Surely I have Enough Now

My fingers are in no danger of burning. I'm not entirely sure about the carry-on around the eyes, but the other half likes it and I like him to be happy. If I had a strong opinion I'd stick to it, but I don't. The backing fabric was a stained scrap that I found somewhere and kept even though it was grubby and a bit icky. It's perfect and there's none left. I like using up my bits.

Mum Gave Me This

It's a gen-u-ine doiley press. Pyrographed beautifully. She has another and she almost gave them both to me... The other was made by my Grandma and covered with the fabric from Mum's first strapless dress. Renegged at the last minute! I'll wrestle it from her at a later date.

I enjoyed ironing my doileys, many also given by Mum and made by her and Grandma. Special!

My First Facewasher

It turned out a bit skewed. The cables pull it in and I've pressed it to make it this square... AND I more or less followed a pattern too. But there it is, my first ever washcloth as they call it over there. Facewasher. I used a mixture of pink fine cotton with some scrap of green cotton, then with string and then with the new AMAZING bamboo/cotton mix in the lime like green.

That bamboo is incredible! Has anyone made anything with it and washed it and washed it to see how it wears? I want to make everything out of it from now on in.

10 out of 10.

P.S. Next Day: The cables hurt your face!! It's only any use in the bath!

Apron In Situ

School holidays. I took a day off today to have the babies up... I'm so tired! You should hear this little one's rendition of (the word) crocodile! It's too funny. Digga-digga-digga-digga-digga-digga-digga-digga-digga-digga-dar.

'The Nice Girls'

Last ones. No really, I mean it this time... except... the eyes are too big and the proportions are wrong so I might have to do them again?? Not sure.

The top one is for my sick Mum. She's such a tone on tone lover.

Home.

Home is where the heart is.

It's raining outside and we are forced to have a day inside, painting/drawing.

New Kids In The Kitchen

Getting so there's no room to pin up the bills.

Looks like the new kids are worried about something?

Elephant Pot Holder Is Finished!!

I kept taking it out today and looking at it! I'm in love! This one is thanks to doublewinky, and particularly her bric-a-brac elephant (which I have copied below). That's where the drawing comes from, or is of. (I didn't put the tusks in because it was too complicating (busy).

You must look a t Bubbles too!

This was gonna be the last pot holder... then I thought of another and today I realised there is yet another!

P.S. Hope you don't mind me publishing your pic dubbs???

P.P.S. The backing and binding is repro-feedsack fabric, and just as beautiful as the real thing. I bought it from Loch ages and ages ago when I had no known purpose for it...

Chaise Coasters

I Love my big plastic tub of pure wool, thick felt! Where can you buy it in Melbourne?? Someone said up near the Vic Market somewhere, but where?

I made two of these for the chaise because we changed the room around and stole the rug it was on for somewhere else. Now Ross thinks everything should have some.

The Funnest Morning

Preparing for the week's commuting. I hate the last Potholder I did, but this one is just the style I like best. Plaids and old woollen fabrics with less clean-edged felt. I'm not sure if that's the right yellow, but maybe...? It looks different when the stitching frames the individual pieces and when the binding is on.

There's one more left in me. Afer thais that is, then it's back to the list (doona covers and sheets and finish the red quilt). It's been a nice little break but I think I've been pushing things a bit too much overall..

Hmmm...? Maybe it's time to do some drawing?

The Wife Swapper

I had only these colours at work yesterday so he ended up being a red-head. He reminds me of Ricky-Bobby's (shake and bake!) mate out of Telladega Nights... the Will Ferell movie (excuse all spelling mistakes). It's not my favourite and is getting away from the mood I'm looking for and may end up as a Chrissy present for the kids??

I've cut out the elaphant and am liking it a lot right now, all tartans and all wool, as opposed to felt. Yummy!
But, such as it is... here is a new pattern. It'll look different when the binding is on too... and the lips etc., which you sew through a couple of layers to get a quilted, moulded look.
Got the day off today, Whoo Hoo!

P.S. It'll be 17cm wide.

Lifesaver

We've been watching Bondi Rescue. Gotta love that show... What you can't see here (because I scanned it rather than took a photo) is that his zinc cream is fluro pink.

The backing/binding fabric is cut from a genuine, almost 100 year oldAmerican depression feed sack. I bought them years ago for a great deal of money (I'd earned it taking a weekend workshop in Wagga's and the Waverly Patchwork Guild pay well so it was a good thing).
I think this little guy is in for a chance with the ladies. You'll find the pattern here.

Yay! I Got To Do Something Non-Curtainish!

I cut it out late last night, when I should have been in bed, then stitched it down on the train going to work. Quick and easy! I have another ready to go (it's drawn out as a pattern from this drawing). Later when the kiddies have gone home. My darling one is going to put up some hooks (hmmm, s'pose I could manage that myself) so we can hang a few decoratively displayed (yet handy for everyday use).

Because I haven't boiled the woollen blanketing and therefore not shrunk it (although it's an old blanket and probably won't be a bother)... so I did a row of machine stitching around the cut out line, set to Buttonhole length but a straight stitch. You can't see it but it will stop the fabric fraying even after its 25th wash. Inside is some of that silver ironing-board fabric, so we won't burn our little pinkies.

Have a look at the Funky Potholders new group, if you're interested... the pattern is there too.

New Lamby La!

Lovely! I bought it for myself. One needs to surround one's birthday with gifts. And other lamb was lonely (other lambs were).

Hard To See How Pretty It Really Looks, But...

They need to settle and so do I. My darling honey-blossoms dear daughter's just popped in... it's Anna's birthday... and we all ended up having a cup of tea in the new sewing room. It just happened that way. So lovely to be in there! And I've just pulled out the Pot Holder plans. Ross can't believe the proudness he is feeling for me.

And, tomorrow I will turn 50!!!!!!!!

It's Happened! Hoorah! Yipee! Toroo Toorah!

They're finished! Act Two is over, the rail is up and (even though I can't wait) I am so attached to you all (or to my own exhibitionism?) that I have taken a pause from the long awaited hanging to show you. As these pictures load I am gathering the tops to put them up.

Hark! I hear drum-rolls echoing through the valley...

I'm Having A Tea Break

But the good news is (for everyone concerned), I am about to sew the lining onto the curtains!!! YAY!!! I'm so excited! I'm truly in love. Not with me. With the niceness and the funness and the prettiness and the tenderness of it all. Sigh! They are so boopy.

Tomorrow I will absolutely take some proper, overall photo's. Then, my dear one will put up the curtain thing and I'll take some more with them in situ.

Then I'll maybe do a Pot Holder before embarking on some serious quilt finishing. And doona cover slash sheet slash pillowslip making (between finishing the baby's apron and overalls). I wouldn't be dead for quids.

That reminds me, I heard a funny thing on a dumb old movie today:

"I hate spinach. If I liked it, I'd eat it and that's no good because I hate it!"

Ha ha ha!

Bit More Scribbling

Bit nicer I think... the big one anyway. I hope you can see it in stained, slightly burnt old blankets, as I can. I'm not sure if I like the curved eyelashes or the straight ones...? Straight I think.

The sly sideways glancing small (unedited/refined) picture is inspired by Nicky from Big Love. By the way I did the quiz and I'm a Barbara. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not?

Oh, did I mention that I started a group on Flickr called Funky Potholders? Well I did, and not a moment too soon.

My Almost First Ever Cross Stitch

I thought it was so beautiful. SO beautiful. I remember where we were going in the car while I stitched. Can't think of the name of the place (sorry).

Anyway my friends, I've finished the inner cloth of the curtains and have only the blue, scalloped borders and the backing to do!!!!!!!!! I'm so exhausted. I pushed it for at least three hours more than my body wanted me to. When I met my daughter to deliver the little boy, she said, "What's up? Are you ok?" We had coffee.

I tried to have a little kip before I cleaned up the Utter Pigsty that is scraps-of-fabric-readily-available-to-make-the-curtains. But I couldn't sleep. Now I'm stoically pushing through, with a nice distraction here with you.

Second Last, No, Third Last Embroidery For The Curtains

From the reproduction iron-on transfers from Spotters.

nn

...and a hanky I bought from Patchwork On Central Park in Malvern East. Too big for the scanner and too late for the camera. I'm so close to finished, it's very exciting!! Mind you, I'm speaking relatively... it might be another fortnight or so. Work and babies and parents and so on.