Rag Doll

 Hello lovely readers...hope your week has begun well...mine is turning out to be a busy one but i'm still fitting in a bit of cosy crafting of course......here is my rag doll complete with her cross stitched dress and knitted cardigan.......

 ...........she is surprisingly easy to make, with soft yarn hair (with a touch of mohair).....

 ..........the cross stitched flowers on her dress border are done using waste canvas.....

 ............she is sitting here looking quite tidy at the moment, with a ribbon tying her hair back.....

............a lovely way to use pretty fabric, yarn, buttons and trims, dolls are fun to make and sweet gifts to give...

...............lots of hearts in the background of this picture.....it is the top of my new pink heartstrings quilt which is now well on the way to being hand quilted.....lots of cosy evenings working on this and keeping nice and warm thanks to it too :)..........below is a close up of the cross stitched flowers...you could stitch them all the same colour or use left over scraps of thread in different colours as i have here....or you could just make a simple dress and omit the cross stitch part :)....... the rag doll pattern is now in my etsy shop link in sidebar x

 ...........during the last few days there has been some fabric excitement here at the arrival of tilda's new happy campers fabric from the homemakery..........

 .............i already had some pretty stripes in my stash and for once i couldn't wait to cut into these new fabrics and make some blocks i wanted to try using the drunkard's path templates....

 ............yes helped by cups of tea and chocolate mini eggs........

 .............these are very pretty spring like fabrics and i love all the shades of pink, blue and green combined with a pale yellow and teal.........

.........thank you so much for dropping by to see me here in my little bit of blog land dear readers......and thank you for you lovely comments which i always enjoy reading......wishing you a wonderful week with sunny days, crafty inspirations and happy times......back soon xxxxxxxxxxxx

Winter Cheer: Quilts and Flowers

 Hello again lovely readers......it was a gloomy grey week here last week weather wise though the sunshine came back at the weekend luckily......here is the finished bow tie quilt made from tilda old rose fabrics and kona cotton in bleach white......

 .........i enjoy sewing bow tie blocks by hand and i enjoyed quilting this by hand too...perfect for cosy winter evenings by the fire....this is our new tea tray ( a christmas present)............(it's from emma bridgewater and matches our mugs)......

 ............the old rose fabrics are very subtle, soft and pretty....

 .............this time i used the bleach white kona cotton solid for the backing for a vintage look rather like the old calico backed quilts............

 ............at the weekend we went to a local nursery for some plant shopping.....

 ..............we got the first pots of primroses of the new season.....they are such cheerful pretty flowers i always love having them nearby during the cold dull winter days.....

 ............i finally unrolled the jelly roll of tilda apple butter fabrics and began making nine patch blocks for a new quilt.....

 ............will show you more of this one soon..........

 .............the first apple butter fabrics i bought were used for my little apples quilt (pattern in my etsy shop link in sidebar)...........i love this fabric collection the best and love using my little apple applique quilt.........pictures on my work table of quilts, fabrics, spools and flowers.......these things always inspire me......

 ............the small floral log cabin blocks are also slowly being sewn together and they are brightening up the sewing room too..........

...........thank you for dropping by dear readers and for your kind comments......it's so lovely to hear from you......wishing you all a wonderful week ahead with sunny days, happy flowers and plenty of crafty inspirations.....................back soon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hearts and Home

 Happy new week dear blog friends......it's a cold and blustery start here.......hard to leave our cosy bed in the morning but nice to start with a hot cup of tea and a little bit of reading.....above is my heartstrings quilt (pattern in my etsy shop link in sidebar)...........

 ............and here is a new version in pink.............

 ............lots of my favourite pink scraps in this one, and as in the original quilt a mix of low volume fabrics for the background squares.............i am also adding some embellishments to this one......it will be nice for valentine's day......

 .............i've also been knitting socks having learnt over the past year or so and made quite a few pairs for my husband who loves them :)..........below is one being knitted for me in zigzag yarn colour:pinks.........i use the excellent pattern by winwick mum ........

 ..............the sweet buttons and adorable spool stitch marker were from my lovely friend vivienne at green rabbit designs here......

 ...........and the next thing to show you is a whole lot of bright and cheery hexies for an english paper pieced random hexie quilt............

 .............i love making these and adding a few hexies to the pile when i get a few spare moments....

 ............this will be the first random hexie quilt i've made in years and years although hexagons were the first shape i ever used in patchwork many moons ago.....

 ...............more hearts on this cosy little doll's quilt......the same hearts as the heartstrings quilt, just a mini version.........sometimes i hang it up as a valentine wall hanging.....

 ..............this little cloth doll is going to be a new pattern very soon, including her clothes......

 ..........the tiny bunny pattern is already in my etsy shop....might make some more of these in time for easter.....lots of cosy projects to keep me busy on these chilly winter days......

..............thank you for dropping by dear readers............and for your kind comments...........wishing you a happy, cheery, crafty week ahead........keep cosy......back soon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Happy New Year

 Happy New Year to all my lovely blog readers....here i am again after a very refreshing break....

 .............and beginning the year as i like to do with flowers, fabrics and quilts.....lots of projects in the pipeline and exciting creativity to look forward to as this fresh new year begins.....

 ...........this pretty bouquet of spring flowers was a gift from my daughter and they are so cheerful and uplifting.....and they have a gorgeous scent too because of the hyacinths....here they are with my bow tie quilt which is my current hand quilting project, perfect for evenings by the fire watching movies....

 ..........i've also been busy making log cabin blocks like the one below.....

 .............the violas have been growing in a pot in the greenhouse (luckily mr p remember to water them every now and then).....i love these sweet little flowers so much, and it was nice to pick a posy to enjoy indoors this week, in one of my favourite susie watson jugs.....................

 .............my log cabin making has now evolved into two quilts......the first will be the red white and blue one below........

............i have added strips of white round each block........... this one will be more airy in effect and the busy blocks kept separate....am hoping to add some textured quilting to the white areas this will create.............

 ..........i sorted out some scraps and found some more sweet ones to fussy cut......

 ..........lots to keep me busy .............more log cabin quilt pictures coming soon.....

 .............still loving the cosy winter days with firelight and candle light and time to read and sew.....but nice to see buds on the trees and to plan my garden for spring and summer, looking at seed catalogues and choosing plants for the cottage garden is such a great way to spend this quiet season...

...............wishing all my lovely readers health, happiness and creativity in 2020 and all through the new decade......thank you so much for joining me here in my little blog space......it's always a real pleasure to have your company and to read your sweet comments...........back soon xxxxxxxxxx