I Love Pink!

Pink is one of my favourite colours, and has been since I was a little girl. So it's no surprise that the fabrics I treated myself to are all pink, and so pretty!

I was very happy to spot the bulging parcel on my doorstep this arvo. Up top is one of the pink Marmalade florals which is going to be a quilt backing.

And at the bottom is a lot of the Simply Color pink ombré fabric for the I Heart You quilt. The middle print is also Simply Color, for the binding. Pink makes me happy! What's your favourite colour?

Friday Fancies and FebFast

I'm running around like a headless chook today, with lots to get one before a busy weekend. But I always manage to sneak in a little fabric time; today was the day I finally got my Cuzco quilt basted. I absolutely adore the backing I chose for this quilt. It's the whole reason I wanted to use Cuzco. Of course, I had help from my trusty and rather furry assistant.

The other thing I've been doing this month is FebFast. That means a whole 28 days without alcohol, with all proceeds going to programs that tackle alcohol and drug issues in young people. There's only a week to go, and I've been a bit slow on the fundraising, so if anyone would like to support a good cause I'd be most appreciable. Even $1 makes a difference; donations can be made here. 

First market of the year this weekend; I'll be at Mulgrave Maker's Market on Sunday from 8am-1pm. Looks like it's going to be a lovely day.

Home

After four days of being told when I could eat, drink, sleep and leave the house (seriously!), its nice to be home. Which was topped off with a free bottle of bubbles on the flight home due to our in flight entertainment not working.

I arrived home to a few goodies on the doorstep, including this lovely tub of Liberty fabric I won from Ric Rac. It certainly brightened up my day.

Bella is also ecstatic to be home again; lots of kitty cat cuddles to be had.

I've got some more new fabric on they way to me; I want to make Vanessa's 'I heart you' quilt sometime in the near future. But first I need to get my Cuzco quilt quilted!

Now I've got a few days to get myself organised for market; I'll be at Mulgrave this Sunday from 8am till1pm. I've got lots of new pretties including Summersville Spring charm packs to show off.

Away

I'm half way through my four-day weekend in Brisbane, and while its nice to be away, I'm already looking forward to going home. I'm one of those people that likes to spend time on their own, and I'm really missing out on my alone-time.

It's already been a busy couple of days. I've babysat a few young family members, who live right along side the river with the most gorgeous view.

And eaten yummy cupcakes made by their mum.

I have lunch with a lovely group of older ladies, though I was the youngest by at least 30 years!

And I made a sneaky visit to a quilt shop that I happened to drive past. Even though I have my own shop, I don't stock every fabric and I love to support other local businesses. Even before I'd got out of the car I spotted a quilt I liked. It turned out to be Star Blossoms by Cotton Way, so I snapped up the pattern and the border fabrics.

I also found a fat eighth bundle of Marmalade that I'll tuck into my stash. I love this range!

Two more days then back to reality!

Struggling

I know most bloggers like to paint a rosy picture of their lives; all the good bits and none of the bad stuff. But the last few months have drained me physically and emotionally and I've reached the point where I can say, no, I'm not ok. I'm so tired one hour at the gym feels like a marathon, and I count down the hours till I can escape work. I've done no sewing, and no gardening lately, because I just don't have the energy.

We were so hopeful at Christmas that my grandma was recovering well and would get to go home. She has gone downhill the last few weeks and is no longer the grandma I recognise. She is an angry, tantrum-throwing woman who tried to physically attack my mum last night. The only option now is high-level, full-time care.

The constant reminders of Valentines Day tomorrow are a kick in the guts...I'd been looking forward to spending it with someone I thought was pretty special. It's one thing to know you don't belong together, it's another to be ok with it.

And I discovered yesterday that my boss is using me as his 'fall guy'. He is blaming me for something that I have it in writing that he asked me to do. It's not the first time and it probably won't be the last, but I'm not sure whether to say something to HR or sit on it for now.

So I'm wrecked. The good news is I won a Liberty giveaway which I'm very excited about, and I'm escaping north for the weekend. The break will do me the world of good and hopefully I'll be back here next week with a smile on my face.

Blog Special: Rainy Days and Mondays

I love being able to do exclusive sales here on my blog; today I bring you Riley Blake's Rainy Days and Mondays. These fabrics have an RRP of $24 per meter but I'm clearing them out for just $15 per meter. I have approximately 8m of each print and I'm happy to sell them by the meter or in fat quarter bundles of your choosing.

Postage is $2 for 1m, $6.20 for up to 3m, and $10.55 for more than 3m. Invoices will be sent via PayPal.

From top to bottom are: Raindrop Squares. Raindrops. Umbrella Tops.Retro Umbrellas.

From top to bottom are: Yellow Umbrella. Pink Raindrop. Green Umbrella. Pink Umbrella.

Honey Honey

It's been warm this week, so it's been quiet in sewing terms, but I hate leaving my blog quiet for too long...

Honey Honey pre-cuts by the lovely Kate Spain arrived on my doorstop today. This is such a gorgeous fabric range, I wish I'd got more of it.

I snuck in a little sewing yesterday between episodes of Gossip Girl (it was one of those days) and finished up a few Cat in the Hat cushions for my upcoming market; the first of the year!

And because every girl needs a girls night out occasionally, I hit the city with one of my good friends for a little chocolate therapy....

Much Better!

I couldn't help myself...blame the Virgo in me, I have a problem with being perfect sometimes. I pulled out the block that was bugging me, divided it in half and re-stitched it. The green is now a little less obvious then it was, though it still seems to stand out in photos. I can rest easy now!

Excuse the hose, was being a bit lazy...

Not too much else acheived today; I'm working on some cushions for the first market of the year but they aren't done yet. I also helped my mum out by building her some Ikea shelves...I think Bella has a new favourite spot!

Scrappy Tripalong

You can call me Miss Determined! A little bit of spare time this afternoon and all my Scrappy Trip Around the World rows are now a quilt!

Boy is it big! Any thoughts on quilting it? No more lines for me just yet, maybe a stipple, we'll see.

There's one block that really stands out (with a green centre). It's not quite as obvious in person as it seems in the photos. Hmmm, do I unpick and readjust that block? If I shift the green off-centre it might not be quite so obvious...

Friday Fancies

Today is a little more sedate than the madness that was Wednesday. After a late night catching up with my lovely Canadian friend, I had a bit of a late snooze this morning, then headed out with Millie for a bit of a walk. What is with this weather! It's quite chilly and wet which is not what summer is meant to be about.

I finally finished a couple of wheat bags I've been meaning to make for my next market; the fabrics are Summer in the City by Urban Chiks and Bliss by Bonnie and Camille.

And....I finally cleared the loungeroom floor so I could play with my scrappy tripalong blocks! Though keeping Bella away from them (she thinks her job is "block randomiser") is a bit of a task. I think there will be a few final tweaks, and a bit of seam re-pressing then I might get the rows together today.

There's also been a couple of deliveries for the shop this week: Happy-Go-Lucky pre-cuts (Bonnie and Camille for Moda), and the new Thimble Blossoms patterns to go with the fabric range (yardage due in May).