Tulips

A version of this quilt was patterned in Quiltmania some time ago, a reproduction quilt made by Lucy of an old quilt she had seen.  I adapted it a little, and made it from stash fabrics, except of course for the School Bus Orange (yes, it is really called that !) Kona cotton used for the sashings.  It is really not my color, but I thoroughly enjoyed making this quilt, I feel happy when I look at it, and maybe if I call the color cheddar ......  I could learn to love it !  Marlene did a nice job on the quilting, and it  has turned into one of my favorites.

A Start, a Finish, and a Gift !

I picked up my Houses from the quilter this week, and was SO pleased with the design !  It really enhances the quilt.  I have bound it now and so here are some photos - unfortunately it is rainy here today so the light isn't very good:

The quilt pattern is in Edyta Sitar's book, the figs are an addition of my own.

If  I finish something, I can start something else, right ?  Last Sunday I traced the lovely boutis pattern from France Boutis 1st Salon which I attended in May.  It is on the linen gifted by Isabelle, and I ordered linen thread this week.  I will have to redo the basting, I put plain cotton on the back and I don't like it, it is too heavy and not white enough.  A good Swiss batiste is going to be taking its place:

And last but not least ..... my husband was recently in Germany, and much to my surprise, brought home these three absolutely lovely thimbles for me.  They are very old silver, I haven't even cleaned them yet, and the best part of all - all three fit me to sew with !  I love old silver thimbles to work with, they seem soft and comfortable to me, and as Sharon says ... they already know how to sew !

Souvenirs from Caissargues

 I did very little shopping at the expo in France, and I am sure I could have bought many more things !  I did purchase a piece of Den Haan Dutch chintz, a 2 yard piece which I thought would make a pretty, small courtepointe with a plain color on the reverse.  The pattern is from the "Island Marken" design.
Isabelle made me a gift of the fabulous white linen batiste shown, it is so beautiful.  I am planning to use it for the vanne below as my personal souvenir of a memorable weekend spent with the ladies and Hubert.  Hubert also had the idea for the design of  the needles from Bohin, they are specially for stuffing the boutis, are longer and fine, and have a blunt tip.

 France Boutis offered this wonderful pattern for a small "vanne" as the pattern for the expo in full size.  Recently it had appeared in the Fil Blanc but not full size.  Again, I think this would make a wonderful courtepointe if it was enlarged a little.  This is the pattern I will use the fine linen batiste for.

And finally, I picked up Janet's and my pochettes that Lou had patiently looked after since the exchange in March at Pierrefeu.  Aren't the scissors wonderful ?  They are small and elegant, hand made in  Nogent, and have long, thin, sharp tips, perfect for applique.   The scissor and knife maker from Nogent was a vendor at the expo, and he had truly wonderful scissors, some (very expensive) ones real works of art, a once-in-a-lifetime purchase.   These are a gift from Lou, who  spoiled me the whole weekend.  Thank you so much, I will always remember it.

Decorating Progress

 Nicole has made me this wonderful cross stitch monogram which she framed in a white, antiqued frame which goes beautifully in our small cottage.  She does such perfect work, and is very particular about how she does things, and this picture proved quite a challenge because of its size - she explains about it here.  I placed it in a small alcove in our living room wall, and gave it an antique child's head sculpture for company (it is a family piece inscribed Christmas 1908 in German).  I think they look good together.

In these two pictures you can see we are making some progress in making our rooms more livable.  I am not the best decorator and wanted to keep everything light and in natural colors.  I will be making a few bright pillows I think for contrast, and of course a boutis or two will have to find their way here as well.

 For the second bedroom we opted for a rattan sleeper sofa, this room gives onto a roof terrace which is just so pretty with the forest right behind.  We thought we would like to sit up here from time to time.

And as always, I love the view from my bedroom window at the front of the house.  I like to hear the Church bells chime (which they do every 15 minutes, and on the hour, 24 hours a day !)