All Set for Christmas

My poor blog has been neglected for a couple of weeks now.  But with good reason, because I am on holiday in Paraguay, with my family and mother in law, who lives here.  We are having just a lovely time, which doesn't leave a lot of time for blogging! 

I will share a couple of pictures of our holiday in due course, but as it's Christmas Eve, I am very excited to show you the Christmas place mat that I made for my daughter since we've been here.

Being without my sewing machine, I indulged in a little EPP and used these gorgeous Christmassy fabrics that I purchased in a bundle from Backstitch.

I wanted the outside of the place mat to be reminescent of berries and holly, so I used red centres between different shades of green.  It's more of an abstract interpretation ;-) 

When I had finished appliqueing the hexies,  I felt that the place mat needed something around the edge to bring it altogether.  As luck would have it, I have also brought some cross stitch supplies for my next 'away from home' sewing project, so I used a gold embroidery thread and stitched a basic running stitch all the way around the border.  

I am glad that I did, because it really gives it a much more Christmassy feel.  

And here is the place mat set for Christmas Eve, ready to greet Father Christmas after a tiring journey through 30 degree heat (yes, it's that hot at night!) 

My mother in law made the mince pie and my daughter lovingly set the table, and included her 'Diva lamp' which is a very special lamp that she made for Diwali at her pre-school.  As soon as she brought it home she declared that it was for Nanny, so here it is, having traveled half way across the world, with pride of place on the place mat.

I shall post again in a couple of days with a little selection of photos of Paraguay; it really is such a fascinating, eclectic and exciting place to be.  

But for now, where ever you may be, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful day, filled with family, fun and festivities.  

Sarah x

Sunday Stash #2

Sometimes I just see a collection of fabrics online and know that they are exactly suited to my style.

 

And that's what happened when I saw the 'Gypsy Girl' collection by Lily Ashbury.

 

I just fell in love with the colour combinations and their femininity immediately. Completely inappropriate for this time of year, as they are wonderfully summery and gorgeous, but I couldn't risk them being sold out, I had to purchase them there and then. 

 

I couldn't resist playing around photographing these fabrics, they really are a joy.

 

 

 

 

When I first saw these fabrics, I didn't initially realise that they were by Lily Ashbury.  I recently made a quilt that I named 'Vintage India' using her Trade Winds collection.

 

 

 

 

I think I am drawn to her vintage style and bold use of colour.  I am really looking forward to working on this quilt.  But it's going to go on the back burner until the Spring, I have a few 'wintery' projects that I want to complete first.

 

What fabrics and collections have caught your eye lately that you 'must have' and what are you going to make with them?  

 

Thank you so much for stopping by.

 

Linking up with:

 

 

Sarah x

 

 

Small Blog Meet

If you are new to my blog, and stopping by from Lily's Quilts, then it's lovely to meet you and thank you for stopping by :-)  Let me tell you a bit about myself and my little business Quilt Candy.

 

 

I have been quilting for a couple of years now, and I love it so much that I have set up Quilt Candy, specialising in quilts for babies and children.    I make quilts to commission and I have a small selection available in my shop.  www.quiltcandy.co.uk

 

I just love making quilts using stylish novelty fabrics, especially ones with a vintage feel.  Here's a little collage of some of my quilts, and you can see full pictures in the Quilt Gallery.

 

Do you like my model? It's my son William, picture taken this summer when he was about 7 months old. He really is as adorable as he looks ;-)

 

I am lucky enough to live on the beautiful island of Jersey in the Channel Islands.  We have lived here for a year and a half now, and every day I am still in awe of the breathtaking scenery and majesty of the historic buildings and castles. Not to mention the beautiful countryside. Here's a photo that I took just last week, a headland on the north of the island that's less than five minutes from where I live. I will never tire of the views this island has to offer.

 But that's enough about Jersey and landscapes.  Back to quilting. 

 

I would love to show you the latest quilt that I'm working on, but it's for a magazine publication (my first, eek!) so I can't show you more than a glimpse.  Check out this post here to read more about it:  http://quiltcandygirl.blogspot.com/2012/11/a-sneak-peak.html)

 

I have had a few other makes this month though, some mug rugs for my daughter's nursery school teachers and a little blanket for the dinosaur. 

 

I am also working towards a Level 3 Certificate in  Patchwork and Quilting with the School of Stitched Textiles.  I have another blog Sarah Sews where I write all about my course and progress.  Do take a look if you get a minute! 

 

I plan to have a few more Quilt Candy quilts and makes to share in the next few months. I hope to finish the magazine quilt before Christmas and I have lots of freshly purchased fabrics and designs ready to go for the new year.  I am so excited to start some new projects.

 

What are you working on at the moment that you hope to finish before the new year?  Have you thought about New Year projects yet?  Perhaps nearer the time we can chat about sewing resolutions.  Food for thought for the next few weeks!

 

Thank you so much for stopping by. 

Linking up with:

Sarah x

WIP Wednesday

The quilting marathon continues.

 

I am working on a quilt that's going to be featured in a magazine, so regrettably I can't show you more than a glimpse.  I'm so frustrated as I'm dying to share it with you!  (You can see another sneak peak here http://www.quiltcandygirl.blogspot.com/2012/11/a-sneak-peak.html )

 

 

Here it is, a week ago, ironed and ready for basting and quilting. 

 

 

 

Progress has been a little slower than I would like, due to presents needing to be purchased and wrapped, in readiness for early Christmas celebrations this weekend before we go on our travels.  

 

I have loved every minute of machine quilting this quilt; it's a big quilt with a gentile personality and with every stitch I feel it's a step closer to being complete.   

 

Then I'm going to face a major problem.  As you can see, my quilt features white.  And my garden currently features rain.  And mud.  In large quantities.  The sky is grey.  I mean dark grey.  Pretty much all the time.  So it's not an ideal backdrop for a summer quilt.  I am just going to have to get creative with this one indoors.  Either that or pray for sunshine! 

 

Thank you so much for stopping by. 

 

Linking up with:

 

 

 



Sarah x

 

Sunday Stash #1

This year my stash has increased 100 fold.  I think it's because I just. love. fabric.   I am purchasing fabrics faster than I can make things.  So what better way to admire my burgeoning collection than to join:

 

 

 

 

 

 So without further ado, I  share with you my latest, and most festive purchase to date:

 

 

 

There are endless exciting possibilities for this fabric.

 

But over the festive period I am going to be away from my sewing machine for longer than I care to think about, so I am going to have to indulge in a little EPP. 

 

My plan is to make a placemat for Santa's mince pies and the carrots for Rudolph.  I am in the very early design stages, but I am thinking possibly a snowflake type formation. 

 

I just can't wait to get started playing around with some festive little hexies. 

 

 

What are you making this Christmas?

 

 

Sarah x 



 

 



A Sneak Peak

For the last week I have been working feverishly on a project that I am very excited about. 

 

It's a quilt and pattern that I'm putting together for a magazine publication.  I won't go into anymore detail for now, but I hope it will be on the shelves of a newsagents near you some time next year.  (Cue squeals of excitement not dissimilar to a child on Christmas morning). 

 

It's been so much fun, and lots of hard work, and I can't tell you how much I want to share it with you. 

 

But of course that would spoil the surprise.  So for now, the best I can do is give you a little sneak peak of the quilt top, before I started what can only be described as a machine quilting marathon.

 

 

 

The marathon quiltathon continues. And I am loving every stitch. 

 

Linking up with:

 



Sarah x

 

Tea and a Chat with Handmade Harbour

I had the pleasure of having 'tea and a chat' with the lovely Wendy of Handmade Harbour today.  I would be thrilled if you would take a peek.

 

http://handmadeharbour.blogspot.com/2012/11/tea-and-chat-with-sarah-ashford-of.html

 

Wendy has a lovely blog, with lots of craft chat, interviews and advice.  She also has a website http://www.1stuniquegifts.co.uk/index.html   where she sells wooden plaques and signs. Aren't they just gorgeous, and would make the perfect gift for Christmas. :-)

 

Thank you so much Wendy for having me, it's been great sharing the story of Quilt Candy so far and I hope we meet again soon.

 

Linking up with:

 

 

Sarah x

 

Choosing Fabrics

I think I love quilting so much because I love fabric so much.  And what better way put beautiful fabrics to good use than in a quilt that is going to be loved and cherished.

 

Regrettably, the range of fabrics available in Jersey is somewhat limited.  I do so miss the luxury of walking into a quiltng shop and mixing and matching fabrics, playing with colours and pattern combinations.  So I do have to mainly rely on the internet for my fabric purchases.  You never can quite experience the fabrics in the same way as if you had them in your hand.  It also makes it hard to mix and match; sometimes the colours in real life are just that bit different to how they appear online. 

 

So to get over this, I tend to purchase fabrics in bundles and collections.  There are so many gorgeous bundles out there, and I do have to resist clicking 'add to basket' every time a new collection comes out.  But sometimes I see a new collection that I know is perfect for my brand and I just to have it immediately. 

 

That's what happened when I saw the Petite Odile Collection by French General.  It was in my basket before you could say 'Paypal.'  Just look at how gorgeous it is. 

 

 

 

 

I love the warm, muted tones paired with the beautiful vintage details. 

 

Children playing;

 

 

 

Dogs wandering;

 

 

Letters dancing;

Flowers blooming;

Berries gleaming.

 

I have some exciting ideas for a quilt with this exquisite fabric and I can't wait to make a start and share them with you. 

Sarah x

Spreading the Word

Jersey is such a small and beautiful place. 

 

 

And it's also full of beautiful independent shops, selling beautiful things. 

 

There is one shop in particular that I love, a boutique shop selling designer baby gifts.  It's called Boo's Boutique and it's in the centre of town, conveniently only 5 minutes walk from the maternity ward at the hospital.  Here is their facebook page if you would like to take a look;  https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Boos-Boutique/297780853585424

So imagine how thrilled I was when they agreed to stock my latest promotional postcards that arrived the other day;

They have pride of place at the counter. Perfect :-)


Sarah x

Happy Drawing Blanket

I had been looking forward to using my leftover Ed Emberley Happy Drawing Fabrics for some time now.  (The original quilt is here.)

 

And then the weirdest thing happened.  I got them from my stash, and I thought I'd just catch up with a few blogs before starting to sew.  I went to my friend Yzo's blog over at Chez Roo and low and behold, she was using a different version of the very same fabric at exactly the same time. 

 

Check it out here... http://chezroo.blogspot.com/2012/11/chop-chop.html

And it gave me an idea.  I just loved the idea of appliquing individual animals.  So I thought I would add a couple to the solid patches of my blanket. 

 

And I thought this sleeping blue frog on the back would be quite fun too. 

Don't they look cute!  Thank you so much Yzo for the inspiration. 


Here is the finished blanket;

And here it is keeping one of my son's dinosaurs warm.

I think I love the porcupine most of all.  Which one is your favourite?

Sarah x

Mug Rug Love

I wanted to share with you a little project that I have been working on these last couple of days.  Not Quilt Candy related, and but let's say Quilt Candy inspired. 



A trio of mug rugs

 

Let me tell you about it.

 

My daughter, who is three and a half, started nursery at the local school back in September.  And she just loves it.  Every day she does so many wonderful activities, whether it be arts and crafts, singing, reading, playing outside, swimming, forest school, music, dancing, the list is endless. 

 

So I wanted to make her teachers a little extra special thank you present for Christmas.  And this is what I came up with.

This one for her Keyworker;

This one for the other Nursery Officer;

And this one for the teacher.

I combined my new favourite technique, English paper piecing (EPP) with a little hand quilting, using my favourite no. 8 pearle cotton thread.  The binding was machine stitched on the front and hand sewn on the back.  



I am a qualified primary school teacher myself and I know just how much work goes into ensuring that the children have as many valuable learning experiences as possible.  So this is my way of saying thank you. 

And what better way than sitting down and having a nice cup of tea. 


Sarah x

PS Apologies for the small collage photos.  Blogger does not want to play ball today.  Anyone else had the same problems?



A Warm Welcome

This is my very first post on the Quilt Candy blog, and how to start?  Such a lot of white space before me, just waiting to be filled with words and colour and quilts and fabrics.  

 

 



 

 

Let's start with a very large and warm welcome. I'm thrilled that you're here and reading this, and hopefully you will join me on my journey as I make beautiful quilts with gorgeous fabrics and bring joy and pleasure to those who give and receive them.

 

 

 

 

There are lots of ways you can keep up with what's going on at QC HQ  (That's Quilt Candy Head Quarters) also known as our beautiful home in the heart of the Jersey countryside. 

 



Find us on Facebook: 

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Quilt-Candy/297065567075042 

 

I would love it if you choose to 'like' the page and keep up to date with  giveaways, updates and latest products. 

 

Find us on Twitter:  https://twitter.com/QuiltCandyGirl 

 

And of course there is our website www.quiltcandy.co.uk

 

 

 

Whether you are reading this because you are a quiltmaker and love all things quilty, or a mum, dad, relation or friend considering purchasing a quilt for a special small person, I do hope that you will join me again and be in touch soon. 

   

 

Sarah x