For some time now, in fact over a year, I have been stockpiling, hoarding fabric. This is not news, no? But I don't mean just any old fabric but fabric of the furry kind, to be precise, flannelette.
Now I'm aware flannelette might be a Marmite type thing. Personally, I adore it, have done since childhood and still do. You can't beat its cosy warmth and even more so when it has pretty flowery patterns. So, today, I amassed my flannelettes and wielded the rotary cutter with its fresh blade. Oh joy. If only Vorey hadn't made his latest bed on an abandoned cushion on my cutting table things would have been even easier.
My collection of flanelettes has come from various sources. I've bought some "pre-loved" sheets and pillowcases, I've bought some rather delectable vintage pieces from Ms Flower, I've picked tiny scraps up at rag markets (Ilminster springs to mind). I've received some new ones from my dear sister, I've bought the odd new FQ myself, many of which have looked startlingly vintage really, I've chopped up the bottoms of a Cath K children's pyjama set. I also had a chubby roll of pre-cut and pre-loved strips from Kim at Worn and Washed. I've mentioned Kim before as we always see her on her stand at the International Festival of Quilts, it's one of mine and my sister's favourites. I've had my bundle for a few years and now, it is finally having its moment with all its flannelly friends.
Kim collects second-hand fabrics and offers pre-cut bundles in a fabulous array of patterns and colours, tending towards shirtings/plaids, florals and flannels in soft colours. She produces quilts with them which are beautiful in their simplicity. It's a quilt like that I'm after.
And so the long process of ironing and cutting began late this morning. I enjoy really looking at each fabric, thinking how they will work together and discovering old markings on the selvedges. This fabric told me I wasn't about to set myself on fire if an errant spark flew out of the log fire, but golly did it smell really dire when it was ironed! Goodness knows what they treated it with but it will get a good washing once the quilt is finished.
Truly scrumptious, don't you agree?
Finally, the piles of fabric ready to sew began to emerge. I cut all the strips 5" wide, so they would be the same as Kim's, but then I cut randomly sized "bricks", anything from 3" to 9" long.
I attempted to lay my variety of strips out on a chair beside me to work but there were so many they spilled onto my table. Hmm, another area where cats and cushions seem to be eating into my workspace! This is patchworking of the most enjoyable kind; just randomly pick up a couple of bricks, sew them together, then sew the pairs together and so on, into long strings. In my case, I want them to be about 82" long. Ah, lovely stuff.
And it's been a productive day. There are no bricks left on the table and the chair looks like this...
Not bad as I didn't give a second thought to how many bricks to cut! The ironing board looks like this...
I've already bought a lovely vintage flannelette sheet to use as a backing from the Country Living Fair and I am tempted to hand quilt with big utility-style stitches in yummy sorbet shades of silky perle cotton.
But that will have to wait until next week!
















































