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Gather Around the Christmas Tree
Twenty four bonus half-square triangles really are a gift. When I'd finished making my Christmas Market quilt last year, I had a delicious little stack of HSTs left over from trimming the market stall blocks and, given that there was a Christmas Tree at the centre of the quilt, I decided to make some classic basket blocks and turn them into a matching tree skirt. I'll be honest, that was twelve months ago and I planned to share the tree skirt when the pattern appeared in To

Nicola
Dec 6, 2025


Make Time for Christmas sewing...
If you like to keep your sewing seasonal - and festive - the Make Time quilt is 20% off this Thanksgiving weekend. I've reimagined our quilt in Christmas colours here - and it actually looks pretty much like my Christmas list! - using Tilda Solids in dove, red, dusty rose, pine, fern green and soft teal, with a dash of grey Tiny Stars and the luscious Carol print from Merry Little Christmas . Y ou can purchase the Make Time pattern bundle here. Make time to do what makes y

Nicola
Nov 27, 2025


From Sketch to Stitch (or one quilt leads to another)
I made a presentation to my local guild, the Shropshire Quilters , in September. They celebrated their Ruby Anniversary with an exhibition at the Shrewsbury Museum last summer and it was a treat to be asked to take some quilts along to share with my lovely friends there. My presentation theme was quilt design and I wanted to inspire my fellow quilters to design their own blocks. I took my Twelve Days of Christmas sampler along as an example of how a design can evolve over a

Nicola
Oct 29, 2025


Make Time British Sew-along: assembling the quilt
Next week is the final week in our Make Time British Sew-along. Forgive me for posting a few days early - we're off to the Lake District for a few days - but before I share our tips for assembling the quilt, let me remind you of our autumn sewing schedule: - 18th August - Make Time block with Jo Westfoot - explore foundation paper piecing. 25th August - Tulips, Clouds, Let's Chat, Get Snippy and Book Club blocks with Lou Orth - explore curved piecing, snowball corners

Nicola
Oct 15, 2025


Make Time British Sew-along: earning your stripes
Welcome to week seven of the Make Time British Sew-along. Before I show you a fun variation of the A Good Yarn block, let me remind you...

Nicola
Sep 28, 2025


Make Time British Sew-along: my favourite machine piecing techniques
Welcome to week six of the Make Time British Sew-along. Before I introduce you to my blocks, let me remind you of our autumn sewing...

Nicola
Sep 20, 2025


At Liberty
Something rather wonderful happened this summer: last year Liberty Fabrics saw my Honeysuckle quilt on the cover of Today’s Quilter ...

Nicola
Sep 5, 2025


From my Sketchbook: Harvest Home..
I have such a fun quilt to share with you today - which you can find in the new issue of Todays Quilter (number 131) - inspired by the...

Nicola
Aug 22, 2025


Adventures in London Town
Our youngest son lives in London now. I'm not entirely sure how he can suddenly be old enough to do grown up things like move away, but we're always thrilled to visit him there and love his visits home just as much. Which is just what he did last weekend, only I got to travel back with him and spend an exciting 24 hrs in London meeting someone special... ...my lovely Canadian friend Andrea. We 'met' on Instagram back in the day, when we were both doing other things - Andrea w

Nicola
Aug 16, 2025


Festival of Quilts 2025
Did you go to the Festival of Quilts this year? Having missed it last year I was looking forward to immersing myself in Europe's biggest...

Nicola
Aug 14, 2025


British Sew-a-Row 2025: choosing fabrics
In a busy world where our lives are full of work commitments, family responsibilities and the distractions of social media, we're...

Nicola
Aug 6, 2025


British Sew-a-Row 2025
After a year away, we're so thrilled to be sewing together again to bring you a glorious new Sew-Along quilt this autumn… In a busy world...

Nicola
Jul 30, 2025


Nutcracker Block of the Month: reservations are open!
Join me and my lovely friend Andrea from the Willow Cottage Quilt Company in front row seats as we wait with bated breath to raise the...

Nicola
Jul 15, 2025


Double Figures...
CakeStand Quilts celebrated its tenth birthday on June the 1st. Technically it's probably its eleventh, as it took me the best part of a...

Nicola
Jun 2, 2025


Quilting is my Cup of Tea
On the 1st of June I'll be celebrating the tenth anniversary of CakeStand Quilts and, appropriately enough, I'll be with my British...

Nicola
May 29, 2025


Colour Stories: summer...
I'm dipping into my favourite colouring set - Tilda Fabric's Creating Memories collection - for one last time. As I mentioned in previous...

Nicola
May 24, 2025


From my Sketchbook: Shepherd's Delight
Over the past ten years these posts have been my favourites to write. Some quilts have a more complicated back-story than others and this...

Nicola
May 10, 2025


Introducing the Nutcracker block of the month...
Every year my friend Andrea - from the Willow Cottage Quilt Co - joins me to create lovingly curated parcels for our warm and supportive...

Nicola
Apr 28, 2025


Spring Cottage BOM update...
With Easter just a week away we're halfway through our stay at Spring Cottage , so it's high time I shared what our lovely guests have...

Nicola
Apr 11, 2025


Conversion Tables
I love a pre-cut. Now if, one sentence in, I've already lost you and you're wondering what a pre-cut is, let me enlighten you: introduced...

Nicola
Apr 10, 2025


Spring Sewing: Blue Tit block
Last November I reworked my tutorial for a Holly Wreath cushion to add a seasonal touch to your home and, as Spring is just around the...

Nicola
Feb 25, 2025


Colour Stories: spring...
I've been playing with my favourite colouring set again - Tilda Fabric's Creating Memories collection - and as I mentioned in previous...

Nicola
Feb 24, 2025


From my Sketchbook: Swansong
EDIT: You can now buy this pattern as a PDF here or as a Paper Pattern here . Swim elegantly into spring with my new Today's Quilter project, Swansong . Much like the hen block from last spring's Count Your Chickens quilt, the swan first appeared in my Twelve Days of Christmas sampler and was a firm favourite to piece. In this project my swans, joined by some darling little cygnets, encircle a rippling centre of Lady of the Lake blocks. And my darling swans have made the

Nicola
Feb 10, 2025


Your Favourite Quilt Patterns
Believe it or not - and I'm having trouble, to be honest - CakeStand Quilts will be ten this summer. It's been so interesting to dip into...

Nicola
Jan 2, 2025
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