The upside to miserable weather

Yesterday was indeed a 'poor to very poor' day on the weather front. Drizzly unrelenting rain and cold, without a whiff of sun. I love crashing rain or no rain, but this seems almost impossible to conjure up in southern England. These are the days when I wish I could ignore the need for walking the dogs - I can't as the guilt would overwhelm me for the rest of the day thereby ruining it anyway. So after a rain soaking walk and mud splattered walls and floors were dealt with, I was about a -5.

The upside of this weather, was deciding to stay in the studio for the rest of the day. I got to survey the garden and plan some new plantings whilst working on a new commission.This quilt is full of   fabrics and colours that take me straight back to my childhood.It's going to be a very happy quilt and a very special gift.

Note the envelopes - my top tip when cutting out a whole quilt in one go. This works really well if you aren't planning every piece of fabric. Number the envelopes to match the piece in the design, then strike off on the front, as you cut and stuff. I'm not sure why, but doing this bring immense satisfaction. It's a mystery when cutting and stuffing the envelopes and then a cornucopia of loveliness when you pull them all out again. 

A glass of wine followed by an episode of Masterchef, and the day turned out to be pretty good - maybe even a +5. (even if I had to deal with rain flattened hair all day).

 

Almost out of time!

I am not sure how this post didn't leave the draft folder......

So for this months issue of Making magazine, I designed and made a quilt. Which means this is only the second pattern I've let loose! 

The pattern and instructions are all in the mag.

You might remember the post about a quilt made out of shirts and beach shorts and pajamas. The idea of this may not initially bring up visions of beauty, but I beg you to differ now that you can see it.

This would be equally lovely out of saris, vintage tea towels, Liberty print or your daughters clothes. You can commission yourself - how exciting. If you do make it, please send me photographs as I love to see what people have made and where it ends up.

Now this issue is only on sale for another week or so, so if you want it, you had better scurry to W H Smith or click to Making here.

I have another project in the Christmas issue - it's not a quilt, but something equally as lovely and useful.

 

Nice projects

A couple of lovely quilts I'm finishing off at the moment. The top quilt is all about the tradition of Indigo. Indian, African, Japanese, Korean, American and English indigos. Again different sensibilities (and a lot of rinsing to remove excess dye) but the same technique. It's backed in African wax cloth, which when you buy a bolt of, it's the perfect size to back a standard queen quilt!

The second quilt is from clothes and scarves of a different era, combined with some hand-loomed indian cotton. This quilt makes me think of that great (and much watched) tv programme 'The House of Elliot'.

In the Indigo!

 

Aahh Indigo - how I love thee. Super lovely quilt with fabrics from Liberty, India, Africa and Japan (plus a much loved old denim shirt).

I wish this quilt was mine.......... 

Shorts and shirts

 

About to commence the biggest quilt ever...

A box of shirts and shorts arrived this morning. Have great design planned for this one - it's going to be a really fun, upbeat number - very much like the owner! 

Some things..

We have just added few things to the store. We are popping in new stock (slowly) as time permits....

But for now we have some very lovely cushions made from vintage kantha quilts, a few lampshades. 

and....

As we are about to embark on a bit of a quilt making frenzy, we need to make room in the studio. I'm letting three of our first ever quilts go - including my favourite...

Yikes.

The tea quilt

A design inspired by the Gees Bend quilts mixed with a little bit of Japanese Boro covers. I tea stained a few pieces to make sure the whole quilt had this lovely warm but serene feeling. In it there is...

A section of vintage sari

A wedding cravat

Japanese silks - both embroidered and handpainted

African kuba cloth

Remnants of old Indian kantha quilts

hand loomed tussar silk

hand loomed organic cotton

luvverly, luvverly

Katies quilt

2 napkins

1 wedding tie

1 rugby tie

1 snippet of a wedding dress

1 kimono dressing gown

1 childs school smock

1 childs dress

1 pillowcase of Samantha Fox 

For a man who loves Frank Lloyd Wright

tricky, but pretty cool...

Terrible photographs - but super lovely quilts

  

From a commission I finished recently. A family moving back to NZ. A mixture of precious pieces they have gathered on their travels and some of my fabric. I hope they like them.....

Classes

I'm always thrilled when I get a picture from one of my class participants. This morning, I got a few from Jamie. He came to the class on Saturday and has gone and made the whole quilt! How fantastic does this look. He's off and racing onto a quilt for his nephew. I'm just thrilled and it's really made my week.

I'll be teaching somewhere new and very, very special this Spring. Details coming up in the next couple of days. So exciting.

Our quilts

I think it's great that businesses evolve - kind of finding a rhythm that works on practical and personal levels. 

For me with our quilts, I've realised that I am happiest (and ridiculously lucky) to make commissioned quilts for people. I get to take their memories, their life and their story and turn it into something which will be with them and their family for the rest of their lives.  It represents everything I feel about what home should be - practical, precious and personal.

So that's a long winded way of saying that quilts are now only available by commission. It's not a scary process, but generally is quite emotional. Births, deaths, birthdays, marriages and divorces (a new life if you want a positive spin) have all been commissions. They are all life-changing parts of your life and they should all be celebrated or just remembered with dignity.

I could write a novella on this but I wont. If it's something that you like the sound of, just get in touch. I can send or chat to you about everything you need to know.

Hump day

If yesterday was a dull day of sanding  and painting ceilings (oh my neck), then today at least is a day of contrasts. 

A swift walk to the local DIY store early this morning uncovered gold – or silver.  Crown silver light bulbs – bulbs that look like they have been dipped in molten metal. They give out the most lovely light, which in turn makes me ridiculously happy - good all round I say. Now no longer produced and running on very short stocks at my local store (I'll never reveal who they are). The purchase felt vaguely illegal, but the happiness of their lovely light will outweigh the niggling sense of not being particularly environmentally friendly. I've recycled work tops and used low voc paint. Am I redeemed?

Back to painting for most of the day, but our old/new sofa should come home this afternoon which means one room may almost be done. When I say almost, I’m ignoring the mammoth job of stripping the windows – why do people paint over windows, gluing them shut? In a big city, you need any air you can get and the biggest windows here are firmly sealed. They are also covered in hideous plastic film. I’m not even going to start on the need for LIGHT. Goethe has that covered.

A brief sojourn into the studio to keep working on a particular commission – 6 quilts, then into town hopefully (I am eternally optimistic on timing) to uncover the perfect fabric for lampshades in the living room. If all comes together, then of course time for a drink  with E before we descend underground (I hate the tube on so many levels).

The day will be interspersed with patting the dogs, marveling at how quickly Darcy is growing and staring at the garden – planning. How can I cross Sissinghurst with Charleston, in just under 50 feet...

Oh and there is a lovely chicken that needs to go in the oven...

Image from Sissinghurst in the summer

Lucky

Take

One hippopotamus from when he was a baby

One t-shirt from the day they first met

One sari from when they first moved in together

One wedding tie

One bridesmaids dress

One sliver of silk chiffon from the top she wore when pregnant with their sons

One pair of baby trousers

Add some of my stash

Design a pattern that is all about the two of them and their sons

And you have one 40th birthday present.

He cried and I realise how very lucky I am to do this.

Quilts I love

There are a lot of quilts I don't like. Many people that I meet when I teach or make them a quilt, think that I am a passionate dyed-in-the-wool-traditional-quilter. It couldn't be further from the truth.

I love the philosophy behind quilts as much (if not more) than the items themselves. I definitely like the historical reason for making quilts. I'm not a big fan of prescribed quilting designs and bundled fabric options. I say, use what you have - old dresses with memories, a special piece of wax cloth you bought in Africa, your nana's old tablecloth and make those precious pieces into a quilt you love.Yes, buy some new fabric from Liberty, but make sure it tells the story of you! Intuitively piece as you go, fear not ripping up skirts or saris. When you are finished, you have a bit of your life and history mapped out in front of you. 

Rather comforting to know that you'll be kept warm by it at night isn't it?

The above quilt is not my own -it's by Alabama Chanin. I don't think they have them anymore, but I'm completely floored by the beauty of this.

Thanks Red Magazine

My cushions and quilts went to Morocco without me - bummer. Delightfully they ended up in this months Red magazine.

How lovely.

Would you like to make one of these?

This weekend is going to be the kind of weekend, where one lays in the grass under a tree, or sits in the garden with lemonade/gin/cake/sausage sandwich and listens to the dulcet tones of, maybe, Teddy Thompson...

What one needs is something to do with ones hands. A little crafty project, but something satisfying.

Well, fear not, I can solve your needs. For my quilting classes I have created a whole variety of patterns. Now the basis of my classes is intuitive patchwork, so I don't care if you get the seam allowance wrong, I don't care if you can't cut straight. I just care that you make something that you love. The lovely woman on the right of this picture had never sewn anything - and voila!

So if you're up for it, I have a free pattern and instructions for you to start your own cushion or quilt, or whatever you want. You wont need much fabric, in fact it would be far better if you just used your husbands old shirts, or your daughters dress she's grown out of, or whatever scraps you have.

Just email me at cassandra@cassandraellis.co.uk, and I will sent you a super lovely pdf with everything you need tomorrow.

If you have Sunday free, you can always come and join me at the Papered Parlour - I think they have one spot left.

Yesterdays class

Was just great. We had all sorts of lovely ladies who brought inspiring pieces of fabric that were important to them. Some could sew, some couldn't. It really didn't matter. They all left (hopefully) happy, fired up and creativity unleashed!

Next class is in June and I can't wait!

Summer Classes

 

Come and have some fun with one of my classes below. If you're lucky, I might bake!

QUILTING MASTER CLASS: CASSANDRA ELLIS – Recommended by Time Out
 

Sunday 06 June & Sunday 11 July 2010

Join bespoke quilt maker Cassandra Ellis as she teaches you the essentials of improvisational design and free-form quilting. Book Now!

What people say: ‘The unthinkable has happened: quilts are cool. To celebrate the V&A's exhibition of British quilts, The Papered Parlour is putting on a series of master classes with hip quilt maker Cassandra Ellis’. Time Out, 1 April 2010

Quilting classes coming up!

 

Huzzah! Just confirmed, two contemporary quilt making classes coming up, taught by yours truly, at The Papered Parlour. More info coming soon..............

Now why didn't I think of that?

 

A recent chat with a friend, led to an aha! moment. She said 'God I love your quilts, but I have shameless amounts of fabric at home that I keep promising myself to turn into a quilt, but..... but....no time etc etc' So I thought, why don't you just hand that lot over (including you granny's 1930's tea dress you love so much), and I'll make it into a beautiful contemporary quilt for you?

So she said 'Could you make it based on this design?'

I said  'of course', so she said 'Hurrah!'

So a new service is born...

We all have special dresses, collections of fabric or treasured childrens clothes. Working within one of our designs (or a mix-up), we'll meet up and have a chat, or talk over the phone or email about what it is you want and how we can make something precious and personal for you. A quilt for a new baby, a upcoming binding of two, or a new start perhaps?

The cost includes preparing the fabric, cutting, piecing, quilting and binding, as well as providing the fluffy stuff in the middle. The chatter, my baking and cups of tea - we'll that's just part of who we are.

Click over to here,to get all the details with pricing etc.

I'm very excited about this, I can't tell you!