Friday 28 February 2014

The Little Things...

February has been one of those months where I have fitted in a bit of sewing, but all of the items have been little ones, and quick fix items. 

Firstly, I decided I needed a few fabric baskets for the nursery, I practised the technique on a small one, but only got one done, but as they're so quick, others will follow shortly.  I used this tutorial, very straightforward :o) 

Look where i am!

Secondly, I managed to tick off one of my FAL items, which was to make this Hexy Pouch.  I started these hexies when I was at the Festival Of Quilts last year with Pin It And Stitch, with no particular use in mind, other than keeping me busy whilst I was there, and inbetween customers.  I think they make for a lovely little travel bag, so I have popped in my hexy sewing basics, and these are all packed in my hospital bag for if/when I get a few minutes and need a bit of a distraction :o)
Hexy pouch finished, that's another one off FAL, yay!

Thirdly, my niece (6 y/o) has recently got her very first sewing machine, and is really enjoying it, so i wanted to encourage her to continue, and knowing she loves Hello Kitty and Minnie Mouse, I decided to make her a little pincushion.  Fortunately I had a couple of spare Economy Blocks from my daughters pillow a couple of weeks back, and thought these would be perfect for a pincushion, so Saturday night, I made this.
Pincushion for my 6yo niece who is loving her sewing!
Filled with a mini sack of lentils in the middle for weight, and then offcuts of batting, she received it yesterday, and phoned me last night, absolutely delighted with it- lets hope she doesn't stab herself toooooo much with the pins!

Next up was something I really needed to make since last August for my little one for school, a PE bag.  This one has been niggling away at my conscience for a long while, as I felt really bad she had a rubbish bag for her kit rather than something pretty and homemade, so I decided to just get on with it.  The first make was using the FQ I got from Retreat last year, but it was a little too small, so that is being used as a home for Spencer Bear (my daughters favourite Bear- he's too opinionated for my liking, but she adores him!).
And last finish for tonight, drawstring pe bag for my little one, been meaning to make since last August, whoops!

So I made a bigger bag for the PE Kit, and quite frankly, they were so quick to make, I felt like a total failure as a mum for having left it for so long!!!
 New PE bag, this ones big enough! 
:-)

And then just as I thought I was going to get some time to sew up some more FAL items, the curse of the wobbly teeth struck, and I needed to make a little Tooth Fairy pouch for the imminent loss of C's first teeth/tooth.  Started on Sunday, the urgency ramped up on Tuesday when the first tooth exited.  You'll be pleased to hear the Tooth Fairy was happy with the tooth, the pouch, and the note left, and there was a gold coin rewarded, phew!
One little pouch all done! I even had time to make pizza dough for tea :-)

Right, that's enough for now, lets see how much more we can get done before this baby decides to make an appearance.

Ange x








Thursday 27 February 2014

Guild Gifts...

I consider myself incredibly lucky.  When my little one was around 18 months old, and we moved back to Leicestershire, I was fortunate enough to get the chance to start indulging my need to play with fabric, this led to the discovery of Flickr, blogs and to real life sewing/quilting friends.  This community is extremely generous, in the last few weeks I have received some beautiful presents for the baby.  

Firstly, the lovely Di was unable to make the most recent East Midlands Modern Quilt Group meeting, so she kindly posted this beautiful baby quilt to me.  
 Stunning baby quilt gift from @willowbeckdesigns
It is a fabulous quilt, nicely sized for taking with us when we are out and about, and the little one can be popped down for a wriggle on her perfect gift; and when she gets a little older, I am sure she will take the lead from her sister, and use it for picnics with her bears and dolls, which seem to be a constant source of entertainement in our house (maybe it's a commentary on my cooking??!!). 

And then on Saturday I did a quick visit to the ladies of the EMMQG (we are trying to finish up some of the renovations before the baby arrives so unfortunately I couldn't go for the full day), to check out Kerry's new sewing machine, see what projects everyone was working on (I'm nosey like that!), and have a little catch up, and lucky I stopped by as the wonderful Trudi had made a lovely (massive) baby quilt as a gift, for us.  
Beautiful baby quilt gift from @trudi_wood :-)
It has a selection of cute animals on, which I know the little one is going to enjoy identifying, as my older girl has already been spotting them all, although she's a bit miffed the baby seems to be getting so many presents she wants herself, she's definitely coveting them!  I am hoping for another lovely summer, seeing as I missed the last one (I spent most of it lying on the sofa with awful morning sickness!), and envisage spending many a happy hour outside on the lawn with the baby this year on it :o)

As if that isn't enough for any one person, Wendy also had a little gift, this time for me, an early Birthday present (it's a few weeks yet, St Patricks Day but we don't have another meeting before then), one of her stunning necklaces! (photo to follow, I'm having trouble uploading at the moment!!)

Wendy is truly the Crafters Apprentice, I don't think there is a craft she hasn't tried, and if there is, it's probably not worth trying!

So thank you ladies, I do genuinely appreciate your wonderful gifts, and thank you so much for your hard work in making them for us (me) :o)

Ange xxx

p.s Just 10 days to go until my due date and I am MASSIVE and grumpy! :o)




Saturday 8 February 2014

February Plans and a New Finish

The last couple of weeks have been busy of the non sewing front, as we are finally finishing off our new kitchen which has been a work in progress since mid October- proper photos to follow once we get a few more bits finalised.
My new kitchen, not quite finished yet!

But after a little emotional blackmail from my daughter ("Mummy you never make me anything anymore" in response to the 2 finishes for her sister in January!) I did start (and finish) an Economy Block Pillow for her bed.  I couldn't justify starting another full quilt as my WIP pile is so large, but as I wanted to try the economy block out, and she was beside herself at me removing the Christmas pillow from her bed, I figured I could kill 2 birds with one stone.
Making economy blocks for a pillow for my little one. :-)

There was a special request for Hello Kitty and Minnie Mouse fabrics to be used, and as I didn't have much in my stash I found a seller on Ebay who was selling 10 inch squares of several different designs, and figured it was a good way to get some variety into it.  I went with the standard 5 inch finished size, and 15 blocks later, the little project was all finished, and C was delighted with the result.
 Economy block pillow all finished, and one happy customer!

And now as I have 4 weeks (tomorrow) until daughter number 2 is due, I have a few things I would like to get finished/done for her arrival, so this month I will be working on making some fabric baskets for the nursery, some burp cloths, and if I'm feeling up to it, tackling the Weekender Bag I took apart last year- it needs to be adjusted so the sides and base loop fit together better, and would also be another thing off of my FAL list, fingers crossed!

I could also do with a few pot holders and worktop savers for my new kitchen, which should make for reasonably quick finishes

Wish me luck!!!

Ange x