July furtle 2026

My first finish of July! Cross stitch by Emma Congdon blogged about here 

My obsession with needle minders continues 🤣

Yes i know I already have the book one but it's a favourite and it's in constant use so thisnis my archival one 🤣

My blocks for last months siblings, that's an intention from last month ✅️

Yes ... more needle minders 🤣

Mark brought this down for me, i got this bag in Paducah in 2015, I use it to keep my usable scraps of wadding in, I need these for a current sew along the Hollygon wreath SAL

Siblings blocks for this months another intention ✅️

Another pick a petal block

Awww so happy about this one, it's my block for the transatlantic community quilt, so chuffed to be doing this again and sewing with liberty! And its another intention ✅️

Progress on the Halloween SAL

And last but not least my first block for the Hollygon sew along hosted by Craftapalooza

Totally out of my comfort zone with teeny needleturn applique but quite enjoying it! One down 9 to go!

So that feels like a good month! Lots  done a few intentions from last month ticked off and some are more progressed but not yet ticked off so that's good too!

Intentions for this month 

°transatlantic community quilt block (carried over from June) ✅️

°cut and sew on borders for 2nd siblings quilt (Carried over from June)

°2x siblings blocks from June ✅️

°2x siblings blocks for July ✅️

°sew on binding for Alice Caroline SOS quilt

Intentions for next month

°cut and sew on borders for 2nd siblings quilt (Carried over from June and July)

°sew on binding for Alice Caroline SOS quilt (Carried over from July)

°August siblings blocks

°Finish Halloween x stitch

June furtle

June started off as always with this month's phenology segment. This was blueberries 

I love how its shaping up

I had to wind a second bobbin! 2 bobbins in a year! That's progress 😊

This is my prep for the historical sampler Halloween stitch along starts 6th july

The book below captures a few finishes! I started recording the local temperatures in embroidery in 2021 and stopped in 2024. I had a few bits to finish up, the putting together of the 2023 embroideries blogged about here and the finishing up of the 2024 embroidery blogged about here

I did a reel for Instagram which sums up the whole book, i had also taken the pages of 2021 and 2022 out and remade them (not the whole embroideries thankfully!) Blogged about here

That's an end of an era as regards the temperature embroideries! I did enjoy doing them. Here's the reel

Buying counts as furtling right? 🤣 Japan crafts was selling this sashiko kit in aid of pride, one of my favourite sashiko patterns so I snapped it up

I have managed to cut out the siblings blocks from this month but not sewn together 

Ditto transatlantic community block

I can confidently predict this will be my first finish in July, only a little bit left to do.

So how did i do with the intentions for this month? 2 out of 2 not bad!

°Finish making up Temperature embroideries from 2023 (Carried over from May) ✅️

°transatlantic community quilt block

°cut and sew on borders for 2nd siblings quilt

°piece backing for siblings quilts✅️

Intentions for next month 

°transatlantic community quilt block (carried over from June)

°cut and sew on borders for 2nd siblings quilt (Carried over from June)

°2x siblings blocks from June

°2x siblings blocks for July

°sew on binding for Alice Caroline SOS quilt

May furtle

I redid my bunny pixie basket! I blogged about it here another finish ✅️

I have more finishes! These mandalas were waiting to be done from pre long covid! I blogged about them here

Another finish!!! Redoing the Temperature embroideries from 2021 and 2022! Blogged about here

I also got a new binding tool, I think it will help, Mark does most of my big ironing for me so I didn't really want to add binding to it. I managed this amount in 20 mins with not too much effort so I think ill stick with it

Another finish!!! Squeeked in for the end of May my cherry blossom sashiko kit. Now all done and made up blogged about here

So what about my intentions from last month?

○ Top stitch and sew up bottom of re made bunny fabric pixie basket ✅️ done! Blogged about here

○Finish re sewing Temperature embroideries from 21, 22,✅️  blogged about here 

°Finish making up Temperature embroideries from 2023 - carry over to next month

Intentions for next month

°Finish making up Temperature embroideries from 2023

°transatlantic community quilt block

°cut and sew on borders for 2nd siblings quilt

°piece backing for siblings quilts

April furtle

I've been salvaging fabric! I wrote more about this here

Also catching up with more pick a petal blocks. This is the first of the outer blocks I need 64 in total but I was pleased this came together quite easily, I'm doing this all by machine now. Hand piecing is not my thing!

Plus 2 more of these blocks

Below are my blocks for this months Siblings bee, nice straightforward ones thankfully 

The blossom is blossoming in Bonnybridge! So it's time to start this beautiful blossom sashiko kit, I'm loving it, gorgeous silk thread a dream to use

I ticked something off my fettle list! I blogged more about it here this is a pressing mat made from fabric salvaged from an old bag.

Steady progress on my "pages read" embroidery tracker, I usually like to be half a month behind so it's all good 😊

That's it for April! Thanks to Archie the wonder dog  for hosting 😊

Hastily coming back in to write mini objectives for May!

○ Top stitch and sew up bottom of re made bunny fabric pixie basket

○finish re sewing Temperature embroideries from 21, 22, finish making up Temperature embroideries from 2023

March furtle

Welcome to the March furtle! Well where are we? First up is my flower for the March section of my Phenology wheel, this was a California poppy, I enjoyed making this my my eyesight is a bit poor just now, its nothing too bad its a consequence from cataract surgery. Its easily fixable Im just waiting for an appointment. It does mean though the embroidery like this is challenging, I cant wait to get it fixed and enjoy things like this again!

I have been moving on with Pick a Petal, i have decided that hand sewing is not for me, i can do it and am quite good at it too but it just doesnt fill me up like machine sewing does. I figured out the best way to do this block by machine, Im pretty pleased with it! I have one other pinned and ready to sew up so will see how that goes.

Ahhhh my Stitching my way to happiness cross stitch! well Im not as far on with this as I would like to be because I had to start over, I had started too far off to the right and wouldnt have had enough space at the right. Lesson learned ... again!

The biggest news though it I now have a new sewing room!!!!! My previous sewing room was at the top of the house, not very practical now with Long Covid. I have been able to sew a bit more but was using a corner of our (ex) dining room which Mark was using as his WFH office. He suggested us switching and him moving to my old sewing room and me getting this room for my new sewing room. I was reluctant at first to be honest but it was absolutely the right thing to do, I now have a dedicated sewing room and an extra place to sit without using any stairs. Its a bit of a guddle in the picture below and I have slowly made some  progress in organising it so it now feels more like 'home' Its brilliant, I havent sewn on my big machine yet but will  do soon!

Thanks as ever to Archie the Wonderdog for hosting!

February furtle

 Well February got off to a nice start with an easy blocks for my siblings together group

Then I caught up with my phenology wheel, I was using patterns from Cutesy crafts but I wasn't too taken with Februarys one so I substituted a violet which is February birth flower

I had a couple of finishes! I finally got around to quilting the Floral Alphabet sampler

And i finished off the dragonfly embroidery 

Im trying not to but fabric i have way more than enough! But Odille Bailloue had a new line out and aren't these gorgeous 

Finally I have finished January on my pages read tracker. I started off using satin stitched but then moved to Rhodes stitch, Nikki (little light stitchery) had a tutorial for it. I've kept the original satin stitched to remind me but I do love the Rhodes stitch, it took some practice but im happy.  Also instead of outlining in red when I finish a book im using a colonial knot. I think they look a bit like boobs 🤣 but I do prefer it.

And thats it! As ever thank you Archie the Wonderdog for hosting