Babies and Birthdays

Two good friends had birthdays this month so I got busy and made some gifts. They both are crafters, one a knitter and the other a quilter.

The knitting needle roll and ditty bag are free patterns from Martingale - Knitter's Trio by Karen Costello Soltya

Knitting needle roll

Individual pockets for the knitting needles - not a good colour here but wanted to show the needles in situ

Matching ditty bag (I had no idea what a ditty bag was but an English friend assured me it is a bag to store bits and pieces)

 The sewing bag is also from a free tutorial by Melissa Le Ray - Zipped Sewing Travel Case. This was such an easy pattern to make and the instructions were the best, I need to make one for myself now!

Inside, places for your threads and a plastic zipped pocket.

More pockets for odds and ends

The squares are Glamping designed by MaryJane Butters of MaryJane’s Farm for Moda

Then there were babies to welcome!

My great-great nephew Jason received this quilt. Kissing Fish by Lee Heinrich www.freshlypieced.com 

Receiving blanket from a tutorial by Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Company

So easy to make!

Bib is from a free pattern by Rachel Measham-Pywell for Sew Mama Sew.

So easy to make I had to do more!

Quilt made for a friend's grandson, William. I adapted this from a free pattern Rooftops by Amy Sinibaldi of Nana Company. Love the pirates!

This is basket is so handy! It is a free tutorial from Kelby Sews (Hearts and Bees) I filled this with nappies with matching pooh bear on them! Very handy basket for anything really.

FNSI

I haven't done this for a while so thought I would sign up with Wendy over at Sugarlane Designs for the FNSI. I had 3 quilts I needed to finish off with binding.

I started early by cutting out the binding for all the quilts.

Kaffe Fasset Aboriginal dots for the binding of my Kaffe Fasset quilt

All the binding cut and ready to go, then I needed to choose which quilt to start on.

3 quilts, Thimble blossoms' Spools, Emily Ann's Kloset's Candy Hearts and Kaffe Fasset's Flower Garden Quilt

About time to stop and offer my quilty friends some nibbles and a wee drop

There really is something in the bowl, just not much left!

OK get on with it, get some of the binding on so I can sit and relax.

Spools is the chosen one

Am I procrastinating....need a coffee!

Now with the great part, I love binding ......

Oops is this a bit rude, watching TV when quilting with friends but I can't miss Miss Fisher!

Thanks for organising a great night, I'm off to bed now so hop over and see what everyone else has been doing!

Flashback

Christina Henri is the artist in residence at the Cascades Female Factory in Hobart. She has inspired people all around the world to make a bonnet for each convict woman transported to Australia. A friend gave me a pattern and a bio about a convict woman Ann Brook who was transported to Australia in 1841 on the Navarino. On Mother's Day this year there was a gathering of bonnets on the Hobart docks.

The bonnet I made showing Ann's name.

The other side with the name of the ship Ann was transported on.

Sue and Brian

Showing our bonnets - unfortunately the bonnet Sue made had been handed in quite a while ago so she had a very ordinary loan bonnet. Hers was unbelievable!

Lord Mayor of Hobart opening the 'live' art

A drone used to capture images of the 'installation'

Some of the crowd although not as many as they hoped. Too many other events on in Hobart on this day.

Nothing can stop me!

I recently had a little accident and broke my arm. I decided that it wouldn't stop me sewing so as I couldn't do much else (house work, drive etc) I had a lovely time just sewing. Here are a few photos of what I got up to while "incapacitated".

Luckily I am left handed so could hold the ruler with my right arm. My hand didn't work very well although it was the radial head near the elbow that I broke so had to rest the whole arm on the ruler. This is after the operation to insert pins.

The upside is that my daughter came home to look after me and I was able to spend some family time with my son and daughter. This doesn't happen very often!

These are from the Missouri Star Quilt Company tutorial for self-binding receiving blanket. With 2 new babies expected this was an easy project for me.

Bibs were made from left over fabric.

One of the quilts, now finished about about to do the binding

This one is so colourful, love the Amy Butler fabrics

First and only flannelette quilt I will ever make!

Used up all the flannelette for the back!

This is the quilt I made for my great great nephew, all finished now but I can't find a finish photo. Whew can't believe I am old enough to have a great great nephew!

Hmmmm I think my sewing machine was a bit due for a clean!

In the country

I've spent a bit of time down at Middleton this week.
The weather has been pretty kind to me and not too cold, it was good to spend time with family.
One day we all went to Pepperberries for lunch, it is a great place to spend time with family and I can recommend the Sculpture trail, a bit steep but well worth spending an hour or so wandering around it. Food was yummm.

Warning this may be photo overload!

One of the peacocks and a peahen at my daughter and son-in-law's place

If you look carefully you can see the naughty scarlet robin who loves to look at himself in my side mirror, as you can imagine he leaves me messages of love down the car door!

Can't believe how this rhodo keeps on flowering.

My lunch at Pepperberries

Telephone box to call god, hold the line until one is available

Loved this on the sculpture trail

Spent some time just sitting watching a Australasian grebe on "Cinderella"

If you really look carefully you can see the grebe, very shy and spends most of his/her time underwater

So beautiful and sunny

The reflections!