13 ... unlucky for some?

13 - not an unlucky number for me as that is how many quilts I finished in 2016 (plus 3 WIP quilts in various stages to start me off in 2017!) 12 out of the 13 quilts, I gave away to friends, family and charities:

The 13th quilt is ALL MINE! As it should be ... I sewed my first two pieces of fabric together in January 2010 thanks to my dear friend Penny (an extremely accomplished quilter and crafter) and she supplied lots of green and pink fabric to keep me going. I just never got round to finishing it - shame on me - until this week and I'm so glad I did.

I have learnt LOADS since those first tentative stitches - the precision of a 1/4" seam, the accurate sizing of blocks, the use of colour, pinning those seams and, for this quilt, I attempted my first spiral quilting:

Just a snapshot of my year which, as well as still learning new quilting things, also included making some lovely new quilting friends - farewell 2016 ... it was a lot of fun and I am really looking forward to more quilting adventures in 2017.

Thanking Amanda Jean @ Crazy Mom Quilts and Sarah @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict for keeping us on track all year with our Friday finishes. 

Wishing everyone a very happy and healthy New Year.

The joy of giving ...

I finished this quilt a couple of weeks ago and it arrived safely in Florida on Tuesday ... phew! I started it back in March but, for various reasons, I just didn't get around to finishing it for 8 months which isn't like me. I think it might have been because I wasn't working to a deadline ... the quilt was for hubby's darling cousin but it wasn't for a birthday, a wedding or a specific fixed date.

Looking back ... I might have also been a little busy making lots of other gifts too ...

I started making the blocks:

And then it was nephew's 21st:

There was a baby quilt:

Then a couple of Siblings Together charity quilts needed making:

And this very special quilt which went to Dallas (Quilts for Peace): 

I kept coming back to it:

Then came the Chernobyl Children's Lifeline raffle prize quilt: 

And finally the wedding quilt: 

And let's not even mention all the Pants Bags, cushions, tissue holders, zipped pouches, table mats that I have made and gifted since March ... oh, and the Siblings Together Quilting Bee and my other Bee and 3 other WIP quilts ... 

But finish it I finally did:

And these photos this week of cousin Natasha, as well as a beautiful message, cuddling her quilt make me so happy that I finally did finish it. Better late than never, hey? Look at that adorable face ... 

Linking up with Amanda Jean @ Crazy Mom Quilts and Sarah @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict.  

Catching up ...

I have become such a poor blogger (still blaming Instagram!) that I'm not sure if anyone will even read this post - except for Aunty G ... hello x - but I was going through my photos since I last blogged and really wanted to capture what's been going on. I'm linking up with Lorna @sewfreshquilts and will see what I've been missing!

September was our return to the USA. Before the trip, I made my friend Gerrie some patchwork gifts out of her brother's shirt:

It had been 5 years since our last USA visit and there was a lot to cram in -  combining our 15th Wedding Anniversary, with a family wedding and visiting relatives in Maryland (MD) and Pennsylvania (PA). Cousin June has quilted for nearly 40 years and had a bit of a destash just for me:

Yes, I was very happy to take dozens of yards and fat quarters off her hands! We also spent a few days at Lewes Beach, Delaware and June and I 'got lost' for a couple of hours in the lovely Mare's Bears fabric shop with the friendliest and most helpful staff.

And this was me in The Old Country Store, PA ... could have spent days in here! I would've if DH had let me: 

Just a glimpse of what managed to come home with me ... there's still a box in MD with my name on it :) 

Upon our return to Wales, it was Autumn and the leaves on our Virginia Creeper had turned gorgeous shades of red:

A very special young lady turned 17 and instead of 'normal gifts' had asked for cash towards driving lessons - I couldn't not make her a themed gift to go with that now could I?

I finished a Christmas table runner for my sister (made mainly from Scandi Makower) and added a little bunting too:

I found the first quilt blocks I had ever worked on - shoved in the back of a drawer (how sad) but they forgave me and after a little fixing and trimming, I added some sashing and now have another quilt top ready to be basted:

I finally finished this quilt for our cousin in Florida (posted nearly 2 weeks ago ... I hope it survives the journey!):

I have started on a 'Stag Quilt' for my God-daughter who us 18 in January (think this deserves a blog post all of its own!):

And yesterday, I finished making for my friend 8 little Pants Bags for her 6 year old to give as Christmas presents to her school friends:

What a couple of months and what variety! One of the most used hashtags I add to my Instagram posts is #ilovemyhobby ... and I do - after nearly 7 years of discovering Patchwork and Quilting (thanks to this special lady): 

I still love it.

My poor hubby ... ;)

In the six years since I started quilting, my darling husband (DH) has received the sum total of a Pants Bag and an iPad cover from me ... this is all the thanks he has had for the countless hours of quilt basting he has put in! 

Three quilts, in particular, have caught his eye recently - each of these he has coveted and actually been 'quite disgruntled' at me giving them away! The first was my friend Mandy's half squared triangle extravaganza:

Next, my 2015 quilt for Siblings Together - he REALLY loved this one:

And one of my quilts for ST this year:

I have to use my wall (and washi tape - doesn't peel the paint off) to display the blocks:

And I love working amidst chaos along the way:

The commonality is scrappy but it's the primary colours he really loves so after dropping a million several hints this year that it is ABOUT TIME he had a quilt of his own, I have made a start. All the fabrics are pulled from my scrap bins or scrap drawers:

Starting with a centre 1.5" square, I have cut each of the strips into lengths of 1.5" and then I trim as I add. I am incorporating two colours per block; just using red, orange, yellow, green, light blue and dark blue scraps (was under strict instructions - no pinks!):

Each square is finishing at 7 3/4" so even with sashing, I reckon I'm going to need 48 or 56 ... so a few to make yet:

But what fun! Linking up with Nicky @ Mrs Sew & Sow ... Scraptastic Tuesday - so inspiring to see what everyone else does with their scraps; what do you do with yours?