More secrets...

Sew, I'm busy with a secret project.

But here is a peep at the pretty colours.

And just to prove I'm not all about secrets, here is an update on my hexies.

It's grown since I took this picture. LOL

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I'm working this weekend and spending time with Tony before he goes away on a course.

 

Progress is slow.

So I'm settling into my new shifts at work. Not really a huge change for me. I start two hours earlier and finish one hour later, I often used to cover this shift for a colleague, so not a huge change really.  

I have also signed up to do some study to add another qualification to my list. And it will earn me a pay rise. 

A colleague had an app on her phone and was taking pictures for a project, look, she has cartooned me.

It's a very rare day that I see a photo of me that I like, the original of this one was ok, and the result is even better. Liza tells me there will be a whole wall of cartoon staff members and some of the residents too.

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Thanks to a stinker of a headache last week I didn't get as much done as I had hoped. My Christmas ornament did make some great progress on Saturday and I hope to get back to it later this morning.

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And now the stuff I can show.

Look my Batik hexies are growing.

I am very much enjoying this project and sometimes I intend to pick up my ornament but find myself holding this instead. LOL

Maybe I should move it away out of the room until I have completed  my ornament. LOL

Perhaps I'll add these two flowers on first.

The colours don't look bright enough in these pictures. It's a bit of a grey day here and not really very good for photos.

The hexies were pictured by the window, but my crochet blanket was spread out under the lights and looks a bit closer to it's real colours.

I'm down to the final balls of yarn now. One last ball of variegated greens then I'll add a solid blue border and edge treatment. Being 100% wool, it has kept me very cosy while I was working on it.

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My final little piece of show and tell today is the completed background for an applique project.

The pattern for this piece calls for freezer paper, lots of freezer paper, which is ironed onto the background fabrics, before you cut and sew them. Drawing the shapes onto the freezer paper and using it as a template to cut all those bias edges and then stabilising them as I sewed them together made things very easy. 

The applique will not be as fast or easy. There are lots of wriggly edges.

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But first I'm off to work on my Ornament. 

 

I'm Biased

Oh my goodness, I had fun today cutting all these bias edges.

What you see here is actually the back of all the pieces, as the front is covered in freezer paper pieces.

The freezer paper certainly made it a lot easier to cut all those bias edges.

The paper also made it nice and easy to sew those edges together too.

Here you see the first two columns all sewn together.

(That grey splodge in the white is just a water mark and is gone now).

I had fun playing with this today and hope to get the other half put together tomorrow.

These beautiful bias pieces will be the back ground for some applique. 

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LOL As you can see, I didn't yet get around to quilting my Red Berries quilt, it makes a good design wall to pin things to.

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My hexie projects are progressing, I'll post pics of those soon. 

 

Still Hexed

My two days off were wonderful. I did minimal chores, went out to lunch with Tony and sewed!

I have finished May's Christmas ornament and will make a start on June today. Yay! I feel like I'm all caught up.

It's not all been about ornies though. I went along to the local Patchwork and Quilting club on Wednesday evening. It was a very quiet evening, with lots of members choosing to stay away for various reasons. I had been invited by a friend Angela. She said to bring along a project. So I opted to take along some hexies.

The lady sat next to me had never seen EPP before and asked what I was doing, so I put on a quick demonstration showing how to glue baste the pieces and made the wee red shape you see here. 

Angela joked that at the speed I work, it might be my show and tell next month! LOL

I'm not that fast and besides, this will be a long term project.

They are smaller than the batik hexies I showed last week, and they are to be a scrap project. No pretty flower garden design, just random scraps all sewn together.

I may even hop back onto the RSC wagon.

Or maybe not.....

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Another project that is progressing quietly in the background is my latest crochet creation.

I pick it up and try to work at least 15 minutes a day. 

I'll spread it all out on the floor soon and take a good picture, but for now here is one I snapped quickly after I put it down at bed time last night.

All of the yarns in this one are variegated.

It was supposed to be an exercise in just using what I had.

But I ended up buying more.

Ooops!

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Well that is my news.

Now I'm off to prepare for my next ornie. I have some cutting to do and I'll need to go shopping for thread as I am running low. 

 

Not One.....

...But two new books.

So last week I admitted that I had allowed the squirrel to take me shopping.

The website said order now for delivery in 3 - 6 weeks.

My new book arrived two days later!

I sat down and read it cover to cover on Saturday, between my shifts.

Then had a snooze before going back to work. LOL

I'm very excited to have a go at a Lucy quilt and have just ordered a few more essentials.

My second new book, is new to me, but previously loved.

We have a new resident at work who is delighted to discover that many of the staff are 'crafty' and especially so to discover that I like to do hand work. When she returned to her home with her daughter to sort things out and prepare the house for sale, she tried to give me mountains of stuff. It didn't feel right taking the mountain, but I did accept this book.

It makes very interesting reading too, I made a start on it on Sunday, between my shifts, reading the first chapter before falling asleep with it still open in my lap.

Tony marked my page and put it away for me. LOL

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As well as some reading I did make time to pick up a needle and finally completed Aprils Christmas Ornament. Yay!

Then got right on and started on May!

So although I was productive, I'm sorry but I'm not going to share just yet. 

I'll probably work some more on my ornament before work today.

Then I have two days off! I might venture into my room and see what calls the loudest. 

I have a few items that need quilting and more than a few things lying in boxes awaiting their turn.

 

Hey Look! A Squirrel.

But First, a finish.

In my last post I said that all of my Summer Berries blocks were complete and I was ready to spread them out on the floor. Well Monday was their day. My furry friend was fast asleep in another room, but somehow got wind of the goings on and arrived to help.

Or maybe just to inspect, as she did not disturb any of the pieces, merely sat very close to, or on top of them. LOL

It didn't take me long to arrange them and in no time I was happily sewing rows.

By the time I had to head off to work I had all of the rows made and the first four had been sewn together!

So on Tuesday it really did not take me very long at all to finish putting the final four rows on.

Tada!!

Summer Berries by Marg Lowe is a completed top.

I also worked on my Christmas Ornament on Tuesday, it's getting closer to a finish.

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And now, the squirrel!

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After work on Tuesday I was looking about on Pinterest, not for anything in particular, just something to help me wind down and relax after work.

A few Hexie projects popped up on my feed and a couple of tutorials, which I watched.

When I woke up on Wednesday morning one of the first things I did was message Debbie, to see what she was up to. Did she fancy a quick shopping trip in town?

Yes, she did as she had a new knitting pattern and wanted yarn. 

2 hours later we were on our way.

No big road trip, just a quick visit to a shop in town.

First I found backing fabric for two recently completed tops and Debbie found two pretty yarns to make baby clothing for a friend.

Then we went into the Timaru sewing centre where I followed the squirrel and purchased some pre cut papers for English Paper Piecing!

I remember trying many years ago, (I may even have blogged it). I was not happy with my results using hand cut and stitch basted papers. I chucked it all into a box and forgot about it. I have a vague recollection of finding it one day and throwing it out!

Not this time.

As soon as I got home I set about finding just the right fabrics.

I've had some batik charm squares lying around for a few years, they will do.

And off I went. I had also purchased a glue pen and set about glue basting my charms onto the hexie papers.

A totally different experience this time.

I loved it sew much I couldn't put them down.

I set off in such a hurry that I didn't have a pattern in mind, just sewed hexie flowers, four of them.

I've been back on Pinterest and come up with a couple of ideas, once I settle on something I'll let you know. 

Meanwhile, that squirrel is still bouncing around all over the place.

He may have taken me on an internet shopping trip, where a book and some more templates may have fallen into my cart.  They could take up to six weeks to arrive, I'll share when they do.

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In other news..

My job is going to change slightly.

I'll be working more hours. And my alternate weekend will swap to the alternate weekend, if that makes sense. LOL

Oh and no more split shifts. YAY!

But first I get to work two alternate weekends in a row the first of which is two days of split shifts.

if I'm quiet next week, it's because I'm tired. 

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Right it's time for a few chores, then I get to play with fabrics before work.