Check in time

My troubles with my internet connection are well documented so needless to say my blogging has suffered as a result - hopefully this post will be able to be posted without any problems, so it is with fingers crossed that I'll carry on.
This last few weeks has seen me cutting well over a thousand fat quarters and stacking them into their boxes ready to take away to a quilting weekend and hour south of our little spot in paradise - and an hour closer to glacier country, brrrrr!  I have never taken the shop away before and as this is my first time I really want to make sure that not only do I have plenty of stock but that it looks inviting so there have been lots of decorations and extra special bits and bobs made just for the occassion.

I haven't been entirely wrapped up in prep for the trip away so there has been a wee bit of stitching going on.  This quilt is one made for our eldest daughter.  Anthea didn't want a scrappy quilt and is definately not a red or blue girl so it was earthy tones that I searched out for her quilt.  The initial fabric I had was the golden orangy batik and the colours that were floating throughout it gave me an exercise in what will go with this?  to begin with I wanted to include and aubergine but for some reason the 'sparkle' in the gold died when I put them side by side.  Eventually I came across the khaki green batik and it blended just fine, however it was a little dark so that is when I included the two lighter greens and then the ivory. Yep, it's earthy and with the magic of Sue Roper and her long arm machine a quilt was made.

Now my next quilt was something for me, something where I could use my special stash of woven Japanese taupes.  The flipping thing has taken me ages to make and not because it's big or anything like that.  It's just that I have dipped in and out of making it in between making many other little treasures.

  I used freezer paper applique on this one and the block backgrounds are linen, this is also hand quilted very simply in a crossed hatch design after everything was outline quilted.

Down there in the bottom right hand corner I made a three dimensional flower, something to 'finish off' the vine.

Winter is well and truly knocking on our door now and with the cooler weather I'm hoping to get a few of the far too many UFO's out and get the darned things finished, I know the SAL - Some Kind Of Wonderful, has suffered and I've fallen horribly behind, something I'm none too happy about so I do need to get into that and then there are... far too many to mention so fingers crossed they will appear on here before long and be another inclusion into my OPAM list.

Before I forget, and I did until I checked through recent photo's, I also finished a cross stitch  - Raven Bewitched by Blackbird Designs.  I wasn't so keen on the subject but really did like the uniformed layout and the very deep colours that were recommended for it.  I didn't have the much lighter wheaty coloured 30 count linen that was suggested so used a piece of 30count that I had dyed some time ago.  Funnily enough the colour didn't come out how I wanted it at the time and I nearly biffed the entire piece - now I'm so glad I didn't as it seems to be just right for this bit of stitching, although it has photographed quite a bit lighter  - the colour is more a marine greyish blue - if you can imagine that, *wink*.

Please excuse some of the awful layout of this post every time I try to preview it a gremlin decides to change things around , grrrr.  I'm still struggling to get into live writer and blogger isn't the most user friendliest of post writers and seems to take on a life of its own.

Take care, and keep warm (or for those of you on 'the other side', keep cool)
hugs
Miche'le