Flutter by Butterfly

It's been a long journey but this UFO is now a ... FO (?)

Leanne Beasley's "Butterfly Garden" had several of my favourite needlework elements in one,

embroidery, patchwork and applique:

Needs a second border (in pink) and a good press, but all in all

IT'S DONE!!!!!

...

sort of...

still needs quilting and binding  :)

Sparkling Gemstones - part 3

My baby is back!!!!  I haven't bound it yet, but had to put it on the bed to try it out. For the binding I have in mind Kaffe Fassett's Paisley Jungle in green which happens to be sitting in my stash waiting patiently :)

Something odd happens to the perspective when I use my phone to take photos.... the bed looks like a single bed almost!

Here's a shot of the back where I used some yardage from my stash. Kaffe Fassett's Asha in the blue and the other fabric is a Philip Jacob print - Garden Party in jade.

I suppose I can't claim complete stashbusting success since I ended up buying as many fabrics as I used..... but I'll award myself a 10/10 for good intention and a 8/10 for effort  :)

quilty humour

Thoughtful Friday

"If you become a bird and fly away from me", said mother, "I will be a tree that you come home to".

"The Runaway Bunny"

- Margaret Wise Brown

a special kind of feeling

that feeling that comes from finding the absolute perfect fabric? That special fabric that will finish off the quilt and make it just perfect? That happened to me today as I went to the mothership to find some backing and binding for my puzzle quilt. I really like a stripey binding, and I chanced upon a stripe that had all the shades of blue and green that were in my quilt.. Love it.

a bit of a sew and tell...

 Playing around with a design I saw in a tutorial at the Make it a wonderful life blog. It's a very simple idea, 5" square background and a circle cut using a CD as a template. Just need to quilt it now, and so it joins this queue:

 4 quilts to quilt.
The bottom three are being handquilted. Slowly. I am having too much fun starting new projects

- like this one:

 Kate Conklin's "Dandelion Windows" using Saffron Craig's "Fields" range of fabrics.



And then on top of the shelves are my PIG's - projects all bundled and ready to go. Handmade Christmas coming up!

So much fabric, so little time!

a daytrip

A little daytrip to Barrenjoey lighthouse...

puzzle solved - a new bedspread

yikes, has it been 2 weeks already? I have been busy at work with this quilt top (the angle of the photo makes it look elongated). A few years ago I stumbled across a pattern online called Jig Swatches Puzzle and I finally had the opportunity to make it. It was good fun to make and I got to perfect a technique for applique that I haven't used much before - freezerpaper and starch.

Looking at my finished quilts I can see an evolution of applique techniques. I started with Vliesofix and blanket stitch before I learned a method of tacking fabric onto a cardboard template and pressing into shape. Freezer paper entered my life and I learned needleturn using the freezer paper ironed onto the right side of the fabric. And now the freezerpaper has moved onto the reverse side of the fabric. It's so much fun always learning something new!