January 2013 Finish

Just scraping in to have a finish for Sew Its Finished, Aunt Marti's 13 Projects in 2013 and OPAM.

I started this turtle quite a few months ago and finished him today.  He was fiddly to make... I think he will stay an only child . . .

Shrinking Fabric

Have you ever used this stuff?? Its marketed in smaller pieces as Texture Magic but you can buy it by the metre as well.

I have used it once before and played with for a few other little things.

Last night I worked on these:

 and a close up 

Any idea what they are for??

The idea is to sew it to the fabric and then steam it - it is so humid here that a few leaves had started to curl even before the iron was anywhere near it.
(For those not in the know - it is very wet on the east coast of Australia - especially the SE corner of Queensland and the northern parts of NSW.  Have a look:

There is also a lot of strong wind heading our way.

The rectangle shows roughly where I live.

FNSI - January 2013

Friday night I worked on:
These blocks - finished the purple and stitched the pink one

 Cut 5" squares from a wonderful surprise package from Fiona - I was so keen to get into them I forgot to take a picture before I reduced a healthy pile to this:

 Made the rows for 4 more blocks for my I Spy / Funky fabric Disappearing 9 patch quilt

 and finished off another Thread Catcher:

 Not too bad for a night's work.  I was going to stop at one stage and then I remembered all of you - sewing along with me and I thought I couldn't let you all down - so I kept going - till 11.30pm.

Thanks Bobbi & Heidi for this  brilliant idea!!!   You go here to see what other FNSI'rs did!

Got to get moving - people coming for an  Australia Say Barbecue - shame about the rain!! and still lots of blog hopping to do to check out everyone's efforts from last night...

Secret Sewing from before Christmas

I had some secret sewing on the go before Christmas and couldn't show one of the projects.  I showed a hint here  (Secret Sewing Project #2).

Finally my present arrived in the USA - it did take a while - but I have now heard from the recipient.  [Edited: - And she has now commented - telling me how much she really loved it - and so did all her friends at Quilt Guild!!!]

 I wanted something "Australian" without being too much and saw this lovely panel at the Craft show in Brisbane last October - then was lucky enough to find a perfect fabric to back and bind it with.  (Thanks Bargain Box! - ever been there?? they are not too bad...I know of the ones at Capalaba and Ipswich)

I included a few extra  bits and pieces in the parcel - my friend Marti is now a big fan of Caramello Koalas!  I included some Vegemite too - she is planning on having it on crackers - with Vodka.  I wonder if she will like it??
[Edited: - please read her comment - its #2 - and see why she will have it with vodka!! - Sorry Marti - I think most of us Aussie will get a giggle from that!!)

Also I have signed up for Friday Night Sew In -  here's the link

I would usually be sewing on Friday night anyway so may as well do it all properly and remember to post on Saturday...
I have to get "something" finished before the end of the month...oh! the pressure!!!

My Christmas/New Year Break

I have been back at work for a week now and realised I didn't post about what I did over my break.
This Christmas / New year I had 3 weeks and 2 days away from work.
I always use this time to catch up with my sewing and also to try to do a lot of preparation for the next year, since I find it tedious to have to pull fabrics out and cut at night after dinner.

So, in this break period I have managed the following:

• Made a sewing machine cover for DD#1 (Christmas present)

(shown with the Tidy Bag I made her last year and the Thread Catcher I made as part of the Stitch-A-Long)

• Made 14 coasters
  See the last post here
• Made a 9 patch block for a KQ member
  (Sorry, forgot to take a photo of that one)
• Cut a heap of green squares for me and a KQ member to make into a Christmas Tree wall hanging
• Cut some more novelty/I spy and funky fabrics to make more blocks for my KQ Disappearing 9 patch
• Made 4 blocks for that quilt
• Made up the last 3 blocks of Journey of a Quilter (one still to stitch)
• Prepared 8 Projects for the SAL Blog
  (All kitted up and ready to go)
• Made one of them (5 Thread Catchers actually)
• Composed a list of projects that I expect to complete in 2013 - at a minimum

Well, it doesn't really seem all that much, and a not a lot of finishes to show, but I am a lot further along in terms of organisation and I really do hope that will help me get lots done in 2013.

UFO List for 2013

I've signed up again for Sew Its Finished 2013, where the plan is to finish at least one project a month (more if you can but let's be realistic) and at the same time I am joining in with Aunt Marti - where she has challenged us to complete 13 projects in 2013.  So, considering I have a pile of other things I also want to work on this year that I can't honestly class as a UFO, I am combining the two challenges.

So - confession time - here is my 2013 list.

McKenna Ryan Fuchsias - to be quilted & bound
Red Houses Wall Quilt - Marg Low pattern - 4 houses to be finished, put together, quilted, bound
Journey of a Quilter - 2 blocks to finish, put together, quilted, bound
Donna's Dreaming - to be quilted and bound
Flower Box Quilt -  to be quilted and bound
Homespun magazine - BOM project from 2010 - 2 blocks to be made, 4 blocks to be put together, quilted & bound
I Spy - Disappearing 9 patch - more blocks to be made, cut, re-assembled, quilted & bound
Hall Stand Runner - stitcheries done, to be put together
Sew Laugh Love - Leanne Beasley - finish stitchery, assemble
Happy Block Quilt - from many years ago - to be quilted and bound
Turtle - Anni Downs - assemble
Christmas Table Runner - pattern was a present from my husband in 2012, so has to be included so it's ready for Christmas 2013
and totally ambitious
Best Friends - a Millimac pattern, assemble, complete overlapping blocks, quilt and bind.

Strictly speaking  for Aunt Marti's Challenge I should number them and do the project that matches the number she tells us, but that doesn't work as well for me, so I will still aim to do one a month.

In addition to this I have 9 - now 8 - projects for the Stitch A Long run by Chookyblue,a challenge quilt to do before March, a quilt to be bound for a wedding last December, blocks for Stitchers' Garden (a class I am attending), and  ... well that is enough to scare me!! 

Wish me Luck!!!