Mug rugs - stepping back into my blog

This is a practice mug rug I made in preparation for the Quilting Gallery olympic mug rug swap. It was the first time I have done anything like this in many ways - first time for a swap, first time for a mug rug and first time for applique. Before I sent the mug rugs to my partner I had a little practice and this was my first attempt. I was actually quite pleased with it. I especially liked the backing fabric with the clouds which was from the lovely collection by Heather Moore for Cloud 9. My second attempts which went to my swap partner Crystal in Maine, USA are here

and here

I really enjoyed making the mug rugs - especially the hand stitched blanket stitches round the edges. It has opened my eyes to a whole new option for quilting and I have very much enjoyed learning more about this from Lynne Edwards blanket stitch quilt books. I'm planning making a cushion using this technique and one of her motifs - perhaps the cherries or even a butterfly if I feel brave!

For those of you who read this blog regularly you will notice I haven't been able to post for several weeks. Things are just beginning to get back to some semblance of normality round here and I have been determined to get back to my blogging. It took such an effort to get started that I really didn't want to give up. Not only have I not been able to blog, but I haven't felt much like sewing either - but I'm getting there. Sometimes when there is a lot of other stuff going on the urge to sew deserts me. When my children were younger and I was phenomenally busy with work and study and looking after people it would desert me for years at a time, only returning on holiday when I would pick up some cross stitch or some knitting. Now I am glad it has only  been gone for a matter of weeks. Does that happen to you? Sometimes when it has gone I wonder what would happen if it didn't return - but happily it has been there waiting for me every time so far.

I've signed up for the Easter mug rug challenge as a motivation to keep sewing in the short term even if it is something small - and I might even get back to that huge quilting task mentioned here and here soon.