In March this year Brit Bee celebrated 10 years! I have loved being part of this amazingly talented group of ladies. We have done a lot of life together, losing one of our original members to cancer, weddings, divorces and lots of new babies!! While we no longer make and swap blocks each month, we […]
A few weeks back a good friend had an operation on her foot as was going to be housebound for a while. I wanted to gather up some of her favourite vegan treats as a post-op gift, so of course I needed a gift bag to accommodate them! I've had a few sample packs of […]
A few months back I was approached by 2 enthusiastic and local quilters who wondered if I'd like to get behind a new charity initiative here called Quilts For Care Leavers (Q4CL). Quilts for Care Leavers is a charity in mainland UK which has been running since 2018, making 'hug' sized quilts for girls and […]
Hi everyone! It's been a while! Apologies for the long absence here on my blog! A lot has been happening in the past few months, and when I say a lot, I mean major life changes! But don't worry, they are all good changes which I am embracing 100% in this new chapter of my […]
Another handmade birthday gift handed over this week was my take on Art Gallery Fabrics free Dahlia Bag pattern. I made a few changes to the original pattern, firstly by English Paper Piecing the hexagons together by hand, rather than machine piecing them using the Y seam method. These turquoise prints are my friend's favourite […]
A very special girl turned 6 this week! She is a book worm and excellent at reading. So I made her a monogrammed book bag, which included a few books and another little surprise! I created the 'C' by using the porthole patchwork technique (there's a free tutorial here). Once the porthole 'C' was created […]
The Crafty Monkies VIP Member Club delivers exclusive video content featuring techniques, projects, interviews and webinars with a different craft expert each month. I will be the featured crafter for July, and you will receive over 2 hours of pre-recorded video content on how to repurpose textiles to make my Messenger Bag. Denim is a […]
I was recently inspired by my friend @sewmesarah to make some clear vinyl project pouches, like the ones she keeps her WIPs (works in progress) and UFOs (unfinished objects) in. It has been quite some time since I looked in my box of UFOs and thought if I got them organised into pouches I might […]
A friend recently gave me a pile of Indian sari squares, leftovers from a previous project. I thought I would make her something with them, but they were very thin cotton/linen and irregular sizes. So I chose 50 squares, interfaced them and trimmed them to 4.5" square and pieced 2 panels to make a double […]
Hi everyone! I hope you are getting some beautiful sunny weather in your corner of the world. I haven't been doing much sewing lately as I'm trying to sell my house and find somewhere to live closer to my parents. But I did enjoy a lovely afternoon sewing with a friend recently (now that we're […]
Have you ever made a patchwork panel, maybe trying out a new technique, and then promptly fell out of love with it, trimmed it wrong or just discarded it?! Or maybe you've got stumped on the maths when it came to calculating the correct size base to fit your basket! Well here is a way […]
Last week I ran my Triaxial Weaving Crafty Monkies workshop. I demonstrated how to create the simple 'over 1 under 1' basket weave and the Houndstooth Basket weave variation. Both of these techniques involve weaving strips on 2 axis (vertical and horizontal). Here are some examples: Then we moved on to making a Triaxial Woven […]
Back in 2011 a group of 12 quilters from across the UK came together to form a quilting bee called 'Brit Bee'. Each year we would make quilts for each other, and in 2015 (Round 4) we decided to try something a little different. We each designed a 15" x 30" block and set about […]
Who could have imagined 1 year ago that life would still be as it is today!! Many folks have had significant (and some permanent) changes to their work, family and circumstances in the past year. My heart is very much with those who have lost loved ones and financial security. I too have been significantly […]
After making a bright and scrappy Notebook Cover a while back for my friend's birthday ....... I got a few requests for a tutorial! So here is my Scrappy (Quarter Log Cabin) Notebook Cover Tutorial. The tutorial will take you step by step through the 'quarter log cabin' piecing on the front, echo quilting, installing […]
At the end of this month I will be teaching my Triaxial Weaving workshop for Crafty Monkies. I first taught weaving as part of my Studio 'in-person' classes 2 years ago. We looked at the simple basket weave ... Houndstooth weave (intermediate) ..... and the more advanced Triaxial weaving ... (you can see the amazing […]
Can you believe it's Easter day this Sunday (our 2nd in lockdown!). Over on Instagram (@justjudebelfast) I've been showcasing our free Easter tutorials - quick and simple projects to help you decorate your table and get gift ready! There are projects here for all ages, from baby's first Easter bib to the teenager who would […]
We have had the final week of our Instagram Pattern Designers Collaboration for March. This week we were showcasing Jo's Bird Bundle 2, a collection of adorable applique UK garden birds. If you are a lover of applique or birds (or both!) you will love both of Jo's applique Bird Bundles (available via her website). […]
verb withstand the action or effect of The verb resist comes from the Latin word resistere, meaning “to take a stand,” or “withstand.” Resistance is all about putting up walls or creating boundaries be they mental, physical, philosophical, emotional, or otherwise — a means of defending ourselves against a threat. Even in crafts such as silk painting, resists are used to […]
This week in our Instagram Pattern Designer's collaboration for March we have been making one of my patterns. I first designed this bag several years ago for a summer issue of Quilt Now magazine. It is a carry-all type bag for the many toiletries and sun creams you take away on holiday (Holiday? What's that?!) […]
