Snow, Cabin Fever and a giveaway.

Here are the inevitable snow pictures! Everything I have tried to do this week has been cancelled due to the white stuff and now I feel that I have a dose of what can only be described as 'cabin fever!'
These photos were taken by Geoff on Wednesday and things are not much different now. Our street is treacherous due to compacted snow and ice and we live on quite a steep hill.

Fancy a camping trip? Ironically we have just acquired one of those 'camper covers' but who knows when we will be able to use it!

What about a nice sit on the patio?

This weekend I was supposed to be at college for my City & Guilds course. This also has been cancelled - although I don't think I would have attempted the drive to Skipton anyway.

The down side with this is that I don't get to spend time with my classmates, Rachel, Anne-Marie and Hazel. This is a real shame as we have become good friends over the 3/4 years I have known them.

However you can get to know Hazel a little bit better by heading over to her blog where she is having a great giveaway with 3 prizes all relating to the Quilt Show.

Teenage Angst - Final Layout

Well winter is well and truly here in Yorkshire and yesterday I had to cancel my patchwork classes due to snow. Today is even worse with probably a foot of snow falling overnight. So today I will continue with my sewing on teenage angst.

The photo shows the final layout of the blocks and I decided to change a couple of them.

I put a black circle in the centre of this one as I felt it needed some black.

I changed the rail fence block as I thought it was too heavy. I like it much better now.

I will try to take some photos of my progress as I have now joined all the blocks together and hope to add the borders today. I have also made a couple of blocks for the back.

Had a good trip to the knitting and stitching show in Harrogate on Sunday but had a nightmare journey home as the snow started falling heavily in the afternoon. It took us 5 hours to get home instead of the usual 1!

The 12 blocks of Teenage Angst.

If you regularly read my blog I apologise for the lack of content in the last month. No real reason - just didn't feel like sharing I suppose. That doesn't mean I haven't been quilting of course!
Progress is being made on Teenage Angst and I am hoping to have it ready to give as a Christmas gift. The photo shows the initial layout of the 12 blocks before sashings added. Since this photo was taken I have altered two of the blocks and started the sashings. Today I am going to work on a couple of blocks for the back.

I actually love pieced backs - I suppose you could say it is my latest fad - along with mug rugs! (more of that later). My feeling is that if you have to join backing fabric because your quilt is too wide you may as well put in a few blocks to add interest. Also it is a great way of using sample blocks or those that didn't make it onto the front.

Snow has arrived in Yorkshire overnight which is a little too early if you ask me! It is very cold but sunny - winter shouldn't have started till Dec 1st but looks like it had other plans. Tomorrow I am going to the Knitting and Stitching show in Harrogate so looking forward to lots of retail therapy!

Diamond Blocks

Recently I have been working on Jonathan's university quilt which is titled 'Teenage Angst'! It was started in 2003 when I began a couple of the inevitable Lynne Edwards Sampler Quilts. Strictly speaking this is my second quilt after I started quilting in 2002. One of these days I will have to show my first quilt also made for Jonathan titled 'The Road to Baghdad'!
The colour palette is very restricted - black and grey which matched his mood for most of his teenage years.
It will be 12 blocks and the corners will be foundation pieced diamonds - designed by Jonathan himself.
Here is a view of the paper side of one of the 4 blocks.
Foundation piecing is the only way to get those points to meet at the bottom!

The fabric side after trimming.

Background expanded.

Borders added.

Soon I will show all 12 blocks although a couple of them need small adjustments.

Edinburgh Museum of Modern Art

Last week we were on holiday in Scotland and we visited Edinburgh which is a spectacular city. The purpose of our visit was to go to the Museum of Modern Art and the Dean Gallery. When we arrived at the Dean Gallery I was surprised by the neon message! I really liked it - in fact I do like the use of words or messages in art.

It reminded me of my son's piece that he did at college.

We went to see the surrealist exhibition Another World which was excellent. Details here

A Textile Weekend

At the end of September I had a textile weekend with my friend Lynne.
On the Saturday we went to Farfield Mill Sedbergh to hear a talk by Alice Kettle and see her new exhibition Allegory.
The photo is taken from their website and shows an example of her work. She is known for her machine embroidery and the talk she gave was excellent.
On Sunday we went to the Textilia III exhibition at the Piece Hall Halifax. The work which impressed us the most was by Janet Browne.
The photo is taken from her website.

She does raw edge applique building up many layers and then cuts away the background areas.

Anthony and Natalie's Wedding

Since I last blogged I have been very busy - my patchwork and quilting classes have started again and I have enrolled at college for my last year of City & Guilds.

On September 18th we attended my nephew's wedding - actually it was a blessing as they got married in Thailand in August.
Here are the happy couple with their parents outside the church.

Here is a photo of 3 generations, my father in law, husband and my two boys. Jonathan has now started his degree at Leeds and is enjoying it although findind it difficult to get a job to supplement his student loan.

Rob has started his media course at the local college.