Second Week of October

We had a lovely long weekend with friends ..... here in Queensland we celebrate The Kings Birthday with a public holiday.  Evening picnic in parks, brewery visits and chocolate and gin in between chats.

Then Tuesday saw me go for the next leg of my garment making course.....

I made these Capri pants....

I never wear white having inherited my fathers ability to mess on everything!!  But my plan is to make a few coordinated clothes and white would go nicely with my blouse....

I don't know how well you can see on this next picture but this stain on the 'bum' was there by the time I got home - sitting in my basket!  I think my mug spilt a bit of tea on it.... a soak and it's sorted thus the crinkly look picture above.

April, my tutor also showed me how to alter the pattern to make shorts, longs and widen or narrow the legs so I will make a change for my next navy blue ones.

Wednesday saw me on the bus to the Quilt and Craft Show in Brisbane where I met up with Michelle.  We also had lunch with a few other friends including blogger Susan but forgot a photo!

Here we are in front of the singer Kate Sabrano's quilts.... they are huge and hand needleturned and quilted... just gorgeous

Bad me took only a few pictures and none of the name tags,..... my deepest apologies to the makers...

I have a denim challenge for Embroidery guild next year working on denim so I took a picture of this one for inspiration....

Lovely quilt using lacy doilies...

I wanted to see the quilting mostly ...

This edging was a chenille look...

I do love the African Wild Dog so this took my eye....

... and the quilting was magnificent... perfect for texture but not distracting from the lovely design

This one fascinated me..... from close I didn't see this glow at all...

The quilting again was magnificent.... a little picture in every piece.... so much to look at ...

This one was fun too... two colours only

the maker reversed the colours for the quilting.... and it was stunning too

My hand sewing has included these Sashiko style blocks - not so complicated and they didn't take long...

... and a bit more progress on my embroidery when I went to Guild on Thursday...

I have managed a few more knitted blocks, 2 of these were done on the bus on the way to Brisbane.  I think I was the only nutter doing something but I struggle to sit still and this is my chosen fiddle...

An update of my scrap busting.... lots more 2 1/2" and 3 1/2" blocks have been cut - still a goodly amount in the colour buckets to get through, but that area is looking a lot tidier!

Righto, Gotto go..... so much gadding about has meant other domestic things have not been done - and I need an extra nap after so much going on and waking up with nightmares!  Tsssk..... I scream in fear, wake myself and Hubz up (well he wakes up while he levitates from shock!)

Have a lovely weekend....xx

First week of October ....

Another week has passed us by....

Here is the braid I worked on at the retreat.....  I still need to add sashing and borders and there is another cut in the same fabrics to make...

I did work on a couple more Sashiko blocks .....

... and I picked up this tablerunner embroidery again.... 

Last night at FNWF I sewed the blue daisy.....

I generally work all of one colour at a time so that's why it's a bit scattery looking..... There is still heaps to do.....

So that's it for the week ...... hope you have had a good one xx

Righto, Gotto Go.... friends coming for the weekend so I need to go off and get some fresh supplies in....

Last week of September

Well, it seems a bit surprising that we are at the end of September..... ALREADY!

This year I didn't even manage to get to the local quilt show (actually there were several nearby!) but I look forward to the big one in the capital next month....

This week I spent Tuesday morning at Quilt club and stitched more framed hexagons together....

... and Thursday morning at Embroidery Guild got these blocks stitched....

Car and end of day time is knitting these blocks for KOGO.... they are especially wanting to make blankets in indigenous colours - next ball is red...  

I do notice my tension is not very consistent... it is improving....

I have been working on this applique in the evenings for the last couple of weeks - another done for Caswell....

Hubz and I have visited a few of the Carnival competition gardens and Parks, which is fun to see even if they set off hayfever madly!!

This weekend Quilt Group are having a 2 day retreat at our meeting place - sew all day and go home to sleep - lunch is provided.....

Righto, Gotto Go.......  off to sew sew sew !!!

Third week of September

My scrap bin was overflowing...... so I am chopping into 3 1/2" squares and 2 1/2" squares

Usually I sort them into colours and add them to the colour scrap bins... but they are full too!!!

There is a plan for all these, I will make as many blocks as I can.  I do love a scrappy quilt!!

The pieces that are smaller than that is going to a friend who likes insanely small scraps (if you lived closer Chantal I would give them to you!)

I finished my Intermezzo Quilt (thanks to Marina for the distraction!!!)  

I do love the variegation and those fun little circles for the fringe....

I also got into my Christmas fabrics with a plan for some handmade decorations.....

I have a nice pile of 48 crochet squares for KOGO.  They will make a 1.2 x 1.6 blanket.  (These are just the ones I recently finished)

Embroidery Guild was fun this week, there was only a few of us and it's always those times there seems to be conversation between us all.....

I got quite a few of my Sashiko style blocks done.....

I bought some cheap towels this week and made up a bunch (8) of golf themed hanging towels from left over fabric.....

 Hubz is a keen golfer and these hang nicely on the side of his bag for cleaning the golf balls....

One of the most useful gadgets I bought a few years ago was this set for adding the plastic studs... so nice and easy and so many different colours.  I don't use them much so it will likely last my lifetime (and more) but they are great for these little towels.

One of the lovely ladies at embroidery brought in a shopping bag of lemons for me.... so I popped into a supermarket on the way home and Hubz and I made up this lemon syrup...

Makes a great cordial and fantastic in a gin and tonic!  I make it the way my mum used to....

 Equal parts lemon juice and sugar, bring to the boil, simmer for about 10 minutes to thicken up and bottle in sterilised bottles.....

She never kept it in the fridge but I do..... 

Righto, gotto go... it has warmed up again so maybe I'll go and have a nice refreshing lemon drink....

Have a lovely weekend....

Second Week of September

This week I hosted a few friends for a Machine Sewing day..... I had to dig in my shelves to find a project as I seem to have lots of hand work on the go...

This small quilt was made from a Charm Pack (Picnic) and leftover background and mustard from previous quilts.  I found some stripey metreage to work for the border.  It is quite small - 46" x 40" but will be ok for a wheelchair quilt...

Some leftover backing was joined up to make a size I need and some mustard made into binding....

In the quilting queue it goes!!!!

Hand work has continued with some more hexagons framed, some crochet blocks made and a few more rows on my crochet scarf done.....

Other than that I have no idea where this week went!!! 

Righto, Gotto Go.... I am going to finish cutting up for a project to sew at a retreat at the end of the month.... rather do it now ....   

Have a lovely weekend....xx

Beginning of September....

Well, last week it was winter and summer and now we have gone to Spring.... that's what it felt like anyway.... 

Trees are greening up, flowers are blooming, bees are buzzing and birds are doing their Spring thing....   my most favourite time of the year....

I do love our Wisteria growing along the fence....

... the bees love it too and the scent spreads all over the garden....

I think this is a bottle brush variety.... flowers at the stems and is the only plant to draw in a little honey eater into the yard.

The prunus was full of soft pink flowers, then the wind blew and it looked like confetti...

I sewed a few more hexagons together.... this is the width of it now.  I will add half hexagons to the top to straighten.  Lots more rows down to do....

This months UFO is my Scrappy Houses.....  I never did more that these 8 in last years colour challenge...

So this week I made a brown house and found cream scraps for sashing and coloured for the cornerstones...

Happy with this made completely out of the scrap baskets...

The backing and wadding is left overs from previous quilts too - I did join the backing.  I found a half metre of bright flowers to use for the binding....  off to the Quilting Queue....

On Thursday at Embroidery Guild I stitched another little block Sashiko style...  that's #66 out of 365.  I really need to start focussing on this one soon.  The plan was one a day not a fortnight!

Knitting in the evening has resulted in another knitted cowl, soft pink.

That is the end of the lovely marino wool I had...

I got on and crocheted some more blocks for KOGO.  I want to get 48 of these so a blanket can be made with the two colours..... Half have the red centre and half with the fawn colour....  most of them are done.

Here is the cowl round my neck.... all garter stitch.

And that is my start to Spring crafting..... the nights have been cool and it's been lovely to sit and knit or crochet, sometimes with a cat on my lap!

Righto, Gotto Go - time for a cuppa....

Hope you have a lovely week.... xx