At last 6 finished aprons

Thank goodness - six finished aprons.  I posted about these a little while ago. They are for my sister, her daughters and son and a boyfriend and girlfriend.  I can write about it none of them know I have a blog so they won't see this.  You can't really tell from the photo but they are just simple aprons with a strap around the neck and ties around the waist. I make them double thickness so you are even less likely to get stuff on your clothes (yes that is what I need!!!)

 All o the pictures came from various Art to Heart Books - currently my favourite pattern books - and I simply used homespun and pieces of my sister's hand dyed fabrics.  Every year or two she gives me a bundle of hand dyed fabrics and I use them for all sorts of things.  She even gives me the scraps that she uses to wipe out the buckets at the end of a dying session and you would be surprised how pretty some of those are!

 No prizes for guessing which ones belong to the boys!  I couldn't decide on a picture that looked "manly" enough!

This is tomorrow's (and probably Sunday and Monday's) sewing - twelve coordinating potholders to go with the aprons!

Well, it is nearly midnight and I have to be up early to send Fly Boy off on a week long Gliding Camp with the Air force cadets.  He leaves with his Dad at 5 to 6am!  Guitar Hero, who is definitely NOT a morning person is being collected at 8am by his friend to go on an EMPOWER YOU course and then when the Frequent Flyer, AKA my gorgeous husband gets home, he and I are going to hit the shops and blitz the Christmas shopping!  So now, to bed, to rest up for the coming day.

Happy stitching!

Vent!

The purpose of this blog is for me to share the sewing etc that I am doing and also to keep a record of it.  I won't normally include too much about the family. 

However, today is the second day of my sons' school holidays - they are off school till the 28th of January - a whole 51 days!!!!!  Only 49 to go - why do I bring this up?  Coz I just have to say, with the moods they are in at the moment (and have been for a while) it is going to be a LOOOOOOONG summer - AGGGGHHGHG!  I think I will get a lock installed on my sewing room door - see you later - I am off to call the locksmith!

Kris Kringle Lunch Fun

Well what a day!  As per usual the Gumnuts had a great day together.  Took us ages to get thru swapping our coat hangers,choosing pot holders,  giving our Kris Kringle Gifts and then handing out the extra little presents that we seem to end up with every year.  It is always so much fun.

First the much bemoaned coat hanger swap.  It yielded some gorgeous ones and some very inventive ones!  I was as usual amazed by what everyone came up with!

 This one made with felt

 This a vintage doilie

 strip pieced

 fussy cut

 felt again

 embroidered with daisies

 knitted with wool that has long black strands

 prairie points

 red and white

 mine with vintage lace

piping and beautiful sewing

Would you believe that I completely forgot to take a photo of all the pot holders that everyone chose but never mind that would probably be a bit repetitive for you anyway.

Kris Kringle came next.  Here is my recipient with her bundle.

 One of the potholders and the pate I gave her were circling the room at the time but you get the idea.  i am already thinking about what to make for next year's recipient.  I have a few ideas......

And after all the goodies, Lunch!  Yum.  We started the day at 11ish and finally called it quits around four thirty - what a day!  and what a lot of fun!!!  and now to bed!

Good night!

Christmas wrapping

Tomorrow is the Gumnuts Kris Kringle Lunch!!!! The "Gumnuts" is my quilt group! Also known as the Gummies or the Nutters!  In a lot of ways it is the highlight of the year.  Everyone is allocated one person to give a gift to.  Some of us make a gift, some of us buy one but we all put a lot of thought into whatever it is.

My recipient this year absolutely loves Kaffe Fassett fabrics so, of course, I had to go and buy some just to sew for her.  I posted a photo of the end result in an earlier blog but as I don't know how to make a link for you to click on you just have to put up with another photo

 I have added this plate that I found to the parcel -

 This should allow you to read the words

 Here is the apron folded with the potholders hidden inside

 and the final product...

I appliqued "ho ho ho" on a tea towel in Kaffe fabrics (sorry meant to take a photo before wrapping but I forget!) and then used another piece of Kaffe fabric as the ribbon to hold it all together.  have to say I can't wait to give it to her tomorrow!!!  Will try and have my camera ready!

Bed time now - goodnight!

A little handmade Christmas

When I started to put the Christmas decorations up this week I got a surprise when I realised how many hand made things I have done over the years.  I thought I would take some photos and share some of them with you!
Firstly these are the Christmas stockings I made for my twin boys when they were about seven or eight years old.  I had so much fun doing them that I have decided that I will do some more next year for fun and wither sell them or give them away.

 My Mum and I did a whole bunch of these one year.  She sis the running stitch tree and I did the rest.  One went to each of my sisters and I am sure we did more but I can't remember who got them.  Another fun project.

 Another favourite project.  I must do more of these too.

 And I just love the message on this - "kisses under the mistletoad!"  I did a second one of these and sent it to my cousin who is frog mad! (well it takes all kinds!)

Now I can't take credit for this one.   This was actually a Christmas give from a girlfriend and it is all hand button hole stitched.  I love it so I thought it was worth sharing!

I had some other photos to show you but for some reason I can't upload them.  Maybe tomorrow night.  My quilt group is having out Christmas lunch here on Wednesday and I have so much to do before then.  I wont even start to write a list as it will scare me.  Wish me luck!

Photos as promised.....

Here they are - the completed tea towels and place mats.  I really enjoyed making these.  I have so much Christmas fabric that never gets used but which I can't resist buying so I have decided that for the month of January I am going to concentrate on using some of it and a set of place mats might be a nice way to start!

Now I have to get back to work - today is the day to put the Christmas Decorations up and there is a never ending supply to get to......
Happy Christmas time all

Proud Mama and more Christmas sewing!

Before I start with any thing else please permit me a Proud Mama Moment..  Here we have Fly Boy, all dressed up in his Airforce Cadets and standing to attention during their End of Year Parade.  As an ex-Airforce officer myself, I never imagine my sons joining up themselves, and though this is only the cadets is still touches a special place in my heart to see him in the uniform I wore so proudly myself.  He is the cute fellow on the left.  He hopes to go to the Australian Defence Force Academy when he leaves school so this is great training for him.  Okay, proud Mama over.   

I have hardly stopped sewing in recent days  - well only when I have had to.  I am chewing thru the Christmas Presents - more potholders and I have finally finished all the sewing for the Tree of Joy - the place mats and pot holders are ready now and I am just waiting till I get the quilt back from my girlfriend who is doing the hand sewing on the binding.  I will have it on Wednesday so I will take a photo of everything completed then. 


My latest completed efforts are three place mats for a girlfriend of mine in America.  I bought three tea towel sets in K Mart that had Aussie animals embroidered on them.  They were so cute that I knew I had to do something with them.  Each set had a plain tea towel and the embroidered one.  I cut out the embroidered piece from each one and have used it in a place mat.  My girlfriend's family is just she and her husband and their cute little girl so three was just the right number.  I am really pleased with the result and I think I will do more of this kind of thing in the future when I find appropriate tea towels etc.  

I decided to dress up the remaining three tea towels with some Christmas appliques and they will all go to America together!

Tomorrow my girlfriends and their daughters are coming over to put the decorations on the Christmas Tree.  This is something we started doing about six years ago and we all love it.  Before they come I have to make a peach crumble, get in some drinks and icecream for dinner, and wrap all the gifts going to the boys' school on Monday.
Oops it is 1145pm - my bedtime way late - photos of finished bits tomorrow I promise and maybe I will throw in a photo of the tree.

Good night!