Busy weekend

I have been doing a lot of sewing ready for a great weekend get together with family. I probably won't be back on the blog until after the weekend but here is a little peek!

How sneaky am I :)

Back on Monday with an update.....promise!

Happy birthday

Yesterday I had a very happy birthday - here are the remains of morning tea that my lovely colleagues surprised me with (the official morning tea was on Monday for 4 of us who had birthdays on the 2nd, 3rd, 6th and 9th) but my room decided we needed to celebrate again! P.S. the pies were yummy and just right for a cold winter's day.

Here is some of the loot I managed to accumulate, how lucky am I! My friends are so kind, I am very spoiled. Not to mention the very early birthday present I received

Now I do love Vicki's humour BUT just what does she mean by this card lol. Love it!

Thanks to all my friends for a lovely day!

Another birthday, another finish

Where did the weekend go? I did mean to post this on Saturday!

I had lunch with a good friend on Friday and as it was her birthday and she is a keen yoga aficionado I decided to make her a yoga mat bag to carry her mat to and from lessons.

I had had the pattern for quite a while but hadn't made it so after finding, what I thought, was the perfect material (well it just looked yoga-on-sandish) I decided it would be the perfect birthday present.

And then on Sunday I received this photo with mat installed. I am thrilled it is just the right size!

Off to a new home

This week has been a busy sewing week. This really cute bag went off to a new home today. Little F is in hospital so I made her the bag and filled it with stickers, note books, gel pens and more just to keep her occupied. Hope she likes it!

But how cute is this hex - love the cat!

I bought this button in Sydney a couple of years ago, knew it would be useful for something.

The stitching and bag pattern is from the Tis the Season I chose to do it in blue so it isn't really Christmassy.

And here is the finished bag.... Not a very good photo but currently going to work in the dark and getting home in the dark so not ideal for taking good photos.

And here is a little sneak peek at the next stitching project, started last night!

Gardening

I actually got out in the garden and did a lot bit of work. I mowed the lawns, trimmed all the Banksia roses and cut down the tree dahlia. Exhausted!

But then I wandered around and look what I found.

First off one of the beautiful hellebores MBD gave me for my birthday last year, absolutely stunning.

 Then excitement, I planted this ground cover grevillea two years ago and it has never flowered but now it is sooo close. Sorry for the blur but it won't be long and I will have beautiful flowers.

 This grevillea was tubestock less than a year ago, now look at the flowers - plant would have to be about 70cm high and the flower buds are huge. I think this one is Coconut Ice, you can see the flowers are going to be a gorgeous pink!

 These hellebores were the ones given to my mother when I was born....well their offspring anyway. I dug them up from Mum's and they flower every year for me. Just the old common one but they are really pretty.

Nice to see the garden doesn't hold my neglect against me and continues to give me beautiful flowers.



How lucky am I?

Just look at these beautiful fabrics! A friend arrived at the weekend with them for me as an early birthday present. Yes my birthday is quite a way off but as she will be away I get them now!

Just love the colours, now what can I make?? :)

Then yesterday I received the Spotlight catalogue in the mail along with a Scratchy and I WON! $15 to spend at Spotlight. I was in there in a flash and found these beautiful Japanese fabrics and I am sure they can team with the ones above.

And guess what - I have actually finished something.....well nearly, need buttons for inbetween each stitchery but hey if that doesn't happen no one will notice. I am very happy the way these have turned out so I am having Christmas in July at my place for a month or so then it will be time to put them up again for Christmas!

I've got mail

Found in the letter box yesterday, post haste from Sarah, this delightful book from Annie Downs.

I was so excited I had to start one of the projects straight away, but no peeking just yet! It needs to be a secret for a while.

Just in time

It was my brother's (MBBIM) birthday yesterday - I couldn't put these photos up because I posted the parcel and wasn't sure if he had received it!

I made him a little case to hold some of his compact flash cards and actually finished it on time to reach him for his birthday. I am sure it won't be big enough but I had fun making it and I love the material - bought when visiting him a couple of years ago at the Melbourne Craft Fair - you see there will always be a use for that little stash hidden away in the cupboard.

Inside there are individual pockets for 6 cards.

The whole thing is closed with a little velcro strap.

 I just love the card, I wish I could say I made it but I picked it up at a village fair in the Hunter Valley last time I was there. The material is just cut out any old way and stuck on the card but all the cards just look superb.

Happy birthday Richie!

Redwork

I seem to have been missing in action - two weeks since I posted! I can't believe it. I have been busy though. Two weeks of constantly sitting in the doctor's surgery waiting for my injection....now have a beautiful coloured stomach but NO MORE INJECTIONS!!! The clot is still there but hopefully will slowly disappear and the danger of any more forming seems to be over.

I have been enjoying the beautiful Tasmanian winter, something I was not looking forward to after being in Europe for a month of sun (well most of the time!).

The following photo was taken early one morning before I left for work, the sun was casting a beautiful light over the snow on Mt Wellington.

 These two photos were taken at night, I walked into my darkended kitchen and was blown away by the beautiful River Derwent and the lights from the bridge. These photos just don't do it justice!

I haven't just been concentrating on work and visiting the doctor! I did manage to get along to Miss T's 5th birthday one night last week. Fairies seemed to be the theme of the day!

 And I have also been busy with my sewing - no wonder I haven't been posting! All the pieces are cut out for the quilt - what a marathon. Took me almost a whole day last weekend. Why does it look so minor in the photo!

The time sitting in the surgery hasn't been entirely wasted though....I have taken my sewing along to keep me occupied.

It is amazing how much you can get done, they have also occupied most of my nights as well. The Christmas swag just needs to be made up now, all the stitching is done. Just have to bind and join them together.

Just to keep me busy I also traced out this cute Christmas bird stitchery from Gail Pan. I have really enjoyed using the one colour, so easy to take along and mindlessly sew.

P.S. has anyone seen my thimble, it was so comfortable I must have left it on my finger and it has fallen off!!! I miss it, luckily I had another one but it isn't any where near as comfortable....

You have to start somewhere....

or Life's ups and downs.

I wasn't sure what the title of this post should be. This week has been a bit of the ups and downs. I returned home from holiday and had scheduled a plumber to come and look at the flooding problem in my garage. I knew it came from the toilet and imagined the whole yard dug up and $$ flashed in front of my eyes (down) then all that needed to be done was for a new valve to be put in the cistern (definitely UP).

I then checked my credit card online only to find it had been fraudulently used (down) luckily only one payment had been charged to me but I still don't know what is happening with that. I am so careful with it too, I never use it online.

Next I discovered a blood clot in my leg and now have to have an injection each day for the next fortnight.

So the title really needed to focus on the good I think...

I started sewing again last night..looked through all my unfinished 'stuff' and found some stitcheries I had traced from patterns by Lesley Boost over at Sew Happy Me

one piece had already been finished:

one piece was half done - so now finished:

 And started on the third! Only 3 more to go!

I have also washed and ironed all the fabric for a new quilt...more on that much later I guess!

No more procrastinating off for my injection *sigh*

Home again

It is lovely to be home, fantastic holiday but home is always where the heart is.

My holiday seemed to go so quickly but what a lot I did and saw. I will try and get some photos up in the next week or so as I sort through them all, why did I take so many!!

Tasmania greeted me with the most perfect day on Monday - clear blue skies; the days in winter that you are so pleased to see as it makes it a bit easier to cope with the cold. The weather the last week in Prague prepared me a bit, not the best summer weather but I console myself with the thought that the shortest day has passed and the countdown to Spring is on!

The garden also greeted me with a cheerful face. Look at these beautiful tree dahlias against the blue sky, and to think I was tempted to dig them out! Now about 8' tall and a mass of flowers.

Another cheerful shrub blooming prolifically and positively shining in the sun. Can't remember the name (I struck it from a piece from my brother's garden) but it is a mass of flowers at the moment.

Must get my sewing out, almost forgotten how to after  a month away!

Scenes from Prague

Just a few of my favourite photos from Prague. Nearly go home time when I will be able to post some more. I have loved being here and have walked all over Prague ....... more than once

For Roseanne

My blogger friend. Roseanne, must have been very busy. I went to Cesky Krumlov yesterday and saw some scarves. I recognise those!!! Roseanne sure gets around!

Happy birthdays from Prague

Happy birthday today for Rob and Dave. Their birthday is over in Australia but still the 9th here so we are not tooo late. Did have a picture to add but looks like it is blocked at this hotel. Will try again later...
I thought the ticking of time very appropriate. This is the Astronomical Clock in Prague.

The Allies secret weapon

Born two days before D Day, we celebrated Marie's nnth birthday and what fun we had and with what fantastic company!
First of all dinner in the exclusive Erlebnis Restaurant with Catalin and his superb team along with some great friends we have made on this trip. What a night, birthday cake and all.

Well two cakes, if you count the marvellous towel creation on Marie's bed,

more of towel creations in later blog, just can't have you miss the photos of those special little items.
Then off we went with our trusty penguin torch (thanks May) to find the wine tasting that was somewhere in Durnstein, ably guided by Michelle and her map given to her by Peter, our tour manager {well we were having too much fun to leave the dining room)(we did find it AND the way back to the boat in time for departure to...........VIENNA, whooo hooo!)
We really had a fun night, best birthday!! thanks to everyone!!
This last composition is of a few more moments during dinner, including an impromptu dance by Catalin and Michelle.

As MBBIM would say FANTASTIC.