Saturday 31 August 2013

Spring is here....

Tomorrow is the first day of Spring in Southern parts, and we have enjoyed a mild winter, particularly August has been warm and great weather for lambing, which got underway for us during the last week.  A tiny vase of pretty little flowers is just the thing to say 'Spring'.......

In my last post I mentioned a retreat I had been on recently, and here are a couple of things I worked on while enjoying uninterrupted sewing time, what a treat that was.... two and a half days of it!!  This is a little Dresden pillow that I finished at retreat, and was part of the birthday swap gifts I sent to Leanne recently.  Without even discussing it, we ended up both making each other gifts from Bonnie and Camille fabrics, great minds think alike right?!

I also made Leanne a table runner in a kind of sampler format using half square triangles.  This was so fun to make, I used some of the bonus HST's left over from my 2012 FQS Block of the Month quilt, and added some more from the Vintage Modern range for variety. I did include some little extras but forgot to take a photo of them.



One of the main things I worked on while I was away was to finish up the Designer Mystery BOM, I have now made it up to this red border, I am unsure about the next white border with the pinwheel corners, I may try something different, or even leave it as is, it's already plenty big enough for me. This means that now I can start the 2013 BOM.  I have three blocks sitting waiting for me already!
 
A better pic of the colours - hanging on the clothesline late this afternoon.....

There were a couple of other projects I worked on, but one of them is still a little surprise so I will share it when it is done.  Since I've returned from retreat, I haven't really achieved much crafty-wise, but I will try and get a few stitches done some evenings during lambing(if I can stay awake that late!)

I am going to use my 'free pass' this month for the Stitch Along blog, I am still working on July's bag, so I don't think I'm going to get the August one done in the next few hours.....   

Thanks for visiting with me today... hope you're getting some stitching time in your day..... Nicky x

28 comments:

loulee said...

Wow, you've been busy. Love the pillow.

Peg - Happy In Quilting said...

Gorgeous finishes Nicki...wow....

Anonymous said...

wow Nicky such beautiful work you do,well done on some beautiful finishes,hope you have a lovely weekend.xx

Schulz Family said...

Absolutely gorgeous. Love the dresden. Happy spring!!!

Vickie said...

Lovely fabric and projects. Good for you.

Sweet Sue said...

Hi there Nicky, poppin' by to wish you a Happy Spring, enjoy:)

Josie said...

Happy Spring! Hope lambing goes without any hitches and you get plenty of downtime to catch up with your projects. Love the gifts you made for Leanne. Hers to you were lovely too. Great minds eh! ;o) Your designer BOM looks great too. Happy belated birthday... hope there are many more retreats in your future.

MandaBurms FarmStay for Cats. said...

I love the colours and little Dresden pillow.
Love Leanne

Ali Honey said...

Ah Spring! Wishing you good lambing percentages and lost of sewing time.

Fiona said...

the quilt is lovely... and so too is the runner and pincushion.... all beautifully done...
Hugz

wish2stitch said...

I love your BOM quilt. What a nice bonus to make a tablerunner from the left overs. It looks great. Did you make up the pattern? Or can you tell me where you got it from please? I have some HST left over froma project too that would be perfect for that. Sounds like a lovely weekend. Makes such a difference when you can get away and just sew.

Christine M said...

Beautiful projects Nicky. The cushion is gorgeous. I love that BOM quilt. Very clever of you to use up those hst for the small quilt. Enjoy the first day of Spring!

Annie said...

Wow..that's a ton of pretty quilting. You've been using your time wisely! The Dresden pillow is such a sweet thing.

I hate to hear you talk about Spring just when we are at the end of summer here. I love the warm weather months. Maybe I should move south for next 6 months!

Helen said...

Lovely projects and fabrics,the Dresden pillow is gorgeous ..

Helen said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jindi's Cottage said...

What a productive retreat...great projects, love them all...I like the quilt top as it is, lovely...

Wendy said...

Isn't it nice that spring has arrived!! The gifts you made Leanne are beautiful, I'm sure she will love them. Your quilt is gorgeous too, you have got lots done!

Grethe said...

Beautiful cushion in the fresh Bonnie etc fabrics! Great quilt and runner too. Your really manage a lot :-)

Lynda said...

So many lovelies there Nicky. Spring is fantastic!

Katrina said...

Hi Nicky, sounds like a productive time at your retreat - wonderful! Hope the lambing goes well, and happy spring!

Leeanne said...

Love the Dresden plate cushion! The runner & quilt top are very pretty. Nice to see some spring flowers isn't it?

Raewyn said...

Beautiful work Nicky. Your gifts for Leanne are lovely,and I do like how your bom sampler is looking :-) Aren't the flying geese effective as sashing?

Lynda said...

Beautiful birthday swap presents and so many lovely goodies finished at the retreat.

Tatkis said...

Lovely creations - pillow is very cute and the tablerunner is so adorable!
Happy Spring :)

Hugs,
Tatyana

Deb R said...

Lots of yummy goodies here!!!

Chookyblue...... said...

busy busy girl.......last month for the SAL..

Farm Gate Creations Incorporating Hummingbird Quilting said...

Wow! So very busy and well done on such a gorgeous finish.

Sarah said...

The BOM quilt looks great. I love the stripes in the sashing. Interesting you say you've had a mild winter. South Australia's hasn't been particularly cold but it has been the wettest winter in many years. I think the stats say it's been our warmest 12 months on record. It certainly didn't feel like it for the six weeks it hardly rose above 13*C! That's probably not cold by South Island standards though!

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