Lego man quilt - its a finish

I don't think I previously mentioned that the Lego Man Quilt was a request from a Defence force member serving overseas, through Aussie Hero Quilts?

SEW I needed to make a laundry bag also, and of course carried on the theme.

I just covered up his initials.  It was only after I washed this bag that I realised I accidently used the wrong shade of yellow on top of his head :(  Funnily enough that would be the same yellow I made to use in the last Aussie Hero quilt...which was in AFL footy club Hawthorn colours!

So here is "the man" all washed and ready to go in the post!

I dont normally pre wash quilts before I give them away.  But I was not going to trust that red fabric!  However it was the blue that ran the most, thank heavens for Colour Catchers I say!

What is it the Amish say about nobody being perfect?  I made another small mistake in my hurry to make my deadline...sewed the label on the back of the quilt sideways!  To be fair to me, I was sewing it on while in a meeting and had the quilt scrunched up on my lap (it was a big meeting).  I left it that way, figured it was more important to pre wash the quilt in the time I had left (especially while it was stinking hot and it would dry quickly) then to be unpicking something that was perfectly readable!

I am up to my armpits in pears and apples from our orchard - thankfully we only have one of each fruit tree.  The coddling moths have infested half of our crop and I am destroying the infected fruit, to ensure future crops are pest free.  

However the watermelon patch also keeps pumping out fruit and as summer draws to an end so have the BIG watermelons.  Well so I thought until I started to pull up the vine and found another large "mothership" hiding under all the vine! 

Happy quilting Sue.

A new bag, for a new hand piecing project!

Lisa came for a day of sewing.  I decided to make a bag I had pinned a few days ago, because I couldn't stop thinking about it!  

Its called the Ellie Travel Case and is a free tutorial by Heidi Staples on her blog, Fabric Mutt.   The pattern was well written and I basically made it in an afternoon, a long afternoon granted!

The only down side was the handles and I could have done something wrong.  But I decided to applique a scrap to cover up the wadding and it doesn't look too bad.

Its a nice small bag, perfect for some hand sewing - for those grab and run days where you suspect there will be down time aka stitching time!  I have unearthed a new hand applique project, so this is its new home and hopefully it won't get forgotten about now its in this super cute bag!

I have also been picking my cherry Roma tomatoes,  

 and helping Mum bottle my apricots.  She had the knowledge, I have the fruit and we both do the work.  She gets as many bottles as she wants and I take the rest!

I planted watermelons, because the kids wanted them.  They have shown zero interest in gardening since!  I went to turn this one over and it broke off the vine.  So I figured that was a sign it was ripe.  Nope!  I struggled to carry it into the house, I put the apple in the photo to give you an idea of how large it was.    

When I stuck the knife in it to cut it open, there was a big pop and it split down the middle - getting a fright when you have a large carving knife in your hand is not an experience I wish to repeat!

Very disappointed that it tasted ...hmm funny/tart/insufficiently sweet?  Either way the chooks got the lot and now I am wondering if it is worth watering the rest of the watermelons on the vine...all ten of them!  Happy to hear from experienced watermelon growers!

Happy quilting Sue.