Hello! My name is Cindy.

Thank goodness we have personalized hand stitched name badges instead of those awful stickers.

The Fat Quarterly retreat weekend is coming quickly!  It's time that we all post a little bit about ourselves so we have a heads up of who one another is when we get to retreat.  With the games we play at registration, we will know each other in no time!

Let's start with the basics, shall we?  I am Cindy.  I live in Galway Ireland with my other half, my cat Clarkson (nearly 5 years old) and my dog Molly (1 1/2 years old).

I am originally from the good old US of A, but moved to Galway 7 1/2 years ago for work.  It was here that I discovered quilting, which is funny seeing as I grew up right near Amish Country.  Missed opportunity there!

Molly checks on the cows every morning during our walk.

I have been quilting for nearly 4 years now, blogging for most of them.  I love the opportunity quilting offers to combine color, pattern and geometric shapes, which is a blessing for those of us who love art/craft and are not great at drawing or painting.  I have come to realize, though, the most fantastic part about my quilting journey is the community I have been lucky enough to join.  Quilters are a great source of my daily inspiration, support and humor.  A great reality check when you need it, too.

I am a full time scientist doing research in regenerative medicine during the day, quilter on the weekends and in the evening (or on a sneaky day off!).  I am also owner of a fabric shop also called Fluffy Sheep Quilting which has been a wonderful adventure!  The shop will be at the Saturday market, so do stop by and introduce yourself.  More on that in Friday's post, though.

Pretty shop blogger bundle created by Sarah of Fairyface Design

Oh, it rained and rained this market day.  It was miserable.

When I am not quilting, in the shop or walking Molly, I am usually camping.  More often than not I bring along something stitchy to do by the camp fire with my friends. 

This past weekend with my friends in their garden.  I'm third from the left.
Yes, the one with the wine glass.

At the retreat you can find me hand quilting with Jen Kingwell, embroidering with Jo Avery, screen printing with Karen Lewis, making fabulously fast quilts with Amy Smart and finally diving into a Green Beans and Sweet Tea quilt (gulp!) with Jen Kingwell.  I am really looking forward to this weekend of stitchy fun!

In the mean time, you can find me on social media in a few different places:

Twitter - @fluffysheepquil
Flickr - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fluffysheepquilting/

Instagram - @fluffysheepquilting

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/fluffysheepquilting

Looking forward to seeing you all shortly!

The Alder Skirt

At the beginning of the year, I listed the ways I hoped to expand my sewing skills.  I was itching to start sewing basic clothes.  You see, I started sewing with quilts as I loved (and still do) the combination of geometric design with color/pattern.  I was not that girl who made their own skirts or Halloween costumes.  It never crossed my mind.

Anyway, I was thinking in January that it's time to sew some very basic things for myself.  I started with PJ bottoms, which were semi successful.  More recently, though, I saw several posts with the Alder Skirt, from Imagine Gnats, popping up.  I can make that...right?

After a semi-successful trial run with IKEA fabric, I dove into the shop's stash of Essex Linen Navy and Vintage Happy Orange Hangers and I started cutting.  After an evening of manic stitching, a skirt was born!

I dig it.  It has a little pleat in the front, which makes it quite roomy.  Pleats would have scared me except for the little top I made for my niece.  I had mastered the pleat and was ready to fly to pockets.

What do I know about pockets!?!?  I freak out if a bag pattern has a pocket.  The 241 tote (here and here) is my least favorite thing to make just because of the exterior pockets.  These were different, though - not those awful rounded bottom pockets I was used to, but pretty straight forward rectangular piecing.  I was feeling confident at this point.

Now, here I got very brave.  I originally used fully Essex Navy for the whole bottom of the skirt.  However, I'm a shirt-out girl and then you couldn't see the orange pretties when I was wearing the skirt.  So, I took out the scissors and cut off the bottom 1.5 inches of Navy and replaced it with orange Vintage Happy.  It's SO much better with the addition of color.

Over the weekend we had a photo shoot in the back yard to show you all the finished skirt.  I have to say, this is one of the funniest things we have ever done.  Ever.  I was crying laughing at my other half with his faux Italian accent, flashing the camera all over the place barking instruction.  He even finished with a very dramatic "its a wrap".  Oh, I couldn't keep a straight face...so you won't see a photo of the full me here.  Clearly.

It is supposed to fit around your hips, but my skirt continually inches up to my waist.  So, when I made the original IKEA tester, I had used the size chart in the pattern and stitched according to that guide.  However, when my skirt inches up, it became very roomy in the hips.  This version I made one size smaller and it suits my hips and waist.

It's very comfortable, flowing but stays put in the Galway breeze with the heavier linen fabric.  I'm quite happy with the finished product and would absolutely make another if we were to take a trip somewhere warm.  Rachel's pattern is very clear, easy to assemble and has great step by step instructions.  So much so that with minimal thought I could make my own with no previous garment sewing experience beyond my niece's tops.  I would absolutely advise, though, making a tester in not-so-precious fabric to be sure you have the right size for you.  Beyond that, the Alder skirt is an absolute hit around here!

Officially The Cutest Niece Ever.

If there was a contest I would win for the cutest ever niece.  Hands down.

Several of you have recently asked after my niece, Nieve.  Much to my delight, I have photos to share with you today!  My brother and sister-in-law held a photo shoot of Nieve in her new Imagine Gnats pinafore to share with you all.  

I have not seen Nieve since Christmas, so when I started making clothes for her summer wardrobe I was guessing on sizes.  The chart in Rachel's pattern was spot on, thankfully.  I will say, though, I imagined the pinafore would be longer on her and she could get away with just wearing her diaper when the summer heat hits.  

My mom's gardens are always beautiful.  Nieve will soon be put to work
if she lingers admiring too long!

This pinafore was made with Scrumptious fabric from the shop:  Berry Aqua for the side you see, Dainty Flowers for the lining peeking out in the first photo, but really it's fully reversible.  

These little jeans are killing me with their cuteness!

Thanks so much, P&C for sending on photos of your cutie.  You made my day!  

A Sparkling Blogger Bundle!

Who is this month's featured blogger?  Can you guess?  They created a bundle that's sophisticated, masculine and modern....and dipped the FSQ in pink glitter.  You have one guess and only one guess...

That's right! Today is the launch of the Molli Sparkles blogger bundle.  Today's a great day to visit Molli's blog if this is your first time meeting him.  Just this past Monday he made his television debut on the Today show where he did a super job promoting quilting while the co-host lost all sanity while trying to stitch together two little squares of fabric.  Step away from the machine, Karl.

Back to the fat quarter bundle!  This month's bundle is filled with teal, aqua, grey and black mixing Kona solids (teal, aloe and black) with Simply Style, Le Creme dots, Minimalista and Architextures.

Retailing for €27.50, you can pick one up in the shop right here.  It's the perfect stash builder, really boosting your aquas and turquoise selection.

Molli, this has been great fun.  We'll have to find another way to join up in the future - I have to get these little sparkly sheep back to Oz!  Baaaa!

The Canvas Pattern: Now Available in FSQ

I am delighted to announce that She Can Quilt's Canvas quilt pattern is now available at Fluffy Sheep Quilting {the shop}!

You can find the pattern by clicking on the "Patterns and Kits" button on the shop home page, or by following this link.  Currently the pattern is available as a PDF that will be emailed to you after your purchase.    

Created by Leanne of She Can Quilt

Leanne's pattern is very clearly written with a lovely prologue describing considerations when you are designing your own Canvas quilt.  She helpfully includes size charts including fabric requirements, two cutting charts and figures for each step of the piecing process.  

Created by Leanne of She Can Quilt

My favorite thing about this pattern is that you can use it time and time again in different sized projects for different occasions.  Included are the cutting instructions for each of the following projects: mug rug, table topper, napkins, pillow, mini quilt, baby quilt (two sizes), lap quilt (two sizes), queen quilt (two sizes) and king quilt (two sizes).

Made by me!

With a new pattern hanging around the shop, I could not resist giving it a try!  I thought I would make myself a set of four napkins.  For the first time, I cut into my precious Locally Grown fabric for the centers, framed it with Kona Tomato and Kona Bahama Blue and then set off with Le Creme Swiss Dots in red.  They're backed in more Kona Tomato.  Can't have enough red.

They are generously sized napkins, so you can easily square them without them shrinking too obviously.

I think they will be fun for our next picnic.  I would absolutely return to this pattern for my next house warming gift or if I need a baby quilt.  The Canvas pattern offers a great opportunity to personalize each project with the fabrics you use while still offering great impact with its design.  Lovely job, Leanne!

Mini BBQ Invite

The weather in Galway has been phenomenal the past few weeks. It is such a rarity that we felt compelled to take two days holiday from work and head to the beach.  After the winter we had, it is nuts to miss out on the few sunny days coming our way.

We packed up the camper and headed to the coast on Saturday morning with Daisy (the moped) in tow.  If you ever see this camper bumbling around Ireland, do pop over and say hello.  I would love to meet you and chat a bit.

Here we are in Kinvara for a quick breakfast.  Yum!

A weekend camping means a weekend sitting in a lawn chair while chatting with friends, so I had to bring hand work to do.  Recently, I have been thinking of inviting our neighbours over for a 4th of July BBQ.  They are so nice to us, so I wanted to do something fun for them.  Dinner outside on our long summer evenings seems like a great way to spend time together.  This is a classy BBQ - no texted invites.  They are getting a bespoke hand made request to join us.  

I packed up my stamps that I bought in Liberty of London last summer and my blue and red ink pads, then set to work Saturday night after dinner.  It's my first time really stamping at length.  I could use some practice.  There's no confusion that this was hand made, is there?!?

Their surname is cropped off on purpose...don't think I'm that miserable with a camera, please?

It is signed from the dog only because I miss calculated how much space it would take to write out the whole invite, so I couldn't fit on the full 4 names in our family.  I thought since our dog and their dog are best friends, it suited.

On the front, I wanted to make an American flag.  I brought a Kona FQ with me to hand embroider white stars, but I was VERY not impressed with how "organic" they were.  

Instead, I thought I would carve a star stamp and use a silver ink pad to make the stars.  Bad decision.  The silver ink was lost on the blue fabric.  I tried embroidering over star prints that were in the shop, tried to forget the star and instead just do french knots on blue Kona, etc but they all looked pretty awful.

And then it finally hit me!  My Blueberry Park charms might work!  I pulled out a Blueberry Park panel and paired it with Riley Blake gingham to make this liberal take on an American flag.  I love it.  Looking at the photo now I wish I aligned the gingham on the top and bottom, but in real life I am 100% pleased with how it turned out.  It's bound in Kona white with the little invite serving as the backing fabric.

So I pinned it to Molly's collar this evening and let her loose in the neighbour's yard.  The girls were absolutely delighted to have a hand made invitation and wanted to know more about how it was made, how to stamp fabric, etc.  I'll make crafters out of them yet!  Needless to say, the whole family will be joining us on the 4th for burgers, home made ice cream and a few pints.  Molly's friend Oscar is coming too.

Big Stitch Swap Signups Are Open

That's right!  In invite you to join into a swap that myself and my friend Sarah are organizing.  The Big Stitch Swap.  Sarah had the super idea of doing a swap where hand stitching of some variety is a significant contribution to the swapped item.  It can be embroidery, hand quilting, cross stitch...what ever floats your boat!

What to make, what to make?  Well, our suggestions would be something along the scale of a iPad cover, a zippy pouch, a fancy notebook cover or a tote bag.  I am in the mood to make a mini quilt.  You get the idea.  The only guideline is that your hand stitching has to be a significant portion of the item's design.  

Want to join in?  The swap is open to 40 people.  The only catch is you need to have participated in two other swaps before joining into this one.  If you have, just click here and complete our entry form.  We will then secretly assign partners.  Know that your partner is not necessarily making an item for you.  While you are waiting for your partner assignment, join into our Flickr group and start thinking about an inspirational mosaic like the one I have below.  I used Big Huge Labs for mine, but you can use what ever works for you.

1. Link 2. Link 3. Link 4. Link 5. Link 6. Link 7. Link 8. Link 9. Link 10. Link
11. Link 12. Link 13. Link 14. Link 15. Link 16. Link

The swap timeline is as follows:

- Signups open today (19 June) and will close on 27 June or when we reach 40 participants.

- Partner assignments will be distributed on 4 July (before my celebratory BBQ!)

- Posting dates are from 4-8 August depending on your postal system and where your partner lives.  

As usual, we ask that everyone actively participate in Flickr conversation threads, drop hints on photo comments for your partner, etc.   If you have any questions before you sign up, please do ask!  Better to ask before you sign up than after...it only makes my life more difficult to find a substitute if you drop out.

I do hope you join us!  This will be so very fun!

Make a button for your blog with this HTML:

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Hot pants? No! Hot pads.

Friday night I came home from work and wanted to sew.  I wanted color and a quick finish.  The lowest hanging fruit, then, was to make the hot pads my family had requested.  Super easy and rewarding, right?

I was happily stitching away when my other half came up to the sewing room.  "What are you making?" he asked.  "Hot pads" I replied (thinking if he couldn't tell what they were after asking for them I was in trouble!).  "Hot pants?"  he asked...slightly worried.  Um.  What?  Why would I ever make myself hot pants?!?  "No, just hot PADS."  Goodness gracious!

Photobomb by my left foot.  Thank goodness for that pedicure, Mom!

With a bit of Essex linen (Navy), Denyse Schmidt plaid and a FQ of happy Orla Kiely-type kitchen mugs and pitchers I sat down to use Adrianne's tutorial.  It was incredibly easy to follow and the templates are very helpful.  Adrianne stresses that you need to use biased binding and indeed she is right for those curves.

It was my first time making/using biased binding, so that was a small adventure.  Here I used Dottie Orange - I love how it works with the greens and blues in the other prints.  A bit mad, but I dig it.  I have to say, when I sat down to hand stitch the binding to the back, I was entirely grateful that there was a bit of give in the binding.  So very glad I listened to her suggestions and was not too arrogant to think straight binding would due.

When you google Hot Pad Tutorial, every tute and blog post has a lovely action shot of someone bringing a casserole or cupcakes out of the oven showing you that they do indeed work.  I am not a cook - I mean I can survive if left to my own devices, but I do not enjoy it so I leave it to my other half who loves it.  When it came to taking photos of my hot pads in action, my other half was not around to model them for me!  What to do, but make my own speciality?  Peanut butter on toast.  Bliss.  They worked just fine - no fingers were warmed while making this delicious snack.

The biggest risk in testing out the hot pads was this monster.  She loves peanut butter, so I was full sure she would steal my toast as I was trying to take a photo of it to my surprise, she just hung out in the grass and waited patiently for some of it to drop.  Love her.

Once I finished off my other half's hot pad, I dove into those requested by my folks.  They wanted two individual pads, so I tried to oblige.  I figured while I was making two, I would make four so we had another set for bigger items (like massive pizza pans) that my onesie hot pad would not fit around.  

Saturday  morning I started making improv scrappy log cabin blocks.  I wanted to do a QAYG block, but that proved very difficult given the layer of insulated batting AND the layer of cotton batting.  These are fully from the scrap bin (much to Sarah's delight).  Scrap navy Essex to back, scraps to make the log cabin, scraps of batting (both types) and a bit of binding I had left from another project.

I am quite pleased with how they turned out.  They are a bit wild for my parent's kitchen, but they will not forget who made them :)

 

I quilted them in concentric rectangles, that you can see a bit better here on the back.  I do really enjoy free quilting on a side project that moves through my machine easily.  

The other two (that are staying here in Galway) are pieced and quilted, but waiting for their binding.  I am sure they will be finished off while watching a World Cup match some night this week.  Perfect time for a little hand stitching!

That's the word from Galway.  Rest assured there are no burned figures in our house!