Saturday 30 May 2009

A happy half term

well half term is nearly over, big G has only got half a term left of pre-school before he starts school in September (i can't think that far ahead at the moment - the thought just scares me too much)

we've had a lovely week, i have enjoyed watching new fabric drying in the breeze, (ensuring i get it down the second it's dry - don't want those colours fading)
sitting down for a few moments to indulge in some reading,& plan some new projects (i love this part almost as much as finishing them)& watching the little ones spend some time having fun with daddy!
(& catching my breath at just how quickly this little one is growing)

Thursday 21 May 2009

Red Letter Day

look what arrived in the post today- some of Lizzy House's 'red letter day' fabric
& i love it! brought from this etsy seller
i only brought the fatQ set in the pond colourway, so not a huge amount, but i do have plans for this, having thought i would put the sewing machine away for a (short) time, it may just have to stay out on the dining table a little longer, as this fabric is already in the machine for a wash & i'm keen to get the scissors out this afternoon, (children permitting!)

this is my last fabric purchase (for now) but i do have one last batch to share, just need to get round to taking a photo of it!

Tuesday 19 May 2009

Getting there

I can see the end in sight!, this lap quilt has taken me soooooooooo long, (getting on for a year now!)
i have fallen in & out of love with it on the way, but am happily back in love with it again & am speeding on with the binding as i'm looking forward to snuggling up with it soon.
i do love how the hand quilting looks (even the uneven stitches) but not sure i'll be doing the next one by hand, it just took me too long!

Sunday 17 May 2009

Wash out

At 9:30 this morning i was helping to put up a marquee in the pouring rain, thinking i must be mad! (having already sewn a length of bunting at about 7am!) the sun appeared for a few hours & the rain stayed away just long enough for the procession to make it through the village & onto the green,
Our pre-school were all dressed up as 'Alice in wonderland' characters, & we (a few of the parents) had spent weeks preparing for the float, i had sewn an outfit for G, he had chosen to be one of the queen of hearts guards (with a little persuasion from me)
along with aprons & table cloths i had made & about 65 cookies i baked! so much work had gone into today, not just our pre-school, but everyone involved, and after about half an hour, the heavens opened & the rest of the afternoon was a washout, such a shame!, so we consoled ourselves by coming come with cakes, to have with nice warming cups of tea, (& a big sigh of relief from me that the day was over)

Wednesday 13 May 2009

'Wonderful' fabric

I fell in love this fabric a while ago & almost ordered some from the states, but look,

i found some on this side of the pond, i went for a few charm packs this time (less work cutting out & also stops me having to choose just a few of the prints)
i also got some to become part of the backing! i couldn't resist. It's unlikely i will get round to actually doing any sewing on this for a while, (especially as the little one has started crawling!) but i keep getting it out to look at, as it's just so lovely.
(brought from one of my favourite shops here)

should also have mentioned that the fabric i used for the quilt in my last post was mostly Amy Butler, brought from this lovely lady

I will be back with more lovely fabric soon, i've been buying more than i should have lately, but my maternity pay finishes this month, so thought i'd better get it in now, whilst i can!

Monday 11 May 2009

A little quilt

This little pile has becomethis little quilt & should (hopefully) be just the right size for the little doll it's intended for.
Also the finished owl wall hanging ( minus the new babies details - sorry about the rather hashed job i did on erasing them) i've got a very busy week preparing for our village fete this weekend, fancy dress outfits to sew, biscuits for bake sales to make, 'Alice in wonderland' themed float to help paint/create, please all keep your fingers crossed that the sun will be shining on Sunday.

hope to be back soon with some more fabric goodness!

Wednesday 6 May 2009

Stitchy

For a while now I have enjoyed trying my hand at little pieces of embroidery & thanks to Katy having a book destash, I've got my hand on a copy of doodle stitching to inspire me to do a little more.
thought i might share a few bits i have done already,this is a picture of something i made my mum for Christmas (as they have a place in Italy, hence our recent trip out there!)
This was an experiment on some felt i had made, i loved it so much it's now hanging in my kitchen.
& this is a little snippet of something I've made recently, can't show it all as it's on it's way to a new baby (whose mummy i know reads my ramblings from time to time, so don't want to spoil any surprises!) as you can see it's not the finished piece, I'll share that next week, once i know it's arrived safely!

Friday 1 May 2009

Shrit dress

When i saw this dress tutorial over on Dana's blog, i knew i wanted to make one, so cute & it looked quite easy to do. So armed with my bargain gingham shirt i picked up at a local Carboot sale i set to work.

And ta da!
Now if you checked out the link above, you might be wondering where the sleeves have gone,
well i could fib & say this is how i had planned it all along, but sadly not, whilst my sewing skills might be improving slowly, my pattern drawing skills are not!I just couldn't get those sleeves right, so in a flash of inspiration (frustration more like) i just cut them off & popped some elastic in as they were & how lucky i am they turned out pretty good! (& that it looks like the sun will be shining for few days)unfortunately little O was asleep by this time & so i couldn't try it on her before fixing the elastic, so i should have made it a little tighter, but heh, it does fit her & looks pretty cute to me.If only she'd stay still long enough for my to get a good shot of her in it! Think i might have to make a little pair of shoes to match, seeing as i have plenty of shirt left over.