Has spring sprung?

Friday was the first day this year so far that has felt like spring. The sun was shining, and as I was pottering about the garden, getting despondent about just how much work needs to be done, it was heartening to see some shoots starting to come through. The sky was blue (although yesterday was a return to rain - but blue again today - hurrah!!) and there is an almost tangible sense of a new start.

Jenny is having a giveaway on her blog, about what the first signs of spring mean to you. It's hard to quantify - yesterday there was 'something in the air' and for the first time in a long while I wanted to get on with things / get weeding / get rid of the winter clutter / fling open the windows and let in the sun.

A day's sewing yesterday, then, and two quilt tops completed. To be fair, both had already been started, but they needed spring in the air to make me get the last few bits put into place - otherwise I knew that they would just sit about for an inordinate amount of time and that I would fall out of love with them.

I got the blocks done Sunday, whilst visiting my sister (who oversaw all block placements decisions),

to this, yesterday.

It's for Grannie's 95th birthday next month, and I've tried to incorporate as many photos of family as I can, but I've been thwarted by the inactivity of too many people. Suffice to say, my sister and I, and two (female) cousins have rustled up everything between us, and unfortunately a number of key players are missing - I just couldn't hang on any more waiting for digital pictures to get to me.

And this is the second top completed:

It's for a friend's daughter, and the colours are really lovely for this time of year. It's made from the Jelly Roll that I bought cheaply a few months ago, and to a pattern in Nicky Lintoft's book. It is truely much bigger that I thought it would be (I MUST learn to look at dimensions properly) - and the pattern calls for 3" borders as well. I fear that this quilt will actually be too big and heavy for a 4 year old - but then again, it should last her a LONG time.... I will probably leave this to one side for a short while, and speak to my friend to see what she thinks.

I also bought these fabrics:

to start making this quilt:

The range is Midnight, by Fabric Freedon, and the pattern, by Sally Ablett can be downloaded from their website.

This isn't my progress - I'm still cutting out - but I thought that it was nice to see a black and white quilt that is actually in grey instead - it's much softer on the eye.

Jo made this for her sister-in-law:

Today I had to go to a branch of a well known chain, to buy 1/4 metre of a fabric to bind a quilt, as I'm trying to finish off a number of UFOs, and after completing the transaction, I was asked whether I'd be interested in some remnants of fabric. Of course I said 'yes', dreading what they would produce, and how much it would be. To my amazement, an enormous plastic bag was pulled out, and after a bit of umming and ahhing - they suggested £10.

When I got home, I sorted it all out on the garden table, and this is what was in it:

Some of this is felt, and some is nylon - but the vast bulk of it is cotton - with the manufacturer's name on the selvedge - it's all Makower and Moda..... The smallest piece is about 1/4m, and the biggest is about 1/2m.

Included in the bag were several panels as well:

....maybe not my taste, but will make up into something useful - a bag? a cushion?,

two of these stocking panels, so I could either make 2 stockings, or 4, if I use a plain fabric for the back of each one,

and finally, an Advent Calendar panel!!

I recovered from the shock of this bargain by doing some pruning. Unfortunately, I was a little too enthusiatic in cutting back the honeysuckle - and now this archway has collapsed.....

Another one gone

I love magazines. I KNOW that books are better value, and that they are more improving for me - and if I'm honest, our house is bursting at the seams with books of all descriptions - but still, after a long day at work, sometimes a magazine is what you want to read. You know that the article will be about a page long, and that you will be able to cope with it, despite what fiffle-faffle has gone on during the day.

I am particularly susceptible to needlework etc magazines, especially those which have a real variety of projects, pitched at different levels. I keep them by my bed and flick through them while I'm pretending that yes, I really can stay awake a little longer.

Classic Stitches was one of my favourites. I say 'was', because I had an email today to say that it will be no more after the next issue.

What next, I wonder??

Glad of a rest!!

As you can see, it's been a bit chaotic here this week chez Z&Z. This is a photo of our kitchen - or how it was when I left for work this morning.

We're having a new one put in, but before it can be fitted, the whole room needs to be replastered (Hum - wonder why - perhaps it's those enormous holes in the wall....).


And of course, the plaster needs to thoroughly dry before any cabinets can be brought into the space. And before the plaster can be applied, the whole room needs to be gutted.

I'd lke to point out that the lurid yellow on the walls is nothing to do with me. It was there under the wall paper that we stripped off. And that dark spodge at the bottom of the wall? That's where Mr Z&Z decided to remove the radiator - 'just because'. It's now cold in the kitchen, on top of everything else....

Hence the chaos. And the poor diet of recent days. There's only so much you can produce on a very small cooker, with no washing up facilities.

Actually, I could have probably produced more, had it not been for the announcement on Tuesday that OFSTED would be arriving that very afternoon. OFSTED are the school inspectors who can arrive with 4 hours notice, examine all paperwork, wander willy-nilly in and out of lessons, make judgements and decide the fate of a school, the staff and the students - all within the space of a day and a half.

Still, it's over now, and they're not expected back for another year or so, all being well.

Two weeks ago I went to visit my mother, to try to persuade her to make some curtains for me. She declined, but did instead offer to teach me how to do it myself.


This is the fabric I've chosen - Laura Ashley were having a 25% off everything sale, so I rushed an bought 4 metres of this tulip fabric. It's a linen and cotton blend.

All was going very well, until we realised that neither of us had any suitable thread to sew with. Embarrasing, but true.

'Not a problem' cried my mother. 'Let's walk into Malton (the small town in North Yorkshire where she lives) - there's a shop there where we can buy some'. So we duly set off, accompanied by the labradoodles - only to find the shop shut - it being Saturday, it closed at 1.30.

The joys of living in a small town!!

So the curtains are still in a pinned together state. I had planned to do them last weekend (but was too poorly to even pick up some handsewing, let alone puzzle out curtains...).

After the debacle of the curtains that never were, I came back to Nottingham to go to a workshop on using Fat Quarters.

All you needed were 6 fat quarters (or an assortment of scraps, and this was the result.

As you can see, the different fabrics used gave completely different results. I have a LOT of fat quarters to use up - I think I'll be using this pattern again!

Over the last few days (besides trying to cater amidst plaster dust / write detailed lesson plans and policies...), I've been putting together a quilt for my grannie's birthday.

This is a dreadful picture - I apologise - it's getting later, and there's a strange light in MrZ&Z's study, but you get the general idea.

Dithering over the pattern took me a long time, and I've finally gone for an Attic Windows. I'm still not sure about it, but shall carry on. So far I've put 9 blocks together.

The plan is to do some more together, step back and reassess.....