Multitasking Fail

I thought I'd be smart and take a break from the Scrappy Tripalong so that I could dig into the Cuzco quilt I've been planning since November. All the fabrics are sitting there ready to go, the pattern is downloaded onto my iPad, and so I thought I was all set.

Apparently not. Forgot to buy binding. Misread the instructions and cut some of the Layer Cake squares for the setting triangles, only to find I should have used larger squares...so that's five squares wasted that would have brightened up the quilt a little. Then went to start piecing the rows, only to realise you need to trim the squares down to 9.5".

 

Big fail today! It could be the heat, it could be the fact I'm a bit stressed (this year has not run smoothly so far). The pattern is very well written, so I only have myself to blame for misreading it.

 

On the upside, it's coming together really quickly! In less than two hours I've got all the strips cut, and the major rows pieced. Just need to piece the sashing rows, and sort out my triangle dilemma. I'm thinking maybe a little bit of Fandango might just save the day. I might retreat back to my scrappy blocks for a little while...

Four More

A couple more blocks for the Scrappy Trip Around the World.

Glad I finally found some dark blue to include!

Instagram hash tag is #scrappytripalong if you want to take part.

Scrappy Trip Around The World

I took the plunge yesterday and started in on this quilt along. I started cutting strips from fat quarters and a a handful of scraps. It's made me realise there are a few colours missing from my collection, namely dark blues and all types of green! It's going to be a very pink/blue quilt.

I got four blocks whipped up quite quickly; I'm not hurrying this project, especially as I'm starting a Cuzco quilt as well.

If you want to join in, the hash tag on Instagram is #scrappytripalong, and instructions can be found by googling 'scrappy trip around the world'.

2012 BOM Block Seven

Welcome to 2013!

Block 7 arrived over Christmas, and despite it being 40c today, I plugged myself in at the sewing machine. My pressing leaves a little to be desired, it's top hot!

Block 7 is "moonlight serenade" by Sandy Gervais.

I've also been taken in by the 'scrappy tripalaong' which has been booming over on Instagram. It's such a simple idea with stunning results. So I've dug out all the random fat quarters I've collected over the last few years, and am hoping to dig in as soon as the temperature drops.

Vintage Modern Hopscotch

What can I say except, finished!

I've lost track of just how long I've plodded away on this quilt for, but I know it was quite a few months. Hopefully I'll be a little more productive in 2013.

Fabric is Vintage Modern by Bonnie and Camille for Moda
Pattern is Hopscotch by Thimble Blossoms (ie. Camille)

Definitely one of my favourites ever.

Hope everyone has awesome plans for NYE, all the best for 2013!

Merry Christmas

Well the big day is here...Merry Christmas to everyone! It's a fairly quiet one here; we all took lunch in to eat in the hospital with my grandma. I've never seen her eat a meal so quickly!

I've had a few present disasters here; an online store wrapped and sent the wrong item, so poor mum opened her gift to find not what she expected. Won't be able to get that fixed till mid-January either unfortunately.

Did a little last minute baking; love homemade shortbread!

I use this recipe; but make sure you only bake them for 15-20 minutes, the 45 minutes in the recipe will give you charcoal!

Whoops!

I was being such a good blogger, then I got busy and my blog got neglected, sorry! My grandma had surgery just over a week ago, and things have been very up and down since then. I'd never realised how tiring it was being so stressed for so long, but all I've done this weekend is sleep. When I visited her this morning they had her up on her feet, and she was sounding quite cheerful, so I'm feeling very pleased!

Safe to say though that there hasn't been much craftiness happening here. I did get the binding on my Hopscotch quilt, but I'll be taking it with me on holidays to hand-stitch it down.

My Christmas tree is up and looking a little sparse (Miss Bella is a fan of the crash-tackle so we keep it minimal), but I've done almost all my shopping so it does look a little like we have the Christmas spirit around here.

I also had my Christmas party this week at the Langham Hotel...very swish!

I received a surprise delivery of Fig Tree's Avalon this week, and should have some more Cluck Cluck Sew patterns arriving soon...but I'm definitely looking forward to a break once Christmas is done, so I'll be shutting the shop for a week and a bit.