And the Last will be First

My last finish of 2014 is becoming my first gift of 2015.

Another little needlecase made using the excellent tutorial from  Amy's nanacompany.typepad.com

I have altered Amy's design a little by adding two thin ribbon strings which tie in a bow, instead of the button and loop which Amy did.

As I like to try to keep my stash and projects organised I have a Needlecase Pack containing the instructions, suitable pieces of thin ribbon, the Strawberry template, fusible webbing and scraps of fabric for the strawberry and leaf, the fronts and inside of the needlecase and 1.5" squares already cut for the patchwork. Then it's easy to grab the pack and make another little needlecase!

And here it is, opened up to show the patchwork back.

This one is a little "Thank you" for Teresa Rawson (her blog is fabrictherapy.BlogSpot.com)

I entered Teresa's Giveaway in mid December and won!  The prize was a great magazine, one I have seen mentioned in lots of blogs: Quiltmakers 100 Blocks which looks a great resource to have on the bookshelves in my Sewing Room.  So, thank you, Teresa.  The Strawberry needlecase will be in the post to you tomorrow.

I love these little needlecases and have now made quite a few which have all been gifted. 
This gift takes to 20 my total of little gifts for 2014. Not all patchwork: there are a couple of crocheted blankets and some knitting but I did make three of these Strawberry needlecases. 

I like to keep a record of all the crafty things I make: mostly Patchwork (quilts, cushions, bags and needlecases) but also a bit of knitting and crochet.  I use Flickr as a vehicle for this record and organise my finishes into Albums.  A couple of years ago I had the bright idea of keeping a clearer record of things I have made by adding the year in the title of the album.
For instance Small Gifts 2014 where this little gift is number 20.

By looking at these Albums I can quickly see what I actually finished in 2014.

I made 8 quilts, 5 of which I have already gifted, 4 sets of blocks for various charity quilt drives and 2 crocheted blankets which have yet to be given away. 

Not as many finishes for 2014 as there were for 2013 but last year was extremely busy on the health front - for me and also for my daughter who had a slipped disc in September which took a lot of time to improve so I was helping out a lot there too. 

We are hoping 2015 brings better health for us.

So, as this is my first Blog post of 2015, may I wish everyone a Happy and Healthy and Creative 2015!

A little gift for a friend

It's one of my Patchwork friend's birthday just before Christmas so on Saturday I made her a little patchwork needlebook to go with some other sewing goodies.

I have made a few of these needlebooks for other friends and my sister and all have been well received.  The pattern is from a tutorial I saw ages ago on nanacompany's blog.

I have a Needlebook "Project Pack" to hand with my sewing supplies which contains everything I need for these needlebooks: suitable scraps of fabric, narrow ribbon, 1.5" squares, red and green fabrics for the strawberry, matching embroidery floss, instructions, strawberry template, white felt for the 'Pages' etc.  Scraps of batting are also in a handy pile.

So when I want to make one as a little gift I can just grab the pack and get started.

I like to use Perle cotton for the hand stitching and I have a large sweet jar full of them.  A few years ago I passed a sweet shop which was giving away the empty sweet jars so I took one.  Ideal for my Perle cottons and as its made from clear plastic I can see inside to check if I have the colours I need.

So here's the one I made for my dear friend:

An appliqued strawberry on the front and the back is made from a patchwork of 1.5" squares.

Now a little visit to a re-opened sewing supplies shop in town so I can choose some useful goodies to go with it!


I

Another NEEDLEBOOK & SCRAP VOMIT SWAP posted

A busy couple of days, some sewing and a little knitting and I parcelled up my 3 sets of Scrap Vomit squares for the Swap. 

The SV Swap was organised through Gnome Angel (gnomeangel.com ) but managed via swap-bot which worked like clockwork!  As soon as the deadline for registering as a participant expired I received an email linking me to their website and discovered the names and addresses of the three people I had to send my sets of squares to.  This was the International Swap and 80 people had signed up for it.  My three partners were from three different continents........ Europe (Germany), Australia and North America (Canada).  All very exciting. You can keep track of who has sent their packages via swap-bot and I know my Canadian partner has sent her packages out.  What I am not sure about it whether the folk I send to actually send their sets to me.  We shall find out when our Postlady, Julie, starts popping packages through our letterbox!
This swap reminded me of when I was about 11 years old........ a very long time ago!...... when I registered with the girls' comic School Friend for a penfriend living in another country.  I was really disappointed when I ws given the name of a girl living in Yorkshire! However, we happily corresponded for about fifteen years and then, sadly, lost touch.

I have had quite a productive few days, managing to finish another little Crumb Quilt and I am ready to bind another one.  I have also sandwiched the Siblings Together Project quilt, a job I heartily dislike.  Difficult to do as I don't have a large table or a hard floor so I crawl around the bedroom floor trying to pin the layers together without getting loads of creases.  Very tiring and time consuming!  Anyway, it is now ready for me to start the hand quilting. 

My church is again taking part in the Samaritan's Purse Shoebox Scheme.  You pack a Christmas paper-wrapped shoebox with gifts for a child in parts of the world where they wouldn't receive any Christmas gifts.  You decide whether to make up a box of little gifts suitable for a boy or girl and the age range you have aimed the parcel for.  Gifts can be little toys, toiletries, warm hats, scarves, gloves, etc. We were provided with a knitting pattern for a simple Beanie and I have enjoyed making two so far. They look very pretty in the variagated white/pink/mauve wool I chose. I'll make a few more which can be popped into other Shoeboxes.  I now need to shop for some little gifts, hair slides, crayons, soft toy etc.  Good fun, the sort of shopping I enjoy.

 

We are going to a family wedding on Saturday which should be great, a lovely chance for a family get-together.  One of the bride's cousins is Helen who has been so kind and supportive during the past year since my cancer diagnosis. She loves knitting and sewing so as another little "Thank You" I have made one of my Strawberry Needlebooks to give her on Saturday. I'll pop some pins and needles inside too.

And another photo showing back and front.

 

Off now to get ready to go to a friend's for coffee. Haven't seen her since she returned from holiday so lots to catch up on!