My Creative Space: A Parliament of Owls

...actually so far I'm a few owls short of a collective noun, as my sewing machine has gone back to the clinic. I'm using this "tutowlrial" from Moonstitches. I'm also trying to choose between button eyes and felt eyes.

I've sliced into the browns from the pile of vintage sheets from Ange's Australian Vintage Sheet Fat Quarter Swap. There's enough for a whole ten-pin bowling set! If I get my machine back they'll be this week's instalment of  "a Present A Week {till Christmas}" with Deb from Works in Progress.

Thank you to Kirsty for hosting My Creative Space! See this week's spaces here

"Long Long Ago....

"...So long ago I hardly know when

My Great-Great Grandmother, now and then, 

Stepped out...with a Gypsy!"

 (Cole Porter, "The Gypsy in Me").

Actually, it was Mister Bell's Great-Great-Grandmother who was a Romany Gypsy. Which explains why a pair of pale and pasty Anglo-Celts managed to produce this swarthy son with the beautiful big dark eyes!

Ange's Vintage Sheet FQ Swap: It's arrived!

This morning my letterbox was full of vintage loveliness, thanks to Ange of Ange's Ramblings! Here are my goodies from the Australian Vintage Sheet Fat Quarter Swap. I've started slicing some into 24cm squares, so I got four squares from most of the FQs, and six from the lovely blossom one on top- thanks generous donor! These are destined for a quilt.

The tawny colours will become a set of Japanese Lucky Owl skittles, a Christmas present for the Bug.

And this yellow and brown one can only be a softie giraffe! Many thanks Ange, you've done a great job.

PlaySak: A Drawstring Sack Playmat for Lego

Are you familiar with the tinkle of Lego going up the vacuum cleaner? Does your heart sink at the sound of a whole crate of Lego being emptied on the floor? Then you're going to want to make one of these!

This drawstring bag opens up into a playmat, so Lego and other little toys can stay on the mat and be drawn back inside at the end of play. My mum made one for us in the 70s and it's still going strong for the grandsons. I've made this one for Mister Bell's niece for Christmas. Or perhaps it's really for her parents, wink! It's my weekly post for A Present A Week {Till Christmas} hosted by Deb at Works in Progress.

UPDATE: Here's the tutorial!

My Creative Space: New tutorial On Way

I always enjoy reading the My Creative Space posts, and this week for the first time I'm joining in!

My creative space is full of a forthcoming project. My mum made one for me and my brother when we were little, and the Bug is using that one this morning. She's making one for him, and I'm making one for Mister Bell's niece for Christmas, and writing a tutorial as I go.

It's a kids' gift that parents will appreciate. You'll all want to make one! Can you guess what it's going to be?

UPDATE: Here's the answer- tutorial coming soon!

Join Kirsty and see all the Creative Spacers here.

A Quilt with a Deadline: Blogging the Process

Bigger quilts seem more useful to me- big enough for a big boy's bed, big enough to tuck in firmly to stop small limbs from dangling out! So far the quilts I've made for the family have been large. I'm hand-quilting a king-sized bedspread at the moment- don't expect to see it until next winter!

But now I've got a quilt with a deadline- Mister Bell's next niece is due in November.  And I'm determined to have this one ready before the baby arrives! So I'm downsizing. And I like it!

Firstly there's the basting. I hand-baste, and usually put it off with bigger quilts. But with this little one I used Andi's method of spray-basting with a smattering of pins. I did it on the dining table. Easy!

Next there's quilting. I'm not very good at machine quilting, but wanted to do it for this quilt so it will be tough enough for lots of washing  And at only 110cm square, this simple strip quilt is the perfect project to practice machine-quilting on my small domestic machine. I'm getting better as I go along.

I'm now adding a garnish of hand-quilting, more decorative than functional, and I'm happy with the combination of styles. And guess what? It's nearly done.

That gives me, ooh, four months to do the binding!

A Present a Week {till Christmas} with Works in Progress

Look out! Christmas is creeping up on us! That's why I'm joining Deb at Works in Progress in her "a Present a week {till Christmas}" challenge.

For the past two years I've taken up the Corporate Free Christmas ideal, and have made most of the gifts we give. I had expected it would take a lot of time, but I think it was quicker and much more satisfying than trudging around the shops. Although of course, it did involve a few trips to sewing shops...

However I still had the last-minute dash, even though it took place in comfort over a warm sewing machine. So this year I started in February, have several projects on the go, and completed... one so far. 

That is until I joined Deb's challenge! Here's my first week's entry: a set of four Christmas coasters, made with Not So Fancy Nancy's tutorial.They're for a dear friend who is overseas.

So that's two presents completed. Erm, how many weeks do I have left, Deb?

UPDATE: I've made a secret Christmas list on another site, leave a message if you'd like the URL- if you're on the list, no peeking!

Veg About: New Raised Beds

These new raised beds are part of our latest attempt to grow vegies in a dry environment. Our garden has free-draining, sandy soil, and the sunniest spot is below the neighbours' large, water-sucking Eucalyptus tree. With drought and water restrictions in place, it's a challenging site for a vegie patch.

Last year I used self-watering tubs, which worked well, but needed to be filled with potting mix rather than our lovely home-made compost. This meant less nutritious soil and an ongoing expense.

This year Mister Bell's dad whipped up these raised beds from corrugated iron offcuts. Mister Bell altered them a bit, and the Bug and I made them into 'no-dig' gardens with layers of weeds, used potting mix and compost.

So far we've planted broccoli, spring onions, peas, celery, parsely and coriander, which I'm listing under the Veg About button on my left sidebar.

Would you like to join the Veg About and blog about your patch?

Beret quick!

Bon quatorze, tout le monde! Bastille Day is the perfect occasion to post the pics of my version of Nicole Mallalieu's new 'quick' Beret pattern. Here it is modelled by my friend Sue. See how good it looks, even though she's wearing it backwards?

This is the large size, in the medium crown depth. It was quick and easy to make, and it's very flattering. I'm going to make another! The pattern is now available in Nikki's shop at Nicole Mallalieu Design.

I love a beret, and I love a quick project, so I jumped at the chance to be a pattern tester for Nikki. Mindful of the responsibility, I decided I needed to be very methodical.

I followed the instructions in order, and traced my pattern onto freezer paper.

This actually worked a treat- I ironed the freezer paper pattern onto the fabric so it was easy to cut out. As freezer paper sticks more than once I was able to use it for the lining too.

Here's the "before" shot- thank goodness for batwing sleeves, or I wouldn't have had enough fabric to get the grain along the right line!

Quilter's Couch Caddy

Over the weekend I whipped up one of these simple pincushion organisers using Oh, Frannson!'s free tutorial on Sew Mama Sew. The tutorial was easy to follow and it turned out really well.

It's weighted with rice so it will perch on the arm of my couch. There's room for pins, needles, scissors, seam ripper and more. It even has a detachable scrap bag for threads and rubbish. I added a couple of buttons and a hair tie to hold a spool of hand-quilting thread. If only it could hand me a piece of chocolate I'd never have to get up!

Happily Mister Bell perches on the other end of the couch and dispenses the chocolate, lucky me.

Quiltstory

Have you visited Quiltstory yet? This beautiful site made by Heather and Megan is a showcase of fabulous quilts from around the world, and the stories behind their creation.

It's site for dedicated quilters, so there are lots of great, detailed pictures, and details of patterns and fabrics, as well as where the quilters find their inspiration. If you look down my sidebar you'll see their button!

Heather and Megan, who designs quilts as "Fresh Poppy Designs", ran a giveaway in May to launch the Quiltstory site, and guess who was the lucky winner of not one, but five of their beautiful quilt patterns, which use a combination of piecing and appliqué? Yes, me again! I've been very lucky!  I'm trying to decide which one I'll do first- I think 'Serenity Now', pictured right. That gives me a few months before I get started on the Christmas quilt patterns, "Deck the Halls" and "Oh Christmas Tree".

Thank you Heather and Megan! I look forward to reading lots more on Quiltstory as I work away on my new patterns!

Commuter Cars

Normally the last thing you'd want to hear from your son is "Mum, I've rolled the car!".

But when that car is a Matchbox car and the roll is made using My Little Gems' Car Cozie tutorial you can breathe a sigh of relief! Sharla's tutorial was really easy to follow, and the result is great, as you can see.

This roll is made for our little friend Michael from Sydney, who is very keen on cars. He likes to bring his favorites when he visits his Oma and Grumpy in Melbourne.

The Dinosaur Ate My Pyjamas

I'm very lucky to have a supportive partner who looks after the Bug while I go to sewing afternoons and evenings. I've just been away for a whole indulgent weekend while Mister Bell and the Bug had a boys' weekend together. But boys must have still been in the back of my mind because...

Weekend Project 1: Dinosaur pyjama case for the Bug

Weekend Project 2: Made By Rae's toddler backpack with cars and trucks (like this one) for Little Michael's second birthday

Weekend Project 3: My Little Gems' Car Cozie for Big Ben's Birthday

After a great weekend, it was lovely to come home to my menfolk, and also to hear what a lovely 'boys' weekend' they'd had!

Bearpaw's on Etsy!

Have you discovered Bearpaw's blog yet? Well rush over there right now to see the unique quilts and crochet by this talented crafter from Edinburgh! I first discovered Jo's blog through the Bloggers Quilt Festival, and now I'm a regular reader.
 
The Bearpaw Etsy shop has just opened, and to celebrate the opening and her Blogiversary, Ms Bearpaw is having a giveaway. Head over and take a look. Happy Blogiversary, Jo!

Veg About meets Mister Linky!

Do you have a vegie patch? What's in it? We want to know!

The Veg About is getting down to earth with a simple new style. With just three steps, it's quick, easy and fun!

1) Stick the Veg About button on your sidebar (instructions below*)

2) Below the button on your sidebar, make a list of what's in your vegie patch at the moment. You can tell us what's in your patch, your pot, even a saucer of seeds on the windowsill!  (instructions below**)

3)  Link to Mister Linky below. And you're done!





* How to add the button to your sidebar: 

Need to know how to put the Veg About button in your sidebar? I followed Flossy-p's instructions for the Blogtoberfest button- she explains it really clearly and it works a treat. The URL to link to is http://bellgirl.com.au/2008/10/veg-about.html, so that people can find out how to join. Here's Flossy-P's instructions: http://flossy-p.blogspot.com/2008/10/fly-flag.html

** How to add the list your your sidebar (using Blogger):

When you've added your button to your sidebar, go to the design page, Click "add a Gadget", select the option for "List" (you could do a "Link list" if you want to link to a post or picture- whatever takes your fancy). Then drag and drop this gadget below where you put the button. Finally, go to "View Blog" to write and edit your list. (Sorry the instructions are a bit hasty, I'll update them soon, just leave any questinos in the comments below.

Looking forward to visiting your Veg About patch!

Living the Good Life at Casa Taccola

I've just spent a fabulous weekend at the Taccola homestead, near Woodend, enjoying the warm hospitality of Taccolina, Mr Tacc and Toby the dog, and the fine company of sewing friends Karen and Reenie-Su.

I didn't take enough photos since I was too busy:

a) looking out the bathroom window at Hanging Rock (pictured right)

b) eating delicious cheese, chocolate, dips, soups and lovely stew

c) walking down the neighbours' landing strip

d) sewing in front of the open fire, and of course

e) chatting chatting chatting!

Along with the manifold pleasures of the homestead, we also enjoyed some special events. On Saturday Mr Tacc gave us a slideshow of quilts from Woodstock in Ontario, Canada, including a lovely Red Cross log cabin quilt which was discovered in a shed keeping a tractor warm! Then on Sunday we visited Castlemaine. At the Farmers' Market I bought some pumpkins and some dubious milk, pictured left (actually worm 'tea' for the vegie patch!).

We also visited the quilting shop Threadbear, then went a bit mad at the 'button shop', Habadash! See the 'lolly shop window' to the right and the girl with the button coronet, above.

And did any sewing get done? Oh yes! Here's a happy Bug with his new dinosaur pyjama case- I'll give a closer look in another post.


Thank you Taccola family, for sharing the good life you've found!