My Dresden buttercup

I’ve made another quilt as part of my quilting ‘stretch’ project using the block from Sherri at A Quilting Life’s mystery block a month. As I said then I don’t know if I’ll manage to make a quilt a month, but I won’t really know unless I try…

This one was challenging, but mostly because as I said before December was a lot.

This is my thirteenth charity quilt and the pile continues to grow, since the first nine have were donated to the Mansfield Coordinator of Project Linus UK.

Number thirteen

Well I guess that explains a lot, but it is finished and I think it’s one of the favourite ones I’ve made. As usual I started by pulling fabrics from my stash - and I think all of these have featured before, whether in quilts or other makes. It seems once a piece of fabric has my attention it stays there until it’s mostly used up.

For the centre blocks I used some leftover fabric from the first charity quilt I made, which I’d discovered when I was sorting and rearranging my craft room the other month, and luckily there was just enough for the Dresden part of the blocks.

This was the bit that was doing its best to intimidate me, but actually it was easier than I expected and the instructions I was following were really clear.

It wasn’t long before I had the four centre blocks, looking good hey?

It wasn’t until after I started to add the borders that I decided that I wanted to keep the layout above, and typically one of the blocks had the blue fabric in the opposite corner, but I decided to continue and work with it - whatever it was to be.

Then I had a wobble for the last border on the blue side. The pinker flowery material just didn’t work for me.

I’d remembered that I had the blue dots and buttercup material and I already planned to use that on the back, and it seemed a much better fit. So for a few days I stared at this layout on my craft room floor, before finally deciding it was the way forward. And wasn’t it just as well I did, otherwise this quilt wouldn’t have had a name!

And then December became a lot, shortly followed by Christmas so it wasn’t until the end of the year that I picked this up again.

Before basting this one I added another ‘half’ border in the buttercup material so that there was some balance for my eyes. And that block that had the blue the wrong way round was still the odd one out, but I was happy with where it was.

Once again the quilting was the straight line type - and this time I think they’re pretty straight thanks to the adjustable guide I bought. Not only were they straighter than ever before, they’re also more evenly spaced - and even better it whizzed through my machine. I was (and am) very happy.

So with the binding added it was time to remember one of my lessons from my Quilts of 2025 post and take a more pleasing on the eye photo.

This spot struck me as idea as I was walking downstairs, and even though this quilt would look great on the mustard kitchen sofa I couldn’t wait to try it out. It also gives me a real easy way to photograph the back too!

And if you’re wondering how I got it to stay perfectly balanced on the bannister, there was three very small pieces of parcel tape doing all the work. I even impressed myself with that!

I’ve still to cut out, let alone make my own block for my block of the month quilt so that will follow - and I’ve one more quilt to make as part of this ‘stretch’ project, which I’ve not even started yet either. It’s taken until the November block for me to slow down on this project and monthly block quilt, which isn’t bad going - but there’s still a lot more to do to put together my quilt, but the end is almost in sight!

You can see my other quilts I’ve made to donate to Project Linus - 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, including those that are part of this ‘stretch’ project in earlier posts. I’m aiming to publish an update on my progress in the last week of each month for the remainder of 2025.

New to my craft room this December

I ended last month’s post by sharing my advent calendar, so let’s start with that. I was impressed with it then, and I’m even more impressed with it now. It’s the type of advent calendar that I don’t think you’d need to do every year, as many of the items were tools and gadgets that will last hopefully for many years. Actually you could easily reuse the packaging for a self-filled advent calendar (of any nature) in future years too.

And as much as I love a pouch, I really love a box that can be reused!

MORRIS WORKS QUILT SHOP ADVENT CALENDAR

MORRIS WORKS QUILT SHOP ADVENT CALENDAR DAYS 1-14

With thread, needles, needle threaders, needle storage, a seam ripper, magnetic grips and a super long tape measure as well as a kit to make a pouch (well I never!) there was plenty to unbox each day.

MORRIS WORKS QUILT SHOP ADVENT CALENDAR DAYS 15-24

And there was more thread, some embroidery scissors, an extra hand (if only!), tools for cleaning and some bejewelled mixer fabric on the 24th. There was plenty of new to me tools, and only one that I was completely baffled by (day 17) - and that’s a magnetic seam guide.

There’s things I know I will find useful, and other things I definitely want to try. There’s probably a couple of things I may not use, or maybe I will - and that’s ok. All in all it was a great advent calendar which brought an influx of aids which I most likely wouldn’t have tried without it.

But December also brings opportunities for recycling additions to my craft room, more so than normal. I mean Christmas crackers anyone? Exactly. This year I think I’ve been relatively restrained, saving the main cracker ‘bodies’ and the ribbons that were tied on each end - which are kept together with my cracker paperclip gift!

I’ve also added a lime fruit net, the first green net for my weaving with waste supplies. And there’s various ribbons too - the pink ones were out of some new pyjamas which had four ‘hanging ribbons’ - four?! I don’t even need one! The white ribbons are from an already slightly adjusted Christmas present, and I’m not sure where the multi-coloured braid came from, but it’s pretty isn’t it - and I’m sure I’ll find a use for it.

Good news - the long awaiting invisible zipper foot arrived! In fact it arrived in a few days from the new supplier, so that’s good news. It’s pictured below along with some more sewing gadgets and aids which were Christmas presents from my parents. Mum’s also sews and this year she included a pen-shaped chalk wheel, a measuring gauge, some bodkins (that’s a great word isn’t it?) for pulling elastics and ribbons through a casing, and a clapperboard and roller to help seams behave in patchwork.

Mum also knows how much I love pouches and boxes, so there were a couple of pouches and a collapsible box tied with ribbons. It’s this that I’ve adjusted, as it’s immediately in use with that pouch I mentioned the other day that’s still on my ‘to do' list. I’ve trimmed the ribbons and added black poppers in the corners so that the box/tray remains collapsible, but without long ribbons.

I’ve also been fortunate with other Christmas gifts, with some new books to read and learn from and a smaller size ruler which will be much easier to take out to craft groups, and a thread spool which I’m keen to try as I’ve several really large cotton spools that I’ve picked up from destash sales which at the moment I can only use on my overlocker, and as I try not to rethread that hardly at all, then it could be a while before the really large spools get used. I’m hoping that now I’ll be able to use the standalone thread spool with my sewing machine, that’s the theory anyway…

I love to receive a book on Christmas Day, as there’s no better way to spend the afternoon with my nose in a new book. These will be useful too, I hope - the Machine Magic book was recommended on the Bernina training day, and I think it’ll also be useful for when I actually tackle my Floral Fancy. The Modern Folk Embroidery book is for a project that’s been brewing in my mind for a while - I want to embroider a plain jacket I have, whether or not I will I’m not sure, but it’s currently at the research and examining possibilities stage!

The final book - Journey to the Centre of a Quilter - tells the story of many of Jo’s quilts I saw at the Festival of Quilts earlier this year, and looks to be a great introduction into improv quilting, which both interests and intrigues me!

So that’s another month in my craft room, check out my previous updates for earlier additions, and remember to let me know below what you’ve added to your craft supplies this month.

Other makes of 2025

I quite enjoyed recapping my Quilts of 2025, so I thought I’d do the same with my other (sewing) makes of the year. You’ll not be surprised to learn that there’s a lot of pouches - my love for them continues, and I think there’ll be plenty more this year too.

But I did make more than pouches, there’s even been a dress and a pie-carrier, and plenty of embroidery thrown in. Many of the things I’ve made have had previous lives - as t-shirts, dresses and even covering a headboard. Seriously. There’s been small fabric samples too, and I’ve even used materials cut out from the larger books, and I’ve already found a use for the sample books I picked up at the Harrogate show in November.

I’m hoping that in 2026 I’ll have even more ‘other makes’ but first let’s look back at my 2025 makes.

Here’s what I’ve made in 2025

In January I completed my mandala pouch which continues to be home for my poppers, and all the tools associated with that. I also found time to add some sparkles to my zumba pouch (I’m still missing that class which stopped in the summer - sad face!) and knocked myself up a quick felt pencil case for some of the supplies I needed to take along to a workshop.

In February there were more pouches, obviously and I made an appliquéd velvet pouch and a impromptu saucepan saver as I discovered how to use my new sewing machine. And then making use of a block left over from the Noughts and Crosses quilt, I made myself the ‘all the patterns’ project bag.

Then it seemed I had an ‘other makes’ rest for a few months, as it wasn’t until June that I completed my next make - and that was a big one for me, it was my dress.

Let’s gloss over the fact that I’d bought some material (still not used) to make this dress back in 2023 though! This was the toile, or test run of the pattern, which if it didn’t work then I’d never have to wear, and I wouldn’t have spoiled my lovely bought fabric either. But as it turned out I have worn this dress, quite a lot in fact, and it continues to bring compliments which is also nice.

Even better it still hasn’t fallen apart. But I’ve not yet made it in the original material, nor some of the other material I’ve bought since either. Maybe 2026 is the year…

In July I was making things up again and created a really useful velvet box pouch from various fabric samples I’d collected over the years. This one’s purpose is to keep the foot pedal of my ‘take to’ machine safe during journeys, and to stop it banging against my second new sewing machine of the year.

The end of the month saw me create an incremental update for dad’s birthday bunting - I hadn’t worked out how to attach it to the original banner, but then again I also reckoned that really wasn’t my problem!

In August, inspired by the workshop I attended at the Festival of Quilts I stitched two kantha inspired landscape scenes, including one with a hare for the bedside tables in our spare rooms.

Though clearly by now I was experiencing some pouch withdrawal symptoms - but don’t worry another eight were to be completed by the end of August, and I jest but they were the perfect project to get used to my ‘take to’ sewing machine, and well, pouches are always useful. I don’t know where they go, but the pile soon disappears!

Actually I made another project bag as well in August, but I haven’t shared that one here yet so when I do - I’ve another one on the go as part of the ‘set’ - I’ll add a link in here.

In September I was clearly busy finishing quilts, so it wasn’t until October that I became obsessed with and made myself a small pie carrier, and while it’s a bit smaller than I’d like it’s still useful. I still need to make myself a slightly larger, less prototype version, so that should be along this year too at some point.

In October I also had a bout of repurposing old clothes into, yes you’ve guessed it, more pouches and project bags - and this is definitely something that will continue this year.

I ended the year with some more Christmassy items - a Scandinavian folded fabric star which tested my ability to follow instructions, and several ‘sheep in Christmas jumper’ Christmas cards, as you do.

And of course, some more pouches - this time as presents, so add three pouches and a further project bag to my year’s ‘other’ makes. Not a bad year at all, and I’m hoping that 2026 is even more prolific - with maybe even a new style of pouch too, who knows?!