Sweet Orchard

Well hello there!

Today is a pretty awesome day for me because I have been asked to be part of my lovely friend Sedef’s blog hop to promote her gorgeous new fabric line Sweet Orchard. I have known Sedef for quite a few years now and as we live only 10 minutes from each other we regularly meet up for coffee to discuss all things quilting. It is lovely to have someone so close who genuinely shares my love of fabric and decent coffee. Over the past 12 months Sedef’s page Down Grapevine Lane has sky rocketed and she has had some amazing business moments, I am proud to watch her grow and know just how hard she works on her business, she is a genuine success story in our handmade world.

Sweet Orchard is Sedef’s debut line and is produced by fabric house Riley Blake Designs. It is such a lovely mix of colour and pattern. From the sweet strawberries and fruity prints to the super versatile bias stripe I can see why it has already captured the hearts of quilters world wide and is destined to be a huge seller this year if the amazing response on social media is anything to go by. And don’t get me started on the cheater prints! I have never used one before and after this I have to say I am addicted.

I confess that in my down time I enjoy nothing more than trawling google images for quilty inspiration and have a rather large list of quilts I want to try. As soon as Sweet Orchard arrived I knew exactly the quilt I wanted to make, I have learnt from experience that when a fabric speaks it is best to listen. I had recently done an update of Hannah’s room adding in a new desk for drawing and a corner which I knew I wanted to be a relaxing place for reading or playing on her iPad. She doesn’t attend school full time for her health so her room needs to be a haven. Sweet Orchard was the perfect addition for her space with its gorgeous colours and patterns.

The quilt I made is called a half snowball quilt and I used a fantastic tutorial from Craft Buds. It was easy to put together and I love how it turned out. It is simple but still eye catching and showed off the prints perfectly. I had to make a few changes to the pattern method as I was using directional fabrics for the most part so it definitely wasnt as quick a make but it was so much fun seeing it come together.

I used the cheater prints for the two large cushions and they worked perfectly. It was great working within the different colours but still creating a cohesive look. Somewhere along the way too I decided to bunny things up, cant say for sure how that happened but I love the sweet touch and while I am definitely a novice when it comes to drawing with thread I am really happy with how it turned out. For the smaller cushion I was inspired by this tutorial by Jedi Craft Girl, and of course no piccolo room is complete without an apple pie cushion!

I did pretty simple quilting but dont be fooled – it took hours! I love the detail on the white squares though and will definitely play with this idea more in future.

I confess that I tried to get one of those proper laid out quilt photos but it appears Superman had other ideas! In fact my entire photo shoot was one big photo bomb by both him and Daisy. Hannah’s room is always a magnet for animals so I wasnt entirely surprised and luckily they both add a certain cute factor.

Today was Hannah’s day off school so after I had finished playing and taking basic photos I took her in there to watch what she did. She went straight to the corner with a book and looked so cosy and content.

One thing Hannah asked for in her room was a whiteboard and we decided to install it under her window so she could sit and draw. It has been the best addition and all kids will be getting one over the coming weeks. I love seeing different messages and drawings on there throughout the week.
And then of course Miss Daisy couldnt resist seeing what all the fuss was about.

First she happily settled in for some cuddles and a nap

But in true puppy style things quickly got out of hand.

I have to admit though they have the most amazing bond and I love just how vital she is to Hannah’s wellbeing. I cant remember life without her but I am confident we never laughed as much.

Nap time was certainly a pretty affair today.

If you have read this far congratulations! I have definitely talked your ear well and truly off but I hope you have enjoyed yourself, I know I did! Until next time I leave you with some more Daisy spam because seriously, days are so much brighter when they are filled with puppies.