Singlet tales. From candy canes to trains.

On Christmas eve I realised the Santa t-shirt I intended to dress my 22month old son in was going to be too hot.
As any sewist would, I set about making something suitable an hour before we are due to arrive LOL.

I've included a pic of the front and of the back,  with teensy little Christmas appliques.

That was very short lived due to being made within hours of Christmas. So yesterday I decided to unpick those appliques and replace them.
Recently I ruined a Chuggington shirt in a wash cycle too hot for the poor chuggers, but the patch on the sleeve was fine. So I used it on the singlet and prepared for my son to fall in love with it....
However, seeing as he can't read, he doesn't recognise it's Chuggington and was not at all excited lol. Oh well, one day the penny might drop!

Big boy bed quilt just in time

My son was moved from his cot to a single bed just before Christmas. Seeing as his little brother or sister is due today (yup, not born yet) it was on the cards anyway, and when I saw his foot reached over the top bar of the cot I could wait no longer.

I had started on a quilt with his name after he was born, but somehow miscalculated and ended up with some rows not the same width as others. Needless to say it was relegated to the ufo tub. I was told it was better to finish a dodgy quilt made with love than to leave it incomplete.

When I bought a quilt kit for this next baby at the Sydney show, I figured I couldn't start it til I'd done the quilt below.
I've said it before, but I thrive on deadlines!
So I'm hand sewing the binding down on my due date, and I can begin the quilt kit for the new baby tomorrow hehe.

I realised I have recently completed FOUR quilt tops, but the last time I quilted anything was for the Wyong show in April 2012!
I was nervous to get started again and my straight lines are anything but straight. I just had to pull on my big girl knickers and get on with it.

I kept forgetting to watch when the quilt needed rolling in the throat of my machine. With the feed dogs down no mistakes go by!
So I went back to rounded and moving stitches instead and this turned out much better!
It's probably totally amateurish to quilt with so many types of free motion designs all on the one quilt, but it was fun so who cares?

Scallops are probably my favourite free motion quilting (FMQ) shape.

Too difficult to photograph but I did "pebbles" all through this part of the castle.
I'm much better at meandering than straight free motion, as you can see.

It's the size of his mattress, and no wider or taller.

Fit for a King!
Thanks for dropping by!
Love Cass

Misguided nesting - baby sprinkle day

My husband has been hoping the nesting instinct would kick in so the "spare room" which was mostly filled with fabric, notions, trims, and tools might begin to look inhabitable by the new baby!

Well, I was preparing for the new baby, but my nesting got a bit misguided and turned into quilted teacups for the celebration of this baby's birth with my sisters and close friends. A high tea, affectionately named by my bestie as my "Baby sprinkle". Not quite a baby shower seeing as it's the second baby, but somewhat the same.

I told you about these and began showing you, but it's today and they're all finished! (ok, if you're a sewist you probably know that's a lie, there are three tea bags that don't have the word "tea" embroidered onto them, but "finished" as they're probably going to get haha).

Here I am this morning finishing some embroidery on the last tags whilst waiting to go.

I love them all, seeing as I made each one unique. I decided I'd show every single one:

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Just a reminder I bought the pattern from Patchwork pottery, here US$12. It's a little fiddly so I wouldn't say suitable for beginner, but if you've ever sewn a zip before you're experienced enough.
FYI I also found these cute play tea bags yesterday

and pinned them but the post isn't in English so you just have to make it up yourself I think.

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Here's my idea of "hand sew the opening closed" haha. Too lazy for that, it's in the lining anyway pfft! Brother NS20 to the rescue!

Getting pretty good at those zips after churning out ten in short succession. Just sayin'.

Top quilting is 'daisies' on the picture above.

This quilting's kind of 'steamy'

This was my first one and I don't like it much but it was popular today. I *do* like the blue ricrac though :)

Some meandering quilting.

This quilting's kind of pebble style. I loved getting to use my decorative stitch on this blue ribbon.

More pebble quilting and another decorative stitch used.

Love hearts in the red, using variegated thread. The leaf pattern stitch was a bit lost in white on the gingham ribbon, but I still love this country cup pouch.

This divine fabric by Robert Kauffman (I believe it's called Florentine or Florentine 2 3 or 4) stole my heart, if I could use only 3 fabrics for the rest of my life I think this would be one of them!
I followed the fabric's lead when quilting this one. "Oh fabric, take me away!!"

Above is the scalloped quilting which was easy and effective, and I got to use some cute trims I've had for years, on the ones above and below.

And Danielle brought all these goodies to fill them for each guest:
And made this adorable canvas for baby's room! Thank you!

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Until next time, wishing you lots of stitching time.
Love Cass