The Salty Crew

Meet the Salty Crew! A bunch of nautical plush creatures up to general mischief on the high seas.

 Meowsy Barnacle has been sewn using Bit of Whimsy's Violet pattern in Salt Water fabrics with Moda Bella Solid in natural and white. She has a removable elasticated skirt with properly finished seams and hem.

The Salty Sea Hog has been sewn using Bit of Whimsy's Parker Pig pattern using Tula Pink's Floaties and Sinkies fabric with Moda Bella Solid in natural. Ears are interlined with cotton flannel for a bit more structural support.

Both Salty Sea Hog and Meowsy Barnacle are available now in my etsy store.

Little Dots Pillow

I finished this little pillow a few weeks ago and have only just gotten round to photographing it. I used the Little Dots quilt pattern by Green Bee Patterns, but I adjusted the outer templates so my circle blocks would finish at 9" instead of the 12" size of the original pattern. I have been collecting low volume prints since last year and this was my first attempt at an all-neutral print background. I love the extra detail provided by using prints where normally I would feel inclined to use a solid background.

I hand-quilted the pillow front using aurifil 12wt in white, quilting a series of concentric circles and arches to echo the circular piecing. Batting is warm and white 100% cotton batting, and the front is lined in neutral coloured cotton flannel.

My finished pillow cover measures 18" and fits either an 18" or 20" pillow-form, depending on plumpness desired. I photographed it on an 18" pillow-form.

Pillow back features a Heather Ross mermaid and octopus print and an envelope style closure. Binding is a neutral stripe from Bonnie and Camille's Marmalade collection.

Little Dots Pillow has been listed in my etsy shop.

Banana Bread

I am just a little bit in love with banana bread. It is my favourite breakfast variable, perfect just as it is, in thick slices with coffee. Its basically cake for breakfast, but somehow just a little more respectable. And it makes a great late-night snack for breaks in sewing marathons or to keep you company during a movie.

This is my recipe for gluten free banana bread.

Ingredients:
225g gluten free self-raising flour blend
1 teaspoon gluten free baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
Pinch of salt
100g caster sugar
75g melted butter
2 eggs
50ml milk
4 ripe bananas
A few drops vanilla extract
65g chopped walnuts

~ Pre-heat oven to 180°C.
~ Line a 1lb loaf tin with baking paper.
~ Sift flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and sugar into a mixing bowl.
~ Peel and roughly mash the bananas.
~ In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and combine with cooled melted butter, milk, vanilla extract and mashed banana.
~ Add the wet ingredients to the dry, gently folding together until just combined. Fold in the chopped nuts.
~ Pour mixture into tin and bake for 50-60 minutes approximately. Bread is done when it is a nice golden brown on top and springs back when you gently poke it.
~ Allow to stand in tin for at least 10 minutes before you attempt removal!

I'm planning on adding a few more recipes in future. I find myself cooking a lot more enthusiastically lately and thought it might be fun to share what I come up with. I may even make it a regular bloggy thing!

Friday

April showery day today. I'm mostly hiding away in my studio. Working on a small batch of nautical plushies. The Salty Crew as I call them. I did find some time to cook this week. Finally mastered gluten free banana bread. It made my last two breakfasts extra fantastic. I need to make it much more often. Also made lasagne (of sorts) last Wednesday. I used sliced and fried aubergine and potatoes in alternating layers instead of pasta. Dan made the white sauce as I would most likely have burned it. One day I will master white sauce!

I have been playing around with Tula Pink's Salt Water fabrics. I made a (Small) Giant Star using Jeni's tutorial but starting with 10" squares for my HSTs. The star block measures 36" square and I'll add a 2" border once I get around to it. I'm planning on free-motion quilting this one but need more practice first.

Still impatiently waiting for some FMQ supplies. A supreme slider which (I'm told) will make it easier to move a quilt around my machine bed, and some quilting gloves. I'm also hoping my local stitchy shop can order some new bobbins for my machine as I'm currently running on five and finding it very limiting! I'm told they might cost 2 euro each though!

Sneak peek of the first Salty Shipmate... this is Sea Weed. Made using the Bit of Whimsy Katie Kitten pattern. He is just a little bit wonky but I'm happy with him.

Soundtrack for my stitching today... Seether ~ Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces.

Wednesday

A few things that have been making me happy this week....

Home-made chips with baby corn and hummus. 

A sleepy kitty with stretchy legs to keep me company while I knit. She's using my knitting bag as a cushion.

A rainbow of stripy Long Johns.

Sunny afternoon by the river, warm enough for bare arms :)

Monday

It has been a lovely weekend. I planned, pieced and quilted a small quilt, went for a few very good walks, cooked and ate lots of delicious Mexican food with Dan, and even found time to go to the cinema. We saw Evil Dead last night. Honestly, I found it a bit traumatic  A lot of the imagery and plot struck a bit too close to home for me. It was good though. So I recommend as a horror movie, but potentially very triggering for some. I recovered from the 'Evil Dead experience' with coffee and late night sewing, and all is well with the world once more :)

Parker Pig is in the shop. I totally named him the name that his pattern is named, because he is my first Parker, and it suited him. I promise to make a whole batch of these guys over the next few weeks. I've already picked fabric combos for two more. I'm planning on fixing up my old Brother machine for the purposes of Jane's plushie factory, as I want to leave the Pfaff set up for my free motion quilting practice. 

Parker Pig has been made using a Bit of Whimsy pattern. I am a wee bit obsessed with Bit of Whimsy dolls. I own a few more patterns which I really must get on with making, but the pig is my current favourite :) I used Aneela Hoey's Sew Stitchy hexagons for his body and some pink Pearl Bracelets and pink solid for the details. I also fused some woven interfacing to the outer ear fabrics before sewing to make them stand up nicely.

I have a bit of a busy week ahead of me. Lots of knitting to finish up and hopefully a new baby quilt to show shortly. I have decided not to take on any more dolly clothing commissions for the time being as I need the time to work on my stitchy plans. I hope to be a lot more productive on the quilting front from next week.

Proper Spring Weather

Today actually feels like spring. Warm and sunny when the sun shines, with short bursts of rain when it showers. I've not been out for the last two days, so today I enjoyed some riverside walking. All of the lovely bits of riverbank which have been underwater all winter have now fully re-emerged and the world looks so much brighter.

I have actually been out to the river twice today. My morning walk managed to coincide with the one shower of the day, so instead of my expected (and much looked-forward-to) sit on a sunny pier, I got to sit on my little wooden island and get rained on. It was still lovely though. Not at all cold out and I love seeing the raindrops hit the river. When Dan came home from work it was lovely and sunny again, so we went back to the river and I had pink lemonade.

This is my favourite spot. A little wooden pier on the river. I like to sit here whenever it is relatively dry. I come up with quite a lot of stitchy plans here.

I brought Threnody with me this morning, but had to put her away when the rain started :( Hoping to take my Blythes out  bit more now the weather is improving.

I'm working on a small quilt this evening. Hoping to finish the top very soon.