Answers On A Postcard Please

Answers on a postcard please. But what is the Question? The Answer according to Douglas Adams, author of the Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy is 42. The computer Deep Thought revealed the Ultimate Answer to be 42, the problem was, What Is The Question? Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was a big favourite in our house, we had the book, we had the audio for the car, we had the dvd, or video as it was in those days.  When I laid out my fabric squares for The Postcard From Sweden Quilt, it reminded me of those days. See, quilting keeps your brain active in many ways.

So what is the question? The question is how do these 36 different colours all come together?

 The answer is a stupendous riot of colour.

 Today I was hoping to begin my sewing. The Beast From The East has arrived in the UK, if not quite in our corner. It is absolutely Baltic here. Wrong, it is cold enough to be Siberia. Oh, that's right, this wind is coming right from Siberia. We have no snow as yet, a few flurries, but it is falling thick in fast in England, then Scotland, and we are next. Whilst we wait for the Beast, it is just very very cold. Too cold to sew, if not too cold for snow. The gas central heating is on, the fire is lit, but my sewing room is way too cold for sewing. So, I caught up on my scrapbooking this morning.

I hadn't as yet actually read the sewing instructions. Surprise surprise. I assumed the squares were overlaid two at a time and sewn on the diagonal, then cut. They aren't. The squares are cut on the diagonal and the triangles sewn together. This may give me a little problem. They are sewn on the bias, which means lots of stretch. My sewing machine is play acting a little. When I try to start my seam, it sort of does that motorbike revving thing .... it stitches on the spot and the material doesn't feed along the feed teeth. I have to sort of shove, pull it to get it going. I don't think this will go well with bias sewing. I think I need to get my machine serviced, it has never been done. I use it too much to leave it in! I have changed the needle, taken out the bobbin bits and cleaned around, a heck of a lot of fluff came out. It can't be the tension. I never change the tension for the tension to go off. I am the sort of person who uses one programme on the washing machine, uses automatic feature on my camera. I was surprised yesterday to discover you can pause and rewind "live" tv. Very good, I won't be doing it. If it ain't broke, don't fix it is my motto.

Anyhow, it is too cold today to struggle and fight with my Pfaff, to faff around with it so to speak.
I have scrapbooked until my tape ran out. Now I am settled down in front of the fire and tv with a big piece of cherry cake, coffee and my knitting. Scrapbooking class is tonight. Hmmm fire, tv, knitting v cold, driving, scrapooking.

In the meantime you can admire my lovely backing for my Writing from Whitehead. I spotted this Tula Pink in Craftsy's bolt end sale and snaffled it. I think it is a terrible shame the Free Spirit line has been dropped, hopefully it gets picked up again.

Writing from Whitehead? I love these photos of Whitehead my nephew took for me. He lives there and braved the wind to take these for me. I like Words from Whitehead too. My actual favourite "sound wise" is Witterings from Whitehead, but that may be rather cruel, and I am not cruel. I have family lives there. I do like a bit of alliteration though.

So far I have progressed from Kelly's photo of her Swedish quilt

 

to being inspired by the Sacher Torte box design in Vienna last summer

 

to finally ending up in Whitehead.

 

And in between I am working on my the Belfast version, the Belfast Bulletin, which in its turn is a quieter version.

 

In any case, I am delighted to be linking up with Sandra and mmmquilts for the preparatory cutting out stage. Maybe next time there will be some actual sewing.

Helen x
linking up with Sandra and mmmquilts  and her Postcard from Sweden Quilt Along
linking up with Lorna and Sew Fresh Quilts