Helllooo ...

Hi there lovely friends, as predicted, I didn't manage to put a post together last week. And I didn't manage to get much stitching done either:

This is my first block of the Morrell quilt (by our sweet late friend Di Ford Hall). I hand pieced this block entirely, and just loved it! It has been ages since I've done much actual hand piecing. I plan to do more!

And I got a small start on my hexies for my second block of the quilt:

English paper piecing is so much fun!

But I do have a good reason for this inactivity from a quilting perspective ... my extended family went on another Pacific Island Cruise! Yay!

We spent a night in Sydney before we set off:

Our hotel was one street away from the Overseas Passenger Terminal, in the historic Rocks district, absolutely adjacent to some very famous landmarks.

Our chariot was waiting for us when we woke up the next morning.

So many fabulous things on board the Ovation of the Seas. Most of them (as is my usual form) I didn't manage to photograph ...

Noumea never disappoints!

An unexpected stop in Bay of Islands, New Zealand.

And then it was time to head home.

We had the very best time. It was my whole family, 12 of us. My parents, my brothers and their families and my own family. With so many people there is always something to do, and some fun to be had. I am so blessed that we all love to spend time together.

In April, along with my Mum and Dad as well as Amy and Mary, I'm heading off on another cruise. This time from Brisbane to Hawaii. We can't wait. The lads are staying home to keep house, and I'll be sure to have a great time on their behalf. In the meantime we're still floating on a cloud of happy after our wonderful holiday. I'm catching up on all the things here ... and I'll check in with you all as I can. Chatter soon! xox

Late posting!

Whoops, it has just slipped past midnight, so it's not Friday anymore - but let's just pretend it is and that I've managed to get my post in on time.

I'll just make it a quick one: I've cut out a couple of Morrell quilt blocks for hand piecing - so I've made a start on a new project!

The first block ready for hand piecing, and the second ready for English paper piecing, and then applique to a background. 

I've made my decision that I'll be using a variety of background fabrics, so I may yet add some more to the selection I shared last week. The Morrell quilt will be a slow work in progress while I hand quilt Lily Rosenberry, and it will be fun to have some options when I feel like working on some stitching.

That's it for this week - I know there is a strong chance I may not be able to post next week as I have a busy one lined up, but I'll do my best! Chatter soon lovely friends xox

Happy New Year!

Hello lovely friends, from my home to yours, I'm wishing you a Happy New Year! I hope this year brings us all good things, and it can be a year to remember in a positive way. I always try to do things I'm keen to continue on the first of the year - this year I slept in (which is not something I want to be doing too often) we had quite a late night celebrating with some of our lovely friends. I managed to get some hand quilting done - so time in the sewing room is a good thing. I made sure to do some tidying - always something I want to keep going with through the year, and I made sure to try and have a healthy day after a slightly less healthy evening. Let's hope I can keep most of these things up during the year!

And now on to quilting matters. I mentioned recently that I'm contemplating making a small start on the Morrell quilt by Di Ford Hall. Sweet Chris from Quilting at the Farm is working on it too, and we're going to be stitching buddies. I had stalled as I couldn't decide on a background fabric - when Chris mentioned that she was using several I thought maybe I should do that too, as I so often work with many different fabrics in my quilts. So, I'll show you where I am at this moment:

The French General background fabric on the left, I have a small amount of that - maybe a yard or two. The Apple Crisp dots in the middle, I am pretty certain I have enough of that for the whole quilt, and the little floral print I have about 8 yards of that. So, I can do a scrappy background with those (and potentially some others) or the whole quilt with two of those options. For some of the broderie perse blocks, I purchased this County Clare panel from Somerset Patchwork (I'm so sorry, it's sold out now) I hope the background colour of the fabric will blend well enough with the other fabrics when I'm needle turning the edges under. We will see!

I'm looking to you for some reassurance sweet friends - should I use a scrappy background as I so often do or should I be more conservative and keep it simple given that there will be a lot of fabrics in the quilt anyway?

I've also pulled a few fabrics for the hexagon block - which will be my first foray into the Morrell quilt - and here they are for now:

It is likely that I'm going to change out the green for something a little softer and maybe a bit more floral. But I need more time to rip the stash apart to find the perfect thing. Hopefully this first block will give me some inspiration to work on some of the other blocks - at the moment I'm finding the pattern a little overwhelming. I know it'll be an amazing quilt to work on once I start though!

Hand quilting has continued slowly - it's super relaxing, and I would love to spend so much more time on it. Patience ... patience ...

And the last picture for the day:

The Christmas tree has been taken down, and the lounge/dining rooms look so much emptier without it. I'm ready for less clutter around the house, so I'll enjoy this feeling of space for now.

That's all for today - thank you so much for stopping by, and I look forward to spending this year with you! Chatter soon xox