Another busy day.

I think I may have discovered the problem with my quilting! My walking foot fell apart yesterday, more than once. In the end I went digging through Tony's tool box for a pair of pliers and gave it a good squeeze. It behaved perfectly after that, and there were no more tucks and folds appearing. Hm...... The quilt stays as it is. That's it there on the arm of the sofa, I put the binding on yesterday after I had repaired the walking foot, all it needs now is for me to trim off the edges of the batting and the back, then sit and close it up.
But that's not why I took this photograph. This foot stool belonged to my Mums Father. It has definitely seen better days, between my ex husband and my father it really is worse for wear. And there are one or two stains that I can't get off that cover, goodness knows what was spilled. I mulled over the idea of stripping off the green cover and putting something new on, but in the end I went for the far simpler option of making a slip cover that just goes over the top of everything.

If there are any more spills, (or if it takes on the aroma of teen aged feet. EEEW!) I can simply pull it off and give it a wash. If those pleats don't start to hang nicely soon I'll give it a wash anyway and press them in while it is still damp.

*

Speaking of damp, who ordered torrential rain? I don't think I'll be going far today.

It's a good day to stay indoors and play with a new project. I could play with Mums elephants, or my charming Figgy stars. I couldn't resist having a play yesterday while I waited for my Hunney to come home.

I'm off to see what inspires me.

How did that happen?

How many projects do I have on the go? This little picture doesn't include the knitting, the cross stitch or the secret Christmas stuff.
So I need another project like a hole in the head right? Why then did I find myself sorting out a box and cutting squares yesterday?

You know how it is, you're surfing the web, looking at blogs and come across something that catches your eye, something very special. I found this, which led me to this! Oh boy! Next thing I know I'm playing with Figgy fabrics and making a start.

Charming Stars is a pretty enough quilt and was on my list for 'one day' but as soon as I saw the Figgy version I was a gonner! Thanks for the inspiration Stephanie.

*

On to other things. I did a little more quilting on that other Figgy quilt yesterday and buried all the threads last night, I think I should get that finished today and hopefully will be sitting closing the binding tonight. :-) I'm really not impressed with myself, the quilting doesn't do it justice, but I know my daughter will love it regardless. As has become the norm, I did a few rows of knitting last night also, pretty soon my blanket will be long enough to keep me warm.

Knit one, purl one.

After a sleepless night on Monday, I was too tired yesterday to concentrate in the sewing room. So instead I sat downstairs with Sir David Attenborough for company. (I have several of his DVD collections). He took me on a world tour and introduced me again to lots of wonderful animal and plant life, while I knitted. I had found a simple hat pattern and wanted to give it a try. Turns out it was too simple, so I made a flower and added that.
Here it is being modelled by my angle poise lamp! The button in the centre of the flower really is very pretty and this picture just doesn't show it off.
(I did ask this guy to model my hat, but he just didn't look right! )LOL

Once the hat was completed to my satisfaction I got on with some more rows of my rippling blanket, remembering to add colour changes.

*

It's mums day off work today, so we're off out for lunch. She is hoping I'll accompany her and one of my nieces to the wildlife park, but I would rather sit home and sew. I really do feel that my glass of annual leave is now less than half full, there are so many more things I want to do, before it all runs out.

Look Jenny!

I got quite a lot of quilting done on that big quilt yesterday, then decided to take a break from it. I took it down to the sitting room planning to tidy the threads last night while watching TV. More on that later. I felt the urge to start something new.
Do you remember that while we were at the festival of quilts in Birmingham I agreed to make my Mother an elephant quilt? So she bought just about every African animal panel at the show. I finally made a start on her elephant quilt. She purchased a large panel of several Ele's at a watering hole, you can see it down there a bit, I got my pictures in the wrong order as usual. So anyway, see that pretty corner stone on the panel?
It made me think of Shoo-fly blocks, so I made some and plan to incorporate them into the quilt somehow.

Pattern? What pattern? I'm making it up as I go along.

I didn't tidy the threads on the Roses quilt as I planned, instead I sat with my knitting last night. The threads have been taken care of though. I woke up at 3am ish, I gave up and got up at 4am! And spent the next two hours going over the back of the quilt. What a mess, there are a lot of tucks and folds, I'm really not so pleased with myself. They'll stay though, I plan to add some more quilting then get it bound before the week is out and I have to go back to work. Having exhausted my meagre supply of green fabric I'll have to wait for more to arrive before I can make any more shoo-fly blocks, so I guess today I'll be doing some more quilting on the roses. Just the borders left to do.

Peace and quiet.

Saturday was a busy day, what with the grocery shopping, a quick tidy up and dinner for eight. It was nice to sit with Tony all day on Sunday just watching movies. I didn't do a great deal of anything. A lovely peaceful lazy day.
*
That peaceful feeling has continued into today, but not the laziness, look, I'm quilting. I decided that my original plan for this quilt was far to ambitious. And I'm off with some straight line quilting. I had left a lot of blank back ground fabrics, with the intention of getting a bit fancy with it. But then I made a huge great super king size top all in one go, I think perhaps if I want to get fancy I should quilt as I go in future.
I may go back and revisit that huge expanse of back ground and add some more applique, I'll see how things go.
*
A few days ago I cast on another knitted blanket, I haven't done loads to it, just a row or two here and there. It's so wide it takes me almost a half hour to do one row. I've added a third colour to this one and played about with it again.
The pattern says to work the four row repeat three times and then to change colour, but as you can see, I'm not playing that game. I decided to go for a more varied look.

I'll knit a couple of rows here and there as I quilt the monster, hopefully that will give my back and shoulders a break from the machine.
*

Another thing I did yesterday was have a chat with Santa. Much as I would love a Gracie there is just no room for one here, not even if I go back to sewing in our dining room. I have to say, he looked somewhat relieved. That said, what would I like for Christmas?

Another busy day!

And lots of pictures to share too.
While my baking was in the oven, I remembered to spread out some of the mats I made and get some pictures of them. Here you see the off white side.
And the darker back, or second side.

I didn't really like the fabric which is why I choose it to use as backs, but now that I see it in smaller pieces,

It's not so bad.

There are two like this, with a lily in the centre.

*

I made two more Christmas gifts. I just need some more of that lovely blue ribbon. The bow that is there is not staying, I was just making sure I had the right colour. Sorry about the picture quality, Tony has the camera and I used my phone.

Before I did any of that! These guys were in the oven. That pie made it into the freezer, but we had the cheese and onion quiche for our dinner.

Two boxes of bite sized 'Pie Burgers' made it into the freezer. They will be nice in lunch boxes.

Last but not least. I bought this flower and fern while I was out with Mum on Wednesday, yesterday I shortened the flower stem and to help them play nicely I wired their stems together.

If I add some Christmas baubles to that big vase, I think I'll have a beautiful new decoration.

*

Phew, after all of that I sat with my knitting watching TV with Hunney. I don't know how much time I'll get to play today, we need to get grocery shopping and then DD Kay her boyfriend and his folks are all coming for dinner. I'd better get myself dressed and moving.

Busy, busy, busy.

I had a great day yesterday, I got loads of things done. As well as baking 2 dozen scones and prepping some pastry for today, I took some items to the charity shop next door and dropped another bag of with a friend. Then I was able to spend some time up in my room. I prepared a whole bunch of stuff so that I could work on it while I sat down stairs with Tony in the evening.
*
I finally remembered to sort out buttons for the Aran sweater, I stitched them on later. I sorted out ribbons and buttons for one of the Secret Santa projects, and stitched them on later.

I made a second SS item and found pretty threads for embellishments which were added in front of the TV.

I made a third SS item and need to find one more special part for that.

A fourth SS item was also completed and the final few stitches finished by hand in front of the TV.

With a little time left before Tony was due home from work I set too with some scraps and made some Christmas ornaments. Yep!! You guessed it, the buttons, bells and ribbons were all added later while watching TV. Needless to say I didn't get much knitting done last night!

*

So whats up today?

I'll be making pies with the pastry I made yesterday, hopefully some of them will make it into the freezer! Then it's back up to my little nest, to make more Christmas gifts. :-)

A party frock.

Mum and I visited several stores yesterday, none of them terribly exciting, except perhaps one. They were setting up their Christmas displays and had the centre of the store draped in black fabrics. All around were various boxes and props for what ever was going on inside the drapes. I spied this mannequin and took a sneaky picture with my phone.
I'm glad I snapped it when I did, we came back this way 20 mins later and it was gone! Spirited away under the drapes. The point of today's post? Well isn't that a beautiful dress and wouldn't you love to have the figure to be able to wear it? I sure would.
*
After a day on my feet trailing around wholesalers and supermarkets I sat with my knitting needles last night and cast on another rippling blanket, with extra stitches to make it a little wider. This one will be my lap blanket for the winter months, and I get to stay cosy under it before it's even finished. :-)
*
Today I'll be baking and sewing.

I need to shuffle about a bit.

You know how it is when you move the furniture, you never get it right first time. I need to have a rearrange in my sewing room, it just doesn't feel quite right yet. Not today though, I'm off out with Mum.
*
Yesterday was pretty good. I made up my cushion covers as planned. As I used samples, they are all made from different fabrics.
But I think they work together. I also got on with more of the SSCS gifts, I finished binding the table mats and did some knitting. Oh! and some un knitting. (LOL) I knitted myself a beret a couple of weeks ago, but it came out huge, there was practically room for me to sleep in it. So out it came last night. I'll make the kiddy size and see what happens. It really is a nice pattern and I'm prepared to give it another chance.

Not pointing any fingers but......

Somebody in my house likes to fiddle with corners! The corners of my cushions, the corners of his collars, anything that comes to a bit of a point seems to be fair game. I'll not mention any names, but I'm sure his mum knows who I mean.
I'm recovering my cushions.

Still using the fabric samples my Mum brought to me. Nothing fancy, just plain old cushion covers, with an overlap on the back. so no zips required. I'll be making those today and maybe getting all Secret Santa again too.

Sewing in my new place.

The bed is gone!! And with a little more shuffling about I think I have things how I'd like them to stay, for a while anyway. Yes, the flags are staying.
I still have one or two bits that need homes, but that will come.
*
I'll have a full table on Saturday, with eight of us eating. Hmmmm, I only have sets of six place mats, except for Christmas stuff, and I'm not going there just yet. So this afternoon I set to and made some. I used only fabrics which mum gave to me. Do you remember when she brought round that huge bag of curtain samples? Here's a sample of the backs.
And the fronts. Even the bindings are made from sample fabric.

They are made from the backs of the samples which I removed! I used off cuts of batting for the middles. It looks like I have my next couple of evenings all sewn up closing these bindings.
I plan to make some cushion covers tomorrow. Just wait til you see why.

My own room.

I told you that my Hunney was coming to the end of six years of home studies? Well, on Thursday he took his final exam, it's all over now. He no longer has to come home and spend all evening up in his study.
The super computer has been moved down stairs, and all this junk and clutter, including the bed, will be gone very soon too. I might keep his certificates though.

At last I have my very own sewing room! Look I made a start already. I love it, it's great having my table sat here under the skylight.

I used to have a view of the street below the window, I will miss that, but this room will be so much warmer and cozier in the winter months. I shall enjoy sitting up here creating.

*

I have been doing a little crafting, my latest baby knit is finished, that little Aran sweater, I'll get a photo as soon as I add buttons. I've made a start on the Christmas ornament part of the SSCS, so can't show that and I have yarn for more baby gifts, not to mention fabrics for more SSCS goodies, yes, I'm still coming up with ideas for that.

*

I'm off to sort things, and fiddle with things and mess about in my new space.

Another day off.

Shh! Don't tell anyone or they'll have me in doing more overtime!
I have been making the most of this time off, I've done a little knitting, look at this teeny tiny sleeve.
I've almost completed this little sweater now, I should have shopped for buttons when I was out this morning, never mind, it's an excuse to go back to the shop! LOL
*
I've also spent some time working on my SSCS project, it too is almost done, well the main gift is, I just need to sort out what else I can add to it and make an ornament. I know what the ornament will be, hence the trip to the crafty shop this morning.
No pictures, you'll have to make do with the label as a wip.
*
My knitting needles are calling me, I wonder if there is a decent movie on this afternoon? Oh yes, and I reshuffled the furniture again, you know how it is, you can never get it right on the first go around. Now I have my seat in the perfect spot for the TV. ;-)