Na-Na-Na-Na-Na ....

BATMAN!!

I've been having a little fun with a project after taking myself a little too seriously.  Do you ever do that?

I was stressing over a WIP that I started in ... July 2013 ... it was hanging over my head.  The project was a black and white Houndstooth quilt.  One day someone said, quite innocently, that the pattern reminded them of bats.

Now I can't un-see it.  So I decided to embrace the bat!

Time to drop my shoulders and have some fun ...

Original collage source can be found here

See that batman quilt in the middle of the collage above?  That's my quilt!  It wasn't in the original collage ... I just had a bit of fun imagining the type of little boy's nursery room this quilt could live in ... I (badly) overlayed my quilt in the pic (#cheeky).

You see, this little guy is headed off to a children's charity.  I won't ever get to see it in it's new surroundings so I'm having a little play here.

One more?  OK, if I must ...

Orginal collage source can be found here

All in the name of fun ... that's what this is all about right?  Sewing, creating, fun!

I think I like it best in the monochrome collage above ...

Monochrome nurseries are coming back in ... and this little exercise has flooded my brain with black & white nursery quilt ideas ...

 ... and to think that this little project had me so stuck for so long!

I think I'll go easier on myself next time ... you know, when things don't work out as planned.

Sx

Rainbow Half Hexie Quilt

You'll be forgiven for thinking that this quilt belongs to the "little people' of our house ... but no ... this mass of scrappy, rainbow goodness is for my dear husband.

This quilt was "officially" finished in June 2015 ... but I haven't had a chance to photograph it properly because it was put to use before I could even finish stitching the binding down.

As we "start the way we mean to finish" in this house ... the quilt has been used and enjoyed ever since.  No time for photoshoots when you are a well loved quilt!  So this weekend when we took him (rainbows can be boys) for a play at the beach, I took the opportunity to get a few (ahem ... windy) snaps.

OK, lets try photographing with the wind behind us...

I used denim for the backing and binding

Which makes for a heavy quilt ... but the wind picked it up like a feather

Diamond straight line quilting pattern inspected by Mr. Seagull

That's a wrap folks ... its too windy!

Despite the wind ... it is Autumn here after-all ... we enjoyed our afternoon at the beach.

Quilt Info:
#hubbyshalfhexie on IG (for progress shots)
510 half hexies sewn together to make this quilt (17 across x 30 rows)
I made my own template to fit 2.5" wide jellyroll cuts
Fabric is a combination of scraps with Cotton Couture solids from a jelly roll

Photo shoot location:
Port Beach, Fremantle, Western Australia

Linking up to: Sew Cute Tuesday, Let's Be Social and Finish It Up Friday

What I'm Working On - Deer Rose

I recently received a bundle of sample fabric in the form of Lecien's "Princess Rose"

It's beautiful ... very sweet, very pretty, very gentle on the eyes, very garden tea party ... very pretty (did I say that already?)

I'm surprised that I like it given it's not my usual go to colour of saturated rainbow (yes, rainbow is a colour).

BUT .... my youngest daughter ... oh she more than like it, she LOVED it ...

"Look Mum! Roses, just like my name!" ... I couldn't deny her little beaming face, so I started planning a little something for her.

BUT ... if I was going to work with these beautiful, soft, pretty fabrics covered in roses we were going to have to find some common ground.

Ground ... yes, there's a good word.  I needed something to "ground" all this light, airy, prettiness that I had before me.

So I'm doing it with this ...

It's a fabric that I picked up last year from Spotlight ... to make my youngest a top ... well obs that never happened!

I don't like to see a purchase go to waste, so here I am, grounding Spring with a touch of Autumn.

I'm using a simple cross stitch pattern to make my daughter a Deer quilt for her bed ... yes I am.

Each square in 1.5" finished ... here's how far along I am ...

Almost halfway ...

I hope to have this finished before the last Autumn leaf twirls it's final pirouette to the ground below.

Sx

I'm being social over at Sew Fresh Quilts ... hope to see you there!

Moby Dick Quilt

There's a little boy I know of ... I've never met him ... but his Aunt is a dear friend of my Mother.

When I heard this little boy was terribly. almost irreversibly. ill ... I did what most quilters do ... I set to making him a quilt.

His name is synonymous with the Ocean, he has bright blue eyes, he constantly wears a smile and (I'm told) has quite the infectious laugh.

A quote from Moby Dick came to mind "I know not all that may be coming, but be it what it will, I'll go to it laughing"

Inspo for the quilt ... source

Inspo for the quilt - source

The parents and doctors of this boy have differing opinions on how he should be treated medically.

Lizzy House's wonderful whales for backing ... along with some Texas Denim for extra backing and binding.

A little detail ... I love the way it looks like the whale is about to swallow a row of boats.  Whale pattern found here

I can neither "treat" him holistically or with medical science but I can "treat" him to a quilt made with love and hope that the love sewn in each and every stitch seeps through to this much deserving, smiling, happy, very sick little boy.

Sx

Info

Improv wording technique from Sarah Fielke's Wordplay Craftsy Class

Photos taken at "Crawley Edge" Boat Shed ...#73

Linking Up with Finish it Up Friday and Scraptastic Tuesday as all the wording is made from fabrics from previous quilts.

WIP - Having a whale (or wail) of a time

Recently I was able to use my quilting woes as an English lesson for my oldest daughter:

Homophone: Words that sound the same but are spelt differently and have different meanings.

Take "Whale" and "Wail"  ... I had a wail because my improv whale was not working the way I wanted it too (OK, not the perfect sentence, but it did the trick).

My oldest daughter thought this was quite funny ... My youngest daughter just looked at me funny ... and ... My Fine English Fellow, aka Hubby, just gave me a wide berth (wise man).

Almost, but not quite ...

Humpf ... my plan for all this improv lettering was to have a large improv whale underneath ...

When your ideas surpass your skills

I was so proud of myself for piecing all of the lettering together - ta da!

Lettering created using Sarah Fielke's improv Wordplay method

But now it lies in a big heap of unpicked dreams ... Time to think up a plan "B"

Sx

Linking up with Let's Bee Social

WIP and Stash Additions

My sewing room has been very bright lately ... rainbow this, rainbow that, lots of colour on colour.

It's time to turn the volume down a little and have myself a disco nap.

My attention span is waning ... and I just don't have the will to sew the same block over and over again.

So I'm shifting gears for a little while ... taking the scenic route instead of the main highway.

My Ginger Crush BOM quilt from Treehouse Textiles will be the perfect company.  Lovely lashings of low volume and pastel shades ... with just enough pop of colour to make sure I don't fall asleep at the wheel.

This block of the month quilt has a lovely blend of machine and hand piecing

The Block of the Month instalments have been arriving on my doorstep for 12 months now and I haven't managed a stitch ... until now.

Block 5 "My Pinwheel Fantasy"

I'm enjoying this new pace and it really shows in my most recent fabric purchases.

Low volume goodness from Art Gallery Fabrics ... Maker anyone?

 ... and a bundle of soft greys and silver blues from a LQS.

Yes, I'm feeling calmer already ...

Sx

WIP - Teeny, Tiny Piecing

I've discovered a whole new world out there!  Teeny, tiny, quilt block piecing!

It has me absolutely mesmerized ... seriously, I've started a Pinterest Board!

It seems this has been going on for some time now.  I may be a little late to the party, but I just had to give it a go.

2.5" square ... it's a 1/4 of the Pattern "Juicy Goosey" by Jeli Quilts

Granted, this is a paper pieced pattern, so it's easier to control the fabric through the machine, but hey, it's my first go at trying something this insane ah-maz-ing!

I did suggest to the Possum Magic girls that we should try a Micro Quilt Round Robin next ... it was kiboshed pretty quickly - ha!  In my defence, I am suffering from sleep deprivation due to myself and the whole clan having a shocker of a head cold ... but through all that snot-haze (sorry)... could it just ... maybe ... be a good idea?

Serena xx

I'll be linking up with:

Freshly Pieced WIP Wednesday

Let's Be Social at Sew Fresh Quilts