Growing...

The great thing about Block-of-the- Month sewing is that progress kind of sneaks up on you :)

You do your little bit of sewing each month, tucking each block carefully into your Project Box when it's done...

  (this months block is called Cherry Sundae and was designed by Barb Adams and Alma Allen from Blackbird Designs)

...until the day comes when you decide to see what the blocks look like all laid out together...

...and the result is surprising! This is just three of the five blocks I've completed in the Vintage Modern Mystery Block of the Month, but don't they look pretty? The ones with the red polkadot fabric are definitely my favourites :)

Progress is a good thing, right?

Have a wonderful weekend...thank goodness it's Friday!

TTFN xxx

Project Life 2012 - Week 44

Hello Week 44...a week inspired by the traditional colours of Halloween :)

I had  plans to add spider webs and other scary embellishments to this double page spread, but in the end I just wanted it DONE and off my desk! I printed the photos on the weekend, and even started to play with the layout...and from there the process has been long and slow.  I should never let things sit for too long...LOL...my attention span is just not that long :)

 I've used papers from  (the now extinct!) The Girls Paperie Toil and Trouble collection, and a few other bits from Snap Life, vintage Making Memories stickers, stamps, and some October Afternoon...love a bit of stash busting!

Can you spy the Santa, looking decidedly out of place in this Halloween-fest? If you've been reading my blog for a while, you'll know that each year we add a "mode of transport" Santa to our collection each Christmas. We have Santa in a hot air balloon, on a motorbike, in a plane, riding a ferris wheel...and many more. Each year it's becoming a bit trickier to find a new mode of transport, so when I saw Santa on a wooden sled while out shopping, I snapped him up!

The last few weeks have seen the word CHRISTMAS steadily sneaking in to my album. I'm planning to make a December Daily album again this year (I think?) , but am yet to work out how that's going to go along with Project Life. Am I biting off more than I can chew? Two lots of daily documenting may just send me over the edge LOL!  I would love to hear your thoughts/ideas/strategies on doing both :)

TTFN xxx

Farmers Wife...a mini revolution!

As you probably know, I've been making Farmers Wife blocks for quite a while now...as in over a year ;)

In all that time, I've been using a paper version of the templates,  pinning them to my fabrics, and cutting each individual shape with scissors.

NOT ANY MORE!

I was lucky enough to receive a little bonus from my work, and decided to go all out and shout myself a mini rotary cutter, a mini patchwork ruler, and a mini cutting mat! Apart from the obvious cute factor  :)  they have revolutionized by whole FW process...multiple blocks are being cut all at once, AND they are very very accurate....love that!

So today I can share 3 blocks (and I am pumped to make more!)

Block 58 Mothers Dream...

...and Block 57 Morning...

 ...which, like mornings themselves, was not my best. I am really NOT a morning person :)

I went back and remade Block 34 Flock, because the original didn't have any white...

...and ALL blocks must have white!

I now have a total of 69 blocks made, with 42 to go...I'm on the downhill run to a finish...WOOOHOOOOO!

Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday

TTFN xxx

Thought for the day...

How I love the work of Australian illustrator, Kate Knapp...

I first discovered her cards while shopping in Melbourne with my sister, and instantly fell in love with her whimsical style. Since then, I have come across her work in some of my favourite places...Margaret River, the Swan Valley, and today it was Kalamunda :)

This image will find it's way into a frame and live permanently in my craft room...I love it so much.

Here in Perth today we have had some beautiful heavy downpours of rain...perfect weather for snuggling under a warm quilt with a loved one (or two or three) ...which is where I'm heading now :)

Have a wonderful day, wherever you are...

TTFN xxx

A pinch and a punch...

...it's the first of the month!

I can't quite believe that it's already...

...a month of preparations and planning, of catching up with friends, of shopping for special people, of hopefully ticking LOTS off my to-do list :)

As I move my October To-Do List down my sidebar to make way for Novembers, I can't help but feel  a little chuffed ;)  In October, I finished my Some Kind Of Wonderful quilt (WOOOHOOO!) ...I kept up-to-date with Project Life...I made cards...and I made scrapbook layouts for the first time in months. In fact, I find myself nowwith just three...only three...quilts on the go, which is some sort of record I think! (If you get a chance, pop over to the Stitch-a-long blog and check out all the gorgeous quilts that have been created...truly inspirational.)

I just wanted to take this chance to say thank YOU!  Thank you for popping in, for leaving such lovely comments, for following along with my crafty endeavours, and for generally being so great...your encouragement and kindness mean  lots to me!

Here's to another crafty, productive and happy month!

TTFN xxx

Project Life 2012 - Week 43

Hello Week 43...a week where I thought I would struggle to find enough photos to make a two page spread, but ended up with plenty :)

 To be honest, it's the weeks where I have to search a bit deeper  that turn out being my favourites.

For example, the bottom left corner is a graphic from a series that Riley downloads off the internet each and every week as it's released...and then texts his mates discussing the latest instalment. I love that these little snippets of everyday life are recorded, and it's only because it was a "slow" week around here that I thought to include it.

 I caught Lydia one afternoon writing a list of all the things she loves about Christmas, so I handed her a journaling card and asked her to write it on there. Not only does it capture her excitement about Christmas (even though it is still October...she is crazy about Christmas!) but it's also  a record of her handwriting at age 11...love that ;)

Again, I used Linda's Clementine kit as the base for this weeks spread. I've probably used her kit more than I've used my own LOL! And just for the record...I keep on thinking I have the Cobalt kit, but it is actually the Turquoise kit...just in case you think I'm losing my mind :)

Have a great day

TTFN xxx

Playing with big paper :)

Big paper... 12  by 12 inch paper...is something I haven't had a chance to play with much lately.

Between finishing up quilting projects (hooray for finishes!) , keeping up with Project Life (hooray for being up-to-date!) and other crafty pursuits like stitching (hooray for variety!),  there hasn't been much regular scrapbooking going on around here...and I miss it :(

So with my craft desk looking quite empty on Sunday, I decided to pull out some photos and get scrapping!

I started with these cute photos of Lydia and her friend, which I had originally printed for PL but didn't use...love the smaller sizes. This rainbow chevron paper is part of the Snap Life range by Simple Stories, as is the "life is great" sticker...sigh, I LOVE that range :)

 I punched some circles from matching cardstock scraps and sewed them together to make a banner...too easy. The page came together quite quickly, so I pulled out another favourite photo...

...and started another page. I had forgotten how absorbing scrapbooking can be...I was immersed in my own little world for quite a while  (hooray for children playing happily together...hee hee)!

The inspiration for this page is from Kelly Goree, one of my favourite scrapbook artists. The basic design is hers, but I added a few little touches as well ;)

  The cloud sticker and rosettes are from the first Amy Tangerine line by American Crafts, and papers are a mix of Amy Tangerine, Lilybee's Handmade Collection and Echo Park Dots and Stripes (all time favourite!)

I really mustn't leave it so long between pages...scrapbooking is FUN!

Have a happy day

TTFN xxx

Project Life 2012 - Week 42

Hello Week 42...a week which turned out to be rather bright and cheery!  I guess that is inevitable when you combine hot pink, lime green and bright orange :)

The colour scheme was inspired by the title card which is part of the Hopscotch range by Fancy Pants. I added journal cards from both my Cobalt PL kit and Linda's Clementine PL kit...working on using up as much as I can  before the new year creeps up on me :)

I've also added some bits and pieces from my new favourite range, Snap Life by Simple Stories. I can't tell you how great this range is for Project Life...awesome awesome awesome!

 Taking photos is becoming second nature this far into the year, and keeping up doesn't seem quite so challenging any more...thank goodness :) Have I finally found that elusive Project Life groove?

I spent an hour or so this morning, flicking back through my first album from 2012...seriously, there is no greater motivator than that :)

Have a great Sunday afternoon...my sewing machine is calling me!

TTFN xxx

My Favourite Things...a finish!

Hello hello...happy Saturday!

Well, it's been almost a week since I checked in...life has been a bit busy, and my fabulous scrappy binding that I showed you last weekend didn't want to play nice... at all. (Thanks for all your comments, by the way...especially the ones that went along the lines of...nice binding, but where's the quilt? They totally cracked me up!)

 Just when I thought I had conquered my binding phobia , this scrappy binding came along and decided to throw me some challenges...but I didn't let it beat me! And for the record...I love the way it looks :)

I kept the quilting to straight lines...and lots of them! I had intended to add some stippling to the pieced blocks, but with Chookyblue cracking her whip and counting down the days (4 more sleeps till deadline!) , and things not going quite right all round, I decided to call it good.

I really enjoy being a part of this particular stitch-a-long group. This is my third quilt that I've made as a member of the group , and I find the encouragement and support to be a great motivator...keeps me on task!

 I'm not quite sure where this quilt is going to end up, but my youngest daughter couldn't help but remind me that she doesn't have a handmade quilt for her bed yet...

                                        
...and it definitely suits her bedroom. We'll see :)

No quilt is completely finished without a label, right? I got onto that straight away, joining some of my leftover squares and adding a blue border to make it stand out a bit.

Here is the full view...

...held up by my very tall son (thanks Riley!). It feels so great to have this quilt finished...another tick off my rather long to-do list!

Thank you so much to Chooky and all the SAL girls for your constant support and encouragement.  I'll really miss having this project to work on...fingers crossed that we start another, hey?

TTFN xxx

The best intentions...

I had such high hopes for my crafting this weekend just gone.

As often happens though, life got in the way of those good intentions...but in a good way :)

So here is what I achieved from my list of weekend to-dos...

...some rather fabulous scrappy binding for my Some Kind of Wonderful quilt...TA DA!

Why have I never made scrappy binding before? It is so cool, so stash-bustingly awesome, and is going to add so much life and colour to my rather subdued (for me, that is) SKoW quilt...I AM EXCITED! So excited, in fact, that after completing the straight-line quilting this afternoon ...I have attached it to the quilt! A bit naughty, perhaps, but the clock is ticking for the October deadline for our SAL group, and I'm not totally convinced that I'm going to add free-motion quilting at all....so I just did it ;)

My hair survived the chop...but only because my darling daughter insisted on accompanying me to the hairdressers  to ensure that I didn't get it cut super short again. I guess you could say that is another of my goals achieved? LOL...ok, I'm desperate to tick something (anything) off that list!

Here's to another busy week...

TTFN xxx