The first week of May

I have been planning, researching and talking to tradesmen about a new kitchen for a few months now.  The BANG! CRASH! POW of removing the old one starts next week and my weekends and spare time has been consumed with packing boxes of kitchen equipment and trying to stash stuff out of the way.  ONE reason there has been little achieved on the sewing front.  I did make these two extra string blocks, in pink and orange on Monday.

My Mum came for a quick visit and showed me this gorgeous cot quilt.  She had the animal fabrics in her stash and some of the sashing, so it didn't require much to make it very pretty. The top was originally half quilted a few months ago, but the wadding was dodgy and she wasn't happy.  So decided to start again and made a whole new top.  Then decided she liked this one better and sat down and unpicked all the machine quilting she had done!  Then re pinned and quilted, a true dedication of time and a whole lot more patience then I have.  The end result is worth it.

I have just a sneak peek of the Celtic quilt which is back from the long arm quilter, Elaine Kennedy.  Leigh opted to have an all over rose pattern which looks lovely.  Now I just have to trim the edges, cut and make binding and sew it on.  Another UFO nearly finished!

I hadn't put my machine away from All Day Sewing (last Saturday), but took it on Thursday to DS1 primary school and stitched his classmates surnames on hats and jumpers. This was an interesting way to spend the afternoon, but it was frustrating knowing there was an exciting parcel from quilting & blogging friend, Karen  of Sewing Tales waiting for me at home!

Thank you so much Karen, the cowboy fabric is so cute and there is so much I am going to be able to make a great quilt!  The quilting magazines have already been well read, as Mum read them first and then I got to enjoy them yesterday, when I came down with the lurgy and was fit enough to do anything productive!

Sew now I have binding to make and lots of ideas for a cowboy quilt, all of which is on temporary hold, while I finish getting the kitchen packed up.  At least the machine is back in the Horn cabinet, ready and waiting for me.  The sewing room looks like a bomb hit it as there are piles of kitchen gear stacked everywhere.  The kitchen will take a week to finish, but they don't pull the old one out until Thursday, so that leaves me with a empty hole all next weekend....happy mothers day to me!  I guess that means take away instead of cooking and more sewing time!
Happy quilting, Sue.