Getting back on the horse... or bicycle... or sewing machine

It's been a pretty much sewing free week.  Heading back to work complete with flu bugs, head cold and cough meant that after work entertainment included collapsing into a chair and doing as little as possible.  It also gave me time to think and reassess fabric, sewing and life in general.  It's pretty low when you complain about fabric arriving!

Saturday it was time to get back into the saddle.

My LQS has a monthly stitching Saturday - last Saturday of the month; and I knew that the time spent away from household chores (which despite my best efforts were mounting), amongst like minded lovely ladies, in a shop full of gorgeous fabric, was just what I needed to restore my inner equilibrium.  I was right.

I took an old FQ bundle (Eiko by Jay-cyn Designs) which has been lurking in my stash cupboard since September last year,

with plans for a new project, There's a Square in There by Kate Conklin Designs.

 - nothing too complicated or testing, but good old enjoyable sewing.  This quilt is cut in much the same way as the Buggy Barn stack and slash quilts... with a pile of two printed fabrics, and two plain fabrics turning into four log cabin style blocks.  With my eight fat quarters, I have enough to make the design as shown (16 blocks).  Although I've increased the size to use as much of the fat quarter as possible, which means roughly 15" finished blocks instead of 13" per the pattern.

My first stack... still to be trimmed down:

Every now and then I swapped out the plain strip, and added a bit of text fabric.

And my second stack has the last round of logs to be sewn on.  Not a bad start.

OK, I'm starting to feel more like myself now :0)

I bought a pattern I've loved since I first saw it... by Edytar Sitar.

This is my inspiration for wanting to add applique to my Double Wedding Ring blocks.  Today I was lucky enough to be able to select some batik fat quarters to blend with my patterned fabrics... I am very happy with my selection, although I'm still not 100% certain how it is all going to work out.

I've also been pondering about what colour background to use for the Supernova blocks on my design wall.

Did anyone else order from The Fat Quarter Shop's 25% off sale a few weeks ago?  I decided to order some black on black prints from their Muslin Mates range, and make the decision to go black on this one.  The prints are more charcoal on black... but I think they'll still work fine.  I need to go through my stash and pull out some more black prints - I know there are more hiding in there.

These are really black in real life

During the holidays, I did manage to sew the second block of Amy Gibson's Sugar Club BOM, which I'm using a variety of Bonnie & Camille fabrics.

And the first block in all its matching wonderfulness:

OK, that's me all caught up... focus for this week is to make progress on the log cabin blocks. I've already ordered a backing for it... so wouldn't it be funny to have the front finished before the backing arrives?