Let it snow!

We are just back from a fun family holiday in the Victorian snowfields.

The kids loved feeding the King Parrots each morning. 

The wildlife on the way up was interesting!

The artistic things you can do with old ski's were fun!

This was the first time the kids have seen snow and only the second time for DH!  

 There was penty of time for playing in the snow.

Plenty of fun on toboggans, for young and

 ....the not so young!  Lots of fun falling off, surprisingly no injuries or bruises.

Luckily the only fall I had on our half day of skiing was a showy stack getting off the chair lift! The rest of the family didn't care for skiing, but having a beginner lesson doesn't make for champions, including me!  

We were blessed with good weather, but happy to be home now, and patiently awaiting the five days of rain they have promised us...fingers crossed, otherwise I am going to have to water the garden...crazy thought given it's the middle of winter!

Happy quilting Sue.

Fishy cot quilt

I cheated a few weeks ago and started this new cot quilt.  I am intent on using up some of the wadding ends in my cupboard as well as the cot panels lurking in the stash - well thats my excuse for not working on UFO's!  I figured (another excuse) was this would be a good way to improve practise my FMQ as well as free up some storage space.

I tried to do yellow, green, yellow border, but it looked naff, so I removed one yellow and made the four patch cornerstones.  I then stitched in the ditch including those that didn't exist - cos its a panel!  Then I quilted some fish in the blue border.

 I don't think they turned out too bad, I stippled squiggly lines in between fish to look like water.  Not sure what the rest of the quilt will be quilted with, but leaning towards a water theme of some sort.

Happy quilting, Sue.

Cot quilt completed, finally!

Remember this pile of scraps, left over from the pretty Twister quilt?

Doesn't matter if you don't, as I have transformed them into this!

One baby cot quilt, finished!  I was happy with the quilting in the centre and white border, but I couldn't decide what to do on the pink border.  In the end I went with my favorite spirals, one day soon I will widen my horizons when it comes FMQ!

Finished with a cute aqua spot binding and label on, it is already to gift, 

happy quilting, Sue.

Red and white rocks!

I have wanted to make a Pinwheel in a churn dash quilt - as demonstrated by the gorgeous Jenny Doan from Missouri Star Quilt Company - using a Midwinter Red layer cake.  My weekend in Bordertown was the perfect opportunity, or excuse to start a new quilt!

 

Firstly I matched up lights and darks and made big pinwheels.  Then cutting in a similar fashion to split nine patches, you end up with the final pinwheel inside a churn dash block.

I think these blocks will benefit from some sashing but as I don't have any in the Midwinter Red range, I set these blocks aside for the rest of the weekend.

My long hoarded red jelly roll (not a Moda one, was made by a quilt shop) came out for some fun.  Because I had the red roll in my stash I brought a neutral roll - which was from Moda - Floral Gatherings shirtings by Primitive Gatherings ages ago to accompany it.

I stitched and cut, stitched and pressed and then we ran out of time in Bordertown.  A busy week didn't see me enjoy any quilting until Friday.  But it wasn't until Sunday that I had the beginnings of a final dresden to show you.  

And guess what....yep I am short, only have 11 Dresden's, so back to stitching to make up the 12th!

But on the bright side, for the month of July in the Rainbow Scrappy challenge the colour is RED!  I will have no problem this month, lots of red scraps floating around my sewing room :)

Happy quilting Sue.

Patchwork Camp

 A lovely weekend was spent sewing with friends. 

Some projects just needed a border to finish them.

Others needed a few rows stitched together.

This raggy quilt needed space to be laid out, before stitching it together.

Others grew like Topsy and became a top!

Some projects were kits that had sat in cupboards for a long time

But they really shone once they had the chance! 

Others just quietly grew and 

with some new fabric purchases multiplied some more!  

Lots of individual blocks were stitched by machine, some by hand,  there was dressmaking and even mending...sorry no photos of outfits, couldn't find a willing model ; )

Layer cakes became completed tops.

Lots of laughs, chatting, catching up on old and new news and ever present the hum of sewing machines busy at work.

None of these quilts are mine....I will show you my work in the next post, 

until then happy quilting, Sue.

June is Light Blue

I have been on the couch (or the bench as my footy mad kids would say) for ten days suffering from the flu.  Next year I am going to get a flu shot, honestly what a complete waste of time that was, not to mention horrible!

I was so sick I couldn't sew...literally had no interest and couldn't concentrate.  But yesterday, I felt well enough to crank up the sewing machine.  

The colour for June is Light Blue in the Rainbow Scrappy Challenge.

After I made these leaf blocks I got out the remaining 2.5" blue squares and cranked out some more nine patches.  I started out with light and mid blue and then made dark blue as well - because there were so many lurking in the box.  

I have nearly used all my blue squares, only a couple of dark blue left.  But loads of half square triangles are going begging.  I will leave them for another day....might make a nice border, if I ever figure out how I am going to use all these 9 patches together!

I might have been feeling better, but my brain was obviously on holidays.  This is what happens to your normally round stick blender...if you puree the pumpkin soup while it is still on the heat....yes I know to turn it off, but I am still adjusting to electric stove tops and how slow they respond v gas!

Big oops!

Happy quilting, Sue.

Scrappy Bargello in red and purple

 I  spent time sewing strips last week...then cutting strips...and resewing strips!

Scrappy Bargello in Red and Purple - free pattern by Bonnie Hunter.

Last Friday at my new Sit and Sew group I got two more panels finished.  Then was able to finish the last panel and sew them all together that night.  

I have found the right fabric for the first border in my stash, but the second border will require a trip to the shops.  I am not sure going to the shops is a good idea...I think I had better stick to working on some more UFO's!

Happy quilting Sue.