Nate's Quilt...

It's been like a race to the finishing line the past weekend with another quilt done and dusted - a bit bigger this time - 53" square (or thereabouts, didn't re-measure it but that's what I think it was)...

The backing fabric was found at Sew Bright Alpine Quilting when Jindi & I went up to Bright for four days back in November, right after the top was put together. It was all that was left on the bolt and I calculated that it should be "just enough if but maybe a bit squeezy"...well, the bit squeezy came into play. After piecing to the side and one end there was a bit of a missing piece...a bit of lateral thinking and...

The closest I generally come to a label...a patch!...nicer than piecing scraps of the backing fabric to fill the space...

It washed up all nice and crinkly cuddly...I rolled it, tied it with a red ribbon (and forgot the photo of that bit!) and went back to work today with it under my arm to deliver to the intended recipient's Daddy. Almost constitutes a speed quilt in my world - the intended recipient is only 3 months old and already it has been delivered...

Happy Stitching..

Barnabas Presents...

I've had a few of Kathleen Tracy's books of small quilts for a long time and for quite a while I've thought about joining her on-line group to take up her monthly challenge...she chooses a quilt from one of her books each month and puts that to her group to make. Finally, in the closing days of 2013, I got my act together enough to at least put in the request to join the group - the first step! The challenge for January was the Bear's Paw in her book, Prairie Children and Their Quilts.  This is both the first book of Kathy's that I bought and one of my favourite blocks - time to act!  I added an element of my own to the challenge - it had to be made entirely from scraps...no cutting into fat quarters or metreage or anything that wasn't in the scrap boxes (yes, boxes plural, sad isn't it *LOL*) with the exception of the backing...and I managed that...with even the backing coming from a piece of fabric that I had "inherited", thanks Rosie's friend Annie (MHDSRIP)...

Friday it was raining so what better time to start playing with fabric...machine pieced and quilted, washed/dried and all done by Sunday afternoon...

Barnabas insisted that as this was a Bear's Paw quilt it was only fitting that he be in the photo...

 

I do have to thank my 6-12 friend Barb for gifting me a shop paper bag full of what she called scraps (our definition differs wonderfully in my favour!) that included the pieces I was able to cut the borders from (as well as quite a few of the other fabrics used in this little quilt).  I had a moment or two of terror when the chocolate scrap I chose for the binding wasn't going to be workable (not enough of it - darn) but a dig around found some scraps of a darker chocolate that worked - instead of milk chocolate binding it has dark chocolate 70% yum!...

First challenge met...now to wait out the suspense of which quilt Kathy will chose for February...

Happy Stitching...

A New Puppy...

Well a felt one that is…

Last year at Summer School one of Karen's (the tutor) friends especially came to visit and kindly took orders for custom made items to be collected at this year's Summer School.  This post here shows the lovely birdie she made that I won at last year's Summer School.

I ordered…well…um…well…something…I knew I ordered something…had absolutely no idea what it was…simply could not remember if it was one thing or five or what it/they might be…so figured, surprise!

On the way to Katoomba on Tuesday I called in at Blackheath to say hi to Karen and she gave me my Alex goodie bag…inside wrapped in a sheet of dressmaking pattern tissue….O.M.G. what a fabulous surprise…

 How Gorgeous…I just LOVE IT…

Strike a pose...

With a twirl…

Haven't given him a name yet…he is a Scot so mmmm…ha ha a bit of Scot/Gaelic name research and I think this may be pawfect…

Pàrlan (m)

Tr

PAWR lun

from Hebrew Bartholemew, "son of Talmai (abounding in furrows)"

Bartholemew

Stitchy and puppy all in one…so that's it…meet Pàrlan…too fabulous to stick pins in, he is looking forward to helping out in the sewing room supervisory department…

Happy Stitching...

Summer School Workshop 1...

Setting off from Yass Tuesday morning a few hours of meandering through the mountains from Goulburn to Crookwell to Oberon across to the Great Western Highway bought Jindi and I to Katoomba, the destination until Tuesday next week for five days of play at Summer School 2014.

Yesterday concluded the first two day workshop.  Split into two x two day workshops and one sit & sew day I have chosen to just do one quilt this year - May Baskets, a lovely English style medallion quilt.  Wednesday I prepared the centre square background fabric and made templates and chose a couple of the fabrics for the appliqué. For me, that was actually a whole lot of achievement in class.  Day 2's task was to start the tessellated first border and work on a corner...I actually sewed! In class!! Miraculous *LOL*

There was one…

 Then two…

  Then three…

Ready to be joined together and create the first corner…

A few lovelies have found their way into the fabric pile...

The little bundle tied up with string is from Karen's Sewing Room (the tutor made up some bundles from her own fabrics) and the others from a very successful trip down the mountain with Summer School buddy "S" to Glenbrook and the awesome treasure trove that is Post Office Patchwork, which as can clearly be seen did not disappoint - especially with a 50% off most fabrics sale! The paisley (paisley? really? me? so not a paisley lover but this one just wouldn't take no for an answer) is to form part of the outer border of May Flowers and the stripe had just the right amount left on the bolt for the backing.  The selection of 30cm strips (which I've washed but not ironed hence the raggedy look going on there) are to fill out the fabric selections for the various components of the quilt top.

Sit & sew day today with Workshop 2 over the weekend….three more days of fun, fabric, food, laughter, sitting and general happy…and maybe even a little more progress on May Baskets!

Happy stitching...

Jindi Climbs A Mountain...

The human had been making "we are going on a summer holiday noises" for a few days and finally on Saturday, after much pfaffing about with getting flat tyres fixed and what not, we get in the car and we go for a loooonnnnngggg drive all the way up the road to New South Wales and stay at a place called Yass, then the next day she puts me back in the car (I loooove going for rides in the car) and we go to the ACT to see our friends E, R & I.

E thought it would be fun to go for a walk so we climbed a mountain (only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun? well these two humans are mad and I'm just the dog who gets hauled along for the ride!).

 Here's me at the start...

 Going up a bit of a hill...

 A maggie being sensible and taking a rest in the shade...

 We are up high but not quite there yet...

 At the top!…855 metres - UP!

Whew! Time for a rest…there is a kind "water boy" who keeps bowls and water jugs at the top for canine climbers, I had drinks on the way up but it was good to have a big slurp…

And then we climbed back down, much easier and faster downhill!!

Now we are in the Blue Mountains while the human plays sewing with her friends at Summer School.

Woofs and licks…

Jindi...

First Project for 2014...

I raced into Spotlight a couple of days before Christmas to buy a zip and came across a display of portable light boxes with a 30% off sign…I've looked at these so often but the $99.00 price tag meant look but don't touch…30% off, now that was something I could work with…so, Merry Christmas to Me!!!!…

The light box itself is quite thin and takes up very little space but the cardboard box it came in, not so much…a solution was required...

Some old old fabric found in the stash boxes and ta dah!...a quilted pouch…with a pocket added for the electric cord...

Less space to store and easy to pop into the crafty basket to take to quilty happenings…

First finish for 2014 and only five days in...this was what I went into the sewing room to make when I got distracted and made a cup bag instead...

Oh and the zip? Safe and sound in the same state I bought it home in…but hey, at least I have it now for when that project yells loud enough...

Happy Stitching...

Happy New Year 2014!!!

How can it be January again already, there haven't been enough months in between...I think we are being tricked and Christmas was in October but anyway...Happy New Year!!! (in November. What? Not November? January? Really? Oh OK)...

So to everyone in blogland...
Happy New Year...Godt Nyttår...Gott Nytt År...Bonne année...
Onnellista uutta vuotta...Athbhliain faoi mhaise daoibh... Tau Hou Ka hari... 
Blwyddyn Newydd Dda...Gelukkig Nieuwjaar...Glückliches neues Jahr...
 
Happy Stitching in 2014...2014, can't be, wandering off shaking head now...2014, ridiculous, it was 2000 just a year or two back...2014, mad I tell you, mad!...