Scraps and things

My Friday sewing day didn't happen. It started out OK and I'd set up my machine and pulled out the fabrics I needed to cut the next three blocks for the Austen Family Quilt. We then walked to the shops for some essential supplies so that the rest of the day was mine. Back at home Richard had been into the loft to find something he needed and at the same time bought down some boxes that needed sorting. As a result the rest of the day turned into a sort out the loft day and packing unwanted items to go to the recycling centre or to the tip. At one point I gave up with helping and decided to do some ironing, after all, it needs to be done and I'm the person who does most of it. As a result my sewing day was moved to today, Saturday. I'm cooking dinner tonight and I need to get out for a walk, but apart from that I'm not joining in with anything other than sewing. 

I have several things I need to do today. The most urgent is to make all 4 of us a couple of masks each. As shops are opening up more it is becoming very difficult to keep to social distancing as the streets are much busier. Also we are starting to be able to book dental and eye checks. John is donating blood this morning and all of these appointments need masks. To make my mask I used the Jesse pattern from the The Fabric Patch  Just scroll down the page to get to the templates. The Jesse mask comes in a range of sizes, you just need to take two face measurements. There is a page among the templates that tells you how to do this. The mask fits really well. This was my first mask, and I've now washed it ready for the next time I need to use it.

I have the sizes I need to make and I have chosen the fabric so now all I need to do is get the sewing done. These masks go together really easily. the first one took me about 20 minutes including cutting time. If possible use the narrow round elastic to go round the ears or very narrow strip elastic as this is more comfortable.

My brother has asked me to make him a second cushion. I made this one for him a while ago.

I never took a photo with the cushion pad added. I asked if he'd like a second one using the same pattern

..or would he like one like this but using blue fabric. His answer was one using this pattern. This one is made using a charm pack and I have one in blue that will be perfect. At the same time I'm going to make a second one for my room.

The day was going well and I decided to stitch the next block together. This was a mistake as I keep sewing the half square triangles round the wrong way on the strips. When I got the four strips all going the way it said in the pattern and attached them to the middle square I realised that three were the wrong way round. I'd managed to misread the pattern instructions. More unpicking and I was starting to get annoyed with myself. Eventually I had the block together and now all I have to do is give it a good press and make sure all the little ends from the unpicking are removed. Even though it was a pain I really like this block.

The vibes in our house must have been slightly off because I realised at this point that John wasn't very happy. We chatted for a while and then went for a longish walk, well three times round the cemetery which comes in at just under 5 miles. Back home and both of us feeling happier I decided to add some more rows to the batik rainbow quilt. All the pieces went together well and by the time I added three more rows I decided to quit whilst I was ahead

I didn't give up on sewing. I spent some time sorting my sewing cupboard. I found a tote bag I'd started and never finished because I hadn't found any fabric I wanted to use for the lining. I went through some of my stash and I have several possibilities. I'll make the final decision tomorrow. I also cut the fabric for the two cushion covers. Next time I get the machine out I can get straight on with the sewing.

Lucy decided to start the next block of her quilt. This block represents her trip to Morocco to climb the highest mountain. She has divided this block into 4 and was working on her interpretation of the spice mountains in the markets. I'll show you the block when she has finished it. We had fun searching my scrap boxes for the colours needed in this block.

In the evening I worked on Charlotte. She is nearly finished and I'll show you pictures when she is. My sewing day didn't work out as planned but at least I got some sewing done. 

Take care

Lyndsey