Hello there, well most of the nation is in white-out this week, with our worst snow fall in many years. My little green patch of home however, is still .......... green, but it might not stay that way for long, with more snow in the forecast! Definitely the weather for snuggling under cosy […]
Hi there! How has your week been? Isn't it crazy how fast the weeks are flying in! But I'm glad we're almost out the other side of January, aren't you? When I first started learning patchwork, one of the first blocks I tried was the humble log cabin! And it was love at […]
Hello there! How is your weekend going? I spent a lovely afternoon sewing today, with my fellow Bee Blessed buddies. The room was a hive of activity as we kicked off the new year getting more quilts ready to gift to those in need of comfort. A few months back I […]
Hello everyone! How is your week going? Brrrrrrrr what an icy week we've had here. There's a definite feel of Christmas in our house now. The first Christmas in our new home, and I'm pleased to say, the tree fits!!! Phew! And another Christmas addition this year will be my Gingerbread Men Garland, […]
Hello everyone! I've been overwhelmed by the wonderful response to my new venture! It's been so lovely to be 'cheered on' from all my friends here, on FB and Instagram. Thank you, it means a lot! I've barely had time to think about other projects lately, but I can show you a Christmas […]
Hi there, How is your week going so far? I hope you are getting some creative summer sewing time! The sewing space in my new house still resembles a building site at the moment. I can't wait to get all my fabric out on display again! In the meantime, I can show you […]
Happy Wednesday everyone! The gorgeous weather continues here! Such a treat! When I make a quilt I always photograph it before I send it off to the magazine. However, doing commission work at least one season ahead means the weather and season at time of photographing doesn't match the theme of the […]
Happy Wednesday to you all! Question: Do you have a favourite fabric designer? Most quilters who are engaged with an online community of sewers have designers or fabric lines that they just seem to fall in love with. Perhaps it's the preferred colour palette, story telling patterns, geometric patterns or ditsy themes […]
Hello everyone! I hope you've had a wonderful Saturday! I'd like to show you the first of 2 of my magazine commissions this month. The lovely peeps at Popular Patchwork sent me the cutest fat quarter bundle of Flo's Little Flowers, by Lewis and Irene. The ditsy prints and soft […]
I love Chevron quilts! They are simple to make and are so versatile in providing many different designs. One of the simplest ways to make chevrons is using half square triangles, and with clever fabric placement, or mixing up your fabric 'values' (low volume, high volume) you can achieve all sorts of wonderful patterns. […]
A few months back when I was planning a commission for the January issue of Popular Patchwork, I knew I wanted to use cool, icey colours. (And wouldn't you know it, just when I post about this little quilt, it starts snowing outside!! Brrrrr!) This block is called The Rolling Stone block (or […]
Popular Patchwork very kindly sent me a gorgeous bundle of 'Wrap it Up' fabrics by Makower with a 'festive quilt' remit for their December issue. I took inspiration from the baubles shapes in the fabrics and designed this applique baubles Christmas quilt. These fabrics were lovely to work with, and I […]
I spent the weekend in Derby with my 3 favourite girls! My eldest daughter turned 21 at the end of October and it was so lovely celebrating with her in the most inspiring surroundings! Autumn is such a beautiful season. But it's time to put on an extra layer, turn the thermostat up another […]
Happy Tuesday everyone! I'm super excited to be able to show you some of my new friends! This is my Woodland Friends quilt, made with Aneela Hoey's 'Foxgloves' & 'Vignette' collections on an Essex linen background. It all started with a commission from Popular Patchwork to make an Autumnal/Woodland quilt. I found a picture of […]
Happy Friday to you all! We had gorgeous blue skies today! Donaghadee Lighthouse The perfect day for a picnic perhaps? This is my Bobbles Picnic Quilt, currently featured in the August issue of Popular Patchwork. I love jumbo pompoms (these ones are 20mm, available from Frumble Fabrics). This pattern starts off with 36 […]
Happy Thursday everyone! Summer seems to have relocated around these parts, so in an attempt to bring you lots of summer colour and happiness, check out my Summer Starburst Quilt! This started out as a 'scrap buster' project, after I got enquiries on how to use larger pieces of scraps (less than a fat quarter […]
Are you a ditch quilter? Ditch quilting is when you quilt in the seams of your patchwork, so that it won't be seen! This secures all 3 layers (top, wadding, backing). Traditionally, quilts and other quilted projects were always ditch quilted first, before any decorative quilting was added. However, as with most things, attitudes and […]
Popular Patchwork asked me to design a 'houses' quilt! Quite a few wonderful houses quilts have already been designed over the years so it was a tough challenge to come up with something 'original'! But the creative juices started flowing and I came up with this: 65" x 64" I knew I wanted a modern, […]
Also in Popular Patchwork (March issue) is one of my most favourite bags! It's my favourite bag because the 'quilt as you go' technique is one of my favourite quilting techniques and I get to continue my love affair with scraps! I love the texture QAYG creates, and it's perfect for projects where […]
It was a beautiful Spring day here in Belfast. The perfect day to show you my Spring Greens quilt. I've used different sized 'geese' in Sandi Henderson's 'Secret Garden' fabrics. This was a lot of fun to make! My mind starting thinking about our migratory Brent Geese (who occupy Strangford Lough during our […]
