Another little tease...

Now what is this?
It's all I could manage this evening and it's for a charity quilt a friend is putting together, BUT that's all I'm telling you tonight LOL.
I have to say that after piecing my rose...

I felt almost paper-pieced out,

but I think I may be getting into it again.

On another note my absolutely darling SIL is in Canada and I had asked her if she was near a quilting shop to pop in for me. If she saw any browns or star fabric she was to feel free to buy me some. She texted today to say she'd been in one, but not seen anything LOL. Just as well, because I really don't 'need' anything do I? :O)

Blooming Marvellous

Phew! I just need to fix a little leaf (or two), but it is done, and boy am I pleased. I have paper-pieced my heart out with this project or as I kept thinking as I was sewing "This is not foundation-piecing for the faint-hearted!" LOL.
It will just get a little border and then some hand quilting and embroidery and then I can shout "Ta Dah".
I have really enjoyed it over the months it's taken even though it's definitely NOT perfect.


I have also finished the hospital quilt tops - the borders along with a lot of the rose piecing were part of last nights efforts - These tops will hopefully go to Vicky this week. She'll get them finished off with the help of some other ladies in my LQG for the premature baby units at 2 of our local hospitals. I also cut loads of strips for more so the strips will be donated too and if anyone in the group has nothing to do , they can make more baby quilts!


And the post brought my winning postcard from Kate's Washer challenge...
very nice, now where to display it?

Budding beauty

The only sewing I got done today was a little bit more foundation piecing on my Ula Lenz rose. Almost all the greenery is now complete and it's just all the fiddly bits left that are needed to construct the final full rose (It should look like Birgit’s). I know I should have done the fiddly bits first, but I wanted to make sure I'd have enough of the background fabric and I think that's a good enough excuse LOL! Once I get going, I really do enjoy foundation-piecing and after re-designing a block for my 'Bag O' challenge last night, I have even more respect for foundation-piecing designers. I don't have the brain to think in reverse. With 2 small kids, I hardly have a brain at all LOL

Everything is coming up roses

Here's half my rose by Ula Lenz. After it's been washed with Vanish, ironed, rewashed and each time with Colour Catcher sheets in the water because the dang thing ran when I ironed it the first time round. Not sure how that happened as the culprit (the dark green) and been pre-washed and ironed! Never mind, the green stains are out now, the rest of the green fabric has been re-washed and when I can find some more time I hope to finish it. It really is a beautiful pattern (see Birgit’s)

Can you tell my favourite things are hearts and roses?

UFO of the week/WIP of the day

Apologies, I got the link to Birgit's blog wrong, but I have subsequently corrected it. Birgit's second blog entry shows a rose designed by Ula Lenz available in Birgit’s shop. It's beautiful BUT it's my UFO of the week. It was my WIP while I was in South Africa, but I forgot to take the 'put-it-together' page so I got a bit disillusioned and this is all I came back with after my 3 and a half month stay! However seeing Birgit's rose again, I had to dig it out just to see how much I had left to do.

Although by working on it again, it technically becomes a Work in Progress (WIP). Even if finished, it will go back to being a UFO as I still have to decide what I'm going to do with it.... I have loads of ideas, don't I always? LOL.
Here's what I managed tonight...another leaf or two and some putting together of some of the bits. (excuse the messy worktop...although it's a good resemblance to the state of my mind at the moment)

Not sure I'll finish it this week, but it was nice to get the sewing machine fired up again.

Home on the farm

It was such a beautiful day here today and such a busy one. I got NO sewing done at all. Nothing. But I took advantage of the weather to take a few pictures of where we live. This is the house with garden in progress...

These are the wild poppies growing against the front wall.

And just for Jack.... he had left his little digger in the garden where he had been playing with some stones and I thought it looked so sweet.

I made him tractor cushions for his room a while back because he is obsessed with anything digger/tractor-ish. This pattern is from Four Twin Sisters



Oh, and welcome to my good friend Birgit who has just started blogging too. If you want to brush up on your German click on the link or go see her beautiful paper-pieced rose (I still haven't finished mine yet! - funny that LOL)