another bushfire quilt

I got this little one quilted - my daughter saw it and sighed, and said it made her wish she was having a girl! Just need to bind it now (have I ever mentioned that I don't like doing bindings?).

Because I have problems with my back and neck I have never been much good at machine quilting where you sit at the machine and move the quilt around - too much strain on my neck and shoulders. So a few years ago I invested in this home quilting set up and it was worth every penny - now at least I can get my quilts finished and with a minimum of stress and strain. I am thinking about upgrading - I would really like a stitch regulator.

I envy the Americans who have such a wonderful range of options to choose from - things are a bit more limited here, unfortunately, I suppose because it costs a lot to ship stuff to the ends of the earth!

The lemon meringue pie was a big hit!

Cot quilt

I have been busy making a cot quilt for our first grandchild, due at the end of May. Its a boy (apparently!), so went for something not girly, pink or flowery.

I used an overall Baptist fan type design in a multi coloured thread.

Here is the back view

I used a rather cute Paddington Bear fabric that I got from Hancocks on sale and chose some assorted scraps in matching colours for the triangles.

Now I just have to do the binding (I HATE bindings). While I am on a roll, I will load up another baby quilt (this one is definitely pink) that I have had lying around for ages and get it quilted for the Bushfire appeal.

Then I need to go and make a lemon meringue pie - my traditional Easter sunday dessert - I have no idea why, it just is! With roast leg of lamb for the main course. Aaahhh - life is good!

Glow in the dark eggs

I can't find my camera, which is annoying - I think one of my girls borrowed it and didn't give it back - grrrr - my pet hate - usually it is my hairdryer.

I have been busy patchworking - I got the two bushfire quilts off to Victoria, and completed a queen sized top which my daughter Clare has claimed - I did promise her a quilt for a wedding present, but was a bit busy before the wedding doing the dresses!

I have another two or three tops on the go. I spent a good part of the weekend cleaning out some of my 'stuff'. We will be putting the house on the market later this year, so I have to have a huge declutter before moving. I am going to clear out years of accumulated stuff that I thought I needed at the time.....you know how it is. Also, I think it really is time to decide what I want to do and FOCUS. So I will rid myself of all sorts of things that I thought I would like to do, and maybe exprimented with for a while, but then decided I wasn't really interested, didn't have the patience, the fad passed - you know how it is. So watch this space for details of a mega sale in the second half of the year - if you live locally and can come by of course. If not, well I think I will have to put together a couple of blog giveaways so some of my stuff can go live somewhere else in the world!

Work is very, very busy - anyone who works for the government will know what it is like in the lead up to the Federal budget - not just crazy, downright ludicrous.

Autumn is definitely here - a real nip in the air.

My middle daughter had her baby shower last weekend - I forgot to take pictures. Her favourite gift, and a huge hit with mothers to be at the moment (apparently), is an egg - yes, an egg - check it out here.

Depending on the colour, it tells you whether the room is too hot, or too cold, or just right for baby! Imagine. In my day, you just looked at the baby! But then the babies don't come with an inbuilt night light, so there you are - the wonders of the digital world. Makes me wonder how our babies ever made it successfully to adult hood without all those gizmos and just their mother's good sense to guide them.