I'm very excited to say that I am one of the first members of the 'London Modern Quilt Guild', part of an international network of Modern Quilt Guilds. You can find more information about how to get involved here.We're currently working out the best time for everyone to get together for our first meeting, which should be in central London in the next few weeks.
The new Guild is starting at the same time as a new magazine, 'Modern Quilting', is being launched by the publishers of 'Sew Hip'. It's about time the UK had a contemporary quilting magazine. I'm working on some proposals for features at the moment. Exciting stuff! This quilt was made last year for a colleague's baby. I had a fit of inspiration and sewed the quilt top very quickly, then it sat for many months waiting to be sandwiched and quilted. Story of my life!I love the effect of the dense straight line quilting, but when I was sewing it I thought it would never end! I think though, in the end, it's my favourite of all the quilts I've made. Although I do seem to say that every time I finish one.

It's been a funny old day today, the last day of my Christmas break before returning to work tomorrow. This has been the first Christmas in four years that I haven't been ill with some kind of chest infection, flu or sinus infection. Nice! I've had the laziest ten days in a long time which I must have needed, because I usually feel guilty if I'm not sewing, or knitting, or planning. I've done so little really, just a lot of eating (oops!), sleeping, watching television and knitting, mostly at my parents' house. They only live a half hour walk away so I've been there most days, being waited on!I only knitted one Christmas present in the end, a scarf for my Dad, which I need to photograph. Having said yesterday that I want to knit more for myself, the only thing I'm currently knitting is a 'Puerperium' cardigan for my parents' neighbours, who are expecting a baby in March. The cardigan in these photos is the version I knit as part of my nephew Ethan's 'welcome wardrobe'. I absolutely loved knitting this cardigan. Mum asked me to knit a version for her neighbours, in a pale greeny-blue. I'm hoping I can get some of my favourite polka dot buttons for it. It should be a lovely little cardi for a wee Spring baby.I've got some peppers roasting in the oven at the moment, stuffed with new potatoes, feta and pesto. The recipe is from my current favourite book, 'River Cottage Veg Everyday'. The flat smells amazing right now!

2012...Pleased to meet you.

Ah 2012, I'm so glad it's here! I don't want to dwell on 2011 as it was a really tough year with a mixture of health and work related problems which left me emotionally exhausted by September. I've been ready for a New Year for several months!

I've got so many 'resolutions' this year that I'm bound to mess a few up, but it is definitely time for a bit of a life overhaul, so here goes:

Knitting:

1. I'd like to knit myself at least a couple of garments this year. I have a tendency to knit for the babies and little people in my life and I think it's time this year to put my knitting skills to a more selfish use!

2. When I am knitting for the aforementioned little people, I will try to knit patterns that I haven't used before, to keep learning new skills.

3. I have some beautiful yarn in my Stash (Tosh Sock, I'm looking at you!) and this year I want to spend time knitting it into beautiful items to be worn, rather than it being hidden away in my stash box.

Sewing:

1. I want to sew garments for myself. I've been blog stalking a few garment sewers this year and have developed a slight obsession with Colette Patterns. It's time I started to try actually making one of these garments, instead of just reading the patterns all the time!

2. I want to make some pretty things for the flat I live in: new cushion covers, a table runner and possibly a quilt for my bed. I got a lovely quilting book for Christmas and am feeling very inspired.

General Life Stuff:

1. I need to eat more healthily and exercise. A year of comfort eating, hormone treatment for endometriosis and a total lack of exercise have had a disastrous effect on my weight and fitness. I need to lose 4 stone (56 lbs). I doubt it can be done in one year, but I am ready to start working on it.

2. The elusive work/life balance. This is a big one for me, I really don't have any balance at all and will drop everything for the sake of my job. I need to put myself, my health, my friends and family first, or at least give them the same attention I give to work.

3. Do things that are outside my comfort zone. I've just turned 31 and should not be spending every evening sitting at home watching TV. I need to get out and socialise, whether that's with friends, my knitting group or at a gym class. Despite my anti-social, shy exterior I actually love meeting people and seeing friends, so I need to do more of it, instead of hibernating on my own.

Finally (phew!), this quote is my inspiration for the new year, courtesy of Eleanor Roosevelt:

'You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. Do the thing you think you cannot do'.

Oh, and obviously I'll be blogging more this year, starting with the 2011 makes that remain unblogged!

Happy New Year, I hope 2012 is a great year for you.

Finished! Christmas Stockings (4 of 53)

Well, this regular blogging isn't going very well is it?! Christmas crafting is going slightly better, although not fast enough!

I have finished making a few gifts on my list so far, although the list of things to make seems to be getting longer rather than shorter. How is that possible?! Perhaps because I keep thinking of things I was to make. I think I'll need a rest by the 25th.

I did finish my Christmas stocking commission this weekend. They're on the way to Molly and Aloise in Kent just in time to hang up for Father Christmas to fill with presents. I hope the girls like them!

Autumn Kimono for an Autumn Babe (3 of 53)

I'm an Auntie again! My lovely new nephew Ethan James was born on Thursday evening. I had a feeling early on that this baby would be a boy, but my sister-in-law thought it might be another girl so I tried too use fairly neutral colours when knitting for the baby. I was inspired to chose colours that I thought would suit being worn in Autumn/Winter.

I've had one skein of beautiful Dream in Colour 'Classy' in the colourway 'Chinatown Apple' for a few years. I bought it at Stash Yarns in Putney, and have been saving it for a special one-skein project. The colour is perfect for an Autumn baby.

I saw this pattern on Yarn Harlot's blog a few months ago and knew that it would be a great project for this precious single skein. It's a top-down raglan so no seaming! Sewing seams didn't used to bother me at all, but the older I get, the more I'm coming round to the idea of seamless construction!

I found the perfect button in Creative Quilting, one of my favourite fabric shops in East Molesey opposite Hampton Court Palace.

I was at my parents' house yesterday morning before visiting my brother, sister-in-law, Megan and Ethan in the afternoon. It was a beautiful Autumn morning, crisp and cool with a clear blue sky so I grabbed the opportunity to photograph all Ethan's knits (plus a little something for Meg) so I can finally post all these projects I've finished over the last few months.

A Christmas Commission (2/53)

I was recently commissioned to make two stockings, one 'pinky purple' and the other 'blues and turquoise' for a friend's daughters Molly and Aloise.

I've been sketching designs for a couple of weeks, piling up fabrics on my dining table, buying embroidery threads and my favourite polka dot buttons to match. I decided to keep the design simple, piecing strips of fabric in varying widths from 1-2.5 inches, interspersed with strips of white fabric, which were then embroidered with the recipient's name or stars, or embellished with a row of buttons. I love how the fabrics are all working together, and the freshness that adding the white strips, embroidery and button detail brings to the design.These still need a bit of work: I need to make and attach the linings and add hanging loops, but I'm really pleased with how they look so far. I hope the girls like them too!

A Challenge. (Or 1/53)

Over to the right of this page near the top of the side is a list of the posts I have blogged this year. I have just noticed that I've only blogged 23 times this year. That's terrible isn't it?! I'm really pleased with the things I've created this year and yet many sadly remain unblogged and in some cases haven't even been photographed!

I'm setting myself a challenge for the remainder of 2011, which I hope will encourage me to rediscover my writing/blogging voice, let me celebrate the things I'm really proud of (and show the things that didn't turn out so well!) and share the people and blogs that have been inspiring me this year.

I've tried in the past to say I'll blog every day for a certain period of time, but life (usually work and resulting tiredness) has a habit of getting in the way. And yet some days I know I could write more than once. So the challenge is a post for each day for the rest of 2011, but not necessarily one post per day. 53 posts between now and 2012. Whew, wish me luck!

The ever growing wardrobe

My new niece or nephew is due in less than four weeks. Must keep knitting!

Right Now...

...this is the scene on my living room floor. Can you tell there's a baby due soon?!

Simmer Dim

Among the baby knits, quilts and commissioned sewing projects this year, I have been selfishly knitting shawls. Not enough to take part in Glittr's 11 in 11 project, but there are definitely plenty to keep me cosy as Autumn arrives.

This shawl is 'Simmer Dim' by Gudrun Jonston, aka 'The Shetland Trader'. I started (and almost finished) knitting this shawl during a ten day stay with my parents in April following an operation. Then it sat in a sad little pile waiting to be blocked.

When I finally got to blocking it, the pattern and yarn blocked out beautifully. I was quite aggressive with it, and pinned out every point of the picot edging, but the time spent was definitely worth it. I used Madelinetosh Tosh Sock in 'Corsage' which is a pretty shade of pink that reminds me of raspberry ripple ice cream! Tosh Sock is my absolute favourite yarn now (knocking Koigu KPPPM from top spot). I've got several skeins stashed ready to cast on more projects, including another shawl for me and another Simmer Dim for my Mum's Christmas present.

A few weeks ago, I had an unusual feeling that can only be classed as crafter's smugness. It was August and I had finished knitting a Christmas present for my niece. My first present finished! In August! Ah yes, I was most definitely feeling smug.
This is the 'Thinking Dress' from 'Miss Bea's Rainy Day' by Louisa Harding. I knitted the size 2, even though Meg will be 3 in March, thinking it should be big enough. I've knitted this dress before, both times using the suggested yarn, Rowan All Seasons Cotton, which is perfect for this pattern. It has great stitch definition and knits into a deliciously chunky and tactile cable.Strangely, my tension seems to have changed a bit over the last few years and I had to drop a whole needle size to knit this on a 4mm needle. That actually gave me a tension that was slightly too tight but it resulted in a lovely sturdy fabric and the final dress width is only about half an inch narrower than it should be.I found the perfect polka dot heart button at my local shop, Creative Quilting, to close the back opening. So there I was, nicely smug about conquering my Christmas knitting list in August. Then I remembered...It's my God daughter's 2nd birthday on 6th October and I haven't started knitting anything for her yet. So, I think she'll be receiving this dress for her birthday and I'll be knitting another (size 3) for Meg for Christmas.

Oops. Not so smug after all!