Archie The Wonder Dog

Hello! Time is definitely returning to normal, I think. Although the afternoons and evenings (particularly the latter) seem to be travelling very quickly, so maybe normally-moving is a way off yet?! This month has been quite a busy month for sewing.  About halfway through it, I realised that there were six months left of the year (do I get a prize for that revelation?), that I have twenty-four low volume scrappy trip blocks left to make and that the first goes nicely into the second and I could have all the blocks made by the start of 2021 if I got a shift on. At that point, there were sixteen days left in July, so I had four days to make each block if I was going to stick to my newly-set target of four blocks a month. So far, I've managed three and am a good way through the fourth (I might have finished it before this post, but I've spent far too long wrestling with my elderly laptop and coaxing it into working) and here they are: At the start of the month (I...

My current FAL list is, well, laughable, but I'm plodding away and have a finished project to show you! At the start of the quarter I set out to make an EPP pin cushion using some of my Japanese import fabrics and I'd chosen these fabrics: After my Oakshott table runner was (finally!) pieced, I needed some hand sewing to replace it and this was the perfect choice! I did a bit of planning and then cut out my papers (from 5mm squared paper so I didn't have to faff with rulers!) and got tacking.  I also use a line of Pritt Stick along the centre of the paper to hold the fabric in place while I centre it. I then got to work stitching.  The black dotty fabric isn't shiny, it's just the paper inside catching the flash! And after a couple of nights, I was ready to add the bottom.  That piece was supposed to be the top, but as it's reversible and there's no real bottom to a pin cushion, it was fine! I took my usual two attempts to stuff it. ...

This long-term project was started in 2012 with the intention of it being my default 'sitting on the settee and watching telly' sewing when I wasn't up to preparing anything else.  All the blocks are now embroidered, but I fell way behind in blogging about them so I'm playing catch up with a weekly post.  There are three posts left after this one so I'll have to start thinking about another weekly stalwart post as I've enjoyed having a regular thing to blog about and I'm in a nice routine of getting to the weekend and thinking about a Summersville post.  It might be a 'what I've done this week'-type post with progress photos, etc.  How does that sound?  Of course, I also need to catch up with blogging about my FAL finishes (all small things, don't get too excited!) so that may come first.  Hmmm, decisions, decisions! You can find the other posts in the series here:  blocks 1 - 4 ;  blocks 5 - 8 ;  blocks 9 - 12 ;  blocks 13 - 16 ;...

Anyone who has seen my ridiculous FAL list for this quarter will agree that if I'm going to get anywhere with it then I need to get a bloomin' move on!  To that end, I've stuck a copy of my list on my sewing room wall (it'll go on my new magnet board, just as soon as I sort out some magnets.  And fix the board to the wall...) so that I can keep myself on track.  So far, so good and I've managed to tick three things off the list.  I'm going to blog about them separately (to make it easier to link up in January) and today is the turn of my first finish, Mr Penguin: Mr Penguin is a large (for me!) pin cushion made from a selection of Japanese import fabric and some linen (I think it's this stuff but I'm not sure as it was a present from the fabric fairy).  I really don't like EPP but, in my opinion, it's the best technique for hand stitching these prone-to-fraying fabrics so I swallowed my intense dislike and got on with it.  (I don...

On the second Tuesday of each month, Nicky and Leanne  are hosting a scrappy linky party, entitled 'Scraptastic Tuesday'.  You can link up a blog post or Flickr photo (and possibly an Instagram photo but as I'm not on IG I'll leave that to the rest of you to work out!) about a scrappy project or scrap sorting system and you'll have a chance to win a prize from one of their sponsors.  Why not join in?  They've done something clever (I think it might be magic) with the linky party and you can link up to the same party from either of their blogs.  This month you have two weeks to add your link. We're approaching the end of the current year with Bee A Brit Stingy (the second year of the bee and my first year as a proper bee) and our penultimate Queen Bee is Catherine , who chose scrappy blog cabin blocks as her block.  She asked for the blocks to be the classic dark and light log cabin blocks; two of the blocks needed to have a dark side made from brig...

I'm about to start a new hand piecing project and realised that I didn't have a spare pin cushion or thread catcher to put in my project tin so, of course, I had to rectify that situation!  I spent longer than is probably sensible making this cute pin cushion who was going to be given a name (possibly Ethel) until I realised that naming her may prevent me from sticking pins in her. I adapted this pattern and made her from Liberty lawn.  As you can see, she's got a little gingham tail and lilac eyes (she tested several and liked these best), nose and whiskers - I'm really quite fond of her! The question is, can I bring myself to stick pins in her... Of course I can!!    (sorry,  Nicky !) The other thing I needed was a thread catcher and I can't tell you how much trouble this gave me, especially considering how many I've made and how very, very simple they are to make.  (Skip to the photo if you don't want to read about some really stu...