I would totally wear one of these vests. Maybe without the fringe. And definitely styled differently. But I would wear one!
About time that I played along with Kirsty’s My creative space. There is plenty in mine this week!
Check out those piles of fabric! I am trying to get lots of clothes cut out for the girls. Cutting out is half the work of making anything. The fabrics laid out on the table are options for dresses for Stella – the patterns to go with them are on the right. The fabrics in the pile at the back of the table have patterns allocated to them already. Some of them are for Clare and some are for Stella. At the back of the photo you can see some of the blocks that have already arrived back from the Around the Block quilting bee.
And when you swivel around 180 degrees you see this.
Pattern pieces, fabric and interfacing for a pattern I’m testing; the iron all set up as usual, patiently waiting for me to do the pile of ironing that’s on the couch there; crocheted cushion fronts requiring backs; basted quilt all ready for quilting; some clothes that need de-pilling.
Pop on over here to visit some more creative spaces.
These are the granny squares that I started when I was away for the weekend with the girls from my book group. It could be some time before I turn them into the cushions they will eventually become, so I’m showing off the fronts now. Traditional granny squares:
And one made from Tamara’s circle-in-a-square crochet motif pattern.
I joined the motifs as I went along for both cushion fronts (there is a step by step tutorial showing you how to do this on flickr here) and added a couple more rounds of granny squaring on the outside. A very satisfying crochet quick fix – although there were plenty of ends to weave in!
“The hurrieder I go, the behinder I get”. Who said that? It certainly applies here. This is the most recent pile of half yard Kaffe lovelies I received from Quilt Home. They had 20% off their Kaffe fabrics, and the Australian dollar is so good at the moment…
I’ll show these off in more detail another day. My craft output has slowed down a little but currently on the cutting table are some bags, dresses, skirts, and quilt blocks. I’m planning a cutting out frenzy, so after that you should see some more completed projects on the blog.
Last night Kirsty unveiled the red and white collaborative community friendship quilt called The Quilt Project.
It was quite astounding to see all the blocks joined together into one, so beautifully crafted individually and then just gorgeous combined.
Kirsty presented the quilt beautifully on an enormous bed, complete with cushions and beside tables, and the website is superbly done. She even treated us all to champagne and lots of red and white nibbles.
I want to say a massive thankyou to Kirsty for organising this project. It has been a community project in every sense. Rather than being by invitation only, Kirsty extended an invitation to any interested crafter who wanted to participate. Squares have come from all over the world, some worked by very experienced stitchers/crafters/embroiderers/quilters, and others being made by beginners. It has brought people together and involved us in something that is very special. Kirsty isn’t someone who self-promotes; rather, she dreams, thinks and does. She’s a very clever and generous woman who has organised an inclusive project that I feel privileged to have been part of.
Please pop over to The Quilt Project, have a look at all of the squares, read about each maker and see much better photos than these of the quilt in its entirety.
What a wonderful weekend I had in the countryside with the girls from my book group. Everyone learned how to crochet a granny square, but I think that Rebecca summed the weekend up best:
My dears,
The husband almost appeased, the dog brushed, and the children quiet. And I think fondly – longingly – of uninterrupted moments of crochet and talk.
Thank you all for coming, and the wonderful conversation, crochet, and book talk (sorry ran out of alliteration) that ensued.
And one of the added advantages for me was that to teach each one how to crochet a granny square, I was forced to crochet lots of demonstration squares, so finished off a cushion front.
By the end of the weekend I felt truly refreshed.
Oilcloth purchased from Crafty Mamas. It’s quite substantial and the print is fairly large scale. I’m thinking of making myself a decent sized bag for my trips to the gym – possibly the Beach Bag.
These were completed in the car trip to and from the country last weekend. I’ve quite pleased at how I’ve stayed on top of getting two squares finished each month. Only four to go for the year now, but then the challenge of assembling them into a blanket. The first is called Birthday Flower.
The pattern for the next square wasn’t the one specified in the crochet-a-long. The one they’d chosen really needed a couple of different colours of yarn to work well, so I substituted it with the Pineapple Granny 12″ square, adding a couple more rows to the outer edge to bring it up to size.
Both squares are crocheted in Cleckheaton’s Vintage Hues, using a 6.5mm bamboo hook.
I’m heading off to the country again this morning, but this time without Mr Thornberry and the kids. The girls in my book group have planned a weekend away – and some of them want me to teach them how to crochet while we’re there. Yarn and hooks are packed ready to go!
It has come to my attention that when people see old crochet pattern books, they think of me! Janet gave me last week’s wall hanging patterns, Nikki has given me two huge books of vintage crochet patterns, and a week or so ago I received a pattern book in the mail all the way from the USA, courtesy of Denise.
I think that her skirt is quilted! There are a number of gems in this one – thanks Denise!
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