Christmas Through the Year

I can't believe how busy everyone has been leaving comments on my blog. I love it but I am being a bit slow in replying and now I am posting about my second Christmas item and all the lovely ladies in that Christmas club like to visit and leave comments. I will just have to sacrifice some of my sewing time to attend to my blog and do some visiting of other blogs. I think today has to be the day ... after I go out for lunch I will come back and see what everyone else is up to.

I found a very simple purse pattern in my pattern stash and made one up for myself in the pretty vinyl coated fabric I bought in the US then I thought a purse like this would be a good present for the Christmas box. I used a couple of the fat quarters from my new fabric stash. It only uses a strip off the end of each one and I found a button to put on the front. The trickiest bit is getting the zipper tidy. There is a zipper pocket for change and a pocket behind for the folding stuff.
You can still get the tutorial from Sew Christine blog spot. 
Scroll down the picture list to the blue one with the dragonflies on it.

 You can also join in Christmas through the year any month. See what is happening at Darlene's blog and Cheryl's blog. Darlene has the Mr linky at the end of the month so you can see what everyone is making.

Happy Quilting,
Val

Christmas Through the Year

I managed to make one little gift this month. I used the pattern for the ear bud pouch that I got from Erin's blog Dog Under My Desk. I noticed that she had a cute heart pouch along the same lines. Cute idea. I'm sure you could work out the pattern based on the ear buds purse.
I think I need two of these. One for each daughter.

You can see what others have made at Darlene's Quilting Daze.

This is an automated post while I am away. I will enjoy reading your comments but I won't be able to reply this time. I am just trying to cut down on the emailing while I am busy touring :)

Happy Quilting,
Val

Christmas through the year

 I have made a couple of triangle containers. I thought they would be good to put on the bedside table to hold jewellery or coins. I have lost quite a few single ear rings when the cat has jumped up and things have rolled off or they just get pushed under things and I never see them again. So I have one for myself and two for gifts.
I showed my mum the first one I made and she was happy to take it home. I showed the ladies at the quilting group the second one I made. They liked it a lot so I offered it to one of them who said to her friend 'It's your birthday today. Why don't you take it' and she did. So it seems they are quite a hit. Mainly for their cuteness rather than their practical value :)
I found two sites that had photo tutorials and one is in my side bar. I don't think this is a pattern that anyone owns so I have drawn up a page of basic instructions and the triangle shape to print out. I used a layer of wadding in mine so it doesn't fold up and it is probably a bit smaller than just an interfaced one but I like it.

I was able to borrow a couple of cute applique books from the quilt group library on Wednesday and when I put them down at home I thought that I really needed a dedicated quilt library bag otherwise I would lose them.
I pulled out some owl fabric that mum had given me for Christmas and the tote bag pattern piece that just sits in my bookshelf for a quick make and started cutting out. I am a bit crazy I think because my half finished pure wool blazer and pieces were spread on the table and I was just cutting my bag on top of them. I did make an effort to clear a space when I put up the wadding or I would definitely have had a blazer jig saw.
I wanted to put some stitchery on the front but had no real idea of what to use so I was pleasantly surprised when Helena of Crazy Cats BoM fame sent me a cute teacher angel. I thought it would be perfect and started stitching immediately. I only half finished and left it out overnight. It is so humid here that my soluble pen lines have disappeared. I have to pop up to the sewing room and redraw the lines and this time get it finished quick.

Only half done. I will show the bag when I finish it.

Happy Quilting,
Val

1 xmas item a month and Christmas through the year

I joined up these two clubs at the beginning of the year in the hope that I would be motivated to make some Christmas decorations and a few gifts during the year. You know what? It really worked! I have made quite a few bits and pieces through the year and really enjoyed it. There are so many ideas out there and everyone is happy to show and share :)

A big thank you to Narelle at Pins and Whiskers for hosting 1 Xmas Item a Month and also to Allie of Allie-oops Sweet Happy Life for hosting Christmas Through the Year. You have both done a wonderful job of motivating me and many others to make Christmas preparations a bit easier.

This month I have made a few things. My place mats are well under way and I made a tote bag for DD2 and two pot holders for my mum.

I usually make something crafty for place names at the Christmas table and this year I have started making some birds out of spare Christmas cards. I have lots of the background cards and they even have a little space to write the name.

While I was at the computer before lunch Tommy made his presence felt. He meows pitifully and when that doesn't work he taps me on the leg. How could I ignore such a plaintive look. Well I just couldn't and he got a nice tin for lunch :)

Happy Quilting,
Val

Selvedges again

I have been putting more selvedges together. It is quite fun. I played around with the tea cups. I didn't like the dark brown satin stitch I started with so I just continued with different thread. I can do what ever I like with things for me.

Since the backing was one piece I thought it would look good with some meandering quilting. I have never tried it before. I was quite happy with it the result. Some of the stitches were a bit uneven but I only got one crossover.
The tea cup mat is for my sink. It has an old hand towel on the back.

Today I made a pot holder that I will give to mum for Christmas. I will make a pair. I saw one with the glove pocket on the back at a craft shop and thought it was a good idea to stop the edges of fingers touching the hot part. I use pure wool blanket pieces inside. Last winter I bought a single bed wool blanket for $3 at the op shop.

Happy quilting,
Val

Christmas through the year and a few projects

I have made a little gift this time. I tiny quilt block fridge magnet. Very fiddly and took as long as making a big block! I had planned to make a few but that will have to wait. Christmas Through the Year is hosted by Allie of Allie-oops Sweet Happy Life.  On Allie's post Mr Linky has links to those who have joined in for July.

I have a few projects on the go or nearly finished. I made another pair of arm warmers for DD1. She liked the first pair so much. I just have to sew up the wrists and the thread ends.

I am more than half way through my lacy scarf using the alpaca wool I bought in Adelaide. It feels so soft and I love this pattern. It is the same row over and over. The label recommended no. 4 needles but I have used no. 5 to make it a bit looser. The pattern is here:
http://home.online.no/~tu-mell/onerowlacescarf.cfm

I made a crazy block using a different pattern and I will make it into a heat pad/mug rug by using blanket to pad it. I want to make the book shelf block as well.
These are designs from Don't Call Me Betsy.
She has a tutorial page link along the top. Her latest post is the book shelf block that she made for a friend's birthday present.

Lastly, I have been working on the Christmas quilt and have just finished one side of the final border. I should finish it in a couple of weeks without pushing too hard.

Happy Quilting,
Val

Christmas through the year

Sorry I messed up the Tuesday Treasures link. Click here to go there.

After seeing Allie's lovely little basket I had to make one too. I found six blocks that had come in a scrap bag I bought recently and I had a matching yellow fabric and it went together really quick. I have put the other couple of things I have made in the basket and put it in the cupboard safely.

I also  made a couple of churndash blocks to send to Christine. She is in Brisbane so these should get to her in a day or two. She wants to make a quilt for a good friend's husband who has been very ill. She has asked people to help by sending one block by 10th June.
Hope these colours are OK :)

Happy Sewing,
Val

Christmas through the year and a couple of winter UFO's

I don't have any Christmas gifts finished this month because I felt that if I sewed I should be working on the Christmas quilt I want to give my mum on her birthday. Since I took this photo the other day I have quilted around the four appliques with gold thread and sewed in the ditch and sewed the four blocks together to make the first row. I have also glued on all but three of the 16 appliques and finished stitching 2 more. I am using cotton wadding and sewing the squares together wadding and top with a 1/4" seem that I pressed open. Once all the squares are sewn together there will be 1 1/2 inches of wadding protruding all around ready to sew on the first border.

I pulled out 2 UFO's that I started last winter. One is a fuzzy scarf that needs a fringe on the other end and one is a cable vest. I have only done the back. It is fairly tricky to get started but I need to be in the mood so the front gets finished without too many interruptions cause you have to get into the rhythm. Maybe when I finish the quilt.

Allie of Allie-oops hosts Christmas through the Year so head on over and join in.

Happy Quilting,
Val

Christmas through the year

I have had a great time making some designs and playing with free motion applique. I still managed to make a gift. I have appliqued two tea towels with an Orpington rooster and an Orpington hen. I love chickens. I drew these from photos and I wanted to use my brown tone fabrics on the orange tea towels. The rooster was almost those colours but the hen was supposed to be black.

I used my silicone mat (bought it to use in the frying pan) to iron the rooster pieces together first then put him whole onto the tea towel. The mat is a bit see through. It goes on top of the pattern picture and you build the picture on the silicone, put a cloth over and dry iron. When it cools it peels off the silicone ready to stick on your project.

You can view and download the patterns.
Rooster
Hen

You can visit Allie-oops Sweet Happy Life to see what others have made.

Happy Applique,
Val