Good things take time....

My first 5 Farmers Wife sampler blocks! These blocks take longer to cut out than sew up I think but I did enjoy the whole process of choosing just the right colour and print combinations to the actual sewing. I was a little concerned the larger prints wouldn't be suited to the smaller pieces as each block is only 6 1/2 inches square which makes for very small triangles and squares etc but I'm quite happy with them so far. I've decided that I will do 5 blocks each week which means this will take me about 4 months to complete. Good things take time you know :-)

And this is my other slow project for this year which I started in the middle of last year with Penny's quilt along @ Sewtakeahike. I'm in no hurry to finish this project. So far I have done 414 and I think I might just go for the goal of 1000. Making yo-yo's is quite a nice quiet activity that I can take anywhere. I've even taken some to do at one of my Mothers hospital appointments where an elderly gentleman took great interest in what I was doing and what the end product was going to look like. 

I did a few on camp the other week and have been doing a few each night since, so slowly but surely I will get there and once again 'good things take time'.

My Blossom Bag...

I finished this bag today just in time to link up with Sara of Sew Sweetness for the "Amy Butler Sew along". We had to make a project using any Amy Butler pattern and I chose this 'Blossom bag' which is a free pattern available on Sew Mama Sew's blog. I think this bag is going to be the perfect spring accessory, not that it feels much like spring today...severe wind gusts making our house sway and nasty cold showers..Brrrrrrr

Inside this very roomy bag are two dividing pockets one with a handy zip making this bag very practical with a place for everything. Sara at Sew Sweetness has also made a nice version of this bag with some beautiful Echino fabrics and has also given a good review of this pattern. There is quite a few steps to making this bag but like all Amy's bags she has very good instructions.
I used 3 Amy Butler prints from her 'Daisy Chain' range plus a coordinating stripe by Jennifer Paganelli.

I particularly like the detailed way the handles are attached which gives it more of a professional look. I used the same stripe as the inside pockets for these details to make them stand out a bit.


There are two handle sizes. I chose the shoulder bag size because sometimes you need free hands when you go shopping :-) I think this bag just might be my new favourite.
Click on over to Sara's blog to see some more beautiful Amy Butler pattern creations or check out the Flickr page here.

Yo-yo's and yet more yo-yo's

I've finally started making some yo-yo's for Penny's 'Yo-yo along'. After finishing up my crochet blanket I needed something to keep my fingers busy at night in front of the TV as I just hate to sit and do nothing so making these yo-yo's is the perfect activity that keeps me busy but still lets me watch my favourite programmes. I've decided to do one colour group at a time so it doesn't seem such a daunting task although having a yo-yo maker certainly makes it quicker and easier. I'm up to 24 as of last night. Penny's making 1008!

And in keeping with the yo-yo theme this is a wreath I made with some of my leftover Bliss fabrics and a few yo-yo's. What do you think?

I really enjoy adding little details to my projects so I embellished the yo-yo's with a selection of buttons and sewed them on with some sparkly beads.

I also wrapped some white ric-rac around the wreath and did a simple running stitch with some pale pink perle cotton to keep it in place and a ric-rac loop for hanging embellished with some simple french knots. Pretty don't you think and its for sale in my shop here.

Starting new projects!

With my crochet blanket coming to an end I've been itching to pull out some fabrics for a new project or 2. Firstly I've decided to join the Amy Butler sew along over on Sara's blog Sew Sweetness. I love both Amy Butler's fabric designs and patterns so this was an easy decision for me to make and of course there's the added incentive of some prizes involved :) I've already have 2 Amy Butler bags but they are both in blues so I think I need a pink one for this coming spring/summer season. The pattern I've decided on is the Blossom bag which is a free pattern that can be found here. 

I'm also looking forward to finally starting on my yo-yo project for Penny's sew along that I signed up for a while back. I'm not sure how big I'm going to make this quilt yet but I have decided to use the above collection of fabrics because they are mostly small scale prints which I think would be nice made up in yo-yo's. I've had a lot of these fabrics for absolutely way too long just waiting for the perfect project. Some are vintage given to me from an Auntie, some were brought by my husband on a business trip to Portugal and some are Liberty prints and of course some I just bought on whim as you do when you like fabric :)

So looking forward to starting both these projects!