AuguSSSZZZt

I had a weekend on my own this weekend as the rest of the family went camping in Devon. Besides making the August challenge for BQL from start to finish, I indulged in lots of lovely outings of little interest to my sons ( and dog!).

I went to Wisley, then to visit the lovely Nikki at The Patchwork Cabin in Great Bookham and ending in a visit to Polesden Lacey.

On Sunday I cycled to breakfast at Petersham Nurseries, then had a very leisurely visit to Ham House. This is a beautiful Stuart mansion that you could really imagine living in.

Lots of inspiring photos of avenues of clipped trees and hedges, just letting them turn over in my mind to become quilt designs.

The weekend ended with signing up for this new online quilting magazine Quiltposium, looks interesting and something to look forward to in September.

London bricks, but is it art?

Off to the Science Museum with my sons to day to see the " Wallace and Grommit" exhibition - good fun, but not a lot of science in it. These wet bricks in the tunnel to the museum caught our eye. Amazing colours and although they look textured, they were very smooth.

Then off to the Serpentine Gallery to see the Jeff Koons exhibition. not my thing at all, but prompted some interesting debate with the boys about why was his work considered to be art but the interesting bricks weren't.

Summer journal - but there's no rain on it!

This is my summer journal quilt, called " Summer Twilight" for our quilt group challenge.
I've used a beautiful piece of silk from a kimono roll and various cottons to make the flowers. The large flowers are loosely attached to the fabric by the centres, the smaller ones are sewn on all round the edges.
The smaller ones were made with this technique ( you need to scroll down the entry to near the bottom), the larger ones were made with the technique mentioned a few posts ago.
Machine quilted with a walking foot and Sulky variegated thread, and bound with some torn strips of the silk fabric, with the frayed edges brought to the front.
The blue silk has a different appearance on the back and the front of the fabric and I've used these different sides on different pieces of the binding.
I really like how this has come out but I'm pondering on adding some beads to reflect the rain there has been in most of this summer's twilights!