Making my Mystery Block of the Month: September 2025

You’ll have seen that I plan to complete Sherri’s mystery block a month quilt and in my last post I shared the test blocks which I made into my eleventh charity quilt, today I’m sharing the centre block I made for my own quilt.

Despite being relatively ahead of my relaxed schedule for this month’s quilt and central blocks, as always seems to be the case I found that somehow, all of a sudden, the block for my actual quilt still needed to be done almost at the last minute. Isn’t that always the way, the trick of having too much time on your hands, suddenly becomes no time at all.

Anyway, my block is done, but somehow with no photographs until it was assembled.

Showing the 'basket' at the centre of the block - the basket uses green/gold patterned material, but the basket's contents is blue

I’d chosen the materials I’d use way back in time too, if you look back they’re included in September’s Quilty Update, and I’m pleased with how the colours turned out. It’s the first time using both of these colour ways, and while the basket’s contents is blue so perhaps not too realistic, the basket definitely has a touch of realism about it with those colours.

It’s also the first block for a long time that I had to do some unpicking - I mixed up my green order. I contemplated living with it, but as it was only one piece, I decided to head for the seam ripper and add the green fabrics in the same order as before.

The blocks from this month and the previous two months laid out side by side as a preview for a row in the finished quilt

I couldn’t help but have a peek at how the completed row would look, although I’m sure there will be extra sashing to add to assemble the quilt - but you can get an idea of what it will look like when finished.

This month's quilt block is now hanging on a skirt hanger with the other blocks on my bookcase

So September’s block done, and the basket that I wasn’t sure I liked when I started turned out to be way easier than I ever imagined. Who knew.

Join me next month to see how I get on with the next mystery block, and check out my previous posts for my mystery block quilt or the charity quilts made from the test blocks.

New to my craft room this September

It seems that crafting is now part of my everyday life in a way that I couldn’t have imagined when we moved here - and I’m not sad about it. I don’t always get to do some craft every day, but if I don’t I’m pretty sure I’m thinking about new projects or possibly even shopping online, or in real life.

I’m beginning to think it’s true that buying, or acquiring, new supplies is a separate hobby to actually using them, and it’s one I’ve been working on over a number of years. Now though I have the time to start using it all, or some of it at least.

With more crafting time in my days my productivity has definitely increased - you’ll have seen earlier posts on my newly put into practice skills proclaiming my pouch love, and the updates to my quilty plans. I’ve realised though that the accountability these posts give me is good, and so I’m planning to share more about what I add to my craft room every month in this new series of posts.

Some of these I will most likely already shared, like the vintage table runner and £1 fabric sample from our weekend in Malton - not forgetting the cute hand painted little cards.

A vintage cross stitch table runner, with small handpainted notelets resting against it
A £1 fabric sample with a bold embroidered green diamond pattern

My plan for the vintage table runner is to have it on standby to use in my hand sewing EPP (English Paper Piecing) blue diamonds project, that’s if I can bear to cut this one up as it is so pretty. For the green chevron fabric sample, that’s looking at a new life as a project bag, though I need to find the perfect fabric to pair with it, but one that doesn’t detract from the striking design.

I’m a convert to Aurifil thread for quilting and generally most of the other projects I’ve been sewing recently, but I’m also a lazy colour changer! This is something I want to be better at, and braver too and as I’m nearly through my ‘go to’ white thread I added some pretty variegated threads to my basket at the Morris Works Quilt Shop to encourage more thread changes!

Four aurifil threads - white, desert dawn, liberty and marrakesh

AURIFIL THREADS: NATURAL WHITE (2021), DESERT DAWN (4648), LIBERTY (3852) & MARRAKESH (3817)

Planning to make more clothes

I also want to make more wearables, and at a recent Sewing Group meeting I saw someone wearing some great 3/4 length culottes strangely not that dissimilar to those in the image below. After thinking I like those, somehow my next thought was I could make some - who even am I?

As fate would have it this pattern dropped into my inbox soon after, and so a plan formulated. I bought the pattern, opting for the A0 printed version (rather than just the PDF self print and stick option) and I’m planning to use the bargain material I picked up from the fabric stall in Newark Market which was closing down. It’s a bold print and so I’m hoping that will disguise any blips I have…

The hazel trousers pattern by sew over it
Many colours, many invisible zips!

When the pattern arrived I realised I’d also need an invisible zip, and then I remembered that zips are a whole other world - especially when you don’t really know what colour you need to match to your fabric, which isn’t helped when shopping online. So I turned to eBay and picked up more invisible zips than I will probably ever need for £15, reasoning that one of these colours must work. And if I make more of these culottes then I’m a step ahead with the zip already…

It’s true I have made myself a dress, and I have worn it a few times over the summer - and it does bring compliments, more importantly it hasn’t fallen apart. And sewing is just sewing (sort of!), so it should be within my grasp, especially now that I’ve had plenty of zip practice following all those pouches!

Watch this space (but remember to blink).

Still adding to my stash

At the charity sew day for Project Linus UK I picked up these two bundles of fabric from the sale table for less than a fiver. The lighter colours have a touch of Cath Kidston about them, and I liked how they looked alongside the dark fabrics - I’ve a feeling that these may appear in another charity quilt at some point.

six floral fabrics, six lights - almost Cath Kidston-ish, and three darks

Repurposing too

I have finally ‘retired’ my favourite Joules t-shirt, which is well past wearing in public stage - even for gardening, sadly. But I can’t quite bring myself to throw it away completely, or turn it into rags as MOH suggested. Instead I’ve added this to my ‘potential pouch’ pile, and I’ve sorted out some lining and a zip too so there’s some chance this will happen in the not too distant future.

My old joules tshirt - pink stripes and roses

On the wall

Well, it isn’t quite - but that’s the plan. This month I want to get my newly-picked up, carefully unwrapped, admired and then laid on the spare bed for safekeeping Vogue pattern page picture up on my craft room wall. I’m so pleased with how they turned out, that it’ll be good to see them every day. And it’s just as well the pictures were cheap - unbelievably just a pound each, as the framing was a bit more than that - I have expensive tastes clearly!

the vogue pattern pages now framed in a black frame and mounted with a beige mount, edged with black

So that’s a wander through the new things in my craft room, let me know if you enjoyed reading this post - and what you’ve added to your craft supplies this month.

Making my Mystery Block of the Month: August 2025

You’ll have seen that I plan to complete Sherri’s mystery block a month quilt and in my last post I shared the test blocks which I made into my tenth charity quilt, today I’m sharing the centre block I made for my own quilt.

My challenge for this one was choosing which of the navy fabrics to use, and one that I gave more thought to than normal. This block is quite similar to the patchwork star back in April, but the centre square is made from four smaller squares rather than a single piece of fabric.

My dilemma was whether or not to use the three navy fabrics I had, or to add in some of the other colours from the range, or to stick with one. In the end I went with the latter as there’s plenty of colours in this print, which I hoped would give me the patchwork feel I was after.

Laying out the individual navy blocks to check if they might work and look 'patchworky' enough

I purposely cut different parts of the design and tried to make a bit of a plan.

The squares and rectangles laid out how I planned to sew them

And after a bit of jiggling about, it worked out ok - well more than ok actually.

A patchwork star made with the same navy material but looking every bit a patchwork

Then it was on with the borders, after double checking with my hand drawn plan and another sneak peek of the blocks so far laid out (which I shared in my recent Quilty Update if you wanted to take a look), and before I knew it the August block was complete.

Pressing the completed block
The finished block hung on my bookcase using a 'skirt' hanger

After a quick press it too was hung with the other blocks I’ve made so far. I’ve even caught myself up with my ‘relaxed’ timetable sharing August’s block by the end of September.

Now for the next one!

Join me next month to see how I get on with the next mystery block, and check out my previous posts for my mystery block quilt or the charity quilts made from the test blocks.