Loving Lisa Leverton's Tula Pink Obsession at the Newark Quilt Show

Each January Newark holds the first quilt show of the year, this was my second year attending - and, what a difference a year makes. This year I went along on both days, once with people from my sewing group and then again with my SIL. Last year I went alone, and knew no one - it was still a great day out, but this year it was good to have company. I also bumped into people I’d met on workshops, more sewing group people and I even did a workshop too - though I haven’t picked that up since, oops!

One of the series of quilts I was keen to see, and I knew my SIL would be too, were the Tula Pink fabrics and patterns in Lisa Leverton’s quilts. I’ve been seriously influenced on Tula Pink by my SIL and my EPP hexi sewing machine mat uses her fabrics - though on a much smaller scale!

In the show notes Lisa said that she didn’t discover Tula Pink until 2019 and she’s been smitten ever since. It’s easy to see why as the fabrics and patterns are bright and vibrant and tend to focus on animals big and small, and there’s so much detail in them. Lisa said that during lockdown she found more like-minded quilters who loved Tula too - there’s quite a following, and she hopes to make a quilt from every one of the fabric collections.

What she has already is an amazing start, and each is stunningly beautiful, here I’m sharing some of my favourites.

SET SAIL QUILT - 2022, LISA LEVERTON

I love the diamonds and the colours of this one - and that how, the more you look, the more you see!

URBAN JUNGLE QUILT - 2019, LISA LEVERTON

The colours! The patterns! What’s not to like? This is Lisa’s first quilt in Tula Pink fabric - it’s easy to see why she’s smitten, but all the fussy cutting might have done me in!

MISDIRECTION QUILT - 2023, LISA LEVERTON

This is the one I’d happily put on my bed - and it’s contributing to how I see my flying geese turning out, though I won’t be using Tula Pink fabrics, or these colours, but it’s helping me form what I want along with one or two other designs I’ve seen.

HIBISCUS QUILT - 2022, LISA LEVERTON

Again it’s the graduating colours for me in this one, this time against a plain light background - but if you look closely, there’s plenty of fussy cutting again in those blocks.

It’s all about the detail

In this next series of photos, it’s all about the detail in the fabrics - the quilts are equally stunning and Lisa is clearly a very talented quilter - as is Tula a very talented designer.

PART OF THE BIG BANG QUILT - 2024, LISA LEVERTON

PART OF THE BUTTERFLY QUILT - 2022, LISA LIVERTON

I think what amazes me about the fabrics is how the designs and part-patterns meld together so well and can look completely different from what it did on the bolt, or the cutting table in front of you. I guess that’s true of all fabrics, but perhaps it’s the boldness of the Tula Pink designs which makes this more prominent.

PART OF THE SPOOLS OF LOVE QUILT - 2020, LISA LEVERTON

And one final quilt

Yes, I couldn’t resist sharing this one. Lisa says this is possibly her favourite quilt of the whole collection, which she made in 2020 and her first encounter of very tiny HSTs (Half Square Triangles). The show notes say that Lisa loves how the colours pop, and the big on-point squares with the fussy-cut animals.

OPENING NIGHT QUILT - 2020, LISA LEVERTON

There were so many more inspiring quilts at the show, and many more which I want to share - so there’ll be at least one or two more posts, so look out for those. But in the meantime, enjoy these quilting works of art.

My quilt plans for 2025

It’s fair to say that I’ve a bit of a thing for quilts, and that’s not really a new thing. What is newer, or something that I’ve picked up again more recently is making quilts again after essentially a twenty or so year break.

In the past few months you’ll have seen that I’ve finished the flying geese kit and then the noughts and crosses quilt, and though on a much smaller scale there was also my handsewn hexi sewing machine mat too, but what next?

The list is ever growing…

Well like any self-respecting crafter I’ve a list of things I want to do which is as long as my arm! And it’s growing every time I see a new design and fall in love with it, and so it goes onto the list. Clearly that’s never going to work out but hey, it’s hard to turn down a beautiful quilt, so I thought I would try and hold myself accountable by sharing my plans - as they currently are in mid February, and then we’ll see how we go…

1. The teal flying geese

   I was originally planning to extend the flying geese kit by adding more material to those provided in the kit, and I duly started to ‘collect’ material in my chosen colour scheme. The only thing was that when I looked at it again, I loved the fabric I’d added way more than the ones in the kit - and so the kit became a test of my tolerance and skill level for making flying geese.

   I passed, and have since sorted out and pruned somewhat more the materials I intend to use - but I haven’t got any further yet as while I have a rough idea of what I want to do, I don’t have an exact plan. I know there will be a lot of flying geese, but also some plain elements too, and it makes sense to have a bit more idea of the end point before I start. So for the time being though this one is still percolating.

2. The mystery block a month

   Well I wasn’t going to, but the January block was really cute, and so I am. And after all it’s only a block a month, so how hard can it be. Yes mentally I’ve signed up to Sherri’s mystery block a month quilt over on A Quilting Life and I’ll share how I’m getting on soon - though given my January, I started later than I hoped, but the first block is done - and for reasons I’ll explain next week, this one needed more planning than I hope the rest of the months will need.

3. The jeans and pyjamas

   The noughts and crosses quilt was a way for me to test the Drunkard’s Path block - again I passed, which is good news as my heart is really set on the Happenstance pattern by Sarah Hibberts. Of course I’m giving it my own take and will be using old jeans and material I’ve saved from old pyjamas for this one, which will eventually live in the boot of my car for those times when you need a quilt on the go.

   All that’s stopping me getting started with this one is the actual cutting out, so I’m hopeful that as this one won’t need to be huge it won’t take me too long to get started, nor take too long to be finished either.

4. The Essex linen kisses

   This one wasn’t supposed to be on the list, but it made itself known shortly after I bought the brightly coloured screen printed scrap box from Helen Steele (pictured below). The scraps are of varying sizes but to maximise how many I can use I plan to cut them into 3 inch squares, and sew together to form a brightly coloured cross, or kiss and use a darker fabric as the background.

   This one is so close to being cut out and started on, so my money’s on this one starting next.

5. My floral fancy

   I shared how I had recently started my own floral fancy, well the plan is to finish that panel - and most likely to extend it further into a quilt. In my head the extension panels will complement rather than replicate the central panel, and the fuller quilt will be a longer term project throughout the year.

   I’m keen though to make progress on the central panel as it is really beautiful, and I really don’t want it to languish in a cupboard - or on my large craft mat, as it currently is, for too long. I need that mat back!!

   I’m also collecting a selection of greys to form the extended quilt, so while buying grey fabric doesn’t sound the most inspiring it is with good purpose - and I’m mostly staying on track.

6. My English Paper Piecing (EPP) blue diamonds

   This is my hand sewing project which I’ll take to my monthly sewing group evening meetings, and no doubt will pick up in between those too, as it’s a good project for keeping my hands busy. The diamonds are small - I like a challenge, clearly! - and I’m using pre-loved fabric for this. The central diamonds will be various blues from MOH’s old shirts - some patterned, some plain and each of these will be outlined with bright lime diamonds, which is material left over from another project long ago.

   As the diamonds are small, my updated plan is to place much larger diamonds between the hand sewn blocks, which will help with progress! I’ve got an old embroidered tablecloth which I bought on eBay for this - which may be a bit controversial for some cutting this up, but I’m ok with it. Whether or not I’d cut up a family heirloom is another matter, but that’s not something I need to consider for this project.

THE SCREEN PRINTED ESSEX LINEN SCRAP BOX

Oh and one final ‘stretch’ project

This one is potentially crazy, and I may not achieve it - but then again I just might, and I won’t know unless I try.

The corporate world loves a ‘stretch’ objective doesn’t it - and this is my ‘stretch’ project. From the quilts I’ve completed mentioned above I’ve found sewing a test block so useful and something I intend to carry on doing for the mystery block a month quilt. So I thought I might as well make these test blocks into quilts too, I’ll be using fabric from my stash, and so I’m hopeful I’ll also be able to make a small dent in my stash, and for a good cause.

My plan is to donate these to Project Linus UK, which you’ll know from my previous posts is a charity whose mission is to provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children, who are sick, disabled, disadvantaged or distressed through the donation of new, homemade, washable quilts and blankets. 

These won’t be the largest quilts, but they will be big enough to give a quilt-sized hug.

And all the other sewing and making!

Yes, my list doesn’t end there - there’s plenty of other things on my craft to do list - including more pouches, I’m sure! But building up my confidence and skill set making quilts before braving the rest of my list seems a sensible plan, well to me anyway. On my non-quilt list, as well as more pouches (obviously), I want to make some lightweight dressing gowns, a cover for my sewing machine, and finally get my head around making some clothes.

Yes that’s as well as normal life, gardening, holidays and my non-sewing craft projects - I’ve a feeling it’s going to be a busy year!

Mostly gold interiors inspiration

Unbelievably it has taken me this long to get myself back to Margo & Plum, which I first visited back in 2022 when we were still checking out if this was somewhere we wanted to move to. In that time it looks as if they’ve made Bottesford their base, and added a cafe too. Yes, I don’t know why it took me so long either, but on a particularly cold and grey February day we headed the eleven miles for lunch, and a spot of interiors spotting of the more opulent kind.

I surprised MOH by falling for this monkey clutching a bottle of wine (sadly empty) - and he’s right it’s not my usual style, but I while I left it there for now, I can see this coming home with us at some point. I think it would look great in our hallway, which is also our wine store area, but we’ve a little more work to do planning out how we can use this area better, and we shouldn’t skip straight to the ‘making it fancy’ stage. We shouldn’t, which is a shame!

They had plenty of other ‘gold’ items that would go alongside these - and that’s part of the reason the monkey stayed on the shelf, as I think there might also be accompanying purchases when the time comes, just to make him feel at home of course.

Perhaps this pair of leopard candle holders?

Though I’d put these in our lounge, which incidentally is where my ornate green vase with exotic birds also lives. MOH bought the vase as a surprise birthday present a few years ago, and he did good. It was funny though as he remembered it, and how much I liked it, but couldn’t remember where we’d seen it and so spent hours internet searching - thing is, if he’d read my blog, he would have had his answer much more easily. Has he learned his lesson? Absolutely not!

Or perhaps a pineapple? Though I was torn between the gold metal and the green glass versions…

Or the bottle stop with extra bling? Though to be fair we don’t often have much use for a bottle stop, but I don’t see that as a reason not to have this bling-y one, as you never know when you’ll need one!

I didn’t leave completely empty handed though - the coasters under the bottle stop came home with us, along with some fake eucalyptus stems which I’m using in a vintage enamel jug along with fresh stems, to bulk them out a bit!

So not my usual style, but each of the things above would easily fit into our home alongside things we already have, and which we’ve bought to furnish our new home. MOH knows we’ll be back, it’s just a matter of when!

Lunch at the Margo & Plum cafe

Having the cafe is a real boon for the shop, and it was busy which is always a good sign - especially when it’s a little off the beaten track. It also provided an extended showroom space, showcasing how their items could be used, which is also clever.

But the star of the show was this fantastic jukebox.

Isn’t it great? And it was on ‘free play’ so even better - I think we’ll be back for this alone. Well, and the monkey and a slice of cake of course!