Post Comment Love 22-24 January

Welcome to this week’s #PoCoLo - a friendly linky which I co-host with Suzanne, where you can link any post published in the last week. We know you’ll find some great posts to read, and maybe some new-to-you blogs too, so do pop over and visit some of the posts linked and share some of that love. If you were here last week it was great to have you along, if you’re new here this week we’re pleased you’re here.

This week has flown by, mostly because of a few days off from work at the start. And we know what that means. Yes, a busy end to the week. Even more than usual I’ve not known what day it is, but it was really good to take some time off while everyone else continued working - the best sort of leave! Not that there was that much to do, but we definitely made the most of it and not logging on really is good medicine. So much so, I’m booking some more time off as I seem to have a fair bit of leave left, though I’m sure I’m not alone there.

HOW PRETTY ARE THESE FLORAL MUGS?

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Calm and swirls in the Mediterranean garden at Houghton Hall

It’s hard to think that it was only four months ago when we escaped to a Norfolk cottage for a short stay. It seems much longer than that at times, and so much has happened since then, mostly Covid-related which needs no further comment. We were lucky that we were still able to go, and while we were there we made the most of where we were.

And that included a trip to Houghton. We carefully planned - or snuck - a visit for on our way home, and I think we covered every blade of grass while we were there. It had been wet, and so we were prepared with our walking boots. Less prepared when we found them in the boot of the car a month or so later, but you can’t have everything all of the time can you?

The main reason for our visit was to see the Anish Kapoor exhibition - which was fab - but I was also keen to spend some more time in the walled garden. This garden - the Mediterranean garden, is part of that, and while you can’t see the walls trust me, they’re there, behind the hedges.

It’s the swirls of the hedges and the tranquility that appeals. The calming colours of the bench, the terracotta pots and the green of the plants, but it’s also the symmetry - it feels the ideal place to sit and while away a stressful day, in the right weather of course.

Though keeping such a space looking so good is I’m sure no mean feat, if it were mine I’d need an attentive gardening team just so I could sit and enjoy those swirls. Not going to happen is it, but a girl can dream!

Picking up my patchwork

It’s been a while, but over Christmas the patchwork quilt I planned and started a while back started to call my name. So I braved it, pulled it out and quickly remembered the reason I’d put it aside was because my next job was to cut up an old duvet cover to use as the plain sections of the quilt. I also remembered that I needed to cut over 300 pieces once I’d done that.

However, as I said it was calling my name, so there was nothing for it, but to get on with it.

And like many things, once I’d started it wasn’t as bad as I feared. It wasn’t long before I got into a rhythm and piles of the right sized blocks started to form.

So the next piece of my quilt puzzle was to reacquaint myself with the 2.5 inch squares I’d already cut after choosing fabrics from my stash and working out the layouts. Now I needed to decipher my system - thankfully my logical self had left plenty of clues, including some blog posts and photos of each Great Granny Square layout. Sometimes I even amaze myself.

Which all meant, it was time to start sewing. I decided to pin a couple of blocks to speed up the actual sewing, and it’s a system that’s working out well for me. I currently have four blocks assembled, two more ready to assemble, two ready for the first seams to be pressed and another two blocks pinned and ready to sew.

I do like a system.

SEWING SQUARES TOGETHER

CHAINING MORE SQUARES TOGETHER

SEWING THE STRIPS TOGETHER AND ASSEMBLING THE BLOCKS

The sewing is actually the enjoyable bit, cutting out less so - but clearly needs to happen. I’m sure MOH is bemused about the desire to cut up bits of fabric to sew them back together again, and on a level I see his point, but knowing I will create something bigger and better than its parts is what it’s all about.

Each strip and block I sew is full of memories. I know where each piece has come from and many are years old and some are much newer. In the blocks below, the pink and white floral pieces are from remnants in mum’s stash of the Laura Ashley curtains I had in my bedroom as a teenager, the brown stripey fabric is newer and a recent purchase from the V&A. The turquoise aztec pattern is from remnants from a childhood dress of mine, not the actual dress, but a piece that mum made me a magazine bag which I used and used. I used so much the handles came off, and so it was put aside and when I came to look for fabrics I knew this was going in.

The centres of each block, and the pink and lilac striped material are from old shirts. I’m not sure its usual to use stripes in patchwork, however I am. Striped fabrics have memories too - though I’m trying to use them so all the stripes head the same way. I suspect there’ll be a hiccup along the way, but that’s the plan.

Some of my seams don’t quite match up, and some are perfect. I’m trying not to focus on those that don’t too much because when it’s all together it will be unlikely that the imperfections spoil the overall look. Well, I’m hoping not anyway.

I’ve realised just how much I do like patchwork quilts, and how long it is since I’ve sewn one. When I had my first house I made many quilts, selling them to friends and family but got out of the habit somewhere along the way. I’ve also realised that quilts have many life lessons in them, as well as memories, as done is way better than perfect.

And while I’ve certainly not been rushing this one, they aren’t something to rush either. Though even I’ll admit leaving it a few years in between stages is pushing it. I’m not even sure MOH believes it will ever exist as an actual quilt either. I’m sure it will, though I’m not quite prepared to say exactly when!