Project upon project upon project upon.....

I have finally found time to sit down and write a little. I have been madly working to get a special project done that has to be in the UK asap. It took off today and I can breathe a sigh of relief for at least a couple of days. I have several other really important projects on at the moment with fairly tight deadlines and some days it's a struggle to keep up. I'm glad to be able to tick one off the rather long list. And if I owe you an email or something in the mail - I apologise and promise you it's coming!!

Here's a little sneak peak at a small element of the special project but that's all for now!!



Squeezed in between everything else I finally found time to get stuck into Chloe's quilt. Can you believe I have only ever made one quilt for my children which was Daphne's cot quilt! I have the fabric and designs worked out for all three but of course to be fair, I have to start Chloe's first.

And I'm loving it so far.



And so is Chloe!



So once all the blocks are done I will work out what to put with them. Any ideas??

The other project I took away with me was my Mum's quilt. That has also been languishing in the pile. I had decided to have a hand quilting night each week but it hasn't eventuated.



I did about six blocks which isn't a lot but at least I have reacquainted myself with this lovely quilt and can try to do a little each week.

So have you seen this? A very special thank you to Angela and her lovely staff at Living Creatively - their support is endless and wonderful!!

And guess what!! I have had one of my little quilts accepted for a Lark Books book called Pretty Little Mini Quilts. I'm absolutely thrilled! Again the deadline is very soon so if you don't see much of me you'll know what I'm doing!

But this week sees me finishing two presents for two very special people who have been waiting and waiting and waiting. They have been tied up with the whole project for the UK thing but they'll be on their way this week, sweetened with some other goodies I promise!!

Which reminds me of something else I must get started on for Audrey and Maude! Sigh........ but I love it, really I do!!

Christmas Wrap Up

So Christmas is over for another year. I hope you enjoyed a lovely day with family and friends as I did. We all ate way too much and my goodness the presents were never ending - not sure where everything is going to go!

And what a few weeks it has been. I did try to do a post last week but blogger ate my photos and I didn't have the time or the inclination to redo them. So here it is - the last couple of weeks activities and some of the crafty projects I completed.

The 15th brought a mad weekend with lots of Birthday parties including Daphne's.







And look at this gorgeous creation!



A stunning bolster cushion made by my girlfriend Michelle.



Isn't it just fantastic!



I love the colours and all the little yo-yos - a gift to absolutely treasure! Thanks Michelle, we really love it.

We finished the weekend with a big Christmas party on the Sunday with my Mother's group. We provide a Kris Kringle gift for the children and I made these for two lovely sisters.



This is my more basic version of Renata Segtowick's wonderful idea. Renata's are so beautifully detailed - go have a look.

The week following was all about kinder parties, school parties, reports and finishing up the year ready for a good break. I made three tote bags for the girl's teachers but didn't have time to take photos.

Then I finally finished a commission I'd been sitting on for AGES!! Two aprons for my girlfriend to give to some special girls for Christmas.



A frilly smock for the little one.







And a frilly apron for the bigger one.





I discovered the new apple fabric at Amitie and it all went from there. It's the most lovely linen weight and just perfect for aprons. I'm really pleased with them and will definitely be making more.

And finally some gifts for my family.

A scarf for my Mum using some gorgeous Japanese fabric I had in my stash.



And a bag for my sister-in-law Sacha.



I LOVE this bag!!



I cut it from a bag I received in a swap which I think is an Amy Butler pattern (anyone know?). Then I just patched part of it, added some flowers and quilted the edges.

I also made some cushions and did a pin cushion swap with my girlfriend but have no photos yet - show you next time along with some photos of the gorgeous ornaments I have received for the Freshly Blended Holiday Ornament swap. But this lot should keep you busy for a while!!

By the way, before I forget, my pay it forward recipients are Fiona, Beth and Ginger. So can you all email me and let me know if you wish to participate and provide your address if I don't already have it.

Good Intentions!

With every good intention I said I would choose the winner of the apron giveaway on Sunday night. Well obviously it is now Monday night and I still haven't. Tomorrow is Melbourne Cup Day and the kids and Daddy were home today as the schools often make it a long weekend and hubby usually takes the day off. So together we prepared for a Cup Day party we're having tomorrow and I have had to drop all sewing (put it away) and clean, scrub and cook.

I have now decided I will leave the drawing of the competition until Wednesday when I have finished the new aprons and can show you them properly. In the meantime, just so you don't think I'm completely useless I can show you a little sneak peak of one of the new aprons which I personally think are well worth the wait!



If you are wondering why I am saying 'aprons' you will have to wait until Wednesday and I will reveal all.

Now I'm off to cook a lemon tart. We are having a barbeque with lamb cutlets done in cumin, garlic and lemon juice, chicken marinated in sesame oil and soy, sausages (of course), chargrilled sweet potato, zucchini, asparagus and red and yellow peppers, tomato, basil and bocconcini salad and potato salad. I will prepare a yummy antipasto to start and have already roasted some marinated mushrooms - mmmmmm! My girlfriend is bringing her delicious pavlova and the kids will get some banana and choc chip muffins. Not a bad spread all round topped off with a few bottles of champagne - it is the races after all!

So I'll be back on Wednesday with a winner and some aprons and hopefully I'll back a winner tomorrow!!

Button Bounty

Goodness what a lot of apron love there has been. I had a grand total of 508 visitors on Friday which is a little overwhelming really. I am enjoying seeing all the other fantastic tutorials coming up each day - a brilliant idea for all of us who would prefer to make our own gifts this year.

I've been tagged by my mate Jade for a craft meme. And as I answer I will throw in a few photos of my freebie button haul. There was actually a lot more in there than I expected and these are a few of my favourites!

1. When did you start to create and make craft?

Not sure but definitely under the age of 10. I was always making stuff for my Barbies and my dolls house. I remember the first thing I knitted was a bright yellow and red vest - very 70's so I must have been about 10. I don't recall ever finishing it. I got my first sewing machine for my 18th Birthday and prior to that I used my Mum's. During the early 80's I used to race home from work and sew something up to wear out that night. Most of it without a pattern and it can't have been well finished - but I thought I looked great and at least different to everyone else. I spent many hours knitting in the 80's - remember all those fabulous multi coloured jumpers! I was also mad on drawing and up until my early 20's did a lot of painting and drawing - something I really want to get back into.



2. Why did you start creating?

My Mother was an avid sewer/knitter/crocheter and made pretty much everything we wore. I can remember sitting patiently waiting for an outfit to be finished before we went off to a party - which drove my Dad completely mad! She also used to make all our doll's clothes too - some of which I still have. She was given huge bags of fabric from a friend who worked in some kind of textile factory and I used to spend hours playing with them - just like I do now with my fabrics. So I guess being constantly surrounded by it encouraged my interest and desire to create. I also had a lot of craft books and did things like macrame - very groovy.



3. Why do you create?

I think because I have to. I just LOVE making stuff. From the creative idea to the cutting, constructing and completing I get so much pleasure. I have so many ideas swirling around that will probably never see the light of day. The discovery of craft blogging has had a huge impact on my creative output though and I have been extremely productive this year. And that in turn gets those creative juices flowing - such constant inspiration! But you all think like that too don't you?



4. What do you create?

I like to sew bags, aprons, some clothing, quilts and other bits and pieces. I love to knit but in fits and bursts and I occasionally do a bit of crocheting. I also really enjoy embroidery and hand sewing like quilting. I would love to be better at making softies but they are a bit too fiddly for my patience. I really enjoy the swap process as it challenges me to come up with something that suits my swap partner but reflects my personal style as well. I like making things up as I go along and don't often use patterns.



5. Has this changed since you began crafting?

Not a lot but my interest in quilting is new (it's just slightly addictive). I don't make as many clothes as I would like to and I have a huge passion for aprons that I didn't have before but maybe that's just fashion. I also like doing various crafts with my children now that they are old enough to really participate. I hope I can do more drawing and painting one day.



So Amy, Fiona, Leslie, Liz, and Cathy you are all tagged. Tell us about craft in your life.

I have been madly sewing yesterday and today and will have a few new aprons to show you tomorrow. I will also draw and announce the winner of my giveaway. I knew that would bring a few of you lurkers out of hiding and it's exciting to see several of you are from Melbourne. Now, to bed...

Just a couple of things....

This is just a quick post tonight as I have some fabric cutting to do. I received my swap partner for the doll quilt swap and I am so excited about it I just have to get started. My apron is safely on its way to Miss Marzie and hopefully she will like it. I will probably do a show and tell about it tomorrow night.

I have been sewing and knitting this past week and have nearly completed a pinafore for Chloe. Unfortunately my sewing machine light globe went and I was sewing on black at night. I didn't realise until the next morning that I had been using blue thread. Luckily the bobbin had run out and I had decided to leave it otherwise I would have top stitched it - another unpicking disaster avoided!

I also whipped up an apron for my neice Lexie who turned four. Inspiration struck at around 3am after Daphne had woken us up. I had to do a retro number and I'm really pleased with how it turned out. Mind you it is big enough to fit her for another 10 years I think.



Last week I had an email regarding the apron I made for Lucinda a while ago asking for some advice on making one. It has now inspired me to have a go at doing a tutorial for a simple child's apron. So bear with me and I will try to get it done this week. I need to have light for the photos and as we've been having a lot of foggy, dark days that's getting a little difficult. I will do my best.

On that note, I am off to the cutting board to work on my secret project. I am so in love with these fabrics I could just eat them! Unfortunately you have to wait until July to see it.