Getting there.

Where's there? The other side of that viral infection. I really do feel much better today. Almost bright in fact! So even though I've had the better part f a week off work, I have very little to show.

I really didn't feel up to doing anything very much, but plodded on here and there.

I put together the squares for my final cushion front and then went a couple of rounds of (UK) double crochet and a couple of rounds of triple. I have to say, of the four, this is my least favourite. 

 You know when you get stuff free with magazines? Well my knitting magazine keeps sending me yarn and mostly it's stuff I just won't use. I was saving it to donate to someone who would knit squares for the local doggy home, then decided I could use it after all. Here we have a practice piece I started a couple of weeks ago. 

 A cute lil crochet bag. It gave me that mindless repetitive pattern I needed to keep my hands busy without too much brain power while I was unwell.

I'm not sure what I'll do with it. It really isn't me. Not in these colours anyway.

Right I'm off to sit and knit.

Less is more.

Or is it? Although this is now a finished quilt with the binding on and closed I feel that it does need something more. I'm just not sure what. More daisies?

The back is pretty boring, with not much to show, except those three flowers and a tiny bit of straight line stitching. It's a little on the billowy side too and I'm afraid to do too much in case I end up making it look awful with a bunch of creases and rumples. What do you think?

What ever I decide, I won't be doing it today. I've got me a temperature and I ache all over. I'm going to curl up on the sofa under a cosy quilt and hibernate for a day or three.
*
But before I go, meet my Mum's new fur baby. Ailsa is 9 weeks old.

Free Motion Quilting......

 Is not my strong point, but today I had another go.

 Lets start at the beginning. 

Remember I said I had stitched the remaining strips of Butterfly Fling directly onto my quilt wadding? Well I didn't have the backing in place, I was just working with the batting. I think that's what has been causing me problems. I've tried a couple of times to quilt this one using the Janome, but I don't have the right tools to free motion quilt with it, so I stuck to straight line quilting, even using the walking foot I had major issues with puckering and creasing!!! So today I reacquainted myself with an old friend. I do have the right tools to do a little free motion using my old sewing machine.

I cut out some raw edge pieces and it was 'High Ho Silver and away'. I quilted through all the layers and now my latest creation has Daises. I'm tickled pink. :-)

Though not yet finished properly, even the back looks OK.

I used left over strips for the binding, which is already attached. I plan to spend the afternoon finishing my quilting threads and closing the binding.

These last few remnants went into the scrap box.

Before leaving my playroom I pulled my Charming stars off the quilt rack, it was in 5 bits, 4 strips and a half top! It took only moments to give the parts a quick press and put them together.

This is a Moda Bake Shop pattern. There are two borders to add. Maybe I'll play with that next time.

Right, I'm off to find food. Then I get to relax and play some more.

Works in planning and progress.

Not much to report here. The latest and final incarnation of the butterfly fling quilt is still lying where I dumped it, after I un quilted it last week. I will get back to it, I'm just waiting for inspiration. Has anyone seen it? Can you send it this way please. 

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My crochet is moving on slowly. I'm still enjoying it and do a little at every opportunity.

 I picked up a knitting magazine a few weeks ago, it had a lovely sweater pattern in it, I hummed and hawed about making one for me....

Then my subscribed knitting magazine arrived in the mail, it too had a lovely sweater pattern. I hummed and hawed some more. They are both really nice patterns and call for the same yarn in similar amounts. So my clicky finger got busy, I found this lovely yarn on SALE!! :-) 

 The light is not being kind today, no matter where I go with my camera the flash goes off. Even right in the big window! I tried very hard to get you a good image of the pretty variegated yarn. This is the best of a bad lot. Anyway, on with the decision. I couldn't decide which sweater I wanted to make, so I asked my Hunney what he thought.

"Nah! Don't like either of 'em love!"

 I'll keep you posted.

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I had a dig about in my fabric stash last week while I was looking for backing fabric for the un quilted quilt, I came across these black, white and grey charms. Three packs. 

 There is everything here,all manner of prints, from florals to hearts to chefs check.

I plan to add just a small touch of red.

I have no idea what I'll do today. I do have some me time programmed in before I go to work though. But first I have to do some of the domestic stuff if I want to maintain my Goddess status.

Can't be bothered.

Do you have days like that? Days when you just can't be bothered?

Today is one of those days. I had so much planned for my morning off, I was going to have another go a quilting this quilt and getting the binding onto it, not to mention maybe doing a little housework, but I really can't be bothered. Instead I've finished my third crochet cushion cover.

 And once I'm done here I'm off to play with more crochet. This will be the fourth cushion cover. Some pretty Granny squares. I had fun making a start last night.

Rippling

As planned I spent yesterday morning quilting away on my latest creation, but things didn't go so well!! I spent the afternoon un quilting it. So I spent the evening rippling.

Still Rollin'.

I'm still playing about with the 'Butterfly Fling' jelly roll. Though I'm happy to see it's almost gone now. I'm all flung out!

As a quick way of using up the remaining slices I sewed the pieced strips directly onto some cotton batting. Another lilac border and hey presto, a quilt as I go top!

I don't have enough of the lilac to make the back, so I auditioned this pretty pink for the back, but it's just not quite right.

 Then I had a light bulb moment. I am using up the very last scraps of the jelly roll and the off cuts of the lilac to make a pieced back. More about that next time.

*

Full house for Roast Lamb dinner this evening. I'm off to cook.

I think I'm on a roll!

After my friend had visited yesterday I shot up the stair to my play room. I quickly put away all my knitting books and magazines, then looked about for something to do, still on a high from the previous days very fast finish! I had been showing Elaine some of my quilts while she was visiting and also my pile of project boxes. Hmmm, one of them housed several completed blocks, and I knew I had some applique hiding away in a drawer. Out it all came! A bit of playing about on the floor and a couple of extra yellow blocks and in no time I was putting together rows and then a whole top was born. I even got it layered and quilted before my hunney came home.

The border and the back are made from rescued bed sheet. Perfect. I quilted it very simply again, just working in straight lines echoing the seams.

Another very quick finish, A pretty little crib size quilt, made mostly with a Moda Jelly Roll called Butterfly Fling.

 I started out in 2009 with two Jelly rolls. I've made two crib quilts and still have plenty of slices of jelly roll left. I was planning another Fling with this fabric while I closed the binding, but I also want to try something else. Watch this space.

*

DS Jiffy came for his dinner last night and took away his blue quilt. He loves it.

I sewed and sewed and sewed.

And I quilted too!!

Let me tell you all about it. As soon as I had finished here yesterday I scooted up to my play room all happy with the world. I pulled out the box of fabric pieces I had prepared. Lots of little strips all 6 inches wide neatly pressed and ready to be sewn on to some foundations. The foundations are made up from the linings out of all those curtain samples I was given .......way back. As I sewed, I admired all my fabrics and remembered their history. 

Aah, this red was off Joe's Dragon quilt.

Pretty pink.

Tracey sent me this purple.

I love these flowers.

Hehe, that came in a dodgy bundle, nearly gone now.

Pretty flowers, left overs from a swap.

I love this pink.

I always did love this paisley, but could never find a use for it, such a pretty pink.

I used these flowers to make my sister a make up bag.

Butterflies! I covered my work diary with these.

Fluffy bunnies, his brother was so cross about those.

This one had 'Income Tax Colours' in the selvedge. I used it to line big bro's laundry basket, I thought he'd get a kick out of throwing his smalls at the tax man! LOL

The more I worked on it, the more I began to think that this just isn't the right quilt for my boy!! Far too many flowers and fluffy creatures. I kept on going until all the foundations were filled up, which also turned out to be lunch time. :-)

 I thought about it over a bite to eat and decided to return to plan A, which I abandoned some time ago as things were just not going according to plan.

You do not get to see a picture of that! Anyway, I dug out the box and had a look through it. A collection of rescued fabrics, all cut from clothing and all different weights but all blue, or blueish. I bought a pack when I was at the Festival of Quilts last year. I intended all along to make something for Jiffy, but as I said, plan A didn't work. I pulled out my trusty ripper and away I ripped. It didn't take long, I hadn't gotten far. 

I had a rummage about in my own drawer of rescued fabrics and added a few pieces to the pile. Then I sewed and sewed and sewed again. By the time my Hunney came home for his dinner I had finished. It was passed the flimsy stage and was all layered and pinned and waiting to be quilted. I got to put the walking foot onto my Janome for the first time. 

Fantastic.

What a breeze. :-)

I had the whole quilt quilted and the binding on in just over 90 minutes. Just simple straight lines which echo the long seams.Then I closed the binding by hand in front of the TV with my Hunney.

For the back I have used a burgundy coloured bed sheet, which mother acquired for me. There was even enough to use the same fabric to bind. 

Ta, Dah! Plan C.

I have a friend visiting today. She coming to dig through my knitting patterns. 

I have a crochet plan for this afternoon, but it should take only minutes to do, even for a novice like me.

Then I have another date with Jenny Janome.

Ripples

Still busy with the crochet. Still loving it too. Though I have to admit to some ripping as well as rippling!!

After a long visit to Ravelry, (Have you ever tried getting in and out of that place quickly?) I had a go at a nice looking pattern, it was more like peaks and valleys than ripples. (The top one of my two samples). I really wasn't happy with it, so back to Ravelry I went and came up with a link to the second one.

Aaah, this is better. Gentle ripples, like the Yorkshire hills and dales.  I'm enjoying this one and see a new cushion front in my future. :-)

No rippling today though. I plan to spend the day with my sewing machine. Last Friday, yes a whole week ago!! I spent an age digging through my scraps box. Which really is a scrap box, no system of nicely cut squares and strips here, just a box of left overs all thrown in! So after a good rummage I had a pile of likely looking fabrics, which I pressed and cut. Now I have a pile of six inch strips and some foundation fabrics. The plan for today is to sew, sew, sew. But first I have to master the needle threader on my shiny new Janome, cause I can't see the damn hole!!

Really Finished

My first two real finishes of 2012! I finally managed to turn my crochet squares into cushion fronts.

Now to make two more!! I have two sofas, that means 4 cushions.

I'm off to lurk in Ravelry, to see if I can find another easy pattern.

Catching up.

Here is one of those Christmas gifts I forgot to take a picture of. My DD Kaiy asked for a Kindle for Christmas, of course I couldn't not make a cover for it.

Thank you to everyone who 'ouched' over my finger. It's healing well. It was a relief to get the hospital dressing off, that made life difficult at work as even large size gloves were a tad on the tight side over a dressing.Enough of that! Today is play day. DS1 needs to be wrapped in some love. He's been asking for a new quilt for a while, time I did something. Lots of ideas floating about in my head, not sure what I'll do. Let's see where the scrap box takes me.

The Damage. Don't look if you're squeamish!!

I changed the dressing on my finger today. Well this is actually the second time.

I took a good chunk of finger off and a fair bit of nail too!

I just might risk getting it wet tomorrow, but will keep it covered for a few more days, especially at work.

*

Hoping to get up into my play room tomorrow. (Note to self..... keep your fingers tucked in when using the roller blade and sewing machine!)

Almost Finishes For January.

As you may have guessed, the last couple of weeks have been about crochet in this house. Especially over the weekend, well I can still crochet with my index finger all bandaged up and stuck up in the air. Typing is interesting though! LOL 

So my two almost finishes are a couple of cushion fronts. I plan to recycle a couple of old woollen sweaters to  finish them off.

 This stripe one really is a square, it just doesn't look it here for some reason.

The colour scheme was inspired by my socks!! Yes, socks. I had pink and sand in my stash and when I was wondering which way to go my eyes fell on my feet wearing said socks. It's true what they say about inspiration.

I also have another almost finished project. I came across a baby cardigan which had become a UFO. I got that to the point where the only thing that remains to be done is to find and attach buttons and finish attaching the collar.

So there you have it. Three almost finishes for January, including a UFO.

I make no promises for February!