A bit of a spurt ...

How's your Christmas preparation coming on? Not even two weeks left ... oh dear! How did that happen?! 

I took part in our work's Christmas Gift campaign (you buy gifts for a child in care, all you get told is their age and gender, you drop them off and they are then wrapped and anonymously donated.) I wanted to add something home-made to the gifts I bought so made a London pencil case:

Merry Christmas, little boy, and God bless you x 

My sister was ogling my tote bag when we met up last week:

So she's getting one of her own for Christmas. The joy of scraps: 

I cut my handles at 5" and when folded they end up at 1 1/4" which I like:

Just needs quilting and putting together. Also, I have started on a Pants Bag for my cousin's daughter who's going to Paris in the New Year:

Finally, for dear SIL - out of the leftovers of her chicken bag, I cut out 36 x 3 1/2" squares, sewed them together, pressed open the seams (don't really need to but it does give a nice flat finish):

And placed it in front of the tree for a festive photo:

Something furry and amazing heard the baubles knocking and came a-looking  ... tried to hide from me but I spotted her: 

I love the cushion on our chair under the stairs too ... sooooooo very tempted to keep it for myself ... but I wont - we never do, hey?

And today - a first - Mum came over for the day and we sat together for a few hours chatting away in my sewing room, drinking coffee whilst we made some bunting (for dear niece's wedding next year):

Enjoy your weekend, linking up with the lovely Lorna and Amanda: 

Merry Christmas Everybody :)

Last Friday when the lady at the sewing machine repairs shop told me my Juki and I could be parted for over 2 weeks, I had a little meltdown. Did they have a machine I could borrow? No. Could they service her in a week? No. (I have a quilt to make by January 23rd!) There was nothing to be done ... unless ... meet my new machine now sitting with me in the car as I'm driving home:

DH was at his Christmas do in London so we texted a little:

Unwrapped this morning and realising I am a very very lucky lady to now have a 'spare' sewing machine! And even luckier to have a wonderful husband who understands me ... completely :)

Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas. I look forward to staring and sharing with you in 2014.

Liberty London ... how did I NOT know??

After a lovely Christmas lunch this afternoon with my team, I was walking back to Oxford Circus tube when this amazing building appeared in front of me:

I ventured in - as you do - because, although I have shopped in here years ago, it was BQ (before quilting!) so I had never actually visited the fabric department. It was FAB-U-LOUS ... my eyes were delighted by all the beauty before them! Sadly, a hundred other people were experiencing the same delight as me so I didn't linger. Today. I will return (sorry DH!)

I did buy some Christmas Fabric which I'm going to make more mini Pants Bags out of and fill with sweeties:

And some 'could not leave on the shelf' fabric which I might use in my Strip Bee:

And when I got home, this bundle of loveliness had arrived in the post, which will be used up in my post-Christmas project:

And out of my scraps / stash tonight, I have started making a Pants Bag / Ballet Shoes Bag for the daughter of my colleague at work:

Phew! So much fabric, so little time *sigh*

Linking up for the first time with Kelly @ My Quilt Infatuation

Christmas Gifts - the last 2011 'catch-up' post

It started with a simple request (at the end of October) from the Mum of our god-daughters, if I was looking at ideas for Christmas presents, "A cushion cover would be a great present for them," and I was off - out of the starting blocks and creating. The rest of this post is all the lovely things I made in November and December.

I never just give cushion covers so first stop was eBay for two 22" duck feather cushions (I usually use 18" but was going for a bigger look this time). I wanted them to be similar but different (if you know what I mean) - there's only two years age difference and as soon as I picked out the fabrics, I knew I'd have to make Pants Bags to match as well!

Then there was a quilt for my Mum (Mutter) - we had picked all the red and green fabrics on a visit home earlier in the year. If you ever met my dear Mutter, you would think, "she has a big heart," so there was my inspiration:

And she had to have a cushion too! That's what scraps are for ... I put binding on this one - very pretty and made the cushion feel rather sumptious. The front of my cushions are 'mini quilts' - pieced, batting, calico backing and quilted - it finishes them off nicely:

Then a Pants Bag for my little niece to match her quilt:

And a cushion for my friend to match her cat quilt (just enough scraps left):

And a cushion for my nephew to match his quilt:

And a Pant's Bag for my cousin's wife (filled with smellies):

And one for my brother's girlfriend (also filled with smellies):

And one for my friend at work's grand-daughter:

And a cushion and two Pants Bags for the Church raffle:

And a cushion for my friend's daughter at work:

Then I GOT PAID!!! Two friends asked if I would make cushions for them to give as Christmas presents - oh my ... no pressure!! So I made these - the first two were for my friend's neices, she chose the fabrics and I chose the designs and the last one is very similar to the 9-patch church raffle cushion (see above) that my friend's friend won and was so thrilled with it my friend thought it would be a nice surprise to have me make another (similar) one too:

And finally, remember the quilt I made for Mum's birthday that sat on the back of settee all year because it was 'too nice to use'? I made Mum (in-law) another lapquilt and called it, "Use Me" and I'm pleased to report that it is getting used!!! She told dear husband yesterday on the phone that she was 'wrapped up in it because that's what it was meant for' ... yay!!

The back - just as lovely

PHEW!!! I enjoyed making every single item - and seeing the recipients' faces - everyone was thrilled (I think!) with their gifts. All created in the evenings after work and at weekends ... not much ironing got done, I can tell you!!

All in all a wonderful end to the year. I learnt lots of new things and can now free motion quilt (meander/stipple) quite confidently and put 'proper'lining in Pants Bags and knock out a cushion in a couple of hours. I am sooooooo looking forward to 2012's projects, adventures and challenges ... I AM a lucky girl, my dear husband is so very supportive and I am very thankful that I get to make such lovely things ;)