Too many great things happening!

Hi all,

There are so many great things going on this year in blogland and on flickr! I have been really careful not to sign up for too many, but here are some I couldn’t resist -

(Click on the pictures for the links)

The Japanese X & + block swap

This is my practice block…why I can’t take a straight picture I’ll never know!

Name Game Swap

 
Hosted by Samelia’s Mum….I love the one she made for herself so this should be great! Sign ups are open until the 15th.

Swoon Quilt Along

 
I have the patterns for two different sizes of this particular block and I really wanted to make a Swoon quilt this year so I couldn’t resist!

Dress Up your Roll

This one is Hosted by Jane and I think it sounds different and fun so I am going to give it a go! Official launch is today so go and check it out!

Just Takes 2

This has started already, not that I have started yet! I am going to do mine scrappy purples with white background….I think!

So far that is all….and scrolling back through this lot I am wondering what I have gotten myself in for!

Just a reminder that I will be drawing giveaway 2 on Wednesday so if you haven’t left a comment on the giveaway post yet don’t forget to!

Some quick sewing!

Hi all,

Believe it or not I haven’t turned my sewing machine on for nearly a week! What the?!

But when I saw the tutorial for a “Bapron” over at The House on the Side of the Hill….it is sooo cute!

The tutorial is done by Jess at Craftiness is not Optional. They are so sweet and very easy to make!

My SIL is due to have a baby in about a month so when I saw these I knew what to do – make some of them of course! The pink one is from Cape Ann fabric and the blue one is some Organic fabric. Lined with pale blue flannelette.

This is the last blocks for the Bee in Oz for 2011 -

It is called Drunk Love and should make a beautiful quilt.

I don’t know if we are doing the Bee again this year so I have signed up to do Just Takes 2!

 
Which has just started today so you need to get in quick! Click on the picture for the link to the webpage.

And lastly – I will announce the winner for giveaway 1 on Wednesday so if you haven’t entered yet now is your chance!

Play time!

Hi all,

It has been over a week of school holidays and public holidays here. So not a huge amount of sewing has been done but I did manage to play a bit!

This is the first stage of Big Little George, a block by Lynne at Lily’s Quilts.

This is the block fully pieced. I am halfway through quilting it but my sewing machine has started playing up again….not happy. It doesn’t seem to like free motion quilting.

So during some non-sewing time I came across a challenge by Sarah at The Last Piece, the Naked Bed Challenge!  It sounds interesting but there is only a month left. I have been playing with ideas on EQ and drew up my favourite block. This is the test block on the design wall.

What do you think? I am unsure about the fabric selection, it is Make Life by Sweetwater. The block will be 16” finished. I think I have a problem with doing blocks in normal size, I seem to always make them smaller or larger!

Fortunately I have been able to borrow my mums spare sewing machine again, so I will be able to finish this quilt off….

I just picked it up from Christine, she does long arm quilting and is local which is very handy!
 
I hope everyone in Oz has enjoyed the loooong weekend!

Joe's Coat Update!

Hi All,

So over on Kellie's Don't Look Now blog she has put into motion a mass progress report for the Quilt-along she is running.

Here is my progess -

• how much have you completed so far - I have done 6 blocks and have a heap of petals ready to be attached to the background.
• where / when are you finding the time to work on the project - I have a seemingly short attention span and keep getting distracted by other things, but I usually do this sort of thing at night after the kids have gone to bed.
  
• you may also like to let us know some of your tricks, tips & hints - I am trying to make a few blocks at a time. And I am going to try skipping the gluing of the seams down and turn it as I sew. I think I will get better points this way and I don't think it will take me any longer. I'll let you know how this goes!
  
• how you went about choosing your fabrics etc - I chose my favourite colour which is purple. I also love a scrappy look so I have nearly 20 different fabrics.
  
• what your plans are for the quilt ... who you are making it for etc - I am being selfish and making this quilt for myself. Ultimately I'd like to do a queen size but we shall see, I might not be finished before I'm 90!
  

This week I have also managed to finish a block from Homespuns BOM. I notice the new mag is at the newsagents but not in my letter box yet - not happy!


My SIL came down with her kids on Wednesday and I did some sewing with her eldest daughter, she is eight so it was quite interesting. I'll share some photos soon!

Be Happy,
Jess

P.S. The recipe for the Chocolate Cherry Slice is from Super Food Ideas mag, Feb 2010 issue. Sue, if you can't get a copy send me an email and I'll send you a copy of the recipe.

Chasing tails.....and remembrance.....

Hi all!
Well....looking at my OPAM list you would think I haven't been doing much lately! But I feel like I have been running around chasing my tail and getting no where, I think it may have something to do with too many WIPs!
I think I will make a WIP list so that I can keep track of what I am doing!



This cute house is the first block for Homespun's new BOM. This project is one that I really would like to keep up with as I subscribed to the mag especially for it! I'll keep my fingers crossed!


I've been playing with the idea of making water bottle holders for the boys drink bottles. This is one I made out of an old baby t-shirt. It was quite stained so I wouldn't give it away, so I cut it up! TP loves it and I guess that is the main thing!

While working on some more petals for the Don't Look Know Quilt Along I made a huge mistake. All I can say is my brain is tired!
Instead of cutting the Floriani stabiliser on the line I ironed my fabric on and then cut the petals out, then I went to fold the edges over and ah-oh!
I feel like I am getting way behind in this project, I am nowhere near having 14 blocks to join together. Maybe I will end up just making a smaller quilt, however I am not ready to give up yet!

On a sadder note, my grandmother passed away a little over a week ago, and the funeral was on Monday. She was 90 years old, with 6 children, 15 grand-children and over 30 great grand-children. Her family played a role in the growth and development of the area, and a lot of us still live in the area and surrounding areas. Sadly a living piece of history is now gone, fortunately there are many photographs and home videos (silent and black & white) for us to remember her by.

Hopefully I will be able to get into a bit of a routine over the next few weeks, with kindy, work and life in general.

Til next time,
Don't worry be happy!
Jess

A year in reflection...

I have been inspired to reflect on my year of 2009! This is all the other bloggers faults, so feel free to blame them!

An engagement present in February....

A present for a new baby in March.....

A day at the beach in April....

A pair of slippers for my new niece in June....

Camping in the cold air of August.....

Camping at the beach in September..... (what a contrast to August)....

The beginning of me being a blogger! and the DLN Quilt along in October.....

My boys sharing morning tea in December....

Obviously this is a simplifed version of 2009, but it was a great year and I hope 2010 is just as good!

I hope everyone out there has had a great year too,
Bye for now Jess :-)

Creative update....

I thought I might have a creative update....

I have been working on a bag out of Homespun mag. It has a cute stitchery on the front and is made using a honey bun. I haven't done much embroidery before but I'm finding this pretty easy... other than the french knots. As a lefty it takes me a bit longer to work these things out!

There is meant to be french knots around the edge of the circle. I wasn't happy with my first attempt and have cut them off, but I will try again.

Above is what started out as a bag pattern but I turned it into a block folder. I thought it would make a way too big bag for my use so I made the front and back panels into the folder. Mum made the bag too and it fits her machine embroidery case in it perfectly. Do you think it needs more embellishment?
And this is my progress on my DLN Quilt along blocks. I haven't done many as you can see, 4 are sewn down and there are 2 ready to stitch. So I still have a long way to go.

Now I had better get back to it ;-)
Bye for now,
Jess

Bright side of the week!

Thinking back on this week....
We have all been sick with the flu. First the boys and then hubby and me. It is not a nice flu, if there is such a thing, bad sinus headaches and feeling weak and tired. The boys are pretty well over it now, us oldies though are still suffering a bit!
Anywho....gotta look on the bright side of life!
I have actually done a few things!


I was on this blog called Freebies for crafters and came across this gift idea.
They are called Molten Chocolate Cake Mugs from Atkinson Designs blog.


They are super easy to put together. The only sewing is for the bag. I even made a cake in a mug to taste test the recipe... very easy and quick to make, you do need cream or ice-cream with it as it is very rich. But very yummy!
So, I made 2 for TP's kindy teacher and assistant. I hope they like them!


I have also sewn up a dress. A very simple Newlook pattern. Made with stretch knit fabric - it wasn't my first choice in pattern but Spotlight had sold out of the other 5 I had picked. It came together okay. I'm not sure though if it looks nice enough to wear out, it looks a bit like a house dress, which is fine because after a hot summer day all I want to do is have a shower and put on a loose, floaty dress!

To finish on a pretty note...don't you just love this panel! I know I do!
It is Primavera by Michael Miller Fabrics, who also have a great range of free quilt patterns on their website!

Take care and stay cool!
Jess ;-)

PS. I got my pic on the Don't Look Now Flickr page. Check it out, heaps are getting added all the time and it is great to see the different colour combinations!

JC Quilt Along block 2 finished....

Yippee, I have finished block 2! Only a million to go!
Does that sound sarcastic? Sorry, I'm a bit cranky with Yahoo at the moment. I wanted to quickly set up an account so I could post a picture on Flicka and I accidently put the year wrong on my birthdate, so now it won't let me put pics up because I'm not 13 (I wish, LOL). Anyway so now I have to fix that, I don't know how but I will get there!

Now that I've had my rant, here is the pic I will be putting on the JC Flicka page soon....


The block on the left has been pinned ready to sew. So it is full steam ahead! I think I'll do two blocks at a time, it just seems a tiny bit quicker to me.

Okay, problems to sort out so I'll talk more later,
Jess ;-)

JC Quilt Along on the Square?.....

Sorry I forgot to tell that story!
After many emails back and forth with Kellie, and after looking closely at her blocks and the other blocks on flicka, I have decided that my block is probably a bit crooked.
Kellie didn't understand what I was getting at so it mustn't have been an issue for her, plus although I can't clearly see the edge of her block I don't think she has worried about it too much.
But I will try and have my blocks a bit straighter from now on! Fingers crossed!

I hope everyone fared okay in tonights storms, Jessica.

Clucky and her babes

I have finished Clucky and her chicks. Oh, except for the chicks eyes. Anyway, she is my first softy and I think she came together okay. I love Melly and Me patterns, I also have Magoo, who I have been meaning to make for my boys. It is on the ever growing list!


I have also made a start on my first block for the Don't Look Now quilt-along.

I have asked Kellie if the petals need to be square on the background block. The answer is probably going to be yes, which will make this block become a cushion! Either way I will let you know in my next post.
I have challenged my hubby to finish his project before I finish this Josephs Coat quilt. He is building some radios. So we shall see who wins!
I am just starting a two week break, as the boss is going away, whoopy! So I am looking forward to getting some sewing done, and then some housework! In that order! Ha Ha

When clouds are in the sky,
Its time for sewing needles to fly!
Jess

Crazy times and all that stuff....

This week has been kinda crazy! Racing here and there, working, sewing, the heat!

Anyway, I have managed to get the first bit of the Don't Look Now Quilt Along done. I had to buy a decent compass and then do a few trys to get the circles to cross over perfectly. I am waiting for my local patchwork shop to get my roll of Stitch and Wash in, so I am kind of on hold....

This is some lovely wool felt that I bought this week from Bumble Bee Boutique. I think it will last me a life time. I have used tiny bits of it for Clucky (a Melly and Me creation). Who I will post pics of when I finish her chickies. She looks very cute, if I may say so myself!


Here is a Lily that is in my garden. It is close up for a reason. Believe me, the garden is a work in progress. The sand-pit is being made at the moment, we are painting it blue to match the swings, the boys will love it!


Until next time! Which won't be as long as last time, I promise!
Hugs, Jess

Collecting fabric for Quilt-along and what else I'm working on...

Okay, I've decided to use purple as my colour for the Quilt-along, on a white background.
This is all the scraps and some big pieces that I have found in my collection. Considering that purple is my favourite colour I thought there would have been more. Anyhow, we will see how we go!

I am also working on a Mariners Compass Quilt. This is in a class. My colours are completely different to the original, which has been published in a magazine. The bulk of the foundation piecing has been done, now there is loads of needleturn applique to do. But I am nearly 1/4 of the way through it!

Don't Look Now Quilt-along

Although I've been thinking about doing this blogging thing for a while now, I've finally bitten the bullet.
I am taking part in a quilt-along being run by Kellie at Don't Look Now. It is a Joseph's Coat or Orange Peel Quilt. All hand applique and sounding very time consuming.
So check in every now and then as I will post pictures as I progress.