Patchwork patterns that speak make the eyes shine

An article about my work in the local paper Harku Valla Teataja: the patchwork room under the roof, how a quilt is designed, and the stories the fabrics tell.

Terry and the accessories for his little house

A dog who refuses to sleep on straw gets a foam base mattress with a zipped cover and two washable five layer wool top mats.

Black and white, with a little red too

A larger than usual play quilt in black and white, 155x155 cm, with little red hearts hidden underneath and a tiny cuddle quilt with cars to go with it.

A shelf of gift sets and corporate gifts in the web shop

A new shelf in the web shop: gift sets and corporate gifts. And a question for you: what present would make your heart sing when you move into a new home?

Ready for the autumn season

A room full of products ready for sale: simple, practical water repellent bags from upholstery offcuts, in four sizes, to test whether price or availability is the real obstacle.

This year's young birds

My own chicks are now 2.5 months old and the finest of all these years: tufted heads and the whiskers typical of a rumpless Araucana.

A summer mood in the patchwork room

Nobody has marked the start of a holiday in the calendar and there is no holiday pay, but I am enjoying the summer to the full. If I want to sew, I sew.

Rhubarb juice, a drink and a cake

The kitchen is the last place I would spend my free time, but here is how I make rhubarb juice with blackcurrant leaves, a summer drink and a quick cake.

Quilts with cars, planes and helicopters

Quilts for boys needed pictures I cannot draw, so I found an illustrator. Plus a step by step account of how I make fused appliques.

The beauty of flowers in June

On the day parliament discusses banning glyphosate, some thoughts about a poison free garden, the bees that have vanished, and pictures of what is in flower.

On sewing a patchwork dress

Step by step: squares cut into trapeziums, sewn into tiers, gathered and attached to a bodice made from an old orange sweatshirt.

Making a patchwork skirt

After years of thinking about it, I finally made a patchwork skirt, and a patchwork dress too. To my surprise it is many times quicker than sewing a quilt.

On selling chicks and hatching eggs in 2016

The chick season in my bird house is open: Black Copper Marans, blue and green egg crosses, and speckled chicks that will lay pale blue eggs.

Chair covers for a cafe

Reversible chair covers from upholstery fabric offcuts: light on one side, dark on the other, washable and steam ironable. Meanwhile my sewing machine is still at the doctor's.

On a wave of instrument bags

February was the month of instrument bags, and March carries on at the same pace. Eight bags means 192 pieces cut out, and a cover ornament of more than 100 tiny parts.

Decorations for instrument bag covers

Dear instrument bag client: choose the decoration you like for the cover of your bag and mark your choice in the comments.

Denim reuse, a football beanbag

A giant football beanbag from old jeans: 12 pentagons and 20 hexagons, and a saucepan lid that finally solved the geometry of a regular pentagon.

Patchwork work dungarees

Patching the same trouser knee for the third time, I gave up and sewed new dungarees from offcuts of workwear fabric in neon colours instead.

Bathroom rugs from old bed sheets. Chenille technique.

How to sew soft cotton bathroom rugs from old bed sheets: eight layers, spiral quilting 2 cm apart, then cut through seven layers and wash.

Baby quilts with 100% wool and cotton filling.

Five new baby quilt patterns and a trial of pure wool and 100% cotton filling instead of the usual blended wadding.

A draw for the Christmas baby's quilt.

A giveaway: name a baby born in December or January in the comments and on 10 January I draw the winner of the Christmas baby's quilt.