Hi there, it’s been a while! What a whirlwind the year has been, but guess we probably all feel like that? I won’t bore you with tales, or excuses for my absence from the blogasphere, merely move on and tell you what’s been going on in the studio. We recently hosted our first ever quilting and patchwork workshop. The lovely Josie from The Patchwork Dog and Basket was our guest tutor and led a weekend workshop of quilting newbies down a dark and dangerous path of addiction, into machine patchwork and quilting techniques. I feel the need for a little back-story at this point: Back in the summer I started teaching a morning class in Lewes at the aforementioned Patchwork dog, in dressmaking. Each week I would try and slide through the shop without looking at any of the fabrics for fear of bankrupting myself. Once in the workroom, beautiful quilts... read more
If you use a lot of commercial sewing patterns then like me you probably get frustrated that every time you move around your work, the pattern paper takes off and floats away from where you are tying to pin it down. Well, no more! I have been meaning to make some of these useful little weights for ages, they are really handy when you are working out the initials layout of a pattern but aren’t ready to pin yet. They are super easy to make and with the addition of dried lavender, are deliciously scented too. Here’s a step by step tutorial of how to make pattern weight, this is a great little project for kids and a great way to use those pretty little scraps that you can’t bear to throw away. I started by making a nice cup of tea, a had a sneaky cookie (which by the... read more
