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Tuesday 20 May 2014

...something you have never seen me do before...


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Evening folks, I have something a little different to show you, it is crafty tho so I think it qualifies for a blog post! Before I was a stamper I was a quilter and I quilted a lot. The year I was expecting my third child I made 10 quilts. Eight of them were full bed-sized quilts and the other two were smaller wall hangings.This smaller quilt was one of those and I found this pic of it as I was rummaging about the computer the other day waiting for the web folks to fix my internet connection.

The idea for this quilt was a simple picture of an Irish country cottage surrounded by lanes and fields and in real life it's a pretty nice quilt, even if I am blowing my own trumpet a bit. What you can't really see from the pic is that in between the fields I sewed little hedges and stone walls - these were made from strips of knitting, cut from old pullovers, and they sit up out of the quilt.

I never had energy like I did that year, I look back and wonder who that woman was, that lady who looked after two children, walked a mile and a half to school, four times a day, kept a house, and quilted like crazy. If I could get her back WMS would be on fire!

So I'm curious now, what else do you do besides stamping?

Hope it tickles!

24 comments:

  1. Hi Claire, I do cross stitching as well as rubber stamping, in fact that's how I started to stamp. I think your quilting is beautiful. Love Julie

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  2. Right now I'm in the stage of taking care of toddler so almost nothing else I can do...even card making... :( But I used to play piano. And I love reading too...

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  3. I love this quilt- it is beautiful! As for me I draw and I paint as well as papercraft. I've two quilts in my lifetime (nothing nearly as pretty as that!) and I can crochet both with yarn and thread.

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  4. Beautiful and unique quilt. Thanks so much for sharing!
    Ang

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  5. Your quilt is simply beautiful! I used to do a lot of cake decorating - the last one I made was for our wedding in 2012. Stamping is my passion, but I am also taking drawing and painting evening classes and have been getting better at watercolour painting lately. The next step will be to combine this with my cardmaking!

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  6. I love this quilt. It is so YOU. I used to have a life where I did a lot of cooking and entertaining. I did needlework and read a LOT. Now i got to work and then fall on the floor! When I retire, I hope to be on fire again....

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  7. Are you kidding me...
    THIS is what I want to do!!
    Learning to quilt is on my short list for learning...
    they even have a quilting bee at church that as soon as I get caught up with other things in life...
    I'm gonna go and have the ladies show me how!! :)
    But I do cross stitch...
    and even though it had been a few years...
    I picked it back up after the holidays because I have this insane idea of making cross stitched ornaments for the Christmas tree and my kids someday treasuring them and even though they won't be worth the fabric they're stitched on...
    they become priceless family heirlooms to future generations because they they were stitched by my hands.
    Go big or go home...
    right? *giggle*

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  8. Hi Claire

    This quilt is very beautiful and you've created a really pretty scenery with that cottage and the fields. When I enlarge the photo, those hedges and stone walls can be seen very well and they look great.

    Besides stamping I try to take out my sewing machine from time to time. My "crafting table" is always full of stamping stuff so I have to sew at the dining table which is not so convenient as I always have to clean it up so that we can eat *lol*.
    I also love reading and I regularly go to the local library. When I have a good book I could easily forget the household...

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  9. I have crafted since I could pick up a crayon (and drew on my bedroom walls!) Since then I have knitted, crocheted, sewn, made baskets and sloshed lots of inks and paints around. Now I stamp and make jewellery. My two hobbies fight for my time as I am passionate about both. I loved the story about your quilt, and what a gorgeous quilt too.

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  10. Wow - that is beautiful! I have a half made quilted cushion I need to finish (my first attempt from last year - sewing machines scare the living daylights out of me!)

    Before I had the shop as well as a full time day job I did lots of crafts - I make jewellery (wire, pmc and enamelling), love cross stitch and embroidery (needles are OK just not when attached to foot pedals!) and even made tiaras for a while cos Tara's Tiaras sounded like a good business ;-)

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  11. You besides work and care for my family? Not much! But I do have lots of quilting stuff, beading stuff, sewing stuff in general. Fabric was my first love.

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  12. How did I know you were amazing at everything you put your hand to? Quilting is and has been my passion for years! It and all things fabric led me to paper craft. I loved sewing and quilting so much I did crib and baby bedding (made a living at it!) for years. Your sweet Irish quilt is a love! I also did miniature quilts and my favorites were the 7 days of creation from Genesis, the last being Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Sewing, like card making is a stress reliever and pure joy outlet! And PS, love that you asked us to chime in!

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  13. Wow, Claire that really is something beautiful! My goodness I wish I could do this!! I love the colours especially and the house - just gorgeous and I love the pullover hedges. Would love to walk my dog through those pretty fields! I'm still loving all my stamps but as you know I also make dollies, dinos and bunnies! (and hopefully I will make a dress for a family do i August!) xxx

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  14. This is stunning! I totally can see the hedges and walls. I'd pay you a lot of money for some of that energy. Shame you couldn't bottle it! I sew as well as make jewelry besides papercrafty by of all kinds. I don't just make cards, I scrap, make mixed media canvases and do some home dec projects.

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  15. Your quilt is AWESOME!!!! Love it Claire ;) I patchwork a bit - but I am a total beginner and only on my firt quilt so it is slow (painful?) progress while I am learning. In between cross stitching (a lot. In my day job I am editor of a cross stitching magazine ;) ), learning a little watercolours lately, also a big fan of embroidery, sewing, knitting and jewellery making... It would be easier to tell you about the crafts I don't do, haha! Fun to share, Rx

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  16. Claire, this is a beautiful quilt! Yes, I wondered if those hedges were some added textures. They are so cool. I love all of the green and the pop the farm house gives. I have longed to want to quilt. My paternal grandma made tons of quilts. I'm too impatient to do a large one, but have long loved them and respected them and their makers. I struggled through a small quilted project for Easter gifts this year. And really should have ripped some things out and redone them, but I was so done by then, I just kept rolling. LOL I used to sew my own clothes in my 20's and like you, I look back and wonder how I did it and raised a child and worked 40 hours a week. I used to garden too, veggies and flowers, build the odd piece of recycled furniture and do some acrylic painting on them. I would love to learn upholstry.

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  17. I was never really crafty before I discovered stamping which is why I am in awe of people like you. However music has always been big in my life. As a young child I was taught piano, violin, guitar and was considered to have a pretty good singing voice. Learning the saxophone had been a long time goal of mine and I started this 2 years ago and proper music lessons last November (which is not easy as it's taught in French, German or Luxembourgish but not English). I would eventually like to start writing music so I guess it's also a creative outlet for me too.

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  18. This is beautiful Claire, I especially love the path leading to the door~such a fine detail! I hear ya...there were past years where I was superwoman (but didn't feel like it at the time...pure survival it was..esp during my husband's deployments). Besides stamping...I customize shower/party centerpieces, favors etc. when the occasion calls for it. I feel like an on call therapist/counselor/cheerleader for my teen girls this season. Stamping is my in house therapy for me.;)

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  19. That is beautiful Claire, just beautiful...love the texture the knitting hedges must be....I have always worked embroidery of some kind..the latest were french knots and seed beads on toile fabric for an A4 card...
    I just adore working with fabric...I've started to sew again, clothes this time but have always wished I had the time to quilt and patchwork even though I am not a terribly exact sewer. Went back to the library recently and yesterday I came home with a book on making a quilt from a jelly roll...and there is a woman on Create & Craft channel called Jenny Raiment (sp?) who makes things sound simple..someday when I stop taking orders for cards I may have time....

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  20. I thought I saw some 3-D elements in that quilt: before I read the post I was wondering how you had done that in paper! LOL! Beautiful, beautiful quilt!! it has such an artistic feel to it: I can tell you designed it yourself! I LOVE it!! I'd love to see the other quilts you made. Especially since my original love was sewing, and I keep going back to it in between card making. I found some fabric that made me think of you and your love of the Wild West:http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNTAw/z/ojgAAOxyHE5RoZ8l/$T2eC16h,!zEE9s3!Z%29qdBRoZ8kT-h!~~60_35.JPG It's kind of fun! I'm actually holding it in my hot little hands, and would love to send it your way if you think you would use it. Let me know: 2 yards, and it's calling your name..... :-P Hugs, H

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  21. Thought I'd let you know... After seeing your wonderful quilt Claire, I was inspired to blog some of my own recent non-card projects ;) Thanks for the inspiration.. http://www.justsomestuffimade.com/2014/05/26/crafting-inspiration/
    Rx

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  22. What a beautiful quilt Claire. Before I started stamping I also quilted (NOT as prolific as you!) and I also have done embroidery of all sorts since being taught at the tender age of 5 by my grandfather. I am also quite passionate about my garden. Thanks for sharing. Cheers.

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  23. Please do blow your trumpet!! great quilt...I imagine in person it is a beautiful quality as well. Wow! Creative fingers...creative mind! Love it. Hugs, Terry Y.

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