Santa Came..........and I finished a quilt.........

Well, my friends, we had a lovely Christmas Day and it seems in blogland that many others did too. That Santa man seems to always please, especially when a certain little Chookyblue has a hand in the organising!!!!. Again this year I joined in the Secret Santa Christmas Swap hosted by my dear friend, Chookyblue. This year I posted to Portugal, and my parcel arrived from Belgium..........

Of course I left my main present till Christmas Day, as the rules say you must..............this is what I had tucked away in my parcel......

 ......a gorgeous wallhanging.............

 ....cute little Christmas children, gorgeous satin binding, and all hand quilted.......just stunning.....

Big hugs and thanks to Martine.......I love it..........But wait there's more...........

 ............a lot of other lovelies too.......the cutest reindeer, lovely ribbon, some syrup, sweet to try soon, and missing from the piccie because they were too yummy to wait for the camera to take a photo, were a box of Belgium Guylian chocolates......YUMMY...........I was totally spoilt........

......and huge thanks to Martine, and to Chookyblue, our secret santa elf..........

.......and now for a BIG "Ta-Da" moment.........for ages now I have been plodding away on my Some Kind OF Wonderful quilt, designed by my all time favourite lady, Anni Downs. I say plodding, because I needleturned the appliques and it was very time consuming, but well worth it........

I have finally completed the quilting, trying to create something close to the flowers and vines quilted on Anni's original........no special machines here, just the trusty Pfaff, and some staying power!!!

Well here'tis.........a couple of different photos, weather changed and I couldn't decide which one showed it off best, so you're getting both!!!.......this one looks all quilty with the light on it........

 ......and this one better for the appliques.........

 .....of course you want to check out the quilting more closely.....don't you????

I am so pleased to be able to report this quilt as finished......it was being completed as part of a Stitch-a-long group, headed by Chookyblue, and the deadline has come and gone......but only just!!

Now with the start of a New Year about to begin, I must go and seek out some new project to keep the little fingers busy.......don't worry, that job won't be hard, there's plenty to choose from!!!!.....Haha.....

I do hope you are all enjoying the Christmas/New Year season doing things you love with the people closest to your heart.........................

Happy Mail from across the seas........

How exciting this week to find my SSCS (Secret Santa Christmas Swap)  parcel at the post office.
All the way from Belgium.......from Bizzy Martine, and look what I found in the box.......

Loads of little pressies for me, and THE BIG ONE which must remain under the tree till Christmas Day......Chooky's rules!!..........and I will be good...............

 I was allowed to open this one now........a gorgeous ornament for the tree.......isn't he just the cutest?

 .........and Martine has attached her own label to the back which makes it even more special....
Big hugs to you Martine, I love my little reindeer ornament and I can't wait to open my parcel on Christmas Day.

I am spending time today to put all the Christmas decorations up........a bit late I know, but this past few weeks has been a bit crazy here........and the craziness hasn't stopped yet.......

I hope you are all gearing up for Christmas in the happiest of ways........

Santa's on his way across the seas while I quilt.....

I have a busy little elf making a secret something for Chooky's secret santa swap, SSCS.............can't show.....sshh............santa's sleigh it's on his way to the far away continents to deliver it to_______someone special..........so exciting to be part of this swap, as now I wait for the sleigh to deliver me a special something from some far away place too........woohoo...........

While the sleighbells are ringing away from here, I have finally begun a quilting job that has had me longing to start for some time .................my Some Kind of Wonderful quilt, the Stitch-a-long quilt........well I have begun to quilt it...............a long process.......

Planning

Preparing and pinning

 more pinning.......

.....and then for the quilting.............the best bit...........

I decided to go with a design similar to Anni's original..........flowers and a trailing vine with leaves and some swirls................I'll show you close-ups shortly.............

Must get back to it now........hope you're having a nice weekend doing something you love......

Just made it!!!!!.........

The stitch-a-long deadline is very close, like a night away!!!!......so I have been sewing helter skelter and finally have a completed quilt top to share....whew....(wiping brow!!!)

Sadly work and play have interrupted the finishing schedule so sandwiching, quilting and binding will be on hold for now.

.......so......drum roll please...........here 'tis........my Some Kind of Wonderful quilt top.....

I have enjoyed all the applique, although needleturning is so very time consuming, but I am pleased with the result.......

My friend and stitch-a-long 'supervisor' (whip cracker!!!!) will be very pleased to hear of this quilt top finish as many who started with the SAL in the beginning are a long way from the finish line......

I have been up to Brisbane for the Craft Fair since I last posted....and.....um......well......there was some damage, of the $$$$ kind if you get my drift!!!!!........oh well......I am sure they were all necessary purchases.....I'm quite sure!!!!!!!.......more of that to follow........

Some "Wonderful" Progress.....

Oh Gee, if you've been following the Stitch-a-long quilts in progress, you'll know that Chooky, our 'supervisor' has been cracking her whip!!!!.........and I have felt the blows as I was way behind........so I have been working flat-out, but it's hard to speed up needleturn!!!!........lol...........

So here it is all layed out, my Some Kind of Wonderful quilt in progress, by Anni Downs.........

Not all the appliques are complete.........

...............notice the tree!!!......boy those flowers are fiddly to needleturn, so I seem to have left them for now and moved onto something speedier!!!!........lol........

I have a purse for shopping instead of chocolates, and wine bottle and glass instead of a chair, oh and shells for the beach in the foreground instead of a cat!!!!.....just a few altered blocks to make it more personal...........I'll take some close-ups soon, but need to move them to a better light for that.........

Visitors this weekend so must move it all shortly.......

Quilting with Gold thread........

For the first time, I am using a metallic thread in my machine to give my William Morris wallhanging a very rich appeal to it..........

 I had to buy one of these stands for the thread so it feeds off the spool properly.

I anticipated loads of problems, but having bought a good quality thread it's been a breeze and I'm very happy with the look on this project. I had a few breaks with the thread, but not many..........

I plan to sit and sew some more of my Some Kind of Wonderful blocks tonight, so hopefully there'll be a photo shoot tomorrow!!........I can hear Chooky's whip and it's making me move!!!....lol........anyone else finding the needleturn never-ending??????................enjoyable, but never-ending!!!

Oh, and one last bit of news from me........I have been having trouble keeping 'connected' with all my blogging and emails as life gets busy so have asked my friends how to overcome the issue........buy a phone that can help,or a laptop for portability???..... and from their advice, I now have a laptop on it's way to a local store for me (and I mean only me, no kids allowed!!....lol......as that's half the trouble, finding the computer free!!!!).....so soon I'll be joining the ranks of the multi-taskers.....cooking dinner as I check emails etc........can't wait to make better use of my time.......at present the computer is in a verandah room away from the central living area, so soon I'll have one close at hand..............

Hope you're having a great weekend.......

Out with the winter blues.......hello SPRING..........

The second half of winter has been one full of illness for myself and family, so bring on this lovely spring season, I say!!!!

Getting to the computer has obviously fallen by the wayside, so I hope to catch up with all the blogging news very soon. 

I have been busy working on a project I started ages ago........I had wanted to master applique on the sewing machine and didn't get off to a good start so it ended up in a drawer........well I have had a go......not sure if you could say that I've mastered the machining but I'm pretty happy with the results.

 The design is a William Morris inspired applique wallhanging from one of Michelle Hill's amazing books.

 .....a closer look at the blocks.........

 ........I have hand worked the flowers to add depth, and a touch of metallic if you look closely.......

..............I love the Morris designs, and have wanted to try one of these projects since meeting and watching Michelle in Sydney last year.......

............I intend to cross hatch the quilting in a metallic thread on the machine, fingers crossed!!!!!.........

Oh and along with lots of other bloggy friends I have just joined Chookyblues Secret Santa Swap for Christmas.....my second year.......I am so excited, I have been given a blogging lady from an overseas country to create a gift for, and somewhere out there in bloggy space, someone will have been given my name to make for me!!!!............hmm, now to visit the blog of my recipient to find out as much about them as possible so I can make something they will like.............see ya..........I'm off to 'lurk'....hehe.........

Too many to choose from........lol.......

Does anyone else have too many projects on-the-go that makes deciding on which to work on a problem?

......I have been busy working on a large variety of sewing projects this week whilst on holidays.......

My Lancaster quilt of Sue Daley's..........check out those long clamshell borders....I've done 2 rows out of 6 on all 4 borders so far....a looong way to go.........

 trying to get my Some Kind of Wonderful quilt happening again......really enjoying this at the moment....

 ......oh and a Ruby jelly roll turned into a Pie style quilt with a dresden plate template set....

too easy.......just need to add borders.......I used my great curved presser foot for the piecing....terrific....bought it at the Fair some time ago........

.....and now to some exciting news.....a while back I won a book from Sharon at Lilabelle Lane as a blog anniversary give-away and it's here, and it's absolutely delightful!!!!!!!

 .............look at all the projects inside................another decision to be made....which one first?????.....those are by far the best decisions we ever need to make I reckon.........

Thankyou so much Sharon, I am loving reading Joanna's story, she writes in such a relaxed fashion it's lovely..........

I hope you are busy in your workspace.....I know of one friend who is busy sorting out the best kind of 'stuff' and that has spurred me on to sort some of my 'stuff' out too............so I'll get to it right now.......

Getting back on track............

Sadly, I have been absent from blogland for far too long.................I hope you haven't forgotten me!!!!!!!.................I definitely haven't forgotten you all..........................

Life took a bit of a sour turn a while back as my stepdad (for those of you who know my Mum, her hubby) suffered a stroke (cerebral haemmorrage) and life just hasn't been the same since. After ambulance, hospital and rehab, he is now home and involved in a community rehab program, and he and Mum are now trying to find a 'new kind of normal'. Needless to say the emotional strain, particularly for Mum continues. Wouldn't it be nice if we could just stay young in our bodies???

Whilst all this has been happening, I have managed to keep my fingers busy beside the hospital bed, and in the evenings, with some sewing.

I have been working on a Sue Daley design, which I was lucky enough to have Sue kit up for me from fabrics in Kerry's shop at Girls Day in the Country in March. This quilt is called Icy Nights, the original being made in cool colours, but mine is more like warm nights in the lovely pink and brown hues.......lots of paper piecing.....very therapeutic and just what I needed..........

 I am ready to stitch the border down....it is anchored with the amazing applique glue at present.....great stuff, and if you haven't discovered it yet, believe me, you need to......I don't know how I managed before I learned about it. Check it out at Sue's website.

.................A close-up of the centre bits...........................

At one of Kerry's retreats last year I fell in love with a quilt made from reproduction fabrics and wanted to make it for Mum...............it was exactly her colours.......................so I have finally completed it ...................

 ........................heaps of very tiny stippling to bring life to the stars........took for ages!!!!!!..........

.....................and a feather border...............just looove my feathers!!!.......................

Our retreat is coming up next month and I just couldn't turn up and say I hadn't finished last year's quilt project!!!!!......................so now I'm ready for another of Kerry's amazing designs with a guilt free conscience!!!!!!................hehe..........

Mum has seen the quilt almost finished as I gave it to her for Mothers Day...................I will present the finished version to her on Thursday......oh, yes!!.....she loved it!!!!..........whew!!!...........you never really know if you get it all right when you choose to make a quilt for someone else.....................

..............Well, I do hope there's less of a time gap between posts from here on.......................

......................I have missed you all.......................

Oh, and before I go,  GUESS WHAT????? I must tell you I was doing a very big happy dance when I learned that I'd won Sharon's blog anniversary giveaway recently!!!!.....woohoo......a beautiful book...........I can't wait for the mailman to bring that one to the box..........of course I will show you when it arrives....thanks Sharon..........

....................I hope you're having a lovely weekend................

It was a fantastic day.....Girls Day in the Country 2012.....

Well what an exciting start to the day.......a few weeks ago myself, my Mum and friend Jenny woke up soooo very excited......we were heading to the hall in Nundle for my second Girls Day in the Country hosted by the ever-lovely Kerry Swain.

.............. just entered the hall and found our table.........yippee, we're sharing a table with Jenny, Trish and Alison again...............................(the fever of checking out our goodies in the bag!!!)

 ................"oooh look I got a red spotty mug for my cups of tea this year"...............

 ..................my goodie bag.........I am very excited at this point.....................I had pre-ordered Sue Daley's new book and can't wait to check it out.........so lucky to have her sign it for me later in the day.....

 .............Jenny hiding behind Kerry's lovely hexagon table decorations.....how else would you decorate a table for an English Paper Piedcing event???????.....how clever is our Kerry!!!!..........

 ............the hall was beautifully adorned with all of Sue's quilts........................

 ...............our special projects for the day.....a clamshell Sewing Keep and the Hexagon Box...........

 ............bloggy friend re-unite..................

 ...........the oh-so-special photo of all the blogging girls from near and far as we come together each year to Nundle for a catch-up 'in the real'. It's so nice to see the beautiful ladies that provide inspiration and regular like-minded contact all year thru blogging......it truly reminds me why I am glad to have found the blog world (thanks Chooky!!)

......and this stunning quilt was popped in amongst Sue's quilts in the hall on display....Kerry, inspired by Sue's EPP, made this stunner for her recently married daughter......I think it's beautiful.........

Well I know I'm suffering a bit of jet lag getting these piccies up in a post.....seems like ages ago now since GDITC, but life does get hectic.....hope you enjoyed the reminder of a great weekend girls........counting down till next year now............

It was a wonderful weekend......

Oh dear, it seems like ages since the big weekend in Nundle to attend Kerry's Girls Day in the Country. I have been so busy chasing my tail since returning home....does anyone else find they come home and 'pay' for the joy of the weekend with the catch-up?.....doesn't matter....... it was well worth it...........

I had a pair of passengers on Thursday when we left home.......my Mum and a friend of ours, Jenny, from our local craft group. We decided to have an extra night at Nundle for the sole purpose of shopping, and taking in the sights of Nundle before meeting the ladies for a pub lunch.

 Lunch at the pub.......We had spent a few joyous hours in the morning at Kerry's Cottage on the Hill, soaking in the sheer pleasure of Kerry's shop, and also having the pleasure of meeting our guest tutor for the weekend, Sue Daley. Sue jumped in the car with us as we headed to meet up with all the other girls for lunch. It was a lovely way to begin our weekend........

 ....a visit to the Nundle Woollen Mills.....very interesting...........

 .....here we all are on the lawn having happy hour before dinner.....there was lots of show and tell  (I loooove seeing everyones work)

 ....my special bloggy friend, Jenny with a Natalie Lymer creation.....really lovely......

 ....check out these My Garden quilts, designed by Anni Downs........I'm thinking I need to do this quilt (slap face!!!).....no you have enough on your plate.....silly girl!!!

........beautiful bright hexies........

 .......more beautiful bright hexies, I mean girls!!!......here we are at dinner.....loads of chatter, laughs and good cheer....

 After dinner we were treated to a trunk show. It was a real treat to see Sue's quilts  'in the real'....so much more texture when you get up close and personal with quilts....I could have pawed over them all night long, checking out the details..........Kerry in the picture was the ultimate host for the weekend....an amazing lady who I admire heaps......

 I was particularly interested in seeing Sue's It Takes Two quilt after just completing this one myself....

 My next project, this lovely quilt called Icy Nights.........I felt so lucky to have Sue choose the fabrics for this quilt on Friday morning at Kerry's shop....so this will be a special quilt indeed.....( I started it the other night....no hope for me!!!!!)

.........oh, and I need to confess that I bought the pattern for this one titled Lancaster........do you think I'm addicted???.......I really am hooked on the paper piecing.

I'll be back soon with photos of the Saturday at Sue's workshop. In the meantime I'm busy finishing the project we began on the day.....just needs assembling now...........I can hear the sewing machine beckoning me......lol............hope your sewing machine is beckoning you!!!...............