Thursday, April 29, 2010

Life is Beautiful Journal Finished!

Finished the journal this afternoon, I enjoyed making it so much, I love playing with buttons, lace and trims... but didn't enjoy the mess that I had to clean up in the end!
I love this button, and have been wanting to use it in a project for so long...not sure if you can see the detail...but you can click on the image for a closer look!

We are having perfect sewing weather at the moment, as its been quite cold and windy outside. I hope that you are all getting a chance to do some sewing too!
Lisa


Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Bear Cottage Craft purchases

I went into Bear Cottage Crafts today to stock up on a few ribbons....and noticed this mannequin style shelf, how lovely is this! I didn't purchase it on the spot...you know how you get home and wish you had bought something that caught your eye!! So I had to go back this arvo and buy it! My ribbon purchases.......
This morning I have started on my Life is Beautiful Journal... I painted the cover and back in blue, and have tea dyed some of my crochet motifs...its so much fun playing around with lace and trims to see what works!

Enjoy the rest of your week!
Lisa


Tuesday, April 27, 2010

100th Post

A few weeks back I celebrated my 100th post...how quickly that came round! My son had drawn out a name from the comments left on my actual 100th post and Jo's name was drawn...so these are the goodies I sent to Jo.... I also wanted to send a little something to Chookyblue, for all her help when I first started my blog. So I sent chookyblue a Journal pouch too, and a little purse.
I have also been asked to do another stitchery for our local Heritage quilt, as one of the organisers didn't have time to complete it. This one is of our local school. The school house was already traced, so I just had to do the rest and then stitch it. Yes that is a large shoe on the left... when I was going to school there, it had a large slide coming off it, but they had to remove it for safety reasons. I am so pleased to finally have this stitchery finished!

Bye for Now
Lisa


Monday, April 26, 2010

This weeks challenge...birds!

As I was hanging the washing on the line this morning...there was quite was quite a riot going on amongst the Wattle and Minor birds in the Protea. By the time I went and grabbed the camera, the Wattle Birds had it won! They are quite territorial and are always chasing the other birds away. We have had them nest in the backyard for a few years now...not sure whether its a good thing or not, as I also like the smaller birds to visit!
Hope you all have a great week!
Lisa

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Life IS Beautiful!

I have decided to start on Angels Story Quilt, as I have had the book and the fabric for a couple of years now, and I have seen a few finished quilts around blogland that has really tempted me to start! Also the postie delivered my Life Is Beautiful pattern yesterday, and I am so keen to start that also...but have to wait for a trip to the Quilted Crow to buy some fabrics. All the stitcheries and sayings are just beautiful. The plan each month is to firstly complete my Gardeners Journal block then I will do work on the others. At present, I am doing another Heritage stitchery block of our local school, which was given to me partitially traced...but there is sooo much work in it!

I hope you are all enjoying your weekend

Lisa

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Never-Fail Choccy Cake

I needed to do a bit of cooking today for school lunches and to stock up the freezer...so I made this choccy cake. I always double the recipe and it makes a huge cake. I can never seem to make a nice chocolate cake, when I cream butter and add eggs method, so I always make this cake where the butter, water, sugar and bi-carb soda is melted in a saucepan on the stovetop.

1/4 c Cocoa, 1 c water, 150g Butter, 1 1/2 c Sugar, 1/2 teaspoon bi-carb, 2 Eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla essence, 1 1/2 c SR flour
Blend cocoa with a little water to make a smooth paste. Place in a saucepan with remaining water, butter, sugar and bi-carb soda. Stir over medium heat until butter melts. bring to boil. Remove from heat, and leave to cool. when cold, add eggs and vanilla essence...beat well. Sift in flour and mix well. Pour into a greased and lined 20cm round pan. Bake for 50 minutes in an oven preheated to 180 c. Leave in pan for 5 minutes before turning out to cool completely. I always use my sons camera (master 10) when taking pics of food as he has a cuisine setting on his camera...and found this picture of the sunset that he had taken...sometime he does surprise me...mind you I also found about 50 photos of his new fishing reel!lol!
Lisa

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Midweek Show and Tell!

Have you ever really enjoyed making a project so much, that you have to make another but in a different colourway? I had to make another purse, but wanted to try selvedges of my favourite repro fabrics. This little purse nicely fits a phone or even a little camera. from the back....
This is miss 8's drawing from last week...she will happily sit down for hours and just draw...I just love the unicorns face!

Hope you are all having a great week!
Lisa


Sunday, April 18, 2010

This and That!

No crafty projects that I can show you yet, but I have been busy sewing to celebrate my 100th post! WooHoo! So I will show you what I made at a later date and more details!
This is the spider web that I can see from my kitchen window...We have sooo many webs like this in the garden at the moment, with the rolled up dry leaf in the centre. I even had one of the spiders hanging from my fringe the other week!!! Yes, I like to take pics of them but DO NOT like them in hair!lol! And this picture of the bumble bee...am I right in saying that he looks so much like the bee that we see so much in our stitcheries???lol!
Hope you have all had an enjoyable weekend!
Lisa

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Journal Covers




I love Natalies Birds Sweet Sentiments book. Its ideal for a beginner, or if you just want to make a easy achievable projects, maybe for a gift!
Edit-The pattern for the journal cover is in the Sweet Sentiments Book
Miss 8 and I have a sewing night planned, she wants to make a journal too, but it will be without the stitchery.
Hope you are all enjoying your weekend...Hubby and the boys are out in the boat catching a feed of flathead for tea tonight...yum!
Lisa


Friday, April 16, 2010

Bit of Stitching!

So pleased its Friday...no school lunches and a bit of a sleep-in! After making Leanne Beasleys big bag last weekend, I was at a loss as to what to start next. So happy when Homespun arrived in the letterbox with lots of 'to do' projects in it. I have also been going through my books and found a couple of stitcheries that I wanted to sew from Sweet Sentiments by Natalie Bird.
Just noticed you can see the dirty mark on teddy bear stitchery...don't you hate it when the Iron dribbles! Or does it only happen to me? Luckily it won't seen!


So hopefully, this weekend I might I get these stitcheries made into something if all goes well!
Have a great weekend
Lisa


Thursday, April 15, 2010

Jacky's Purses from Homespun

I knew as soon as I flicked through my new Homespun edition (No.83 Vol 11.4) that I had to make these little purses. Just the right size for an Ipod or mobile phone with a bit extra room even for a lippy! Loved making them, and have to say Thankyou to Sue-.Anne for her advice on raw edge applique, as I hadn't done it before! You can attach them to your bag, or even your belt loop.
I have been thinking about making more of these for gifts for 15 year olds...but unsure if it's their 'thing'! What do you think??? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! I don't want to go to the trouble of making them if they are not going to be liked!
Hard to believe its nearly Friday again!

Lisa

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

This weeks challenge...Machinery!

This weeks challenge 'Machinery' was a bit of a hard one for me...unable to find anything of interest about town, so have decided to do my sewing machines!
So introducing 'Jan' who is semi retired, due to an overload of work! She is on light duties such as quilting...I always keep the walking foot on this machine and comes in quite handy too! I hate changing the walking foot! This is my big Husky...she does the majority of work...even all of my stippling! What I love most about this machine, is at just a touch of a button, I can adjust the setting to 1/4 inch sewing, so no need to change the foot.
Plenty of room for quilting too! I do have a little Husky also, which I don't have the room to have out (Bring on that new bigger sewing room)lol! I use my little Husky mainly for taking to classes, as she is only lightweight., but she will eventually become my daughters (miss 8) machine when she's more interested in sewing! I did show a picture of the little husky back when I made Clares sewing machine mat.

I also have a Brother Sewing and embroidery machine (also put away due to lack of space) Before I started patchwork and quilting I used to do alot of machine embroidery. But now, I prefer to do hand embroidery, so it doesn't get much of a workout!
So I am hoping that all my sewing machines are still classed as machinery!lol!
Lisa


Monday, April 12, 2010

Anna's Backyard Bag!


Not much of a day here yesterday, so spent the afternoon out in the sewing room with my little pot belly woodfire going...making this bag. Its from Leanne Beasleys Romancing the Roadtrip book (Anna's backyard bag). It has been on my 'to do' list for a while now. Dawnie had made one a little while back and kindly told me where she had purchased the fabric from (Now sold out from that shop...he he!) So if you want a MASSIVE bag that holds EVERYTHING, this is the bag for you! It is going to come in very handy...need somewhere to put all my other handbags and purses that I have made!lol!
Hope you are having a great start to the week
Lisa

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Little Purse!

I do have a love for little purses, and when I blog hopped over to Tozzscorner and saw the cute little purses that she had made, with the link for a tutorial...I just had to make one! Am loving red and white at the moment!
Just to show how easily distracted I can get...Go outside for a couple of pics, and discover I have about twenty, but of bees and bugs!lol!

This is my first block completed for the stitch-a-long. (Quilt from Anni Downs book Gardeners Journal) I am enjoying it so much. I have no other BOM's at the moment, and have been so tempted to start Angel Story as well, have had the fabric for a couple of years. Yes....very tempting!!!


Hope you are all having a great weekend
Lisa



Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Quilted Zip Bags!

What do you do on a wet, rainy day? Make bags of course!!! I found the link for these bags via Jo's blog...thankyou Jo...they are a bit addictive! You could adapt the pattern to make what ever size you like. These were made using all my scraps!

Hope your all having a great week

Lisa

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Easter Sewing!

This weeks snappyfriends challenge was something starting with 'E'...so I decided to show my Easter Sewing. We went camping for a couple of days over easter, and I did manage to do some hand sewing. Another challenge I also had, was given to us by Helen at the gathering...to make something out of a fat 1/16th piece of fabric. I was lucky with the fabric I was given, as it was a really pretty! I wanted to make something that I didn't already have, so went with a bookmark for myself and one for my daughter (miss 8) who loves to read.(Marg Low Bookmark patterns from gathering goody bag) Thankyou so much Helen for the fabric and the challenge! Pop over here and here to see some other projects from Helens challenge.
I also made a Leanne Beasley pincushion...pattern purchased from the gathering last weekend...and yes it is also rose scented!

And I wanted to make a needlecase and pincushion to match the bag I made last week, so I made up Gail Pans needlecase (which was in our goody bag last weekend) I think her designs are so sweet and just love her little birdie!


I hope you all had a lovely easter and managed to get some sewing done!
Lisa