August has been a busy month, and even though we have been in another heat wave I am still in Christmas mode. I was looking through my New York Beauty designs and was inspired to make another Christmas Tree Skirt. The Ashness tree skirt is named after Ashness bridge which can be found near to Keswick. It is one of the most photographed and distinctive bridges in the Lake District.

Commission an immediate public inquiry into how to ensure a responsible press given its contribution to Dr Arday’s tragic death.

Commission an immediate public inquiry into how to ensure a responsible press given its contribution to Dr Arday’s tragic death.

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It's never too early to start thinking of Christmas projects. I must be the worst though, as I start with good intentions but am still frantically finishing gifts two weeks before. With this in mind I have chosen the Griseldale Tree skirt and Table Centre digital pattern as August Pattern of the Month. This foundation piecing pattern makes a "mini Tree skirt and table centre approximately 30" across and will be available for the month of August with a 20% discount from my Etsy shop…

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Summer is definitely here and we are thinking of holidays and days out, and what could be better than a versatile tote bag, perfect for the beach or poolside. This months pattern of the month is the kaleidoscope Buttermere tote bag patten. A kaleidoscope foundation piecing pattern which would make dramatic quilts and throws, not just bags. The first picture and the last in the above galleryare the same pattern, but one is landscape and the other portrait.

What ever the time of year, and what ever the occasion, table runners add a touch of colour to a room. The pattern of the month for June is the Newlands Table runner. It features three sections which are divided by accent borders and sashing. An accent border ( also called a flange ) divides a section of a quilt but doesn't add to the size of the quilt like a border, It is a useful technique to stop fabric pattern bleed.

A few years ago I led a workshop about Manx patchwork. This traditional form of log cabin patchwork has no wadding/batting and relies on folded strips of fabric to produce the warmth. As a quilt it is incredibly heavy and uses a huge amount of fabric compared to traditional patchwork. Above are some of the blocks produced on the day school by Sally, Liz and Sarah.

This month I have been reworking and making more appliqué patterns, so it is appropriate to choose some of them for the pattern of the month. The appliqué outlines are numbered to show the order the pieces are placed. I have included instructions for bonded appliqué, although they are suitable for traditional needle turned appliqué too. Bonded appliqué is a form of raw edged appliqué using a fusible glue film which has a paper backing.

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Whenever we go on a short trip we seem to find examples of quilting. At the beginning of March we spent a few days touring Dumfries and Galloway. We spent a day in the lovely artist town of Kirkcudbright where we met Joshua Miles, a wonderful printmaker, who took time to share his process with us. Below is a photo of "Twinkly Sea" A limited edition linocut print, This image perfectly captured the coastline of the trip for us.

April Pattern or should I say Patterns of the month are the popular Twisting Bear and Tropical Bear blocks. I designed these two blocks for a block swap challenge during covid. I gave seven of my patchwork friends a challenge during the lockdown period. We each had to design a new block by merging the Bears Paw block with a different traditional block.

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When I designed the Grasmere quilt I was influenced by those lovely tiles you may still see in Victorian houses. The hall is an undervalued area of our homes, a passage into the main part of the house. By adding wonderful tiled floors it became a space worthy of beauty and a welcome to the home. These lovely examples of the pattern came from the first Grasmere Quilt workshop way back in 2016, ( L to R Cherry, Gill and Judith).

Spring is certainly on its way by the number of daffodils I am seeing whenever we go for a walk. Some are the very tiny miniature daffodils and some much taller, but they all have that beautiful golden glint that you spy from the corner of your eye. To celebrate the arrival of Spring in March the daffodil placemat pattern will be on sale for the whole month with 20% off starting on 1st March.

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One of the last lessons I gave before stopping in person teaching was about illusion blocks and patterns. This included patterns such as Storm at Sea, Bargello, Tumbling Blocks and Log Cabin. All can give wonderful illusions of depth, movement and curves even though they are all straight line blocks. I experimented with producing an illusion quilt from a basic four patch block.

The Newlands Valley lies between the villages of Braithwaite and Buttermere. The narrow pass is one of my favourite road trips especially in the between season, summer to autumn when the hills are turning from the purple bilberries to the orange of the autumn bracken. I remember many happy walks up the hillsides picking bilberries as a family, (and then bilberry charlotte for pudding).

I have been busy continuing to update my patterns, lots of computer work and not enough studio time, but I hope to spend some time in the studio next week. ( We are forecast a week of rain so I will have no excuse). I have updated the Ullswater Quilt pattern in colour and it is the second kaleidoscope pattern to be published this year.

Last week I received one of my favourite types of email. Sally got in touch with pictures of quilts she has made with my patterns or from my workshops. She took part in the Ambleside quilt online workshop a few years ago and had since been continuing to quilt through her local U3A quilting group. I'm sure you will agree that her finished quilt is stunning.

I have now stopped in person teaching due to losing my hearing. This has given me time to look back at unpublished designs and update them, ready to be shared on my Etsy shop and here. I am excited to announce that my Grange quilt pattern is now available. It is one of my versatile kaleidoscope blocks which has been updated in colour for 2026.

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