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Whew! It’s been a bit of a long week and there’s not been much sewing action. I’ve worked three full days at the shop and racked up some miles walking there and back – Strava tells me the walk one way is 3.6miles! At least it’s long enough to keep things interesting by varying the route and there are one or two coffee shop opportunities along the way 😉
Allison’s Patchworks on The British Craft House website
In my sewing room I have been parked in front of my laptop (occasionally patting my sewing machine just to reassure us both we will be back working together soon!).
The shifts at the laptop all started with the very lovely news that my application to sell on The British Craft House site had been accepted. Exciting to be accepted, daunting to face the learning curve of new software. TBCH is a relatively small operation, keeping the integrity of handmade in the UK, serving vendors and buyers alike in a very personal and personable way. My shop is called ‘Allison’s Patchworks’ with the strap line ‘Where fabric is treasured so none goes to waste’. My vision (ha!ha! business talk!) is to grow people’s understanding and appreciation of the craft of patchwork-quilting – particularly here in the UK where makers are passionate about the craft but, in general, quilts are not valued as decorative, functional household items.
Links to Allison’s Patchworks:
- The British Craft House website
- Allison’s Patchworks shop
- Allison’s Patchworks newsletter sign-up
- Allison’s Patchworks Facebook page
Patchwork Quilting
Having said not much sewing has been going on I have managed to work on the Scrap Vortex blocks, trimming them before adding pieced strips and trimming them again so blocks can be sewn together.
Trimmed blocks on the design wall. Now to puzzle them together…
I think I will have the centre finished very soon. I will then add a narrow border just to prevent the exposed seams on the outside edges coming apart.
Links to blog posts:
Ever used sweatshirt jersey to back a quilt? I would never have imagined doing such a thing – I am so conventional! But happily where I may fear to tread others have stepped out – and lived to tell the tale. Check out Krista’s adventures in unconventional backings land….
On the subject of stretchy, jersey fabrics… Leah Day has made a quilt by cutting up the onesies (UK = babygrows) her daughter has outgrown. In her comprehensive video tutorial Leah includes lots of helpful tips as she demonstrates how to create rows of patches uses a stitch and flip method on a flannel foundation. Interesting!
Check out Melissa’s post for a discussion and examples of the pros and cons of pressing seams open or to one side. (I discovered this useful post via one of the links shared by Julie Cefalu in her email newsletter).
Rachel has used her patchwork quilting skills to create new covers for her dining chairs. She shares her simple method in her blog post.
It’s always interesting to be given a tour of someone’s sewing space. Katie has been having a re-arrange in her room. She’s blessed with a raised unit to use as a cutting table. I really feel my back aching if I stand cutting at my standard height table for any length of time. I guess a compromise would be to move my cutting mat onto a counter in the kitchen when I’m set to do a lot of cutting – nearer the kettle and the biscuit tin too 😁
I guess rearranging sewing space is also a good opportunity to do a Spring clean? Amy Smart has some great tips for cleaning and maintaining our sewing machine(s).
Linking with Alycia for Finished or Not Friday. There’s a lovely gallery of patchwork quilting projects to look through and Alycia’s finished quilt to admire too.
Happy Stitching!
Allison
How long does it take you to walk 3.5 miles to work? Seems like a great way to stay in shape! Congrats on trying a new business venture! It is a steep curve and I wish you much success! 🙂
It takes me about 1hr 5-10mins to do the walk. Most work days my husband kindly gives me a lift one way which does make a difference to how tired I feel at the end of the day but these past few weeks he’s been busy and I’ve been working some extra shifts. This coming week I’m having a break from work so I’ll be putting all the muscles I’ve been developing to use in the garden!