Oopsie Daisy…a finish!

Hi Everyone!

Yesterday I had the overwhelming urge to finish something…do you get those? Maybe it’s just me because I get to the sandwiching stage and for some reason the quilt/table runner/whatever gets put away in the cupboard.

So, this table runner that I pulled out even had the backing cut and the binding made ready to go! What is wrong with me?! It only took a couple of hours to finish!

Honestly I am ready to give up on photography, I just can not get a decent photo! I will take it outside tomorrow to get some better photos for you!

I wanted to show you my new-to-me sideboard that motivated me to finish the runner! It was my grandmothers, I love having special things that belonged to my grandparents!

A close up of the stitchery. This runner is a pattern by Jenny of Elefantz and it is called Oopsie Daisy Runner. I did change it a bit but I think most of us do that!

Today I laid out the Star quilt to start putting it together…I told BW I am going to call this the Headache quilt and he laughed…seriously it is like putting a puzzle together with a million inset seams!

And I thought I might show you a corner of my sewing space!

The table I use also belonged to my grandmother but from my dads side…I love this table and the top is beautiful and glossy which is why I have a special ugly brown cloth covering it.

Looking at the photo now I see junk I didn’t notice before but that is life! I have kids! I would love to make myself a new sewing machine mat and thread catcher/bin too one day!

Now I’m off to make dinner and then I might do some more on the stars later tonight!

PS I am feeling much better now…Thanks for all the well-wishes!

Floating away…

Hi guys,

Yesterday I walked into my sewing room and looked at all the projects I have started over the last few weeks and felt over-whelmed….then I went and had a cup of tea and thought about it for a bit.

I decided I needed to finish something.

I pieced the front of this kite months ago, after I won a mini charm pack of Little Apples. Since then it has been hiding out under a pile of books and patterns on my sewing table.

The pattern is from Moda Bakeshop. I changed it a little, added some feature blocks and made the bows rectangles and then gathered the middle.

I have this feeling that flying kites is symbolic of freedom, thinking outside the box, following dreams and flying high.

Maybe I just like the idea of floating off on a breeze!

Finally a finish!

Hi all,

I have finally finished something! YAY!

It is only small quilt, a table topper or placemat. The block is called Big Little George and the tutorial is from Lily’s Quilts.

I had to try this one, it is paper pieced and has curves! I thought finishing it square looked a bit boring so I made it octagonal!

Can you see the quilting? I had a play around with it. I did my standard scallopy look in the centre and used a new design for the outside, from The Free Motion Quilting Project,  it is called H2O.

I have been inspired to pull out the blocks from my month in Bee in Oz…

Sorry for the bad photo. This is what I had early yesterday…. I have added more blocks but haven’t put the pictures on the computer yet. I hope to have the blocks all joined together very soon and then it is border decision time!

Last OPAM for 2010!

Hi all,

I have finished off one last thing for the year! It is actually a UFO that I started when I was pregnant with BW, that was nearly 3 years ago!

I am ashamed to say that the binding was half sewn on when it got put away and forgotten. That is sooo bad, it only took me half an hour to finish! And then I had to wash it because it smelt dusty!

It is made with flannels and has a white ribbon flange around the centre blocks. The backing is a heavy cotton fabric, the idea was to use it as a play mat on the floor. BW is now 2/12 so he doesn’t really need a play mat anymore! Maybe I should find someone to give it too, otherwise it will end up in the cupboard which seems a waste really.

OPAM stats for 2010
84 finishes
0 bed/big size quilts
4 small quilts
6 bags
a lot of smaller repetitive items for the kindy fete and teachers presents
2 baby presents

Goals for 2011
I would like to try for 10 quilts, with at least half being bigger quilts.
Use my stash as much as possible.
And definitely less small repetitive sewing, I actually dislike it! I don’t think many people enjoy sewing the same thing over and over!

Over-due finish!

Hi all,

I say over-due because this really should have been finished way back in April or something.

 
This is the cushion that was made during the workshop Kellie of Don’t Look Now fame did at Patchwork Angel early in the year.

I am keeping this for me, as a reminder not to leave things half quilted for a very long time. I can see in the middle the quilting is tight and very beginnerish, whereas the edges are more loose and relaxed but I still need a lot of practise!

Anyway, chalk it up to a OPAM finish for November!

Be happy,
Jess

1st OPAM for July - Baby Blocks!

Hi all,

I went to another baby shower last night - there must have been bad weather 9 months ago!

This time it was for a boy, even though I have 2 boys I sometimes find it hard to get inspired by boy things. So I went through the tutorials on some blogs that have lots and ended up using one from the Moda blog. I did 2 changes, I didn't put ribbons in and I made the blocks 1" smaller.

This is my little helper, TP. As he is stuffing his first block he says "you know what these need? a little rattle to put inside! but it is night time (sigh) so we can't go out and get some, so they will have to be quiet blocks!" So creative and logical for a 4 year old.

The blocks are 3" squares, I tried not to overstuff them because I didn't want them to lose the square shape. I also used 2 prints from the Love U range by Deb Strain (I love this range of fabric!) and chose 4 other coordinating prints from my stash.

Be happy,
Jess

PS. Check out the free stitchery download from Snickerdoodle dreams - It has me written all over it! Definitely one to add to the to-do list!

Yipee, I finished something!

Yahoo, I have a couple of finishes to share!
All I need is inspiration to strike and I'm off and running!

First up is a mug carrier. My mum has been saying for awhile now that all the girls at sewing class say she needs a mug carrier. And when I saw the free project download in this months Homespun I knew I had to whip it up.

Mine looks a little different - my printer isn't printing so I read through the instructions and other than writing down the cutting sizes, I made it from memory. My memory is not the greatest (since having kids LOL) so I have attached to pocket differently.
The other obvious difference is the stitchery. I got this one off Natalie Lymer's blog, Cinderberry Stitches. It is a free design for a needle case.
I also used a Cosmo marble thread, this is beautiful thread to stitch with!

This is a BIG mug carrier, it will fit a monster size mug, which I think mum appreciates because we both love a big mug of tea!

My second finish is a peg basket. This also has a bit of a story to it.
My washing machine has been on the fritz for a couple of weeks so far, and still waiting to be fixed. So I have been doing some washing in both my Mum's and my mother in-laws machines.
I noticed today while hanging out my washing on MIL's line that her peg bag was in a very sad state. So I came inside and looked through my tea towel pile and found a pretty one that I didn't want to use in the kitchen because it would end up stained and gross.

It was so easy to make, probably only took half an hour. Because of the directional embroidery I had to cut the tea towel up, but if you used a plain tea towel you could make it a lot quicker with no cutting.

I used velcro across the top. The stiffness of the velcro should hold the top nice and flat.

These have been done after mothers day too!

One last thing, the Monica Poole trunk show.
This was quite good, Patchwork Angel put it on and supplied the models (who did a great job). Her clothing range is very nice and has quite a few beautiful and versatile pieces, I loved the Salsa and A-line skirt pattern (the pics on the pattern don't do the skirts justice), the tunic and jacket are both beautiful and the vest was lovely too!

Next up is the Quilters Trail Muster at Gatton this Sunday! We are going to leave early and have a family picnic breakfast at Kilcoy on the way out, it should be great and you will hear about it next week!

Be happy,
Jess

I'm a Winner & a busy bee!

G'day all,

Guess what!?! I'm a winner!
I can't believe it - I never win anything, I have pretty much given up entering giveaways!
This win is from OPAM. Thank you so much Peg and Kris, you are doing a great job hosting this group!

Here is the pic I tried to put on last time...

Meet Josephine the jellyfish. She is the first block form Cheryl's Under the Sea BOM.
Next up is a block from the Homespun BOM. This is one of the small corner blocks.

Can you guess what this is?.....


It is a Checker board with suffolk puff tokens! (can you see the strand of hair? LOL)

The puff's are breeding!

I made this with some help from my 8 year old niece, so it is quite an easy project. What took the most time for me was the quilting. Because we didn't catch all the edges of the squares with the fancy stitches I decided to practice the quilting I learnt at Kellies workshop.

So, there you have it! I have been a busy bee!

Bee Happy,
Jess

PS. Would you like a tutorial for the Checker board?

Rainy day companions!

G'day,

Take a look at my company....


A movie and Choc Cherry Slice, yes I made it myself. Yummo!


A little stitching to do while watching the movie! I managed to squeeze in a movie while my youngest "BW", who is 20 months, was asleep this afternoon. It was a miracle!

I have also managed to get BW's satchel bag finished this week too!


It is the same as TP's except for the snail fabric where TP's has turtles.

As you can see, it is a little big yet! But I'm sure he will grow into it in no time!

Yesterday I was scanning an older issue of Aus Country Craft and Decorating magazine and came across an article called "Craft Blogs: a domestic fantasy?"
The author Karina May sayes we "tend to skip over the 'sticky' bits and reveal little about their lives. Although they may have a hectic household and be up to their necks in washing and ironing, by not divulging details of their day-to-day activities and chores, they project and image of a perfect existence."
I have to agree that this is true for most of the blogs I follow. But maybe I wouldn't be so inspired if I knew their lives where as chaotic as mine.

Now just so you know I'm not a Domestic Goddess I'll tell you a few things that have happened while writing this post.....
1. BW is chucking some major tantrums at the moment, so one them had to be dealt with!
2. TP created a huge puddle of juice and water on the bench which spilled over to the kitchen floor!
3. Dinner nearly burned, then got eaten! There is still the after dinner mess to be cleaned up yet!
4. There are towels in the dryer waiting to be folded, they have been waiting a while!

I'd better leave it at that or you might get depressed! LOL!

Be Happy,
Jess

Last project for February!

Hi all,
I am squeezing in a last minute project!

I have been making a Satchel Bag for each of my boys and I finished one on friday night.
TP loves it! Here he is modelling it for me - it looks really smart with a dressy shirt and pants!

I got the inspiration from a book called 21 Sensational Patchwork Bags. I didn't really follow their instructions because I made the bag a lot smaller. So I looked at the pictures and sort of made it up as I went.


On the inside I put a pocket that is the width of the bag, with a chunky zip closure (easier for little fingers to operate) for them to put their pencils in.


I hope everyone is staying dry, it is raining here and forecast to rain until wednesday. And I hope everyone who lives on the east coast of Oz is playing it safe and staying away from the beaches in response to the Tsunami warnings today.

Don't worry (too much), be happy!
Jess

Dino quilt and new friends.....

Hi all, hope everyone is having a crafting good time!

Here is a pic as promised.....


We made this using a some of a Dinosaur Uproar layer cake. The quilt was inspired by one of the first quilts from the Material Obsession book. Except that we used corner stones because we were using left over strips of white muslin for the sashing. Mum whipped up the matching pillow case to fit a pram pillow.

I also whipped up a couple more book covers....


These are so quick to make. It probably took less than an hour to do these two.

I though I might show you my new friends........

Aren't they pretty?! I have started using them for the "Under the Sea" free BOM - look on my side bar for the link. It is looking really cute!

Bye for now and remember,
Don't worry be happy!
Jess

Finishes and Shopping! Don't we love both!

Soooo...............
I have been keeping pretty busy!
I have finished 2 book covers, the inspiration came from Jenny's blog. She made a book cover out a tea towel and it looked great. So here is my version, I back-stitched the writing and accented the focus circle a little. Need I say I am very happy with the result!


I have also finished the 2nd block for Homespuns 2010 BOM. I am eagerly awaiting the next issue!


I am finding that I really enjoy doing stitcheries, I will have to add to my thread collection pretty soon though because I am using the same colours in all my projects. That will be a fun shopping trip! Speaking of which........


I purchased these lovely fabrics today, I made a conscious effort to get boys fabric. I have boys and yet when I am shopping I end up with girls fabric because it is sooo pretty!
The shop was really fab, I googled patchwork shops in Brisbane and it came up, this was a while ago so it has been on my must visit list for some time. Do you want to know where!?
FUNKY FABRIX, in Mitchelton. It is well worth a visit! and they have a website if you follow the link!
If you happened to be there and saw a frazzled lady with a screaming child - that was me! Boys must be programmed before birth to hate shopping!

I have also been doing a joint quilt (with my mum) for a baby shower this weekend. I will show some pic's later as it is not quite finished. I will give you a hint - we have used a Dinosaur Uproar layer cake!

Well you know the drill,
Don't worry be happy,
Jess ;-)

Last minute OPAM project!

WAHOO! A WIP is finished!
This is a bag I started a few months ago. It is out of Homespun magazine, they called it Baguette Bag.
I was just waiting to get the handles so I could finish it. I am quite happy with it, I hadn't done much stitchery before so that was a challenge but I enjoyed it.

Also, my SIL has just started her own blog - Jump Creations. She is the one that does the screen-printing and fabric dyeing. Feel free to check it out!

Remember,
Don't worry be happy!
Jess

OPAM and Spaceships!

I have completed my 1st OPAM project - I very quickly whipped up a double-sided/reversible bag for a friends little girl. She was having a baby shower this morning but didn't want anything for the new baby, I felt strange going empty handed so I made this bag using some panels from my stash.


Over the last few weeks I have also been doing some more screen-printing with my sister in law. I took a couple of weeks to draw up a spaceship and this is how it turned out.....


We are also half way through printing the spaceships onto some fabric that I dyed. So I will keep you posted on how they turn out.
I wanted to do the spaceship for a reason - I love this book.....


Material Obsession is a fantastic book, so inspiring and I would love to make probably at least half a dozen quilts out of it...."patience" I tell myself - all in good time!
Anyway, there is a quilt in there called Rocket Man (I think). It has a rocket panel in it, I'm going to try to make this quilt but I'll have to make it bigger as the pattern is cot size and I'd prefer a single bed size. So this is on my to-do list for this year!

Now, my sign off for this year is "don't worry be happy", I know this is often a hard thing to do because there is so many awful things going on at the moment. Particularly in Haiti, so check out this Etsy store called Craft Hope all proceeds go to Doctors without Borders in Haiti. And this is the great blog Ric Rac that I found out about it from.

So, try not to worry too much and be happy,
Jess