Waiting... waiting...

It is such fun to be able to track flights... so addictive though... checking every few minutes.....

the plane carrying my precious cargo has landed... and they are in the car on the way home .... last thing you want after 20+ hours of flying is a 2 hour drive!!

I have been up since 5am... the house is clean, I'm high on coffee... all ready.... except for...

one needs an engineering degree to put up a folding bed it seems.... or is it just me????

oh well... that is now a parents problem... not a nana problem.....

I did some more of the Scrappy Trip blocks over the last couple of days..... this is 12 completed blocks and it is really taking shape nicely..... love, love, love it.....

I am beginning to think Scrappy is 'my style'.... luckily I need to make new things in order to make scraps for my scrappy style...... Hubz would say that is stitchers logic.....

Handsewing in the evenings.... these little stitcheries for Boys Story (by Anni Downs) involve quite a lot of stitching but they are oh so fun.....

some detail .... I just love the expressions....

I need to get into girl mode... never had a grandiegirl to stay here....

this is the quilt I have taken out to put on her bed

(when we can unfold it and make it!!!)

made from a charm pack of "Little Apples" by Aneela Hooey

I used some of the designs on the fabric to embroider motifs on the top border...

... and appliqued the letters using remaining charm squares...

founds some vintage sheeting for the backing.... so soft and cuddly 

Righto, Gotto Go......

I won't be blogging much for a few weeks... no prizes for guessing why....

Moments captured.....

This snow stuff is fun... but I'd like some sunshine

I bet Nana wouldn't make me wear these gloves!

Oh my goodness, it is all so exciting I can't stop laughing ...

Is that my carriage?

It's a loooooooong way to go- nana's going to be watching alllllllll daaaaaayyyy and alllll niggghhhhhtttt

Righto, Gotto Go..... beds to make, treats to buy .....  jiggle jiggle hop hop over here....

Hand lotion...

A Pay It Forward treat arrived at my house from Tracy this week

real 100% pure bees wax

Bev has some great ideas for home made products

Here is the link to Bev's instructions to make these lotion bars .... so easy, so nice .....

really not at all difficult and it doesn't take long to make either 

I used the beeswax, copha (coconut vegetable shortening) and my favourite body oil Jojoba

The scent of the honey in the beeswax is just amazing

I made another set with olive oil and lavender last evening

blended up dried lavender with the oil and added a few drops of lavender oil

I am finding this is perfect to put on my hands when I am sewing... no greasy feeling at all

and yesterday I spent some time with my machine and pretty strips for my Scrappy Trip

coming along nicely... such fun to have a lovely selection of strips to play with

anybody got some time to trade?

Righto, Gotto Go...... still washing bedlinen.... need clean towels..... more visitors coming .....

All sorts.....

Susan and I did a little trade

she wanted some funky squares to finish off a quilt

and I wanted some strips for my scrappy trip

I got the best of the deal... loads of strips

I cut up a lovely pile of 2 1/2" strips for the quilt

and I got lots of 2 1/2" squares out of the scraps

and some other scraps left over too!

 My sister in law had a birthday whilst she has been to stay, my daughter put together lots of little butterfly cupcakes.. - they are so sweet and pretty....

I am doing a nine-patch swap coordinated by Trish over the next 6 months... this is my February block.... 14 of these have been made... at the end of it we will all swap and end up with loads of different blocks... what fun

one day we went to the coast to a market.... this python was in a tree above a stall - it had just had a possum for lunch.... 

Righto, Gotto Go...... quiet house, guests gone, gotto keep busy busy

I think I will sew some strips today

True Friends Tote Bag .....

I have been doing a bit of blog reading... but little commenting....

having a wonderful time with my rellies... Hubz has taken them off to the big smoke to watch live cricket and I am taking advantage of a few hours of quietness and finished off my February SAL tote bag

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Can you see the broken needle?

I hardly ever break needles

this one went straight through my finger

no pain really... nice quick in and out

I nearly fainted from the thought of it though 

I was quilting the back of this pretty little bag

I'm a bit cross with myself as I didn't do the satin stitching of the hearts on the trees and the flowers

I just got too excited to make the bag 

... did the hatch quilting on the back - there's no blood on it!!!....

I was surprised how lovely and big it is 16" x 12" 

.... will hold lots of fabric ....

True Friends Tote Bag

made as part of the Stitch-a-long

from Red Home book by Natalie Bird

I love it....

Righto, Gotto Go...  

Cured.....

In May last year I first started doing these foundation paper piecing blocks and did another one quite quickly

Worked hard again in July and got several more done.... and then the block each month kindof dwindled until I picked it up again this week....

(Just click on the links if you would like to see the previous blocks in more detail)

I was determined this week to finish off the blocks....

and AbraCaDabra...mix them all together

My door peeper is so useful - gives a different view and I could see a block wrong way around...

Played around with placement.... every time I looked at it I saw something else I am not happy with....

I will just have to live with it ... can never get random properly random!  Whatever I do there are colours that are the same together....

that's 484 little pieces of fabric in there
you can count them if you like

30" x 37.5" approx (I am yet to add the borders)

I'm not really sure if I like it or not
sometimes I look at it and I love it
other times I feel a bit queasy

... but I think I have cured my addictive foray into foundation piecing....

Righto, Gotto Go....... I need calming tea after all that..... and lavender drops on my pillow ... 

Another addiction?

I certainly could get addicted to making these cute little owls

a lovely pattern I won from Tracee at Quilt Kitty Loves Life 

If you don't know Tracee it worth going by... lots of fun at her place and lovely things to read about

Thanks for this Tracee - I adore them 

I don't need to get addicted to colourwash

My friend up the road was having a clean out... this was going off to the charity shop... and I persuaded her that I was a very worthwhile charity....

isn't it fun.... just needs a border or two ..... I think she will be sorry she gave it away.... I might have to give it back!!! hmmmmm

I have spent some time catching up on doing some blocks I started last year.....

..... I have not been very enthusiastic......

lots of tiny little pieces I can't use

lots of little pieces of paper to remove

lots of pins required to hold it together

lots of careful sewing on lines

lots of time required for an 8" block (like an hour per inch!)

  

66 little pieces of fabric in these two

blocks from New York Beauty stitch-a-long 

tutorial for this block found HERE

as you can see I neglected to do the reversal thing so the blocks don't fit together

.... but .....
... they match like this.....

is this a new addiction?

Righto, Gotto Go... still more little stitches to sew, little papers to remove, little scraps to chuck and big bits of time to find....

I like it in boosted colours