Simply Solids Accuquilt Go! Giveaway - NOW CLOSED

 


Isn’t it weird how things go in threes?

Last week I was jumping with joy because I’d finally found somewhere in the UK where I could get Kona Solids  - and a heap of other great stuff -   Simply Solids

Then, yesterday, I was looking at this great Urban Lattice Quilt-along and a fantastic giveaway (now closed but sponsored by Simply Solids!) over at Me? A Mom?’s blog, when a comment reminded me again just how hard it is for us UKers to find these fabrics without resorting to paying exorbitant prices on eBay or risking being stung by customs charges when buying internationally.  


Today I decided to go over and check out the shop again and landed over in the blog section, and what did I find? 


Another Accuquilt GO! giveaway - I can’t tell you how many of these little darlings I’ve entered … but hell, why not try again?  And especially as it all seems so interconnected, maybe I’ll be lucky this time ! 


If you want a chance, be quick - it closes 10am (UK time) tomorrow, Saturday 20th!

Physician, heal thy shelf*

*ouch, sorry!

As various little packages of delight *thlop* through my letterbox (at an alarmingly increased rate since I’ve been ill in bed these last two weeks!) I’ve noticed that no shop folds their fabric the same way. 

I tend to just put my fabric away however it arrives, but this has meant there was no method to my stash - only madness.

This past fortnight I’ve also done a fair bit of tutorial browsing - everything from quilt blocks to felt mice, gift tags to mug rugs - but putting all that craftiness aside for a moment …

… the one thing I absolutely love love love is this fabulous folding your fabric tutorial from 3 years ago (!) over at Happy Zombie’s blog.

I’m not exaggerating when I say this has entirely changed my crafty life.  

Until yesterday there was mess and my mojo was severely blocked - now, after an hour or two of rhythmic folding using the width of my cutting ruler as a guide, there is bliss. 

Everything in its place. *sigh*

Scraps and longer lengths of fabric are still stored in plastic bins,  but FQs and half yards are now organised into checks, patterns, plains and spots - 

What does this mean?  

Well, I now know I do have a wide enough range of solids for a paintbox style quilt! 

I also know that it’s time to 

(a) free up a couple more shelves 

(b) put the brakes on my shopping cart frenzy for a while and 

(c) start to get some more cutting and sewing practice in.

So, no time like the present, I just had a bash at this ‘triple-squared’ block from Megan over at Lucy & Norman using some beautiful Riley Blake fabrics - it comes together really easily

(How I wish I could still get hold of that Summer Song trees print here in the UK) 

I think it’s fresh and lovely (don’t look too closely at that wobbly green gingham!) but I’m not sure I want to do a whole quilt like this right now, as I’m aiming for a lap quilt and these blocks end up quite large (12” x 12”)  - so it might morph into a cushion.  

In the meantime, have yourselves a little folding frenzy - it’s amazing how a little organisation can unblock the most stubborn mojo!

Thanks for stopping by - and do leave a confessional comment on the state of your stash, if you dare!

or enter my Melody Miller scrappy giveaway here!

My Creative Space - Gadzooks! Christmas? Really?

Deck the Halls with Festive Hexies

fa la la la la la la la la

other increasingly festive creative spaces {maybe} here at Kirsty’s

p.s. you can enter my Melody Miller ruby star rising giveaway here!

Lucky Me! Lucky You! – NEW Melody Miller {Pay it Forward} Scrappy Giveaway

Last month I posted about my fantasy stash and swooned about Melody Miller’s new ruby star rising line for Kokka (coming out in December, I think?)


Well, Melody emailed me just before she went off to Quilt Market in Houston – and look what I got in the post today!!!
 


All these fab scraps, left over from the very tiny amount of fabric Melody had in advance to make up into gorgeousness for her stand at Houston.  That’s what!



This fabric is wonderful; the linen is soft and thick and yummy beyond yummy – and because I believe in paying it forward, YOU could win this scrappy little bundle:

Now, I know it looks titchy, and it is really, but here it is unfolded, and I know there’s plenty of craftability in here for you to get your teeth into:

as a guide, the Transistor Radio piece *swoon*, at the top, is 19” x 7”, 

and the Heads strip at the bottom is 33” x 2”

I know there’s only a teensy bit of the ViewMaster fabric, but I’ve only got three little pieces, (one is what's left after cutting the fab belt on Melody’s Quilt Market blog post! - I love that someone somewhere has the other piece of that fabric) and it’s my fave, so there. 

So, here’s the deal: (each one of these counts as one entry):

1.Post about the giveaway (please link to this post so people don’t go to the old address!) and leave a comment here to let me know

2.Tweet about the giveaway and send me a tweet @pingsandneedles to say you have!

3. Become a follower here (or re-follow if you’ve slipped off the list since the move, ahem) and leave a separate comment.

4. Badger your local fabric store to stock it! (Doh! I can’t really check that one, but it would be nice if you’d do it anyway!)

I’ll draw a winner next Wednesday (24th Nov)

I’m happy to post internationally 

and I’ll probably throw in some other bits of yumminess too.

**edit  - there's a great write up of Melody's fabrics at QM by Kim here at True Up

Regrets, I’ve Had A Few – an occasional series

Yesterday’s Sunday Stash got me thinking about the fabrics that I’ve missed out on altogether because I dithered for so long or because they were unavailable in the UK.

picture from sewtakeahike

Today’s missed boat is Flea Market Fancy by Denyse Schmidt   

 

I’ve seen such beautiful pieces made using this fabric, like this wonderful quilt from Rita @ Red Pepper Quilts – go here for more sumptuous detail – 

pictures from red pepper quilts

I really wish I’d been around for it - if only to have it in my stash to stroke and purr over.  Probably never to actually cut into – heh heh heh!

What about you?

Is there a 'Shall-I-Shan't-I?' fabric/collection that was sold out when you finally did mentally commit-to-cart?

One that you still think of with that deep pain of stash-empty regret?

Tell all, do …

Sunday Stash #11

Well, last week’s uber migraine and virus (9 days and still suffering, grrr) stopped me from getting even remotely excited about what had arrived in the post.  

Shows how bad it’s been - I didn’t even open them until yesterday!

So, this week’s stash is, like, so last week …

Here they are in all their incognito beauty … 

Yay! Great colours before we even get started …

Let the excited ripping of plastic commence!

So, first up, a little something from clothkits

ooh … the anticipation …

apple green gingham and ?

lovely festive satin tape-measure ribbon, that’s ?. 

next …

a bit of a bumper package from fabric rehab

to redress my serious lack of good solids … 

… to get my hands on this Metro Cafe beauty by Suzy Ultman for Robert Kaufman:

and finally, give in to these two Farmdales lovelies
from Alexander Henry:

… they’ve been in and out of so many shopping carts over the last few months, I can’t tell you … I’m so pleased they made it to checkout this time – just delicious.

 

I have pretty much finished moving everything over from the old blog now ... 

 

so, to make things less visually confusing ...

... I am only posting links there, not entire posts

 

That way, if you can read a whole post you know you're in the right place!

 

If you were a follower there, please re-follow here - I seem to have lost a few in the move!

Please bear with me ..

... as I move from one blog space to another 

you may find things a little naked here, so you may feel more cosy here 

my old pingsandneedles space

but ... that space will be no more as of 3rd December.

I'll keep posting to both until things are running a bit more smoothly 

If you were a follower on the old site, please renew your enthusiasm here :P

11.11.10

two minutes silence doesn’t seem enough

wear your poppy with pride

My Creative Space #11

I’ve been off work all week with this dratted migraine/gastro virus, so sadly my space has not been very creative.  I’ve only left the house to go to the doctor, so plans have gone a little awry …






Have I posted my giveaway cushion? 
Nope












 

Have I posted my Scrappy {Hoop} Swap?
Nope














Have I posted my Pay it Forward giveaway?
Nope













Have I sat in bed and sewn a little birdie pincushion?
Yup










Ho Hum – thanks for popping by ... you can dock with the creative space mothership here 

- I feel another little sleep coming on …  see you in a day or two …

Pay It Forward Giveaway – WINNER!

more great cartoons here

I’ve been a bit absent this week – I’m {still} in the middle of a 5 day migraine. 

After all that intense Blogtoberfest activity I’ve missed my blog space.  It’s just that I’m in my lavender-soaked hanky-in-a-darkened-room space, for now.

When your vision has tunnelled and someone is trying to poke needles through your eyes, it’s kind of hard to sit in front of a screen, let alone have anything worthwhile to say other than “aaaaaargh stop the swirly stripes stop the swirly stripes!

Anyway, on to the real reason why you’re here!

The winner of my Pay it Forward Sarah Fielke Bundle-ette Giveaway is …

… Mary from Molly Flanders who said:

“Oh my goodness! I would absolutely flip to have a bundle of Sarah Fielke's fabric! I have both Material Obsession books and there are several quilts on my to-do list. Sooooo I would definitely use the fabric for one of those projects. Thanks for the chance to win! mary”

See Mary, sometimes you get what you wish for!!  Can’t wait to see what you do with this little 4 FQ selection of “Little Things”:

my migraine can’t cope with these stripes today!  aaaargh ….

Mary, please send me an email with your details, so I can get these puppies in the post. 

Commiserations to the rest of you, but why not cheer yourselves up and visit Mary’s flickr stream or her blog ? They’re both choc-full of loveliness … 

…  be sure to drool over check out this beautiful Dresden Plate while you’re there:

Mary was chosen by my new comments spreadsheet which uses the RANDBETWEEN function to generate a random number – pretty nifty eh?

(how I love to embrace my inner geek)

Now, that’s quite enough for today … I’m going back to the duvet until someone calls off the migraine dogs.

Blogtober Frosty Morning in Brighton Giveaway – And The Winner Is!

Well, using the old random selection itty bits of paper method – the winner is:

Jane

(go and check out her fantastic bags at projectsbyjane, btw!)

Yay! - Your cushion will be winging its way to Singapore at the weekend 

 … and here’s a little peek at what will be coming your way … !

hope you like it!

commiserations to everyone else  -
but you can still enter my pay it forward giveaway
here until 7th Nov!

The Needle Threader – Whodathunkit? {Novumber #3}

So, here we are, trolling through the little suitcase of attachments Damiel pitched up with …

Today we look through the round window and find …

The Needle Threader

If you are an experienced stitcher please avert your eyes now, as this might seem like it’s from the department of the bleeding obvious, but hang on just a mo … this was heaven for me …


Now, Damiel, being a tad old-fashioned, threads from left to right … not front to back like modern thangs … so I have to use the threader from right to left …

you just stick the threader through the eye … stick your thread through the blurry big diamond shaped hole …
	… and pull the thread through …
Voila! How brilliant is that?
	Especially for people like me, who seem to be totally needle blind after 6pm!

okay, clever people, you can come back now …

I'll announce the winner of my Frosty Morning in Brighton 

Blogtoberfest giveaway later on today :)

Let’s Cut to the Chase Chaps {Novumber #2}

Yesterday, while we were identifying all those machine bones, my mind wandered to thoughts fantasies of efficient cutting.

There was nothing for it.  I took the icy plunge and forked out more pounds sterling for yet another rotary cutter – I’ve posted before about how pants I am at cutting.  

Turns out it was my bloomin chocolate teapot of a rotary cutter to blame, not my inability to learn a new skill, after all.


Who Knew? 

Once I had my new sultry little vixen Olfa to compare it to, I realised that the blade and screw/washer combo simply didn’t match up.  It was a dud.


This explains precisely why the blade never cut anything properly, no matter what I shoved at it, other than my longest fingernail (and even then I had to finish it off with nail clippers). 


All that angst I could have been chanelling elsewhere!


Now I glide across my fabric like a champion figure skater and am learning not to be so bitter that (despite what feels like a million entries) I have not yet won an Accuquilt Go! 


Yay! Things are looking up!  That’s two things on my Novumber list already showing a sliver of improvement.

… anyway, enough of all that !

-  check out this nerdy chocolate! - 

- click pic for more yumminess -  (in the US)

Sewing Machine Archaeology {Novumber #1}

Blogtoberfest was not just a fantastic way to connect with new people and ideas, but also a really good sandpit for my blogging skills.  I even wonder if my sewing is improving by osmosis from all that creativity out there! if  only


I don’t know if I’ll keep posting every day, but I am going to try and follow my own single-portion-fest of focused, bread-and-butter technical skill improvement, hence, Novum-ber!

Novumber is all about:

- experimenting with Damiel’s attachments

–  hacking gliding through fabric along a straight edge – hopefully massively increasing chance of me actually cutting a whole quilt in less than 3 months!

- sewing in a perfectly straight line while remembering to have enough thread in the full bobbin

… and other such grown up things to be listed another day…

 Okay – So let’s start with this little lot!

I can’t work out what these bits and bobs that came with Damiel are for … So, I went to the very friendly ladies at the Brighton Sewing Centre and spilled them out on a cutting mat for identification – it was like trying to identify some long extinct beast from its tail bone!

As you’ll see, some pieces must have belonged to some other mythical sewing machine dinosaur, as Damiel is, of course, debonair and tall of shank.  I love how we keep and group things that don’t actually work, but look like they should!

from left to right (you’ll be impressed by my technical language here)

• foldy and sewy thing for binding
  
• general foot (doesn’t fit)
  
• lifesaving 1/4 to 1/2 inch guide
  
• very complicated needle threader
  
• 2 extension pieces (don’t fit)
  
• straight stitch foot (doesn’t fit)
  
• extension piece for guide
  
• extension piece for guide
  
• zigzag foot (doesn’t fit)
  
• another fabric guidey thing
  
• zipper foot (does fit!)
  
• button foot – like I’m going to use that given my cack-handedness

So, thank you, lovely Brighton Sewing Centre ladies – at least I know what won’t work now, so I can stop trying to force them on like one of the ugly step-sisters!



Do you have a sewing machine ‘bone’ you need to identify?  Why not upload a picture to my new archaeology of sewing machines flickr group and see if anyone can help?