Barossa Craft Fair & Market

On Saturday we spent the day in Tanunda, South Australia at the Barossa Craft Fair & Market. At this time of the year there is alway a good chance of hot weather. That is what we had this year 35 degree and in the show hall I think it was a touch warmer. It is basically a tin shed.
This is an event we have traded at for a long time and I have seen a lot of changes over the years but Di and her team do a brilliant job behind the scenes to keep this event marching on since they took over the running of this event. This year I agree to do some demonstrating on the English Paper piecing technique which was the technique I used in my Cynthia's Flower Garden Quilt. I think I was a little shaky at the start but by the afternoon I was going great (I hope). There is a few things I need to work on next time I do this.  It was a shame we forgot the rod for the frame so I could hang My Cynthia's Flower Garden quilt up behind the demo area we did improvise with my other  smaller hexagon quilt hanging over the uprights and my flower garden went over the table.

Sorry I didn't take more photos as I was busy with the demonstrating ( in other words talking.). 

Until next time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Another Path taken this week.

After getting side tracked earlier this week I have wandered down another path taking another detour to another project. I seem to be jumping from 1 project to another finishing nothing but quite happily starting something new. I need to get my head back on straight, that is probably why I have a sore neck. I keep whipping around and working on something else.
I have been working on hand quilting my Pies & Tarts quilt which I put down due to the warmer weather. It looks like I have one block strip, right around the quilt left to quilt so I am getting closer to finishing.
Then I got sidetrack from my blocks which I wanted to finish and started a new project with half square triangles from a couple of the new batiks that arrived.

All blocks are made and trimmed to 4.5 inches and the 1st block is laid out ready to sew but I have strayed from the path and twisted a couple units and now can't decide which one I like better. I am consider making two quilts than I can pick 2 more new fabrics to play with. Which one do you like better My LSH(long suffering husband) likes block 2.

Block 1

Block 2

Which one do you like? Please share your thoughts or I may have to make 2 quilts because I like both blocks. There is my problem.

Until Next Time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

What is new at Cynthia's Ark

Over at Cynthia's Ark we have some new batik fabrics and we have released 2 new patterns and 1 new kit. They are now available in our webshop.
There is 7 new batik fabrics to choose from at $23.00 a metre

The is 2 new English paper piecing patterns Cynthia's Flower Garden Quilt pattern at $14.00

Our English Paper piecing starter coaster pattern which is also available as a mystery kit. You can add a colour preference in the comment box as you go through the checkout if you want. No colour added we will pick a kit at random.

To celebrate the launch of the coaster pattern and kit. They will be on special for a week

 Pattern $6.50($9.50) and the Kit $9.50($12.50)

We will have these patterns and kits available to purchase at the Barossa Craft Fair & Market on Saturday the 29th November at the Tanunda Show Hall, Tanunda, South Australia, and I will be demonstrating the English Paper Piecing technique if you want to learn it. It will be great fun.

Until next Time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Side Tracked

I was supposed to be working on these scrappy blocks so I could assemble the quilt top and finish it off. Well I didn't even touch it in the end. Instead I cut into some of the new batik fabrics that have arrived. I just couldn't help myself and before I knew it I had a pile of half square triangles for a new project.

 I need to finish trimming them to 4.5 inches but then they are ready to lay out and join together for this quick easy project I have created. With a couple of borders it will make an excellent weekend project. We never seem to have enough time so sometimes we need a quick and easy project that we can make in a hurry.

Until next time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

PS The new batik fabrics will available at Cynthia's Ark. shortly. 

Would you like to have some batik fabrics in your stash? 

There is still time to join our Batik Rainbow Fabric Club for 2015 at Cynthia's Ark.

Have you seen the Make Modern magazine yet?

I have been lucky to find this magazine before it went to print so I subscribed to this digital magazine from the start and have received the first 2 issues in my inbox. They are a delight to read and have inspired me to make time to focus on a couple of modern projects I have in the pipeline.

Anyway I got an email from the girls at Make Modern magazine about a competition they wanted to run and would I be interested in donating a prize. Of course I reply and put together a batik fabric bundle for the competition. So the Make Modern giveaway started on the 21st of November and finishes on the 21st December with so awesome prizes on offer. Here is the link to their blog so you can find out more about the magazine and the competition. Don't forget to enter so you can win a prize.

This is what I donated to the competition to tempt you

.

Until next Time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Aurifil's November Block of the Month

This month block Tossed Salad has got me thinking. It is a modern block made with traditional parts. I have been looking at a lot of modern quilts lately and I have a few ideas I would like to try. So over the Christmas- New year break I will have to allocation some time to work on these ideas. Who knows what might become of an idea. I know this year I have had a number of success stories and a few flops. So I will have a play and see what I end up with. Maybe I will create a stunning piece of art. Lol We all need to have a dream. Even if it off on the land of fairy tales.

Anyway back to this months block here it is.

Until next time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Unfinished Projects Pies & Tarts Update

This is what I have been working on since my Farmer's wife blocks are all joined together.

My Pies & Tarts quilt has been a long term  hand quilting project and I need to get it finished if I decide to hand quilt my Farmers wife sampler quilt. So really I am in between hand piecing projects (only got my Castle wall blocks to work on).I got it out and spend Saturday working on  hand quilting it with good friends. We were working a variety of projects, so it made it a pleasant day sewing and chatting. I am about 3/4 through the quilting so I am closer to finishing than I thought but I don't know if I will  finish it before the end of the year.

Until Next Time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Fabric Giveaway at Cynthia's Ark

For the next seven days we are going to giveaway 5 metres of fabric (10 x 50cm pieces) each day to the first 10 customers who place a $40 order at Cynthia's Ark. Each morning I will post on Facebook and Goggle  + what the fabric will be for that day. So if you haven't liked our Facebook page or our Goggle + page go and do it now, that way you will know what the daily giveaway fabric is. We all love free fabric.

Today's fabric is from the A French Courtyard range.

Until next time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Globetrotting Block of the Month Borders Part 2

Part 1 of this project blog post I shared all of my blocks joined together ready for the borders to be added. A trip to A Quilter's Odyssey resulted in the two extra pieces of fabric I needed. Thank goodness they had some, as I had my heart set on the 3 fabrics I had selected for the border. So off to the cutting table and adding the first border and the piecing the second border. I must have been getting tired as I got to the end of piecing the side border I was 3 rectangles short on each side so I cut them and put them by the sewing machine for the next day. The next day I wanted to finish the borders, so I checked the placement to make sure I knew where I was going to sew them on and processed to joining them together.

What is wrong with this strip? A directional print and I tried to save fabric by not cut a whole strip for 2 pieces and I cut them from an offcut. The print should of been going the other way. Luckily I noticed before sewing them together or I would have been unpicking and starting over.  After re-cut and sewn together my Globetrotting quilt top is complete.

I think over the Christmas break I will have to have a mega quilting section and quilt some of the tops that I have made this year that haven't been finished this year.

Until Next Time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Farmers Wife Update

I am getting close to the completion of my Farmer’s Wife Sampler quilt top.  I just have the borders to go on. I will get this top done before the end of the year. Then the big choice do I hand quilt it or machine quilt it. There are pros and cons for both sides.

I feel since I hand pieced the top I should hand quilt it but I am still hand quilting my Pies & Tarts Quilt 2 years on that project so far and my Farmers Wife Sampler is so much larger I am scared of the time it may take.

So I was thinking I could machine quilt it. It would take some time but not as much as if I hand quilted and it would improve my free motion quilting skills.

Just not sure what I should do. Please help me decide. Let me know what you would do.

Until Next Time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

New Kit in the Making

This is what I have been working on today. Here is the final stage of a new kit featuring English Paper Piecing. 

These kits are a great introduction to English Paper piecing if you haven't tried it before or would be a great quick and easy project for gift giving, the home, office etc. I'm not going to show you the finished project here today as we will be releasing this kit at the Barossa Craft Fair & Market on the 29th November at the Tanunda Show Hall, Tanunda, South Australia.

I will be doing some demonstrations of this technique during the day, so if you are new this will be very helpful to get you started.

You will have to wait to see it, but we will be releasing the pattern for my Cynthia's Flower Garden Quilt also and as I have posted a picture before and I have quilters waiting on this release. Sorry for the delay. Here is what it looks like, just in case you haven't seen it.

Too much to do and not enough time to do everything that needed to be done.  

These patterns and kits will be available online at Cynthia's Ark on the 29th November and at the Barossa Craft Fair & Market.

Until next time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

Wishes Quilt Along - November's Block

I really want to get ahead this month, with Christmas just around the corner I want to get stuff done that I know I need to get done early. So when life becomes hectic I might not lose total control. So I have got my Wishes block done early. The good thing about this project being only 1 block it doesn't take long to make. I have on a number of times this year done these blocks in 2 parts, when I have a spare 10 minutes. I select the fabric and cut the pieces for the block and lay them out on my board in order. Then another time when I am free I sew it up. 

Here is November block - Stair Step.

Until Next Time

Keep Stitching

Cynthia

What I am working on

This is what I have been playing with, the Home for the Holiday fabrics that are currently in stock. This is an easy afternoon project. Great for dressing up your Christmas table or if you use other fabric dressing up any table for any time of the year. Shall I write up a tutorial for this project? Let me know and if there is some interest I will write one up to share.

I made a ceramic christmas tree lamp a few years back and I am wondering if it the right size to fit under it. Not long before the Christmas decorations come out. So we will soon see if it fits. I am sure I could make a larger one if needed.

Until Next Time 

Keep Stitching

Cynthia