A couple of finishes ,,,

This is Melly & Me's "Sleepover Bag" - cut out two last November for Christmas presents:  one for Peta and one for a friend.  I started the bag for Peta but in all of the Christmas rush didn't manage to finish it.  Took the bag out of the drawer last week to work on and finished it this morning.  I'll make a few changes when I start the next bag, ie attach the handles earlier than suggested in the pattern and add the plastic base as a much later step.  I found this bag very cumbersome to move around the sewing machine with the base already in place.  This is definitely an excellent overnight bag.

Another finish even though this quilt top is not entirely finished - my involvement with the quilt is finished (joining blocks, quilting, binding).  Jenni needs to applique two palm trees to the tent block and backstitch some of the block names.  This quilt is "Magic Beach" designed by Chook Shed Pattern Co.  I told the story behind the quilt here.

Close-up of a couple of the blocks:

And here's a sneaky peak for a certain blogger out there - finished your swap present this afternoon.

Birthday

The Family Festival of Birthdays continues. Our youngest, Jenni, is 22 today. Happy Birthday Baby Girl.

(Jenni and her Superman cousin Angus)

(dancing at SeaWorld 2004)

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When Jenni was 13 she wanted to make a quilt and as her bedroom had an "Under the Sea" theme she chose "Magic Beach" design by Chook Shed Pattern Co. Jenni did all the blanket stitch applique and her stitching is very even. The quilt's been languishing in the sewing room for a few years - a palm tree needs to be appliqued onto the beach hut block and some name need stitching onto a few of the other blocks (angel fish, green turtle etc) - these can be done after the quilting is finished. I prepared the backing this morning and I'm hoping to do the quilting over the next couple of weeks.

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As you can see from this photo, the first day of spring in the 'Gong was glorious.