Busy week

I know it's been a while since I wrote here, but I have not been doing nothing, I have been VERY busy, hence no time to do a blog post!
The deadline for entering quilts into the Henley Arts Trail is Monday 25th March, so I had to decide which quilts to put in and as the last date for handing the quilts in is the 19th April, that left me with only a few days to finish said quilts.  Well seeing as I am going to Borneo  on Thursday for 2 1/2 weeks,  that did not leave me with very long to finish them.  Luckily, the schools have not broken up yet and as husband and son number 1 is already in Indonesia, I am more or less a free agent at the moment and boy did I make use of this freedom.  I quilted and stitched for 3 days solid from early on till late at night and this is what I have achieved:

Yo-ville

I have started this one in May last year, having cut out all the squares to make the yo-yo's, it was my 'pick up and go' kit which more or less lived in the car.  Once all the yo-yo's were made, all 197 of them, and the appliqueing of the houses were complete, it took just another 2 days to complete the quilt top, but it has been lying around waiting for the perfect piece of backing fabric and a bit of free time to do the quilting.  My original plan was to use a cream backing, which I bought, but when I cut it out, I found a thin red thread running through the cream fabric. I have never come across this before, and went back to my local quilt shop, to buy a new piece.  As she measured it out, we spotted another red thread running through it, so I decided not to buy it and look for something else. I didn't see anything that would match and was about to give up the search, when another customer changed her mind about a fabric she was going to buy and IT WAS JUST PERFECT!!!! So, not wanting to seem too eager, for in case she changed her mind, I walked away praying she was going to leave it, as I needed a large piece and there was not a lot on the bolt, and she did.  HOORAY! And there was just enough on the bolt, so this was meant to be.
If I had shown an interest or looked keen on the fabric while the previous customer was undecided, she might have been worried that she will be missing out and bought it anyway (if you are chuckling now, let me assure you this is what happens when women shop for fabric, next time you are at a quilt show, stand back and observe, I guarantee you will not have long to wait!)
The pattern is by Bunny Hill designs and I have bought it when I was in Salt Lake City last year, I hope my SLC buddies can remember this! We were all going to post what we had made and I am still waiting to see what they have done.....
I have used continuous curves for the central panel with a feather inner border and then done swirly curls as background filler in the outer border.  The two red borders were left without quilting so that they pop up.   The quilt has now got it's hanging sleeve in place and is blocked.  All that is left for me to do, is to make the label and sew this on.  I think I will manage that when I get back from my trip.

Whoo...s afraid in the dark?

This will be my second entry, I originally planned on making it for a charity that collects quilts for children in need, but was told 'no buttons' please as it is for a child (health and safety and all that malarkey).  I will hang on to this one until someone wants to buy it.  I could have made the eyes out of fabric, but I thought the buttons so much more playful and honestly, have they stopped selling clothes for kids with button fastenings?  I rest my case.

I'm calling this one "Whoo...s afraid in the dark?"  I love the way the baby owls are all uncertain about leaving the nest and the mum's encouraging them to go and the possums look worried too.  I have used a swirly curly design, which I have free motion quilted in the background as it makes me think of a noisy windy night with leaves blowing about.  I loved quilting this one.  I still have to sew the little buttons on for the firefly heads and then this one will be finished too.



I will not post again for the next 4 weeks or so, as I will be on an expedition in Borneo and then have to get children back to school and university, but my next post will be all about the trip.  I am told that it is very hot and humid there, that will make a welcome change from the SNOW and cold weather we are having in UK at the moment.  Whatever happened to spring?  It is supposed to be getting warmer now, not colder!