Pretty Maids

A couple of good tv shows = a binding sewn down = a finished quilt.

This quilt top has been finished for more than 6 months so it feels good to finish it off.

The embroidery machine was running hot again yesterday - this time a set of towels for my friend's baby grand-daughter.

I chose these cute baby deer because the initials of her names spell D.E.E.R.

What's not to love about an extra-long weekend?

Labels

The embroidery machine was running yesterday - a great way to make labels.



All of the Churn Dash blocks are together and ready for sorting so the top can be sewn together.


Final thing I started today was quilting Pretty Maids - the cute machine embroidered Baboushkas.


This quilt has been pinned for months. Luckily the pins aren't leaving marks.

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Another One Bites the Dust

The binding is finished on Stepping Stones and the binding is being sewn down on Scrappy Simplicity. Still hot here at night so the fan is going.

Scrappy Simplicity/Stepping Stones

The quilting on Scrappy Simplicity is lovely. Bec is having a lot of fun with her new toy.

So looking forward to Easter. Nothing planned but something fun will happen.

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Simplicity

Last Monday these two bags the postman delivered a big package to my place containing these two bags:

Inside one of the bags was my Simplicity quilt.  I started making this quilt at a retreat in Kingaroy in June 2009 and finally put the last borders on in February 2012.

I then spent the next while wondering how to quilt this pretty quilt top and at the end of last year a friend bought herself a long-arm quilter, so I sent it up to her.  The quilt looks fabulous.  I love the cross-hatching around the applique medallion and the large flowers over the rest of the quilt is great.

The pretty backing

Close-up of the lovely quilting

The last stitches in the binding were sewn last night - wonderful to finish off something that's been put aside for so long.

A few Oh Cherry Churn Dash blocks are together.  Once all the chain piecing is done it's pretty quick work assembling the blocks.

I was planning to put white sashing between the blocks but I think I like the look of the blocks without sashing.  The quilt top with have the colours randomly placed - not in single-colour rows :)  8 down, 22 to go.

Binding

At long last I'm sewing down a binding on a quilt - good tv-watching sewing.


Had a great day today just as planned: brunch with Jenni, pictures with Mum then a lovely long chat on the phone with Diann.

The girls are progressing slowly.



Hopefully more binding sewing over the next couple of nights.

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Parcel Arrived

Quite early this morning the parcel delivery man rang our doorbell.

Inside are the beautiful fabrics from Di Mill, including a couple of extra f/q's of Sis & Boom fabrics - they are lovely.  I am still tickled pink.

Some ideas are forming to use the black/grey/yellow Comma fabrics on the left.  All that gorgeous Fig Tree Avalon fabric - wow.

Tuesday night was stitching night.  Paula made delicious supper for us:  strawberry/cheesecake tarts and two kinds of hot cross buns (traditional and choc chip).

Another weekend is almost here.  Going with Jenni to look at some units tomorrow (she'd like to buy some real estate one day and wants to get an idea of what is available for what price) and I think we'll take Mum to see "Goddess".  Aside from that I'd love to sew binding on to two quilts that Bec has quilted for me.  I am thrilled to bits with the quilts and will take photos once the binding is attached.

Woohoo!

I won.  Di Mill hosted a giveaway of some beautiful fabric and I am the very lucky winner.  I am tickled pink.


Photo from Di Mill's blog

The two selections of fabric are Comma and Avalon by Moda and they will fit right into my stash.  Thankyou Di for the very generous giveaway.

I Love Weekends

Time is definitely flying by.  The weekend was excellent.  Elizabeth drove down on Friday night to go out with Jenni then the three of us went in to Wollongong to meeting up with Peta and her mum for lunch at Diggies, North Wollongong Beach (remember this place Teresa?).

 

It was such a beautiful day and a lovely way to spend the afternoon.  Visited Mum for a while and then trimmed blocks for my Churn Dash quilt.

Yesterday it was time to get stuck into finishing the quilting on this big quilt that's been on the go for a while.  I had less than 1/4 left to quilt but my frame isn't quite large enough (without the extensions) to reach edge to edge so it will need finishing on the sewing machine.

For a change I also chain-pieced another section of the Churn Dash blocks:

and last night stitched some bullion bees and bunnies on baby singlets for Jenni to give to a work friend who is having a baby in a couple of weeks.

Sounds like a lot but it isn't really when spread over the whole day.  Had a chat to my friend on the phone - I'll be up there in 3 weeks!  I watched/listened to "Argo" while I was quilting - it's an excellent movie.

Great Weekend

Last weekend was packed and a lot of fun.

After some housework etc on Saturday morning I went to my friend, Karen's, place to use her quilting frame - it's much longer than mine and I was able to easily fit my quilt onto it.  That saved me pulling my frame apart to add the extension pieces.

The quilting is 7/8 finished and I'm sure I'll be able to wrangle the quilt on my machines to finish it off.  Can't complete it on Karen's frame because she is now on a fabulous 9 month trip to WA and other far-flung parts of Australia.  I'm going to miss her being around and seeing her at our fortnightly get-togethers.

Saturday night was dinner out with friends before going to a local theatre company production of "Carousel" - it was a lovely night out.

Sunday The Bride came to spend the day with me.  We had a great day.  A bit of shopping, lunch at a sushi train

Coffee and chocolate baba at guess where?

We shared the chocolate baba

We went to see "Oz, the Great and Powerful" - we both really enjoyed the movie - and then it was time for her to go back to Sydney.  Fantastic day.

There has been only a little stitching happening at home (gotta love that raspberry red lipstick)

and a little bit of sewing - the Oh Cherry Churn Dash half-square triangle blocks are sewn and I'm trimming them up.

Very busy week at work - I'll be looking forward to a quiet weekend - although I think the three girls may have something planned, which would be wonderful.

Out for Dinner

Instead of having our usual Tuesday get-together we went out for dinner last night as one of the girls is leaving us for 9 months or so.  Karen and Bob will be travelling to Perth and up the WA coast to Darwin then back via inland Qld and NSW.  Sounds like a fabulous trip in their very swanky new caravan.

We went to a Ribs and Rumps restaurant - first time I've ever had ribs.

Dee-licious!  I'll definitely be going there again.

We then moved next door to Max Brenner for sweets - why not?

Oh Cherry Churn Dash

My short attention span has struck again.  For a while I've been wanting to make a Churn Dash quilt - no special reason, just like the idea of it.  Yesterday, after I'd finished off some secret sewing, it got the better of me and I started cutting in the leftover Sylvia's Bridal Sampler fabrics, Oh Cherry Oh.

Sewed up a block

My design sheet definitely needs a good clean

and then continued on with some more secret sewing after dinner.  Think I'm going to love this quilt.

Wedding Photos

We visited The Bride and Groom yesterday and saw their "official" wedding photos - they are really lovely and so many of them show the happiness felt on the day as well as the beautiful venue and lots of the little details that made the day so wonderful.