A happy half term

well half term is nearly over, big G has only got half a term left of pre-school before he starts school in September (i can't think that far ahead at the moment - the thought just scares me too much)

we've had a lovely week, i have enjoyed watching new fabric drying in the breeze, (ensuring i get it down the second it's dry - don't want those colours fading)

sitting down for a few moments to indulge in some reading,& plan some new projects (i love this part almost as much as finishing them)& watching the little ones spend some time having fun with daddy!
(& catching my breath at just how quickly this little one is growing)

Red Letter Day

look what arrived in the post today- some of Lizzy House's 'red letter day' fabric
& i love it! brought from this etsy seller

i only brought the fatQ set in the pond colourway, so not a huge amount, but i do have plans for this, having thought i would put the sewing machine away for a (short) time, it may just have to stay out on the dining table a little longer, as this fabric is already in the machine for a wash & i'm keen to get the scissors out this afternoon, (children permitting!)

this is my last fabric purchase (for now) but i do have one last batch to share, just need to get round to taking a photo of it!

Getting there

I can see the end in sight!, this lap quilt has taken me soooooooooo long, (getting on for a year now!)
i have fallen in & out of love with it on the way, but am happily back in love with it again & am speeding on with the binding as i'm looking forward to snuggling up with it soon.
i do love how the hand quilting looks (even the uneven stitches) but not sure i'll be doing the next one by hand, it just took me too long!

Wash out

At 9:30 this morning i was helping to put up a marquee in the pouring rain, thinking i must be mad! (having already sewn a length of bunting at about 7am!) the sun appeared for a few hours & the rain stayed away just long enough for the procession to make it through the village & onto the green,
Our pre-school were all dressed up as 'Alice in wonderland' characters, & we (a few of the parents) had spent weeks preparing for the float, i had sewn an outfit for G, he had chosen to be one of the queen of hearts guards (with a little persuasion from me)
along with aprons & table cloths i had made & about 65 cookies i baked! so much work had gone into today, not just our pre-school, but everyone involved, and after about half an hour, the heavens opened & the rest of the afternoon was a washout, such a shame!, so we consoled ourselves by coming come with cakes, to have with nice warming cups of tea, (& a big sigh of relief from me that the day was over)

'Wonderful' fabric

I fell in love this fabric a while ago & almost ordered some from the states, but look,

i found some on this side of the pond, i went for a few charm packs this time (less work cutting out & also stops me having to choose just a few of the prints)
i also got some to become part of the backing! i couldn't resist. It's unlikely i will get round to actually doing any sewing on this for a while, (especially as the little one has started crawling!) but i keep getting it out to look at, as it's just so lovely.
(brought from one of my favourite shops here)

should also have mentioned that the fabric i used for the quilt in my last post was mostly Amy Butler, brought from this lovely lady

I will be back with more lovely fabric soon, i've been buying more than i should have lately, but my maternity pay finishes this month, so thought i'd better get it in now, whilst i can!

A little quilt

This little pile has becomethis little quilt & should (hopefully) be just the right size for the little doll it's intended for.
Also the finished owl wall hanging ( minus the new babies details - sorry about the rather hashed job i did on erasing them) i've got a very busy week preparing for our village fete this weekend, fancy dress outfits to sew, biscuits for bake sales to make, 'Alice in wonderland' themed float to help paint/create, please all keep your fingers crossed that the sun will be shining on Sunday.

hope to be back soon with some more fabric goodness!

Stitchy

For a while now I have enjoyed trying my hand at little pieces of embroidery & thanks to Katy having a book destash, I've got my hand on a copy of doodle stitching to inspire me to do a little more.
thought i might share a few bits i have done already,this is a picture of something i made my mum for Christmas (as they have a place in Italy, hence our recent trip out there!)
This was an experiment on some felt i had made, i loved it so much it's now hanging in my kitchen.
& this is a little snippet of something I've made recently, can't show it all as it's on it's way to a new baby (whose mummy i know reads my ramblings from time to time, so don't want to spoil any surprises!) as you can see it's not the finished piece, I'll share that next week, once i know it's arrived safely!

Shrit dress

When i saw this dress tutorial over on Dana's blog, i knew i wanted to make one, so cute & it looked quite easy to do. So armed with my bargain gingham shirt i picked up at a local Carboot sale i set to work.

And ta da!
Now if you checked out the link above, you might be wondering where the sleeves have gone,
well i could fib & say this is how i had planned it all along, but sadly not, whilst my sewing skills might be improving slowly, my pattern drawing skills are not!I just couldn't get those sleeves right, so in a flash of inspiration (frustration more like) i just cut them off & popped some elastic in as they were & how lucky i am they turned out pretty good! (& that it looks like the sun will be shining for few days)unfortunately little O was asleep by this time & so i couldn't try it on her before fixing the elastic, so i should have made it a little tighter, but heh, it does fit her & looks pretty cute to me.If only she'd stay still long enough for my to get a good shot of her in it! Think i might have to make a little pair of shoes to match, seeing as i have plenty of shirt left over.