Jennie's Threads

This month's blocks for the Round We Go quilt were definitely my favourite so far - I love that entwined star. Look at that space in the middle, just perfect for a little bit of fussy cutting.... which I did in three out of four blocks. I also made some really good progress this month with appliquing and quilting the blocks. I've still got a long way to go, but I laid them all out this month to take stock. Still loving it and still up to date. All of month nine blocks are prepped and ready!

I love this project. I love the fabric, I love the colours, I love the feel of the pieces and how easy it is to sew together. I'm also love that I am up to date. And I'm learning to love the fussy cutting - which I embraced this month! So here are my blocks And all seven together. This is definitely going to be a quilt for me! And my next blocks are prepped and ready to go!

This might be my current favourite project! the Mandolin blocks designed by Tales of Cloth are an absolute delight to put together - the paper pieces are easy on the hands, and the method of construction is nice long seams. I never considered how the weight of paper affects English Paper Piecing until recently when I started using pieces from a few different sources. I've always used papers from Paper Pieces in the US before, or from Sew and Quilt in the UK, both of whom use a similar weight card for their pieces. Last summer I started the Round We go sew along using paper pieces from Sue Daley in Australia. These are slightly heavier weight and glossy. I slowly realised that these feel like harder work, even though I never sew through the papers. And then there are the pieces from Tales of Cloth, which are lighter weight than I was use to. When I first recieved them for my Ice Cream Soda quilt last year, I was worried they were too light, but they are perfect - gentle on the hand...

It was my birthday last week! My daughters bought me two books: Fantastic Beasts - illustrated version and Angie Wilson's Fussy Cutters Club - which I've been after for a while!  I was given it on Tuesday evening, on Thursday evening I made two improv panels and before bedtime on Friday I had a finished bag! Improv piecing is not my comfort zone, and fussy cutting is all new to me. The fabrics I picked were not all fussy-cuttable, but some had nice motifs I was able to include and others were directional and I managed to cut them straight. I picked a selection of navy and coral fabrics. This wasn't my first choice but there's a good reason for it: the pattern calls for a heavier-weight fabric to be used on the base of the bag - vinyl or denim or upholstery weight... I don't have much fabric that isn't quilting cotton, so I raided my wardrobe and picked a paid of jeans. I picked the pair that fit worst, but there's no denying that I could have c...