tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82999358177420485652024-03-18T02:34:11.158+02:00Karen's QuiltsSporadic quilt making!Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.comBlogger251125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-24865595063255786852024-03-17T21:18:00.001+02:002024-03-17T21:18:43.771+02:00End of an Era and New BeginningsWe heard on 28 February that the buyers of our house had met the suspensive conditions of the sale. So tonight is the last night we are in the old house. We had the movers in 10 days ago to move certain items, like my sewing desk and fabric cupboards, washing machine and dryer and a few other things, but tomorrow they are back to move the beds and the remaining large furniture.&Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-92013116345271387052024-02-05T22:39:00.000+02:002024-02-05T22:39:08.501+02:00More Blocks and Choosing FabricsEvery time I sit to write a blog post, I wonder about the ideal layout. Do I put the picture or the text first? What alignment to use for the words. Should they be above, below, next to the images? So, I change things, but never fully happy. If you are a regular reader, hope that this was not confusing! Just as I was almost done, a hit by our regularKarenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-37499594942719181382024-02-02T14:27:00.002+02:002024-02-02T14:27:32.855+02:00A little sewingI have been busy with things other than sewing for the past couple of weeks. Guild bookkeeping needed attention; understanding new-to-me web-based accounting software for my sister's school, so I can remotely help with this; keeping house very tidy for showing to prospective buyers (that's mostly keeping my sewing space tidy, which is not so conducive to the creative processes!)Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-1605250946432935502024-01-20T12:37:00.005+02:002024-01-20T12:39:13.986+02:00Week 3 of January 2024 Some good, even if daunting, news in hand, and some small progresses were achieved this week.We have a purchase offer for our current house. The buyers have a suspensive condition on the sale of their apartment, which in turn affects their offer to us. We will know at the end of February, so meantime ours is still being marketed. The reality of moving is now sinking in!&Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-29059850186757597652024-01-17T23:04:00.008+02:002024-01-17T23:11:59.608+02:00Quick catch-up Definitely some sewing has happened since the beginning of November. I seem to have got out of the habit of taking progress photos, and even photos of finished projects. Must do better!In no particular order of what got sewn:Bonnie Hunter's Indigo Way - kept up with the units of each weeks' clues, but have stalled now the centre is stitched. I really liked both blocks, a Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-14945832844964651392023-11-05T20:47:00.001+02:002023-11-05T20:47:34.995+02:00Bramble Blooms - Central AppliqueBramble Blooms is under way. The instructions from Audrey at Quilty Folk were to create/sketch a floral applique for the centre of this project. Hmmm....my go to sketch papers are 3.5" squares from a paper block, sometimes designing whole quilts on a single piece of paper! I have no formal (or informal!) art training, but I can draw stick figures, including stick Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-30359109087468536902023-11-03T13:25:00.003+02:002023-11-03T16:17:29.189+02:00Hurry Up and Wait!Our house is on the market. The photos taken make us wonder why we are selling it! If you are curious, this is the link: https://www.property24.com/for-sale/kenilworth-upper/cape-town/western-cape/14224/113497536 We've had a few viewings, but no takers so far. I guess we just need to be patient! This is the back garden, and that's the new house (on Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-79537401255038259562023-10-27T13:58:00.001+02:002023-10-27T13:58:16.957+02:00Tidying up and Little QuiltsI love Patchwork and Quilting!When I am working on a quilt project I like to keep all the fabrics for that project together, and sometimes that could be for weeks, months and even years! The fabric choices are usually from my "finely curated collection" and many have waited a long time to get selected for use. And, when a project reaches the point when I know no more fabric will be Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-48046676512258819062023-10-20T15:11:00.004+02:002023-10-20T15:11:54.783+02:00A Second Back PiecedOur local regional quilt guild ran a mystery earlier this year, The Spice Route by Dewald Compion. Each of the Guild's mysteries have been locally themed. Cape Town was a way station on the spice route between Europe and the East Indies during the sailing ship era.Although I liked the final reveal, I didn't want to make a large quilt, so turned the units into two smaller quilt tops.&Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-28876755667487541982023-10-17T18:44:00.000+02:002023-10-17T18:44:58.338+02:00Piecing a BackLast year I started piecing the backs for quilt tops, based on the RSC colour of the month at SoScrappy. I think that this might be the first one for this year, and yes I know, it's October! Light neutral is the declared colour for October, and as I just started on it, I remembered in time to take photos to share some of my processes.I first fold the quilt top in quarters (in half, Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-87814568810470395942023-10-15T17:50:00.002+02:002023-10-15T17:59:06.336+02:00Some Sewing and Some Finishes Summer is almost upon us, the days are longer and warmer and not too much wind yet. Not warm enough to swim though.The big news from here is that I worked my butt off very hard this week preparing our old house for photos for listing with the estate agent. The garden looks immaculate, and most of the house was tidy enough. When I gave up wondering where to put some of the Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-45314538986332571372023-08-31T14:20:00.002+02:002023-08-31T14:23:11.932+02:00A Few PhotosIn July I had the pleasure of spending a month with my children and grandson in Wales. Whilst it was wonderful to be there, it was marred by all of us being sick with a nasty flu. So we didn't do as much as we would have liked. June was blue for Rainbow Scrap challenge, and managed to make these few crumb blocks. These are the two quilt tops made with the units from Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-36346876657722301342023-04-14T19:02:00.004+02:002023-04-14T19:02:28.766+02:00I am feeling a little bit guilty that there has been a void here, but I'm going to just pretend that I haven't had the will to write anything recently! When I read another quilt blogger wondering why there were quilters were seemingly blogging less, the guilt deepened! With that in mind, here are some of the few photos of my minor progresses / odd acheivements. A box of Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-3682423135907298912022-10-01T15:02:00.000+02:002022-10-01T15:02:28.895+02:00Quilt Festival TimeI am very proud to be part of the amazing Committee staging this upcoming event. If you are in the greater Cape Town vicinity during these October school holidays, and looking for a place to visit, come out to beautiful Stellenbosch and visit our exhibition, and browse our vendors.Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-78832984347553829302022-07-24T21:59:00.001+02:002022-07-24T21:59:24.877+02:00Mid winterI have had a finish, which is already in use on my sister's bed, it is Bonnie Hunter's 2021 Mystery, Rhododendron Trail. My sister says they love it! Earlier this year I decided that I would stitch up all the tiniest fabric pieces being stored, just randomly sewing, being guided by the pieces. The scraps are stored by colour, so applying Angela's declared monthly colour at SoScrappy Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-86846663968230082732022-04-25T23:09:00.005+02:002022-04-25T23:17:03.074+02:00End of summerGosh, it's been two months!! I really do need to write more often!Our summer is drawing to a close, the nights are starting to get chilly, and I kept a jersey on all day today. I have not been totally idle, just a few finishes, and lots of RSC colour sewing. I read somewhere that one's blood pressure drops when one sits in front of one's sewing machine, I suspect there is some Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-37465526363995128532022-02-27T14:18:00.000+02:002022-02-27T14:18:22.438+02:00Teal, turquoise, aquaI have had a lot of fun sewing up ALL of my tiny scraps and strings in Aqua, this month's colour as declared by Angela at SoScrappy. Click on this link to see what amazing things others have done with this colour. I still have no firm idea of what will become of these slabs of fabric, but that's a decision for next year! Clicking on a photo will enlarge it. &Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-64745169485243087742022-02-13T18:13:00.003+02:002022-02-13T18:16:14.744+02:00Happy FinishesThe beginning of this year has gone past in a whirlwind. I haven't done a lot of sewing since back at work (from home) after summer break, as my marvellous assistant (also works from home) and her five year old grandson were in a horrific vehicle accident on New Year's Day - in which eight others did not survive. He has just had the casts off three broken limbs, but she is still in hospitalKarenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-27899271454981579302022-01-08T13:47:00.001+02:002022-01-08T13:47:46.273+02:00A Reasonable Start to the New Year It is summer here, and today it is hot...which makes it delightful to be indoors with the airconditioning set at a pleasant 24 deg C, until it cools a little outside. I am looking forward to visiting the Cape Embroiderers Guild for their monthly meeting this afternoon (all masked up, of course), the first meeting for me in over two years.With the Covid pandemic seemingly waning Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-37933272099403517582021-12-02T18:36:00.007+02:002021-12-02T18:41:20.053+02:00Another check-inWhere does the time go?! I mean, wasn't it New Year just yesterday? And lo and behold, the next New Year is just around the corner! My old/new news: still working from home, and I am still enjoying it. The world is still trying to figure out how to live with Covid-19. I am grateful to have been vaccinated. Four stitches in the finger thatKarenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-26697272458838490232021-01-09T20:16:00.001+02:002021-01-09T20:16:42.837+02:00A Pink QuiltI am always fairly optimistic at the beginning of a new year, my head filled with what I believe I can/will achieve. The feeling will last at least another week, until my summer leave is over! But meantime I have been playing with old blocks and bits. For many years I have carefully trimmed all of my crazy accumulated scraps in Bonnie Hunters Scrap User's System and filed them Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-68155603330051117262020-12-31T18:36:00.003+02:002020-12-31T18:36:43.496+02:00Quilt tops and finishesI trawled through a lot of blurry photos to find a few clear enough to share of the sewing from this year. This is the year in which we've been sheltering from the pandemic, the highlight of which was more sewing time. The first is a quilt made from left-over 3/4-inch and 1-inch solid strips from a previous quilt. Initially, the pieces were joined randomly into two Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-9387514167784114962020-11-14T19:14:00.000+02:002020-11-14T19:14:12.714+02:00Just checking inWell, it has been a while, but I am still here and kicking quilting. I get a lot of daily pleasure from reading the blogs of other quilters; it's like being part of their lives, getting to share their ups and downs of this crazy existence.Like many people, who are fortunate to have the option, I am still working from home, and this is likely to continue until well into the new year. I Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-67601494340892113222020-04-24T22:42:00.000+02:002020-04-25T17:36:13.390+02:00The Continuing Quietness
We have been told that the strict lockdown conditions will start to be eased as from next Friday. To contain the growing virus scourge, this will happen gradually, but maybe slower in the metro areas than the rural areas. We can't continue much longer without some more economic activity as a large portion of our population will simply starve. Much has been done to feed as many Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8299935817742048565.post-86305108990962555262020-04-10T17:22:00.000+02:002020-04-21T16:20:54.749+02:00A Quiet Good Friday
It is still very quiet here. As of last night we've had
our national lock-down extended
until the end of April.
The sewing for this week includes:
A dozen framed nine-patches in the colour for April for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, in light and bright blues.
Continuing with RSC colours, more Postage Stamp
blocks, three of the eight-inch squares, three of Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401775114315133138noreply@blogger.com0