in love.

Oh my gee willikers. I seriously do not know how I struggled through without a darning foot until now. I have falling in love with quilting all over again, especially FMQ. I am working on a mug rug at the minute for a special someone, and am having so much fun playing with the various patterns. A little sneak peek to get you through until I can get to the fabric store for more thread and finish it off.

 

Just one segment left to quilt, and then some binding and it’s ready for the recipient. A big shoutout must go to Emma of Sampaguita Quilts for suggesting the wavy back and forth for the middle section, it’s just perfect. Might combine a trip to the fabric store with a trip to the library with the small people and grab some new books. I still doing a happy dance that some of my fabric actually sold, and I have preorders for some precut packs. I’m trying to teach myself Illustrator as I work on some new fabric designs. That blog makeover I mentioned yesterday is still on the list. The sun is shining outside, and I’m thinking it might be a good chance to set the children up with some paint, and I can do some painting too. A quit design to finalise, fabric to order, a postie to stalk for some beads. Maybe some baking to replenish the low stocks in the pantry – I see cookie monster biscuits in my future. A day with my babies is guaranteed to be a good one. It’s Thursday and it is wonderful. Let’s do this!

 

 

swoon me up, buttercup

It’s all the rage in the quilting world at the minute – Swoon. The mega-block mega quilt. And so when a sew-a-long was suggested in my online quilting group, I thought I’d best check it out for myself. It looked nice, so I bought the pattern, and started playing with fabric combinations. But it makes 24″ blocks. Yowsers. Big blocks aren’t my style, especially for a quilt with no purpose other than to be sociable and make a quilt! So I rethought my plans, and ended up downsizing the pattern to make 6″ blocks, from which I will make a dolls quilt for Butterfly. Yesterday I started cutting and laying out my first block, and started with the piecing. I think once I find my groove, it’ll come together quickly!

 

 

 

I also managed to squeeze in another quick little project at nap time – a friend was chasing a ruffled nappy cover and wondered if I made them to sell. I said I didn’t, and pointed her to my two stand-by sites for such prettiness, but no luck, so I promised I’d have a go at making a pair, and aside from a couple of small imperfections, was quite pleased with the end result!

 

 

Post nap, Butterfly had a blast hovering in the studio and playing with some scraps, before we popped Dolly in the pram and went for a wander around the street, and had a delightful little chat as we adventured. I love the days where it’s just me and her. I love my boys too, of course, but as the third, her time alone with me to date has been very limited, so it’s nice to share some one on one time with her as well. Though after two boys, it’s like learning to play all over again!

 

We’ve had an easy morning today, after a rough night – Butterfly with a cough, Bubba Boy with a tummy ache. Coffee is my friend. We had an assembly to see Bear get a Principal’s Award at the end of his first term of Kindy. Bubba Boy and I have hung out and read stories and practiced numbers while Butterfly slept off her restless night. Both are now in bed asleep, and the housework calls. So does swoon. And a little painting is tickling the edges of my brain begging for escape. I’m stalking the postie for a parcel or two due to arrive. More coffee is desperately needed. *yawn* one day until holidays. Bring it on!

sweet birdie…

Without thinking, I flicked up the back of the mailbox, and pulled out the envelopes, not really paying attention, distracted by the chatter of a small boy. My thumb sank into a soft envelope, and I stopped, Looked down. A jiffy bag with my name on it. Could it be? Oh yes, yes it was! I ripped it open, and inside was the cutest little mug rug, made by Nic as part of a recent swap. Isn’t she pretty?

Rolling over the hump on this sunny autumn Wednesday with the help of some friends coming for afternoon tea. Which makes for a busy day. Groceries done, children in bed, time to get into high gear and get cleaning. A cake to bake. 500 loads of washing to hang and fold. A little painting ready to come off the board for blogging. A quilt to plan for a small boy. Cuddles and snuggles and sandpits. Two days to the weekend, down hill run starts NOW. Let’s do this!

Little Elves

Come as a fairy or an elf, the invitation said. And so, I walked the streets, looking for an elf costume, or anything vaguely elf like. A fortnight before Halloween, I’ll be sure to find something, I told myself. But no, not a single elf to be found. Which is how I found myself at the fabric shop. The day before the party. A couple of metres of homespun sat before me, I called over Bubba Boy, and with a piece of green cotton folded in half, held it at his shoulder and roughly measured the length of him. Snip snip snip, and then he was back, arms outstretched, as I measured out his sleeves. A couple of quick seams, and the top was together. A similar theory for the pants – a rough waist measurement, some tailors chalk to mark out a shorts shape for a left leg and a right leg, a seam and a casing for the elastic, and the shorts came together. Half an hour at the machine, and I had two little elves. The off cuts from the shirt hems piled on the table were too tempting, and with a couple of quick folds, a seam and some bobby pins, two little caps topped off the ensemble.

Then, Running Bear came in to admire our efforts. “Oh, are they going as Peter Pan?” I burst out grinning – having used Peter Pan as my inspiration, it was confirmation I’d got it right. “Yep”, I beamed proudly. “But aren’t they supposed to be elves? Peter Pan isn’t an elf.” “Yes he is” “No” “Yes. Well, what would you say he is?” “i dunno, but not an elf” “well, close enough. I don’t have time for anything else”.

And so, two happy little Peter Pans went off, and were the hit of the party. Not a bad effort for half hour and $10!!

Tuesday is rolling along slowly. A sore throat is threatening. Bubba Boy is on the improve, but still home from preschool, so we are rocking out to Land Before Time. Again. My to-do list is piling up, but my body is screaming for rest, so that’s what I’ll do. A cup of tea, and a lay on the lounge with some cartoons for the other sicky. The housework will wait. The folding will still be there. The baby sleeps, the boy is happy, it’s rest time for this mama.

A girl and a gown.

Our third child is girl, after two precious boys. So I knew I definately wanted her to wear a traditional long gown for her baptism. Except by the time we baptised her, she was 10.5 months old and walking. So with Butterfly being to big to wear her mama’s Christening gown, and too mobile for a full gown, I decided to step up the plate. two metres of silk taffeta, 6 metres of lace and 20 small pearl buttons later, it was complete.

 

I started with Oliver + S’s “Puppet Show” pattern, with the tunic length top.

I added lace between the skirt and hem facing, and also at the bodice-skirt seam, and also at the cuffs.

 

The bloomers likewise got lace added at the pockets.

 

I then altered the tunic pattern – replaced the sleeves with lace, removed the collar, and lengthened it significantly to create an over-gown for Butterfly to wear for the church service.

bento box baby

One of the great things about the Christmas holidays, is having husband home for a couple of weeks. The boys love having outside daddy time, and as such, I’m freed up to get all creative-like while baby girl is sleeping. One of the projects that I finished before New Years, and have just been too slack to blog, is a little Bento Box pram quilt for little miss. For no other reason except to give me an excuse to sew with pink!

 

It’s a handy little size to pop in the nappy bag, for emergency changes, or for somewher for Butterfly to squeeze in her tummy time when out visiting. Or even just hanging out on our deck, watching her big brothers playing.

 

 

Another weekend is here already, and with the house clean, and the boys playing happily outside, I’m hoping to get the sleeping babe in my arms transferred to her cot, and then finish her top – just button holes to go! Then some scrapping. Some painting. Some renovation admiring, dreaming, planning. Stories and playdough with the boys. Maybe a spot of baking. Packing every minute with as much fun as we can.

 

Happy Saturday everyone!

Party time!

 

After two boys, the whole “pink” thing has gone from “odd” to “overwhelming”. There is pink everywhere. I can do a whole load of washing, just of pink things. So, being the sewing type, how could I resist the chance to finally sew something pink and ruffly? A hot pink party dress, the polar opposite of wide-legged denim shorts. Fun fun fun!

 

Next up…matching bloomers. And after that, hopefully, I should have a lovely box of fabric to make a start on a couple of quilt+doona sets. I also need to finish some scrapping that is clogging my desk. And tidy the darn office. Maybe. Happy Monday everyone!

coffee break

I came across this tutorial via Car’s blog a while back. My sister has a pretty decent coffee addiction, so I made her a coffee sleeve to match the study portfolio I made for her a while back.

Just a random little “just because” type gift. It’s Saturday, and we are all systems go around here. Husband is busy with power-tool-related tasks. Boys are happily playing outside. A little girl is just about to go back to bed. A studio that needs cleaning, a dress that needs sewing, a crochet birdie that needs finishing. A big pile of scrapping to catch up on. Swings to push, games to play, stories to read. Busy in the best kind of way. Have a great weekend everyone!

organisation central

The hours I spend sitting and feeding my tiny 11-day-old daughter are some of the most special. With two small boys playing at my feet, or bringing stories to read, or happily playing in the toy room, the hours pass in a haze of bonding and adoration. Who cuddles Butterfly next. Who picks the story. What game to play.

The practical side of extended hours of feeding involves, for me at least, the collection and storage of various bits of baby “stuff”. Nursing pads. Lansinoh. A cloth nappy for wiping possets. Small wipes and a spare nappy or two for emergency changes in the night. Hand santiser post-emergency-change. Large water bottle.

Within days of her birth, the “stuff” accumulating on the window sill behind my favourite feeding chair was driving me bonkers. So with husband still home, and enjoying every minute of hanging with his two small companions, I secluded myself in the studio.

One piece of curtain fabric and half an hour or so of sewing, and I had a little fabric box to keep my bits and bobs in order. I used the same fabric as the curtain tie-backs, so the box doesn’t look *too* far out of place.

 

 

Today is more “finding of the feet”. Maybe five or ten stolen minutes in the sewing room as a softie nears completion. Colouring. Lego. Stories. I think I’m getting the hang of this three children business. Maybe. Ask me again next week.

tall and skinny…

One of the best parts of being able to make the boys’ clothes myself is being able to make them fit just right. Master 4 is the “tall and skinny” of the post title. During a lvoely weekend of relaxing, spending time wit my famiyl and sewing, I’d managed to finish a second pair of little denim shorts for him, and decided to take some time to make up some new play shorts. This little pair comes from KwikSew 2918 – may fav pattern for play clothes. And thanks to making them myself, I could easily make them with the size four length he needed… and size TWO waist to hold them up! Goodness only know where he puts those 4 weetbix he has every morning! (As an added bonus, the fabric I used for these, I found on clearance a while back – $4 for the metre. Half of which made the original size two shorts, and two years later, they are still in great condition for Master 2. So for $2 and half an hour of my time, I’m thinking that’s a pretty good bargain!)

Today, we’re bundled up inside thanks to runny noses, icky coughs, and foul weather that seems to have forgotten it’s supposed to be spring time. Some baking to start stocking the freezer with snack for post-baby. A pile of clothes I have been studiously ignoring since the weekend that desperately need folding. Which sounds like a good excuse for a chick-flick. And a coffee. Hoepfully some scrapbooking to come this afternoon. A pile of photos to sift through and print and reminisce. Number crunching. And lots of cuddles with grumpy miserable boys. The weekend is so close, I can almost smell it. Happy Thursday everyone!