Urban Stitches - Melbourne

Last weekend was Urban Stitches - Melbourne and a couple of friends and I went along for a fun filled day of stitching.  We had a lovely time stitching, chatting, seeing all the samples and shopping at Under the Mulberry Tree & Winter Wood.  It was great to meet and talk to the designers Jodie Carleton (Ric Rac), Melanie McNeice (Melly & Me), Rosalie Quinlan (Rosalie Quinlan designs) and Simone Gooding (May Blossom) and be shown some great tips and techniques too. 
We were given a fantastic bag of goodies including some lovely new designs by each of them - fully kitted plus Cosmo threads, needles, and a wonderful stitching book & magazine too. 
Here are some photos of the designers displays - I just love everything and wish I had the time to make it all! 

 

And here are samples of the patterns we were given.

 

 

A great day - thankyou Jenelle & Cindy for a lovely day out!  A big thankyou to the designers and Under the Mulberry Tree for putting on this wonderful day.

 

Happy sewing!

Jody

 



 

Owl bag

Another owl bag I made recently.  This is a Melly &  Me design which I just love.  I have made one or two before. 

I also used some gorgeous fabric from the new 'toy tales' fabric line by Melly & Me too which I bought from my local patchwork shop - Riviera Patchwork.  Love this fabric - it's just gorgeous with the little love birds on it and the stripe has a lovely range of colours in it too.

And this is what my daughter has been up to lately - horse riding! 

She has wanted to ride a pony for quite a while now - and so I finally gave in and took her to Coonawarra where she went for a pony lead 2 weeks ago and then again for longer today.  She just LOVED it!!!  We are going for a trail ride (yes - that means me too!!) next week - and she just can't wait to get back there.  They pony's name is Abby that she rode - and she just loves her.  She is a beautiful little pony. 
Have a lovely day - and happy sewing!
Jody

Babuska Doll

The lovely Anita passed on this link to me for a free pattern and tutorial to make a Babushka doll.  Just click HERE to go to a blog called Sew, Cook, Laugh & Live for the pattern and tutorial.  I made this for my daughter's friend as part of her birthday present a couple of weeks ago.  It's a very simple pattern and is great to use up some fabric/ribbon/trimming scraps from your stash - and I certainly have ALOT of those! 

Also - an update on the 'Chick-sicle' on my last post - it works REALLY WELL!  I have started doing Family Day Care over the last couple of months and the children in my care have used it and also my own kids have used this very 'Cool Chick'.  It gets the thumbs up from them - as it is cool and soft on their bumps & bruises and comforting to hold and cuddle.  So a great idea - thanks to Suzanne for her free pattern and tutorial.
Happy Sewing everyone!
Jody

Friday Night with Friends

Cheryll over at Gone Stitchin' hosted 'Friday Night with Friends' last night so I thought I would join in. 

I made this 'Chick-sicle' which is a rice filled cooling pad for children.  I thought this was a great idea.  You keep these in the freezer and the frozen rice inside the chick-sicle can be used in place of a ice  pack for children.  I'm sure they would much rather use this to help soothe a bump or bruise as it's cute and fun and alot more appealing to a child than a boring old ice pack.  I'll let you know how successful it is if and when I need to get it out of the freezer!  I found this tutorial and pattern over at http://justanotherhangup.blogspot.com.au/2011/03/rice-filled-cooling-pad-for-children.html  You can go to her Etsy store to purchase the pattern - it's only $5.00 and I think well worth it.  (Note : this used to be free tutorial - but it has now changed to be a downloadable pattern)
Happy sewing!
Jody

Merry Xmas and a Very Happy New Year!

I know it has been way too long since my last post...but I have still been sewing!  Grab a cuppa and I'll show you what sewing I've been up to.  First of all I wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!  I hope your Christmas has been wonderful and you have been able to spend time with family and friends.  We have had a lovely, relaxing Christmas and I have eaten way too much over the last week!  I definitely need to get back to the gym now and work off those chocolates and Christmas dinners! 
This first photo is of my daughter and a little purse that she made.  I managed to go along to the Australian Quilt Market in Melbourne with my local patchwork shop 'Riviera Patchwork' (a huge Thankyou to Gayle for letting me tag along and 'help' her).  We saw heaps and heaps of fabrics (how on earth do you choose just some of them to stock in the shop?) and heaps of new patterns too.  We met up with the designers and a had a look at their new designs and talked about what they've been up to. 
I found this little purse kit there and brought it home for my daughter to make up.  All the fabric, threads and purse closure was included.  My daughter and I sat down and made it up over a couple of days - and she managed to do the hand blanket stitching herself too.  I think it looks lovely.
This is from Dali Zakka (http://dalizakka.blogspot.com)

   
The next photos is of another Mini Magoo (a Melly & Me pattern) I made up recently - I think this is a cute little pattern and perfect as a present for a newborn. 

Now - to the Christmas Presents!  My son asked me a couple of months ago if I could make him an Angry Bird.  Now if you are not familiar with Angry Birds - it is a free App you can get on your smart phone or ipone.  He loves playing this game and is often asking if he can use our phones to play the game.  They have lots of Angry Bird toys and things you can buy from the shops - but he really wanted me to make him one.  So here is my version of an Angry Bird that I made for him for Christmas.  It's made of polar fleece and so is nice an cuddly.

He was VERY happy with it and said he just LOVES it which makes it all worthwhile! 
For my daughter I made up a Jodie Carleton (from Ric Rac) design called Little Red.  She is made using a wool fabric for her body (called Doctor's flannel - which I sourced from Ballarat Patchwork).  The other fabrics for her dress (is the Woodland range - which is definitely a favourite of mine) and the cape fabrics came from my local patchwork shop Riviera Patchwork. 

My daughter LOVES her and loves the details of her shoes and laces and the little basket of carrots and strawberries she is carrying.  I spend many late nights making her and trying to keep it secret so it was a big surprise on Christmas day.  I definitely succeeded there - as she had no idea about my secret late night sewing! 
I also made these cute little Christmas decorations as pressies.  They are from Rosalie Quinlan's Petit Noel book.  I used the left over doctor's flannel fabrics for the bodies and felt for the hats and scarves. 

And lastly I also made another Kinder girl (Ric Rac design).  I do love these dolls.  They are very lovable and just the right size for a child to hold and play with.  She is made from doctor's flannel too and the dress fabric is also from the Woodland range (told you it was one of my favourites!). 

 

I did also make one of the stitchery hearts from the Petit Noel book (but didn't get time to take a photo) and another one of my Christmas Birds as teacher's gifts. 
So now you're all up to date!  That's the sewing I've been doing lately - and I still have a few more items on the go (but don't we all!).  Have a great New Year and I hope to be back sooner - rather than later - next time. 
Happy Sewing!
Jody

Two Birthday's, a frog and a lovey dovey!

Both my little man and my bigger man celebrated their birthday's yesterday.  It was nice as the kids had a curriculum day off school on Monday and today was Melbourne Cup Day holiday so we were all able to spend the last two days home together.  They both seemed to have a really great birthday filled with lots of presents and yummy food and just relaxing at home.  We all had a wonderful time.  For my little man Lego was a big hit in the present department as well as games for the Wii and a DS.  He and I have spent the last two days building his lego sets and it has been great quality time spent together.    Having my bigger man around always makes me happy and it has been great for him to spend some family time with us.  I love these times of the year!  Here they are about to blow out the candles on their cake.

I managed to find some time to make my little man a present for his birthday.  This is Archie (a Ric Rac design) or as my son and I call him - the Super Hero frog!  I have made this design a few times before and each time my son has wanted one for himself - so I am very pleased I was able to make him his own Super Hero frog.

I also managed to finish off this sweet little babies toy - a Lovey Dovey.  This is a cute little cat face that is attached to a blankie body and is made from polar fleece so nice and soft and cuddly - just right for a little one.  This design is by Abby Glassenberg and you can download the pattern from her Etsy store.  It comes is four animal designs - a rabbit, dog, cat and bear.  I love this pattern. Both my kids have a teddy/blankie toy which they have had since birth - I only wish that I had been able to make this for them back then!         

 

 

Have a lovey day and happy sewing everyone!

 

Jody

Owl cushion & a fairy mushroom house

I wanted to make up a floor cushion for the kids and found this great fun design at Claire Turpin Design.  It is called 'a Family of Owls'.  I was able to buy and download the pattern off her Etsy store - so no waiting for it to arrive in the mail! 

I used cotton drill for the main fabric on the front and back and then was able to go through my stash and found enough fabric to make up the owl applique on the front.  It makes up into a 50cm x 50cm cushion which is a nice size for them to use when sitting on the floor reading, playing a board game or something like that.
I also found a great free tutorial and pattern from Browyn at Red Brolly to make up a Fairy mushroom house pincushion.  I thought it would be a great project for my daughter to do over these school holidays so I downloaded it and slightly enlarged the pattern so it would be easier for her to make.  We used fabric glue to stick on the felt shapes and then she used her sewing machine to sew the roof and the house together. 

 

 

I think it came out well and she loved making it.  It would also make up into a very sweet pincushion so I may just have to make up the original size one too! 
Happy sewing!
Jody

Feeding the calves & Mini Magoo

Well it has been school holidays over the last week and it has been great fun.  We have spent time just relaxing at home and doing things around the farm with the kids.  It's nice to have a break from the usual busy morning routine and rushing out the door to get the kids to school on time. 
Here are a couple of photos of the kids. We have quite a few poddy calves and the kids asked if they can each have a calf to feed and raise. 

 

 

So they now have their own calf that they have to feed every morning and night.  They are really enjoying this and have been very dedicated and are doing really well feeding them every day.

I also managed to finish the softie to fit the dress from my last post.  So here she is - this is my Mini Magoo (a Melly & Me design). 

It was fun to make her and I think she is a great size and I love her little dress, and the flower on her head. 

Hope you all are having a great school holiday break too.
Jody

FNSI Results

I worked on a couple of things for this Friday Night Sew In.   I did some more work on my stitchery and then also make this dress for a softie toy. 

The dress will fit a Mini Magoo (Melly & Me design)  monkey.  So now I just have to get the monkey made up! 
Have a look at what everyone else got up to for the Friday Night Sew In.
Happy Sewing!
Jody

Friday Night Sew In

It's Friday Night Sew In tonight - so time to get out some of those projects and get a little more work done on them. 

So click on this link HERE and join in the fun!
Happy Sewing!
Jody

Time for some Stitching....

Well I have finally found some time to do a little stitching!  After looking after my daughter, husband and then son when they got this nasty cold & flu that has been going around - it finally got me!  So I have spent the last few days not doing very much and when I was able to drag myself out of bed I sat on the couch and got out my stitching.  I had forgotten how much I enjoy just sitting down and stitching and have decided this is definitely something I should do more often (although next time I would rather not have this nasty cold!).  So I managed to make some progress on this stitchery project that we received in our gift bags when we went to the Urban Stitches day in Melbourne in July.  This is a Melly & Me design called 'Birds of a Feather'. 

They have also just announced Urban Stitches for 2013!  This year the designers will be Rosalie Quinlan, Melanie Dekker, Jodie Carleton & Simone Gooding.  So if you feel like a day out with friends - stitching, laughing, indulging in a beautiful lunch, morning and afternoon tea and chocolates (YUM!) then you better get in quick and book your spot for next year as they do get booked out fast.  We have managed to book our spots again for next year - so it should be great fun.  We are also going to another stitching day next year that has also just been announced called 'Friends in Stitches'  with Leanne Beasley, Natalie Lymer and Gail Pan - which is going to be held in July 2013 at the same great destination - the Novotel in Glen Waverley.   So again if you want another great day out you had better book your spot quickly. 

I also had some time to organise some of my threads - here are just some of my Cosmo threads all nicely wound around these cute little wooden spools.  I found these from Quilt Fabric Delights and they hold one skein of thread just nicely. 
Today has been just beautiful - the sun has been shining and your can really feel that Spring is here.  I couldn't help but take a few shots of some of our cows and calves we have on our property. 

These girls are calving and these calves you see here are only a couple of days old.
So now I am off to continue my stitching and try and get rid of the last of this nasty cold. 
Happy sewing!
Jody

Bunting & a Garden Apron

Here are another couple of things I have just finished recently.  I made this Garden Apron as a birthday present for my Mum - it is from Homespun Magazine (Vol 13 No. 8).  I made a few changes to the original pattern to suit what I thought Mum might use it for. 

I made three pockets on one side (to fit small hand garden tools - like your trowel, cultivator & weeder) and then the pocket to the right will fit her secateurs.  I also used cotton drill fabrics to make it more durable.  She was very happy with it!  Now I'll just have to make one for myself - saves me keeping the secateaurs in my back pocket when I'm out in the garden!
I also made this bunting - great way to use up some fabric scraps!  I'll use these on our stall at the makers markets to jazz it up a bit. 

Happy Sewing!
Jody

A Finish - finally!

Last night was the Friday Night Sew In and I managed to finally finish my Woodland Faeries stitchery, place it over a canvas and hang it up for my daughter. 

You may have seen this project a couple of times on my blog as a work in progress.  I was so pleased to finally finish it and hang it on the wall!  This was a free pattern from the Lecien website by Natalie Lymer of Cinderberry Stitches.
Happy Sewing!
Jody

Friday Night Sew In

It's Friday Night Sew In again tonight, so come on - get out some of those projects and join in the fun! 

Make sure you drop back on Saturday and see what we all got up to!
Happy Sewing,
Jody

Urban Stitches Melbourne

Last weekend I went with 2 of my lovely friends down to Urban Stitches in Melbourne.  It was at the Novatel in Glen Waverley - great location and easy to find.  Melanie Dekker of "Melly & Me", Leanne Beasley of "Leannes House" and Rosalie Quinlan of  "Rosalie Quinlan Designs" were the three designers there.  They all had their beautiful samples & quilts on display which were just amazing.  I don't know how these ladies find the time to do all this amazing work!  We also received goodie bags filled with three fully kitted patterns - one from each designer, plus all the threads, some fabrics, needles and scissors.   We had a lovely day stitching, shopping (Under the Mulberry Tree had a shop setup) and indulging in a beautiful lunch and just relaxing and taking some time out for ourselves. 

Just some of the samles and quilts on display

My lovey friends Jenelle & Lisa

More samples

I managed to start stitching Melly's project which is a beautiful bag with embroidery on the front called 'Birds of a Feather'.  Thanks girls for a lovely day out stitching!

Happy Sewing!

Jody