Let's Get Acquainted

Last week I was asked if I'd like to move forward my 12 November slot on the Plum & June's Let's Get Acquainted Blog Hop to Thursday, 11 October. I jumped at the chance - not a hope of me creating a new tutorial by then, I thought, but I'd just posted one that same evening and maybe not that many would already have seen it, so with that sorted, here I am.

For anyone who doesn't already know me, I'm Chris, I'm English, and I've been living on Manhattan's doorstep since 1 August 2011.  Thank you for visiting, and an extra big 'hi' to anyone who's also taking part in the P&J LGA Blog Hop.  Thanks also to Beth, who is Plum & June, for organising what has turned out to be one heck of a fantastic 6 month Blog Hop marathon :)

View From My Roof Garden

Tatty the Havapoo

For 20 years, I've been married to my worst enemy, Simon - since this Blog Hop started, I've wanted to say that as I can't quite believe just how many quilters are "married to their best friend" ;).  It's Simon's fault that I'm living in America and that I've given up so much to be here.  I admit I've done quite a bit of kicking and screaming along the way, but the problem is I kind of like it now and don't want to leave, but let's just keep that between us as there's a lot more mileage, yet in him not knowing!

I have one dog, Thatcher (known as Tatty to her friends and named after a woman I have much admiration for - Margaret), and then there are my three children.  Jack is 23; he graduated from uni in July and has since completed an intensive teacher training course and started teaching English at a school in Seville, Spain. 

In the middle, I have Joe, who is 22, and he too graduated from uni in July.  He's about to move to live in London as he's an aspiring actor, so if anyone knows of any roles suitable for someone bearing a remarkable resemblance to a young Hugh Grant, send me an email.

My youngest is Flicky, she lives here in America with me and today is her 18th birthday.  This is a significant birthday in England as you are now considered an adult in all respects and legally old enough to buy alcohol.  Unfortunately for Flicky, we live in America, so she won't be celebrating her big day in quite the same way that all her friends back in England celebrate theirs.  Still, I hope this shout out for her via my blog will ease her disappointment to some extent, but somehow I don't think so!!!

These photos were taken in Manhattan on Christmas Eve 2011, the last time the five of us were all together.

As is the way in my day-to-day life, I've just realised that I'm talking on and on about my family and haven't told you anything really about me, so ...

I've been sewing and knitting since I'm too young to remember.  I watched my mum knitting and then when I was about 7 I had a go myself in my bedroom.  I made a jumper for my teddy bear, Bruno, using scraps of Mum's leftover wool, and I remember how shocked she was when I showed her what I'd made as she'd had no idea I'd been watching her and learning.

I have always been artistic and creative but was pushed down a more academic route at school, as we pretty much all were back in those days.  I tailored my own clothes in my teens and 20s and then made everything for my babies as they were born, and finally, in 2006, I gave up office-based work and went back to college.  I studied Art & Design, following my creative dreams, later specialising in Ceramics and then moving into Textile Art. 

When we moved to the States, I booked myself on a quilting course and started quilting 1 year and 6 days ago today, and I haven't looked back; I've written more about learning to quilt on my blog post My Very First Ever Quilt.  I started blogging on 28 April this year, and you can also find me on Facebook, Ravelry and Pinterest - please come and have a look :)  Hopefully, my green card will arrive any time now, allowing me to set up my Etsy shop and start selling my work as my current visa doesn't allow me to earn money.



I'm an NYC Metro Mod Guild member, and I'm in their Mod Bee with my Queen Bee month, December, coming up fast.   When I'm not quilting, I can often be found at my LQS in Manhattan, searching out fabrics, attending classes and chatting with friends.  I also like to go to the NY Philharmonic Open Rehearsals on Wednesday/Thursday mornings. If you're visiting NYC and love classical music, this is an excellent way of seeing a concert for $18.




I'm counting down the days and weeks to QuiltCon, Austin, Texas, in February and hope to meet up with lots of you there so I can put faces to all the wonderful people I've met through blogging.  Be sure to let me know if you're going too :)




Here's a quick list of answers to Beth's original suggested questions for the Blog Hop:

Favourite quilting tip(s)
Using 2 small spare pieces of fabric, chain piece on and then off your main fabric piece saves thread, and the machine foot doesn't have to go up and down as it stays engaged.  That's hard to explain in writing, so I'll have to sort out a photo tutorial!!!

Favourite blogging tip(s) 
Don't write long wordy posts - this tip is very tongue in cheek as I'm the world's worst  ;)

Favourite fabric (or wish list fabric)
Currently, Aqua La Femme by Melissa Crowley and a Betsey Johnson plaid that I'm using to make a lofty quilt for Flicky to take off to uni with her next September.

Favourite craft book
Piecing, The Piece o' Cake Way by Becky Goldsmith & Linda Jenkins
a 'how to' quilting book recommended by my first quilting teacher, the fabulous Christine Janove.

Favourite book (or book you are currently reading)
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
Both of my two grandads, as teenagers, fought in the WWI trenches and survived The Somme.  This book gave me my first insight into what shaped them as men and helped me understand the subsequent impact on their offspring ... my family.

Favourite children's book
Unless he was working, my Dad read to me every night while I was growing up, and every night I asked for the same story - Old Mister Glue-Pot from Tales of Green Hedges by Enid Blyton. 

Favourite quilting tool
I can't pick one as I have three that I love so much I did tutorials on using them.
June Tailor's Shape Plus Cut Ruler and Bloc-Loc and Rotating Cutting Mat

Favourite music to listen to work to
The Wanted, Neon Trees, Cee Lo Green, LMFAO, Katy Perry, Jesse J, Ed Sheeran, Olly Murs, Taio Cruz, oh and better mention One Direction as Flicky and her friend Maud run a fansite about them, Maud and the Dods.

Favourite TV shows to work to
The Great British Bake-Off

Strictly Come Dancing
Project Runway
The Good Wife

Binding
99% of the time, I machine the front binding and hand sew the back.

If I'd only known 
What excellent, encouraging people are out there sharing the same interests and equally keen to share their knowledge with you too.

Other people on the Blog Hop this week and next:
Tuesday, 9 October: Amy from Sew Incredibly Crazy and Foster from Foster Reviews It
Thursday, 11 October: Marit from Sew, love, live
Tuesday, 16 October: Vicki from Quilting Lodge Blog and Liz from Dandelion Daydream



The official theme of the Blog Hop is novelty prints. Fortunately, I posted a tutorial last week using 2 novelty prints - Echino Deer Patchwork in Purple and Circa 1934 by Cosmo Cricket for Moda. Here it is, A Laminated Mug Rug, for those who are still awake to finish reading this!

and finally, finally


Happy 18th Birthday, Flicky xxx

Play Quilt And Matching Dog Set

In March this year, the most wonderful little fluffy person came to live with us, her name is Thatcher (yes, she is named after our British ex-Prime Minister, Margaret) and she is known as Tatty to her friends.  

It was a difficult decision for me as I was still reeling from having my chocolate button-eyed poodle, Lucy, put to sleep 12 months earlier.

Tatty is a Havapoo (Havanese and Toy Poodle) and she is the happiest, friendly and adorable bundle of dogginess that you could ever wish to meet.  Her arrival immediately turned our apartment into our home and now we wouldn't be without her!  She's also given my daughter, F, hours of fun trying all her teddy bear's clothes on her: can you spot St Trinian's Tatty; Cowgirl Tatty; Harry Potter Tatty; and Dumbledore Tatty and there's even a very British Tatty in there too.

My eldest son, JA, did spot another likeness, though - Tatty looks uncannily like that dreadful Scottish export, Susan Boyle!

Anyway, back to more serious matters - Quilting!  I immediately set about making Tatty her own quilt - doesn't every dog deserve a quilt?  Well so far Tatty's got two, one for her pram that I've posted about previously (yes, you did read that right), Tatty has a pram and she goes to Doggie Daycare in it once a week at Fuzzybutz in Hoboken so a big shout out here for Vicki and her team who are just amazing :)

But this post is about Tatty's play quilt.

I made the quilt using some old cushion covers from the kid's TV room in our English home and backed it with a piece of faux fur that I had in the bottom of my stash.  I didn't put batting in the quilt as the cushion covers were thicker than quilting cotton and the faux fur gave the quilt plenty thickness also.  I quilted in the ditch, completely ignoring the 8" rule, and I have to say that the quilt's holding its own well.  It takes a constant battering from Tatty and frequently reacquaints itself with the washing machine and tumble dryer and it's not showing signs of wear yet.

I machine sewed both sides of the binding and it only took an hour or so to make.  Tatty loves it and I'm guessing the people in the apartment below love it too though they don't even know it (we like her to eat her bones on the quilt as she makes a terrible noise when she drops them on the wooden floor).

My friend, P, pointed out that Tatty and the quilt coordinate - totally unplanned but I kind of like it "A Matching Set"!

And finally here's some more photos of Tatty enjoying life on my Juice Box Sofa quilt that I posted about previously and have just updated with new photo detail.

Disclaimer:
This post is for informational purposes only, no payment or commission is received on click-throughs and opinions are my own.

Is That A Dog In A Pram???!!!!!!

View out to the Empire State

I just have to share today's news with you all.  Since last November, I have been walking miles each day to improve my health.  I had an idea that it would be nice to have a dog to walk with me and hence the arrival of Thatcher, known as Tatty to her friends.  Unfortunately Tatty isn't quite so keen on the idea of walking as I am.  By the time we've trotted to the lift, gone down 23 floors and crossed the lobby of our apartment building Tatty's tired and ready to go home.

View down to 1 World Trade Centre

It's been such a disappointment for me, she's at home and I'm still out walking alone but I had an idea - let's get a dog pram.  Hubby, S, took quite some convincing, it's not something that you'd want to be seen with in England - you'd be laughed at in the street, but we'll be walking around Manhattan, Hoboken and Jersey City and here, anything goes.
 
So the pram, a top of the range Pet Gear AT3 Generation 2 All-Terrain Pet Stroller arrived today and we were straight out of the door to enjoy the lovely weather and do a bit of shopping in Hoboken.  Tatty took turns at walking and then riding in the pram when she was tired and best of all she loved it.  A few people did do a double take, a woman in a car was heard saying "did you see that dog in a carriage?".  Meeting up with us on her way home from school, our daughter, F, completely disowned us but I don't care, we'll be out again in the morning doing a good 5 miles, Tatty and me, the two of us together.  Lovely x

Updated at 14 May 2014

I'm very pleased to be able to report that Tatty graduated from her pram later in 2012 and has been happily walking on all four legs ever since!!! :D