What a difference time makes.

Yesterday was a funny day, one of those day where you try to get a lot done but other things keep getting in the way. My list of things I needed to get done was lengthy but what I managed to achieve was very little. I did make bread, do some laundry and a general tidy up but I still have an ironing mountain to tackle. Also I didn't make it to my sewing machine but I did sort out a few 'on hold' projects.

I love starting new projects and if all goes well they get finished quickly. Sometimes they get tucked away in my storage cupboard and end up pushed to the back. At other times I decide I don't like the project and tuck it away for later. I know from past experience that when I work on something for quite a while I may decide I don't love it or even like it. If I squirrel it away and come back to it some time later I often find I like the project again and can then get it finished quickly. Yesterday was one of those days of becoming reacquainted with works in progress and finding I like them again. the first one was blocks I had made for the RSC a few years ago. I decided I didn't like the top and put it away for later. Yesterday when I pulled it out and pressed it I couldn't remember what I thought was wrong with it. The project in question was this one.

Having decided I like the top I measured it so I could add a border. Unfortunately I don't have enough fabric to make the border or anything suitable for the back and so I started my quilting shopping list. I can either go shopping locally or wait until September when I will be visiting my favourite quilting shop 'Midsomer Quilting'.

My purpose in going through my work in progress projects was two fold. One I need a accurate list of what I'm working on and two I wanted to find the Red House Mansion project. I saw a completed top made using the pattern at the Festival of Quilts and decided I needed to work on this again. The reason it got put away was because of the paper piecing, it really isn't my favourite way of making a block but it is extremely accurate if you do it correctly. Here's how far I got.

and here's the quilt I saw  at the NEC made by Brenda Otter and Lynda Edmunton from Abergele UK.

Unlike Brenda and Lynda, I am making my version from my stash and so yesterday evening I went searching for fabrics for the next round. To make the next round I need to print out the patterns for the paper piecing and then do some fabric cutting. In preparation for using my machine I gave it a thorough clean. It is amazing just how much fluff etc gets caught up during use. 

Talking of the Festival of Quilts, several people have asked how big it is. The information I have tells me it is the biggest quilting show in Europe and that approximately 22,000+ people will have visited it this year. As you can see it is a much smaller show than Houston International Quilt show but the population sizes are very different. US population is 333.1 million and the UK 67.3 million according to Mr Google so potentially a lot more quilters in the United States. The biggest quilt show in the world, Tokyo International Quilt Festival has been permanently cancelled.

The Festival of Quilts have now released the gallery of all the quilts in the show. Here is the link if you want to go and look.

https://www.thefestivalofquilts.co.uk/competition-gallery-2023  

Today is a busy day. I have some paperwork to complete and I need to run to the shops for some curtain hooks. One curtain got caught up and when it was pulled to close it the hooks came out. Dear Missy decided they were meant for her to chew! We have a new dishwasher being delivered this afternoon and later in the afternoon we are heading into London to visit the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. Sewing today will have to be fitted in between jobs.

Take Care

Lyndsey