It's all relative

 There was a parade in my garden today,

  albeit a tiny one.

It was the festival of  new heaters, lovely lunches and hairy dogs.

Even though the tallest participant was only 8 inches high

it felt like a big deal.

(The fabric winner is Chris The Quilter - and that deserves a tiny parade too)

flying past with a giveaway

I recently bought some fabric ! It was just by chance as I trawled through bookface one night I saw a great fabric bundle and clicked through to Clair's fabrics.

I poked around for a bit and there was the fabric I had been wanting so before you can say "pass the magic money card" I had paypal-ed (which is not even like real money at all) and bam it was mine.

Then the lovely Clair of Clair's fabrics emailed me to tell me that she would be refunding some postage. I said not to worry but she insisted. (she is like that I have found).

Anyway my fabric arrived and it was perfect...but a few days later another parcel arrived containing these fat quarters. Clair had sent them to me as a giveaway for you guys ! How awesome. I think it wold be rude to look gift fabric in the mouth , No? 

If you would like to win this set of 6 gorgeous fat quarters, called 'Winter Polaroid' you need to pop over and visit Clair's shop and then come back here and tell me your favourite fabric or bundle.

You won't get bonus entries for mentioning this anywhere or bookgramming or any other things and

you can't increase your chances by hiring a sign writer or following me or Clair or anyone at all.

(that all just sounds like hard work to me)

I'll declare a winner  tomorrow,

Thanks Clair !

The holidays were paved with good intentions

I was all set to blog blog blog...

But the ideas hit and then there was sewing to be done ( I may have actually sewn 38 toys this holidays).

New central heating is being installed ( This is so freakin awesome it deserves a T-shirt). How much fun have the cats had, popping up through the holes in the floor as the whim takes them? Its like one of those whacking games. ( without the whacking)

I did some visiting friends touristy stuff ( and thought about a job that involved horses).

And at the very end I made a new friend.

There was also a bit of house painting, a lot of thinking and a day or two lost to a crazy neck.

There are new ideas and crazy plans and ill-considered commitments ahead of me. I am doing big things and small things and wishing (as always) for more time, more time , more time, to embroider the undies, and make the stories, and play with screen printing and return to crochet. I want to master the Pinterest thing, and tidy up my blog, and tell you the story of Cross Olive. I want you to come over and have a cup of tea (or six) so I can show you all the half-made things, and the snippets of things and the disembodied heads and the headless bodies.

Just ignore the holes in the floor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

Hanging out, downtown with my friends

Well, technically they call it teaching, but yesterday I got to hang out with my young friends at Millrose. Do you get sick of me telling you how much fun these kids classes are? Or how awesome the kids are?

I stupidly didn't get photos of everyone, but I'm telling you the fur was flying yesterday as we sewed up Baxter the hedgehog. I am sure you can imagine just how much mess we made with seven people chopping up fur, I am sure they are still vacumming it up at the shop.

My next class is going to be the Foxes at Patch 'n' Quilt is Gisborne. This is my second class with these foxy guys so I am like a total expert now ! If you would like to join us in the new store on April 26th call Mary on (03 ) 54 207333. Hanging out with Mary is always a blast- she is like a jet propelled craft machine and she makes me laugh so hard the tears threaten to run down my legs.

After that I'll be packing the sewing machine away and doing a handsewing class here in Ballarat ( can you hear the serenity) at the newly opened Cotton Factory.

These little folk ( and there is a new one in my hands as we speak) are suitable for any level of sewing skill. We only need two stitches to make them and you can choose any of them to work on. ( and maybe the new one if I pull my finger out).

If you would like to come along ( Friday May 9th) you can book online here. While you are there, you can check out the other classes as well, including a class with the extremely spunky Nicole Mallalieu of You Sew Girl.

Of course, there will be a whole lot of real life and real job in betwixt all that crafty goodness but for now there is still holiday time and that means I need to get moving and crown the one dozen polar bears that are sitting on the kitchen bench.

 

Posted with Blogsy

gloomy

It sometimes happens, that the things that are meant to be first come second,

while the things that are third, came first. 

So the things that are second will have to be third

and the things that are fourth are yet to be sewn.

(and the 2 has nothing to do with it).

It is grey and raining here today and if tea were alcohol I'd be dancing with my knickers on my head by now.

Playing by the rules

 Do you set yourself rules ? guidelines? parameters? Do you give yourselves little rewards when you have finished something? I do it all the time, then I change the rules, move the goalposts and dement myself .

 The rule for the weekend is to finish off some things, and I mean completely finished. No leaving the hand sewing for another day. 

As a result, yesterday I wound 11 little pom poms and sewed them to eleven little hats

I stuffed , closed, added ears and tails and nostrils

to eleven hat-wearing hippos.

Today

I am on holidays ( term break) as of this afternoon

I am eating peanut butter toast for dinner

And I have a pile of things to stuff.

(No complaints)

Posted with Blogsy