Fabriholics Anonymous

Hi Guys,

I have decided to join the challenge set by Jess and join Fabriholics Anonymous.

 
I have to admit I laughed when this challenge first came up….there is no way I could go 6 months and not buy fabric, not even a fat quarter! And I said good luck to everyone while thinking no way can it be done! But there are exceptions which just might save me and there is good motivation too.

Here is my motivation – we are planning a BIG road trip in October (10 months from now) to Melbourne and possibly to Adelaide and lots of places in between. We need to have the bus turned into a motorhome by then and that doesn’t happen on the cheap. It won’t be the full conversion but enough for us to be comfortable and functional.

My reward might be a little splurge at Amitie and other recommended shops on our route! Yay!

So here is how it works (mostly copied from Jess’ blog)

GOALS:

- To use the Stash I already have!
- Finish UFOs without distraction by shifting to other new beautiful fabric.
- Stop the insanity of constantly buying the latest and greatest fabric.
- Save the $$ I spend on stashing.
- Destash the fabrics that I realize I am never going to use.

FABRIC FAST RULES:

1) No fabric purchases for 6 months beginning January 1, 2014. 

2) At 6 months re-evaluate status and decide whether to keep going for full year.  Evaluation July 1, 2014.

3) Create a UFO list and complete them!

4) Exceptions

• Backing: purchasing a backing to finish a quilt top is permissible.  However, attempting to use fabric in your possession for a backing is preferable.
• Books and Magazine purchases are allowed as they are not fabric.  Notions acceptable too.
• Swap/Queen Bee Fabric: if in a swap/bee you are permitted to by fabric to execute bee duties, but you may not join a swap/bee simply for the sake of being able to buy fabric!
• Quilts for Publication: if you are making a quilt for a publication and need certain fabric to execute it correctly then that is a major exception - who can blame you?

I changed swap fabric to include Bee fabric. I am more likely to need to buy fabric for a bee than a swap!

And I am going to say if I need fabric to finish a WIP I will make an exception. I know I will need to buy more fabric for the borders on the Midnight at the Oasis quilt for example.

I think that just about covers it. I will do a post in the next week of the WIPs and UFOs that I have piled up!

Bye for now,
Jess :)

Down Under Doll Quilt Swap

Hi everyone,

I can’t believe how long it has been since I blogged…a few weeks! They have been very busy weeks, the end of the school year and kindy, sob sob. My boys are growing up. So we are now in school holidays for the next 6 weeks and I don’t really expect to get too much sewing done but a little bit would be nice.

Anyway, I forgot to show you the quilts that I sent and received from the DUDQS. This is the quilt I received from Merran.

I love it! And the little basket with bikes on it is awesome! Not to mention the little fox panel that Cat & Vee print – too cute!

This is the mini that I made for Anorina.

 
The appliqued centre is a block from the Aunt Millie’s Garden pattern by Piece O’ Cake Designs. I really want to make the whole quilt one day!

My attempt at McTavishing…I am still learning but I am pretty happy with how it turned out.

I also knew that Anorina loved owls so I made her a pouch too.

So I’m not sure how vocal I’ll be here for the next couple of months with the holidays and new school year but we shall see…I will be posting on Instagram though if you care to follow me over there!

By for now, Jess 

A Needlebook Swap

(I always start my blog posts as if I am writing a letter…I even tend to do this with text messages. Is this old fashioned? I notice most of the blogs I follow just start writing almost as if the conversation never ended. So, what’s the go? Do I say hello or just get into it?)

That’s enough thinking aloud for one post…I participated in a Needlebook swap, organised by Samelia’s Mum over on facebook. I thought it would be a fun little project. And I loved thinking about what I could make and then doing it!

This is what I made for my partner. I could not resist using the Mama Said Sew range by Sweetwater.

My partner said she liked blue so I added a hint in the inside.

And the back. I put the closure on the back, a little piece of velcro because I didn’t want to detract from the hexi flower on the front. I was inspired by this needlebook but I didn’t follow a tute I just made it up as I went.

And this is the cute little needlebook I received -

I especially love the Friends plaque! It is on the shelf above my sewing machine!

Now I need to finish my mini for the Down Under Doll Quilt Swap (DUDQS) and post by the end of this week. I have already received mine (and I love it) but I will wait and do a full post once my partner gets hers!

By for now,
Jess :)

For the Boys blog hop

Hi guys,

I hope I am not late to the party! Some family stuff came up which delayed my post but here I am!

So this blog hop is especially for the boys – things that we make for the boys and men in our lives! Hosted by Mdm Samm and our cheerleader is Amy.

If you are new to my blog please have a look around. Feel free to follow me on Bloglovin, I am also on Facebook and Instagram. I am always posting photos on Instagram so you will see what I am up too over there way before I blog about it! Links for those are on the side bar.

Now, I had a dilemma this week because the project I was going to share is going to be published so I can’t show anymore pictures….and in all honesty I haven’t finished it yet either. But I will give you a sneak peek -

So What did I make for this blog hop? I thought for ages and came up with something that I know my youngest will need when he starts school next year and it will last him years. My oldest is still using his after 3 years!

It is a humble book bag. In our school these are used for homework, home readers and can also be used as library bags.

I found this cool shark drill in my stash so decided to use it. It is also good if the bag stands out from the crowd so it is easy to see and be grabbed out of the box quickly.

For the lining I used some of my sister in laws dyed fabric. I used velcro for the closure and just put a very simple handle on.

    
I hope my post hasn’t sounded rushed! I was typing as fast as I could go!

Be sure to check out the other participants for today -

November 13^th
Dachsies with Moxie
Patchouli Moon Studio
It Seams to Be Sew....
Scrappy n Happy – Here I am!
Loves to Quilt
Michelle's Romantic Tangle
Factotum of Arts
Jackie's Art Quilts
Living with purpose

Bye for now,
Jess :)

Sewjo in overdrive!

Hi all,

I don’t know where to start! After a couple of weeks of working everyday I have really enjoyed being at home more and sewing every spare second.

I started with this -

It is from Heather Bailey’s Fresh Picked pattern of fruit pincushions. I was thinking it would be a cool teacher appreciation present but the boys loved it so much that it didn’t make it to school.

I have been side tracked too! And this quilt is really  addictive, I just want to work on it non stop!

This is the centre of the Midnight at the Oasis quilt. A pattern by Jen Kingwell. I am using the Quiltmania pattern but you can also buy the pattern on its own.

So, I thought I had better do a to do list so I don’t get too side tracked.

The first thing on the list is made and ready to be posted. I will do a full reveal when they have been swapped!

I am working on the mini quilt now. I am doing lots of needle turn appliqué for this so I hope my partner loves it…she actually hasn’t been commenting on my sneak peeks so I am a little worried.  There are pictures on Instagram and flickr.

Blakes quilt – AKA the star burst quilt is coming along. I am ready to baste it and start quilting, just don’t have the energy today for all that kneeling and pinning. I was going to share this quilt for my post in the Boys Blog Hop but I can’t do that now so I am quickly coming up with something else and I hope to do a tutorial too. I will be using that shark fabric in the background of the above picture.

Here is a list of the participants in the blog hop - 

November 6^th
Vrooman's Quilts
Sew Many Yarns
Young Texan Mama
Baa’s Amazing Adventures!
Little Mushroomcap
Threading My Way
Sarah Scholz and Chasing Unicorns
Quilt Doodle Designs

November 7^th
Amy's Crafty Shenanigans
Ridge Top Quilts
Creatin' in the Sticks
Elizabeth Coughlin Designs
Meadowbrook
Malinis Quilts
Just Let Me Quilt
Kris Loves Fabric

November 8^th
Debby Kratovil Quilts
Made By Me in Red
Freemotion by the River
Val's Quilting Studio
Tomorrow's Treasures Today
The Stitchin’ Post
The Nosy Pepper
The Reluctant Quilter
Quilting, Losing & Tea

November 11^th
Jane's Quilting
Pieces By Polly
how Art you
Selina Quilts
Upcycled Fabric
BQuiltin Studio
In The Boon Docks
Gemini Stitches
Secretly Stitching

November 12^th
Pig Tales and Quilts
CeLynn's Sunflower Patch
rainbows.bunnies.cupcakes
Devoted Quilter
Desertsky Quilting
Sew Fresh Quilts
Red Letter Quilts
Craft Nurse Quilt
Miss Priss Quilts

November 13^th
Dachsies with Moxie
Patchouli Moon Studio
It Seams to Be Sew....
Scrappy n Happy – Here I am!
Loves to Quilt
Michelle's Romantic Tangle
Factotum of Arts
Jackie's Art Quilts
Living with purpose

November 14^th
I like to QuiltBlog
Marjorie's Busy Corner
My Fabric Relish
Feathered Nest Studios
Moose Stash Quilting
QuiltnQueen
Grandmama's Stories
Our Busy Little Bunch
Words and Stitches

November 15^th
Everyone Deserves a Quilt
From This to That
Monkey Makes Three
Just Quilt It
Life, Quilts and a Cat too
Thimblemouse and Spouse
More Stars in Comanche
Sew Incredibly Crazy
Sew We Quilt

That is quite a list and I already follow a few on there so it will be great to see what everyone comes up with!

I am off to have a CT scan on my chest this afternoon, my cough is still hanging around so the Dr is trying to figure out why I and the antibiotics can’t kick this infections butt!

Bye for now and happy sewing!
Jess :)

Blocks galore!

Hi all,

I have been busy catching up on bee blocks. I had September and October to do and now I am up to date!

Block 1 for September

Block 2 for September. These are both 16” blocks so nice and big!

The blocks for October.

I am really enjoying this bee, it is the Ausmod Bee. Every month is different – I wonder what next month holds!

And I have some more Afternoon Delight blocks to share.

    
Now I have a couple of swap projects to work on as well as the star burst quilt to finish!

Bye for now, Jess :)

Celebrating 13 years!

Hi guys,

I have had the most wonderful weekend! I wasn’t sure if it was going to happen with me still on antibiotics and my littlest fella getting tonsillitis. But we rolled with it and left the boys with my parents for 2 nights while hubs and I hit the Sunshine Coast for our anniversary.

There are two things that I love to do when I go to the Sunny Coast….

If I am going anywhere near Forest Glen I have to stop in and see Penny at The Patchwork Angel. I love this store! They stock Tula Pink – need I say more!

The other must do is the Eumundi Markets. Which I didn’t take any photos of but it was lovely to wonder around without kids dragging me here and there. I got some fantastic smelling Lavender massage oil to try on the boys at bedtime to see if it helps them sleep. And we discovered an aussie artist, Michelle Pike, her work is really fun and so Australian! We only bought a puzzle this time but I am thinking about buying her calendar for next year…if only we could afford one of her canvases!

The unit we stayed in was across the road from the beach and had fabulous views.

We could walk to restaurants for dinner, which was so great!

The first night we had Indian food at Hathi Restaurant which was right next door. We both chose Chicken Tikka Masala except different heat strengths, I think next time we will get different curries so we can mix and match a bit more.

The second night we had pizza at Capone’s Pizza and Pasta, it was delish!

When we got home yesterday I couldn’t resist playing matchmaker with some of my new fabric -

This is what I am thinking for my Midnight at the Oasis quilt which I hope to start soon!

And since today was our actual anniversary we took the boys out for dinner to a local restaurant The Roadhouse Grill which was great too. Fantastic atmosphere and the food was beautiful!  

So now 13 years has passed since we said our vows…I wonder what the next 13 will hold? I hope for good things!

Bye for now, Jess

Q4 Finish Along Goals

Hi guys,

The first few things I would like to finish are carry-overs from last quarter…

My American Beauty quilt, which actually stands a good chance of being finished this time. She is in Jane’s hands now waiting to be quilted.

This convergence mini quilt needs the quilting finished.

And this one needs some quilting love too.
   
A new one to the list this time – I call this the Star Burst quilt, it is for my youngest son. I hope to have this finished to reveal it for the “For the boys” blog hop in November.

I guess the other things I want to finish this quarter don’t qualify to be entered in the FAL because technically they haven’t been started yet. A mini quilt for the Down Under Doll Quilt Swap, a lot of thinking is happening but no fabric has been cut yet. Some tops for summer, patterns and fabrics have been selected but not cut into. I guess I will be making teacher presents for the end of the school year too but I only just thought of that!

Linking to

Bye for now, Jess 

Finish Along Q3 Wrap Up

Hi all,

It is the time to look back over the last 3 months and see what I finished…I had 8 things on my list, which in reflection was pretty ambitious. I finished 3 things, better than nothing though.

First up was the Ipad cover, which was needed urgently at the time and ironically doesn’t get used now since we bought a survivor case for the Ipad.

Next was the skirt. I wear this a lot and I really would like to make another one soon!

And finally, there is the mini quilt for the scrap quilt challenge. Which had a deadline so there was a need to finish it. I am noticing that I finish things that have a use or a deadline. Maybe I should create deadlines for all my projects LOL.

I also started and finished things that weren’t on my list – a pair of hot pads, 3 pouches and a pincushion.

BTW, thanks to everyone who sent their well wishes I am feeling much better. I still have a bit of a cough but I am hoping it doesn’t get worse again.

Bye for now, Jess :)

A starburst quilt in the making

Hi all,

I have been working on a quilt for my youngest little fella. I wanted to use a fat quarter pack of Cruiser Blvd by Riley Blake that I bought a while ago as the main fabrics and I designed a quilt on EQ7 that I hope will be okay for fat quarters.

These photos were taken with my phone and you have probably already seen them if you follow me on Instagram. So this is the fabrics and a draft of the quilt, although I have changed the quilt slightly since this photo was taken.

This is the first block I made. I have made a couple more and I love the way it is looking so far!

But production has come to a grinding halt because I am sick :( Tonight is the first time I have felt some what normal for a few days. To cut a long story short, I have been fighting with a bacterial infection in my upper respiratory tract for a couple of months now, 3 lots of different antibiotics, lots of tests and x-rays later it is still there. So early Friday morning, 2am early, I end up with the worst headache of my life and end up in emergency. They do a CT scan and threaten to do a lumbar puncture but the headache starts going with the good painkillers they gave me so I got to avoid that last painful procedure. I am thinking the headache might have been from the prednisone the GP put me on but I have no proof, the Dr at the hospital told me to stop taking it and gave me different antibiotics to take. I am slowly feeling better but seem to have a bit of a cold now.

Life….what can you do but go for a ride!

One good thing out of it all – the boys got to have a sleep over with their grandparents and I got to get a good nights sleep. Yay!

One bad thing to come out of it – I missed out on seeing the 1700–1945 quilt exhibit at QAGOMA in Brisbane. It finished today. That is what I get for leaving it to the last minute.

Hope you are well!
Til we meet again, Jess

This didn’t happen over night!

Hi all,

This year has been a crazy year, in February my oldest son was diagnosed with Asperger’s. His diagnosis took about 6 months from the time his grade 1 teacher let us know something might be wrong, he had diagnostic and IQ tests at school before he was referred to a pead for the diagnosis.

In June our youngest son was also diagnosed with Asperger’s. And my husband who sees a psych for depression has been told that he more than likely has Asperger’s too.

I am just telling you this to explain why things have slowed down on the creative front. The diagnosis doesn’t change who your child is, they are still the same, it gives us options for therapies and school programs. It also makes life busier!

However, I do have two finishes to share today! These have been months in the making….there are weeks when the sewing machine doesn’t even get looked at!

This is my mini for Christine’s Scrap Challenge. It will be auctioned in early October, I will let you know the details when I have them. This was started in July and it has about 550 pieces, a lot for a quilt that is only 25” square.

  
I asked for quilting ideas on Instagram and Bree suggested diagonal cross hatching. I love the texture it gives the quilt!

The quilting on the back looks great too, almost a double sided quilt!

And my other finish actually never touched the sewing machine….just needle, thread and the hot glue gun!

This is a pincushion. I used a free stitchery from Red Brolly and the timber bowl was turned by my uncle.

 
I don’t know if I want to put pins in it, it is too pretty.

 
I hope I haven’t overloaded anyone with information, it actually felt good typing it and I considered deleting it all but I am putting it there because the more I talk about it the more I find others in similar situations and it is good for us all to know that we are not alone!

Til next time,
Jess :)

Sweet Pouch Swap

Hi all,

Round 2 of the Sew Delicious Sweet Pouch Swap, now that’s a mouthful! LOL has just wrapped up. My partner has received her pouch and I have mine so now I can show some pictures.

This is the one I made for Laurel.

I used Noodlehead’s wide open pouch pattern, the medium size for this one! Need I say again how much I love this pattern? And it lends itself perfectly to a little embellishment - the dresden plate on the front.

I added a pieced strip to the back too. I used a print from Sweetwater’s Noteworthy range for the main fabric and Kate Spain’s Cuzco mini charms for the dresden and pieced section. I put in lots of Cadbury goodness, what is more Australian than Cadbury?!

This is the beautiful pouch I received from Laurel.

I love, love, love the fabric! It is the Bucket list print from Sweetwater’s Noteworthy range. The pattern for this pouch is here …. and I definitely want to try making one too!

Lookee what was inside! Lots of candy and fabric yummyness! I had already eaten the Lindt chocolate bar…..sorry ;)

Bye for now,
Jess

Melody Miller pouches

Hi all,

Firstly, I just want to thank everyone for their really understanding and encouraging comments on my last post. I feel like I am in a much better place now!

Today my littlest fella was home sick and not happy about it. He was so upset that when I rang kindy to let them he wasn’t coming they could hear him crying in the background….the problem was he missed his first excursion – they all walked to the local library for a visit and tour. A big deal for a little guy!

Anyway, this gave me a free morning…no excursion to help with and home with a sick child – what would I do?

If you follow me on Instagram you might remember this picture…BTW I am “scrappynhappy” over there if you want to follow along. Let me know if you are there and I will follow you too. This is some pouches that I cut out over a week ago and didn’t get to finish at the time. I cut into my precious Melody Miller panel for these!

  
I used the Noodlehead Pouch tutorial for these, I love that tute! For the little one though I made it smaller than the smallest one so it is very cute! The larger one here is actually the middle size in the tute.

Doesn’t the clock look cool? I’m not sure what I will use the large pouch for now, I was going to use it as a clutch for the wedding I went to last Friday but it wasn’t made in time. The little one is already in my handbag with my asthma puffer, panadol, bandaids and lippy in it, all the things a girl needs at the ready!

The inside fabric I got at the local PWS, they have it in a few colour ways too. 

A couple of days ago I cleaned up my cutting out table, which is a bit of a dumping ground for left over fabric, patterns and books. So I feel a lot more motivated to sew now….next on my list is converting an old pair and a new pair of long pants into shorts and repairing an old pair of shorts for the littlest fella. Summer feels like it is here already and it is still winter until tomorrow! I also have this months Ausmod bee block to make yet and I need to finish my scrap challenge mini…better not make my list too long!

Thanks for reading,
Jess ;)