I told myself I wouldn't feel guilt but I do

But I've talked sternly to myself and told myself its okay not to blog if you don't have anything to say.  However I do have something to show you today.   On Saturday our local EG organised a workshop with Maggie Smith, the title of which was "Get Stuffed", which is also the title of her new book.

Maggie was my tutor when I studied for my C&G Part 2 si I was looking forward to Getting Stuffed.  Everyone really enjoyed it, not that too much work got done we were so busy listening to Maggie explain the various techniques for stuffing shapes.  There wasn't really an 'end product' to the workshop so there wasn't any pressure to get the piece finished.

I've been feeling very unmotivated recently but Maggie's workshop has galvanised me into life.   My sample is a bit grubby and crumpled but I've had fun creating it and will use the techniques I think in one of the yellow journal pages.

Something else I'll be using in one of the yellow JP's is prairie points.  I made several using transfer painted sateen which was a nightmare to fold.  However I got over that by making myself a simple template to fold the fabric over and iron it into place.  Somewhere on the web I'd seen a metal template that you placed the fabric over and ironed it down.  I cut the corner off a piece of card at 45 degrees and used this in the same way, similar to a template for sewing mitres.  This worked a treat, I just had to make sure my fingers weren't too near the point when I placed the iron down.

I soon had quite a few prairie points, being sateen and slippy I had to put a single stitch in at the bottom of the fold to stop them springing apart.

Now all I have to do with them is decide how to use them.  I have several more pieces of transfer painted sateen if I want to make more but I think I might need to use asbestos gloves next time.

Happy Easter

Just a very quick hello and to show you the cute egg cosies.  I got the pattern from a blog tutorial from one of the blog hops.  I think its by Bronwyn Hayes of Red Brolly but not sure.  I made a few minor changes to make them more acceptable to 30+'s.  Here they are.

Keith made the egg cups and the egg inside is the chocolate covered plastic toy kind of egg.  Not all the recipients like eggs so boiling and decorating them was out.  Also two are on diets, so not much choccy with these eggs.  Keith and I decided we'd not bother with Easter eggs this year, I shouldn't eat them anyway as my blood sugar results are not too good.

However, Keith did go out and buy we one of the eggs and made another cup to put it in.  Now do I make myself a cosy or not.... hmm.

This was on my breakfast tray, ahh he does care.

March and April Journal Pages

The final two red journal pages are now ready to post.

 March following the dance theme as well as red, is called "Lambeth Walk"

The April one is called "Line Dancing" The swirly bling bit is a Sizzix die which I thought looked a bit like embroidery on a cowgirl shirt.

Oops... the photo has come in sideways, this happens occasionally with Blogger and I don't know how to turn them.  I know its the right orientation in my folder.  Anyway this is a photo of the four red months showing how I've tried to create  gradation from rich red to pale pink when they are all hung together.  All the backgrounds are created in the same way, strips of fabrics woven then sewn down but each page being different.  The next four months challenge colour is yellow.  I've already done one yellow JP but not sure whether to include it in the yellow set or not as strictly speaking I didn't do it for this one.

I've shown bits of this one before, which I started as my Take a Stitch Tuesday challenge but it appears to have got lost in translation somewhere.  I do have the first 8 or 9 stitches of the challenge in this piece however maybe I'll have to start another one to include the other stotcjes.   So far its not got a name maybe someone could suggest something.

Curved piecing swaps

One of the swap themes for March on the BQLPC list was curved piecing and as I love piecing curves this was right up my street.  I've posted photos of my postcard for this swap before but just to remind you here it is again.

And here is the rest of the set:

 Janet Boorman's was the first to arrive, well before I'd finished mine.  I love this block.

Another Jan, this time Jan Simmons has created curved seams with embellished seam lines, I love the fabrics in this one.

 Alice Gray's card reminds me of fields as seen from above and she has used the same sequine flowers as me.  We must shop in the same outlets.

 Don't you just love these fabrics and the hand stitching.  Sue Wild has used some of her precious African fabrics for this postcard and there is even a small piece on the address side.

Irene Turnbull's card simple sings with colour and curves I love the wildness of it.

I store these cards like this:

I use supermarket folders, the type you buy to store their recipes in, usually only pence and sew a strip of heavy weight vilene, pelmet vilene type along the edge of the card.  By punching holes in the vilene you can store them easily.  I find this size is ideal for taking along to show friends as they take up little room in your bag.   If anyone would be interested in a tutorial just let me know and I'll do one.

Inchies

I saw a method of creating blocks of squares where all the joins were in line and the squares even here its a way of making stamp blocks easily.  I thought I'd try it out and my results were not as good as Elizabeths by a long way.  I liked the idea of the grid but found it tedious putting all those fabric squares together but that might have been because I chose my squares to be 1".  If I'd chosen a big bigger squares things might have been different.  Having said all that I could well use the method sometime in the future.

These were samples so ignore the binding and for some reason I decided to sew along the seams, durr what was I thinking of they were better without the stitching.

I've been in a really lazy mood the last few days, I've been reading a lot and just plain getting on with chasing dust bunnies and filling the freezer with things to eat.  Also we now have drawers full of clean linen, didn't know I had three black tshirts all with bleach stains......

After my visit to see the diabetic consultant last week and the decision to change my insulin because it appears to be doing nothing I thought I really should make an effort to include a bit more exercise in my daily routine.   It lasted a couple of days, hence the purge on the house and home but I am now back to normal.  I will wait until tomorrow to see what the clinic's advice is before jumping up and down with excitement.

We did go out to Scaling Dam yesterday for a walk but because birds are nesting both on the water and on the nearby moors we had to keep Buster on his lead.  However he did get to play in the water.

We intended to walk along the banks of the dam but we couldn't move for frogs.... they were everywhere, singly, in pairs, in threesomes, mating all over the show.  Every four or five footsteps you had to hop over them.  Buster thought it was great fun until he picked one up, he spluttered, shook his head and dropped it in disgust but he didn't learn he kept on trying.  In the end we moved on to Leeholm where there is a river for him to play in and a lovely little garden centre.

While we enjoyed half a lager in the pub.

Tea at the Daffy Caffy

To get to the Daffy Caffy we had to walk through Farndale one of the remotest (is that a proper word?) dales on the North York Moors.  At this time of the year Farndale is covered in daffodils (hence the name of the cafe).  Last year we went and we saw four daffs in the whole of the valley today there were a tad more but still loads to blossom yet.

 We walked out along the valley bottom beside the river and when we got in smelling distance of tea we were pleased to see this sign.

 The Daffy Caffy turned out to be a cottage in a hamlet that during the months of March and April provide food and drink for the day trippers.

 Having Buster with us we had to sit in the garden, which wasn't a hardship.

 Waiting for our bacon butty, Buster has his eye on a piece of cake someone had dropped.

 After filling our stomachs we need the facilities, which turned out to be a bit primative.

But the surroundings were beautiful.   By the time we got back to the car Keith's knees and back hurt, my feet were complaining but Buster was ready to go again.

Whose a lucky girl then..

Here in the UK today is Mothering Sunday where it is traditional for children to present their parent with a small gift. I was over the moon with my Mothering Sunday goodies from my sons and their partners.

 Simon and Julie invited the family to dinner and backed individual sponge cakes for me and Julies mum.

 This is a charm for my bracelet, its a silver basket but it looks red in the picture, this was from Sy and Julie.

 Marc and Alix came armed with fat quarters, I'm training them well....

Together with three hanks of really soft yarn to knit a bag.  This is going to be my holiday project when we go to Wales in May.

I have been doing a bit of sewing since I last blogged.  My niece gave birth to a baby girl at the beginning of March.  She came early as my niece had problems with rising blood pressure so it was all hands to the pumps to get her baby gift ready.  I made baby Charlotte Grace a floor quilt.   The picture taken is of the top but I have now quilted and bound it and sent it on its way.  Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of the finished article.  The pattern can be found in Lynne Edwards book "Stash Busters". 

Get knitted

You may have seen the 50metre long scarf on tv.  It appeared overnight this week and is the mystery knitter(s) contribution to the 2012 Olympics.  The scarf was sewn onto the railings of Saltburn Pier and has knitted figures doing various sporting activities.  Well we decided to go and see for yourselves and we loved it.

Start of the scarf

It's a Knockout

Goal!!!

Not sure what this is but the general opinion was audience.

Gymnastics

Syncronised swimming heads

Syncronised swimming legs

Another Gymnast this time he has got over the box.

View along the railing, the knitted scarf stretches on and on.  These are rowers and swans.

Off your mark, another swimmer with a runner behind.

At the end a competitor with knitting needles and yarn for you to add your bit for 2012.