For a calendar quilt designer, some months have obvious themes; hearts in February, pumpkins in October, reindeer, Santa, Christmas puddings, angels, stockings and a whole host of other stuff for December. But May, for all its loveliness, is not one of those months so I have searched for inspiration over the past couple of weeks.
As we walked through the Sligo countryside, my kids stopped to clamber over an old farm gate. As the lambs gambolled inside the fields, my offspring gambolled outside the field. A particularly solid woolly sheep looked up and for a moment our eyes met. I’d like to think there was a shared moment of maternal kinship as our respective offspring frisked and frolicked! Of course, it’s possible she was just wondering if I intended to feed her or eat her! I was amused and wanted to capture the weary gaze of that staid sheep and her riotous lambs!
If you’re quietly thinking that the sheep and lambs look a little, well, blobby, it’s because their additional features will be quilted in. It will be a good test of how long my marking pen will last!
The Little One requested the bird’s eggs along the bottom. A few years ago we had a tame blackbird, called Tiger-Bob (!), who lived at the top of the garden. It would run down the garden, squawking with excitement when we came out the house. Of course we got in the habit of throwing it a few scraps. So when it came to bird’s eggs, I chose the blue/green of a blackbirds’ egg to remember our little pet.
With the warm, sunny May we’ve had in this part of the world, the blossom has been incredible so I couldn’t resist capturing a branch with its delicate blooms. I used a shiny viscose thread to applique on the blossoms as it gave the edges a lovely sheen.
June is up next, and I have plans already!
Sign up to my blog below to see next month’s block or check out last month’s block.
This is adorable! I love the Bird’s eggs and the sheep – perfect for May.
Thanks, Kathleen, I’m delighted you like the block!