days out and local walks but with temperatures in the mid 30's for the last few days I am now feeling very tired!
Most of our days out were in pursuit of butterfly's as our friend is a keen lepidopterist. I was busy with my camera and have a few good pictures but they will fly off just as I get the camera focused!

This is a female Silver Washed Fritillary

An Adonis Blue variant found in our garden.

Marbled White

Speckled Wood

We had a great day out at the coast on Tuesday - a two hour journey from here to the Gironde estuary. There were plenty of birds and butterfly's around and the weather was perfect for a picnic. 

A first for me was to see teasel's in flower - I was amazed to find that they are blue!

I hope to get back to some sewing next week. The fabric has arrived for my flying geese and so I would like to get the border completed.

Have a good week and happy sewing.

Lin

Geese on hold

Having made a small error in my calculations I am short about 20 flying geese so have had to order some more fabric - a shame as I was getting on so well with it.
So out came my Dear Jane and I have done two more blocks.

I was looking forward to doing some hand piecing but these two both seemed obvious machine pieces.

Another project that I want to get on with while waiting for geese fabric is sorting out my scraps. I recently ordered this book and a friend brought it over from UK for me this week.

I read about it in a friends magazine and thought it had some sensible ideas. Basically Joan Ford tells you to cut all your scrap fabrics into 3 sizes of square - 5". 3 1/2" and 2". Separate them into dark, medium and light and then she gives you 20 projects to make using them up. Easy!

The three sizes of square work well together because a 4 patch block made from 2" squares can be alternated with the 3 1/2" squares. And a 9 patch block using 2" squares can be alternated with the 5" blocks, and so on.

I will let you know how I get on.

Lin

Oh Dear Jane!

Reading various blogs I find that quite a few people are working on 'Dear Jane' Quilts.
Back in 2002 I bought the book and a stack of fabric and embarked on the journey. But soon after, I started on a City & Guilds course and Jane was parked in a box up in a top cupboard, and there she has languished for the last 10 years. (I have to say she is not my oldest UFO!)
Inspired by all the lovely work I have seen I decided to get Jane out again and instead of rushing at it like last time I would try to complete one or two blocks a month and take it steady.
Of course I did not choose an easy route - my plan was a colour wash quilt going from dark blue in the top left corner to yellow in the bottom right corner via purply reds and orange.
So here are the 11 blocks I completed in 2002.

I must say my eyesight was better in those days!

So off I go to start on my next block.

Lin

The Geese have landed! - well some of them anyway

This is a design by Sharyn Craig called 'A-Maze-ing Geese' which I have had great fun putting together. I had to get a move on as we were expecting supper guests and I needed the dining table. Usually at this time of year we are eating outside so it would not have been a problem, but the weather is so un-July-like!

Now for the border!

Platanthera chlorantha

Or Greater Butterfly Orchid to you and me

After a bleak start to the morning the sky had cleared completely by lunchtime and so this afternoon we have been out cutting grass. Which reminded me that we had found a new (to our garden) orchid on the bank and that I had taken some photographs the other day. Not the prettiest orchid but I want to see if I can use the shape as a print block.

Rainbow Log Cabin

Top completed! Hand pieced and machine construction using leftover hand dyed fabrics from previous projects and dye samples.
Now, how to quilt? Have decided to use a polar fleece as the backing to make it an extra snuggly lap quilt but can not decide on machine or hand quilting.

300 flying geese - ready to land!