Happy Holidays

Wishing you and your loved ones the peace and joy of the holiday season. 

Heartfelt thanks to all who have visited Sewmiriam this year. It has been a joy and delight to share my creative journey with you. I am very much looking forward to 2017. There are many wonderful projects  already underway in my "room of requirement" that I will be posting about in the coming months.

 In the meantime  why not try a random act of kindness or two for those who are doing it tough at this time of year. Truly a gift that will keep on giving..... 

Happy sewing, love Miriamx 

Christmas Stitching

What a busy time of the year! This is quite a dilemma  for stitchers because it is the time when we want to be sewing the most.  We have to creatively use our time in order to be creative!  I am so time poor right now it is ridiculous. Move over Jenny Craig - I don't even have time to eat.

I need to STOP  RIGHT  NOW  and think about what really matters. This may differ from person to person but for me what matters most is my family and my friends. I want to let them know how much they mean to me and how much I love them. A handmade gift is one way to do this.

As you know I usually make my own patterns, but I found this great  Sewing Machine Accessory Pouch pattern via the Fat Quarter Shop Blog made by Heidi, aka the Fabric Mutt, which you can find by clicking here. Please note that I am not doing  this as a paid or sponsored endorsement, I am just doing this because I really like the pattern and think that you will too. I have made 5 so far as I think they will make great gifts .

I have chosen fabrics that suit the recipients. I have a Tula Pink fan sewing friend - no prizes for guessing which pouch she is getting! I had a good 'ol chuckle when I realised that Elizabeth looks like she is wearing a Tudor hat !


Then I  have 2 friends who like dreamy, whimsical palettes and they are getting the following pouches

Next up I have a couple of friends who love a more bold, saturated palette. I love how this block can look so different depending on the fabrics used. Isn't patchwork great!

Thank you  Heidi and Kimberly for sharing this great pattern.  

       

I hope that amidst all the commercial hype that surrounds us this time of year  you can find peace and time for reflection. A thoughtful handmade gift, a few carefully chosen words in a card, a phone call to a friend or making time to catch up with those we care about can mean so much more than all the riches in the world. 

Happy sewing, love Miriam xx

Saturday Workshop All Stars!

This blogpost could also be called Celebration Saturday because the work that was brought in was outstanding! This workshop was the last one for the year for this group of very talented, creative ladies. I am very honoured to have been  their teacher and am thrilled that everyone in the class has  completed a range of  projects throughout the year.

Everyone has worked hard  to learn new skills, explore creative techniques and give generously of themselves, as quilters so often do.

Many of their projects have been lovingly made as special gifts for others. I have loved teaching each and every one of these workshops. Thank you ladies!

It is a privilege to be able to share with you now the work that came in yesterday.


Can you believe this is Ann's first machine pieced quilt? Outstanding by anyone's standards!

Ann now plans to hand quilt it using Aurofil 12 weight thread emphasising the star and incorporating  Kantha style quilting elements.  It will be stunning. 

Ann has also started her next machine quilting project - a Sewmiriam Quilt As You Go Quilt and here is the first block .Well - you can tell its going to be beautiful. Each block will feature an animal in its centre.

Dee brought in two projects yesterday. After watching me demonstrate my Easy Orange Peel technique, which you can read  about in previous Sewmiriam blogpost tutorials  by clicking here and here  , Dee has created these stunning blocks in a monochromatic palette with stunning results. 

Here are her blocks

Dee will now place the palest of grey 1 inch sashings between the blocks  with  a slightly wider outside border. Dee is such a clever quilter.

Below is her star  cushion cover which is now complete with a perfectly executed  hand quilting finish in deep red thread.

Marg has been very busy behind the scenes with her charity sewing work, and making Christmas table runners and bags for her family. Marg's family must be the luckiest family in the world! She has still found time to make all these beautiful blocks for her next Sewmiriam quilt. I think my favourite block is the centre one with the bird. 

Sue is building up her blocks before framing them in 'black on white' prints and here they are together, in no particular order just yet. The colours will sing when framed and I can't wait to seen them all together. I do love the way the reds, greens and blues are playing together .

Sue also brought along her mini Sandy's Kaleidoscope  quilt which I just had to include here because it is so pretty, but it is wasn't done in my workshop. It is one of Sandy Caller's patterns, a highly talented teacher and member of the Cottage Quiltworks team.  

Well, that is a wrap for the Sewmiriam Workshops for this year. It has been a busy and  amazing year of teaching. I have taught to a range of groups up and down the coast of New South Wales and in Sydney.  I have taught regularly to many people  at Cottage Quiltworks and it has been wonderful teaching each and every one of you. Thank you all so much for your support. I have loved sharing my passion for creativity with you this year.

The teaching year may be winding down, but I will still be blogging on, so keep following me here to find out what's new in my world . You are always welcome.

Happy sewing, love Miriamx

Cotton and Steel Star Gazing

In need of some cheer? Thought you might be. So this week I have decided  to share with you  some festive stars  that I have been working on . The quilt isn't finished yet, but these stars already bring a smile to my face, so I hope they bring some happiness your way as well. 

These star blocks will be be approximately 20 inch square when finished and are made using the Garland range of fabric from Cotton and Steel. You can view the range by clicking here.   I have made the blocks using the Star Gazing pattern by Lynne Wilson which I purchased from Cottage Quiltworks. 

I have decided to make 9 blocks and here they are, in no particular order. I have used a mixture of light and bright backgrounds . Each star has its own personality!

 

A short and sweet blogpost this week , and I will keep my final layout as a surprise for a later post. Thank you so much for stopping by. I am so glad you did. You are always welcome. 

Happy sewing, love Miriamx 

Epping Quilters Sewmiriam Workshop

What a delightful day I had working with the very talented ladies from the Epping Quilters on Thursday.

Using one pattern - The Sewmiriam Handy Zip Top Bag - they set about to create their own one of a kind bag. That is what is so great about this pattern. You bring your own style to the pattern and each bag made is unique and personalised. The ladies brought in their own fabrics and away they went!

Techniques, tips and tricks were taught along the way, and the bags took shape as the day progressed. I am thrilled to be able to share with you now the fabulous bags made by  these very talented ladies.

 First up is Ros"s beautiful bag made with gorgeous oriental prints. Here is the front

And  here is the back ..

Ros used Kantha fabric for the base .. how clever is that! 

Edna is a fabulous quilter and made this delightful monochromatic bag.

Christina used an exquisite bird print as her focus fabric to create a beautiful bag 

Anne created this whimsical bag which I just fell in love with . 

Don't you love the play of green and blues!

You can tell that Bev loves colour and she created this lovely bag centred around the 

owl fabric .

For all you Tula fans out there -here is Mandie's fabulous Elizabeth bag!

I love the way you can mix and match old and new Tula ranges .

Here is the back ..

Lorraine has a wonderful colour sense and  made the front of what will be a beautiful bag. 

Here is a sneak peak!

Catherine had to rush off to do the school pick up , but here is the bag she 

is making for her daughter  so far - how lucky are daughters of quilting mothers!

While we are on an animal theme,  here is the front of  Coralie's bag. 

How clever are these fabric pairings! 

Lyn  made a beautiful butterfly her focus with a real wow

factor!

Told you it was an amazing day! Thank you ladies for welcoming me to your 

group and for being such a delight to teach. Your bags are awesome!

Happy sewing, love Miriamx 

Saturday Workshop

I love my Saturday Workshops. They are always busy, fun filled days and I am always inspired by the  talent of the participants. Here is just a small sample of the wonderful work done today.

First up is Sue's Sewmiriam Large Dresden Quilt. Her wonderful friends gave her today's workshop as a birthday present. How nice is that! What wonderful, thoughtful friends. Sue sewed up a storm and the results speak for themselves - spectacular!

Here is how it looks in its awesome entirety.

Caroline made her first Sewmiriam Handy Zip Top bag. Here is the front...

and here is the back. I love the fabric choices and the colours.Well done Caroline. Your bag is gorgeous.

Angela bought in a beautiful selection of floral fabrics to her first lesson. Mixing them with some clever stripes and spots she is well on the way to making both the front and back of her first Sewmiriam Handy Zip Top Bag. You can see some of Angela's beautiful work here...

And here....

Exquisite work Angela!

Sue B is busy building up her 6 inch blocks using Tilda fabrics. This isn't the final placement, but it is fun to start playing around with the blocks and to think about fabric framing. Here are Sue's soft and delicate blocks squared up and on point. 

Anne worked on the square borders of her beautiful star , based on the Barn Star from Victoria Findlay Wolfe's 15 Minutes of Play book. This photo montage does not do justice to the colours and beauty of this quilt which really glows. I can't wait to see it with the square borders stitched on.

So much talent in one room in one day! 

Next on my calendar is a Bag Making Workshop with the Epping Quilters on Thursday. I can't wait . 

Happy sewing, love Miriamx