Finished quilt for charity :)

This evening, I finished my quilt for the charity Macmillan Cancer Support. Please read this post for the story. Did I really start this just 2 months ago? Looking back, this is what I wrote: 

I scare myself sometimes ... with my unfailing blind faith that I can look at a pile of fabric, think of an idea, draw a rough pattern (and I mean rough!) and start cutting and sewing with an absolute certainty it will all work out in the end. I really am the eternal optimist * sigh *

Well, my optimism paid off! From this 'original design':

I have to agree with many bloggers (other than our friends down under) that this is a terrible time of year to photograph quilts, so forgive me, these were taken in my loft / sewing room and the light wasn't great:

The front and back, this finished at 50" x 50":

I straight line quilted a 1/4" around the blocks (still rubbish at this!) and originally tried pebbles in the butterflies but that was a disaster! Unpicked and went for a squiggly free motion quilted thing with antennae. Thirteen butterfly blocks - six knots in each to bury = 78, which was about an hour's work:

Definitely the part of quilting I would happily forego ... perhaps I can teach DH! Now there's an idea :) 

And the label:

What's extra nice is that the fundraising event isn't until January so I've finished with time to spare. I hope it raises lots of money for this very worthy charity and that whoever wins it loves it :)

Linking up with Amanda Jean @ Crazy Mom Quilts Finish it up Friday and Sarah @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict: 

My 200th post :)

I don't like wishing my life away but I have been so looking forward to today since like Monday afternoon! It's Friday and I have been sewing this evening since I got home from work and I intend to sew ALL WEEKEND toooooooo!

Only a little finish to share ... I've made another Pants Bag for my Kansas friend Carla @ Creatin' in the Sticks ... well, for her daughter actually who is a huge KU Jayhawks fan (yeah, I had to Google them too!) and here are they are having a grand time in their colours: 

So out of these fabrics:

And inspired by Maria's super houses, I made this:

And now there's going to be another owner of a Pants Bag ... they're getting everywhere!! 

Some progress on my Macmillan Cancer Support charity quilt which I started quilting tonight. I've done some straight line quilting along the sashing (ugh, my least favourite type of quilting) but I'm not sure about it ... why does it ruche up and get stuck over where the seams join -  am I going too slow / too quick? 

And all those knots to bury:

DH thinks I should now stipple the butterfly blocks and borders ... hmm, we'll see!

And so this is my 200th post! Who'd have thought it? Not me, that's for sure. Like quilting, I'm still an amateur at blogging - I make mistakes, I get stuck in a rut, I think everyone is much better at it than me and it's not always pretty but I love it! And I love my followers - they really make it worthwhile - so I'm going to put all their names in a hat tomorrow morning and the winner will receive these 4 Christmas fat quarters I especially bought this week as a little thank you from me:

Have a fabby weekend, whatever you're up to. Linking up with Amanda Jean @ Crazy Mom Quilts and Sarah @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict:

I scare myself sometimes ...

... with my unfailing blind faith that I can look at a pile of fabric, think of an idea, draw a rough pattern (and I mean rough!) and start cutting and sewing with an absolute certainty it will all work out in the end. I really am the eternal optimist * sigh *

Laura (from yesterday's post) is holding a Macmillan Cancer Support fundraising event in January and I am going to make a quilt for the raffle. This paragraph describes their work: 

"The Macmillan team is with you every step of the way. We are the nurses and therapists helping you through treatment. The experts on the end of the phone. The advisers telling you which benefits you’re entitled to. The supporters who make it all possible."

They don't have one logo as such but I did see did this image on Google:

There are many references on the Internet to the symbolism of butterflies ... too many for me to condense in any worthy way here but did you know the ancient Greeks considered butterflies as the souls of those who had passed away? And in ancient mythology, the butterfly stands for wisdom and everlasting knowledge? Fascinating reading and quite fitting a theme for this quilt, I think.

So here is my rough pattern:

My first strip:

A close up and some more blocks I made tonight:

Not sure yet how it's all going to come together, where to position the blocks, what size it'll end up at, if I'll have enough fabric. But that's okay - a few butterflies in my stomach along the way is absolutely fine by me :)

A new WIP, thankful to those who work at Macmillan and to Lee (who's not feeling too good - get well soon!) for the chance to link up: