Not enough hours in the stitching day ...!

Every day I seem to run out of time before I reach my target of achievement!  However progress is being made on my Scarlet Letter challenge piece - I am currently sewing The Bird Sampler, which sadly is not on the current chart list, but I have had this chart tucked away for many years - it is so lovely:

I have personalised this with my sister's initials (HJL) and this will be part of her 60th birthday gift in June - hope she likes!
I am also currently well into making a king size wedding quilt for my recently married God-daughter Annie - I have chosen yet again to sew the wonderful Anne Baxter design "Seeds of Time" - Annie said she loved pale blues/pinks/greens etc. so I am hoping this will hit the mark:

I hope you can see from this not very good photo how it is coming along.
A friend of mine recently quilted a small Sampler throw which I had made:  it looks fabulous and I am so grateful to Joy for doing such a great job:

Two weeks ago I went up to Cobham in Surrey with my friend Lyn and we had a couple of days with Lise:  it was such fun.  I saw my three children who came from London for Sunday lunch:

Here are Fran and Angelo:

and Dot and Marteen:

I also want to show you this wonderful Amish quilt which Lise has made and recently had longarm quilted:  it is absolutely stunning, she is so clever:

She made this at her patchwork class:  a block of the month course run by Di Turner in Godalming.  She is justifiably very thrilled with the end result.
It is a lovely sunny day here in Devon, although the wind is bitter.  However there has been some activity on the River Tamar so people are out and about on their boats.  I just wish it would warm up a bit, the trees are still so bare:

Rod has just been cutting the grass, but says enough is now enough - time to light the fire and watch the Snooker - and I will get back to putting a quilt together in my Studio.  Sounds like a good way to spend a Saturday afternoon ....!
I can hardly believe it is May next week - surely Spring will arrive soon!
I hope everyone has a great weekend - happy sewing!

Framed and hung......and bindings sewn........

I have just collected my Scarlet Letter "Log Cabin" from the framers, and I am so thrilled with the end result:  it is now hung among some of my other samplers and looks wonderful - though I say it myself!:  I am really pleased with the rustic frame I chose, it is perfectly in  keeping with a Log Cabin:

I have also been busy sewing bindings onto baby quilts and then getting them into the mail, or wrapped ready for the visiting recipient:
Here is 9 month old Emily admiring her gift along with mum Lucy and 4 year old Milly:

Here are some of the others also showing their backs:

I decided to try something totally different - and more grown-up! - so I delved into my fabric pile and came out with these gorgeous fabrics and have made this small throw with a "sampler" theme:

I just loved making this - and it always good to do something without any pressure.  This will be for a sampler loving friend when it is quilted and finished - and I hope she will be surprised - and delighted!

I am off up to Surrey for a long weekend to stay with my dear friend Lise and see friends - and my three wonderful children are driving out from London on Sunday for lunch - I am so excited - I feel the real need to see them and catch up with what is going on in their busy lives.  We are too far away for impromptu Sunday lunches so I will make the most of this one.

How I wish Spring would actually make an appearance:  I am so sick of this cold grey damp weather - I just long to feel some warmth in the sun and to be able to get out into the garden and enjoy the beautiful countryside that surrounds us here in Devon.

Meanwhile thank goodness for our wonderful hobbies - they keep me sane (I think!).
I hope everyone is keeping well and busy.  I do enjoy reading the many Blogs I follow - it is a good start to every day catching up with everyone's progress on their various projects - lots of inspiration and encouragement!
Have a good week.........