Monday, 29 December 2014

Finishes and the end of another year

I mentioned in my last post a couple more gifts I finished off ready for Christmas... now that they have been gifted I can share with you!


For my aunt I decided to make a handbag... I've had this Melly & Me 'Black Forest' pattern for a couple of years now, and finally decided to give it a go. I must admit, while the instructions were easy to follow, the bag proved more difficult than I anticipated due to the stiffness of the interfacing. I persevered and was really happy with the result.



I joked to Mum while I made it that it might possibly be the first and only handbag I make... but I might have to make one more for myself!!


I also made a smaller bag, a 'mug bag' for my Mum. She goes to a stitching group each week and I thought it would be perfect for her to take her mug in. This is a small pattern by Anni Downs and comes with the pre-printed linen...

Mug Bag, designed by Anni Downs, stitched by Natasha Walter


It was a really simple pattern to follow and I managed to finish it fairly quickly :)

Alex is already hanging out for next Christmas, although I'm happy to take it a bit slower for a while! The kids had a great day, they were spoiled with so many gifts and there was much yummy food to be eaten...



With only a couple of days left of 2014 I think the finishes above will be the last for this year... I'll be too busy enjoying the festivities to stitch! Tasmania is a great place to be at this time of the year, we have a big food festival (Taste of Tasmania) and all the yachts that have completed the Sydney-to-Hobart race lining the docks.

If I don't blog again until 2015, have a happy and safe new year xx

Wednesday, 24 December 2014

Gifts for the kids...

It's been a busy few days, with me taking every opportunity to get behind my sewing machine as possible!

I've managed to finish off two projects for the kids as well as a couple of projects for others in the family... But will have to share those once they've been gifted just in case!!

For Alex I decided to go for a superhero cape, plus a matching one for his favourite soft toy, Bunny. I didn't use a pattern for this one, just made it up as I went. The 'super Alex' letter A on the back was also designed by myself, with some input from my dad. I appliquéd the design using blanket stitch and matching threads.




I love the brightness of the lining fabric I chose :) hoping he likes it too. 

For Sofia I've spruced up a hand-me-down... I'm giving her a wooden doll's bassinet that was mine as a girl, but I've done up new bedding. Mattress, pillow and mini quilt... All in pink with fairy fabric!



The bassinet wasn't the easiest thing in the world to wrap I must say!! 

Looking forward to seeing the kids' face expressions tomorrow morning. 

Merry Christmas and until next time x

Monday, 15 December 2014

New books

While I was in Canberra I managed to visit a couple of my favourite quilting stores (and more than once!). Fabric was bought, as were a couple of small patterns, and I was even tempted by a couple of books...


Last year I made each of the kids a Melly&Me stuffed toy and her latest book 'Fun of the Fair' has been tempting me for some time. Picking it up, it quickly became apparent it was just too cute to put down!


The second book is by a Allison Harris from cluck cluck sew - an American patchwork designer whose blog I've been following for about a year now and whose modern and easy designs I've been increasingly falling in love with. In fact, the disappearing 9-patch quilt I made Alex earlier in the year was based on a tutorial from her site. I'm looking forward to giving a few of these patterns a go :)


Now that I'm back home and back with my beloved sewing machine I have a few Christmas projects I want to get stuck into... Plus I still need to get the tree up!!

Until next time x

Saturday, 13 December 2014

Journeying home

It's been a great three weeks holiday in Canberra, although somewhat tiring running after the kids... Particularly as it seems Sofia is working on perfecting her squeal and Alex is constantly keen on annoying her (which of course makes her squeal louder)... Any tips on how to nip this issue in the bud would be greatly appreciated!!

I'm currently on the ferry crossing the Bass Strait heading back towards Tasmania, with a glass of sparkling to relax after a long day driving. It's nice to stop and reflect on my time away :) while I didn't get all that much stitching done, it's been great catching up with some wonderful friends from when I used to live in Canberra, and also making some new ones! I got a chance to go mountain biking on a couple of occasions, and also managed a day trip out to the fabulous "Christmas Barn" in a small town called Bredbo about an hour out of Canberra. 


I think I was told about this amazing Christmas store just before Alex was born and is where both my tree and many of my decorations have been bought from. They have so many beautiful decorations it makes it tough to pick just a few!


Can't wait to get home and start decoratingn my home and get into the Christmas spirit!!


Tomorrow is another half day or so driving to get home, stopping in on family and a scrumptious raspberry farm/cafe on the way!

Until next time xx