I love weekends.....

Hello, hello...... I do love weekends.... they just always seem relaxed and fun ....

Ok.... so this week saw me tracing 26 little designs.... 

(these are from Michelles' bear alphabet series - they are very awfully sweet... Michelle has done a few in the series of alphabets.... you can see them HERE)

.. and cutting up 2 1/2" squares... and choosing threads.... and stitching ....

 these are going to be the centres of my snowballs in the sew-along hosted by Terry

More details about this Sew-Along can be found HERE.... just incase you are tempted!!!

I am going to do this variation... and rather than scraps I have used a coordinating set of fat 1/8ths that I had....

This week also I had a surprise thank you gift from Christine.... very unexpected and very sweet....

when I opened the parcel there was a wonderful scent of lavender... Christine makes lovely bags from her own lavender... I have split them up and put them in strategic places... like fabric drawers, and undies drawers, .... just lovely.  I am thrilled to have another of Marilyn's patterns... I made her sewing bag up last year and this is another useful and pretty compendium.... I love the pretty Mill Rose thread and cute craft keeper....

.... who is already bundled up in some variegated threadworx thread..... (I had a part skein left and need some 'favourite variegated thread' for "Let's Get Stitched" day in Brisbane next month.... I'm so excited to meet some lovely bloggers (including the designers and hosts) I have corresponded with for ages...

(it doesn't look very variegated.... it's very subtle but it is there!!)

Thanks Christine, for your lovely gift..... so thoughtful....  

Today The Quilters Angel hosted a Tilda Tea Party... I got overexcited to be in a room full of crafty people and beautiful things that I didn't take many pics... there was lots of yummy food (I have witnesses to this) and sooooooo much yummy fabrics and things to make (same witnesses)

Here is one of the tables set with things to make out of the Tilda fabrics.... that's Kris's bag there in the front 

... and here are some of the deliciously pretty fabrics .....

I was useless and totally overwhelmedith the bustle and fun and ended up only buying a couple of little things....

... at least the shop is nearby and I can go anytime I like......

Last night I finished the first alphabet stitchery... 

A is for Angel....

Righto, Gotto Go..... B is for b...    ????

B is also for beer and Hubz' latest brew needs taste testing (the things we do for love!!!)

Charming Stars....

Last year I joined in with Terry's Charming Stars Sew-A-Long

now all my stars are joined together and borders added

It's very soft and pretty ... I used a range called "Papillon"
and the pattern is from Moda HERE

I think it will be fun to quilt too.... 

Thanks Terry..... I started Scrappy Stars the year before and those blocks are still being made (though mine are squares instead of Stars)...

I wanted to do some mindless piecing the other day so I made 11 more of these... I think I have all 81 that I wanted now

 and this year Terry is going to do a lovely nine patch/snowball one with scraps .... tempting????  My scrappy quilts are always very scrappy ....

Thanks Terry..... I love your sewalongs, scrappy makes and low stress

Righto, Gotto Go.... I have pinned a scrappy quilt which has been waiting a couple of years and want to get it quilted (Bonnie's Trip Around the World)

I always start the year trying to get some UFO's done...

Righto, Gotto Go.... quilt, quilt, quilt.... after coffee .....

Welcome to December.....

Woohooo.... December has started..... 3 weeks till my eldest daughter and her family arrive all the way from UK.... more than 2 years since I had a cuddle .....

First up is the December Charming Stars hosted by the Terrific Terry...

(ok... so I made these last month as I was on a roll!!!)

... now we are 16....

that's all the star blocks... sashing and corner stones is next....

It's going to be quite pretty I think.... and those stars will be fun to quilt...

Talking about quilting... I worked on my "Baby It's Cold Outside" quilt by Toni this week...

(have a look at the sneak peak of her latest Foxy quilt HERE)

In the ditch .... slowly but surely as I don't want the quilting to show in this one....

round the edges of all the details.... I used a grey thread in the colours

.. and white on the white so to hide it all....

I had bought some white damask on line... not realising it is printed on white (as opposed to woven in) .... can you see the holes it leaves where the needle goes in??

so I haven't quilted on the border either... just around the squares....

.... modern wadding doesn't need a lot of quilting to keep it together.... this design is fine just having the pictures highlighted and I'm happy with the texture that white gives without any additional holes added to it....

I used some wool (home felted) for the hats and scarves.... and there are buttons for the eyes so it's quite a textured and fun quilt.... I have the binding made up already in the blue star fabric...

I join up with Chookyblue's SSCS Christmas swap when I can and this year I sent off a parcel to Sylvia in Germany.....  she was allowed to open the ornament and this is what I sent... a candle mat of angels (she loves angels) and a bon bon full of chocolates.... lucky they didnt' melt before they left our land...

it's a fun swap and a great way to meet new people from around the world

 I have to hand stitch in the evenings ... not possible to sit still .... and this is one I have done on some linen .. a cute little stitchery by Michelle (she has hers displayed in her header - I love how she finished it off)

... now I am slow to decorate.... I think I got blessed with grinch genes???? last year we didn't put any up ... so this year I have started (since we have young visitors I should make the effort????) .. and I bought some sticks with lights on... and they have gone into my giant jug.... they look pretty... 

grinch be gone..... AND I have taken down the box of christmassy stuff.....

Righto, Gotto Go ..... I'll sew on that binding today... and hang up another decoration???

Charming Stars and a Recipe....

My four blocks for November

.... now we are 12 ......

these are coming together so prettily.... thanks to Terry for the idea and hosting us....

We had friends around recently and I wanted to make our meal a little bit festive ... so I made my version of Sherry Trifle.... easy peasy yummy scrummy (of course)

Buy a packet of those sponge finger biscuites... apply a thin coat of jam (apricot is my favourite) and place in a dish....

thoroughly soak with sherry .....

then place in your serving dish and layer some pieces of tinned peach over the top

then cover this all with custard... I like thick custard so it sits firm (my mum used to make her own and that was ultra delicious but mine always curdles ... and anyway you can buy very nice custard... full of preservatives etc)

... repeat... I do this a day before as it seems to make the flavours just nice...  by the way you should check the sherry is good....

Before serving I like a layer of whisked cream with a sprinkle of crushed maltezers and toasted almond slivers... (cherries etc... whatever blows your hair back)

There you have it.... a packet of biscuits, a tin of peach slices, a box of custard, a jar of cream, and as much sherry as you like.... (PS... I have made this child friendly using orange juice - it's nice too.. but not as nice)

My needleturn project is developing.... we have some petals now.... 

..... and the bluebirds quilt is having it's binding sewn down.... I love it 

Righto, Gotto Go... leftover trifle to eat, binding to finish, scraps to sew.....

October Charming Stars

These stars are pretty fun to make...

Thanks Terry for hosting this charming star sewalong

...  so now we are 8....

The Pattern for this fun quilt is found HERE on the Moda site..

On the hand stitching front I have done this cute stitchery by Anni Downs... it's for a bookmark.... someone asked me when I was doing it "Why would you want to do so much work for a bookmark?"  "Good question..... because I can!"

Crafters are a bit crazy aren't we?  but it's so much fun

This is from the book Anthea and Jeneta gave me... I love it...

I went to the Brisbane Craft Show yesterday... the best part was travelling with lovely friends and then meeting up with other lovely friends, the next best part was seeing an amazing array of quilts (they were celebrating 30 years so had winning quilts from other years there too .... I was too busy chatting to take pics!!! sorry for that)

Righto, Gotto Go.... today I seem to be very busy and achieving nothing.... 

September Charming Stars

Work has started on the Charming Stars Stitch Along hosted by Terry

In my view this is a 'Scrappy' style quilt... but definitely not a 'Scrap' quilt....

The free pattern is found HERE at the Moda Bake Shop site.. and thanks to Terry for the idea and encouragement - not too late to join if you want!

I am sewing a second line of stitching before cutting the star points on the edges and making up these HST squares.....  they will trim to 2" squares

The fabric is "Papillon" with an ivory Bella solid...

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

Our dear bloggy friend Shez had a birthday this last week and I sent her a pretty shabby chick sewing bag (Anni Downs pattern)... inside I put a hand towel (Shez makes heaps of these to send to others but doesn't make them for herself!!! and a knitted dishcloth.... I think they are very luxurious!)

picture pinched from Shez's blog - I forgot to take one!

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

I have one more square to crochet around for my fusion blanket ....

... then they all need to be joined together.... not sure about the size so I may be doing more!! 

... on the hand stitching front it has really been secret stuff... this is the theme....

... and I also need to make something from this.....

... but this weekend is my treat weekend... and I will be over here.... really looking forward to the Sunday as a number of bloggers and other friends will be there.....  a few 'naughty' tables methinks

Stitchers Dream Day Out

Spend a wonderful day (or two)
out with friends, old and new!

... SPECIAL GUESTS FOR 2014 ...

Libby Richardson (Art Smart Craft Cottage)Debbie Magee (Always Stitchin')

Righto, Gotto Go..... I know there is something I was supposed to do today - but I'm finding it hard to concentrate... just too excited!