It has begun

 You may recall that my good friend "J"and I had completed a miniature quilt with the
Sew Mama Sew Mini Medallion Quilt Along 

This is mine

It was fun to do. Just as time consuming a a larger quilt. And it has caused a fever. This one finished about 24" square., and we thought it would be "fun" to make a smaller mini.

I had got this pattern

The quilt measures 68" x 72" and the mini (one block ) 25".  Now "J"  being ......"J", decided that it would be "fun" if we reduced the size of the big quilt  and make that as a miniature.

"J" has risen to many a challenge from me over the past couple of years so how could I refuse!

She worked out the measurements and came with the sizes that we need to make. The finished quilt will be (hopefully) 13" x 15" - Yes REALLY!!  13" x 15 " . That means each friendship star block will measure ONE AND A HALF INCHES!!!

Love her!!

 Now you know when you have a gadget that you haven't used, yet. Well we had this item which allows you to print a paper foundation to as small as 3/8th in finished. MAD! But we printed out the sheets, and sewed the lines

 and then just cut along the marked lines.

You end up with 96 teeny tiny squares ready to make up into blocks.

You can see the light was fading - and so was I.


So I got up with the birds and nibbed all the corners

 and counted out half for "J" and half for me. "J" was doing the same so we had a good mix of colours

And as the birds had kept me company I stopped and had a cup of tea with them

It's not a race, but I have begun. I will show you the progress later.

Lots to Tell!!

 But absolutely No sewing been done this past three weeks!
We have had a lot of family things going on beginning with a bit of baby sitting for
Miss O.
We were in charge Saturday and Sunday whilst Mummy & Daddy attended a wedding.
I used the occasion to bring the Chariot out of storage. 29 years old (the chariot, not the baby !)

Unfortunately, little miss had contracted a virus (before we took over).  A quick visit to the doctor to confirm nothing serious and we packed a tearful Mummy and Daddy off.

Popped baby into the carriage and walked the mile and a half to the sea front.

lots of pretty dresses, but sported a vest all day trying to keep cool

 It was a lovely walk - even though the sea was no where to be seen!
Miss O was fine whilst we were walking, but very restless when we stopped, so we kept walking.

 Mr T pushed (leaned - a lot) and was promised a steak dinner at a favourite pub on the front.

 It was PACKED!! 

 So we continued walking. 

The trouble is going back to the house is all UP hill! 

And no steak or beer. Not what we had planned. 

After a very long night Miss O seemed to have picked up and things got back to normal, 

and I went to bed VERY early.

 The following weekend saw a "Hen" and Chick gathering in York.

First Class travel

With Brunch at Kennedy's

 A fair amount of shopping for some and the afternoon in a cocktail bar for others, meeting up for afternoon tea at Bettys

two of my lovely sisters

 Then there was THE wedding

 A great big Thank You to my dear friend Ena and her crew of flower arrangers at St Mary's Church  for the beautiful floral arrangements.

  We woke to rain. A lot of rain. But there was nothing we could do about that  so hair was curled, make up applied and our best dress put on.

The weather was kind to us, the rain stopped about an hour before the service, and it remained a bit cloudy and breezy till later on in the afternoon when the sun came out in earnest  

 And here the Happy Couple

Mr & Mrs W

 Uni friends came - these girls are FAB, they make my girlie so happy. They came from far and wide to help celebrate. And Celebrate they did!!!

 Kelmarsh Hall is a beautiful venue

 
 with beautiful gardens

 to just stroll around

 or sit and enjoy the sunshine

there were seats!!

 it was a lovely relaxed day

 with LOTS of dancing - can't recommend Matt Stratford Duo  highly enough. They sang their socks off all night.

 Sunday saw a quiet gathering of guests before they all departed for far points of the country

hangover hill

With just a few of these consumed

 A great (if unproductive) three weeks don't you think

 Meanwhile in the garden the Hollyhocks have come into flower in a big way

And I am now off to sort out some of the beautiful roses - Memory Lane and Avalanche - that were retrieved from an arrangement.

such a pretty colour

I am now up to date - I think - with all events, so some sewing is on the books.

 I joined in a Sew A Long earlier in the year as did a friend. Now she has worked out a pattern for another mini where the blocks are one and a half inch finished!

You heard it here

I. think. I. Am. Ready!

Still Not Much Sewing.......

But a very productive week one way and another.

I did make a string of Alphabet Bunting on Thursday evening - it was a new stock item and a sample was needed in the shop.

I quite like it strung onto Ric-Rac. It will look nice in a child's nursery.

A wedding dress fitting for Miss S left me feeling quite emotional. A tweek or so to go and she will be happy, and ready for the Big Occasion!


I did make cakes as requested by my VERY good friend. These were for a local event - Higham Secret Gardens - 14 local gardens are opened up for viewing, to raise funds for projects to improve the town.

Sunday saw us making - h.u.n.d.r.e.d.s. of cups of tea and coffee  and serving copious amounts of cake to those visitors making their way around the list of gardens

tea and cake served in a delightful setting

time for a catch up between the washing up!

emptying punters pockets

choosing scrummy cakes

 It was nice to take time to join in this community project.

And then spending the time at  group today to complete this little dress for - well you know who

Not quite there yet - but will finish this off tomorrow. Just the hem and buttonholes to go.

A friend has been making crochet Mandalas for Yarndale 2014 and Mr T and I will be visiting Skipton to go to this event. I hope that I will spot ours.  Well, I will go to the exhibition and I expect Mr T will play golf, but that will make us both happy. We are both looking forward to visiting this beautiful part of our country and spending time visiting friends.

  Have you seen the Mandalas that have been made so far? Look here to feast  your eyes. And if you want to know how they will be used, visit Lucy at Attic 24 who is co-ordinating the collection.

I have a short list of things that I am promising myself to complete or learn this year.  I may share them with you, but then I will have to come up with the goods!  So I will save said list till I am confident that I will have a fighting chance........


Twelve days till Baby Sister comes to visit - can't wait for a cuddle and a catch up - miss her loads 

On Countdown

Less than a month to go till S & L are to be married. Bookings have been confirmed and details finalised, final dress fitting this week , my outfit sorted -  so it should all go very smoothly.... Yes?....

I was in a bit of a panic last week, but that has gone now, and we are just looking forward to the day.

It has been a bit of a roller coaster this week. We sadly said goodbye to a dear lady and this leaves a dark mood that is hard to shake. But lighter events take over,  leaving fond memories  of one who will be missed.

*******

Not much going on in the way of sewing though.

I did quickly knit a little bolero for Miss O in case the weather was inclement for her Christening on Saturday. I burnt the midnight oil to get it finished (I am not a quick knitter) and I am glad I did.
It was not needed.
The rain bucketed down on our two hour trip to Leigh On Sea where Miss O lives, and generally my heart sinks when we hit the M25 - I hate that road. But this week, it was a joy, because as we approached the blue sky filled the horizon .

The event was mid afternoon, and we spent the time after the ceremony,  in the garden eating and drinking something fizzy and passing that poor baby around like she was the latest toy that everyone wanted to "have a go with".  She obliged with lots of smiles and giggles and a long snooze in someone's arms when she got bored.

the long gown was abandoned in the warmth

 Some family members were not able to attend and it will be good to catch up with them soon.

It was a good chance for Miss S to practice her cake making skills - she is making her own wedding cake next month, and this is causing me one or two concerns. Not because she can't bake. She is a very good cook, but there will not be much room for a re run if something goes wrong. The fruit cake is already cooked. Just a couple of sponge layers to go.

must have been good - it was gone in a flash

We attended another Christening on Sunday and again, the weather was kind and we sat in the garden when we got back and I began the smocking of this.

not my garden

My lovely friend made them (bonus!) and passed to me to practice my smocking on.

Another lovely friend had the exciting news that her new Grandchild had made an appearance - after many girl babies she now has another boy to dote on. He lives way up in Scotland, so she will be making the trip (today I believe) to get her quota of cuddles, with the boy and his three sisters in.

 So an eventful but good week all in all.

I hope to finish the rompers and another a couple of items this week, but there is paperwork to get to the accountant due, and I must not put that off.

Oh My Gosh!!

I am so tired, I have been running around like the proverbial and  I have achieved nothing this week!

Well not quite nothing. Several dozen yards of bunting for a Christening on Saturday, and some more for another Christening on Sunday.

 And I have started making something for a certain little lady - but not far enough to show what it is.

I hope to get this finished this week, and then the sewing will take a back seat for a short while.


 Those Aliums are just great but the wet weather has made them a bit floppy!

 

The rambling rose on the pergola is beautiful - I hope that it lasts a little while - well at least until he festivities begin in a few weeks

 

And I suppose that I should be pleased that the sparrows are ripping all of the moss out of my hanging basket to make their homes so much more comfy!!   

 

 

Its 32 days to go till S & L are married and I am sure it will get more frantic, but now I am going to put the kettle on and pretend its all under control!!