Around the World Blog Hop - Twickenham Stop

 Hello!  Please let me start with a great big 'thank you' to Lea Anne at Podunk Pretties for tagging me in this world wide blog hop.  Always fun to take part in something that spreads around our marvellous quilty (or otherwise!) world. 
Lea Anne makes a series of bright and beautiful quilts that never fail to put a smile on my face when I see them - colours that can always cheer you up!  I found her blog through a linky party earlier in the summer - hope that you enjoy what you find there too!  I particularly like her scalloped edge tutorial - a way of finishing an internal border that I hadn't thought of - its great!

So, the idea for this blog hop is that I answer some questions about my stuff, for those people who haven't had the  (dubious!) pleasure of meeting me before and then link to some other lovely bloggers who I think you'd like to meet.

 1) What am I working on?

I'm embarrassed to admit how many projects I'm working on.  In fact, now that I've had a good think (not quite time out on the 'thinking step' but close to it!), I have decided to try and complete all my current UFOs within the next year.

However, I'm committed to sharing the start point of this task with you, however embarrassing, so here goes!

The top of the post shows a hand stitchery (design by Urban Threads) which is going to form part of a Round Robin in my quilt group.

 Then I've got these two little houses which just need filling and closing - based on Janet Clare's lovely pattern.

I'm still working on my 'cuff book' too - just a few pages in this one, so I'm sure that by the end of 2014 I'll have finished it.

 Of course these are all hand sewing projects - this is not surprising, as machine sewing is so much quicker that I'm less likely to have the projects sitting around for quite so long.  This shows a 'flimsy' and backing that are just ready for the wadding and some quilting.  This will by my 'September' quilt to give away - this year I'm trying to make one quilt every month (not always big ones, and not usually complicated ones!) to give away.  A few will be presents but most will be gifted to Project Linus or similar charities that distribute quilts.  I love that I can spend my time doing something that I enjoy in order to make something with love for someone else.  Quilting is a great hobby, isn't it?

This pile - ahem - is the front and back of my 'August' quilt.  I'm really not at all up to date, am I?!?

These two are definitely 'boy' quilts - tractors, cars and other 'boy' novelty fabrics make up these as an antidote to the girly ones that I usually make!

 More hand project UFOs to show now.  These hexies are made from my late FiL's shirts, and represent pretty much the last of the great fabric stash that his shirts left.  I made double quilts for all four of his grandchildren, and then a series of smaller 'use it up' quilts after that.  This will have five rows of hexies, which I shall then add to.

 Another piece of handwork - my progress on Esther Aliu's Love Entwined quilt.  I'm only planning on making this central part of it - it's a wonderful pattern that Esther is sharing, but pretty daunting in its entirety!  I'm really happy to have got this far, just one corner to finish before quilting, binding and finishing.  It has a worldwide following with some absolutely wonderful quilts being stitched - you should go look for some!

 Lastly, my long term WIP - a hybrid of hand and machine sewing - my Dear Jane quilt.  I'm only planning to do the squares on this project too, but it is by far my longest running project.  Over eleven years so far - I should really, really get this finished!

So, eight projects (and about a dozen more in my head) to finish.  That should be doable, right?

2) How does my work differ from others of it's genre?

Ummmmm......I'm tempted to say that it's not as good, but that sounds a bit down and I'm a more cheerful person than that!  I don't know that my work does differ.  As you can see, I'm happy to follow patterns from all sorts of people, as well as to create my own, especially when machine piecing.

3) Why do I write / create what I do?

I quilt because since becoming hooked on it, I really miss it when I can't! I credit patchwork and quilting with being the glue that holds me together.  I suffer with ME / CFS so the outlets that I used to have (working, walking, swimming, socialising, travelling, dare devil sports) aren't open to me in the same way anymore.  Instead I've thrown myself into something that offers many different disciplines and lots of lovely colour.  Shopping online, sewing with a machine, enjoying internet communities - I can't imagine ever managing without a 'fabric fix' to enhance my day now!

I blog so that I can record what I do for myself and so that I can put occasional tutorials up to help other people, something that I'd like to do more of.  That's my way of 'giving back' something to the wider crafting / quilting community by way of thanks for everything that has been shared with me.

4) What is my favourite piece?

This quilt - fusible applique and machine quilting, from a pattern by 'Don't Look Now' is probably the favourite out of the quilts that I've made (and that number is up over a hundred now).

It hangs over our bed and I get to enjoy it every single day. 

So that's all about me and my quilting.

I'm thinking that you'd like to go and look at someone else now!

I'd like to tag Sewkalico and .......oh, hang on, I remember, I'm supposed to have found two more people who'd like to be tagged by now - oops!  If you'd like to play along please let me know as soon as possible and I'll tag you too!  In the meantime, let me entice you to along to Sewkalico by telling you that I've been following her blog for ages, and that she is the absolute master of quilt shots in the bucolic English countryside - so it's a double pleasure to look at her quilts, as you get great backgrounds too.  Of course, it's not just quilts that she makes - but you'll be able to hop on over and have a look yourselves.

Thanks again to Lea Anne  - and remember to go and have a look at her blog too!

Happy quilting, everyone!