Goal #1 achieved.

After two and a half days of continuous rain, which at times was quite heavy, we finally have some sunshine today. Everything is still soaking wet though and I wasn't going to step on to either of our lawns to try getting pretty outdoorsy shots of my latest finish, so instead I tried a shot over the deck railing but that wasn't quite right.

So I persuaded my holder upper to step outside and perform. First he took a bow. LOL

Actually I think he has spied a bug!

Then we got on with some photos. Still not the best but you get the idea.

I just had time to get a quick shot of the quilting....

He wasn't sticking around for more. 

Sigh, it's getting harder to find a good holder upper.

And finally a look at the binding and my label on the back.

Sorry these are not the best photos. 

As the holder upper scuttled back indoors I lingered to get some garden shots.

Old man tree is starting to get his leaves and the snowball bush is in full bloom already.

I think judging by the scent, that this version of snowball bush is actually a lilac, it smells beautiful.

And finally, taken on a rainy day while I was quilting the wedding cake tree is also getting it's greenery.

I've done some knitting in the evenings, prepared the pattern for the wedding dress, did I mention that the bride has dropped two dress sizes?  She seems to have levelled off now so on my next run of days off I'll start cutting.

That is if I get my days off, I went in to work on two of my three days off this week, not in my usual role but as the diversional therapist! I read the news paper and we had discussion group in the mornings and in the afternoon we played housie/bingo and some board games.

That was something different.

October Goals.

In my last post I mentioned that I have a colleague wanting to purchase my Town Square quilt. That means I need to finish it for her.

It's been on the frame and is now quilted. I used a pantograph from Urban Elementz called Pacific.

It works well with the Maori designs on the fabrics used to make the top. The swirls and curves also soften all of the straight lines made by those squares.

I just need to trim and bind the quilt then it will be ready to go to it's new home.

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So, goals for October.

1) Finish the Town Square Quilt.

2) Make the brides dress.

3) Make the flower girls dress.

That's it. Anything else that I achieve this month will be a bonus.

Sorry Deana, no Chookshed Challenge for me this month.

All I have left there is to make some more Christmas ornaments anyway. I need two more and should easily get them done before Christmas. 

I'm off to cut satin and tulle. 

September Roundup.

 Here we are at the end of another month.  Goodness this year is flying by so fast.

September started of well in my world, with three unexpected projects.

The floral sample fabrics even became a fully completed quilt.

The other two are still sat in the to be quilted pile. 

I came down with a chest infection following a bit of a head cold. That gave me time to sit with my EPP.

So my Blue Lanterns grew. They have grown more since I took this photo. And more fabrics have been purchased for them too.

I worked a little on the wedding sampler.

It hasn't changed since I took this image.

I fulfilled my Chookshed challenge by quilting a scrappy quilt.

Hmm, no cute photo shoot of the completed quilting, just this one with the holder uppers feet in artificial lights. It has since been donated to refugee resettlement here in town. 

I also attended a rulerwork class at club

That was fun.

Debbie and I visited the Ashburton embroiderer's guild exhibition and did a little shopping too.

Which meant I had to start a knitting project. LOL

Blogger still wants to turn my phot upside down. 

Never mind this wee scarf has grown a little since I took this photo.

A colleague is leaving to start another job soon and wanted to buy one of my quilts before she leaves, because she will no longer have the opportunity to win one in the raffle.

I've been working on Town Square.

It's finally been quilted and I hope to get the binding on tomorrow or Wednesday. 

I'll try to share more details about it's journey soon.

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So how does all of that stack up against my goals for the month?

1) The Chookshed Challenge.  Completed.

2) RSC Kiwis.  I pulled them all out of the box and decided that I have just enough for a cute wee quilt. I opted not to make more, but will try to get some sashing on and complete a quilt top with them some time soon. 

3) Cross stitch a Christmas ornament. Nope!

4) 15 mins a day hand work. I think I missed a day or two, but I can live with that.

5) Work on a scrap project.  See the Chookshed challenge.

6) Try a new recipe.  Oh yes, more than one. I really need to do a post about food soon. 

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I also measured the bride again yesterday. Her weight loss seems to have levelled off. I have 4 weeks to make the dress. 

EEK!

Four weeks till the wedding.

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And that was my September.

How did yours go?

Shopping and some other stuff.

In my last post I promised to let you have a look at my shopping from my impromptu day out with Debbie. And here it is.

I've been thinking and researching a lot about wool felt applique and finally got around to buying a book which I found at Annie's Country Quilts store. 

I might have a dabble.

Debbie and I also visited Ashford Mill outlet shop as Debbie wanted some yarn for a baby sweater. Some of the completed projects caught my eye and I found myself picking out a quick project.

Hmmm, blogger has turned it upside down!  Never mind, you get the picture.

And just in case you need to know....

It's opal funny fruits sock yarn. The project has progressed a bit since I took this photo, but no in a huge way. LOL

About a week ago I blogged about quilting this lovely and promised a photo shoot when the weather was cooperating. So here you are, pictures of a quilt in a cherry tree.

And hanging on the deck rail.

A colleague at work asked if she could purchase one of my quilts.  Of course, which one would you like. 

Town Square was not yet quilted so I had to find backing for it.

Then get it loaded on to the frame. You can't really see it here but the four fabrics used are a Maori design.

Urban elements Pacific design seemed like the right pantograph to use.

I've done a few rows today, in between building some more greenhouse space and having a tidy up in the garden. We couldn't find the perfect size greenhouse for the space we wanted to use and ended up with two smaller structures back to back.

Here is a better view.

And you can see my cauliflower in the next bed.

It's nearly the end of the month and time to think about what I need to achieve next month.

More about that next time.

Embroiderers guild exhibition.

As I mentioned in my previous post, Debbie and I visited the Ashburton Embroiderers Guild exhibition  on Thursday last week. Oh my goodness what a talented group of ladies.

I did take note of numbers and names but was told that many of the members did not want their details on social media so I won't add them. Just enjoy this lovely collection. 

Many of the pieces were under glass but I did my best. These blackwork books were stunning.

This beautiful cushion was so much brighter and more beautiful in real life. 

This piece was 3D and amazing.

So much detail. I love the shaggy dog.

The badges were very pretty and those wee plant pots were covered in French knots.

There were some lovely examples of cross stitch.

I think we can all relate to the next one. LOL

Not all of the pieces were small.

I saw two quilts but only snapped this one.

This was my viewers choice piece. I just love the dragonfly.

These stumpwork trees were so tiny, the whole this was only about 6 inches square.

I tried to capture the 3D

Another 3D piece was this pretty Lyre bird

It was difficult to capture but his tail feathers stood out from the fabric.

Like the blue cushion, this Poppy was much better in real life, it glowed under the lights.

Love this tiny rendition of Hampton court.

There were a few project bags. Sorry it's upside down, no matter what I do Blogger turns it this way.

There were lots of small pieces, too many to photograph.

An amazing white work owl.

And a very colourful owl.

He was amazing, with lots of different stitches.

The Presidents Challenge.

So many different ideas.

Loved this lady dressed in French knots.

And this one took me straight to Narnia, I expected Mr. Tumnus to walk by any moment.

The mandalas caught my eye too.

This little scissor keeper is so cute.

Speaking of scissors.

This one was very nearly declared as my favourite. I have always loved Monet's Waterlillies.

It was a tiny piece only about 2 inches by 1.5.

Beautifully executed.

There were many, many more pieces, these stood out for me.

You should be able to click on the images for a closer look. It is definitely worth it. 

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Today has been a busy day in the garden, time to sit and sew I think.