Back into it

Please excuse my MIA status lately – we have had no internet since we left the old house 3 weeks ago.

We’re all moved in now, and can you believe I have actually been sewing! I had an exam to do on the Thursday before Easter which meant my first week at the new house was spent catching up on missed lectures and studying, but the Easter holidays gave me a chance to get the boxes in my sewing room emptied (we used the sewing room as the room to put everything when we moved and then as things got unpacked they were moved to their new homes so that we didn’t get overwhelmed by all the boxes). Once I begun, I was on a mission and had DH move my sewing desk in off the trailer on Good Friday night (despite it being near 11pm!). I set it all up again and was sewing by Saturday night, completing a strip pieced baby quilt top I started when I should have been packing in the final week at the old house (I only did a couple of blocks then but it was procrastination all the same!).

Then, once that was done I started a new quilt top, this time a gift for my sister (who’s birthday was on Friday a week ago... and the quilt still isn't finished!) using the moda day dreams charm squares that I knew would be perfect for her the moment I saw them. Just a simple disappearing nine patch, but I looked like I was going to run out of squares so added a couple of aqua ones in from my stash and then some white ones ready for either embroidery or appliqué. It turns out I ended up changing my configuration anyway to make it a square quilt so would have had enough charm squares, (with the two aqua ones added into the mix) but I guess it’s better this way as there are now white squares incorporated into the body of the quilt not just the border so they are not just looking like an after thought. But now it has been sitting with me wondering what to do with the blank squares...

These two, plus my pinwheel baby quilt top, Austy’s quilt top and my own D9P from the EB quilters charm square swap brings the tally of quilt tops up to FIVE! Something tells me I had better overcome my fear of the actual quilting and get them finished… especially since my sister’s is now overdue (not that she minds as she still hasn’t given me the birthday gift she promised me back in January.) I have armed myself with a machine quilting book, Emma’s wadding scraps and some calico to try my skills at a few exercises. I reeeeeeeeally wish I could meander and stipple, but I think I’d be happy with just using my darning foot for the first time at the moment. It’s like a big scary monster to me!

Austy also needed a new pair of PJ’s so as a reward for getting two assignments done last week I let myself sew, whipping up these snugly cute things. The fabric was just too cute to pass up. I wanted to do a dinosaur machine embroidery on the front but needed the net on to find a design so it has had to wait as the net only got connected (along with our phone) on Friday.

On the knitting front not a lot has been going on there as we have just come out of a heat wave (thank goodness the new house has a pool!) but it’s suddenly getting cool now so it will certainly come out of hiding. I have a few WIPs to finish off, and then DH’s Aunty popped over to give me some old patterns and fabric she had. In the pile was this booklet and I fell in love with the outfit on the front! That’s on the to do list now – too cute!

And finally, I have signed up for the flickr doll quilt swap! Not that I actually need a doll quilt, but I love making that size quilt. Austy still loves his little teddy quilt and it now adorns his dark wood toy chest with all his soft toys sitting around it. But this time I might get something to hang in my new sewing room to make it more like a crafty room rather than a bedroom with a sewing desk shoved in the corner. I have a plan and some beautiful FQ's and look forward to starting. My recipient still hasn't posted her preferrences so I'm just going to do it and cling to hope that she loves it. Helen and a few other EB Quilters are in on the fun with me!