hello out there...

After spending some time today helping a fellow blogger sort out some technical issues it has spurred me to do a post.
Life has been very busy and draining emotionally over the past weeks and there has been little enthusiasm for crafting and blogging. I have been popping around to my favourite blogs now and then to see how you have all been keeping busy but forgive me for not commenting.

since my last post there have been some finishes to catch you up on so get ready there are going to be a lot of pics.

 the little girls of the world have been picked up from the quilters and the binding done.

 My sil's quilt- the same
both are just waiting for labels and will go to their new homes soon.

love a rolled up quilt!

The Sweet stitches December block made it to the stand for the 1st of December! Phew....

More little houses have joined the housing estate...so much for stopping at 12!

and drum roll please.....
My big finish for the year...
My down in the Garden quilt has been completed. Some gorgeous custom quilting has finished this off beyond my expectations. I love it so much that I have booked in Swan Lake for May next year to be quilted also.
Are you ready?

I just have to show some close ups of the spectacular quilting.

pattern by Leanne Beasley, quilted by Leanne Kauffman.

Hope I haven't bored you too much but I did warn you.
My Down in the Garden quilt is spending some time at my mum's place. She doesn't have a quilt for her bed at the moment so I told her to take it home for awhile to brighten up her bed.  I couldn't bare it to be folded up and put away and there isn't a place for me to hang it at the moment. I am hoping it will cheer her up a little.

Well it was lovely to catch up with you all and I hope to get back to normal blogging patterns soon.
If I don't post before Christmas I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a safe New Year!

cheers
Marina

bits of this and that...

Last weekend riding on the wave of my Once upon a time finish I thought it would be good to keep the momentum going and finish off my little girls of the world top. The outer border needed to be finished and after some advice I went with a scrappy border.
Seems like a bit of scrappy happening here lately...
Almost used my stash of Bliss too. It has certainly gone a long way.
this quilt will be a gift for a great niece. Her little sister received a 'bliss' quilt for her christening so thought it only fitting that they both have one from this range.

 this is one of my favourite little girls.

 this is the other quilt from the bliss fabrics...

My mini for spring got finished this week, some simple quilting and the binding and ta da...

Hanging in time for the first day of spring.

Quilting and binding finished on the snowman too, now it can go away till next winter.

 these little blocks came together quick and easy and will be in the mail tomorrow to go to Sharon's along with lot's of other people's contributions of squares to get put together to make a special I  spy quilt for a sick little boy.
Click here to read more if you are interested. I love the pattern Sharon will be using and it is a great way to feature novelty fabrics. Definitely will keep it in mind for the 'one day' list.
I seem to be drawn to children's quilts... my nanna glory box is going to be chockers!

Another row of hexies have been added to the novelty hexies but I have run out of stepping stones so I see some green squares and lots of basting in my near future.
And no I haven't forgotten my Swan Lake borders.... the remaining borders have their stars ironed on and I have started appliqueing them. Gotta keep that ball rolling!
Another beautiful Spring day today. Sun shining and not a grey cloud in sight.
Beautiful!
have a great weekend wherever you are.


Marina
x

the design floor

Yesterday I got the whole day to myself and thought it would be great to drag out the machine and start to put the little girls of the world together. Last time they reappeared I put aside the remainder of my Bliss stash to use with them.
Seeing as I don't have a design wall a sheet on the floor becomes a design floor.
Here is how it played out...

the stars have been sitting around for ages so they have found a project to belong to as well. Two ufo's knocked out in one project! there will be a border around the centre block.

 the postie brought this yesterday too.
thought it was time to commit to a background fabric and trace this one and mister Rabbit. After a great night of stitching Mr Rabbit is half done! I am so enjoying having a free week of projects. Hopefully I will get to play with my woolly bits again before the end of the week.

Today the plan is to get some more of the little girls done,should be able to put the rest of the top together and working on Mr Rabbit this evening.
If anyone is interested the patterns for the little girls is called "little maids" from Jenny B Harris of Allsorts Makery.

Happy days!
marina

a reward and an old project

There are a few projects that every now and then resurface demanding some attention that will see them get a little closer to the finish line.

Quite some time ago I made some little dolls of the world stitchery and just never got around to stitching them into a top. They are such pretty designs and I did some in redwork and some others in coloured threads. I needed one more in redwork to be able to have enough for a little project so when I was thinking of something to work on with other crafting friends Friday night I thought this would be a nice quick stitchery to fill in time waiting for my next Kathy Schmitz block. 

 She is well on the way to being done then she can join the others and I will need to work out how to put them together.
I also allowed myself to start my reward project. I made a start by cutting out the woolly bits, hoping I would remember the instructions given by the quilted crow girls. The pattern is from their new book.

 had to share this card that I brought for no 1 son's birthday this week.
He is a mad lego fan. He loved the card, I thought it was a cute one too.

hope you are having a great weekend!

marina

some stitchery finishes....

Over the last week or so I have been just pottering away at a few stitcheries that will come together one day into a project. I had been thinking about these little girls for some time and had stitched three already and it was time they had some company. I have used white on white fabrics but stitched on the reverse side as the front was a little over powering for the stitcheries. No close ups on these stitcheries as I don't know why but my stitching has been a little bit scruffy of late. Not up to scratch at all!  I need to try to work out why. Maybe I need some new needles?

I have also finished stitching my times gone by May installment which is just as well because this month's pattern should be arriving this week, hopefully.

It has been a lovely Queen's birthday weekend. We had a family wedding on Sunday night and we spent the night in a hotel in the city for a treat. It also meant we didn't have a late night drive home.
Not much crafting unfortunately, but it will be school holidays soon and I think it is nearly time to make a list of what I will like to get done.
On Saturday I took a trip to GJ's fabrics. A wonderful patchwork shop! They have had a massive reorganise and I had a lovely time sticky beaking around. I bought some extra wide seeded homespun to use as backing for Life is Beautiful quilt, I mainly wanted to find some fabrics to use for a border for my flower garden. I am ready to start planning for it to be completed. I will add just one more row and then that is it! so far there are 96 flowers in my garden! After I have finished this one it will be time to join up my Park avenue flowers.

I found some gorgeous cream print for the border and a lovely green check for the binding and possibly a small border around the top. I was toying with appliqueing some butterflies around the border?
What do you think of the green inner border?

Something to think about before I chop!
Here is a little quote from the lovely book I received from Lorraine (the balancing kiwi) I didn't give any idea of the size of the little book in  my previous photos of it but it is just so adorably tiny.
Hope you like the quote too...

hope you all have a lovely week...
Marina

another little miss

Here is the latest addition to the Little Maids stitcheries- Miss Polynesia. I have stitched her in variegated and solid coloured threads.
My next projects will be some Christmas stitcheries that I have traced. Perfect to take to tennis tomorrow!
Today I popped into Spotlight to pick up some pellon and I found some fabrics that made a lovely addition to my stash that I am accumulating to make DH a quilt of his own.
Tomorrow we will be having our new upright cooker installed. After 24 years of service it is time to put the old girl out to pasture and make way for the new girl. The new girl is a lovely stainless steel model quite modern compared to the brown enamel one. I told DH not to expect me to go crazy cooking just because of the new stove. Let's just say I cook because we have to eat, I would much rather spend the extra time crafting.
A new fancy cooker will not a chef make!
I am still waiting on the figtree fabrics I ordered so that I can start my projects for the Stitcher's angel swap. I had hoped they would have come by now. I feel so far behind as project 3 is out next monday. Once I get started I know that I will get it all done I am just so eager to start. Patience...
cheers for now
Marina

craft group saturday.

The sun is shining beautifully here, a promising start to the day. Great wash weather.
Had a great catch up with one of my bom projects-sewing the borders on the completed blocks. I have the final two blocks ready to go and next month it will be the 'put together' instructions. Then another project will be complete.
I picked up a darning foot for my sewing machine and I can't wait to have a go at some machine quilting. Also picked up some waffle cotton for the stitcher's angel project. The first project is on Helen Stubbings blog. The theme is 'roses'. My swap partner loves Figtree quilt fabrics so I thought I would try to get some to use in the projects. Their fabrics are just beautiful and lovely to look at all the fabrics in each collection. They have a lovely range called gypsy rose which I think ties in well with the swap theme. I found some on e-bay so they should be making their way here this week-then I can start!
I have managed to finish my next little maids embroidery- Little miss Japan. I thought I would have a go at stitching her in coloured threads instead of just the red work. I just had to do her hair black and the rest of the colours came from there. I must check the pattern to see the colours used on there. I have traced a few to have handy as a 'pick up and go' project. Perfect to take to caft group this morning!
Just need to do a few jobs before I go and then off to a morning with my craft friends.
Have a lovely weekend.
cheers
Marina