The happenings in De's part of the world!

Did anyone miss me?

2009-03-22T09:48:00.005+10:00

Its been so long that I am sure no one pops into my blog anymore!

That life thing just became all consuming and blog land just didnt have the hold to keep me there.

So a brief update on what has been hapening.

I have moved! The kids, cats and I have moved into a really cute little house not to far from our old one. We are recovering from cardboard box dependence (Oh that was bad) and are slowly trying to form a new routine that encompasses everything that we need to do.

I love this house and a close friend of mine described it as a "doll's house". Hopefully we will get to stay here for some time and really make it a home.

During the move which seemed to take a very long time to get all packed up moved and unpacked I still had to do that work thing which was extremely busy and took up a lot of time. I also unfortunately lost my Nan so a quick (and very expensive) trip to Tassie was called for.

The recovery period - well how else should everything fall into place but to be moved and have everything settled 3 days before my scheduled holiday!!!! I had booked to go on a cruise with friends way back in August last year and it finally happened. I so needed the break after the busy few months that had happened and a very stressful 2008. And it just so happened to be my birthday!

Arriving home and going back to work was hard. But on a good note the work schedule has changed and I will be working more regular hours from here on in.

I will try to get back in here more regularly. I have been trying to keep up with everyone and you have all been doing some great work.

Where has the time gone.............?????

2008-06-18T18:36:00.004+10:00

Oh boy - I knew it had been awhile since I had made a post but it was way back in March!

Ive been busy doing that life stuff!

Here's what has been keeping me super busy for the past 6 weeks::::::::

Its not my foot - thankfully!!!!!! I decided to take the kids to the park on Mother's Day and Cameron fell off the flying fox! Today the cast was removed and all broken bits have healed nicely!!!!

Before that I had actually completed a project:

Its the quilt top - Phoebe's Garden designed by Faeries in My Garden. I got this a a block of the month a couple of years ago! Im really happy with the end result and now I just need to choose a backing fabric and get stuck into the quilting! Perfect weather for it at the moment.

I will try really hard to get back here soon!

Noah's Ark

2008-03-24T21:01:00.003+10:00

This is the first block from Lynette Anderson's free BOM.! Didnt take long at all to stitch! My friends Helen and Lynda are also stitching this one as well.

(Its a fairly blurry picture but gives you the general idea)

De

And the winners are............

2008-03-23T23:36:00.006+10:00

Randomly selected are the winners of my birthday surprise.........

Helbel who pops in and keeps me motivated (Thanks Helen!)

and.............

Vickie who is new to my blog. (Lovely to meet you!)

Thanks for everyone's birthday wishes! The surprise will be revealed after they have reached their new homes. Im about to email you lovely people!

The things that I have been making .........

2008-03-19T10:31:00.013+10:00

Here are some pictures of what I have been making!

The first photos are what I made my very good friend Lisa for her birthday .............

.......some cushions from a panel ;

a bookmark ;

and this cute card which has beads for sprinkles

Then there were some suffolk puffs and a teddy heart hanging for some people who needed some support through some tough times .................

"Blair" bear for another friend's birthday

The mug bag for Lyndy which was the first of the Prim Treasures Swaps for 2008.

I made this pig for a friend who collects them instead

of giving her a birthday card.

And the latest thing finished is this little bear which is for a friend of Alysa's......

If you have made it down to here thank you for showing an interest! I am currently working on quilt for me (Vintage Bears) and the Prim Treasures Cinderberry Stitches swap for Razzy

I have also made something for Vix for her birthday but cant show you a photo yet - the parcel wont be there until today or tomorrow!

Check this out!

2008-03-15T08:43:00.003+10:00

Go to here and have a look. Its a quilt give away and all you have to do is leave a comment! Great quilt so good luck to whoever wins!

De

Happy Birthday to ..............

2008-03-09T18:32:00.003+10:00

ME!!!!!!

Today is my birthday! 38 - wow!

Spent the day not doing much at all - which is what its all about I reckon! Becca and Cam had a tae kwon do demonstration to attend so after they were deposited there Alysa and I went to the shopping centre! The only thing we brought was lunch. Then off to spotlight to purchase some DMC for a project for a special someone whose birthday it is soon and I got some calico as well - can never have enough of that stuff!

For dinner we treated ourselves to chinese takeaway from the little shop around the corner - yummo!

To help you all celebrate with me I think I might do a small giveaway! Im not sure what yet but it will be something handmade so if you would like to receive my birthday present to you just leave me a comment. I will randomly select two winners in two weeks

To all that are having a birthday really soon - hope its a great one!

A lot has been happening.............

2008-03-07T10:53:00.003+10:00

I havent posted on my blog for ages! Sorry to those that think Ive dropped off the face of the earth.

A lot has been going on in my life - most of which Im not going to blog about. If you really want to know - email me.

I have managed to fit in some sewing time and that has been my escape. Ive made some birthday presents and fulfilled my requirements for this year's Prim Treasures swaps so far (ok - its only been one this year!).

I will get around to posting some photos very shortly of all that I have been busy with.

At the moment I have just discovered on Lynnette Anderson's Blog that she is giving away a BOM pattern for her Noah's Ark Quilt! The bunnies are very cute so I cant wait to see the rest. I have just printed out the pattern and will add it to the list of things to do - which is growing very quickly I might add.

Off to do the boring stuff (housework) and then perhaps a little stitching time on the next Prim Treasures swap (Cinderberry Stitches design) all before work at 4.30pm

I've Been Tagged

2007-08-17T17:34:00.000+10:00

Sarah has tagged me to tell you all 8 random things about myself! Im supposed to then tag 8 other people to tell 8 things about themselves as well. Here are the rules:

Post rules before giving the facts - Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves - People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules - At the end of the your blog you need to tag eight people and list their names - Leave them a comment on their blog, telling them they have been tagged and not to forget to read your blog.

Im a cub leader (still in training) and its great fun
I have a friend who calls me a "lizard". He says "De - put you on a rock in the sun and you will be happy" - that is so true
I dont eat shellfish
The only time in my life that I have been admitted into hospital was when I had my 3 babies
I cant crochet - my Nan tried and tried to teach me but I still cant do it
I cry over soppy movies
I can drink black coffee - I just have to add extra sugar
Cat Weasal (the TV program) used to scare me

I think all the people that I know have already been tagged but if you havent and want to play this game just let me know!

Prim Treasures Swap - July 2007

2007-08-11T08:23:00.000+10:00

It really was just like Christmas when we all were online opening our presents on the 25th July! Below is what I made and sent to Homespun Di :

The bag (a Hatched and Patched design):

The Cushion cover (a Mum's Moment design)

For the surprise I decided to make this Angel Swag. Its a Natalie Bird design which was in one of the Express Publications magazines a while back

And this is the Christmas ornie which was in another Express magazine.

And here are the most beautiful gifts that I received from Christine (Fairy Vitamin C):

I really loved being part of this swap and Im looking forward to the next one. Opening day for that is Christmas day which I guess will be here before we know it!

Brown Paper Packages ..........................

2007-07-21T07:29:00.001+10:00

All tied up with String!!!!!!!!

This is a photo of the Prim Treasures swap goodies just before being placed in the express post envelope to be sent off somewhere!

I really hope whoever gets them loves them - I loved making them! Its been great fun and opening day is only 4 sleeps away. Can't wait - its like being a really big kid again!

No Boys Allowed...................

2007-07-10T22:33:00.000+10:00

When I spotted this project in Country Threads recently I just had to make it for Becca. It was her birthday on the 23rd June so I took the opportunity and made it while she was still at school, so it could be a surprise. The buttons arrived from Giggle Buttons and they just set it off perfectly.

Of course then it needed a special home on the wall and I had thought about just using quilt ends but then had the bright idea of having a shelf as well as a hanger. Of course all good ideas come with glitches and I couldnt just go to Bunnings and buy a shelf. I ended up buying all the bits I needed (brackets, dressed pine and dowel) and had to put it all together. After a coat of whitewash and then varnish its now on the wall and I noticed that she has filled the pockets!

Look what happens when its cold............

2007-07-10T22:27:00.000+10:00

Remember on my "to do" list I mentioned that I couldnt get any painting done because the weather was a bit too warm and humid and therefore the paint just didnt want to play the painting game.

Well now that it has cooled down (and I certainly hope that it doesnt stay this cold for too long) I have manged to get the dolls cot finished. Im really happy with how it turned out and Becca now has somewhere for some of her soft toys. Im sure when MIL sees it she will be fairly impressed with how it turned out (it used to be her dolls cot)

Backpack

2007-06-14T08:27:00.000+10:00

This wasnt on the list of things to do but last week when we had our really rainy day and it wasnt fit to do anything else I thought I would make it up. Ive had the pattern for a couple of years and have just never got around to doing it. I decided to put a stitchery on the pocket rather than just a constrasting fabric which is what they had done in the pattern. The stitchery pattern is an Angels in Disguise pattern from their Redwork Annie BOM. I just reduced the size of it.

The bag itself is huge - holds heaps - and I added extra pockets on the inside and also one of those key clips so I dont have to worry about rumaging for the keys when Im using it.

Mum's Needlecase

2007-06-11T18:36:00.001+10:00

This is the needle case that I made for Mum for Mothers Day. She really liked it when I finally gave it to her this weekend.

(The outside)

(The inside)

Molly Moo Cow

2007-05-30T19:52:00.000+10:00

I so loved this pattern in the newest Patchwork and Stitching that I just had to go and buy some "cow flannel" the very next day and start making it over the weekend. I actually made three (one for me, one for my friend Jen and one for my MIL who was staying here!)

As you can see I had the perfect spot for her to sit in my kitchen - up on the shelf with my "milk bottle" etc.

Finally .............Vix's Bday present

2007-05-12T07:34:00.000+10:00

..........Here it is!..............Its been with Vix for a couple of weeks but Im only now getting around to showing you all what I made. Its a table centre (measured about 30cm square). I used a Bronwyn Hayes design as inspiration. Vix said she had the "perfect" home for it so that's great!.

Now Im working on the Prim Treasures Secret Santa surprise project. That would be working on what to make - so it will be a surprise for me as well - LOL!

Off to Soccer now and then to working bee at Scout Den but hopefully will be able to fit in some time to sew between getting home for those activities and going out to dinner.

Progress Report

2007-03-19T08:04:00.000+10:00

I have been doing little bits - currently working on a birthday present for Vix - 3/4 of the way finished but angry at myself for not making time before hand to get it done. It wasnt really the problem of getting it finished on time, it was deciding what to make that held it all up.

Apart from that Ive been busy doing the things with the kids (netball and soccer have started again). Today is cleaning day so hopefully I will be motivated to get stuck into that so I can get some crafting done!

What a find I had on Saturday! There was a working bee at the scout den and I found two very old wind up phones - Im going to paint something on them - and a very old box brownie camera. Apart from that - heaps of junk that has now been disposed of!

Home Sweet Home

2007-03-07T18:28:00.000+10:00

Finally, Ive put the binding on it. Really dont know why I left it for so long because once I got stuck into it, it didnt take very long at all. Anyhow its on the wall now and Im liking it!

Another thing marked off my list. ............Moving right along .................

Friendship Cushion

2007-02-27T20:20:00.000+10:00

I finished this for my friend's 40th birthday. Yes I did finish it a bit late to reach her in time but it is in the post now. I really hope she likes it.

Sweet Dreams......

2007-02-06T19:50:00.000+10:00

This one wasnt on the list but had to be done. Its for the girl who used to babysit my kids in Tassie. She is expecting her first in a few weeks (and before you ask - yes its a girl).

It was a fairly quick project (just today on and off) and I think I will try and make up a few similar ones in case they are needed for emergency presents.

Door Stop

2007-02-03T07:32:00.000+10:00

Here is the door stop (Mum's Moment pattern "Ruby") that I finished last night. She has a removeable jacket so if I want I can make her a Christmas one for that time of the year...... we will see how the time factor holds out!

...The list.......

2007-01-31T10:57:00.000+10:00

Here is my list! It will probably grow (and grow and grow and grow) throughout the year.

Door stop (Mum's Moment - Ruby)COMPLETED!!
Phoebe's Garden (Faeries in My Garden) BOM - 2 blocks to go then put them together and quilt it - long term project
Present for friend's 40th which is 11 Feb COMPLETED!!
Secret Santa swaps - of course BAG FINISHED! CUSHION FINISHED! SURPRISE FINISHED!
"Dress Me Up" quilt - bobby socks quilt company design - found it for free on the internet - its so cute
Angel Story Quilt - have the fabric - just need the inspiration to start (getting there thanks to Helen)
Binding for Home Sweet Home wall hanging - COMPLETED!!
Becca's doll cot - still needs to be painted - am trying to get it finished but Im battling the weather - COMPLETED!!
Mother's day presents - Brought present for MIL and finished Needlecase for Mum
Painting on suitcase that came from my Gran's house (another weather problem)
Potting About triple irish chain quilt (another Faeries in my Garden) - have the kit
Dolls for my ladder - a girl can never have too many dollies
Vintage bears wall quilt
MIL's bday present
put together birdhouse blocks from swap ages ago

Well thats all off the top of my head. Im sure that will be added to over the year.

Please keep me on track and keep asking me if i have worked on any of it!

Alysa.......ready for high school

2007-01-31T10:19:00.000+10:00

Yesterday was the first day at high school for Alysa. She was really excited and when she came home she said that she had a good day.

This photo isnt the best - the sun was out! This is her sport's uniform - apparently she doesnt have to wear the formal one for a while (they could have told me that before I purchased it!)

... a few small changes.......

2007-01-31T10:11:00.000+10:00

Ive changed the template around and added some pictures. I think I'm much happier with it now.

Secret Santa 2006

2007-01-29T20:22:00.000+10:00

Here are the presents I received from Jan for the Secret Santa Swap 2006!

I love them all!

Hello!

2007-01-29T18:56:00.000+10:00

Not usually one to succumb to peer pressure I just thought if everyone else was doing it so would I!

Its actually a good place to store the photos of everything!

I guess I can spend some time tomorrow while all the kids are back at school and get some photos here for you all to see.

De