I've just put the last few stitches in the binding of my Sailing By Sampler. It's been pouring down whilst I've stitched and I've been reminiscing with my Mum about rainy holidays at the seaside, playing Gin Rummy as the rain thrashed against the side of the caravan. Of course, now that I'm a quilter rainy days mean guilt-free stitching rather than card games.
The backing is an older print by Makower called Marina and I decided to hand quilt my sampler with wavy lines. I first tried this motif on the Happy Wanderer and Cornish Cushion samples I made for Sewing Quarter and knew it would look good on a larger project. Another bonus - if you are wary of the time it might take to hand quilt - is that it's surprisingly quick. I thought you might like to try it too, so you can find my template here. And my tips on hand quilting here.
Unfortunately I didn't have the foresight to order more of the fun Linzee Kull McCray red blender (from her Red Rover collection for Moda Fabrics) that I’d planned to bind my quilt with, but I found the perfect Bonnie & Camille print in the cupboard of loveliness, appropriately enough from Daysail (also for Moda).
Quilting lines marked with water-soluble pen...
Stripes are always a fun choice for binding and text prints are a lovely, subtle take on stripes. The red was a perfect match, so it was clearly meant to be :-)
I've been assembling props and formatting text for a new Sailing By Sampler Pattern Book, so finishing the quilt gets me a step nearer to having a book to proof. The big question is, do I risk a trip to the coast to take photos - and the possibility of rain and/or horizontal winds - or do I mock something up at home? Answers on a postcard, please. But in the meantime here's a sneak peek of one of the pages...
Looking back through my holiday photos has been rather lovely and I'm looking forward to snapping a few more when we return to Cornwall this summer. Lots to do before we go, though.
Nicola xx