q4 finish a long goals

I’ve decided to ram this list full, because what’s the harm!?

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1 Flannel QAYG Throw

2 Candy Flowers Pillow

3 Marmalade Squares II Quilt

4 Scrappy Nametag

Happy to report that I have finished my Rainbow Coin Quilt! Here it is hanging in the VMQG Modern Quilt Showcase

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5 Sew Together Bag

6 Garden Party Quilt

7 Sommer Tunic (can’t find the pattern right now)

8 Liberty Dress, although I believe it’s a size 3, which no one in the house is wearing right now…9 Foxy Tunic. I have such lovely vintage patterns and I am running out of time to make them. This size 2 might end up a squeeze, but I’m doing it anyway. I’ll put it on the monkey doll if I have to. 10 Raspberry Kiss Quilt. These blocks were an amazing extra in #swapmystashcanada. They are the remnants from the Calgary MQG’s block lotto and are the perfect kick start for this quilt.

11 Project 48 Quilt E

12 Project 48 Quilt G

This is an extremely unlikely finish, since I’ve only just cut out block 15(guess how many there are) but I’m throwing it in there. If I finish on time these will be TV throws for my goomies.

13 Hexie Project

I might still make this placemat, but my original plan was duff, because I couldn’t decide on a background colour. Suggestions welcome.

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That’s all I could find for this round. You’ll be seeing quite a few of these in the 2017 FAL too. Good luck sewing, people!

 

finish a long q3 list of promises

Q3’s promises aren’t much different than the last two. However, that Rainbow Coin quilt will be done soon, because it is going to be in the VMQG’s first quilt show this August!

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1 Rainbow Coin Quilt
2 Flannel QAYG Throw
3 Candy Flower Pillow
4 Marmalade Squares II Quilt
5 Scrappy Name Tag

6 VMQG Challenge Placemat

There’s going to be some big finishes this time. Happy sewing all!

finish-a-long q2

Bunnykins….BK……..Beeksie…..Beekerton…..

He was gift from Bean’s grandparents when they lived in France. This is what he looked like when he arrived.

Four years later, we decided he needed his own quilt. A reward for devoted service. He’s a seasoned veteran in the bedroom, earning his stripes (and greyish tinge) during sleep learning. Beeksie is so important that he isn’t even allowed to leave the house, unless he goes on vacation. He’s supposed to sleep during the day, but lately he’s been sneaking down to the living room and disappearing. The quilt should encourage him to stay in bed.

Bean chose and arranged the mini charms and sat with me while I sewed them together. She particularly enjoyed the blast of steam when I pressed. It might be what kept her there a few times. She also helped to choose the backing and binding. I finished the binding overnight and when she found it in the morning it was whisked up to Beeks and he was promptly tucked in.

That’s one comfy bunny.

Here he is showing us the back.

Tell me, did you have a lovey? Do your littles?

#2016FAL

q2 list of promises

 

finish a long q2 list of promises

 

Will I be more successful this quarter? Maybe.

I will rollover all but one previous projects, the Zen Chic coaster.

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1 Rainbow Coin Quilt
2 Flannel QAYG Throw
3 Candy Flower Pillow
4 Marmalade Squares II Quilt
5 Scrappy Name Tag

I will add this mini for a certain stinky little bunny.

6 Beeksie’s Blanket

Also, this VMQG Challenge project due in June.

7 VMQG Challenge Placemat

I’m having trouble coming up with enough I Spy like hexies from the fabric given, so there will have to be some from the stash.

 

Looking forward to your finishes. Good luck to everyone!

finish-a-long q1

Well, here it is. My Q1 Finish-a-long contribution.

Yes, it’s a coaster. Math makes me shut down, so I wanted to experiment with how to make a nice sized coaster without doing any real measuring. This is from a mini charm pack of Zen Chic Figures and I made a disappearing nine patch. I learned this block from Cluck Cluck Sew’s tutorial. It finishes at 5×5 by some miracle. I put the shiny batting in between, so it is somewhat thermal.

I took a good bash at my Rainbow Coin Quilt, I really did, but between a sore back and two small children, I did not have the strength after 8PM to be crawling around the floor basting a quilt. I was also a bit frustrated by the raggedyness of the bottom. I did hack a ton of it off, and with it many of the coins. Not sure how it all went so wrong.
rainbow coin quilt

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This first one was just a Hello Darling Nine Patch and it’s a bit big.

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I am sorry to report that the beautiful mug you see in the picture, the one I have my morning coffee in, has chipped. Unfortunate dishwasher accident this week.

It was a gift with (macadamia nut) purchase from Hilo Hattie. We were on our honeymoon and had just visited Kapaia Stitchery. It was across the street, so we just had to stop in.

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Congrats to everyone on the fabulous finishes! Perhaps my list next quarter will be less ambitious….

#2016fal

garden tote

The Little Sprouts Garden Program that my Bean enjoys so much is having a fundraiser this weekend and I made yet another of Happy Zombie’s Poochie Bags.

I used Maureen Cracknell’s Wild and Free for the outside and stash for the straps and pocket.

I’m addicted to these bags. This one was for my Mom’s birthday.

The colours are just so Springly. There might be enough of this fabric left to make me a little pouch.

My Bean is almost finished her first year of preschool so I thought I’d whip some more of these up for her teachers. Stay tuned…

casing the joint

Well I’m done with chickpeas. Sorry, I lost interest. There’s a few more chickpea things I might show you, so don’t worry, but I’d much rather sew.

I cancelled my fat quarter club subscription from Earthly Goods. The shop is lovely, but the fabrics I was getting weren’t really my bag. So I joined the Color Your Stash club with Fabric Shoppe instead. 12 fat quarters a month plus a spool of Aurifil. However, my stash is pretty, ahem, “colourful” already so I don’t need any more fabric. I had to commit to making one thing a month from the package. Although I did get the Christmas package, I didn’t really feel like making Christmas stuff mid December. There is a plan for that fabric next Christmas, so I think that counts.

January’s pink package arrived yesterday and thanks to hubbo making my children disappear all morning, I made something already. Behold the I’m Obsessed with Bunnies Pillowcase!

Now, I’m going to link to this pattern because it is a cute design and FQ friendly. However, the instructions are duff! I have no clue what kind of witchcraft they employed to get the trim on to this pillowcase, but it cannot be done. Dunno, maybe I’m just addled. If you can work it out, do let me know. I could have made this in less than a morning had I not had to work out a new way of attaching the trim. If you decide to use this pattern, here’s what I did.

Make the 40 inch tube but don’t press in half or fold over. Put the right side of the trim inside the pillowcase on the wrong side and sew a scant 1/4 inch seam.

Press this seam towards the trim side of the pillowcase.

Now fold the other raw edge over a 1/2 inch and press.

Flip the raw edge around to the outside of the pillowcase and topstitch all around.

I see many more pillowcases in my future.

I don’t know what the kids do with these hashtags, but here’s one anyway. #coloryourstashclub

day 3: soaked

Tonight I’m getting out the big orange bowls to soak me some chickpeas.

While I love the convenience of opening a can, I am also quite cheap. Canned beans are expensive! But I also find them to be a little mushy. So I soak my own. The general rule is that they double in volume, but I suspect it’s a little more than that. No worries. If there’s extras, you just get a big ole freezer bag and throw them in the freezer. Make sure they’re nice and cool first, otherwise you will end up with a big lump that you will have to chip away at with a knife.

Anyway. I have honed chickpea boiling to an art and I have discovered that 40 minutes is the perfect time for a firm yet yielding chickpea.

I always worry that they will take on so much water, that the kitchen will be covered in beachball sized chickpeas when I come down in the morning. Hasn’t happened yet….

day 2: chickpeas for veganuary

Have you heard about Veganuary? What could be better for this than chickpeas?

That’s right, nothing. Now, I’m not going to make this today because I’ve already had leftover hummus for lunch, but I love this idea.

Deconstructed Falafel Bowls!

It is on my list of recipes to try because while I love falafel, it seems like a lot of work. And I don’t even make my own!

There is another recipe for falafel bowls on that page, which I think I like better. Why don’t you make one and let me know how it goes…

day 1: mezze

Welcome to 31 Days of Chickpeas! I love them. They are cheap, nutritious and versatile. When I mentioned this series to Mr. Craftybites, he said “so you’re going to make me eat chickpeas for 31 days?!” Although that would bring me joy, no. Stay tuned for fun ways to play with and also eat the noble garbanzo.

Today we start off with our New Year’s Day Feast. This is our version of a mezze. The star of this meal is the marinated fish, but the hummus and ful are the glue that holds it together. We also have (slightly over) grilled halloumi, dolmades, baba ghanoush, olives, crudites, and baguette.

On New Year’s Eve, I was at home soaking chickpeas and fava beans. You?

Today I made the fish from Claudia Roden’s The New Book of Middle Eastern Food. It’s pretty similar if not the same to this recipe. I’d go look for you, but I’ve got a baby attached to me. Make this fish and make sure to have extra bread for sopping up the juices.

There was also wine.

And this is a what it looked like when it all came together.

Stick with me for 30 more days of chickpea chicanery. I can’t promise they will be consecutive, but there will be 31 at some point…