Modern Meadow Quilt

I've had a collection of Modern meadow for quite a few months now.  I do love it.  I bought it because I loved them, not with a use in mind.  That's the nicest kinda fabric shopping don't you think?  Anyway it seems I'm not the only one who fancies it.  No.4 also thinks it is pretty and her thing.  Could I please have a quilt with this fabric she asked one day?  I really thought she was having me on as it's quite sophisticated fabric and not little girly at all.  She's only four after all.  Anyway I was thrilled to hear her say that and they have been labeled with her name since.

I've been searching for the perfect quilt design to use for her quilt.  And finally last night I found it - inside my own head!  Well actually it's pretty basic, just what I like, but with a twist.  You may remember that I was wanting to make a quilt out of doilies and traycloths?  Well this incorporates these with the collection of fabric as well.

So I got a cutting last night at 8.30.  Yep I cut every last piece of them and some linen/cotton as well.  I'm still a little shocked at the speed of cutting and the fact that I've actually cut through them!  Have I done the right thing?  Maybe squares are too yesterday?  Well if they are that's perfect because doilies are from the same era, right?  And old fashioned is what my little girl likes.  I do love that.  She and I delight in changing our dressing table mats, choosing which new one to have.

Are you seeing my vision?  Am I right in thinking it's going to be beautiful?  Or am I loosing the plot entirely? 

The whole quilt will be stitched together with larger squares of linen.  I will then sew the doilies and cloths over the top when the top is finished.  I'm thinking of handstitching some flowers and hearts onto some of the smaller linen squares for a nice handmade look.

And let's hope that they will NOT still be sitting in this container next year!!  I can be rather naughty like that sometimes.  I'm hoping that No.4 will be really bossy and nag at me to get moving on her quilt.

Now I must order some more of one fabric for the binding.  I'm thinking of using the circles one.  And now I really must run.  Have a super weekend everyone!!

Weekend At Our Place

It's rained non-stop here since yesterday afternoon.  Luckily it remembered to stop a wee while ago.  Now the girls are all out there having a fabulous time.  It's so muggy the windows are fogging up.  There are long worms in the puddles too - yuck!

Mr Red Gingham went out to try and save his bark garden from floating away.  He gave up.  The levels are all uneven in the wrong places and the drain refuses to work.  It was a good laugh watching him try though!

It's been a busy weekend on the sewing front.  Making presents and finishing up projects.  This is one that I thought would be a big pain to make.  I can't believe how quick and easy it is.  I do love yoyos and these ones look sweet in a heart shape.  It's a present for the girls Godmother who shares a birthday with our No.2.

My baby girl quilt has had to come to a stand still.  It appears that the suppliers are not supplying some stock anymore to Spotlight due to the recession.  I think the manufacturing company may have gone under.  So sad.  It certainly pays to make sure you have everything you need to complete a quilt before starting!!  I'm sure I'll be able to get some more white cotton from a quilting shop, at twice the price.

I remembered I still hadn't shown you my new recipe book cover.  Remember I bought this neat retro fabric from a quilting show a while back?  I do love my revamped book.  I even made new dividers for it.

The kits are nearly ready for the New Beginnings project.  I spent a good while collecting all the bits for it.  Loving the colours.  Hope the new owners do too.  I'm working on the scissor holders at the moment.  I'm not enjoying them at all.  They are making me cross!  The needle books are finished and looking very sweet, forgot to photograph them sorry.

No.2 is trying desperately to get me more organised this year.  We have meal planners, shopping lists, and now a birthday card book.  You will be please to know that I did send my Christmas cards out last week.  We'll try for an earlier time this Christmas.

And here is a sneaky peek at our new ensuite.  The tiles just went down and they are looking very flash.  Terrible photo sorry, but it's quite dark today.  The wind is getting strong too which is scary.

Later today we are off to a 4th birthday party.  I'll show you the present next week as her mum is rather sneaky at times!!  I ended up making the present as I lost the one I bought before Christmas!  I told you I need to be more organised.  Really I'm very good at hiding things.  I think I need a box to put presents in that's easy to get to.

And that's about it from me.  My auction is now up to $190 which is fabulous.  There is still time to donate.  The auctions finish on Monday night our time.  So for you lovelies on the other side of the world that would be Monday morning I think.  We are ahead of you so I think that makes sense? 

I know that lots of you aren't connected to the Queensland Floods and won't participate, and that's just fine.  Australia and New Zealand are sister countries and we help each other out when necessary.  They aren't a poor country but lots of people didn't have flood insurance so need an enormous amount of help.  I just can't imagine having waters up to our roof. 

What's Happening Here?

Well my auction is going very nicely thank you.  It's now up to $160 $170 which is fan flippin' tastic!  A huge thank you to all my lovely bidders so far.  You are wonderful!!

Pop over here if you fancy my wall hanging and place a bid.  You have to be in to win!  The auctions are all doing very nicely and I heard today that so far they are up to $45,000 and we are only up to day 2!!!  Isn't that fabulous?!  If you click here you will be sent to the full list of auctions.  Boy there are some wonderful items there.  Please be generous and remember all the money is going to be used to help the flood affected Queenslanders.

I've made the four pincushions for the Sewing Caddies.  They were fun and are now attached to the caddies.  My dear Gran gave me $100 to use to buy the necessary bits and pieces for the kits.  Isn't she a sweetie?  I'll pop over to Spotlight with my little list tomorrow I think.  I'll have four of those... four of these... oh won't it be fun!

I bought some very lovely fatties earlier in the week.  Let me just go and see what the range is called...  Modernmeadow by Joel Dewberry.  They go beautifully with linen so my head is spinning with ideas.  I also know that sewing with linen can be messy.  Still if I use a simple design the fabric shouldn't fall apart too much.  I hope!  Perhaps some old linen cloths too?  With pretty edging?

I had a couple in my hand and then thought, what the heck, and decided to just get the whole jolly package.  They just go together so nicely and I can see such a pretty quilt in them.

Oh here's another wee quilt I'm working on.  Nothing like a few things on the go aye?  It's actually been stitched together since taking this photo and looking rather lovely.  I think I need to make another row on the bottom unfortunately.  Don't you hate that when you think you're done? 

This is just a baby sized quilt.  I'm just trying out new techniques and having a bit of fun.  No I'm not having another baby!  Although we did enjoy teasing the girls a bit!

Our ensuite floor got a bandage or two yesterday.  Tomorrow, super duper early, the man is coming back to lay the tiles!!!  Oh my, that's going to be so exciting!  They are so lovely too.  Nice and natural looking in an off-white colour.  Gosh I hope I'm not still in bed when he arrives! 

My mind is excited about the thought of playing with different techniques.  I've seen this quilted hanging in the Australian Quilters Companion magazine and I'm keen to give it a go.  You have to use water soluble paper.  Never heard of it before. 

And just in case you are wondering how the house is holding together with all this crafting going on...

well I think this says it all really.  I cracked up when I saw Miss Barbie folding the washing, but then Miss Barbie 2 arrived to do the ironing!  Fantastic! 

These chicks aren't just beautiful, they're handy too.  I wonder if you look that glamorous when you do housework?

Fancy a Cuppa?

What a wonderful weekend we've just had.  Saturday was the annual village Santa Parade which was full of all the usual delights.  Bands playing, kids dancing, floats and of course it ended with Santa himself.  The girls thought it was really fantastic, I just don't see what they see, clearly.  Perhaps it's age!  Anyway speaking of age, I've just turned 29... well you can add ten years to that if you really have to, but my mind is still at 29 thank you! 

Fancy a cuppa from my fancy new teapot ladies?  Isn't she a beauty?  Oh yes that's a new CK cup too.  I've can even offer you a slice of birthday cake, it's calorie free of course for you ladies who were about to say no!   Seriously, what birthday cake isn't?!!  And because I'm so nice I'm going to let you eat my last mint chocolate - they are the best in the box.

After you've eaten we'll have a gander through my new craft books.  Gosh they are wonderful, full of lovely ideas.  I wonder what you'll want to make?

My thank you letters are going to look grand if I can part with these little CK treasures.  All the way from the UK just for me!  I adore the little envelopes and stickers.

And how about we plan a new quilt with all my new fatties?  I would think it would be very pretty in the lovely Sugar Flower range.  I must cut some squares out first so I don't get too excited and use it all up.  The others were especially chosen by my little girls.  Didn't they do well?

Gosh I do enjoy my birthdays.  Hubby excels himself every year.  I get so many thoughtful gifts, way more than I'd ever choose for myself.  I felt so spoilt all day Sunday, even though my birthday wasn't really until Monday, but who wants a regular work/school day on their birthday?  Hardly any time for pampering with the family out most of the day.  My parents put on a very lovely dinner for me with all the local family present.  Very nice with my favourite meal served - roast lamb!  Thank you dearest mother for my lovely pink peonys too - they are opening out beautifully.

I've managed to get all the girls to write their Santa letters already.  I find it a good thing to get out of the way early and it's great that Santa knows what they want in plenty of time so he can put the appropriate gifts aside.  We don't want the girls missing out now do we?  The littlest one wrote hers with my help yesterday.  She not into writing but it turned out alright in the end.  It was a little hairy for a while!  And the eraser she's asking for is the pricey sum of $2.50.  What else does a fourth girl need? 

Well I must be off now.  Got to do the kindy thing soon and then do a bit of shopping for my cookie exchange on Thursday.  Exciting times are ahead!  I'll be back soon with some new makes.

Charming I'm Sure

What a busy few days I've had.  It began with a very lovely outing on Friday to a quilt show over the harbour bridge.  I took my mother with me and No.4 was invited as well.  The other three went off to school feeling rather left out.  Well actually No.3 would rather have had it that way, she's not the going out sort of girl. 

Now I must tell you that I met my second ever Bloggy friend at the show.  We had planned to meet and managed to eventually.  What a lovely lady Lisa from Lydias Treasures is, and I still have dreams of the very lovely bag she was carrying.  Yes she had made it, from fabric she had won no less.  It was so nice to meet up with you Lisa, we must do it again sometime.

Now I happened across a rather lovely Moda Bliss charm pack on our outing and made the appropriate purchase.  I'm quite pleased with it and have used quite a few charmettes already.  Might just have to get another pack or two! As you do!!

No.3 had been hinting rather bluntly lately about the lack of a sewing bag.  She has a perfectly lovely basket, but as her big sisters have a bag for their sewing kit she felt left out.  Well, since she loved the charmettes as much as I, I let her pinch nine of them, her own choice too I might add!  There was only one I would not allow her to use. 

And every new sewing bag needs a new matching pincushion does it not??  Again she chose all the bits for it.  Quite nicely chosen too I think.  Isn't this charmette just perfect for a circular pincushion?  I love it!

Here's the leaflet of the show we attended...

Not sure about the retro theme.  Didn't really notice anything much suiting that description, BUT I did happen to purchase the most fab bit of retro fabric that I've completely forgotten to photograph.  Shock horror!  I will show you another time though, it's worth it. 

Now what do you think of these next quilts?  I'll just leave you to look at them for a minute then I'll be right back to continue our session.

Lovely weren't they?  The truck one was my mother's and my favourite quilt so we voted for it.  No idea who made any of them.  Very nice all the same.  And here is a selection of fatties I purchased.  There were three others that were gifted upon the girls as they came home from school.  Yes I did let them have first pick!  Gosh sometimes I am sooo nice. 

And this morning I was going for the title 'Housewife of the Year.  I'm quite sure they will be gifts and ribbons bestowed upon me as the family return home.  Yes the whole lounge is sparkling clean and my sewing corner is looking proud.  I've added my new fabric storage containers and ribbon boxes to the arrangement and am feeling rather pleased with myself. 

And if you have a few spare mins or even hours, please have a seat in my sewing corner and we'll have a natter about upcoming projects.  I do love some new ideas and I have a few to share too if you have the time.  Hexie quilt made by my Gran years ago.  Clearly she has much more patience than I.

Until next time, have a happy time.  I'll be back with some lovely Christmas ideas next time.  Bye!!

Handmade Christmas Challenge 1

I've been wanting to design and make something sweet and simple for a little while now.  I was hoping that this bunny might be something I could produce lots of to sell.  But I just don't think I'm cut out for mass production. 

Greta doesn't think that she wants too many sisters either.  She likes special attention, and you just don't get that with having to share with lots of other little bunnies do you?

Poppy quite agrees.  Although having one special sister to play with is very lovely indeed.  And they are the best of friends too.

A big bonus is that they are the same size, so they can swap dresses if they want to.  And dressing up is something they both like to do.

They just can't believe that they used to be a pretty pile of fabric like this.  Gosh isn't life amazing?!

Well... maybe a few more friends might be fun.  We'll see.  Pop on over to KnickyKnacks for more Christmas Inspiration if you fancy.

To Me...

Perfection is...

No.3's brand new shoes

My Great Grandmothers table cloth

A stack of new tea towels

A little project in the making

The sweetest little girl's dress ever

Just having my daily fix of red gingham!