Lets blame Instagram...

I have not been as active in blog writing this past month as I would have liked to be.  Its not that I did not want to or that I haven't been busy with some or other project that I had nothing to share.  I just lacked the energy to sit down and write.  I blame Instagram for that, LOL.  Its far easier to post a picture with a short description, share it to my facebook page and flickr account than to make time to sit, write and edit pictures.  In a word, I guess I have been LAZY...

After I have finished my Summer Solstice Quilt and wrote the pattern I guess I felt a bit drained afterwards.   Pattern writing is a lot of work, its time consuming and you really need quiet time to concentrate.  The only quiet time I had available was at night when my little one went to bed, so I sat up till late at night editing and writing.  But it is so rewarding to still get a lot of comments and interest in the quilt and the pattern.

As for what I've been busy with?  Well, not as much as I would have liked to be.  I made a few crochet cushions that I shared with you last week.  You can find the tutorial on my tutorials page, when you click on the image it will open up the blog post in a new page.

Coming back to Instagram, there is a world of inspiration to be found in any craft.  So I decided to, not following along any set pattern, make up a row by row quilt for Kayleigh, either to put up on her wall or to use...  The biggest inspiration for this work in progress is from @beelori1 / Bee In My Bonnet's quilty fun.  This is what I've come up with so far, a few apple blocks to make up one row, and some random applique pictures.

...and I have made up a few feather free motion quilted samples.  I was invited to the Carltonville Country Quilters regional quarterly meeting that was held this past Saturday, and I needed a few samples to share with them.  They had asked me to do a little demonstration and we decided on feathers... I'll share more about my experience on another day, I am just waiting for some of the pictures that was taken on the day.  But for the time bing, what I can say is this, I HAD A LOT OF FUN!!!

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Anything Goes Quilt 'n Sew #24 - Homely Blanket

How about this for colour!  Sure to brighten up anyone's day.  If you have been following me on instagram (@marelizeries) you would have seen an overload of crochet squares these past few days.

Heike from Made with loops is hosting a 'homely blanket crochet along' on her blog, where she comes up with a design for a square each week.  It looked like so much fun and I've always wanted to learn how to crochet.  

So with a quick look at some videos on youtube, learning how to make the different types of stitches, I quickly jumped in.

  

Some have proven to be quite tricky, especially since I am reading the instructions instead of having someone show me.  Its at times like these that I miss having my Mom close by, she is sooo good at crocheting that I if she was sitting next to me, helping me along, it would have gone a lot more faster.  But I have exceeded my expectations and have only two to make and I'll be up to date.

I think that once this crochet along has come to an end, I will choose my absolute favorite out of them all and make a large blanket with just the one square using different colour layouts.

Sew now it's time for this week's linky party

It's Monday and a new week, so lets all share some of our projects, please link up any current projects you've been working on, anything at all...  This link is open for a week and will run every Monday.  Remember to come back next week, or follow my blog to get regular updates.

If you wish feel free to add any other blog posts you write during the week, since this linky stays open for a full week, I think its a great idea to share and keep sharing.

All I ask is that you either add the 'Anything Goes' blog button to your sidebar or add a text link to your blog post, and comment on a few of the other links too, share the love and make this weekly link party a fun way to connect.

<div align="center"><a href="http://marelize-ries.blogspot.com/" title="Stitch by Stitch"><img src="http://i1269.photobucket.com/albums/jj592/MarelizeR/LinkyButton2_zps83805f35.jpg" alt="Stitch by Stitch" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

An InLinkz Link-up

Happy quilting.. or if you are going to join in, happy crocheting.

Anything Goes Quilt 'n Sew #21 - Randomness

I've been so busy these past few weeks on the baby quilt I'm piecing, and hopefully start quilting next week, that I've not really made time for anything else.    

Or rather, let me re-phrase, I'm enjoying working on it so much that I've thought of nothing else...  To recap, I showed you how I made the two-sided applique hearts, padded hearts and then of course also a bit on the block construction. 

But here is a bit of random cuteness for you, last month I made a couple of MINI Cathedral Window Key-chains. Well one of my followers on Instagram made one too.  She visited my blog and decided to give one a try, and in her words 'thanks for trying silly things and coming up with this!! Now this one I truly enjoyed making'. 

Isn't it cute?  Thanks for letting me know, and allowing me to share it here on my blog today.  Be sure to check out Sandy aka @lattegirl40 on Instagram, you'll find a lot of creative inspiration!

...then a BIG thank you to Carolyn from Carolyn's Quilts for sending me these threads.  After reading my Q and A blog post, she offered to send me some Colorful threads to try out.  I've used it over the weekend, and I'm sold.  It glides like silk over the fabric, thanks again Carolyn! ♥

Sew now it's time for this week's linky party

It's Monday and a new week, so lets all share some of our projects, please link up any current projects you've been working on, anything at all...  This link is open for a week and will run every Monday.  Remember to come back next week, or follow my blog to get regular updates.

If you wish feel free to add any other blog posts you write during the week, since this linky stays open for a full week, I think its a great idea to share and keep sharing.

All I ask is that you either add the 'Anything Goes' blog button to your sidebar or add a text link to your blog post, and comment on a few of the other links too, share the love and make this weekly link party a fun way to connect.

<div align="center"><a href="http://marelize-ries.blogspot.com/" title="Stitch by Stitch"><img src="http://i1269.photobucket.com/albums/jj592/MarelizeR/LinkyButton2_zps83805f35.jpg" alt="Stitch by Stitch" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

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Happy quilting.