Mojo Rising

no, not just a line from LA Woman by the Doors.  But what is going on with me!!  I've been making stuff, woo hoo :)  Lookie see - my first EVER mug rug!  Thought I really should try them out before I make ones to send to someone.  Not bad me thinks - as long as you don't look too closely (then it looks REALLY bad LOL)

So I need to get my thinking cap on for designs for my swap partner rugs, got a couple of ideas but not quite sure yet.  Might need to buy some material depending on what I decide on, oh what a task that will be!

But I'm already planning my next quilt.  It's not a new plan, more like a long forgotten plan that I've finally plucked up the courage to continue with.  If you look closely at the picture below you will see that the magazine is actually dated 'August 2006' - yes that is not a mistake, 2006. 

I bought the magazine way back then, flicked through - as you do - and decided I LOVED this pattern, a log cabin with an appliqued heart in the middle.

 So off I went to my sister's shop (which has since closed due to a variety of reasons) bought the yummy material below.  Started to cut it up into strips and then ............... nothing.  Other things cropped up, I packed the material away to keep it nice and clean and I promptly forgot about it, until recently.

So I've decided that it will not live in a box under my bed no longer.  It deserves to be made into an actual quilt.  Now all I need to do is actually sit myself in front of my sewing machine and put thread and needle into the material. 

Inspired by Inspiration

As I've just signed up for my first EVER swap (what I am thinking!!!!) I'm just spending a little time tonight looking at my meagre fabric collection and lots of lovely inspiration on t'interweb.  I've come across this fabulous collection of inspiring goodies on the PS I Quilt blog.  I do intend to make some lovely cushions for my livingroom but they are way down the list of things to be done.  Much higher up are the roman blinds for the kitchen, I bought the material ages ago and still in the bag that it came home in!  Haven't quite plucked up the courage to start them yet.  Not sure why I find the idea of roman blinds so daunting but I do!

As I feel a blog post is never quite complete without a photo, here is a random one of my little dude.  This little man cannot get enough bananas (or 'nanas' as they are now known in this house) into his little tum-tum.  I swear one of these days he'll turn into a monkey!!!

Challenge Quilt

It's done!!  Way back in September me and my sister went along to the Scottish Quilt Championships, including babies, (that was fun - pushing two buggies around a fairly small hall, crammed with material, stalls and quilts!) and we both bought the same jelly roll.

So I played about with it for a little while and actually finished the quilt top and started quilting it by about the middle of November but for one reason and another it got shelved.  It remained untouched until a week ago, when I realised there wasn't that much left to do.  So over the weekend the quilting got finished and the binding attached and during the week when Pedro was out I finished sewing the binding and it now looks like this.

I'm rather pleased with it!

In the spirit of being positive, which is my resolution for this year, not only have I rejoined WeightWatchers this week, I have also just signed up for my first ever quilting swap. Arrrggghhh!!!!  It's a mug rug swap on the Quilting Gallery website.  I've never made a mug rug before but they are just small quilts so at least they'll be quick.  I have a feeling they could be slightly addictive!

That was the year

.. that was 2010.  I've been spending a little bit of time thinking about last year and everything which has gone on.  This time last year I was technically still on maternity leave :o  We had a 7 month old baby who could pull up to standing on furniture but hadn't even started crawling (that happened on the 5th Jan!) and could sort of babble a few nonsense noises.

Now we've got a 19 month old toddler who is developing his own little personality, has started running, is increasing his vocabulary on a daily basis it seems and is just generally a perfectly happy little dude.

 (showing off his new dressing gown & slippers)

(cheesy grin apparently!)

It's weird to think back to this time last year - at times it seems like a lifetime ago and at others it seems like just yesterday!  Very strange. 

Being back at work is different too.  I've been in employment ever since I left school (June 1992!) and the longest I'd ever been off until going off on maternity leave in April 2009 was 2.5 weeks in 2000 for our wedding!?  So being off for nearly 9 months was strange, but not as strange as going back.  There was a lot of change happening with my employer during the time I was off and little has changed during the last 12 months.  I returned to part time hours and recently altered my working pattern so I now finish at Thursday lunchtime and that's me till a Monday. 

Crafty wise not a lot has been done lately.  I had planned on making most of my christmas presents but time got away from me so only made a couple of things, these funky poochie bags.  Only I forgot to take pics of the ones I made - doh!

I've got quite a few ideas of things I want to try this year crafty wise, firstly is a little calendar for my desk!  Then it's my sister's birthday on Saturday and I've got a couple of ideas for little quirky things but I'm not sure if I've got all the things I need to make them.

But this year's motto is 'Wear your positive pants, not your negative knickers!' as said by my boss many a time.  Positive thinking only this year!!!!