Scrap play on Sunday

When I got up this morning I did not intend to sew scraps...

The day started sedately enough, I did some needleturn applique ... and made a little progress on one of the blocks from Just takes Two. (This was a BOM from last year.)

Block 27

After feeding the animals and playing outside a bit, I sat down to lunch and browsed through 'Best of Fons and Porter Star Quilts". I suddenly realised the mini quilt I was looking at had star blocks which finished at 1 1/2 inches!!! Rising to the (self-imposed!) challenge, before I knew it I was rummaging through my smallest scraps and ignoring any other plans for the day!!

Isn't it just too cute for words?!
Finished size - 1 1/2"
Think I may have to make a few more of these - a great use for tiny scraps!!

Just so you can get an idea of the size!!

 More scrap play followed and I also put this together. I've always been fascinated with Cathedral Window blocks and came across this tutorial recently.

It needs touching up in the odd place but I am pretty happy with it.
It will make a sweet pincushion.

Today I'm linking up to Scrapbasket Sunday on Kim's Big Quilting Adventure. To play along, and visit other scrappy playing, visit here.

Thank you for visiting, happy creating, 

Friends, gifts and books

I'm still sorting through my photos from when I was on holiday.....
One of the great things about holiday-ing is the opportunity to meet people. I was so excited while at Paducah to meet fellow blogger Sharon. Sharon was doing the 365-day blog at the same time as I was, since then she has set up another blog, More Curiously.
Sharon and I got on incredibly well, and we were lucky to be able to spend a fair bit of (but not enough) time together in between classes, drooling over quilts and shopping at Paducah Quilt Week.

We went out to tea together one night and - would you believe it - spent
 the whole time talking!! Sharon's friend Julie (on the right) was really
lovely as well; it was a bonus meeting her also.

Sharon and I exchanged gifts. She made me this gorgeous little bag/purse with a matching pin cushion.

Just beautiful - and being used already....

Isn't it sweet? The pin cushion is stuffed with a mixture of walnut shells
and some layers of old woollen blanket and has a wonderful feel.

I ran out of time before I left NZ to make Sharon a gift, so sadly, I was only able to give her a few 'NZ kiwiana' bits and pieces I had gathered for her. I did make a couple of 'kiwi-flavoured' star blocks for her but forgot to photograph them.
I've already posted about my trip to Texas, to stay with Doniene and her family. Doniene was also a 365-day blogger and we also got to know each other well, before we had met. Here is Doniene's main blog.

I had a wonderful visit there, and have a beautiful wall hanging made by Doniene to remind me of the time we spent together.

Isn't it great? It is so fitting, just love it!!

I love the clever use of the 'T' block and the border fabric - perfect!

 I made Doniene a table runner which I hoped she would find a spot for in her gorgeous wooden home.

 (The kiwi was a free pattern (foundation pieced) from Regina Grewe but I'm not sure that it is still available).

On the way to the airport to start my journey home, Doniene kindly detoured so we could attend a book signing by Marie Bostwick, promoting her latest book, "Between Heaven and Texas" .
I have loved all of the Cobblestone series so it was very exciting to meet Marie and purchase her latest book... and just so fitting considering the title of the book! Marie was such a lovely bubbly person, it was really lovely to meet her.

I refrained from actually wearing my newly purchased cowboy boots while reading the book but I was so tempted!! Loved the story!! Looking forward to Marie's next one, which she says is in the pipeline.

And my cup runneth over - I also won a copy of one of the Elm Creek series books, 'The Giving Quilt' by Jennifer Chiaverini in a recent bloghop through Wendy's blog; it was waiting for me when I arrived at my brother's place.

 The other new book I have to report on is one I bought at Belle Meade Plantation while in Nashville. Apparently Belle Meade was the most influential thoroughbred stud farm in America's history, and this novel is written around the plantation. It will be fun to picture the house and the farm that I saw while reading this.

Whew, I think I am all talked out now and this post has stretched on and on!!! I'll just leave you with a photo I took yesterday. How Nigel managed to get safely up there without toppling anything over beats me!!

Precarious Cat.

 Happy stitching everyone, and thank you for visiting,

OFW and Sewing with Friends

I've had an itch lately.... to sew hexie flowers again and re-join up with One Flower Wednesday...so here it is, Wednesday evening and a hexie-flower picture...yaay....

First hexie-flower of 2013!
Showing off the beautiful Kowhai flower.

Just one hexie-flower per week and before you know it, you have a whole quilt full of them :-) Visit Karen, here at Journey of a Quilter to see more or sign up yourself.
I sewed this tonight while spending the evening with my local friends (as opposed to my on-line sewing buddies). After scratching the hexie-itch, I pulled out my pinwheels. I collected quite a pile of these last year when we did a pinwheel swap; this is the setting I have chosen to put them together with.

The photo probably doesn't show the effect fully but it is too late now for
another photo -  I got home and was excited to lay out what I have done.

With approx 66 pinwheels and about the same of the setting blocks, this is going to be a decent sized quilt. Up until tonight the sewing of these setting blocks has been done leader and ender style so it has been growing gradually... I'm looking forward to seeing it grow some more.

Tonight we also had a bit of a play with some small blocks ... I showed the ladies how to make the little blocks (shown below) Heartspun-Quilts-style (as I've gone on about before!). It was exciting to see that they enjoyed making the 2 1/2" blocks as much as I did...now everyone has been challenged with doing something with these for when we meet in a few month's time...that will be fun!

Concentrating and cutting...

Cute-cute-cute - the pattern to make them is here.

And to top off a great evening (well, actually, to start it!) we had a beautiful sky tonight...something to make up for the dull autumn weather we have been having over the past few days.

And on that happy note I will sign off. See you all next time,
happy stitching,