Thursday 19 January 2012

The Sew Nosey Parker!



I am linking up with Kat at Mumma's time to create for another post in the Nosey Parker series.  I was a naughty girl and missed out on the Christmas one!  I did take the photos but didn't get around to writing the post!

To make amends I have put quite a bit of thought into this one - hope you enjoy it and find out a little bit more about me but not so much that I scare you away forever!   It is about our sewing journey...


1)  How long have you been sewing? Are you a first generation sewer or was the knowledge handed down to you? Basically tell us about your journey..


I have been sewing since I was little.  My mum taught me and as she was right handed and I am left handed  we did struggle with that!  


Lots of arguments and tears later I was making toys on my own using patterns from this book.  In those days we didn't have photocopiers so I had to scale things up using a grid on newspaper....It was quite a commitment!






I then graduated onto cross-stitch, knitting, and making clothes in my teens and twenties.  I even made my sister a dress for her birthday once - she may even still have it !


Then there was a bit of a gap until I had my daughter in my thirties (late starter I know) and wanted to get out of the house, have a grown up conversation and get creative so I took a patchwork course at evening class.  Sadly this only lasted one term and I got distracted by lace making for a few years!


I went on a few workshops at my local quilt shop, many with Carolyn Forster who pointed me in the direction of blogs and then well it all rolled out from there!


2)  Where do you sew?  and 3) What does your sewing room/area look like today in it's real state. Take a picture of it if possible and show it to us real :)


Before Christmas I was in the guest bedroom - what a mess, bit gloomy and not much room with the guest bed in the way!










but am now downstairs in what used to be the playroom - but the kids weren't  playing there any more so now I do!

















4)  What is the first thing that you made which you were really proud of? Show us pics of your favourite project.


This is one of my first projects ever






This is Dandelion - made from the book in question one!  I still feel great affection for him and he has been everywhere I have lived - Uni, Germany....and he is still in quite good nick!

This is the latest thing I'm proud of




Because I managed to FMQ without little pleats - it's not perfect but I have made progress from this mess











But the answer to this question changes all the time!




5)  Do you always stick to the "rules" when you sew, or are you more improvisationally minded?


Not really a stickler for the rules unless it makes things easier.  Precision is a challenge for me but I am getting better at that!    I am quite good at fudging things and hiding my many mistakes or claiming that I meant to do something in a peculiar way right from the start!


Here is an example of that last point






Can you spot the er um deliberate mistake - and there are two though only one is showing properly....  


And I don't like unpicking....!

Can't say I have done much liberated piecing but am practicing now with the wonky houses I am making though several of those have been foundation pieced - that goes against the grain for me but again I am working on it!







14 comments:

  1. It really does help to get to know you through this sort of format. I think your new sewing space looks grand; good on you for kicking the kids out. There were some ticklish questions that I thought you answered very well.

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  2. Fantastic interview! I love the last picture...I think I like it even better with the off HST. Makes it playful!!! And your baby quilt with the quilted hearts is wonderful...you should be very proud. Dandelion is so sweet. Thanks for sharing Nicky!

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  3. Wonderful post! I particularly like Dandelion and your 'design decisions'! And I'm also a big fan of fudging...oh, and your new sewing room looks fabulous, you've got so much more room and light than in the old room!

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  4. Love Dandelion and love your 'deliberate' mistake and that you left it in. Brilliant post!

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  5. Fabulous post! How fab is your new sewing room! Did you make Dandelion from that book? How amazing, you certainly have Golden Hands! ;)

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  6. What a great post! That little lion is the cutest thing I've seen in a long, long time.

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  7. I'm visiting from Kat's nosey parker post. I *love* Dandelion. He's the coolest lion out there!

    Fudging things is good - it makes the quilt unique! :o)

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  8. thanks for sharing, and it wasn't too scary at all!
    I'm afraid I would have been too ocd to have left those blocks, shows your strength of character that you left them. Well done

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  9. Fun tour, I do love Dandelion, it didn't even occur to me to include the bears - doh!

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  10. Yay for a brand new space! :)

    Oh that Dandelion is just wonderful. He reminds me of the wizard of Oz though for some reason heheh.
    I am in awe of your comittment of tracing all the patterns on newspaper grids. Wow. ! !

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  11. Dandelion is adorable! And we've all got quilts lurky in our past like your last one! Still gorgous though, and still something to be proud of! Jxo

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  12. Your new sewing space is wonderful! I had to look hard to find one of the "mistakes". I think that when we are sewing we are so into the detail and we forget that most people won't even notice the little mistakes.

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