piccies of finished christmas lovelies

this is my brothers quilt before it was finished, that was me checking out just how big it is. now of course it is finished

this is my sisters quilt the night after it was completed, i lay it on the lounge room floor to double check everything and cut threads

this is the card i made my father (he has a thing about handmade cards) its the newest craft ive tried called Pickpoint

this is the gift i recieved from one of the forum ladies for christmas. she made it herself

the completed tablerunner and this months hexi

this is the finished tablerunner. or what it will look like in about an hour when the last 5 hexis are added. i took 2 pics so you could see the designs on some of the hexis.

also this is the hexi i made for Vicki on the forum yesterday. the idea for the design came to me in the shower oddly enough. either way i hope she likes it. i have seen a pic of the one she is sending me and it is beautiful.

crafty deadlines

theres just over a week til christmas and i still have 3 gifts to finish making as well as stitching my hexi for this months swap.

i have to back/frame 9 more hexis and join them together for the tablerunner - theres 24 in total

i have to join my sisters 24 squares/blocks for her quilt. i have 2 rows of 4 together but the rest are in ones and twos and the rows need to be joined also.

i need to pull my brothers quilt out of the storage bag it is currently in as well as a the fabric i stashed in there when i was moving in the hopes there would be enough to make the border for his centrepiece.

while i want to finish hand sewing the table runner first i do still need to stitch a hexi design for Vicki. fortunately i have informed her of this and she is to be sending to me too so neither of us are in a huge rush.

phew, huge sigh. im a bit exhausted just listing those things. i am very keen to finish my projects tho and realise the visions i had...quite a while ago for the quilts at least.

off to carols by candlelight at the local public high school that is put on every year by the christian churches in our area. i wonder if anyone would notice if i took my sewing with me.....

christmas blog bingo

In Stitches is doing a round of christmas blog bingo so these are my 25 words so i remember where i put them and can cross them off.   http://the-quilt-shoppe.blogspot.com/ thats where the bingo words will be listed each day.

  

1. little drummer boy.

2. hallelujah chorus

3. magic

4. wreath

5. quilt

6. bethlehem

7. snowflake

8. sparkle

9. spirit

10. angel

11. nativity

12. charity

13. peace

14. chocolate

15. mistletoe

16. bells

17. star

18. elves

19. movies

20. games

21. stocking

22. carols

23. choir

24. church

25. Christ's birth

Christmas shopping Done!! no more crowds for me

yup its official. just a short post to say how thrilled i am to not have to brave the shopping centres again before christmas. i may still end up going with my mum or sister to help them with gifts later but it wont be in sydney so it will automatically be better.

i still have 3 gifts to finish sewing for my younger brother and sister and my MIL but everything else is purchased or crafted and with the exception of the last 2 i bought today even wrapped, WOOT!

Angel Tablerunner

As some of you are aware I am making a framed hexagon table runner for my MIL. It is angel themed and will end up on her dining table in the front room that doesnt get used all that often so she can leave it on year round, that is also why I made it in purples, blues, creams and whites. This is where Im at so far. In that pic , some of the designs are still pinned but ive actually finished them since then. Im still short a few designs and 4 hexis of angel patterned fabric that im still waiting on from a friend but everything is all planned out so im happy with it. will post another pic when its finished

packing, sewing and babysitting

so long long story I am moving out, however I don't actually have anywhere to move into yet. The plan for the moment is to stay with my brother until Christmas when I'll stay with my family like I normally do for all the church services and christmas carols. After that I'll look for somewhere else to live, that means however that all my belongings need to be put into storage. so for the next few days I'll be packing my things while doing some Christmas sewing by hand. My brothers girlfriend is in the process of starting a job so they're expecting me to babysit their son too.Wow so fun.

WIPs

this is the bob the builder playmat im making for my nephew. sadly its not done yet, i need to finish the binding on the other two sides and it will be finished. im taking it down to mums this week and will use her machine.

this is the quilt in a day from a few posts ago, not quite finished either, it has been put aside while i do christmas stuff, i just need to hand stitch the long blue side and fix that bit in the bottom right corner if you can see it

FNSI, sewing up a storm

since my exam finished friday afternoon I have been sewing like crazy, both by hand and machine. there is a list of christmas gifts that need to be finished off and now that I have oodles of time I can finish them.

so far I have made a Bob the Builder cushion cover for my nephew and a reversible Bob/rainbow bricks playmat to match. I have also been working on the remaining squares for my sisters quilt.

however while I was on this roll, my sewing machine had a hissy fit and isnt working. whos surprised???

for some reason the bobbin is not moving at all, ive rewound it, used different bobbins, rethreaded the machine and it just wont catch at all, it wont even move. guess who has to take yet another trip into spotlight to sort it out?? not happy.

in the mean time I still have hand sewing to do in jess's quilt not to mention the table runner i told you about in my last post. i am disappointe though, i got half way around the binding of the playmat when it spazzed out and i assumed it was just because i went over a thick bit but apparently not. sad.

off to continue with my productiveness...and contemplate the idea of making apple crumble

this months hexi/christmas project

I decided to make a framed hexagon table runner for my MIL as a Christmas gift. It is angel themed cuz she loves angels but Im not making it in Christmas colours so she can use it year round should she choose too. Im doing it in white, silver and pale purples and blue. Will keep posting my progress on here. For now though, this is my first/practice/swap hexi. My hexi partner this month likes angels so I figured I'd try out my new threads and practice my angel design on her hexi. This was the end result:

another giveaway plug

on fat quarterlys facebook page they are giving away some fantastic rainbow coloured fabrics.

check out the profile here: http://www.facebook.com/FatQuarterly

retromummy: sweet broderie giveaway

read about this giveaway and cant stop drooling over these fabrics. 14 FQs in pinks, yellows, greens with florals and other really pretty patterns. i want i want i want.

check them out here retromummy: sweet broderie giveaway

i found a dress i found a dress!!!!!!!

went out shopping with hubby dearest today so was in a particularly good mood and was actually prepared to try on dresses. oddly enough i found a really nice one in best and less.despite the fact the service was shocking and the people working their 'forgot' i was in there and locked me in, i really wanted this dress and part of me wanted to rip into the manager for the lousy service anyway.

planning to wear it to my nephews christening in december so will get someone to take a picture of me with the cute one so i can post on here of the bubby and the dress

my sisters quilt

obviously its not finished yet but that was me laying out what i had so i could cut out the extra fabric i needed

latest jewellery creations

this is a necklace i designed for a friend to match her dress for a wedding. it also matches the bracelet below that i  made her last week as a christmas gift

this months hexi

this is the framed hexagon i stitched for sue

strip quilt

this is the quilt im putting together for my younger brother. Hes quite a tall fellow and actually has a queen bed cuz he cant fit in a single so im making a king sized quilt for him. this is the centre of it. im unsure at the moment how i'll border it but at least its a start.

summer dress

so despite the fact that i bought supplies for my advent swap yesterday and really should start wrapping gifts, i also bought fabric - surprise surprise and have started making a summer dress. its going quite well so far, better than expected. as always its a bit difficult to get the back to sit right and alter it while im wearing it but im happy with it. photos to come. its made from a floral patten in pinks, yellows, blues and greens. i have the bottom sorted and now am putting the straps on by hand

busy busy busy

i have spent the last week up to my elbows in craft of all sorts. i crocheted a pair of really cute slippers for my nephew and a matching hat but they were a bit small. the hat i was able to lengthen but the boots i have to start from scratch with. other than that ive been catching up on my writing to a friend in Scotland and working on Advent gifts for the craft forum Im a part of.

i went shopping last week for more supplies to try out some things ive been interested in and tomorrow im going out again for a couple of extra things and to try my luck with a summer wardrobe. i believe a trip to the big Sallies shop on the way to Westfield is in order. That way when i get stuck buying clothes im not 100% happy with and most likely will have to alter i dont have to get frustrated about spending stupid amounts of money just because i dont have a model figure. clothing designers and manufacturers are seriously kidding themselves if they think a prototype is going to fit everyone.

the general idea is to see what i can get at sallies and then probably try some things on in the clothing shops in town to see what works and what doesnt and then i can decide whether to buy or just make a simpler version for cheaper. the problem is finding clothes to suit my shape. apparently they are hidden...i just havent worked out where yet so am forced to wear ill-fitting clothes that make me feel unattractive and do bugger all for my self esteem. hence why i spend a lot of time in comfy t-shirts and daggy pants. oh for a dress that sat beautifully and made me feel girly, the things i would do for a dress like that.

well thats enough about my clothing frustrations. as for the advent gifts so far i have some things im quite happy with including things ive never made before. i have a few craft supplies and some beaded christmas ornaments as well as a set of wine charms. theyre really cute. after ive done some more ill post some pictures. fortunately my partners travelling atm so wont be checking out my blog anytime soon.

pictures to come but for now time for bed and looking forward to tomorrow when i hopefully get my new mobile delivered STUPID OPTUS and go shopping. good night world :)

FINALLY uploading pics of past projects

This is some of my beaded work on my nifty coat hanger device to keep everything from getting tangled (bane of my existance). When I say 'some' I mean this is what's left after 4 years of beading, everything else has been gifted or sold. However I'll be pulling my beads back out later this weekend so we'll see what comes about.

This quilt is only small, not even cot sized because it was my very first attempt at making a quilt and it was all by hand. Cutting done before I bought a rotary cutter and everything sewn together and quilted with needle and thread on my couch. Which is ok because now it lives on my couch to keep my legs warm.

Now wait for it....side 2

I have a relatively small fabric collection in comparison to those of you who have more money and space but because I tend to come across things I like in the bargain bin at Spotlight I have lots of different fabrics in small amounts.

So when I designed this quilt I wanted random colours and placement for the different sizes of block. Hubby dearest on the other hand dislikes frayed edges and likes everything uniform i.e. he suggested all the small squares be one colour, large ones another and rectangles different again. So I compromised and made it reversible to make us both happy.

hexis i have received so far

I recieved this hexi in august from Celine

This one came from linda in September.

As you can see my theme is purple, stars and butterflies. Blue is listed too but i havent recieved a blue one yet but thats ok cuz i LOVE purple

good intentions

i had intended to blog again about 3 days ago and post a picture of my beaded work and my hand pieced and quilted lap quilt....it didnt happen. ive been spending a bit of time lately working on my fitness and eating habits as well as trying to get some research together for a 3000 word essay i have due monday. so between trying to understand st Augustine and his relationship to roman civics and minding my back ive been somewhat busy. I then spent last night and this morning helping hubby dearest move, packing many boxes and pointing removalists in the right direction.

well now that ive posted to say im still alive and kicking im off to have lunch and then carry on with the research. pictures will come eventually...maybe next week or when the essays finished whichever comes first

my fantastic granny square bag, still need to do the handles and lining but am definitely happy with it so far

it can be done!!!

so this is me admitting defeat. not because it cant be done only because i physically couldnt finish it. i put the top together beautifully, its about single bed topper size in a roman coins style. the problem came when i pinned the three layers together to sandwich. because im doing it the cheaters way - think how youd put a quilt cover on a doona, you have to layer the batting, the back and then the top -right sides facing. but i stuffed up and put the backing on last, so when i went to turn it right side out the batting was on the outside and the backing was in the middle, OOPS.

so i then had to unpick it and repin it by which point my back was in major pain and still is. so now i have a quilt with 2 sides together still sitting at my machine and im in bed trying not to cough or sneeze cuz it hurts even more when i do.

i will finish it...in a few days i guess when i can sit up straight, stupid back!! grr

quilt in a day

so as i've mentioned before im into quilting at the moment and recently got myself a sewing machine (looong long story, bad very bad) but im yet to actually finish a quilt on the machine. ive done applique on squares for a quilt for my sister and put together some clothes but havent done a full quilt. partly due to time and my laziness and fear of cutting fabric and also because i dont have a whole lot of room and cant really leave my machine set up 24/7 so i have to be ready to go before i will pull it out.

i envy those women in tutorials who say 'oh this old thing, it only took me a day' so i look at all these patterns and say well yea for you, you have far more experience than I. so I went searchin AGAIN online for a 'quilt in a day' wonder job i could try because i really think that if i got just one finished id be more inclined to keep at the other projects i have going one square at a time. so i found a tut on 'cloud 9' will post the link later. its only a cot size but it can and most probably will be adapted but its relatively easy and i look forward to getting into it. the only quilt i have so far is one i made by hand before i got my machine, its very nice , probably only cot sized as well but because it has frayed edges its not really appropriate. but i like it, its double sided and hangs on the back of my couch and occasionally changes sides just to confuse people. really should post a pic of that too.

well wish me luck. hopefully this time tomorrow there will be a blog of me basically jumping up and down saying YAY

dressmaking

so ive been altering my own clothes for years by hand but at christmas was using mums machine to make some clothes from scratch, nothing too exciting just a pair of thai fishermans pants and a peasant skirt. since purchasing my own machine ive made another pair of the same pants and just yesterday made a wrap skirt which i will eventually post a picture of.

when looking online for hemming options for said skirt cuz its a full circle and im scared of it i came across many tuts for altering skirts to make dresses (which i already know how to do) but came across a maxi dress tut on youtube, of course that particular dress would be a waste of time because unlike the gorgeous model i actually have curves. but it did make me think of the blue free form dress pattern i found back in december so i went looking for it again and am determined to make it, hopefully next weekend after buying fabric. however looking at all the altering videos made me think of the jacket and denim skirt i started...a while ago that are sitting in a box outta sight that i really should finish now i have a machine.

however im working on wool stuff at the moment, finishing off blankets im making for vinnies and dont really want to move on until im done with them. then of course is the small matter of uni...hmmmm perhaps i need to adjust my priorities slightly....or not

framed hexagons

so for a while now i have been doing quilting stuff. i have started a quilt as you go single bed quilt for my sister and have done other ones for charity and have many things in the works and on my to do list. i joined a forum about 6 months ago thats all about crafts so ive been able to talk to other people doing the same things. i recently joined a hexagon swap for quilt as you go also referred to as framed hexagons. i was sent the template and contact list and got very excited about the idea. so i designed and completed my hexi but sadly it didnt make it through the post to my partner so instead im just posting a picture on the forum for her and will make her another one next month.

why blog?

So I haven't quite figured out yet why people do blog but I think a lot and talk a lot and I figure blogging is an alternative to posting on facebook or in forums. This way if you want to read you may and if not that works too.

The other thing to mention is that I don't have a set topic to blog about hence the 'all about stuff'. Which basically means this blog should consist of craft, movies, music, food, random rants, annoyance about the world in general and peoples inability to think for themselves and about others and anything else that crosses my path.

Enjoy

In the words of Fagan,
Be Back Soon