Echino Pillow

The sun finally came out again today so while I had the chance, I took a few photos of the pillow I have made for my Mum . 

The main fabric is Echino "Chelsea Lion" aqua double gauze, along with some matching blue linen to make a fairly basic pillow as I could not bring myself to cut the fabric up any further.

I used a decorative stitch with some variegated yellow Gutermann thread to sew along the edge of the linen - I wish now that I had done a few more rows of stitching in the linen.

And of course Simba came to investgate what I was doing .......here he is giving the Echino Lion the evil eye:)



Linking to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory.
Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday - Zakka Style Pot Holder.

I made a couple of pot holders earlier this week using a Granny square block, as I was not sure if I would do the round ones that are part of the Zakka Style sew-along.

But, feeling overly confident after completing the square ones, I decided to have a go at the round ones. I used scraps from my Echo bags and sewed the strips down onto the Insul- bright in a QAYG method . I am ready to stitch the bias binding down on this one and I hope that it will lie flatter when I am done than it is now:( 

If I get a chance later this week, I may try to make another one using some lovely "A Stitch In Colour"  fabrics that Debbie very kindly sent me. If you haven't seen the pot holders that she made from these fabrics, please go and have a look here and also here - they are all so gorgeous!

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Kirsten.

Granny's pot holders

I have wanted to make the Granny Square block ever since I first saw them on Jolenes blog. And as I thought they would be great to use as a potholder.

I used a few Denyse Schmidt "Aunt Edna" fabrics to make the blocks, and used Traceys method of using setting Triangles for the corners - a lot less wastage, and no bias edges.

I had some Insul-bright from Spotlight and used this for the middle of the potholders - the secret is to place the shiny side down but it is still a bit slippery to sew with.

I just did straight line quilting and bound the potholders in matching pink and grey linen.

 They certainly brighten up my kitchen on such a dreary winters day here in Australia.

Linking to Sew Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations, Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory, Little Quilt Monday with Elizabeth at Pieceful Life and  to Tuesday at the Summer Table with Debbie at A Quilters Table (buttons in left sidebar).

Kirsten.

Tuesday at the Summer Table - Desserts

One of our favourite desserts in summer here in Australia is Pavlova, which is a sweet dessert with a lovely marshmallowy centre! 

My daughter is doing cooking at high school and she has made a few of these individual pavlovas now, but you can also make a larger one to cut up into serves. This is a recipe for a larger "Pav"  from Donna Hay.


Ingredients:
150ml eggwhite (approximately 4 eggs)

•  1 cup (220g) caster (superfine) sugar
•  2 tablespoons cornflour (cornstarch), sifted
•  2 teaspoons white vinegar
•  1 cup (250ml) single (pouring) cream
•  ½ cup passionfruit pulp (approximately 4 passionfruit)
•  250g strawberries, hulled and halved
• 
  

Method:
 Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F). Place the eggwhite in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, whisking well, until the mixture is stiff and glossy.

  Add the cornflour and vinegar and whisk until just combined. Shape the mixture into an 18cm round on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Reduce oven to 120°C (250°F) and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes. Turn the oven off and allow the pavlova to cool completely in the oven. Whisk the cream until soft peaks form. Spread over the pavlova, top with passionfruit and strawberries and serve immediately. Serves 8–10.

It is  really nice with kiwi fruit, strawberries and grated chocolate (or Cadbury "Flake")on top too. Gemma used raspberries, blueberries, passionfruit  and dusted with icing sugar on the individual pavlovas - and we seem to have misplaced that recipe, so if I find it I will add it in later:)

Linking to Tuesday at the Summer Table with Debbie at A Quilters Table.
Kirsten.

INXS Live in Lismore!

Last night my husband and I went to see an awesome Aussie band which some of you may have heard of........INXS!! They played a lot of their hit songs as well as a few new ones. 

Their new lead singer, an Irish guy named Ciaran Gribbin was really great too! I first saw INXS live back in 1985 when I was at University in Brisbane - they have been around for a while so there weren't many people aged under 40 in the crowd last night. 


(I am somewhere in the crowd here as I was in the third row from the front for the encore)


I found another video of one of the songs they played last night - a slower version of "Don't Change" one of my favourite songs by INXS.

The backup vocalists are "The McClymonts" - three sisters from a town about an hour south of here. I also bought a T-shirt and an autographed CD where their songs are sung by various performers - Ben Harper, Dan Sultan, and Rob Thomas to name a few.

 So I am going to listen to the CD this afternoon while I finish sewing up my "Granny square" pot holders. I am using some new Denyse Schmidt "Aunt Edna" fabrics, and have a piece of Insul-bright ready to use for them. 

I am using Traceys method of making the Granny squares with setting triangles as there is a lot less wastage and very little to trim.
Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday - Echino Pillow

This week, I am trying to learn how to use my new sewing machine, so I am making a very simple pillow for my mum using some Echino Lion fabric, paired with some matching royal blue linen.

I am using one of the decorative stitches with some yellow variegated Gutterman thread.

One thing I really love about this new Singer machine is that there is an automatic needle threader :)
Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Kirsten.

A mini by Anneleise @ mail from the Cheeky Monkey!

I was looking through some photos on flickr the other day, and found a lovely mini quilt that Anneliese (who blogs at "Mail from the Cheeky Monkey")  had made using the HST tutorial I wrote as part of Sarahs {sew} get started series. 

 She has made such a beautiful mini quilt from the HST's, which all line up perfectly.

photo from "Mail from the cheeky monkey" blog

It is so nice to see something so lovely that has been made from the tutorial - it made my day!
Kirsten.

Echo "Go Anywhere" bag

I had a bit of time today to finish off my "Go Anywhere" bag  from Annas great pattern.

I think this one was a lot easier then the 241 bag as the curves are a lot gentler to sew.

This is also a larger bag and I love the size of the side pockets - one side has a large open pocket....... 

The other side of the bag has another large pleated pocket divided into 3 which is perfect for carrying a phone and sunnies.

And there is a slip pocket on the inside.

I am entering this into the bags and accessories section in the Summer sewing contest at Ellison Lane quilts, along with this in the quilts section, and this in the homewares area.

Linking to Sew Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge creations and to Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story.
Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday

After cutting into the Echo Blooms fabric for the 241 bag last week, I realised that I would have enough fabric to also make a "Go Anywhere" bag which is another great pattern from Anna at Noodlehead.

So I have all of the pieces cut out and the pleats sewn - I did use a light interfacing although this is optional in the pattern.

And I also made all of the remaining sets of HST's for my Swoon blocks. I just need to trim these back to 3.5" now and them I am ready to sew the blocks together, as I have already made the geese units.

I have only made 3 of the 9 blocks so far and really need to finish them before I start on another quilt!

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Kirsten.

Tuesday at the {Summer} Table - Wombok Salad

Debbie is hosting a month long event for summery recipes and this week it is all about salads.

image source

This is a salad that we make quite often when we have a BBQ as the kids really like it too - and the recipe which can be found on the back of the packet of the Chang's fried noodles.

Oriental Fried Noodle Salad/ Wombok salad



½ -1 Chinese Cabbage/wombok, or ¼ savoy cabbage, or baby bok choy, or baby spinach 
6 Green Shallots - chopped 5mm length
100g Lightly roasted slivered Almonds or Pinenuts
1 pkt Chang’s Fried Noodles 100g (Original or Onion Flavoured)


Dressing:


¼ cup White Vinegar
1/4 cup Castor Sugar
1 tblsp Chang’s Soy Sauce
2 tsp Chang’s sesame oil (Optional)
½ cup Olive Oil


1. Chop chinese cabbage finely
2. Combine all dressing ingredients together and stir over low heat in a saucepan until sugar is dissolved.
3. Mix cabbage, green onion and nuts , then our dressing over the top 
4. Just before serving add noodles and toss through.


You could also add shredded cooked chicken, chopped capsicum (red pepper) or grated carrot.

Linking to Tuesday at the Summer table with Debbie at A Quilters Table.

Kirsten.

Echo 241 bag

This is another 241 tote bag that I finished this weekend. I really love the navy Echo Scattered Blooms fabric - it is the only print I have been able to find locally so I bought some with this bag in mind.

I paired it with a navy linen/cotton blend and another Echo print for the outside pockets, and used a square of the Blooms print for an inside pocket.

The lining was just a remnant piece but was similar to the Navy woven/cross hatch print in the Echo range so it was just right for the inside of the bag.

This is a belated birthday present for my sister-in-law - her favourite colour is blue so hope she likes it!

Linking to {Sew} Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations, and to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory.
Kirsten.

Happy birthday to the Queen!

And also to me:) My birthday is also in June and I often get to celebrate it on the long weekend that we have here in Australia for the Queens Birthday holiday. And this year my wonderful family bought me a new sewing machine! 

This is one of the new Singer 160 limited edition machines - I have owned another Singer for over 20 years now, and my mum had one that I learned to sew on as a teenager. And this one is computerized too. There is a great review of the machine here.

I also have one of the old vintage SInger treadle sewing machines that still works - my dad rescued it from the dump and restored it. There is some wonderful information on the history of the Singer machines here.

I inherited a sewing machine cabinet from my Grandmother but this machine is too wide to lower down into it so it will have to stay on top ready for stitching. So I will have to make a lovely new sewing machine cover to keep it safe from dust.

I also received some lovely roses and a couple of CD's to listen to whilst I stitch (yes -  I am a bit of a Gleek!)

And a very sweet text message from my darling daughter:

Kirsten.