A Quilt by any other Name

When I discovered Quilt Block patterns and decided to use them as inspiration for my patchwork bowls, I never imagined that there was such a wealth of history behind the designs, and especially their names. I am an absolute newcomer to the world of Quilting, and am sure there are those out there who know far more about all this than me. I know that there are biblical names, such as 'Job's Trouble', or 'Joseph's Coat', and names taken from Trades, such as 'Monkey Wrench' and 'Saw-Tooth'.

I can see why the above pattern is called 'Party Hats' because, well, it looks like party hats.



But what fascinates me most are those with people's names - like this one above which is called 'Oh Susannah'. I keep wondering who Susannah was - is she the same Susannah as in the song we used to sing at school?



And this one - called 'Aunt Dinah' - she sounds like a lovely old lady to me, but guess we'll never know.
Is it like having a Rose named after you ... and to whom do I apply to get my own quilt block design called 'Cathy's Delight' or whatever? Do I have to invent my own pattern and register it with some very solemn authority somewhere? Not serious but ... just wondering.

Waste Not .... Want Not

This is the large bowl I made for which I originally made the tiny acorns (see previous post). I often embellish my work by attaching buttons, or other bits and bobs. This was an autumn piece with oak leaves and so ... the acorns.

I often have scraps of clay left over from a making session. Many potters just throw left-overs into a bin for recycling at a later date. I don't have the space for that, so I use up every last tiny itsy bitsy morcel of clay before I finish up. Its not that I'm mean, or anything. Just can't stand waste. (I'm the type that saves bits of ribbon off chocolate boxes just because).

I wonder if all the textile crafters, quilters and such have mountains of tiny fabric scraps which they can't bring themselves to discard.

So ... what to do with all the remnants of clay? Make beads? Buttons? Acorns (again)? Or - maybe - I thought one day - earrings! Well - I had fun making these, but I couldn't really get into jewellery making and so they are still sitting there looking at me. I think I may just attach them to the rim of a large bowl - or something. Not sure yet.

But, I have absolutely no idea what I was thinking when I made these little toadstools - must have just been in the mood for fiddling about. They range from two centimetres high all the way to three centimeters high. They sit in a little white bowl on my desk here and make me smile. They are ridiculously silly and cute.

From little acorns .....

..... wonderful textile pieces grow! These are not just ordinary acorns, these are are my own handmade ceramic acorns, some of which my friend Bev took home from my Open Studios a few weeks ago. They inspired her to make this gorgeous textile work of art below. She says she is going through a 'working with organza and metallic colours' phase at the moment.



You may wonder, like I often do, about what people do with your work when they've bought it and got it home ... is it a gift for someone? is it for them and if so where in their home are they going to put it? is it on a dresser in their kitchen or a coffee table in their living room? do their friends and family notice it, comment on it ... whatever.



So its so good to have someone actually post me a picture of what they did with the pieces the took away. I originally made a few of these to hang from the inside of one of my large patchwork pieces, but got carried away (as usual) and made loads! I'll dig out the photo of the large acorn bowl I made and post it next time. This post belongs to Bev though, I think! Clever lady.

Tied up with String

No, not brown paper packages, but these little bundles of stem vases, which were among the batch of things I took out to the Alby Gallery late yesterday afternoon. I love dropping things off there - they are soooo nice and friendly and the whole place is a haven for crafty people. Click on their sign in the sidebar for more info.

It was a gloriously warm and sunny afternoon so Potter'sHubby and Potter'sSon were prevailed upon to drive on up the road to find the sea .... and it was beautiful. The wet sand beyond the rocks was all shimmery and silvery.

And the gulls were loving it too, though most of them seemed to think the water was still not warm enough, despite the hot sun shining down on it all day.

Yep - you're right - that is a rubbish photo and I do need a new camera but I have been the last one in this house to get my own laptop and I expect I'll be the last one to get a half-way decent camera too. One day... maybe .... please Father Christmas?

The evening was rounded off with fish and chips for tea, but no photos of them as they were not around long enough.