DONKTOBER + TPSBH = Fun!

This post is part of Donktober 2012.  For more information please see here.

Admittedly, when Laura first asked me to be a part of her Travellin' Pic Stitch Blog Hop my immediate response was "get lost"  "no thankyou, ma'am".  The thought of adding another string to my bow (I was an EPP virgin) right in the middle of Donktober and moving house was, putting in mildly, not something I was interested in.  At all.

Yet, somehow, here we are.  And, I begrudgingly concede, I am sooooo glad I was bullied into it caved and signed up.  Yep, I'm a complete and utter EPP convert and, against my strongest inklings to the contrary, really enjoyed the process.  I definitely see more of this method in my future.

Ok, I'd better take a step back, for those of you who have no idea what I am on about (Mum?) and explain what exactly "this method" is.   Basically, EPP stands for English Paper Piecing and refers to:

"a hand sewing technique, used to maximize accuracy when piecing 

complex angles together.  A paper shape is cut with the exact dimensions 

of the desired piece.  Fabric is then basted to the paper shape.  Adjacent 

units are then placed face to face and the seam is whip stitched 

together.  When a given piece is completely surrounded by all 

the adjacent shapes, the basting thread is cut, and the basting and 

the paper shape are removed."

~ from  Wikipedia

 So, um, clear as mud now?

There are lots of gorgeous patterns and designs out there to choose from but, for this, my very first time, I decided on Katy's gorgeous Spring Carnival tutorial.  I figured it would expose me to a few different shapes to see what I liked (hexies) and what I didn't (triangles).

Instead of the suggested 2" shapes, though, I re-jigged it to best fit the fabric I wanted to feature in the centre - a donkey, or course.  So, for my particular block, 1 3/4" squares, triangles and hexagons were used.

Now that I'd chosen a pattern and had the necessary donkey element sorted, it was time to start figuring out a colour palette.  The Travellin' Pic Stitch Blog Hop is all about using inspiration from travel photographs, so with our fiesta housewarming coming up and asses on the brain - I looked straight to Mexico.

I love, love, luuuuurve their brightly coloured houses and cheery streetscapes.  Wouldn't it be fun to live in a house like this..

Source

Or this...

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Or this...

Source

Somehow I can't see Mr C letting my paint the new house pink but, for this project, those colours work perfectly.

So what does the Spring Carnival block plus a donkey plus pink, aqua and white equal?  Well... how about this sweet little cushion / pillow.
 

El Burro at the Fair

The little ass in the centre is sooo sweet and makes me smile every time.  He is from Senor Burrito by Alexander Henry.  The aqua is from Summer House by Lily Ashbury and the pink stripes are by Me and My Sister.
 
I've actually pieced the white border too - for three reasons.  (1) it gave me more opportunity to practice my new mad skillz; (2) my sewing machine was packed at the time in preparation for the big move; and (3) I knew I wanted to quilt it by echoing the various shapes. 

As this whole project was basically new for me I thought I might as well go all out with the binding too - so I tried this technique from From the Blue Chair.  It wasn't nearly as scary as I thought it would be.

Thanks to Laura and Katy for hosting this fabulous blog hop.  I have really enjoyed the opportunity to challenge myself - and am stoked with the results.

Also, a big thanks to you for popping in.  Don't forget that tomorrow's host of the TPSBH is Sarah Fielke of The Last Piece.  I'm sure she has something extra special up her sleeve to show off.

E.

Here's the fine print...

This post is part of the Travellin' Pic Stitch Blog Hop.  From 1st October - 30th November we are hopping all over the world EPP-ing in some fantastic locations.

Check out the full list for October & November here and be sure to check out the other participants.

On 30th November it's over to you to link up for a chance to win these fabulous prizes!  Sponsored by Paperpieces.com, Fabricworm, Pink Castle Fabrics,  Marmalade Fabrics, the Fat Quarter Shop, WantItNeedItQuilt, and Aurifil.

Full details for competition entry can be found here.