WIP Week 3 - The start of a cat quilt.

Isn’t this the cutest print?? Its a range called Meow Magic from a lady called Edith Ellen. I brought it off ebay a few years back, it came with all the marching fabric from the range, it was a sample I think. I had the intention of making a baby quilt for one of the girls, well they are getting a bit old for that now and it has been sitting in the back of one of my storage tubs for ages. And now a girlfriends pregnacy is ending, I felt the urge to cut it up.


So I cut up 28 4 inch squares and thought I'd make those into a 4 patch and then alternate them with the larger squares. Something quick and simple. Here it is plonked on the felt wall, ready to sew the strips together. A bit busy maybe and not too sure about the yellow now I see it like this.....

And despite me starting a new project and saying that last weeks WIP had to be done, I haven't touched it since taking the photo for the blog! I got stuck back into my log cabins. I have added a 1 inch border of black tones, like below and then arranged the smaller log cabins around the outside. All I need now is to add another 1 inch border of black around the edges and then all finished! I am going to get this one professionally quilted. I want it to look nice. Well, nicer, you know what I mean. I haven't got enough of the black though, and am chasing some like the prints below. Any at your nearest Spotlight that you see, would you mind grabbing them for me! Pleassssseeee!

Australia Day Morning Cloud Vale Annual Darts Championship

This is a non sewing related post, just a warning! I married into a family that holds an annual dart championship! Well they try to make it an annual event but the last one was held back in December 2005. This year it was tied in with Australia Day which was yesterday, my favourite holiday of the year, but I had to work so it didn't seem like much of a celebration, today felt more like Australia Day, hot weather, beer at lunch time, swimming in the pool, yummy food and a dart championship!

Here we are about to start. Left to right, Daz, MIL, BIL#1, SIL, BIL#2, mate of BIL#2 and FIL getting ready to draw the names out of the hat to see who plays who. Its all official, a game plan is drawn up, if you win your round your through to round 2, if you loose you go to a loosers round and then you get another go, win that and your though to the other winners, loose and your out! Understand all that? I didn't really, just stepped up to the line when I was called! My path through the championship was quite simple. Straight out after 2 games! Not that I really minded as I could then just float in the pool with the girls. I haven't actually played darts since the last championship!

This was my view from the pool of the action. BIL#2 getting serious now wearing his sweat band!

Here we are having a break. The girls are half blood from a family of serious dart players, I think there is more chance of their name being on that throphy one day than mine! Can't wait! Happy Australia Day everyone!

Ekkkk! What a mess!

Doing a blog surf last night, as you do! I saw that Kylie had posted a photo of her messy work space! (I couldn't see the hat Kylie!) She found over at Sister's Choice Quilts there was a little comp going on for the messiest work space with the idea to play Eye Spy, 15 things to find. Okay, here goes.....

1. Sticky tape dispenser with no sticky tape in it!
2. Can of "air".
3. Zip lock bag of Jan Mullen scraps.
4. Zip lock bag of scraps for Grace's school craft stuff.
5. Pile of scraps for upcoming scrap swap with the EB Sewing Girls.
6. Blue Christmas baubles to write on before next Christmas.
7. A cardy of Milly's to fix before winter.
8. An overlocker!
9. A tube of freezer paper.
10. A length of dowel for a rod to hang a quilt from.
11. Two cutting boards, one flat, one upright!
12. A dust duster!
13. Post it notes.
14. Notes from friends when swaps have been received.
15. A tumble drier!

What a mess! I usually pride myself on working in a tidy spot cause as you see I have such a small space to work in. I call it my sewing room but it also goes by the name of laundry! I had a girlfriend over yesterday with her 2 son's to fix some dress up costumes and I was sewing away and she was standing at the door watching and commented that it is amazing I churn out the work I do in such a "compact" as she polietly put it, space! If you'd like to share a photo of your mess, pop into comments to let me know!

And just cause it is WIP Wednesday, a teaser photo of what is going on today. I am over log cabins, time to chat about something else. I have sewn all 27 or was it 28 that I needed, now I just have to lay them out and sew them together. But in the meantime I have to finish this too. I can't say any more about it, just that I have to finish it!

Barbie's Quilt.

Look at these two! Don't they just spell trouble! Santa brought Grace a Barbie Hot Tub Motorhome. I won't tell you what Daz calls it! Its pretty cool, it folds out to a little room and the fridge and microwave and other cupboards open up. There is a door at the end with a little toilet and on the other side is the hot tub which you pull down and you press a button and it plays a disco tune and lights flash. Just the place where every girl would like to hang out! Can you tell I like playing with it as much as Grace!

But it was missing one thing, a quilt. "Mummy, can you make Barbie a pretty quilt like the one you are making me?" was heard every time Grace walked in the sewing room. So I took one of the small log cabin blocks I am working on and made a little quilt for Barbie. My first finished quilt of the year! I have just left it all set up in the above shot for Grace in the lounge room so when she wakes in the morning and discovers it, she'll think it is Christmas again.


When I was quilting this, it was interesting as I felt excitied about quilting again. Haven't felt that for awhile. I was looking at the fabric thinking what to do, the possibilities excitied me. Only ended up doing straight echo stitching and sort of a star in the centre but it got me itching for more. Anyway, sleep tight Barbie!

WIP Wednesday Week 2 - Lots of log cabins!

More log cabins did you say? More?? Well here are 10 more! Taking the grand total of finished border log cabins too *drum roll please!* 11! Quick metal maths in my head tells me I still have 17 to go. Here's 10 below in various stages.

I do them in bits and peices, rather than cutting up 28 1.5 x 3 inch rectangles say and sew all them to their centre square, I'll start by maybe cutting 5 of one colour, sewing those, then on the next colour in that same log cabin. Then maybe when I have got a few layers in, I'll go back to the other ones that are still just a centre lonely square and start building them up. Does that make any sense??! Just keeps me from getting bored at sewing the same thing 28 times over, to do it in various stages. And with the two munchkins at home with school and day care not starting till next week and also next month, I'm interupted every 10 minutes anyway! I'm stoked too as I haven't had to buy any new material to make these, using up bits of scraps and starting of the year denting the stash.

Was thinking last night though, and I'll throw the idea out here into blogland. What about the idea of setting up a Work In Progress Wednesday group on Flickr? Everyone shows the finished quilt but quiltmaking is such a long journey, it would be nice to see some action shots of the journey along the way. Would having a WIP group encourage us to get those UFO's finished? What do you think? Would you join up? Interested to hear your thoughts blogging buddies.

WIP Wednesday - Week 1! - More log cabins...

My first WIP Wednesday post for 2008. I'm going to start the year by working on and finishing a quilt that will be staying in our house!

Okay, this is how Grace's quilt for her bed is looking at the moment, hanging up on my felt wall. There is a little bit more hiding behind the Horn cabinet there. Initially I thought I would just sew a 3 inch border of hot pink around it and wolah, all finished. But as it has been hanging there, I thought, nope that isn't enough, it needs more.

So I fiddled around and designed the above layout. It is 31 inches across for the two centre log cabins, so I can make 4 little log cabins of 7 inches with a bit left over inbetween which I'll fill in with a strip of black or maybe the colour inbetween each of the blocks? Unsure, work that one out when I have sewn the 28 blocks needed, make that 27 as I have just done the one below to see if my measurements are correct. 27? Thats a lot of WIP Wednesday posts coming up about log cabins! You have been warned!

Milly's new top!

I have rediscovered the joys of sewing clothes for the girls! It is just too hot to sew quilts here at the moment, I'm looking for something quick and easy to satisfy the sewing bug. I have made this style of top several times before, the last time here. She still wears this one although its nearly a year old, fits her nicely now. Funnily enough whenever Daz dresses the girls, he always picks out that top.

So this was just some cheap cotton from Spotlight, thought it would look cute with denim shorts. White though! Dressing a 3 year old in white is just asking for trouble but it looks so crisp and cool. When I tried it on her for the hem, she looked down and said "Oh Mummy, its perfect! Thank you! Thank you!" Which made me laugh, is this the child I once had to bribe with a lollypop to get a photo taken of her wearing the latest item I had made?!

Welcome to 2008!

Seems like ages since I posted last. Things have been busy over the New Year period, we went to Rottnest for a week. Its a tough life but someone has to live it! :) For those that don't know, Daz's folks work and live over at the island so we stay with them, we don't have a holiday house there, well unless I call their place our holiday home! The girls had a ball as always. They made friends with this quokka which we called Queenie, every afternoon it would come out by the front gate and the girls would pick leaves off a climbing geranium plant and feed her. Not the quokka's natural diet I am sure!


Our mornings were spent at the beach, with the girls brightly coloured bathers, the sparkling water and endless sunshine, I was taking photos in all directions. I love the above shot of Milly, she is so hard to catch in a photo at the moment and here she is rolling her hands around and around each other like we are trying to teach her to do in the water to swim. She was doing it, then walked out with her hands still going!

This was my view from the beach. Lots of fancy boats in the bay as its peak holiday season there, we would just dream about which one we would like to own. Grace stomping on another sand castle moments after she has finished it. Milly wadding back in cause her hat has blown off. And Daz lying back in the water, maybe holding a beer? I can't work out if he was in this shot, but most likely yes!

And this is Daz's veiw from the water back to the beach, me huddled under the umbrella! I do venture in the water but I burn so easily and prefer kicking back on my little beach chair watching the action. I did read Jodi Picoult's Second Glance which at first I was struggling getting into then after 2 days had finished it. Milly is a girl after my own heart, she gets tired of the water before Grace and is happy to sit on the chair next to me before its time to load the pram up with all our stuff and walk the 5 minute stroll back to the house.

So a lazy week of hanging at the beach, reading, feeding quokka's, eating and drinking too well was had by all. Absolutely no sewing! Kind of lost the sewing mojo at the moment. I have a top for Milly in progress which is slowly coming there. Bring on 2008 I say!

2007 Quilt Review

Well its that time of the year again, Christmas is over, time to start thinking about what project to get stuck into next. Time to reflect over what one has made through the year. Last year it was these quilts here. This year, there is a few more....

Started out a busy January making the one above for a dear blogging buddy Cass's second daughter Lucy. I love this chicken print, very bright and vibrant.

Also in January, this one for the girls Family Day Care carer who was about to have her own baby. I am quite excitied as that was nearly a year ago and she is starting up her Family Day Care again which I can sent Milly to her again instead of the place she goes to once a week now.

Then in March I finished this one for another friend that had her second baby, a little boy named Hugo, cot sized. Terrible photo sorry. Old dodgy camera.

In May I finished another cot sized one for an online buddy who had her second baby. Used up quite a few blue scraps making this one!

And then in August I finally finished this one for another friend who had her second son, baby Elliott. One of my favorites this quilt. I was scared of using the white at first but I think it worked perfectly!

Also in August I finshed this Dissappearing 9 Patch quilt for another online buddy who had her fourth child, a boy after 3 girls, was just so happy for her to sew this one.

September saw the wrap up of a Raggedy Edges lap sized quilt.

October saw me finish Caitlin's quilt. One of the girls in my "real life" Mothers Group had her second child, a girl, little Caitlin.


November saw the unveiling of two dolls quilts as part of a swap organized with the EB Quilters. A fun swap!

December sent me into a spin, deciding to make two lap sized quilts as thank you presents for Grace's kindy teacher and her assistant. The above one was for the teacher, Mrs K.

And then this one for the assistant teacher which I pulled out all stops to finish in 19 days! Thank goodness for charm square packs and the stunning simplicity of Dissappearing 9 Patches!

Phew! I think that was all! While I was going through all my posts gathering these photos and working out when I had made them, I realized that a lot of my friends have had babies this year and not one of these quilts has stayed in my house! 2008 I am going to finish a single bed sized quilt for both of the girls and finally finish my own queen sized quilt. That is the goal for 2008!

Christmas Craft and Lights.

No WIP Wednesday today. Actually its on holidays till January next year. There is simply too much going on at the moment to sew! I feel like a slack blogger too. Daz is on holidays at the moment, so I have stepped into the full time working role at my work. Which at first seemed like a great idea but today was day 5 of 9 to 6 and I'm over it! Can't wait for Christmas just to have a break! Daz and the girls have been having a ball, every day I have come home to a trashed house and dirty faces, they are loving it! We took them last night to see some Christmas lights not too far from our place. This cul de sac has won the award for best Christmas Lights 4 years in a row! It was like peak hour traffic last night at 9pm, but the girls loved it!

Haven't really mentioned in here, but Grace has finished kindy. Last Thursday was her final day. Next year it will be full time pre primary, she is growing up and already looking foward to the "big kids school". She came home with lots of goodies, two huge scrap books of all the work she has done this year and a box of Christmas craft. She does love her craft! Hmmm, wonder where she gets that from!

My Christmas Swap from Leah

Look at all these lovely goodies that I recieved in the mail from Leah as part of the EB Sewing Girls Christmas Swap! Talk about spoilt! A copy of the wonderful Patchworking & Quilting mag, which I don't have! A cute pincushion, made by you Leah? Some lovely Christmas material, some sweet iron on transfers of little retro maids kinda like Holly Hobbie, a childhood favourite. A handstitched little Christmas hanging of a very trim Santa! I showed Grace and her comment was "Look at his small legs! Is that really Santa?" And lastly a very genourous 10 fat flats from Spotlight. You spoilt me with 10 Leah, lovely choice of colours too, right up my pallette alley! Thank you for everything and also thank you for organizing this swap too, great work!

Was thinking about all the swaps we have done this year. We have had the Valentines Day swap in February. The Kitchen Swap in April where I scored some lovely goodies from Cass. The Dress Up Swap in July from Kerry. Those are Milly's faourite shoes Kerry! And finally the Bag Swap in October from Bec. Such a great way to share with such a lovely group of ladies. Wonder what 2008 will hold for us in the world of sewing swaps?

WIP Wednesday - Week 48 - Santa Photo.

Okay, its not technically a sewing WIP, but still this is a WIP! It will take me 3 photos and about 6 visits to various Santa's around different shopping centres to get Matilda warmed up to the jolly man in red till I get a snap of her also on his knee! When this one was taken last week she was crouching behind the pram wailing "can we go home now!" Grace mean while walked up to him cool as a cucumber and asked for a Barbie motor home please! She has been wary of him too these last two years so it is lovely to share such a beautiful photo of her with Santa.

19 Day D9P finished!

I did it! The 19 day quilt challenge I set myself back here, finished! I think the fact that all my squares were already cut cut a huge chunk of time off. I was up too 12.30 last night finishing sewing on the label. I redid Mrs K's one from the last post, same image exactly, luckily it was still on the computer. I'm doing a different label technique now as on Saturday night we went to friend's for tea, the family who's little boy got this quilt. And I gave that to him in August and despite it not being washed, the label is all bubbling and cracking and peeling off from the fabric I had ironed it on! How embarrassing! I'm not too sure what went wrong as the labels I have done the same way at home here and have had for a few years are fine. But anyway, no more Tshirt transfer film for me, I am going the printable fabric way, using this here.

Anyway, slight ramble off the subject, sorry! Today was the last day of kindy for me. Grace's last day is on Thursday but Daz will be doing the kindy run as I'll be at work. Seems like this year has flown by, no more kindy runs till 2009 when Milly starts. Such a PITA when we started but one got used to it. So being the last day, decided to give the teacher and her assistant their quilts this morning. They didn't open it while I was there, popped it under the tree and said thank you and gave me a kiss as I thanked them for all their hard work. Drivng away I felt a tiny bit dissappointed that I wasn't there when they opened it. On one hand its nice to see the persons face when they recieve a quilt, on the other hand its kinda embarrassing all the gushing of "Wow did you make that?" from other people.

When Milly and I came back for the pick up, they had opened them and were all smiles and thank you's! Grace said they sat around the Christmas tree and Mrs K opened all her pressies and "when she opened mine, I had to go to the front and she gave me a big cuddle and said thank you and said she liked it very much". Awwwww!

Week 47 - WIP Wednesday - Mrs's K's quilt finished

Well its not technically a WIP, as this quilt is finished! I finished Mrs K's quilt last night. Which means I can sigh with relief, phew, only one more quilt to go before the end of term. I am pleased with this one. Not at all my usual colour palette but I like it. And without beating my own drum too much, I am chuffed that with each quilt I finish, my skill is a little better, not that many tucks where I haven't smoothed the fabric down! I took it up and showed Mum last week when I was still sewing down the binding, and started to show her the faults in it. She waved it off saying "If Mrs K isn't a quilter, she won't notice!"


I love the back too! Not only cause the quilting itself shows up nicely, but cause thats where the label is! How cool is this label? I got Grace to draw a picture of Mrs K, here she is in her garden with her pretty flowers (jumping for joy as the school year is nearly over I think!). I then photographed it, went into Photoshop and added the type, then printed it out on my usual tshirt transfer way and then blanket stitched it on. I used Joy's tip of vizeofixing it into place which worked well.

Now all I have to do is wrap it and get Grace to keep it a secret till we give it to her on Monday.