SSCS Gift, OPAM finish & Happy New Year.

Above are the gifts I sent to Anne-Mari in Norway as part of the SSCS Swap.  A snowman table runner and some other goodies which included an Anni Downs pattern, The Christmas Goose.  I bought the pattern and handle from Patchwork Plus (an Aussie on-line shop with great service)  in Tassie, and made up the little kit to go with it from my stash.  I added some buttons , small scissors and an Australian calendar.  The table runner has been added to my OPAM list for December.
In closing this post, I would like to wish everyone of my quilting friends a very HAPPY NEW YEAR and hope that 2012  will bring you health, happiness and provide you with lots of time to quilt.........
Till next year........

SSCS Swap Gift

Well Christmas Day is over for another year and as well as my family gifts, I got to open my SSCS  Swap present. THANK YOU Tami from the USA for my lovely bag. It has lots of pockets inside as well as one on the outside and also came with a card wallet. I didn't peek beforehand and I must say it was well worth the wait   I love it especially the little tumbling blocks on the front and I can't wait to fill it with my sewing bits and pieces and take it with me when my quilt group starts back up in a couple of weeks time. 
   

I hope everyone had a.........      VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS      .............and that you got to spend the day with your family as I did.  Thank you to all of my blogging friends for sharing part of your life with me as I do enjoy reading about what you are doing and what you are making and I also like sharing with you what I love doing as well.
Enjoy the rest of the Xmas break...............  

Getting ready for Xmas

Above is the Secret Santa gift I received at my Quilt Group break-up last week.  Lots of lovely Xmas themed goodies which will be put to good use on Christmas Eve when we have our family gathering. I forgot to take a photo of my gift but it was along similar lines with a Xmas mug, a mug rug, some choccies and shortbread biscuits. I'm hoping Xmas Eve will be a nice sunny day so the grand-kids and grown-ups can enjoy a swim in the pool.  We have been swimming most days but I must say the water is still very cool although once the initial shock of that first dive in is over, it is quite pleasant.
I'm afraid I haven't been in my sewing room for well over a week but am hoping to do a bit of stitching next week.    I have only a couple of gifts still to buy and have wrapped most of the other gifts so that part of  Xmas is under control. Beside shopping this week and the usual Xmas clean-up, I took my grandson Jake to the movies.  We saw Puss 'n' Boots in 3D.  We both enjoyed it and ate lots of popcorn and ice-cream while we were there.  This week Tom, Jake's brother is down for 3 weeks.  It will be lovely to catch up with him as I haven't seen him in a while. Scott is on holidays so my Grandma duties will have a well earned break for a couple of weeks.

This is what I have been dabbling with the last couple of weeks.  Hope to finally complete it this week.  Been a while since I have played around with my paints but am enjoying the experience again.  The worst part is cleaning the paint brushes when I'm finished.  The end result will be worth it though and I guess the poor reindeer, gingerbread man and penguin would like it if I finished painting their faces.

Today we are going to my nieces for a family lunch.  I have made a cheese cake to take so hope it tastes okay.  Just have to whip the cream.   Till next time..........

Group Break-up

Just a quick post to show a photo of our group break-up on Monday.  Of course I forgot to take a photo of the lovely food we had to eat or the presents all wrapped in their pretty paper waiting under the Xmas tree to be given out to some very excited ladies.  So here we are after opening our presents, everyone a bit too full to move but feeling very happy and contented.
MERRY CHRISTMAS quilters and stitchers.  See you in the NEW YEAR my friends.

Arrival of SSCS parcel.

Today I received my SSCS parcel from Tami in the USA.  I opened my ornament parcel to find not 1 but 2 ornaments inside. The green ornament is a knitted bell  and the little red one has a cathedral style window on each side with a Santa face peeking out.   It is beautifully made with the tiniest of stitches.  Thank-you Tami, they are both lovely and will be a nice addition to my Christmas tree.  I am really looking forward to opening my other parcel on Xmas morning.
The last few days I have been busy  painting a Christmas Advent Calendar so hope to be back with a photo of that soon. Cheers till then .....

OPAM finishes

I have made another mug rug out of Bliss fabric. Add a festive mug and they make nice Christmas presents as gifts for friends or teachers. 

Yesterday I received an e-mail from my SSCS recipient in Norway.  Ann-Mari has opened the Xmas ornament so I can add it to my OPAM list and show a photo.

This is a little bag I made a while ago.  It's just big enough for your purse, phone and a few odds and ends we always seem to need to take with us when we pop out to the shops.

This photo shows the flap folded up.  The way the bag is made creates pockets on either side.  This pattern was a free one from Spotlight and is very cute and easy to make.
So that makes 3 OPAM finishes for November.

Till next time...........

 

Brissie Blog Meet

Here we all are enjoying coffee and a chat.

Michelle of  Rag Tag Stitchin' Designs and me.

Yesterday I joined some like-minded quilters at The Grandview Hotel Cleveland for a blog meet.  Joy of JoyPatch and Maree of On My Verandah arranged this as a follow up to one they had earlier this year which I couldn't attend. Thank-you Joy & Maree.  I had a wonderful day meeting new people and also catching up with Michelle who I knew many many years ago. We both attended a Studio Ceramics Course at TAFE back in the late eighties.  Michelle and I  have both moved on from our pottery obsession since then only to follow a similar one in stitching and quilting.  Funny how small the world is sometimes.
This morning I have been checking out the blogs of the ladies I met. It's nice to put a face to the name.
Well, my quilting room awaits, till next time........

SSCS, Birthday Celebrations & Quilting Stuff

Here's a little snowman who's looking forward to a bit of travel this week.  I have finished my SSCS swap gifts and in the process of  wrapping them ready to post tomorrow.  I have enjoyed being in this swap and hope the recipient of my parcel will like the things I have made as much as I do.  Now all that needs to happen is that it will arrive in time to be opened Christmas Day.  Thanks to Chookyblue (aka The Elf) for all her time and effort in running this swap. 

This is my family, taken at my son Todd's 40 th Birthday barbie last week.  With my boys now both in their forties, I'm starting to feel a bit old.  Need to stop the days passing so quickly.  Any suggestions on how to do that?  Just two of my grand-children missing from this photo.  Hope to get everyone together at Xmas.  

 Remember I said in my last post we were going to have cake.  Well here it is and it was delicious.  Strawberry and cream sponge cake from the Cheesecake Shop.  Well worth breaking the diet for.

We had a lovely party.  Congratulations Todd.
Last week at quilting, a few of the ladies were busy trying their hand at making earrings.  They ended up having a bit of a production line going making the process look very easy and this is what they ended up with.

Lots of Christmas Tree earrings in reds, multicolour and greens.  They look great on and will make a lovely gift or a stocking stuffer.  Well done everyone. 

A few years ago, I made this for my sister's birthday.  A couple of weeks ago, she asked me if there was a way she could hang it on the wall instead of using it in the centre of the table so I have added a hanging sleeve for her.  I really like this pattern and would like to make another one but first I have to remember where I filed the pattern. Must do some organization in the pattern area one of these days.  

Well must go...........Be back soon with more finishes I hope...........

Race Day & a Birthday

Here is a photo from last weeks outing to Eagle Farm Racecourse for Melbourne Cup Day.  Back row from left is Deb, my DIL, me, Todd and Scott, my sons and in the front are friends, Wayne and Michelle.  We all had a great day with some of our group backing the winner of the cup but unfortunately it was not me.
My son Todd turns 40 tomorrow, the 10 th,  and this was part of his celebrations although we are having a get together on Saturday so we can have cake and sing Happy Birthday.  Isn't a birthday without cake, is it?

I have been busy in my sewing room with several things on the go.  I am also part of Chookyblue's SSCS (Secret Santa Christmas Swap) this year and need to have my handmade gifts ready to post next week.  No photos of these until they have been received by my swap recipient though.

Well , till next time.............Happy Quilting.
  

Another successful Camp. OPAM finishes.

We had a wonderful time at the camp at Boonah on the week-end. We had lots of fun and laughter, a couple of late nights, great food and we also managed to get plenty of sewing done. I worked on my Authentic quilt blocks and finished all 40 blocks, then stitched the blocks of my Xmas runner together (photos of these in my last post) as well as finishing off my apron and place mat which has a pocket for my cutlery on it. I used the same fabric for both. I had a quilter's panel so used sections of this and blanket-stitched them to each piece. I added a pocket and lined my apron to give it a nice finish. I am standing in the middle of the photo above. Brenda on the end (right side) in my photo won the best apron prize.

Below are some of the quilts the girls from my quilting group were working on. Cindy's Secret Garden quilt. All the florals used are different. I love this quilt made with 5" squares and light colored yardage. Several girls were making this quilt.

Joy finished her candlewick quilt with borders and lace.
This Color wash quilt was coming together nicely.

Tomorrow I am off to Eagle Farm Racecourse for a Melbourne Cup Party. My second son, Todd, turns forty on the 10 th of November and he decided he would like to celebrate it with some family and friends on cup day at the races. It will be nice to be there as it is a long time since I got dressed up and attended a Melbourne Cup day. I've bought a fascinator to add to my outfit. All that's left to do is pick the winner........ any suggestions?
Cheers for now ...........Sorry I can't seem to get this to post without large spaces between the photos so this will be the last time I try as it is getting late.

Off to Boonah Camp.

I'm off to camp at Boonah in a short while. The car is packed and ready to go. I am picking up two of my friends, Jan and Sue on the way. We have check in at 12.00pm and it takes under an hour to get there. A small group this time, just 12 of us going but no matter how many we have, we always have a great time. Below is my place mat for the camp. Just the binding to go, will finish it as soon as I get there. We also had to make an apron.
Below are some things I am working on. My new table runner for this Xmas and fabric I'm using in a quilt for my grandson Josh. It is called Authentic and is by Sweetwater. I just love their fabrics.

Well must rush, will blog about the camp when I get back.

A nice surprise, work in progress......

How lucky am I? I won this beautiful diary by being a follower on The Quilters' & The Embroiderers' Store's new blog. Thank-you Karen. Went to check out the blog last week and there was my name along with three other winners. The diary contains some lovely photos in it so will enjoy using it very much next year.

Here is a stitchery I completed for a Xmas table runner I am making. Unfortunately, I didn't allow enough fabric around the outside and when I went to cut it out, it isn't quite big enough. I have traced another one to stitch. I guess I might be able to use this one for the label. Not happy with myself at all at the moment

I bought this small hanging in America so thought I would try to get it finished by Halloween. It goes on a stand and is part of a series done by Nancy Halvorsen. I also bought the December block as well. Haven't done any blanket stitch applique for a while so had to check out Lynette Andersen's blog for her tutorial on the way she does blanket stitch. Finally found it back in a September 2009 blog entry.
Well must close now as I am off to my quilting room to hopefully get lots of work done.

Elefantz Giveaway !!!!!

Jenny of Elefantz is having a giveaway to celebrate having over 1500 followers. As well as her blog which is always an interesting read, Jenny has a monthly e-mag which you can subscribe to. It is an enjoyable magazine with a bonus of 3 or 4 new patterns by Jenny included each month. So pop over to her blog and enter to win some great prizes. Cheers for now........

Finishes for September

I haven't had any finishes for quite a while so it is nice to be able to say that I have three to register for this month's OPAM. Above is the place mat I made for the quilting camp I attended at Tamborine the end of last month and below is my latest finish, a mug rug. I think it is very cute and am going to make a few more of these. They would make great gifts as well. The fabric I have used is Bliss by Bonnie & Camille.

The last finish is my Tis the Season quilt. As I was part of a stitch-a-long group for this, I am very pleased that I managed to get it completed before the due date which is tomorrow. It was lovely to be part of this group and see how different all the quilts have turned out due to different choices in fabrics used. I used Crazy 8 fabric by Sandy Gervais and decided to use the dark blue for the border instead of the red which initially I thought I would use. I am quite happy with how it looks and can't wait to see it hanging on my wall this Christmas.

So that's all for this post. Till next time Happy Stitching...........

Here are a couple of photos of the runners I made at my last camp. Bought some backing for them the other day so will now be able to layer them ready for quilting. I was able to get 2 runners and 2 toppers from each one and a half yard piece. The Xmas ones are slightly different with the snowmen on the outside of one and in the centre of the other.

I have also joined Chookyblue for her Secret Santa Christmas Swap. I am going to add the logo to my side bar and start checking out some blogs of the girls who have also joined. I have been in two Christmas swaps before and have really enjoyed them although this is my first time in this one.

Well must go now as I am trying to finish quilting my Tis The Season and I need to pop in and see the girls at my quilting group today.

Back at last.......

Please excuse the editing on this post as I have tried about five times to make it look better but I am facing a losing battle..........so frustrating.
Lots of things have been happening over the last couple of months. Our trip to the USA in June-July was wonderful and we had a great time. I managed to get to quite a few quilt shops as we journeyed from Los Angeles to San Francisco and then up to Sonoma where we attended our first Nascar race. We went to several hotrod shows, did lots of sight seeing and lots of shopping. We ended up bringing back some hotrod parts for our next car and I purchased plenty of quilting goodies and of course an extra suitcase to bring them home in. Below are photos of a few purchases.






Love these fabrics. Not sure as yet how I will use them.




The last weekend in August I again attended the Beaudesert Quilters Retreat. This one was entitled Masquerade and Bling. Saturday night saw me (in the middle) and my friends Liz and Chris dress-up. It's always a good night with everyone joining in the fun. Liz made her court jester outfit which looked pretty good. She won a prize for the best dress-up, second year in a row.

Below are a few photos of Saturday nights Show & Tell.

I love these quilts. They are so cute.

Here are some of the placemats that were made by the quilters who attended. The very last one is my contribution. It will be a lovely reminder for me of this great weekend. All that writing took me ages to stitch but I was very happy with the end result.

Well, had better close now. Will return soon with some photos of what I worked on at the retreat. Hopefully I am now in the quilting mode again as I have lots of things I what to do and still lots of UFO's to finish.

Until next time........Noela