Eating Humble Pie...

We've done a lot of eating over the past few days! We had a very lovely Christmas with my DP's family and I am so excited to say that I was very wrong in my previous post! Turns out my DP had my Christmas present all sorted before Christmas Eve but wanted to keep me guessing and pick up a few little extras to make the day very special...

And this is what I got for Christmas... I must have been a very good girl this year! It came with a beautiful proposal and a gorgeous pair of diamond earrings to match! I absolutely LOVE it! It is PERFECT!!

Image courtesy of Peter Shakes online catalogue here.

What did you get for Christmas?

Merry Christmas!

I stitched this stocking for Oliver for Christmas last year (?)... maybe it was for his first Christmas? I can't remember! Anyway it took many nights of stitching but then sat unfinished in my sewing box. It was my 9th item on my Joy in the New Year WIP's I wanted to complete. That leaves me with just one more!

 It's not as perfect as I wanted it for Ollie but I can always make another... Maybe. The back is "It's Snowing" by Deb Strain for Moda

The pattern for the cross stitch is "Harry" by Shepherds Bush.

I'm yet to finish Gus' one. Here's hoping I'll have it done for Christmas next year... Ollie's is all stuffed ready to go for tomorrow morning! It's the BIG family Christmas this year over at my DP's Nana's... Sit down meal for 30+ people! We helped set up the garage yesterday and I visited the local fresh market store this morning at 7am to buy the supplies for the starters.

Ollie and the DP have popped out this morning to buy my Christmas present. In true DP fashion. Every year he leaves it to Christmas Eve to get me something... last year he ordered me pot's online on Christmas Eve so he made me the sweetest PowerPoint Presentation for Christmas. LOL! I wonder what I'll get this year!!

Let the Christmas celebrations begin! All the gifts are wrapped and ready!

Merry Merry Christmas to you and your families!

xx

A little Bot mad...

Can ya tell? I love Bot Camp by Michael Miller so much! I whipped up this memo board this afternoon. It's something I've meaning to do for a while now and I am thrilled with how it's come together... It'll be a great place to pop their art work and photos etc...

Here's my Ollie yesterday. He likes to get really close to the camera when you take his picture.

And this is my Gus... he is the sweetest little baby around. He is near perfect. Honestly.

And this is what the postman bought yesterday... this bundle happened to just jump into my shopping cart at The Fabric Shack - some Odyssea, Hushabye, Nest, Rouenneries and Monkey n Round...  It was my second time ordering from this site and they were wonderful. Super quick service and they even included some extra bits and discounted the shipping! And they're having a SALE! 15% of your order until the 1st January! I think I might just need some more please :)

The final countdown is on until Santa arrives! Ollie is very excited! I better get the last of the gifts wrapped!

xx

Sew n Tell Friday on Monday

The title of this post pretty much sums up the last few days in our house... Everything I've been intending to do has taken second place while I've been looking after Oliver who had his adenoids out last Wednesday. He recovered really well - aren't little people amazing?! But trying to keep him quiet has been pretty tough... He's not really one to stop for anything!

So I apologise to Amy and the girls that this post is very late... but here's what I've been working on in the evenings when the house is quiet...

The final of my Christmas table runner's - this one is made using Simple Abundance and is for my MIL...

A close up of the quilting - I love those daisies - they work so well with the fabric and the quilting cost $14 - worth every cent!

I bought a FQ of this fabric a wee while ago and was stumped what to make with it... I didn't want to cut up the Russian dolls as they were so pretty, so decided to make them into wee Christmas decorations instead... One for the MIL, the DP's Nana, two for the boys daycare teacher, one for me and the last for one of my PIF's... I've still got a couple more I can make! Oliver had a blast instructing me which one to cut next and telling me who it was for! Aren't they sweet? Before I close the bottoms, I am going to embellish the pattern on the front with some stitching and maybe some beads too I think...

And lastly some crayon rolls for Ollie's wee friends at daycare for Christmas... I've finished two and have three more to finish. They are quite quick to put together :) Especially as I used fusible batting! I ended up combining a few tutorials into one.

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a safe and happy New Year! I can't believe the end of 2010 is upon us already! I've still got a bunch of Christmas presents to wrap and label. Oh how I love this time of year!

xxx

Dearest Santa...

As you know I am rather a simple girl at heart, so please find attached my Christmas Wishlist. I've used images to help you just in case. I have been a very good elf this year. I have been working very hard to be a good mum, work full time and make most Christmas presents... Remember my finished stack?

I am quite proud of that pile Santa - that's kilometres of sewing and cotton! All fabric was purchased from my favourite online store The Fat Quarter Shop.

So Santa, you swell old chap... if you can swing any, ANY of the following I will love you forever

A few of these would make a lovely quilt for Beccy's wedding...

Or this would make a lovely gift for one of the many babies 2010 will bring...

This has birthday crayon rolls and library totes all over it!

And after all the sewing of Figgy Pudding for the family for Christmas,

I'd desperately love to make something for me for Christmas next year too...

Gotta love that Figgy Pudding!

So Santa, I promise to be a very good girl in 2010 too. I will continue to perfect my quilting skills so that I can make lots of lovely gifts for family and friends. And I will continue shopping from The Fat Quarter Shop. It is, as you well know, a favourite little stop of mine... my place for stocking up my quilty guilty goodness!

With much hope and anticipation,

Lara

PS. Santa - now that we don't have a chimney, you are welcome to post these internationally if you like.

It'll help save you some time and I don't mind at all. Really.

PSS - If you too would like to get involved you write your very own Santa Wishlist - head on over to The Jolly Jabber and enter for your chance to possibly win a gift from your list!

xx

Sew n Tell Friday Part 3

Well this was my final finish for the week - a wee table runner made with Figgy Pudding charms for my MIL to go with this table topper/lap quilt for Christmas.

She is moving into her new home this weekend - just in time for Christmas! I think I may give these to her early so that she can enjoy them in the countdown to Christmas!

I've just got one more table runner to bind for Christmas and I am all ready to go! This is my pile to wash, dry and wrap

Have you got any tips for washing and drying? I'd love to know!

Hope you have all had a lovely week!

x

And then there were 4!

This little quilt is for my MIL...

 It's big enough to be used as a lap quilt or...

As a wee table topper too!

Thank you to those of you who offered advice on

how to border this quilt, I took it all on board and

am so happy with how it has come together. The

quilting is an all over snowflake design which

is so festive and beautiful!

I now have two more table runners to complete and

Oliver's Shepherds Bush Christmas stocking before

Christmas as well as 1 little cross stitch for Gus

before the New Year is upon us.

Hope everyone is having a lovely week!

I am really enjoying the process of binding quilts now!

It makes for a lovely little job to do while watching TV.

x

And then there were 5!

The completion of this little Figgy Pudding by Moda table runner brings my total of WIP's to complete before the New Year to 5! This table runner is a gift for my DP's Nana for Christmas!

Tonight I'll be working on the wee Figgy Pudding lap quilt intended for MIL as an early Christmas present. She's just bought a new home so I want to have it finished to give her this weekend after we've helped her shift into her new place.

I love Figgy Pudding. I have some yardage and a Layer Cake remaining! Hope everyone is having a lovely week! Tomorrow is Wednesday! 8 more working days to go and then we're on holiday :)!!

x

Done! Bot Camp #2!

Finished! Gus' quilt is another one I can strike off my list!

Also made using Bot Camp by Michael Miller - 60" x 80"

And the back! I love the sprockets! They are my favourite I think!

I had a few questions in the comments of this post about how I sew the binding. I must confess to having the quilter sew the binding down for me - I didn't think I'd manage to get the quilts through my machine very well and was happy to pay a little extra. I hand stitched the binding down on each of the boys quilts. I have tried to machine bind a couple of table runners and despite my very best efforts, I fail miserably! I can't wait to wrap these quilts for my boys! Ollie's star stitching is in blue to match his binding and Gus' quilt features orange stars and binding. I thought I'd try Gus' quilt for size on Ollie's bed - I am thrilled with how it looks!

 And here is a closer shot of the quilting!

I signed up for Joy in the New Year with 10 WIP's I wanted finished before the New Year, and I am happy to report that this finish brings me to 6 WIP's to complete! I'll hopefully get another two knocked off my list tonight! Wish me luck!

Happy Sewing!

Just a little bit naughty...

I could not resist this poster... My friend emailed me the link to the Etsy site and I knew instantly they'd be perfect for the boys robot themed room! So I contacted Nisha to see if she would customise the colours to suit the boys Bot Camp quilts and she couldn't have done it more perfectly! I love these guys and they are on their way to NZ!!

I think b and v are my favourites!

What's on your Christmas Wishlist this year and what are you buying your family?

x

Sew n Tell Friday

Finally finished! Ollie's Christmas quilt. The fabric range is Bot Camp by Michael Miller. 60" x 80"

And the backing making it completely reversible! I am very happy I didn't use a plain sheet and used my left over blocks instead!

And my pile to bind... 1 more Bot Camp quilt for Gus, 2 Figgy Pudding table runners and a lap quilt and 1 Simple abundance table runner... All Christmas presents so I'd better get sewing! 21 days to go!

What are you doing for Christmas this year?

x

Do you hear that?

It's silence. And it's not even 7pm! Both the boys were exhausted today after daycare and have gone down early! It always makes me nervous that they are coming down with something... I hope not. I am off to Auckland tomorrow for work for three days! I am excited and nervous at the same time. It's my first time away from Gus.

I took all my goodies off to the long arm quilter today after my Warm & White batting arrived from the States from here. It was very efficient service.  I had a mammoth Monday finishing up all my Christmas gifts last night and sorting out what backing/binding fabric etc so that I could bundle them all up and drop them off this afternoon. I was worried I'd missed the cut off. Luckily Sue of Sue B's Quilting Service is very lovely and accommodating :)

I must confess to being very lazy as I am having the Simple Abundance table topper, the Figgy Pudding table runners (x2) and lap quilt all quilted proffesionally as well as the boys Bot Camp quilts. I figured it would help reduce the stress load. And the table runners will cost about $15 each to quilt and I can live with that! It also means that the Christmas themed gifts will have appropriate Christmassy quilting. All I can do is straight line stitching. And it's not really that straight.

Oliver has been invited to his wee 'girlfriend's' second birthday party. I think I might make her one of these crayon rolls or maybe a wee apron like this one but I saw one on Deb's blog and I am interested to hear how she does it...  Hmmm! I think it'll have to come down to what fabric I have on hand.

Shari sent me these gorgeous girly FQ's as part of the fabric swap! Over and beyond the details of the swap! Perhaps I'll use these for a crayon roll for Luci!

FMF Giveaway & the joy of the envelope

I know I am supposed to encourage you all (if you haven't already done so) to click on that wee FMF button over there on the sidebar for the chance to win an amazing giveway... but the truth is, if I am really honest, I don't really want you to! hehe

See, the more people that enter, the less likely I am to win! hehe. It's that same logic behind buying lotto tickets. Anyway... the giveaway is truly amazing! Some very generous people have kindly given up a huge bundle of FMF FQs as well as some other lovely prizes.

I never managed to secure my own stash of FMF. I have two very coveted scraps sent as part of the 'little help from my friends' scrap swap that Susan organised over on Flickr. We are all making a quilt like this one. The whole swap has definitely bought back the joy of the envelope! So far I have received 5 special packages - each containing pure scrappy goodness!  It's the small things :)

Right - please standby for some quilting goodness to come. I have really been working hard! Promise! Hope you all have a truly lovely weekend and remember to take some time just for you! And if you feel so inclined, leave me a comment telling me what you do with all your scraps?? Make gifts? Are they still sitting in a bag? Or how do you store them? I'd love to know!

Lara

Sew n Tell Friday - almost done

Although I still have about 40" of binding to stitch done, I am calling these one pretty much done :)

This quilt was made using the tutorial for the first quilt along of the Old Red Barn Co quilt along on Flickr. It is for my sister in law for Christmas. It's my second completed quilt that I have made. I didn't quilt this one myself though. I had it quilted by a long arm quilter in Island Bay here in Wellington with an all over leafy pattern.

Wonderland by Momo for Moda 48" x 48"

I asked for input on the Old Red Barn Co Flickr group for advice on what to bind this quilt in... The brown scissor fabric was definitely the favourite to use as the binding and I am very happy with the way it has framed the quilt. I just hope my sister in law will love it!

Hope everyone has had a great week! I am just so grateful it's Friday!

Lara

Monday Madness

After reading Amy from Park City Girl and Lesly from Pickle Dish's Mondays - I'd thought I'd let you in on the madness that is my daily routine.

It's always interesting reading how others spend their days. 24 hours doesn't seem long enough at the moment. I wish I could find an extra few hours in the day... This is how my Monday went:

5.52am - Wake up to the sound of Gus grizzling. Roll over, hope he goes back to sleep...

6.00am - Realise that Gus is not going back to sleep. Get up and go see my morning darling. He's always very pleased to see you in the morning.

6.10am - Plonk on the couch with Gus and his bottle and check my emails/blog updates/Flickr and the news. A lot can happen while you are sleeping! Enjoy my first coffee for the day

6.30am - Change Gus and dress him for the day. Make sure the boys bag is packed for daycare and Oliver has sufficient changes of clothing. On average day he'll go through about 4 t shirts, 3 pairs of pants and 2 jerseys. He loves water play.
Get breakfast for Ollie ready. Make another coffee. Put dinner in the slow cooker.

At this point of the day I was feeling really successful! I was feeling completely in control! It all went downhill pretty quickly after that...

7.50am - two children - check; two laptops - check; homemade lunch - check; bags - check; wallet - nope... made dash back inside. Back in the car - antibiotics for Ollie - oops - back in the house while DP backs out the driveway...

7.55am - Set off for work...

8.03am - "Daddy - got no shoes on" - Little voice from Ollie in the backseat. Sure enough we forgot his shoes. Duoh. I figure there will be a spare pair at daycare... Until I realise that in all the madness I didn't turn the slow cooker on. Idiot. Turn around. Return home.

9.30am - Boys at daycare. Logged in at work... Reviewed and actioned important emails - check calendar/schedule meetings as necessary and work, Work, WORK.

4.45pm - Collect two happy tired babies from daycare. Return home to a cooked dinner! Yummy! Feed the family. Bath the boys. Tidy the kitchen. Fold the washing. Put another load on...

7.05pm - try to get the boys to bed. Gus goes down like a dream. DP goes to read stories to Ollie. My time to have a wee bit of R n R... Review blogs/Flickr/emails.

7.16pm - Oliver arrives in lounge looking rather pleased. "Where's Dad?" I ask... "Daddy sleeping in Ollie's bed" little voice replies. LOL.

7.55pm - After returning Ollie to bed a few times (9) finally can commence sewing :)

11.02pm - put the folded washing away... pack boys bag for daycare. Get out ingredients for dinner tomorrow...

11.10pm - Flop exhausted into bed.

Another day another dollar. Hope to be a bit more organised tomorrow!

What would you do?

I asked my DP this question last night - he was rather unhelpful... so I am putting the question to you?

1" of red, then 2.5" white bound in red? Or...

2.5" of white bound in red?

This is just a wee lap quilt made of Figgy Pudding charms for my dear MIL to go with a disappearing 9 patch table runner of the same fabric for Christmas.

Opinions and other suggestions welcomed :)

Thanking you in advance,

Lara

Hoop Up! Stich & Send Swap

John from Quilt Dad is organising 'a collaborative embroidery and stitching swap' on Flickr... I am hoping to join the group! How amazing would it be to have a very special item stitched by new friends from around the world?! Go check it out if you think you'd like to be a part of this too!



I love hand stitching for two reasons - 1) it's easy and soothing to do while watching tv and can be taken anywhere and 2) I have an obsession with DMC threads and it gives me an opportunity to use them...




the above represents not even half of my collection of DMC threads - definitely need a worthwhile cause (hint hint John) to use these all up!

Wanted: Motivation

This is my first full week of being back at work full time. Settling into our new groove sure is taking it's toll and I am afraid to report that no meaningful sewing has been done! Just getting dinner done and staying on top of the washing has been my main daily focus :)

But... I am hoping that things will start to jell a bit more over the next couple of days and that tomorrow night will bring a productive night at the sewing machine!

So standby! Good things to come I promise! I need to get on with completing these Christmas presents!

Hope everyone else is having a good week! If you want to - leave me a little comment telling me what you've been up to this week, and what you do to keep yourself motivated when the going gets a little tough! I'd love to know!

It's a Sweet win...

And the winner of my little giveaway is...

Result:
4
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Rafael's Mum said

Oooh Lara, you are too kind! I just LOVE Sweet and have a little bit in my stash as I am planning a 30's-50's feedsack, sorta thing, quilt and this would SO go with that!!

Congratulations on your win on the ORBC! Paganelli another favourite of mine... I also just LOVE wonderland (by momo, have the fabric, have the pattern, not had the time) and Arcadia (have the fabric... found a pattern but not enough fabric! and also no time yet...). Of the new ranges I really like Jessica Levitt's Timber for Wyndham and Tula Pink's new Plume.

That's enough to be getting on with I think.. as I love so many lines!

Catherine, I also love Pop Garden. My ORBC quilt was totally Pop Garden and Bijoux. Unfortunately nothing left there.... but happy with my quilt!

Rafael's Mum - if number 4 wasn't your lucky number, it is now! CONGRATULATIONS! I am so happy you won and can't wait to see your 30's - 50's quilt! I have a feeling it's going to be beautiful!!

Thank you everyone for stopping at my little blog to comment on my giveaway... I had so much fun reading your comments and googling your favourites! I've managed to add a few new favourites to my list now... like Heather Bailey! I can see why everyone LOVES her!

Happy sewing everyone!

Lara

Finally Friday...

and finally finished! Just in time for Sew n Tell Friday too! It's the first week I've actually managed to complete something in time! What can I say? I am a tortoise. With good intentions.



This little cot quilt has been sitting in my WIP pile for quite a while now. I started this little quilt back in February when I was expecting my little Gus. I always intended to have it finished and waiting for him. But it didn't quite work out that way.



I purchased the Dick and Jane fabric in 2007 when I was expecting Oliver. That was when I fell in love with Michael Miller. I bought 5 yards of the Dick and Jane J is for Jump (white) print... and I still have some left over just in case. I love that both the boys have similar but different quilts.

Oliver's quilt is framed in a solid red and bound in a red and white stripe. Oliver still snuggles into his each day.



Gus' is framed in yellow and bound with a blue, green and yellow stripe.




It feels great to have this one knocked off the list... 7 months late... but who is really counting? hehe

Happy sewing everyone!

I am a winner! And a giveaway!

It's been a while since I've been able to say that! I am a winner! I am the very lucky winner of the Jennifer Paganelli Dance with Me FQ's on the Old Red Barn Co Quilt Along on Flickr! I am usually not a lucky person - so to win this giveaway was very exciting!

So... in honour of my win I thought I'd host a wee giveaway too! What's up for grabs? One Sweet by Urban Chicks Charm Pack and a 1/2 yard of Bubblegum Candy Stripe. I'll also include a few extra little surprises for the lucky winner!

 

As you can see I am no photographer - sorry for the blurry pic!

How to enter? Leave a comment with your all time fabric range and what you've made with it (or if it's still in your stash). I'll draw a winner on Sunday 8th November!

The Great Recipe Swap: Part 1 - Mum's Lazy Lasagne

Amy from Park City Girl has organised a recipe swap... Here is what's cooking at our place tonight! I am looking forward to adding to my recipe book with everyone else's lovely kitchen creations!

This is an adapted Alison Holst recipe. There's no precooking which means little work and reduced dishes :) Everyone seems to love this recipe - kidlets and parents.

500g minced beef
2 gloves fresh chopped garlic
1 tsp each of basil and oregano
1 packet of tomato soup mix (about 45g)
1 can tomato puree
2 tsp instant beef stock
1 1/2 cups of hot (not boiling) water
1 pack of instant lasagne sheets
1 1/2 cups of grated cheese
1 pottle of cottage cheese with chives

1. Preheat oven to 180 deg C

2. Measure the first 7 ingredients into a bowl and mix. Add hot water and mix with a potato masher.

3. Spray lasagne dish with non stick spray.

4. Spread 1/3 of meat mixture evenly, sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese, then layer lasagne sheets. Repeat.

5. Spread remaining 1/3 of meat, following by layer of cottage cheese with chives. Sprinkle remaining cheese.

6. Bake uncovered for 1 hour. Leave to stand for 15 - 30 minutes before cutting into squares.

Serve with a fresh salad and garlic bread or steamed vege's and enjoy :)

Seven

This post is bought to you by the number seven... Seven months ago today my little man Gus made an early arrival becoming our very own little April fool. Seven days later we took him home from the Neo Natal unit...

Seven is the number of projects I need to finish before Christmas. And seven is also the number of new projects I am fighting the urge not start!

It's also the number of hours sleep I got in a row last night! Yay! And before you think my sleepless nights are because of my little Gus... they're not! He's the perfect one! Ollie is my disasterous sleeper. 25 months later and I am still waiting for a night when he sleeps 7pm - 7am too...



Aahh well. What can I say?! Perhaps I'll have to wait until he's seven... come seventeen there'll be no doubting I'll be posting about struggling to get him outta bed! Not keep him in it!

Overcoming Laziness

This week I had to dig deep to overcome laziness. What I really wanted was to find a sheet or duvet cover which perfectly matched the colours in the boys Bot Camp quilts so that I could avoid piecing the backs... Unfortunately (or fortunately) despite going to a number of different stores, I didn't manage to find anything that would work. Don't ya just hate it when that happens?

So... I pulled myself together and decided to set myself the challenge of using every single bit of fabric. My first pieced backing is below. I am rather happy with it... it means the quilts will be reversible. Although I don't quite know how long the white will stay crisp like that...



Here's a closer shot of the centre piece...



I am in the middle of piecing the second and have decided to make matching pillow cases and possibly a cushion or two if there is enough fabric left over. I don't have enough sprockets to border the second, so I'll be using the blue check.

The wonderful Amy over at Park City Girl is thinking about setting up a recipe swap... I think this is a fabulous idea! Coming up with meal ideas is my least favourite part of the day! Pop on over and leave her a comment if you think it would be a good idea too!!!

By the way - does anyone know how to add a button to your blog? I wanted this to be my Sew n Tell Friday but I don't know how to add the button? Thanks in advance!

Lara

Stippling

It ought to come with the following warning: "Extreme patience and perseverance required. Do not attempt when tired."

I took a stippling class tonight. I need practice. A lot of practice!

A few more pictures from the quilt show...

Housework.

It doesn't do itself (unfortunately!)!! It's how I spent my afternoon... but earlier today I visited the Wellington Quilt Show and Sale. Lots of ideas and inspiration to be found. A few favourites below...





Check back tomorrow for a few more :) Right now my sewing machine beckons.

Lara

Pay it forward!

This sounded like such much fun that I was very happy to take Rafael's Mum from Adventures in Quilting and Sailing up on her kind offer to play Pay It Forward! I am loving this online quilting community. It is so much fun meeting other like minded people and getting so much inspiration!

What does this all mean? I am looking for 3 kind hearted people to accept a little handmade goody from me along with a few other treats from NZ. Sound like fun?! How does it work?

1. I will make a handmade gift for 3 people (the first three to leave a comment) and will include some other fabulous treats from NZ.

2. Your gifts will be delivered within 365 days... you will need to email me your address details and a little about yourself. Or if you'd like me to make a gift for someone else, tell me a little about what they might like.

3. The rules say you need to have a blog - but I'll happily accept anyone with a Flickr account too! The more the merrier I reckon :) I hope I am not breaking too many rules by opening this up a little but it seems the blogging quilting community has a lot of opportunities to take part at the moment so why not invite more?!

4. In turn, you will need to make 3 little handmade gifts to pass onto another 3 people who accept to Pay it Forward with you!

I am new to blogging - so if you happen to know someone else who'd you like to nominate for a gift too and would happily accept the challenge to Pay it Forward - please do!

Lara x