What is Joz making- January

I missed out on my December post so this month I have quilts (and books) to talk about- including some long standing WIPS which I finally finished :-)

What I’ve made (or finished) since my last update!

It’s amazing what a 10 day staycation can help achieve!

First up, in those that I finished, I finally finished hand quilting my linen Ramona- including some time sitting on a rock on the coast as Tim fished. Altogether, I think there are about 6500 hand stitches- it’s perfectly imperfect and I love how it ended up! (P.S. It’s listed for sale if you would like to purchase)

I also finally finished my king sized St Louis 16 Patch- this is one of my favourite quilts to make! It has curved corners, I used my favourite zig zag stitch and it’s also for sale (I’ve reached the point of too many quilts in our house, yes that is possible! :-)

And I also finished another Ramona quilt- this was a very long standing WIP- I made the quilt top when we lived in Bundanoon (so at least 2 years ago), basted and started quilting it perhaps 6 months ago and finally finished it last week! I used big zig zag quilting on a diagonal, in a grid pattern to quilt this one (and it’s also for sale).

I also finished my second Sawtooth star (free pattern available)

And now onto quilts that I have made since my last update:

I made a checkered quilt for my friend, Allison- this was such a fun make and I have a free tutorial available if you want to make one yourself.

I also made a quilted floor cushion for my Mum’s dog, Dennis- this was really fun to make and I have a tutorial on how I did it.

I also whipped up some other quick projects, firstly some fabric gift bags to hold my secret santa presents (I have a tutorial for these as well)

I also made some quilted stockings for my new niece and her family (it was surprisingly really cold for Christmas this year- even cold enough for us to wear Christmas jumpers:

Oh and I also made a milestone quilt for my new niece! I used Wellspring Designs Let’s Grow quilt pattern and it was a really satisfying make (despite the millions of pieces)!

What quilts I’m thinking about/ planning

I have a few ideas swirling around in my head but wanted to finish some of my WIPs first so nothing super concrete.

Although I do want to make Duffy a new cushion cover (similar to the one I made for Dennis), so i’ll get started on that soon!

What I need to quilt

My Irish Chain is still patiently waiting to be quilted but I will get onto that soon- I have the backing fabric now so once I’ve finished my Meadowlark quilt (see below), i’ll get started on that! (I’ve also written a pattern if you want to make one yourself- it’s such a fun pattern that comes together before your eyes :-)

I also need to quilt my latest St Louis 16 patch which I made on a whim- I think I will hand quilt this one as well! If you want to make this pattern, I’ve just published a pattern which you can find here.

What I’m hand quilting

I’m about half way through quilting my upsized Meadowlark quilt- just a few more lines to go- it’s really fun and quick as I’m just doing straight lines and keeping it purposely sparse.

What I’m listening to

Recent books I’ve listened to:

The Mother in Law by Sally Hepworth- 3.5/5 A really easy read/listen - I tore through this one (and at 1.75 speed) and really enjoyed it!

The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart- 3.75/5- I know a lot of people love this book and I did for the most part but then it sort of fell a bit flat at the end I thought? Feeling a bit mixed about it! I started to watch the series after reading but it was completely different to how I imagined it (and even the plot line seemed quite different in the first 10 minutes) so quickly abandoned that!

The Seat Filler- 3.5/5- Complete trash but I still enjoyed it :-)

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver- 4.5/5- Another one of my favourites from 2023- quite a heavy read (I was listening at the same time as I was reading A Little Life so needed something light and fluffy afterwards (hence the Seat Filler)

Recent books I’ve read :
I’ve included a list of some books I’ve read (as opposed to listened to)- I can’t vouch for the audiobook version which as you know can be good or bad but I did enjoy these books!

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara- 5/5 One of my favourite books ever. It’s a very harrowing read but there are some beautiful relationships which make it readable- I loved it and still think about it daily even though I finished it a few months ago

The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth- 4/5 - I’m currently on a bit of a Sally Hepworth binge- I really enjoyed the book as I was reading it but found it to be a bit of a weak twist? Still very enjoyable