Sunday 30 January 2011

Bee in my Bonnet

‘Bee in my Bonnet’ is a lovely blog I follow & Lori the owner is having a giveaway.  You could win a Bee in my Bonnet pattern & believe me they are gorgeous!!!!

Please pop over & have a look but you’ll have to be quick it ends tomorrow!!!

http://beeinmybonnetco.blogspot.com/

There is also a button on the side to take you there.

Good luck!!!! :-)

Friday 28 January 2011

Colourful Friday

Yay colourful Friday is back for 2011. Thanks Robyn!!
http://daisyquilts.blogspot.com/

This week’s it’s My Favourite Colour/s.

Well my fave colour is aqua/turquoise but just lately I’ve been attracted to colour combinations rather than just a single colour, so I thought I’d share my latest project, which is rather colourful.

lucy base Hopefully this will become a beautiful bag like Lucy’s on Attic 24.

I’m on my 4th attempt, I could not get my bottom flat!!!! Well the bottom of my bag that is. :-) This is the best I could do, not perfect but you’d be impressed if you’d seen the previous attempts, lol.

lucy bag2

I’ve finished the bottom & am now working my way up the sides. It’s actually much brighter than this in real life the lt. pink has washed out.

lucy woolI knew there was a reason I bought all those odd balls when I saw them on sale over the years. This is only the tip of the iceberg I have several plastic containers full of oddballs. :-)

Wednesday 26 January 2011

Happy Australia Day!!!

Ta-da my Australia Day mantlepiece!!

oz day5oz day1 oz day2 oz day3 Our fave Aussie books & DVD’s + Rowan’s Aussie beanie bears. The pic in the star frame is Rowan at the Sydney Paralympics in 2000 & yes he’s holding the Olympic flame.
We put the Vegemite back in the fridge after the shot was taken. :-) & yes I know some people keep it in the cupboard but we like it cold.

I hope you’re all enjoying the day, we’re doing our usual, lazing on the lounge & watching tv. I’ve started making a ‘Lucy’ Attic 24 crochet bag. The base is not a nice flat circle but I’m hoping it will be ok. Pics later if it turns out. :-))

Tuesday 25 January 2011

Is it too much to ask?????

That there should be a good Gluten Free bread mix available in 2011?????

I’ve used Basco bread mix for about 25 years. Originally it was more like cake than bread so I simply threw in some sultanas & just spread it with marge for lunch. Over the years they changed the formula until it became ‘bread.’ Not bread like the normal stuff you buy at the shops, but as close to bread as seemed possible. It thawed out well to eat & it toasted well. Then a couple of months ago, for some unknown reason, they changed it again. Now it does not thaw out well, it is dry & inedible. So the search has been on for a new bread mix. I’ve tried 3 so far, today’s being the worst of the lot. Looked great, nice & crusty but the flavour, YUCK!!! Even dh said it was awful & he eats anything. So if there is anyone out there, who knows of a good Gluten Free bread mix available in Australia or who has a good recipe please speak up. I’m sick of corn frisbies for breakfast & lunch.

I want a sandwich,

I want egg on toast.

Surely that’s not too much to ask!!!!!!! Pout!!!

Btw I emailed Basco, they didn’t respond.

Wednesday 19 January 2011

Flood, a great way to help those affected.

Like most people I’ve been watching of the floods & the aftermath & feeling totally useless.

Yesterday I found a way to help on a blog I’d only just discovered. I could explain it all to you but it’s easier if you just go to this blog & see what a difference 2 wonderful ladies can make.

http://beachvintage.blogspot.com/

Please take the time to check it out & if you can afford to kick in a few dollars, please do so.

I think what they are doing is brilliant & worth remembering if something like this happens in my area.

Awwwwww, too cute.

bathtime

Fairs, fair so Zaphod gave Molly a bath. :-)

tvIt seems Zaphod likes TV too.
He also has fun trying to grab things on my computer screen. basin  Bathtime???

I haven’t had a cat in my life for a year & it’s only now I have one again, I realise life is SO much better with a cat in it.

Monday 17 January 2011

Pressie #1

Like most people I made New Year’s Resolutions & one of them was to make all gifts this year.

So here’s pressie #1, a bag for my dear friend Helen. Helen incidentally loves everything Autumnal, which made this an easy project. I didn’t have to buy a thing. The pattern is the one I won on Linda’s Flourishing Palms blog. I did alter the handle pattern.

Helen's bag Helen's bag close Helen's bag inside

Friday 14 January 2011

A Good Idea???

I’m one of those people who tends to spread stuff in every direction when I’m working so I thought it would be a good idea to try & stop the spread when I go to my quilt group. I thought a drawstring bag might do the trick but not one with a base & sides, one made like the little ones made to hold jewellery etc with lot’s of internal pockets. For once I decided to give it a go without too much agonising & I set to work. I thought about taking pics as I went along so if it worked I could post a tutorial but decided it against it thinking if it did work I’d make another for a friend & take pics then.

It started well, & I really thought it was going to work, until I actually tried to draw it up. There was to much fabric to draw up tight & the sides were too short to meet well at the top, lol.

drawstring work bagdrawstring work bag2drawstring work bag opendrawstring work bag open2 

The next day I added the purple fabric & it has helped but it still doesn’t draw up tight. Never mind I think it will do the job so I’ll try it at the next meeting. At least Zaphod likes the ribbon. :-)

wool3

I kept thinking about the lovely wool I bought on sale last week & I kept thinking I really should have bought more so yesterday, as we were out anyway, I headed back to Spotlight & bought a heap more. I bought more of the colours I’d already bought & added a few new ones.  I’m getting so much inspiration from Attic 24 blog http://attic24.typepad.com/weblog/
& I’m really looking forward to getting stuck into some crocheting this winter.

stitchin round the block3Currently I’m working on round 3 of the Stitchin’ Round the Block round robin. Our group decided as things got busy towards Xmas we’d aim to finish it off in January. I’m glad we did, as there is quite a bit of work involved. Mind you, they are turning out very nicely & I’m glad I joined the challenge.

Tuesday 11 January 2011

Pressies arrive & Kitten has a name!!

I posted this gift off the week before Xmas to my dear friend ‘Pinky’ in the USA & it’s finally arrived so I can post pics. ;-) pinky's bag2en pinky's bag3en

I also made mug rugs for Pinky & her dh Perry.

pinky

I’ve made 2 more bags, a Xmas pressie & a birthday pressie & I’ll post pics when they are arrive in Canada & NSW.

& Meet ‘Zaphod’ (zay-fod).

P1020273

We finally found a name we all liked, lol. He is named after Zaphod Beeblebrox from ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.’

Friday 7 January 2011

Summer Mantle

Now we’ve packed up all the deckies the house looks so bland & boring!!!! I know cream is the trend but I’ve never really been into following trends. I like colour.

So I decided to start with the mantlepiece. I’ve never had one before & I think it might be fun to decorate it to reflect the seasons & celebrations through the year rather than just sticking something on it & forgetting about it.

summer2

So here is my Summer mantle. I’ll go in search of a runner to replace the 2 placemats. I know I have one somewhere but since we moved I’m having trouble finding things.kitten5

Camouflage socks. :-) molly&kitty Molly always sits here when Paul goes out the front door.molly&kitty2Now she has a friend to sit with her.

Molly is a birthday girl today, it’s her 2nd birthday.

No we still haven’t chosen a name for kitten.
Rowan wants Ringo or Desmond, so we’d have Molly & Desmond as in The Beatles Ob-La-Di Ob-La-da.
Paul wants Spock.
& I’m leaning towards Charlie (Darling Buds of May) or Pixie.

Wednesday 5 January 2011

Some Serious Shopping!!!

My friend Lynne picked me up this morning & we headed to Gail B’s Patchwork at Bayswater. I love that shop, you can find anything you need & lot’s of things you didn’t know you needed. :-)fabric2011

I had hoped to find some pretty florals in the blues & pinks I love & was not disappointed.

fabrics2011

Also some cute Xmas stuff, nothing like getting in early. :-)
& a cute owl fabric.
wool Then we called in at Spotlight Bayswater. I always like to check if the wool is on sale & yay it was. 100% pure wool for just $1.50 a ball!!! The green is a different range as the green in the range on sale was too lime. I also wanted bottle green but there wasn’t any in pure wool.wool2 I also got lots of white as I plan to make a granny square blanket with colours in the middle & white around each block like this cushion:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/62329188/starburst-crochet-pillow-commission-4x4

Kitty is still waiting on a name!!! Rather than narrowing it down we keep adding more possibilities to the list. molly & kitten1 

molly & kitten3

I think Molly thinks kitty is her baby as she takes every opportunity to give him a bath.

kitten4 kitten3

He’s decided he likes to hang out on the shelf of the traymobile. There’s a big stuffed penguin beside him, he probably thinks it’s a relo, lol.

Monday 3 January 2011

We have a new baby!!!

I’ve always had a cat. I bought my first cat when I was 2, he cost sixpence!!!! We’ve had a lot of lovely cats over the years & our last pusscat Tabitha died just before Xmas 2009 at the ripe old age of 18. So this past year without a cat has been strange. Last night I dreamt we found 2 kittens so when I saw this little sweetie in the pet shop today I couldn’t resist him.

kitten2 kitten1

Molly is beside herself with excitement & is slowly getting the idea she has to calm down to get close to him.

Now all he needs is a name. Any suggestions????

Saturday 1 January 2011

BOM Special Offer

To kick start the new year I’m offering my BOM’s at special rates until midnight, January 14th, (in whatever time zone you’re in).

All the patterns are e-patterns, meaning they are emailed to you, so you save on postage & have the pattern very quickly. It also means you can choose your own fabrics to use.

bomlink

Birth Flowers
9 blocks, part 10 - finishing off directions, are included at no extra cost with block 9.

 JanuarycolFebruarycolMarchcol AprilcolMaycolJunecol
July colAugustcolSeptember col
OctobercolNovembercolDecember col
January Snowdrops.

Normally $2.50 per month, now $2 per month.

 

Celebrations
 all
January is ‘Summer’ for the southern hemisphere & ‘Winter’ for the northern hemisphere.

There are 12 blocks, one for each month.
They are individual 12” square quilts.

Normally $8 per month, now just $6 per month.


Tea Party

9 blocks, part 10 - finishing off directions, are included at no extra cost with block 9.

top cupsaucer

January – Cup of Tea

Normally $4 per month, now $3 per month.

 

A Stitch in Time

This stitchery is coloured with crayons or pencils.

There are 9 monthly blocks, part 10 - finishing off directions, are included at no extra cost with block 9.

final pincushion

Block 1 - January – Pincushion & Thimble.

Normally $4 per month, now $3 per month.

If you would like to sign up for any of the BOM’s this link will take you to my website. The discounts have already been applied to all the BOM’s.

bomlink

http://www.countryoriginals.com.au/