Paper piecing...the scary version?

Work has started back after the Christmas break, but there are still a few things to catch up on.

Here is Lea's sewing bag that I made her for Christmas...I ran out of time, so gave it to her with my needle, thread and scissors inside...then completed sewing in the base after she had opened it...she had a good laugh!

Not really knowing why, I started collecting the ends of my sewing threads in a jar beside my chair a few months back...it is amazing what a big clump there is, so I have started collecting again for this year...now I know I must have been sewing even if I don't feel I have achieved anything very much.

A few months ago I began a paper piecing club, starting with civil war repros (which were lovely), I craved a bit more colour. So now I am piecing with brighter fabrics and having lots of fun...

 this fun fabric was purchased on my recent trip to MO (Lea thinks it is a bit scary but I love it!)...

and some others.

Heading off to have dinner with some dear friends tonight...lovely to catch up as it has been MONTHS since I last saw them...really looking forward to it.

Hope all is well at your place!

Cardygirl xx

What could this mean?

Super cute bag from Anni Downs' new book..."Some Kind of Wonderful"...great travel size...hmmm?

I used some Denyse Schmidt scraps and some linen from the stash. Anni's version had some embroidery, but I can barely sit still at present, let alone embroider...I think this looks okay though.

It is machine quilted and I love the lining fabric...it is full of goodies. I added a little lady beetle as a zip pull...I bought it a couple of years ago whilst visiting Beijing.

Loading some new music this evening...scared the oh so grown up offspring with a "youth attack"...oh I felt twenty again...loud singing..."Ita" and "Cheap Wine"and "Teach your children"...where did the years go?

Sounds like I need a break away!

 Cardygirl xx

Perfect for summer!

Some Verna and a great bag pattern from Nanette at Freda's Hive has resulted in this summer prettiness. I think the hardest part was finding handles as I did not want cloth ones.

I love the way it looks so fresh &the lime jumbo ric rac was perfect.
Does it make you feel like summer? It is so horribly hot here at present...every day above 40C...garden has suffered...hope it ends soon!  Amazing that some have snow, some rain & we have  this heat!

Cardygirl xx

Fun project bag!

A belated birthday gift for my dear stitching buddy, Lea. I have had fun making it & I know she will love it...

lots of fun American Jane fabrics...I do seem to have a couple or more hanging around! It is such a cute project bag...designed by Natalie Ross..."All my favorite things". Vintage button courtesy of my Mum.

Sydney Craft & Quilt Show is currently on at Darling Harbour...hope we find time to get there!

Coming up to a milestone blog...what could it be?

Cardygirl xx

Bella bag...done!

The French General bag is finished...I am quite pleased with it...I love reds!

The pattern is by Fig Tree Quilts- Bella bag.

The fabric has been complete for a couple of weeks, but I have been waiting for the handles to arrive.

Nice & roomy...I would be happy to do this pattern again.

Lovely cooler night for sleeping & snuggling with cats.

After our recent humidity it was nice to need a blanket. A little rain too!

Cardygirl xx

Cake & a catch up.

My dear friend Lea has returned home after a month holidaying in Africa. She is my stitching buddy & it has felt like she has been gone for sooooo long...she rang me from near Cape Town after Dad died...I miss her cheery company & fabric advice! We caught up with some other stitching friends a few nights ago...lots of laughter, some stitching & some very good cake! Her stories were amazing... a more detailed photo night is yet to come!

Lea gave me this lovely bag from Sth Africa for my recent birthday...handmade out of Tshirt fabric on a hessian backing...so very cute!
I am feeling inspired to stitch again...phew! I was missing it! I am making this bag from a Monica Poole pattern that Julie gave me & a FQ from the Nundle birthday bundle- it will look like a little doctors bag! I might end up with a couple of projects from my Nundle FQ swap...how is that Chooky?

Cardygirl xx

A drum roll please!

Thankyou all for your support & good wishes for my 100th blog.

I celebrated it quietly but still have a giveaway for those that wished me well!

Here is the random number selector....

to win this handbag...

the winner...Cathy of Cabbage Quilts.

I hope you like it. Send me your address & it will be on it's way to you!

Cardygirl xx

A big day!

A big day in the Cardy household...my 18yr old baby graduates from High School ready to do his final exams & move on to the next phase of his life! It seems like only yesterday that he was the tearful boy not wanting to be left at preschool....in actual fact he was standing on the jungle gym kicking out at the teachers & screaming " Mummy don't leave me!" Now I am no longer the centre of his world, he is big & hairy, but I still miss the little boy that was! But then, I am proud of the man he has become...and I am glad he is self confident & independent! He will look lovely in his new shirt & tie...

And I am taking the evening bag I made for DD's graduation...smocked black dupion silk.

Wish me luck with the waterproof mascara!

Cardygirl xx

Bags...check!

The day held promise...DH away & DS at school...home alone & the washing is done! Don't mention the ironing or dirty windows though! So off to the sewing room I trundled...things to do...things to do! My non blogging friend Lea wouldn't come & play as she said she had big sewing plans too!

                                             

So then I started....finished the BonBon bag which I was making for a work colleagues retirement gift....I love the colours & the chocolate zip... I have made quite a few of them now...they are great as knitting or project bags...& they are so cute!

  Then I made a start on another Thelma bag...love the bright freshness of these fabrics. ..Whimsy & Mezzanine which I bought at Blueberries. Now I just need to find a vintage buckle & it is ready to go.

Dear Lea picked me up as I needed a photo ID for one of my jobs & I showed her the bags...she had been distracted by Sudoku...but she went home motivated!

It is so good to have finished something!

Cardygirl xx

Thelma bag finished....quite pleased with it...

don't know it's destination yet!

Fussing around with my SSCS pressies today....

I hope my partner likes them!

It is both fun & scary to make a gift for a stranger...

will she like it????

I want so much for her to like it...

it puts the excitement back into Christmas!

Cardygirl xx

Ding dong!

Lucky me...the postman has a delivery! It's a squishie for me...yay!
An indulgence, but welcome nonetheless...

these are for a quilt...fun & bright

...the makings of another Thelma bag...I saw this gorgeous one that Maree made & it reminded me of how great a pattern it is.
I had made one for DD for Christmas. I have had the vintage buckles sitting around for a while...waiting for the "right" project!

Better head to the sewing room!

Cardygirl xx

Sweet things

Well, the computer is pretty much organised...lots of work that was quite confusing for my only techno basic brain! Lots of talk of disc partitions & allocating what to what drive! I think all I did was "drive" DH nearly mad.

So here is a catchup on the last few days...

a pretty button for the Ruthie's clutch bag...

some brown sugar & cinnamon cupcakes for DD to take back to uni...

some more sweet things (inedible)...
which are growing like this...and some sweet garden blooms which always remind me of the ones my grandparents grew.

Cardygirl xx

Oh where,oh where...

A bit of time available to stitch...hmmm...might attack those gorgeous fabrics I bought last week at Blueberries...another Thelma bag would be great....but where is the pattern?
I searched high & low...not a sign of it...maybe a stitching buddy has it?

Don' t you just hate that?

But I did make the bag for DD...just waiting for a nice vintage button to put on it...I will find something I am sure!

I might start to play with this cute pattern...one for DD & perhaps one for a friend's daughter who will soon be 21...she loves vintage.

Looks like stitching is on the return here...hope all is well wherever you are!

Cardygirl xx

Stitching & celebrations!

Busy days, not a lot of stitching going on!

Gradually getting over the very effective virus that laid me low over the last week...the voice is still a bit husky but on the mend.

To add insult to injury, a nastily infected tooth had to be extracted as it was destroying my jaw.

I am not a fan of the dentist at the best of times, but he has assured me that I will love him over the next few days as I start to feel better. Then I am on the very expensive merry go round of getting a dental implant when the bone heals!

Phew!

But thankfully the sanity saving stitching is there for me.

I have been doing the Tail Feathers BOM, here is the first month...

cute stitcheries.

I made mum a mug bag for her birthday, it matches her knitting bag. It holds a cute red & white spotted mug. Nice to take to her craft group.

Here is a pic of me with my sewing assistant/pattern holder.

He makes sewing interesting.

Hope you are having a good week...

Cardygirl xx

Slow progress

There has been a bit of a "go slow" on at the Cardy house!
Too much work, driving to see Mum & Dad & now I am trying to fend off a dreaded cold!

You all know the feeling, a pile of cherries "stuck" in your throat & a "big" head!

Very attractive!!!!!

I am hoping that the power of positive thinking will frighten it away...fingers crossed.

As a consequence my stitching has been progressing in a somewhat leisurely manner- not a lot happening at all. I walk into my sewing room & feel inspired, but that is as far as it is going at the moment. I will try this week for a little oomph....hehe.

Here is DD's bag...she is pleased with it!

Here is my Lakehouse fabric...WIP...applique nearly complete.

Hope your week is a productive one!
Cardygirl xx

Dolly steps

It has been very hectic in the Cardy household....but hopefully beginning to settle.
Mum is getting better & working hard at increasing her strength to mobilise,

Dad is managing well with a little help.

Small steps forward & they will adapt!

Work has consumed most of the rest of my time...

not much time for stitching unfortunately!

But,after mowing this afternoon, I managed to finish this mug bag for DD...

complete with lime green mug!

Someone, who shall remain nameless, was found investigating the bag interior...

he just can't help himself!

DD is home for a semester break...she will help me get a handle on the housework again.
Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!

DD is reading this gorgeous book..

"Backwards in High Heels- The impossible art of being female".

It looks at the expectations put on women by both society & ourselves.

It says "..Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did- only she did it backwards & in high heels." I think we all can appreciate that!

Love to all you special women!

Cardygirl xx

Birthday girl!

One of my dearest stitching gals had a birthday yesterday!So we gathered to celebrate...amazing who comes when there is the hint of a cake! A lovely evening...I made Lea a Bonbon bag for her knitting!

Stitching friends really are the best!

Cardygirl xx

Dresden done!

The Fig & Plum Dresden plate is done & in the bag....literally!
It was a lovely quick project which used all of the scraps I had & is useful as well....hmmmm...might be good for the present drawer I think.

We haven't had much rain here, lots of wind though...not pleasant at all.

Cats are wonderful creatures....always find the warm & cosy spot to pass the day....like on top of a pile of quilts!

Cardygirl xx

Decision made...

Thanks for the input re the blue wedges in the dresden plate block...as I had truly made this with scraps I had no more blues to add as balance ( I think it could have added a little zing!)...so I have taken the blue wedges out & opted for the subtler tones. Looks good & is on it's way to becoming a bag. Here is the Figgy Pudding quilt that the scraps came from...I quite like the sparkle that comes from the blues & greens.

Also, Christine is having a giveaway to celebrate her 100th post...pop over & visit her...she is coordinating the repro 9 patch swap...100 posts...what a milestone!

Cardygirl xx

Quick stitching!

The clever girls from A spoonful of sugar had this great tutorial about making Scrappy Loyalty card holders...it has been on my to do list...found a little time yesterday & whipped them up. Seriously they are VERY quick & easy! Made one for Mum, one for DD to match her Christmas handbag & one for me!

DD's Christmas bag...Thelma's Day out by Janelle Wind.

Have been stitching away at this...I can see completion on the horizon!
Hope you get some stitching time today...

Cardygirl xx