Too many distractions …..

Far too many distractions since I last posted, one good excuse is that it was my birthday last Sunday the 26th and I had a lovely day. One of the distractions was the new iPad Air 2 which was a present from my husband!!!! I've been busy reading bits of the manual and experimenting and I love it to bits! Great little machine. Waiting for the covers to reach the stores here but I guess it's going to be a few more days yet.

Caught up with our three kids and six grand-children over the weekend which was a treat and I now have two lovely flower bouquets in the sitting room and a lovely drop necklace and earrings. A very happy day indeed!

A few of the H blocks sewn up this week, no point showing all of them there were too many.

The feather fabric from Philip Jacobs is a favourite of mine and there will no doubt be more of this fabric in other colourways in this quilt.

The clean-up cut strip cushion cover is now the size needed so next thing is to quilt and make the back for it

My Cotton Candy quilt top still has two more rows to go around but I started playing with the small odd strips left over and threw in a bit of the dark green cabbage fabric intending to make a mug rug but it grew in size as I went along and could be used as a mat for a small table in my studio. Just straight line quilting and ready for binding now.

That's me for today, hope you all have a Happy Halloween! 

Linking up now with Live A Colorful Life where  Choose Your Own Block-Along is under way.

Cats (RSC 2014) and Baby Blackbirds

Two weeks ago Barb in MI very kindly offered to send me a few pieces of brown fabrics for my cats, they arrived yesterday morning so I had time to quickly make four to add to my two made earlier in the week when I found a piece of KF brown/black  left over from years ago, also made a grey batik  (left)  which I think you'll agree looks really weird!! He may not make the final cut!

I love the leopard spot kitty on the left

the one on the right reminds me of exploding fireworks

Paw prints on the left,

marbled fur on the right - this probably could have gone under the Orange heading but I think she fits in just fine here with all her pals.




Before I link up with
Angela over at Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2014
here is something far removed from my cats above (hopefully)

 just outside our ranch slider onto the balcony we have a blackbird nest in the trellis (just two feet away from the door) momma bird was sitting on three beautiful blue/green speckled eggs and now both she and poppa are busy feeding three babies. They nested here last year and if we're digging in the garden they fly down,  sit by my side and wait for grubs or worms to appear as I fork the soil, pick them up and go off back to feed the babies. I feel really honoured that they would nest so close and trust us, I managed a quick shot yesterday and one of the babies was very obliging. I have always been fascinated by birds so this is a real joy for me.

On a sad note to finish this post we were horrified to see on our news that another school shooting had happened in America - surely this madness has to stop. I do hope none of you reading this know anyone caught up in this tragedy.

Showtime!! Goodies in the mail

My package of a few of the new fabrics for Fall 2014 from the Kaffe Fasset Collective arrived today - what a sight!

I had an order in at the store when Wanda over at Exuberant Color showed photos on a post of her chosen selection and I thought they were amazing, however seeing the "real thing" was mind blowing, and at the risk of boring you I have taken a few shots below after a quick update  on my Cotton Candy quilt,  only four more rows to go! As the  strips grew in length I began to spray starch to give more body and I really should have taken this step right off because the process became somewhat easier and avoided any stretch. I've also made a mug rug using leftover pieces but I'll post that during next week.

Cotton Candy

Okay - showtime

Yellow Big Leaf

Gray and Brown Dream

Moss Gloxinia

Thousand Flowers

aren't they just delicious even still with their creases from mailing.
Wanda did say that Thousand Flowers were huge compared to the original some years ago and yes, they are oversized but look great in strips (already cut a few). I love the pops of colour in the centres of the flower.

Next post I hope to let you have a peek at the baby blackbirds in their nest just three feet from our ranch slider door onto the verandah, three of them. Mum and Dad come and hunt me out by the window asking for food to supplement what they find in the garden, they actually sit around two feet away from Daisy cat, she doesn't bother them and they're quite happy. They are "regulars" and have nested in the trellis under the yellow rose before.

On to more fabric cats now for the Saturday post for RSC 2014 - see you then.

A lazy week for Choose Your Own Block-Along

No Pineapple blocks this week for Choose Your Own Block-Along  - it was one of those weeks,

however I did put together more H blocks

I'm working on a few "dulled down" blocks which will be needed to mix with the brighter blocks

then going to play round with the idea of adding a few T for Thomas blocks, I'll make one up later in the week and see how it fits in.

 The green cabbage leaf fabric in the very last block is a huge favourite, a forgotten fabric way down in my scrap bin but  I loved it when I first saw it years ago now there is only a smallish piece left so that can go in my "really precious" box.

My taking part in Cross The Drunkard's Path Quilt Along  has come to an early end due to hand problems which is a pity as I had cuts lots of pieces with the Accuquilt!

The garden is well into Spring mode now and three Wisteria are blooming, delicious scents filling the garden - here are two photos of the lilac colour

 

Linking up now with
Live a Colorful Life

Scrappy Delights

This time difference between New Zealand and other countries does mess up my timing for posts!

Choose Your Own Block-Along posts on Monday - I must remember to post Tuesday am in order to get the link title

Scraptastic Tuesday - I make my post on the Wednesday

and so it goes on, I now have a list on my wall right by the computer and to make things a little easier

I am going to write one post Wednesday and then link up with both the above sites.

The links are at the end of this post.

Blocks are the "H for Heywood" and progressing at a steady pace, I need to do quite a few more then get them on the wall and see where I need to go with lights and darks

The great thing with these blocks following directions from
Wanda at Exuberant Color
is that you get a positive and negative block - two for the price of one! You can see this here

They go together so very quickly.




More blocks for Pineapple Chunks

plus I pulled out a box with my Fruit Salad blocks hidden away in there and only seven more to make up so further down the track I will work on these and post - here's one of them

you can see why I'm not working with these presently as the pieces are so small, the block is 6" and  I started these for a project with Victoria and the 15minutes play team.

Linking up with
Scraptastic Tuesday
Choose Your Own Block-Along

just before I go we have a beautiful yellow Banksia Rose in full Spring bloom on our trellis fence

Have a good week!

More Scrappy Cats!

Only two more kitties this week and those of you having read my post on Drunkard's Path will know why production is down this week,  also I am short on brown fabrics but
Barb over at Paintcreekquilt
contacted me and oh so kindly said she would help out with browns - thanks again Barb!

Even though I love bright colours- the brighter the better -I am liking these subdued kitties.

Short post I know but here's a photo of the new Spring growth on a Japanese Maple in the garden

this is beauty in full leaf both Spring and Autumn as the colours change.

Linking with
Angela over at soscrappy

Cutting out Curves

Drunkard's Path - once again I am wondering why I went with this! I have to say I love Quilt-Alongs (especially the ones with Vicki) and joining with everyone else but …… the curved seams are playing havoc with my arthritic hands, especially the fingers so although I intend to persevere I have to say my contribution is going to be pretty small!! Why did I go for the 3 1/2" size cutting die you may well ask given my joint problems well  that was the only size available here in New Zealand presently.

So for the moment until the pain meds kick in this morning I am just cutting

not a hugely inspiring shot, but I  have more to cut tomorrow and will probably sew another half dozen blocks later today.

I'm off to link up with Cross the Drunkard's Path and have a peek at the other links, I then need to post my kitty cats!

Scrappy Delights

Been busy with my scrap blocks  for Choose Your Own Block-Along and Scraptastic Tuesday, and I'm posting about both these projects at once - makes things a little simpler!

A couple of posts ago I mentioned I had been experimenting with my camera settings. Usually it is just set on Auto and I point and click but then decided to play around with manual settings  - very interesting. Below are my latest Pineapple blocks first taken with light meter on cloudy and the other in daylight - quite a difference in colour

Pineapple Chunks

Pineapple Chunks

the one above is the true colour.

More blocks for "H for Heywood" below

Linking up to the Block-Along and then on to cutting more Drunkard's Path pieces.
Enjoy your week

Muted Cats!! RSC 2014

Browns, blacks and greyed down murky colours this month, quite a change for me!

However I do have some fabrics which meet the criteria and have enough to make 10 cats again this month.

There is one cat which isn't murky, in fact she looks as if she has been having a good time in the garden but I love the fabric so she had to come along

and even though I don't normally work with these colours I am enjoying using them!!

Going more into the browns next week.

I have four scrap projects on the go and loving every minute, "meeting" so many lovely quilters by joining in with challenges and quilt-alongs is making me a happy camper!!

Now I'm going along to meet up with Angela and all the other scrappers working on their RSC2014 projects - just follow me over there!

A quick photo here not at all related to quilting, but it's the start of Spring here in New Zealand and a pot of Basil is sitting in my kitchen scenting the whole room - isn't it a gorgeous shade of green?

Have a happy weekend

Cross The Drunkard's Path Quilt Along Week 1

The thought did cross my  mind that maybe I was mad to say to Vicki at Field Trips in Fiber to count me in with the above Quilt Along, however I decided to carry on regardless but knew the only way I could get through this was to get hold of an Accuquilt Die for Drunkard's Path ( herein referred to as DP by me). 

I eventually tracked down one shop in the South Island of New Zealand who stocks the dies and she was just finishing packing  to go up country for a big show but very kindly, when I said I just HAD to have a DP die, she hunted it out of her cases for me!! I was pushing it a bit when I asked how quickly she could get this to me - overnight courier and I had it within 24hrs. So this was yesterday and all I have to show so far is below.

I have now decided after pondering all day that I'll work with my huge stash of blacks, patterned blacks mostly by Hoffman from years and years ago but what to go with them? I have a basket with the full original Jinny Beyer Colour Palette range - problem solved!!!!!

So

Some of my black collection, grabbed a piece out of here at random then picked out a JB fabric which would pick up some of the colour in there

lovely raspberry pink

became

the first cut with my die

but haven't yet decided on a layout, I need to put more time in thinking all this out over the next few days.

I'm off to link up now with all fellow "Drunkards" so please follow me over and have a peek.