December 28, 2011

Last few days to "get it free"


Just a reminder that if you wish to download my free "Consider the Lilies" quilt design, there are just a few days left.  The pattern will be taken off the website on 31st December in preparation for the new 2012 free design.

Go here to download all eleven patterns.

Happy stitching
Val

December 24, 2011

Happy Christmas!

I wish all my lovely blog friends a wonderful Christmas, celebrating God's amazing gift of Jesus. I hope you are able to experience the love, joy and peace of this beautiful season.


Nearly all our family are here now and we are having heaps of fun and wonderful food.  I was smart this year and prepared a roster so that each of our four families shares in the cooking, so I'm only on duty every fifth day!  I'm enjoying my holiday!  We have some amazing culinary talent in our family - they certainly don't get the genes from me - so we are enjoying mouth-watering goodies and delicious meals.  They are so good that nothing goes to waste - except that I'm afraid it might be going to my waist!  Just as well Christmas only comes once a year!!!

I hope you have some wonderful family times too this Christmas and look forward to sharing with you again in the new year.

Blessings
Val

December 18, 2011

Online Workshop - and something for FREE!


This is this new project I've been working on this month - "Lilac Love".  I'll be conducting an Online Workshop with it at Patchwork Posse next year. It won't be happening till March, so why am I telling you about it now in the week before Christmas??????

BECAUSE if you register for one of the workshops this week (until Dec 24th) you will get their "Christmas Spirit" Workshop FREE!!!!  That means 12 new patterns that will all be finished and ready for next year's Christmas Season!

My Lilac Love set includes a pinushion:


a scissorkeep, personalised with your own initial:


and a needlecase:


All the workshops are offered at a great price ... but of course I hope you will want to do mine!!!!!!  (it's only $US10). Go here for the details.


I feel as if I am ready for Christmas!!!  The grandchildren decorated the tree earlier this month, all the presents are wrapped, I've worked out where everyone is going to sleep, visited the Op Shop for some extra crockery and sheets, made the Christmas pudding, written up the "House Rules" !!! and now I'm just waiting for the first lot of the family to arrive from Japan in two days' time.  Two more families arrive on Wednesday, then there'll be more coming on Friday and then Christmas Day - till all 25 of us are together!!!

My dream to have the new free Block of the Month quilt ready for hand-quilting while all of our family are here took a bit of a "downer" this week.  I fell asleep with it in my hand almost every night this week!!! ... like at 8 pm!  That's pretty much unheard of for me as I'm usually good till 10.30 pm.  Maybe it's got something to do with the fact that I am usually up between 4 am and 5 in summer, and burning the candle at both ends caught up with me last week.  It could NOT be that I am getting old!!!

What I have finished is looking pretty I think.  Some teaser pics for now:






Now for a reminder!  The Consider the Lilies quilt patterns are still available for free download over on my website. 


They will be taken down on the 31st December in readiness for the 2012 pattern.  So if you haven't downloaded them yet, you have just a few days left to obtain this pattern for FREE.  I'm happy for you to tell your friends about it too.

Have a great week and don't get stressed about Christmas!
Val

December 11, 2011

Things are "hotting up" ...

I'm sure you are finding, as I am, that things are "hotting up" in the countdown to Christmas.  Maybe my friends in the snow don't think that's the best way to describe this busy time of the year, but it's very appropriate for where we live.  We found out this week that ALL of our immediate family are going to be at our house for Christmas!!!  YAY!  All 25 of us!!! Now, I'm busy trying to work out if we have enough tables and chairs to fit everyone, counting the sheets and mattresses, deciding whether we need to buy another set of crockery etc. The interstate and overseas families will stay in our house and be around for a couple of weeks - as our daughter described it: "Fun and madness all rolled into one"!!!

Needless to say I'm going like mad trying to get the necessary sewing done.  I've been working on the new free Block of the Month quilt for 2012.  It is looking so sweet and turning out beautifully. I hope to have it ready for hand-quilting by the time everyone starts arriving in 8 days as that will be a good project for sitting around chatting. Then I will be conducting an on-line workshop early in the new year so I'm trying to finish a set of three designs for that.

Now here's something that was finished some time ago - my Showers and Flowers cushion. It is in Patchwork & Stitching magazine Vol 12 No 9.



I always love it when my project makes the front cover!!!


You can't go wrong with checks or stripes, can you?


We had some of our grandchildren with us last week but we only had one trip to the beach as the weather was not good.  It gave Miss E an opportunity to finish a couple of projects.  This girl definitely has the stitching genes.  She did all the stitching on the centre panel herself and most of it before she turned seven!


She decided she would like it made into a cushion, so Grandma raided the purple box for the squares to frame it.

Miss E also finished a little purse from a kit, but it didn't come with a handle, so that called for a lesson in how to make a twisted cord.  She was pretty surprised by how those threads suddenly became a rope!


One of her brothers is a pretty amazing stitcher too.  He even tackles satin stitch!  He has almost finished the Peace block from my 2010 free Block of the Month project, Gifts of Grace.

Well, that's enough skiting (that's Australian for boast!) about my talented grandchildren.

Have a great week.
Happy stitching
Val

December 4, 2011

Free Christmas pattern

Today I have for you a free Christmas bag pattern. It's the design that featured in Handmade magazine earlier in the year:


This little bag measures 6 x 8 inches so is ideal for that small gift or maybe a gift voucher and a chocolate. It is very quick to make and there's a little bit of applique and stitchery to keep "those who love to have a needle and thread in their hand" happy!  It's fat quarter friendly too and of course you can embellish it to your heart's content!
 

You can find the download in the Christmas section of my website here.

I've had a great week of sewing and have been busy working on the 2012 free Block of the Month quilt pattern for you.  It is coming together beautifully and I am so enjoying stitching it. There will be nine blocks and I've already finished three this week!  I think you're going to like it!!!  I hope to have it ready to start in January -maybe I'll give you a sneak peak next week.

Do you remember the little fluff balls I showed you a few weeks ago?  They left the nest recently and we managed to find them not too far away.  How cute is this?  That is father on the left, doing his camouflage pose.


The lovely Annette very kindly sent me a photo of her beautiful version of my Love Never Fails quilt.


Isn't it delightful with the green spot borders?  I love this design because you are able to hang a different mini quilt in the centre whenever you feel like a change.  Thanks Annette for sharing your lovely work.

We have four of our grand-children here (with their mum and dad) at the moment, so that means trips to the beach, grass slides, board games, lots of meals to make and plenty of hugs, smiles and laughs!

Hope you have a great week too.

Happy stitching!
Val