Soooo much to tell (and show) you :o)!!

Great news …… Bear is finally out of her brace!!! YAY!!!! This piccy is entirely symbolic you understand ….. we really need to hang on to this rather expensive contraption just in case (Heaven forbid) it should ever happen again!!! But she was happy to “throw it away” for the camera ;o)!! Poor thing is still not game to sleep without it yet … but I’m sure that will happen soon :o)!!

On a ‘not so good’ note ….. I found out recently that one of my store samples of my “Ric Rac and Roses” pattern has been pinched!!! Now, although I’m quite cross that someone would do that, I do always try to look on the bright side …. she must have liked it soooo much that she just HAD to have it :o/. Still no excuse for stealing though is it!!??! Anyway, if you should happen to spy the above bag anywhere, you’ll know it was most likely ill-gotten gains!! The one below is the one I made to replace it ….. not as pretty I don’t think, but I still like it. Just have to stitch the little lacy decals on and it’s done.The original had some really pretty ceramic rosy buttons ….. I must try to find some more of those.

I got a wonderful surprise from the mail man last week …. look what he brought me ……… These came all the way from UK … from Maria!!! Maria was my Stitcher’s Angel partner last year and we’ve kept in touch throughout the months. I’ll be visiting Maria for sure when we go over to UK next year – can’t wait :o)!!! The parcels will go under my Chrissy Tree to be opened on Christmas Day. Thanks so much Maria … I’m so glad we ‘met’ through the SA swap :o)!!

My DH and I went for a lovely drive up the coast ~ well, almost to the coast …. to Buderim, home of Buderim Patchwork!! A couple of weeks ago I was the very lucky winner of this fabulous apron made by Andrea. ….so when I found out that there was going to be a HUGE Christmas Craft Fair up there I just had to go …. and the added bonus was that I got to meet the lovely Andrea :o)…. ….. and Sheila :o) ….and lots more of the gawjus ladies from Buderim patchwork. There were loads of stalls and fabulous handwork items to be bought, we got a few Chrissy pressies for family (no piccies in case they see them) and also a couple of things for ourselves … all handmade!!How cute is that angel tree decoration …. and the cutting board, it was from the seller’s Grandmothers house. It was looking a bit sad, so I gave it a bit of a spruce up and look at it now …………… just like new!!!!… and also some very delicious baked goods …. yummmm!!! Sorry, no piccies of those , but they tasted great :o)!!! I also got some fantastic news from Andrea yesterday that I’d won first prize in their fabulous birthday giveaway!!! Thanks so much to Andrea and all the ladies at Buderim Patchwork – so excited!!!

I have some a couple of dear friends that I stitch with on a Wednesday … and this week only Valerie (no blog) could come, so our dear Bear was kind enough to fill in for Lynn :o). Here they are making some little surprise Christmas gifties for ??????. Don’t they look like they’re deep in concentration lol!!!??!

I’ve been getting a bit of stitching done to, but it’s a secret (shhhh) cos I know the lovely lady it’s for reads my blog!!! Sooo, this is all you get to see ;o) ……. Well, I think that’s all the news I have …. goodness, did you fall asleep reading all that – he he, I think my typing fingers are cramping up LOL???? He he … what a looooooong post!!!!

Take care and enjoy the rest of your weekend!!!

Hugs,

Joy :o)

Meet Eleanor!!!!

My dear Hubby took me out for a lovely drive last Sunday … we went out to Fernvale, a dear little country town west of Brisbane. Went to the Markets ~ bought loads of yummy produce and a sweet old enamel pot which is looking quite at home in my sewing room at the moment ;o).

And some yummy jams found their way home with us too ~ Apricot & Ginger … both our Mum’s are gonna love these :o)!!

Then he took me for a delish “Brunch” at the Fernvale Bakery … what a treat that was …. GAWJUS place!!! Here’s Darryl trying to decide what he’ll have ….. too much to choose from he he he ;o)…….

….. and here’s what I had….. don’t they look delish??!!! Well, let me tell you … they WERE!!! Even though one lady that was in the cafe’ thought they looked like ‘boobies’ LOL!!!!

After gorging ourselves a yummy brunch we strolled down the road to a lovely Antique shop/Tea room. And look what my wonderful hubby found on a very bottom shelf all dusty and lonely ……….

This is ELEANOR!!!

She’s a dear old lady … a Singer model 28K hand crank sewing machine born 1914 in Kilbowie, Scotland ….. Isn’t she just beautiful!!!!??!!

Oh that’s a silly question, of course she is LOL. And look, she’s like Barbie, she even comes with her own house………

[[[[[Sigh]]]]]]] I love her!!!!

I’d better be off and do some stitching …… have a great day!!!

Pretty Mail!!!

Look what came in the mail last week!!! There was a little bit of a mix up when i joined up for the Stitcher's Angel swap ~ lucky me, I got 2 Angels he he he. Well it was eventually all sorted and Helen rearranged things ... but Cory (my original Angel) wrote me an email saying she'd like to send me a gift anyway (how sweet is that!!!??) .... so we decided to do a little 'secret swap' of our own :o)!! Of course, when I was opening my gawjus goodies there was Sophie with a ringside seat ~ didn't want to miss a thing LOL!!! And look what I found when I opened the packages...........

How absolutely DELIGHTFUL is this!!!???!! This looks good enough to eat!!! My very own Cherry Pie pincushion ..... I LOVE it!!! Cory also sent me some sweet "Pin~cesses - dear little pins with sparkly beads on top to put in it .... too pretty :o)!!!

And equally adorable is this wonderful bed pocket ... I absolutely adore these colours and let me tell you .... Cory's stitching is just divine :o)!!

Cory I can't thank you enough, these gifts are so beautiful and I just LOVE them!!! Thank you SO much :o)!!! I can't show you what I sent to Cory cos I don't think she's received them yet ... ;o).

Now that my Secret Angel has received her gifties ... I can show you what I sent to her ... all the way to Spain!!! Some cute rosy cupcake patty cases, Country calendar and some sweet rosy tissues........... I also made a mug hug and coaster the same as the set I made in the mug hug swap recently~ because they were such fun to do ........

A rosy pouch to take along her stitching projects when she goes to class :o) ..........

and last of all this sewing bag made from a pattern by Lynette Anderson. I've been wanting to make this for a while and I'm so pleased with how it turned out, such a cute little bag with stitcheries front and back!!!

So glad Isi in Spain enjoyed her gifties :o)!!

A huge big thank you also to you Helen for all the hard work you put into making this swap such fun for us all!!!!!

I'll be back soon to show you what I bought on the weekend {{{Oh she's soooooo bee-yoo-tiful :o)}}}!! In the meantime don't forget to pop into our Among the Gumtrees Blog and checkout the new freebie, this week it's from the gawjus (and very clever) Fiona from Mother's Cupboard!!!

Yummy lunch, delicious fabrics and great company :o)!!

Before I tell you about all that .... look at this!!!!! It's my very first Dear Jane block!! We had a workshop at my quilting group last Monday, this is B-2 Sweet Tater Pie. I really enjoyed making it but I'm not going to make any rash promises as to how many of these little darlings I'm going to make ... I'll just keep going until it's not fun any more ;o).

Because of this post ... I had to go shopping!!! I simply couldn't resist these gorgeous coloured Osnabergs that Peg had on her blog!! Aren't they gorgeous???!!! Peg's blogpost sent me here to Sheri's website and before I knew it, these were on my doorstep. Great service :o). Thanks for the 'heads up' Peg ... I love them ;o). It seems all I've done lately is buy fabric LOL ... well, not quite all I've done he he he.

These wool felts are for a certain little Christmas ornie designed by the gawjus Vikki!!! It's the beautiful freebie pattern for week 7 on the Among the Gumtrees blog so don't miss out!!
These are my 'spoils' from todays shopping trip!! Aren't they fabulous???!!! Can you tell I just LOVE spots LOL ..... ;o). Jeanette and I had a wonderful time shopping at Rose Patchwork Cottage, lots of bargains :o).

Both of us bought some of this scrummy pink sandcastle fabric .... mmmmm!!!

We had a lovely lunch together too .... thanks Jeanette for a terrific afternoon, I really enjoyed catching up with you :o)!!!!!

Before I go ... I've had a great response to the "Under Lock and Key" pattern special (on my sidebar) ... I'll leave it at that price for a few days longer . I've been busy writing up patterns lately so I'll have another one very soon for you at a special introductory price so keep an eye out for that :o)!!!

Hope you all had a great day too!!!!

Rewards Cards Wallet ... tutorial

Well here it is ... you'll love this cos it's so easy to make, just the thing to pop in with a loved one's Chrissy Gift as a special little something made with love from you!!!! You can whip one of these up in less than an hour ... and that's counting the time it takes to pick out the fabrics :o)!!! So lets get started ...........

YOU WILL NEED:-
2 pieces of fabric 6" x 9" - one for the outer and one for the lining 3 pieces of fabric 4 1/2" x 9" for the pockets ...

2 pieces of "Fast2Fuse" 3 7/8" x 5 1/4" [Fast2Fuse is a fairly rigid interfacing that is fusible on both sides - a bit like thick felt]
INSTRUCTIONS:

Take the 3 pocket pieces and fold them in half lengthways. Press.

Sew a line 1/4" from the folded edge....

Lay the first pocket on the lining piece with the raw edges 2" from the bottom of the lining piece and pin in place, sew the pocket on 1/4" from the raw edges .....then lay the top pocket 3 1/4" from the bottom of the lining piece, pin it in place, then sew it onto the lining piece in the same way .... Press both of the pockets up towards the top of the lining piece...... Position the bottom pocket so that the raw edges are aligned with the bottom edge of the lining piece. Pin in place.

Lay the piece for the outer on top of the piece with the pockets, right sides facing each other, and pin them together.....

Sew along both sides and the top with a 1/4" seam allowance, then trim the corners (take care not to nick the seam) ......

Turn the piece right sides out and press ........

Slip the first piece of Fast2Fuse inbetween the lining and the outer and push it up to the corner and as close as you can to the top and side. Press on both sides BUT ONLY HALF WAY DOWN, FROM THE TOP TO THE MIDDLE ........ Repeat with the other side again pressing ONLY HALF WAY DOWN FROM THE TOP TO THE MIDDLE......

Tuck the inside bottom edges around the Fast2Fuse and pin in place.

Tuck the raw edge for the wallet outer under 1/4" and pin. You can now press the wallet front and back, taking care not to melt your pins!!!!!!

Sew all the way around the perimeter of the wallet about 1/8" from the edge.....

Fold the wallet in half and put a pin in the centre .......

Open it out and draw a line down the middle .........Sew along this line, remove the pin and your wallet is finished!!! YAY!!! You can now fill it with all your favourite rewards cards!!! OR Gift wrap it and give it to a friend :o).

I'd love to see your wallets when you've made them ... :o)!!!

All parts of this pattern and instructions are copyright to Joy Coey, JoyPatch 2009. This pattern is for your personal use only and should not be used for profit without prior permission from Joy Coey.