Christmas is coming .....

One of my special projects is making each Grandiebaby their own special unique Christmas stocking..... I love thinking up what they might like and adding special little pieces to them....

This is my latest.....

(no prizes for guessing who it is for!!)

I used an angel from Nancy Holvorsen's Angels Among Us ....

and a special daisy button for the dot on the 'i'

(I just love that background fabric)

.... ringing bells in the stars and ric-rac under the patchworked sock turn...

the little hand charm on the bottom of her skirt says 'hand made'

Lovely little Maddy is ready for Santa..... 

I make the stockings nice and big... since it is not my responsibility to fill them....

We are waiting on the next baby... so there will be another stocking to make
Today is due date... hmmmm, waiting, waiting....

I saw some lovely gift tags HERE made by Tarnyia... go look see as she explains how quick and easy it is.... and it really is... I did these ones.... thanks for the idea Tarnyia

So these are my Christmas Items for Allie's Christmas Through the Year and Narelle's 1 Christmas Item per Month...

.... I did other Christmas things......

like this .....

and this....

and posted these.....

I still had more of the 'tag' blocks but these are on felt for a different project...

I still don't feel in the slightest bit ready for Christmas though.... 

we're on the countdown... less than 2 months......

My Ausi Bloke....

Last week my Hubz was citizenised

He got a lovely Australian plant

and a very smart certificate

lots of people attended the ceremony

the Queen is in Australia but due to unplanned circumstances she wasn't able to attend but there was a nice big picture of her

This last week we saw the end of a dictator

I don't wish that death on anyone

but having lived under a dictatorship who's big friend was Gadaffi

I believe it is very true that if you live by the sword you will die by the sword

My blog is not political but this week

I have been a bit reflective about how lives and circumstances can change

I still think and pray for my land of birth - Zimbabwe

and pray for Libya and it's people during this time

It is a real treasure and privilege for us to be adopted by a new country

and be able to live how we do

I'm linking with Melody's Tuesday Treasures

Sitting and thinking how very lucky we are whilst I am doing some quilting

some straight lines with the feed dog

some free motion

.....a couple of OPAM finishes...

since being given a couple of cotton washcloths I just love them  

so I keep some knitting available for in the car

somehow it seems odd to be knitting dishcloths 

do you?

Pincushion, Patterns, lovely Post and a bit of Christmas.....

I am doing Some Kind of Wonderful in the Stitch-a-long and couldn't resist stitching this cute little pincushion

I did find the littleness of it a challenge ....

 I have taken my first step in the lovely quilt from the book and started doing a bit of needleturn - I have been learning by using freezer paper previously but thought I would go without this time.... doing the jeans first as there is lots of straight lines!!

supposed to be 'blue' jeans but the colours I chose haven't got blue - and I love the floral jeans

(they just have to be HUGE flowers if I were to have some now!!)

I photocopied pages so that I can cut templates and trace the pictures with the light box underneath ..... and wanted to keep the patterns stored ... so I was very happy to see a tip by Bobbie on keeping these nice and safe in the back of the book  ....

 Have a look HERE for Bobbies step by step instructions.....

I stitched this pretty little tag from a pattern by Michelle Ridgeway..... 

(I bought her cute little Christmas Fixin's designs book) 

rinsed out my pen marks and see what happened....

a bit disappointed... it is one of the 'good' threads.... (but at least it is not a big stitchery)

No bleeding on this design from the same booklet...

I won a prize on Allie's Christmas Through the Year last month....

the cutest little zipper purse (who doesn't love cupcakes?) with three gorgeous fat quarter Christmas fabrics and a cross stitch to make up....

I think the reindeer stitchery and the fabrics look like they were made for each other?

I've got a bit of handsewing to do....

just a peep... this is my SSCS (insert item here) for (insert name here)

which is coming along very nicely.... now to think of a Christmas decoration 

(since my redwork heart will not do!!)

How are you doing with Christmas presents? - not long to go

FNSI October .........

Last night for FNSI I put together the blocks I had previously made with this Portabello Market jelly roll...

I had already sewn the strips of 4 alternating dark and light....

and made the tubes....

and cut them into squares... which I never took pictures of ..... but there are lots of video tutorials on line for this type of square.... it is a matter of cutting the tubes at an angle.... (just look up tube quilt)

Only a small bit of waste from cutting the angles at the sides..... I will find a way of using those pieces....

.... I had already sewed the 4 square blocks together....

I made the strips.....

it is not a difficult pattern but I did need to be careful with cutting and joining to get the points right

I am always amazed at how far a little jelly roll goes - the top was 54" x 43" (without the borders)

I auditioned the border fabric and added 6 1/2" strips all round .....

did a bit of handsewing whilst I kept my flu filled Hubz company....

This is a pincushion from Annie Downs "Some Kind of Wonderful" 

(some of the scraps from the Portobello Quilt will be used to piece the top and bottom)

waited for morning to take some more pictures...

Yup,  a good nights work... I like it....

whilst I was in the garden I noticed these water irises flowering....

the pretty blue flowers in the background are from one of the pretty native grasses we have around the pond

Stitching the blocks together gave me lots of opportunity to use my leaders and ender HST squares (made THIS WAY using 4 " charm squares) ....

Strips are coming together quite prettily .....

I'm off over HERE to see what everyone else sewed ...

Ready for # 6....

Sweet Dreams is quilted and ready

I managed feathers down the coin strips...

some whirls around the stitcheries...

and clouds around the words...

feathers and wriggly lines.....

I am still learning free motion quilting so there are kinks etc but it will hold together and be nice and cuddly to wrap a grandiebaby ....

.... 'tis lovely to have it done....

I wonder which of the two will go to it's new home at the end of the month????

... we have to view it through the peeper....

Thanks Marina for the Quiltober challenge...... it's not too late to join us and get that quilt you have been meaning to finish done....