Quilt Dad Monster Giveaway!

Okay, I just found out myself so you may have to be quick but John at Quilt Dad is celebrating his 2 year bloggerversary by having the most fantastic giveaway!
If you have never seen John's blog before then you are in for a treat. He has lots of quilting inspiration floating about over there! Go take a peek!

little tweetheart blogtoberfest giveaway

My parents travelled to Japan 10 years ago. Mum brought back some lovely pieces of vintage kimono fabric for me, which until recently have lay carefully wrapped in the original packaging.
3 months ago I unveiled them again and starting planning and scheming a quilt top design that I could best display these pieces in. I found the design needed a little more fabric than I had so popped it to the side until I had sourced more fabric.
Well...imagine my delight when I came across the giveway being hosted by little tweetheart as part of Blogtoberfest !! Fingers , toes and any other body part..crossed !!!
Pop over and have a look...and make sure you also visit her post about the Rainbow Present.
I am keeping that idea up my sleeve !
x PJ x

Super-duper sized catch up post !!

I was horrified when I saw the date of the previous post !
Very neglectful of me. So, in no particular order , a glimpse of what I have been distracted with for the last 4 weeks.
A birthday party for Emily, 45 people at our house on a cold, miserable day.
We had the usual party food fair plus games. I made a piniata.Which held together really well. Too well. Note to self..next time use less packaging tape LOL...I think Arny Schwarzenneger would have had a hard time busting it open !
We took some fairy cakes to share as her birthday cake at pre-school. All gobbled up rather quickly...3- 4 yr olds are apparently ravenous by morning tea time when they have been climbing , running and chasing !
Emily is putting the candle in her playdo cake...you know..the one they have at child care and pre-schools to "blow out "the candle...so they don't spit all over the cake that is to be shared !

I was lucky enough to win a few giveaways happening in blog land..and "meet"some lovely crafty types along the way!
These toasty warm, knitted/felted wrist warmers from Miss Muggins , love the wrapping !


and this stunning quilted pillow pattern from Kellie at don't look now.
I was in the newsagent this morning and spotted the latest issue of Australian Homespun..and there was Kellie's gorgeous quilt on the front cover ! She is one talented lady !
We had a trip to my Dad's orchard...Emily follows him around like a puppy dog, chatting incessantly ( NO idea where she inherited that trait from ! ).
She helped Pop in the packing shed...and found a few apples to bring home !
Blake enjoyed riding the motorbike and tractor , then whining all the way home about how hard done by he is , having to live in the city ."why can't I live on a farm ? "
Geez...give me strength !!

Then there's the stitching projects...Amy from Seven Stitches...all the way over the ditch in NZ kindly organised a virtual quilting bee for Aussie and NZ participants,and she called it what else but the ANZAC quilting bee.
Here is the fabric she has sent .Plus her lovely Gee's Bend postcard ! Very Amish inspired colours. We are to construct 2 x 12.5 " blocks using string piecing. I plan on sitting down tonight to complete mine , but Nova was on a mission and had her's finished in record time ! And they look great.

This is my piece for The Quilt Project. With a little extra added !

A big thankyou to Kirsty at kootoyou , for organising this group. I can't wait to see the final result. I must admit I procrastinated so long over my design but I was happy with the final result. I haven't done much stitching before, other than blanket stitch for applique, so the craftmanship may be lacking..do not look too closely !
Do pop over to the flickr group , make sure you see this particular piece..totally inspiring !

This mumma can't do much without her little helper wanting to join in, so here is Emily working on her stitching...she really did quite well for her age..stitch spacing a tad uneven, but she concentrated SO hard on staying on the line !

Last but not least, I found this at my fave op-shop last week. A classic vintage print , the girl reminded me of Emily..had to grab it ..for a princely sum of $2. Yay !
x PJ x

Such a Sew-Fantastic Giveaway !

One of the first blogs I started to follow when I discovered the wonders of blogland was that of Terri at Sew-Fantastic.
I have made the coasters from Terri's tutorial link that many times I am losing track.
They are a great gift idea.
Pop over and have a looksy, while you are there. have a peek at her gorgeous crayon wallets in her etsy shop.
Terri is being SOOO generous with a fantastic giveaway at the moment.
One lucky reader will receive a copy of Heather Ross's Weekend Sewing book ...PLUS....some HR fabric from her stash...be still my beating heart !!! Wow !!!

x PJx

What a great give away theme !

The lovely Elaine from Faithful Quilter is having a fab giveaway "the Stimulus Package " for quilters !
Very timely theme...the economy is not the only thing around here that needs a bit of stimulus !
My motivation would benefit from a wee bit of "stimulus".
Pop over and browse Elaine's blog...very inspirational for some traditional quilting designs and styles .

Garden swap,river walk and pink tulip!!

This morning I received a parcel from Scotland ,from Emma, my partner in the Garden Swap.



Emma kindly sent me some gorgeous handknit flowers with button centres, a pretty flower button bracelet, a lovely piece of bright floral pop daisy quilting fabric,a postcard with a lovely scene of Aberdeen, a funky purple cocktail shaker and some recipes for her fave cocktails...as well as a recipe for a decadent sweet. Emma was actually going to make the sweet and send it but I advised Emma that our quarantine customs officers would have probably confiscated it so now I can make it myself..yummy...
I am thrilled with it all..thanks Emma...how did you know that I do not have a cocktail shaker...??? And I have already planned a bag to make, that would feature the knitted flowers sewn onto it .

Emma received the package I sent her a few days ago....here are some photos....








An eco-calico shopping bag with a garden themed stitchery on the front, a purple apron with big appliqued flowers ( Emma LOVES baking and purple is her fave colour ) , a little needle and thread pouch- holds a reel of cotton and some needles in the felt on the inside of the lid ( finished off with flower buttons...oh...and it is purple fabric ! ) plus some cute coffee / hot chocolate stencils to decorate a cappucino or hot chocolate.( forgot to photograph them ) I made a note card and attached flower pot buttons to the front.

I have been lucky enough to win a little giveaway over at Loraine's blog Pink Tulip.Loraine sews some lovely clothes and bags, pop over and have a look....she has inspired me to try making a few skirts...I will post photos if they turn out half wearable ! I can sew quilts but I struggle with adult clothing................


I will leave with a photo from our family stroll/ walk/ bike ride along the river bike path last weekend. It is such a lovely location, very peaceful and restful.....

x PJ X

Fabulous blog with a fantastic giveaway !

There is a fantastic giveaway over at Sew-Fantastic !
Terri is giving away 2 ( yes ..2 ) $20 vouchers for her etsy shop !
Go have a look at her blog and shop..you won't be sorry ! I love the crayon wallet with the glitter elephant fabric...and her latest creation, the Carryall Clutch , is available in a lovely array of fabric.
Terri was the organiser of the Kitchen Swap that I have participated in. She also has a number of great tutorials on her blog.

An inspiring giveaway !!

I have been wanting to make a Coin quilt for some time now, however my stash of cute and modern fabrics is sadly lacking. But I am hoping to win this little give away over at A La Mode
which would be perfect for the look I wanted to achieve. Do have a look at this gorgeous blog...and her coin quilt..Pink Popsicle...very pretty...and don't forget to pop into her Etsy shop...lots of yumminess in there !!!

Art Nest Pincushion RingGIVEAWAY!!!!

Kathleen at Grosgrain is busy with another fabulous giveaway.
Kathleen's sponsor, Susannah from Art Nest, is offering 3 of her gorgeous pincushion rings to 3 lucky readers .
These rings are not only a wonderfully practical sewing accessory, they are also super-duper cute !
They look good enough to eat !
Made of funky fabrics and lush felt , the rings are silver plated, nickel free and size adjustable .

Art Nest Pincushion RingGIVEAWAY!!!!

Picnic Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

I am in love with this dress !
Soft, romantic, whispy, could it be any more perfect ?
Only if Heathcliff came with it !
For a chance to win, pop over to Kathleen's blog ,Grosgrain. second thoughts..just stay here..I want to win, He-He.
Picnic Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

A great blog and a great giveaway !

If you are looking for some stitching inspiration pop over to Stitches and Scissors, Darci has some lovely completed projects to show you...and my fave is this gorgeous pink and green quilt !
Darci is having a giveway so even more reason to pop over !
Thanks Darci for the chance to win the gorgeous fabrics !

Swap,lucky me and fairies in my garden!

I have been busy getting my swap gift completed for the Maker's Swap that was orgainsed by the evervescant Miya. Miya has paired us with a swap buddy and mine is Mari from Kentucky, US.
I must admit , when I peeked at Mari's shops on Artfire and Etsy , I suddenly became very nervous trying to decide on what I could make for her , that would not look too poorly in comparison to the stunning jewellery that she makes. ( I knew I should not have looked !!)
We were all supposed to have our swaps posted by 1st April, but mine is a tad late and will be sent this afternoon. Fingers crossed Mari likes it!.

I discovered the lovely blog of Gail Pan Designs who has some gorgeous quilt and stitchery designs and was lucky enough to be the winner of her giveaway !
Do pop over to her blog and have a look, Gail has a sweet freebie BOM Christmas quilt stitchery that would be easy to make and be a great gift for someone special this Christmas.

Yesterday was a lovely warm Autumn day and Emily pottered around in the sandpit then had a wee rest underneath the rose bushes.
When I approached her she asked me to "sshh"and "be quiet please Mummy...you might scare the fairies !! " .
I hid back around the corner and listened to her having the sweetest little conversation with her fairy friends !
Oh, to be 3 again !!

A selvedge a day.....

There once was a youngish quilter mummy who had a lovely pile of selvedges happening...she would delight in fondling them and imagining what project she could create with them...UNTIL
husband THOUGHT he was helping by "throwing out all those sewing scraps sitting in the basket" in the sewing room/study...
hence followed ranting and raving by the mummy quilter...threatening said husband with rotary cutter if he laid hands on ANYTHING that looked like fabric/ sewing paraphanelia ever again.!
So.. mummy quilter would love to replenish the empty basket with these yummy selvedges....
( PS. Husband can now identify a selvedge from a mile away...he won't dare do that again ! )

Thanks Lissa for the chance to win this little ball of yumminess !!
Lissa works for Moda...oh, how hard would it be to go to work there ? ...surrounded by gorgeous fabric... !!

Quilting Friend opens her shop.

I recently joined a lovely site of like minded ladies ( I am fairly sure I haven't seen any males amongst the members ) who enjoy patchwork and quilting, at Quilting Friends.
There are over 140 members and the site is rapidly expanding.
Anna, who founded the site, has just opened her own shop here. She has some gorgeous items in stock including my favourite, the Button Box Blanky.
Pop over and have a look, then go to her blog, she is having a fabric giveaway !!