I said that I wanted to make some more time for sewing this year…….and in January I mananged to get a bit more than usual.

My yoyo count  is steadily increasing and I’m just about up to the number required to make the curtain for the Princess Room.

And I sewed all my Around the Block  pieces together into a quilt top which fits perfectly on the bed in the Princess Room.  It went together really well in a couple of hours one night last week up at Sewjourn.

I started a cute little sewing bag using a Rosalie Quinlan  pattern that I’d had for ages and some fabric from my Houston stash.  Now I’m up to handquilting the outside with some Perle thread.

Which reminds me that I haven’t shown my purchases from Houston. 

Fabric bundles from Sample Spree including  the gorgeous Sherbet Pips by Aneela Hoey, Quite Contrary by My Mind’s Eye for Riley Blake, Anna Griffin’s beautiful Carmen and Just Wing It by Momo, which is really special.

Anna’s divine stand was opposite us at Houston – so nice to look at for four days. 

Not that we had much time to look as Kellie’s patterns and stand attracted LOADS of attention as usual.

Including attention from two of the best – Kaffe and Brandon!  And speaking of which, the Kaffe Workshop at Ballarat Patchwork  in February was great fun…..more on that later but here’s Kaffe talking about my quilt.

I was lucky enough to spend the following day at Sewjourn with some lovely girls and so got most of my quilt top sewn together…..just need to finish the middle section but haven’t actually pulled it out since then.

March didn’t see me doing much sewing even though there was a short stay at Sewjourn during the holidays – I did make lots of Welcome Cards for the guests coming to Sewjourn though. 

Oh and I did go to a Sashiko Class at Kimono House  which was lots of fun…..I think sashiko could become quite addictive.

And in April I spent lots of time sorting out my stash and did make two cushions that I love.  I was especially happy with the way the zips worked out as I’ve had a bit of a block when it comes to zips…..but really it was very easy.

It would be nice if I could say at the end of May that a few of the half done projects were finished…..we’ll see as there is 2 weeks in the US and then planning (and cleaning) for a special birthday party at the start of June.

PS  Sorry for photo overload……you’ve done well if you have made it to the end of this post!

And it’s SO good to be home!

Our 3 month camping trip to the north of Australia was truly magic……..fantastic family time spent in an incredibly beautiful part of this amazing country.

Then my 3 weeks back here were a blur…..no time to post or even to catch up on other blogs.  It involved settling back into school and routines, lots of work, dealing with a broken washing machine, back into organising our School Fair and even a quick trip to Sewjourn with the UFO girls which involved as much gardening for me as sewing!

And what little time for crafting I could fit into that was for the school fair…..but we have some amazing goods for sale so more about that to come.

There was the excitement of lots of packages  waiting for me on my return……..thanks girls and I’ll post more about that in the next couple of days as well.

Before I really even had time to unpack my bags it was off to Houston and a busy time at Quilt Market…….yet again Kellie’s amazing work was admired by all and my favorite American gal kept me entertained.   And yes, there will be more of that to come too with photos of market and a sneak peek at the fabrics I bought (because I really need more fabric!!) at Sample Spree.

And last but certainly not least it was off to Sewjourn (less than 24 hours after my plane had landed) to celebrate someone special’s 10th birthday.  (Why do they call them ‘Sleepovers’ when not much sleeping actually occurs???)  Happy Birthday gorgeous Lucy – we are so proud of you!

So it IS great to be home today.   And this is where I intend to stay for a while!

Finally it’s my turn!!  For the past 12 months I’ve been participating in Around the Block – a swap with some amazingly talented girls.  We’ve done circles and wonky logs and stars and squares and wonky houses and zigzags and lots of other fun blocks.

A couple of the girls who were in the early months have finished their quilts – and they are AMAZING.

Anyway, now it”s July and that’s my month.  So, using some of the fabrics from America and some from my stash I’ve packaged up 15 bundles and handed them over to the postman for safe keeping.  A couple are already with their crafty guardians who I’m sure will look after them and turn them into something beautiful before sending them back.  Actually the whole process of deciding what I wanted everyone to do, writing directions, choosing fabrics and cutting (how much to send??  I’m sure I’ve sent too much but at least people have a choice what to work with) took a lot of time. I’ve already made a few blocks using the feature fabrics from the new range so now I just to wait patiently until my blocks start coming back home.  I’m thinking the quilt will be for the Princess Room at Sewjourn.

……..from holidays which were fun and relaxing.

……..from enjoying the new car on the long trip.

……..from helping a very talented girl at the Australian Quilt Market on the weekend.

……..from celebrating birthday number 9.

………to FINALLY draw a winner for the giveaway.  Congratulations Selina – looking forward to having you come and spend a crafty day with us in January.  I’ll email you with the details in the next day or so.

……..to do my blocks for Around the Block and a Rainbow Swap.

………to do LOADS of washing.

………to catch up on some blog reading.

**More details and photos on all the above to come in the next couple of days.

Oops I’ve pretty much fallen off the Blogtoberfest wagon………  Well done to all those who have managed to post each day. And a huge WELL DONE to Tinniegirl and Curly Pops  for their initiative, organisation and hard work!

And what have I been doing?  Well I had a FABULOUS weekend away at Sewjourn with some girlfriends from church.  There was much chatter, lots of laughter, eating, sharing……and a bit of creating as well. 

It was a glorious day for the Farmers Market on Saturday.

Followed by a frantic week of car buying (yes, I finally have my dream car – a Honda Odyssey!! I figure it’s the people mover we need without being a bus) and holiday organising (off to Byron Bay tomorrow in the NEW CAR – just as well don’t think the other one would have made it that far!) and work (still so far behind) and well…….no blogging.

But, I do have a giveaway!  In September I had a giveaway to celebrate one year of Sewjourn and four girls won the chance to come with a friend and spend a day sewing at Sewjourn on Saturday January 30th.  Unfortunately one of the winners emailed me to say that she can no longer come along on that date (she was extremely keen to be travelling down from NSW anyway!) SO there is now ONE MORE SPOT AVAILABLE.  Simply leave me a comment on this post if you are interested in coming to spend the day crafting awayand relaxing and enjoying with like-minded souls on 30 January.  And you can even bring a friend.  It’s sure to be fun…….last year we had a ball.  Leave your comment by 1st November but I can’t promise when I will draw a winner – it will depend on internet access availability…….and if I can drag myself away from the beach to the computer!

Now must go and pack, and finish that last overdue block for Around the Block……..and get some sleep before the big drive.

What a  spectactular day to be here!!

Blue skies, peaceful – even the garden is at it’s best at this time of year! 

So excited about the weekend ahead – just waiting for friends to arrive now……..

Have brought too many projects to do yet again!  But first on the list of priorities is Around the Block swaps!  These gorgeous fabrics arrived from Lara yesterday – which means I have 3 blocks to complete to stay up to date.

Hopefully there will be some completed UFOs to show by Sunday night!  Have a good weekend.

Some time ago I joined up for Around the Block swap  and have finally gotten around to doing the first of my September blocks.  Like Lara I decided that I would make each block for myself first (as a practise!!) and then I’d have another quilt at the end of it as well.  These are my choice of fabrics – all from my stash.

I started with Midwest Modern sent from Janelle and just added bits and pieces.   I’m making a big effort to  work with what I have – hopefully it will look OK.  (And I hope my DH is reading this – I’m NOT buying any more fabric……but yes there is enough in the stash to pull together a quilt….or two!)

Anyway, Kate asked for Wonky Log Cabins and sent out some gorgeous fabrics in blue and oranges.  Here’s my first block for her…..

And here’s my ‘practise’ one for me…..

And then another block to use up all of Kate’s scraps……