My Latest Quilt

Twelve months later and this little quilt is so close to being finished but I've still got some work to do, namely squaring it and binding.  Anyway I just have to post it here and now, the other will happen later. [I hope]

I learnt how to make this spread by enrolling in  Craftsy Block of the Month 2012.   All up I made twenty blocks and I love the final result.

There is no way I could do the machine stitching, I had to call in the experts for that.

Loving the quilting stitch, it's super cool.  For a quilt made out of scraps it sure did turn out to be expensive. I had the machine stitching done by the professionals and  it was worth every last dollar.  I'd like to give a shout out to ladies at The Sewing Bee Cafe for the beautiful heart machine quilting.

Four Little Elephants Sitting On A Wall

Meet the recent addition to my family. 

From left to right

Henry, Etta, Kit and Caboodle

The pattern for these cuties was designed by Jodie Charlton from RicRac and you can find her and her patterns here.

Not sure what destiny has in store for these guys yet but it sure will be sad to say goodbye.

Red Nose Day Dolls

 

 

My friend Jodie from Ric Rac is a pattern maker of many things, in particular soft toys and even more particularly she makes very small things.  I have made two of her tiny teapot pin cushions, (as well as heaps of her other stuff) they make perfect gifts for friends, pins included.  I think I'll blog about that effort and give Jodie another shout out, another day.  There's a pattern here (pardon the pun) but I am repeating myself.

 

Well, it really is best to visit Jodie's blog to see all that she is doing for the Red Nose Day Doll project.  You won't believe the things she gets up to unless you take a peek yourself at Ric Rac, never a dull post, that's for sure.

 

I love the idea Jodie's gal friends have come up with, Emma Mitchell and Ros Badger and you can see and read all about their fundraising project here at Red Nose Day Dolls FB page.

 

Another lovely blog to read is the  Red Nose Day Dolls Blog, really cute and full of fun and happiness. 

 

Below is an amazing YouTube video you just have to watch and if you like it, why not click the 'Like' button there too.

 

 

 

How clever is this video?

Karen Boatwright must be one of the most patient souls on this planet. 

I love it so much and keep watching it over and over.

 

Cheers from me here

 

My Little Empathy Monster

This strange creature is a result of an on-line class I did with Tamara Laporte over at Willowing Love.  I'm enrolled in several of her classes and the Empathy Monster is part of her Art, Heart and Healing course which is free.  I gave little guy to a special friend and she named him Maximilian.  Max has lots of hugs to give and I'm sure he's happy in his new home.

Whilst sewing is not a new craft for me, drawing is and I love the challenges I face every time I pick up a pencil or paintbrush.  I just wish drawing and painting was as easy for me as pushing material through a sewing machine.

See what I mean ~ there's always room for improvement.  Whoever said that was very wise.

Easter Swap Surprise

Patrick from Cre8ors Touch invited fellow Hive artisans to choose a Vintage Easter card of their preference, replicate it into a 3-D form either 3 dimensional painting, sculpture, doll, dream scape, dia-rama.  The challenge was to translate the feeling of the card chosen into a 3 dimensional piece.  At the conclusion of the challenge participant names were swapped using the random.org number generator and then we shipped our creations off to new homes.

This is what I received:

This beautiful paper clay sculpture was designed and created by Gloriann who has an amazing blog and shop called Little Garden Crafts.  Her precious gift to me has pride and place in my family room, I just have to make sure when someone takes a look at my gorgeous bunnies they don't touch.  These bunnies have travelled all the way from New York to Australia without harm, so I intend that they will live a happy and carefree life without any mishaps.  

Gloriann's design was based on this Vintage Easter Card

This is what I made for the challenge:

My creation is made from felt and hand sewn.  Each bunny has moving arms and legs and the basket was made from felt and hand sewn into shape.  Each bunny has different characteristics ~ I designed a different pattern and shape to try and give each a unique pose in an endeavour to replicate the card more accurately.

My design was based on this Vintage Easter Card 

Sincere thanks to Patrick who hosted a fun Easter Swap Challenge for 2012.

Am I A Quilter Yet?

I started this quilt about six months ago, but alas I got bored with it in the first week. I think it was because I purchased a pattern for beginners and was frustrated that the pattern had no basic instructions just a few diagrams.  I was totally reliant on the picture on the cover of the pattern to work out the design. Thank goodness the cover was in colour.

The pattern wasn't cheap. The lady in the quilting shop recommended this pattern for beginners and naturally I put my faith in her recommendation.  I was disappointed in the instructions, but maybe I just have high expectations and being too critical.

I've been sick, I needed a distraction and I hate unfinished projects. So out came my earlier attempt which was the centre piece "Confused Butterflies" because that's what they look like to me, they have no idea where they're going.

Eventually I made sense of the quilting concept and even enjoyed the process.  It's not perfect but I don't think the photo reflects my mistakes.

Confused Butterflies

It's hanging on a wall in the least used part of the house for the time being.  I'm all fired up to do another one designed by me.  But first, I'm off to the local library to see what they can offer to a newbie quilter like me in the way of information about the fundamentals of quilting.  I'm sure there will be hundreds of books for the picking.

Wish me luck, because I need it.

A Christmas Stocking Stuffed with Goodies Awaits You

Giveaway now closed - winner to be announced soon


2011 Christmas Stocking Giveaway

                                                                     Source: flickr.com Debbie Probst via Golden Lilly Crafts on Pinterest

Today launches my 2011 stocking giveaway.  I’ll be holding a giveaway for the Christmas stocking pictured below as part of the 2011 Stocking Giveaway  being hosted by Robin at RSIslandscrafts.

The winner will be drawn on December 5th

One Christmas Stocking

Measurements

Cuff to heel is 33.5cm (13") 

But wait, there's more than just a stocking.  Inside the stocking you will find SIX other gifts.  

#1.   A handmade felt Kangaroo.  You can hang Redmond in a cupboard as he's filled with homemade scented pot pourri or on the Christmas tree.

Redmond The Kangaroo

#2.  A Tea Towel, celebrating beautiful Australian flora.

Tea Towel

#3.  A handmade Woven Felt Heart decoration for the Christmas tree.

Woven Felt Heart

#4. A packet of Christmas paper serviettes.

20 Paper Serviettes

#5.  A Japanese Temari thread decoration for the Christmas tree.

Japanese Thread Temari

#6.  Christmas bunting - eight little Christmas stockings all in a row.

Christmas Stockings Bunting

This give away is open to everyone, doesn't matter where you live. It will run from November 28th through to December 4th. On December 5th the lucky winner will be announced. 

As my son said, "That's a tidy prize mum, seven gifts all up.  Cool".  Therefore you need to do a couple of things to participate in the Christmas Stocking Giveaway.

1 entry into the draw = A comment will do nicely - that way if you're the lucky winner I have your email contact whereby I can get your address. 

2 entries into the draw = If you want to become a follower that would be cool too.

All entries will go into a bowl and my dear son will draw the lucky winner on 4th December.  I will post the details of the draw on the 5th December and pop the prize in the post as soon as I have an address from the winner. 

I'd love you to share where you plan to eat on Christmas day.  Are you entertaining family and friends at home, going to the beach or sitting by a nice warm fire?  If so, how many at your gathering?  If not, what will you be doing on Christmas day?  As for me, I'm hoping 15 family and friends can make it to my place for Christmas lunch and I'm so looking forward to it. 

Merry Christmas to my visitors and thanks for visiting.

I look forward to your comments and hearing about your plans for the big day.

Other blogs participating in their own Christmas Stocking Giveaway can be found here

                                                                 Source: google.com via Golden Lilly Crafts on Pinterest

Angel Tree Topper That Kids Can Make - A Tutorial

There's Plenty Of Time
When you're asked to look after a friends children for a few hours what's the best thing to do? Keep them busy of course.  So rather than panic, I went to my trusty little craft room for inspiration and did some picking and plucking from my stash.

                                     
                                                                   Source: trendytree.com via Golden Lilly Crafts on Pinterest

As long as I had glue, ribbon, foam shapes and all sorts of other goodies I had a good chance of keeping the kids happy while mum was away.

She Doesn't Have To Be Perfect
Keep it simple and use whatever you can find in the cupboards.  Kids have wonderful imaginations so you'll get quite a surprise with the end result.

Angel Tree Topper

Things To Collect
Material off-cuts or coloured paper for the gown; cardboard; pipe cleaners or fine wires; foil paper; ribbon; lace; sequins; beads; curling ribbon; foam ball; dressmaker pins; craft  glue; scissors; cardboard; glitter; sticky tape.

Gather The Kids and Get Started

Material to make the body shape

1.  Use a piece of cardboard to make a cone shape and hold in place with sticky tape.  Check that the cone is the right size for the head, then trim the bottom of the cone if the form is a bit wonky. If you want the angel to be able to standalone, add some cardboard to the base of the cone.  Just like this, alternatively, skip this step if you want your angel to sit on top of your tree without falling off.

Check the head fits the shape

Add a base to the cone

Cover the cone with material or paper of choice, gluing the paper to the cone or you can sew a seam on the material so it fits the cone snugly.  Tuck the material into the top of the cone.  Glue the ball to the top of the robe set aside to dry.  

Material to make the wings and halo

Halo

Wing

2.  Next make the wings and halo using the pipe cleaners.  Twist two pipe cleaners together and join to make a circle.  Make two of these for the wings.  Make a smaller circle for the halo and leave a small length for the stem of the halo.  Wrap foil tightly around the pipe cleaners and I found that I had to cover the foil with sticky tape for added firmness.  Then shape the wings. Decorate the halo with sequins or beads, ribbon or foil.  Set aside to dry if using glue.

She's starting to take shape

3.  Glue facial features onto head and glue or use pins to attach curling ribbon to head.  We used a dressmakers pin for the nose, sequins for the cheeks and attached them with pins and then glued a red sequin for the mouth.

4.  Pin the halo stem to the back of the head.  Attaching the wings is the hardest but we found pinning the wings to the material worked best.  You might have to readjust the shape of the wings to suit the angel.  Same with the halo, adjust it to suit.  Tie bows using ribbon or lace around the neck.

Angel Tree Topper

Angel Tree Topper is completed.  The time went so fast making her and we had heaps of fun.  Think I might make a gold Angel next time.  Thanks for visiting.

White Kangaroo's Find New Homes In America

As part of a Christmas decoration swap that I'm participating in with a bunch of great friends at The Hive, I finally said a sad farewell to thirteen of my kangaroo decorations.  I thought I'd never get them finished.  They're all hand sewn, each decoration has lots and lots of sequences sewn to the body to make them look festive and special. and they each carry a little Christmas stocking.

It was sad taking them down from the tree but I'm sure they'll find lovely homes on the other side of the world.  If you'd like the pattern for my darling kangaroos you can get it here.

Here they are all lined up ready to go into the Express Post bag. Did someone say 'roll over'? It was a struggle getting them in the bag, they weren't that keen.

I've still got some more to make for friends and another Christmas decoration swap so I better get back to it.

Make a Dream Catcher

About Dream Catchers

 Dream catchers were originally made by the grandparents of the American native Ojibwa tribes.  The web represents a spider’s web and each dream catcher has a hole in the centre.  The web catches the bad dreams which melt in the sunlight, and the good dreams pass through the centre hole and travel down the feather suspended from the centre.

It is believed that when you make a dream catcher, you should clear your thoughts and be at peace, because whatever energy surrounds you will be transferred to the dream catcher.

Dream catchers look good against a wall as a decoration.  However, hang them near a bed if you want to catch your dreams and in a window that catches the sunlight to melt the bad dreams.

A dream catcher’s healing powers are said to be greater when it’s a gift.  You can personalise your gift by adding bits and pieces which hold special significance for the recipient.

Understanding more about dream catchers can be found here and here.

My dream catcher is in the shape of a heart, traditionally a dream catcher is a circle.

Six easy steps to making a dream catcher, instructions can be downloaded here

Christmas Gift To Make For Your Pet - Tutorial and Written Instructions

A TREAT TO HANG ON THE TREE

Hello everyone, today I am posting another tutorial, this one being a treat you can make for your pet.  The main focus will be creating a craft that doesn't require you to go out and buy new products, instead I hope you will be able to use bits and pieces from your home stash.  I encourage you to improvise where an item is not available and look at what you can recycle. They are easy enough to make that children can lend a helping hand.  Some basic straight stitch machine sewing is involved, but it can just as easily be hand sewn which may take longer to make.  I'm planting the seed, you go ahead and do it your way and most of all have some fun.

Written instructions can be downloaded here and if you scroll down you will see how I went about the construction of the pet treat hanger.  They look great hanging on a Christmas tree but put them up high enough so that your pet cannot get to them.



Here's how to construct the decoration.

Lay out the material and cut the patterned material about 1cm large all round than the felt piece.  I ironed the material and folded the edges in to make it a lot easier.

I folded each short end under the felt because later I will slide the end of the ribbon into this slot and then sew along the top edge to secure the loop which will be used to hang the decoration on the tree.

I pinned the long edges before sewing and I also ironed the edges to make it easier.  You could hand sew these edges with a blanket stitch if you didn't want to use a sewing machine.

Once I had the edges neat I simply selected a fancy stitch on my sewing machine and sewed around the two short and two long edges.  Finally, it was simply a matter of looping the ribbon one under the other.  These loops will hold the treat you have for your pet, so make them as big or as small as needed.  You can add bows, bells, plastic holly leaves to the decoration, whatever takes your fancy.

Once I had the loops pinned and the size I wanted, I sewed each loop in place using the sewing machine, this is probably the fiddliest part of the assembly.  You could just as easily hand sew the loops.

You could also place the ribbon loops on the felt before constructing the hanging decoration.  By doing it this way you won't see the stitching on the back of the decoration, it will be hidden when you add the larger patterned material to the back.

Alternatively, you don't have to use felt and Christmas material, you could use a special material like I did above and I added some bells to the ribbon.  The fact is I don't think your pet will mind how you construct this little gift, but he/she will be more interested in what is hanging in the loops.

Easy Pixie Decoration - Tutorial and Written Instructions

LET'S HAVE SOME PIXIE FUN

Hello everyone, today I am posting what I hope will be the first of several tutorials I have planned to share on my blog.  The main focus will be creating a craft that doesn't require you to go out and buy new products, instead I hope you will be able to use bits and pieces from your home stash.  I encourage you to improvise where an item is not available and look at what you can recycle. They are easy enough to make that children can lend a helping hand.  There's no sewing involved in this pixie, but if you don't have any glue you could hand sew if you prefer.  I'm planting the seed, you go ahead and do it your way and most of all have some fun.

Two completed pixies and here is the template and written instructions.  Scroll down to see how I went about the construction of the pixie.  They look great hanging on a Christmas tree.

Once you download the template and written instructions, you will cut out the different parts of the pixie in whatever colours you want and then with glue or sewing needle and thread put it together.

I used a small piece of pipe cleaner to give some movement to the arms and glued it in place.

Make sure you add a piece of pipe cleaner for the neck as this will go into the foam ball and secure the head to the body.

Looks a bit messy, but my glue needs replacing, fresh glue is easier to work with.  All this will be covered so it's not a concern at this stage.

I sewed the beads onto the vest and hat.  Then I made the hair from wool scraps, wrapping the wool around a piece of cardboard and then knotting the middle, like the part in the hair and I glued the hair to the foam ball.

The hair should look something like this when removed from the cardboard and the loop ends are cut.  Spread out the hair to form a circle and if you like you could cut a bit of a fringe.  Once all the bits and piece are assembled the end result looks like this.  But remember you can make them quite different if you choose, it will depend on what material you have at hand and your own personal preferences.

You can paint a face on if you prefer.  I kept it simple by glueing tiny felt eyes and nothing else.  Because there is a pipe cleaner for the neck you can bend the head so it's looking downwards, giving the pixie a shy look and hence the face is not so prominent.

Hope you enjoy this tutorial and have fun making them.

I have a fun and easy gift to make for your pet next time.