.: giraffe + cat + orange cushion :.

One giraffe + cat + orange cushion finished and ready to be gifted!  I really hope it will bring a little orange-y sunshine to my friend's daughter - click here for more about that. 

The giraffe is a paper-piecing pattern by Kristy from Quiet Play, and the cat is by Elizabeth Hartman. I really love it, but wish I had a one-size bigger cushion insert, so it would plump out just a little more.  The cushion front was 20 inches unfinished, and I used a size 20 insert - I'm thinking I need to pop out and get a size 22 if I can swing it in time. 

I'm really happy with the mix of oranges and blues.  I think if the giraffe was for me to keep, I'd have gone all-scrappy, including her face.  Or maybe that would be a little too scrappy, even for me!

For the back, I used big Spotlight spots, to keep with the orange colour-theme, sliced through with a navy zipper.

Hope you have all had a happy weekend.  Here's to a good week.  xoxo cat

.: The Farmers' Wife 1930s Sew-along :.

Angie from GnomeAngel had a very good idea a little while ago.  She wondered whether there would be any interest in a sew-along for Laurie Aaron Hird's latest sampler quilt book - The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt.

Angie got in touch with Laurie and also Fat Quarter Shop.  Fast forward a few months, and The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt Sew-Along has officially been launched!  In a little over two weeks, there are over 1,600 members in the Facebook group from all over the world - we're talking Australia!  New Zealand!  USA!  France!  Canada!  Japan!  UK! The Netherlands!  Germany! And even more countries!  It's a veritable United Nations of sewing.  And there is already a lot of excitement, planning and sharing going on in the Facebook group - it's a good place to be. 

As you can see from the announcement post on Angie's blog, the Sew-Along kicks off on September 28 - so there is still plenty of time to get organised and ready to roll.  The book has 99 blocks.  The plan is for two blocks to be released each week - two on Angie's blog on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with guest bloggers sharing their blocks on Wednesdays and Fridays.  The book provides instructions for hand-sewing, machine piecing and paper-piecing.  And Angie and the guest bloggers will provide tips and tricks for piecing each of the blocks.  It's not just win-win, but win-win-win-win-win, wouldn't you say?

To join in the fun, you will need a copy of the book and a stash of fabric (or a hankering to buy some new fabric!).  There are Perfect Patchwork template sets available from Marti Mitchell that can help with piecing the blocks but they are not essential.  Marti has written a blog post that details the template sets that will be most helpful for the Sew-along - click through if you think the templates are going to be your secret weapon in piecing these blocks.  I've discovered via the Facebook group, that Marti's templates are also incredibly helpful in sewing all sorts of different blocks - they're not specifically for the Sew-along. 

Look out for the Sew-along button throughout blog land - we're talking a YEAR-long Sew-along!   Lots of fun and gorgeous sewing to be had.  

And oh, did you hear me say 'guest bloggers' up there?  I'm very happy to say that I'm one of them!  Click here to read Angie's blog post which details the complete list of guest-bloggers, with a little info about each of them and links to all their blogs.  It's going to be a lot of fun.  Happy weekend to you all, and happy Sew-along planning too.  xoxo cat

.: giraffe-cat cushion in progress :.

We all share a love of sewing, and it's something we can also share with others.  A friend's daughter has been in hospital for several weeks, and will remain there for some time to come.  Beyond joining others in making meals for the family at home, I asked if I could also sew something for her.  It's of no practical help of course, but hopefully it will bring a momentary lift in her spirits.

I asked my friend what her daughter would like, and she said a giraffe, or a cat, and definitely in orange.  And so that's what I've made.  A giraffe from Kristy's Zoo Animals BOM paper-pieced patterns, a cat from Elizabeth's The Kittens quilt pattern, and lots of orange.  

The next step is to turn them into a cushion, ready for gifting on the weekend.

Hope your week has been a good one, and that all the people in your life are healthy, home and happy.   xoxo cat

.: Me and My Sister class! :.

I recently went to an awesome class at Patches Indooroopilly.  It was with Barb and Mary from Me and My Sister Designs.  My class was the Slice of Cake 2 pattern - I've finished 11 blocks now, and am thinking of sewing a few more and including them in my girls' quilts rather than making them into their own quilt.  

It was a really fun day, with LOTS of fun giveaways thanks to Moda, Di Mill (a Moda rep in Australia, and the wonderful lady who coordinated Barb and Mary's trip) and Barb and Mary.  I won a gorgeous FQ bundle, and we all came away with at least two extra patterns.  I've already made a little something from the Buttons Jars pattern (pic below of Barb and Mary's cute Buttons Jar quilt), but can't share it yet as it's a secret pressie!

I went along to Barb and Mary's trunk show as well, and it was a lot of fun.  It was great to hear the stories behind their happy + gorgeous quilts, and to share in a lovely evening of quilt-love, snacks and champagne and even more prizes.

Barb and Mary have already blogged about their Australian adventures here and here - click through and have a read (and click here for a pic of me and Peta in the class, wahoo!).

Here's a pic of the bundle I won, the patterns and the sweetest little beaded scissor-charm we each got to make during the class.

{too cute, I say!}

And now I will leave you to scroll through all the rest of the blocks I've made so far.  I had to fussy-cut all the tiny centres - because I'm incapable of NOT fussy-cutting all the tiny centres ;-)  Please sing out if you'd like to know any fabric details from any of the blocks I've made, and I'll let you know, in the comments or by email.

Too much fun, do you agree?  Me too.  Happy weekend to you all.  xoxo cat

.: time doesn't just fly, it zooms :.

So time flies, doesn't it?  Really super fast and without stopping.  It's over a month since we've been in this space, and there's so much to catch you up on, but for today, here's some sweet kittens from Elizabeth Hartman's 'The Kittens' pattern.

They're really cute, aren't they? - I love this pattern.  In fact, I love all Elizabeth's patterns - they are really fun and incredibly clear and well written.

I'm going to try Elizabeth's rabbit pattern next - though before that, I need to sew up a giraffe to go with the orange kitty - all will be revealed on that little project in the next week or so.  The red kitten will become a little doll-mini for my youngest.

And seriously, how cute are the tiny pandas! - they're by Alexia Abegg, from her latest range with Cotton + Steel, called Paper Bandanas.

OK back to time going fast and all that.  Hope you've had a great weekend.  xoxo cat