The year of the Swoon...

It is hard to believe that it is the end of they year already - time really does seem to be going faster as I get older! Although I feel like 2012 was a complete blur, it is nice to look back and see that I did actually accomplish a few things. Here are the quilts and mini quilts I made during this year - many of the mini quilts were for swaps but by far my biggest project was the Swoon quilt which I can't wait to use once it gets cooler here!

And these are all of the "other " projects - bags. pillows, table runners and of course the wonderful Zakka projects!

I have a couple of things planned for next year already :

1. The Pantone color challenge - after particpating in the Tangerine Tango challenge earlier this year, I was very excited to see the color for 2013 is Emerald green which is one of my favourites. More info here:

2. I have never been in a bee block gorup before and now I have quite nervously signed up for two of them! The first is the AusMod Bee  and the other is the Simple Solids bee which should both be fun.

3. The 4th round of the DS doll quilt swap will be open for sign ups in late January 2013 here.
Wishing you all the best for the New Year!
Kirsten.

DS mini quilt swap

This week I received a lovely Denyse Schmidt mini quilt from Laurel (Ellebees) as part of the DS Quilts doll quilt swap!

Laurel made such a beautiful mini quilt using some of the new Chicopee fabrics which are one of my favourite ranges, and she did some really fabulous FMQ as well - I really love the pebbly quilting and the binding.

Laurel was also my partner in the swap, and I made her the Denyse's Granny quilt using a few Hope Valley prints which she likes.

Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday and some Happy Mail:)

When I got home form work this afternoon, there was a package in the mail box containing this lovely mini quilt from Kristy (Handmade Retro). . The piecing on the mini is fabulous and it 
was a huge surprise as she was my partner in the Down Under Doll quilt swap as well, so we made for each other

 Kristy also included some cute ribbon and elephant fabric, along with a chocolate which was a bit on the soft side due to the 32 deg C (89F) we had here today - it is sitting in the fridge ready for later though!

 

I am still working on a key fob for my partner for the Mouthy Stitches swap which is the only "other" item we are able to send, and was thinking of using the same fabric as will be used for the of the bag so that they match. I have some other hardware ordered but if it does not arrive in time, I have another plan for the fob.

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.
Kirsten.

DS mini quilt - Granny squares

I have a second partner in the DS mini quilt swap, and this time I decided to use Jolenes tutorial again to make some Granny squares using some fabrics and colours that she seems to like.

I handstitched around each block in matching thread whilst watching TV the other night, and bound it in the same ivory solid that was used for the background.

In order to make 4 granny square blocks, I downsized the size of the squares to 2 inches rather than the 2.5 inches in the original pattern so these blocks ended up at just over 7 inches each, with the mini quilt finishing at about 16.5 inches square.

I made a "practice" block to check out the finished size, which was the perfect size to make into a matching mug rug to send along as well. The backing fabric is the same floral as I used for the mini quilt.

I am posting this package off later today and hopefully it wont take too long to reach my partner.

Linking to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory (button in left sidebar).

Kirsten.

Down Under Doll Quilt Swap

I finished sewing down the binding on this mini quilt for the Down Under Doll quilt swap and have posted it off to my partner this afternoon.

I ended up hand quilting around each "petal" of the block in a matching thread colour -  I was going to do something different but I am glad that I went with this instead.

The back of the quilt is made up of a paper pieced block using a design by Leila at Where the Orchids Grow.

Because this is a local swap, hopefully it wont take too long for the minis to reach their new homes.

Linking to Sew Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations and with Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory (buttons in left sidebar).

Kirsten.

WIP Wednesday - DUDQS

I am still in the process of quilting the mini for the Down Under Doll Quilt Swap (DUDQS) and realised that I hadn't posted a pic of the mini quilt top. 

I have used the Retro Flower pattern from The Sometimes Crafter for this - a variation on the drunkards path block which is really quite versatile. I used some template plastic which I found at Spotlight to cut out my templates for the fabric. It was my first time sewing curves but wasn't as tricky as I thought it would be. 

I also made a trip to the Post office the other day to send off a bunch of parcels that have been packaged up ready to send for a while now.

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.
Kirsten.

Just 3 for September

September means the start of Spring here in Australia, and it is already warming up. The Just 3 projects which I did in August were:
1. Make a start on the mini quilt for the DUDQS
2. Swoon 5
3.Lets Get Acquainted blog hop post/tutorial
And I also finished the Colourful Grannies sewing machine cover that I started back in July.

Now, my Just 3 for September are:
1. DUDQS - I have sewn the mini quilt and am going to try a bit of handquilting so I can post it off in early October.

2.DS mini quilt swap - our partners have been assigned for this swap now so I would like to get started on making a mini. This is the inspiration mosaic I posted for the swap.

1. Chicopee quilt, 2. Cosmos Pillow, 3. mini quilt, 4. flickr.com/photos/74067014@N00/7798072774/, 5. chicopee sliced, 6. Vintage Sewing Machine and Notions - Sew Out Loud QAL #5, 7. Modern Medallion Quilt Center, 8. Spool Pillow Top, 9. NY Beauty Pillow Swap, 10. pillow swap from twinfibers, jessica, 11. George the Elephant, 12. My 241 Tote Bag, 13. All done!, 14. The Maisy Quilt, 15. A Pattern, A Freebie, and A Giveaway!, 16. kaleidoscope pillow

3.Swoon quilt - still plodding away at this but I am in no real rush to finish it as winter is over now here in Australia, so I have plenty of time to get it done before next winter.

Linking to just 3 with Tracey, and to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced (buttons in left sidebar).

Kirsten.

DS mini quilt swap - received!

I got home yesterday afternoon form work and found a package waiting on the doorstep.And inside was my mini quilt from Ingrid (Eqbreiza) .

As all of us particpating in the swap have probably realized by now, Leona sneakily paired us up with each other - so I made a quilt for Ingrid, and she made this one for me:)

She included some colourful threads, pretty fabric, a notebook and a wonderful magazine which is one I have not seen before. (note to self: remember to do this for future swaps!!)
Thank you so much Ingrid for the lovely mini quilt, and also to Leona for organising the swap. 
Kirsten.

DS mini quilt from PolkaDot Classic

I received this lovely parcel from Marta last week...we were actually swap partners in the DS mini quilt swap but didn't know it as it was a secret swap!!!

There was something special in each pretty package:

 A quilt pattern, some beautiful FQ of Pernillas Journey fabric, a cute hexie block, and the most gorgeous dresden mini quilt in my favourite colours:

 I love how Marta has used DS fabrics from all of the ranges and they go so well together! 

 And the quilting around the dresden is just perfect!!  I haven't made a dresden circle before but after seeing how lovely they look, I want to try it!!

Thank you so much Marta for making such a beautiful mini quilt for me - I really love it:)

Kirsten.

Sew &Tell - Mini quilt challenge

When I saw Amylouwho was hosting a mini quilt Sew and Tell challenge, I remembered that I had one leftover Starflower block from the Christmas Table runner.........

so I decided to make it into a {very} mini quilt which will be gifted to a lovely friend whom I have met via blogland.

I really love the pattern the quilting makes on the back:)

Quilt stats: 12.5 x 12.5

Fabric:  Michael Miller Funky Christmas

Adding this to a new flickr group: Modern Mini Quilts. 

Also linking to {sew} Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations, Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory (buttons in sidebar) and to Little Quilt Monday at Pieceful Life.

Kirsten.

Fresh Sewing Day - November

This is a very special first of November for those of us in Australia as it is also the first Tuesday of the month when the Melbourne Cup is run. My husband and I actually went to the Cup five years ago when we went on a week-long cruise from Sydney to Melbourne. We had a great position just across from the finish line - here is a pic of us all dressed up for the "big day":

Onto the sewing..... I didn't do a great deal as October was quite busy but I did manage to get the second DS "plus" quilt done for the swap - which has now been received! I also did a mini quilt for a "Fuddy Duddy challenge" in colours of brown, green and burgundy, and a kindle case for my brother - which I gave to him on the weekend. Ed said it was just what he needed as he has noticed scratches on his kindle already as it just gets thrown into his bag........And I also made another Giant Starflower which was backed in flannel and I did a lot more quilting on it this time too. I really love this pattern - simple yet stunning:)

Linking to Fresh Sewing Day for November at Lilys Quilts:

Kirsten.

Happy mail day!

I was very surprised when this parcel turned up from Holland today as I wasn't expecting anything from the Auspost delivery guy!! It looked so nice all tied up together - I didn't want to couldn't wait to unwrap it though!

 The most amazing package from Wendy (wen_ot) with the lovely 3D pinwheel mini quilt and some pretty goodies in my favourite colour:)

 These little owls in their fabric nest are so cute...

Although the pin wheels may take a few days to recover from their 3 week trip from the Netherlands to Australia.......

 And the quilt matches the wall in my dining room perfectly - I'll hang it properly later on but I wanted to take photos right away.

Thank you so much Wendy - it is just gorgeous!!! Can't wait to see all of the other finished quilts in the DS DQ swap as they are due to go out by the end of next weekend.

Kirsten.

DS doll quilt #2

Just wanted to take advantage of a lovely warm and sunny Sunday afternoon after a few days of very stormy weather including a lot of lightning, hail and thunder to take a photo of my (second) finished mini quilt for the Denyse Schmidt Doll Quilt swap.

 Because this one is being sent overseas, I wanted to mainly use the fabrics that were released exclusively in Australia.

 And also tried a bit of handstitching although I am not confident about the result.....

I really like the effect of the "plus" design and hope my partner does too as it will be going out in the mail this week:)

Linking to {Sew} Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations, Fabric Tuesday @ Quiltstory (buttons in sidebar), Little Quilt Monday at Pieceful Life, and I am also entering this mini quilt into the Celebrate Color event at Stitched in Color for October.

Kirsten

Fuddy is not Duddy!

I saw the "Fuddy is not Duddy" challenge on Naptime Quilters blog on the weekend and seeing as my kids think I am actually a Fuddy Duddy, thought I'd have a look to see what burgundy, green and brown fabrics that I may have, and not surprisingly there were a few:)

 

I chose some of these and a neutral in an off-white/ivory solid to make a doll quilt in a design that I had bookmarked from Jessica's blog  "A Little Gray" which was made for her by Amy :

Some of these fabrics are fairly recent releases (the burgundy DS Winding Roads) but without them I would have been stuck for that colour.

 And the backing was some nice brown trees which are very autumny looking so I am also going to link this to Celebrate Color at Stitched in Color.

 I really enjoyed doing this colour challenge as I used to do a lot of similar colour challenges when I did scrapbooking and they do get you to think outside your usual colour choices and combinations.

Also linking to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory, and  Little Quilt Monday with Elizabeth at Pieceful life.

Kirsten.