Make Me Up As You Go Go!

Aaaaaah! Spot the blogger who has been totally remiss about updating her Medallion Sew-Along Progress....... (how do I do big fat arrows on this thing??)

Right, so let's see.  You could say that I've not been a very good girl at doing the "along" part.  I am an impatient sewist some times and have a tendency to rush forward and make some lovely errors because I don't take the time to really go through my plan, work out my measurements and follow a pattern....... and this one has allowed me to be bold because of the lack of a step-by-step pattern, more guidelines that I was a tad too lazy to check out beyond a cursory glance!

My medallion is therefore a "Make-Me-Up-As-You-Go-Go"....... so please excuse my mistake and errors.  I got a little distracted along the way with other projects which is why I'm still working on it - I have yet to decide on a 6 inch border for the outside so it might take another short while before it's completed!

And...........this is where I am so far!  I like it because it's really a very eclectic mix of fabrics and the green is a bit "out there".....for me anyway.  I'm going to make one change and add in 3.5" squares of a different fabric in the corners, like in every other border.  I thought I would like the solid green all the way around but it doesn't look quite right so I'll back-track on that. What do you think so far?  Any suggestions for a 6 inch border?  I'm not gone on the plusses (is that even a word?) that are in the originial medallion, they're not for me  but I'm open to anything else!

Whoops, this is sideways........not that it matters with a square quilt - just adds a few odd ripples!

I hope it won't be too long before I update with a finish!  See ye soon! xx

My Sewing Room Tour!

Ooooh it's been a fun old couple of weeks. After a trip to Ikea, my sewing room got a bit of a jig-up and I can show you almost all of it............ I still have a wardrobe and an alcove to sort out but time enough!

I have to admit, I love Ikea, there are so many storage solutions and you could spend all day choosing but I pretty much knew what I wanted, a larger version of what I already had!  This unit gave me 9 extra square boxes!  I have pretty much filled them already but I love it.  Just rearranging the room (my husbands idea, actually the bigger storage was his idea too) has really helped.  Even though there are more items and a bigger unit in there, it feels more spacious and it's proving a more effective work layout!

What do you guys think of my space?  It's compact, yes.  The walls are dark blue having inherited my sons décor and my other half keeps suggesting painting it white but I like the blue, with all the white furniture, it makes it cosy and I think it will be a nice backdrop for some mini-quilts on the walls! 

Check out all the cards in the middle shelf, second row, that I'm getting with each delivery of 2.5" squares from around the world........... "Lovin' it"

You might notice the few items that I've acquired from around the house....... I love when things have dual purposes!  There are my Salter Scales........so handy when I need to weigh items that I'm posting and I seem to do that more than baking these days.  I also have a letter organiser from the office holding my rulers - it's brilliant for the small and big rulers!!  My small ironing board and mini iron are on a small, light table so that I can put it under the cutting table when not in use.  I love being able to have it right next to the sewing desk, saves soooooo much time!

 

and I still have that rolly-trolley-thing-a-majiiggy that I stole ahem, borrowed from the office last year!  It's really handy by my desk for my measuring tape, patterns, ribbon etc..... Plus, it keeps those fiddly bits out of sight when the small, inquisitive people in my life visit my little sanctuary!

So that's it for now........ I still have to sort the shelves by the door, the wardrobe (which I had forgotten to take into account when buying storage - BONUS)  and the alcove that you can't see in these pictures.  It's beside the big storage unit and currently holds a rocking chair and a little table stacked high with cushion fillers and leftover wadding and beads!  I think I managed to keep most of my disorganised mess out of sight!!!  Hopefully, you'll think I'm just a neat crafter (as if such a thing existed!)!

It's all about appearances, right?  ..........and then you get to know me and therefore the truth! Whoops!

Medallion Quilt Along!

I've been getting the emails about the Medallion Quilt Along from the Modern Quilt Guild of Ireland and  I reallllllllly wanted to join in but couldn't decide on a center block to get me going.  I should have done what was suggested, which was to create a mosaic of central blocks which would probably have inspired me and got the creative juices going..........but no, instead I chose to just let ideas float around in my head, allow them to get all muddled up and talk myself out of joining a few dozen times.  However, I bit the bullet last night and just decided to buy the "Liberty Love" book for the kindle (oh yes, instant gratification...... pay for it and receive it in less than 3 mins, now that's service)!  My plan was just to follow the Marcelle Medallion pattern - I have been drooling over it on Instagram and other blogs for about 18months after all..........but as soon as I flicked through the book, I decided on another design altogether for my centre block and got to work!

First a fabric pull............. 

I chose a paper-piecing block for the centre because I love the patterns that can be achieved with this method and it gives such accurate results.  I hated paper-piecing when I first tried it, so much so that I dumped my first couple of efforts out of sheer frustration but then I took on a twin-sized seaside quilt done completely with paper-piecing and I fell in love with the process.  It's perfect for those days when you just want to sew and don't want to think about what you're doing too much!  Effectively sewing by numbers!! 

I don't have the exact recommended measurements so I'm hoping it'll work out as it grows but I'm rather pleased with my first block & border!  I LOVE that text fabric from The Quilt Shop.  I'm hoping I haven't added too much pink/purple.  I don't want it to end up completely pink themed so I need to try and add new colours as I go.

Now to add some more borders....... so many choices but I won't take so long this time, watch this space!