A quick little project

I am the kind of person that gets a little bored when I am working on large projects. I need to be able to complete a quick project so I feel like I am achieving something. So in between working on two crochet quilts I took some time out to finish this project with some yarn that I purchased on special at Spotlight. 

It was my first attempt at crocheting a bowl and I think next time I need to use a 'tighter' stitch as the treble makes it a little floppy.

But at least my sewing threads have a nice new home.

Happy crocheting!
Lisa
xxx

Book Review - Ultimate Crochet Bible by Jane Crowfoot

I purchased this book a few weeks ago after I originally borrowed it from my local library and found it was a really good crochet reference.



The book covers crochet basics, texture and lace stitches, thread crochet, tunisian and entrelac crochet, working with colour, beads and sequins, other types of crochet, crochet edgings, embellishments and professional finishing techniques.

The book has excellent instructions, diagrams and photographs and is definitely a worthwhile addition to your crochet library. I have similar books in my collection, but none of them have the detail of this book.

I purchased it from the book depository.

I give the ultimate crochet bible by Jane Crowfoot 5 stars!

Happy crafting
Lis

My Little Hottie

Well, I have finished my little hottie for the hottie challenge. 

She is a hottie! 

My hottie is so hot, she had to strip down to her bikini. She is HOT HOT HOT! Some may even say HOT STUFF! Ba ha ha ha. She just makes me laugh. She has little boobies and a little bootie. 

Don't look too close because the sewing is really bad and there is no hems.My sewing is rough but I just cut and sewed, fun, fun, fun.

My daughter is well impressed.  I absolutely enjoyed every minute of this challenge and am really happy with the results. She is going in the post next week...yay.

Too look at the most impressive and wonderful creations, check out the hottie challenge flickr group over here.

Hope she makes you smile. :)

Lis
xxx

My Creative Space - Return of my Crafting Mojo

Wow, I can't believe how long it has been since I really got into anything crafty. Well, my crafting mojo has returned and I am so excited to be back that I thought I would play along with my creative space this week.

I have been really into crochet lately and I have been spending A LOT of time on Pinterest and Etsy looking at all the beautiful creations.

This has inspired me and I have been warming up by crocheting heaps of granny squares. I am really happy with how they have turned out because my crocheting skills were quite rusty. All I need to do now is to join them together in time for my daughters sports carnival next week. She is in the pink team so she would like to take this with her.

The pressure is now on, so I had better go and get stitching.

Oh by the way, I have decided to join in all the fun with Curly Pops in this years hottie challenge. I have my design completed so this weekend I am putting it together. I am very excited about this one.

What a busy crafty weekend I have planned.....yipeeee!

Happy crafting! For more creative spaces, just pop over here.

Lisa
xxx

Giveaway Winners

Gosh, this week has just flown by and I missed the deadline I had set for announcing the winners to my giveaway.


It really wasn't difficult for me to do pick out the winner to this as I had two entries and two prizes. No random number generator required....lol.


So congratulations to Bronwyn aka Mad Crafty Mama and Melissa aka Sew Mummy, your fabrics will be posted this afternoon. Thanks for entering ladies :)


Happy creating
Lisa
xxx

My Creative Space

Thank goodness I can post this early this week. This morning I am off to work early to hang out with an auditor (joy oh joy)  and tomorrow afternoon I am hanging out with our programmers.  I can feel a very early night coming on tomorrow night.


Now, onto a lighter and much much nicer note. I have been teaching myself to crochet this week. I have been popping over to Pip's blog and watching her videos on granny squares. Pip is a really good teacher. My mum used to sit with me and try to show me but it never really sunk in, until now. I have made some progress but it is a bit wonky. Experts, please look away!


I started doing this blue one and then my daughter decided she wanted one. So yesterday it was off to Spotty we trotted to pick out, yes you guessed it, bright pink for her blanket. I talked her into a bit of white as well.

With my track record, or should I say, project short attention span, I may get this one finished for next winter!


Have you ever seen this, bamboo wool. Well, seeing as I don't usually purchase wool it has probably been around for ages. It felt so beautiful and soft that I just had to buy it. God only knows when I will get around to making something with it.

Oh, and I have been preparing to make a stack of binding for the shop out of these lovelies.

For more creative spaces or to play along, please pop over here to the home of creativeness.


Yours in happy creating.


Lisa
xxx

My Creative Space + a Giveaway

Well it has all been happening over here on Sunny Street. 


I haven't made much progress on my 'red poppies on white'. I was stuck until I could purchase  some wadding and a free motion open toe quilting foot. So now I have done that I still  have no excuse for not finishing it over Easter. Maybe this weekend........

Well, I have been very busy with another creative venture as I posted about a couple of weeks ago. See over here for a read.


So I am very excited that I have now opened my own online fabric store - Sunny Street Fabric Shop.




Now for the give away


For 1 entries - follow this blog and leave me a comment.
For 2 entries - follow this blog, blog about my new shop and this give away and leave me a comment letting me know.
For 3 entries - follow this blog, blog about my new shop and this give away, become a 'liker' on my Facebook page and leave me a comment letting me know.


Now for the prizes. I will giving away 2 fat quarter bundles to 2 lucky bloggers plus each bundle will have a surprise piece of Laurie Wisbrun fabric from Scarlet Fig. Laurie's fabric is just so beautiful and I have just received a huge stash of it and it is just so beautiful and fresh. 


Each bundle will include one fat quarter of the following Kona Cotton Solids:

Pear 

Candy Pink

Buttercup

Peacock

White

These are the colours I used when I made my 'Happy Baby Strip Quilt'. 


This competition will close at midnight on Wednesday 4th May. So you've got to be in it to win it!


Good luck and please do pop over and have a look around my new little fabric shop, Sunny Street Fabric Shop where I will be stocking the basics such as solids, stripes and spots.


Edit - I am having another giveaway on Facebook when I get to 200 likers. Come and join in!


Happy creating
Lisa
xxx

Grand Opening

Today is the day!

It is the Grand Opening of my online fabric store in Craftumi.

My shop is called:

Sunny Street Fabric Shop

I decided to open this fabric store because I have such a love for solids. At the moment it is only stocked with Kona Cotton Solid fat quarters but I am slowly expanding my range to include other solids as well as spots, stripes and some speciality fabrics in meterage.

I will be limiting my store to basics and some speciality fabrics that take my fancy.

The first 10 customers get free shipping (Australia and NZ only)  
I have no clue how to do this so instead am packing 2 Birch polyester sewing threads (500m each) with the first 10 orders.

I am working out another giveaway to mark the occasion. I will get back to you tomorrow with the details.

Bye

Lisa

xxx

Isn't she cute!

How cute! She fell asleep in her new cubby behind the lounge.
The question is, should I wake her for dinner?

My Creative Space

I have gone from last week having a barren creative space, to getting it all happening again. Thank Goodness. Life gets pretty dull for me when there is no crafting going on.

Anyway, this design has been floating around in my head for a couple of years. I mean that.....a couple of years.

I call it 'red poppies on white'. (I am not creative with my names!)

Here is the design a drew up before I started.

This design is very simple, just focusing on my cotton solids and the quilting.

This is it underway.

This quilt will not be perfect. I have not used templates and have just cut freehand. 

I am still trying to decide whether to cut out little black circles to put in the center so my poppies resemble 'real' poppies, or just leave it like this (my own artistic interpretation ha ha ha). I don't think I will do the leaves. I am really liking the simplicity of this quilt. And of course, just loving my Kona Cotton Solids! 

I love love love them!!!!

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Photo source: http://quichemoraine.com/

For more creative spaces just pop over here to the home of creativness, Kootoyoo.

Happy crafting and creating to you!

Lisa

xxx

A Giveaway

Hey, just wanted to pass this one on. The lovely Miriam from Bubbachenille, Mimmis and the Handmade Expo (one very busy lady) is having a giveaway over at her blog. She only needs 17 more blog followers before she will be giving away something lovely from the Miss Rose Sister Violet Range.


Pop on over and follow Miriam, you will love her blog.


Bye
Lisa
xxx

My Creative Space

There's not much creativitity here lately....boo hoo :(

I have had a bout of tonsilitis, and my real job has taken over as I have some deadlines to meet, a presentation to give and I have been trying to keep the house ticking over so we don't give in to complete chaos.

My happy crafting has taken a back seat......hopefully I will get to have a play over the weekend.

Fingers crossed.

To actually see some creativity pop on over here to the home of creativity.

Happy crafting
Lisa
xxx

And the Winner Is............

Well my heavily subscribed *cough cough* competition is now closed and a winner has been drawn!
Congratuations to the lovely Miriam aka Bubbachenille!

Woot woot for Miriam.

I will send you an email shortly.

Thanks to all you lovely ladies for entering this giveaway. Also, just wanted to let you all know, there will be another giveaway happening right
here is a week or so. So, get READY!!!!



Bye and happy crafting.
Lisa
xxx

My Creative Space + a Giveaway

My creative space this week has been all about the design process. I have been thinking about what I am doing and trying to streamline my design process.


What do you do when you get a design in your head. Do you:
1.just leave it in your head and trust your memory when you want to actually create your design
2.draw a sketch
3.make a note.


I have in the past done all three but now I don't. I have gotten my self a bit organised. 

You see, I am a systems person (in my real job), you know Australian Standards, legislation, compliance blah blah blah. Anyway, I like process, forms, checklists etc to keep things streamlined. Here is what I do. My process is, sketch the design as it pops into my head and when I am ready to use that idea, I get out my Quilt Planning Worksheet and spend an evening sketching it and working out measurements (using graph paper), for details, selecting fabric / colours and then away I go, working on my new project.

You might think this takes a lot of time but it doesn't really and it makes for a more stress free quilt making experience. It is also handy if you get  part way through a project and need to put it away for a while, when you are ready to get back into your project, you have all your plans written out so you can just jump straight back in and start creating. Also, it is good for keeping records of what you have created in the past in case you want to create it again, especially if it is quite a complicated design.

I have included a link to the form if you would like to have a look or start using it.

Quilt Planning Worksheet 

Here is a pic of how I used it for the design of my Happy Baby Quilt. I stick it all onto an A3 piece of paper and keep it in my patterns folder.

Also, just to let you know I am having a giveaway. Just pop on over to here and have a look! There are not very many entries so the odds are EXTREMELY good to win. LOL.

For more creative spaces or to join it, pop on over to Kootoyo.


Happy creating
Lisa
xxx


PS If you would like to use the form and want a word version so you an modify it to suit your needs, just send me an email and I will forward you one.

Monday Giveaway

Woot woot it's giveaway time. I have decided that Monday's are good days from giveaways. Cause quite frankly, they aren't much good for anything else!!!


Don't you love Dr Seuss. I know I do. I recently bought a fat quarter bundle of Dr Seuss fabrics and I didn't realise it but there was also a Dr Seuss panel included in the bundle. The Panel measures 22inches by 44 inches. Here is a pic of the print, courtesy of the Fat Quarter Shop.

I really don't need this panel so I thought, 'hey one of my crafting buddies may want this'. 


So here are the rules:
1. Become a follower of my blog and leave a comment.
2. If you are already a follower, leave a comment.


Simple, nothing else required.


Make sure you are email enabled so I can get back to you if you are the winner.


The lucky randomly selected winner will be announced next Monday morning 21st March at 7am, Brisbane time. So get a wriggle on and get your entries in. Oh, by the way, this little competition is open to everyone as I will post to absolutely anywhere!


Tell your mates. 


Come one, come all!


Lisa
xxx

Granny Square Love

I am in the process of getting some ideas for doing up little Ella's room. I figure, she will be 5 later on this year and needs some nice digs to play and to hang out with her little friends. Hopefully this will encourage her to play in her room and not in every other room in the house. Well that is the plan anyway.


I have been looking at Esty tonight and found all so many beautiful granny square blankets. Gosh, I am in serious Granny Square Love tonight.  


Here are my favourites.

Turtlemurtle

Forever Design

Turtlemurtle

Mostly Jonah

Rocket & Bear

There are so many beautiful designs and it has made me want to crochet......ahhhh to not have a day job would be bliss. I could just sew and crochet all day long.............................keep dreaming!

I think I will just buy one, much easier and quicker for me.

Happy crafting.

Lisa

xxx

My Creative Space

Woot woot, I have finally finished my Happy Baby Strip Quilt.


Drum roll please.........


Here she is.

Sorry about the poor quality pic. I was a very cloudy afternoon and I only had the chance to take one photograph before my battery ran out!!!


I am so happy with how this quilt has turned out. I really enjoy these coulours too.


I am just so in love with Kona Cotton solids at the moment. Love, BIG LOVE. I just can't get enough of them and am only thinking in solids. 


I am now working on my next design for another quilt made only from solids. Yep, and they are Kona Cotton Solids. I just love the range of colours......yay and my colour chart is my favourite item in my sewing room at the moment.


For more creative spaces pop over to Kirsty's here.


Happy creating.
Lisa
xxx


Linking up to these great linky parties!

Five years ago today

Five years ago today I was flying to Norway on a business trip. While I was sitting on the plane I was thinking (there is quite a bit of time to do this!!!!) mmmmmm.........maybe I am pregnant!!????


Well, when we arrived at Heathrow I hot tailed it to Boots and bought a pregnancy test kit (which I still have). So while sitting in the toilets at Gate 10 in Terminal 4, I discovered I was pregnant. What a strange situation to be in. You see, I was't supposed to be able to have children.


So while I am reminiscing as I am writing this, I am listening to my beautiful daughter singing to herself while playing with her Lego.


I am one very lucky lady.


Lisa
xxx

My Creative Space

I had my mother-in-law visiting over the weekend so there was no time for sewing. It was time to pull out the stitching instead. 

This is a new design I am working on. I have big plans for this one!

Happy crafting to you. For more creative spaces pop on over to Kootoyoo!

Lisa

xxx

My Creative Space

I am a bit late with this post, oh what a week. I have a messy house, my mother in law arriving for a weekend visit this evening, a have a big project deadline a work (today!!) and I have to get Ella to swimming lessons by 5pm. It has been a mad house this week. Anyway enough of that, here is where I am at with my creative space.

All I have to show this week is my unpicker. Yes, that is right! I have had a BIG FAIL!

Lesson learnt: do not drink alcohol and drive your sewing machine!!!!!

In my own defence, I only had 2 drinks, but as I am not much of a drinker this was enough to make me tipsy. I should have stopped sewing  but noooooooo, not me. I was determined to finish sewing my binding and finishing off my quilt.

In the light of day and with a clear head, there was some ordinary sewing observed. Strangely, at the time it appeared perfect to me!!!!

Anyway, this has got me looking at unpickers......gee I didn't realise there were so many cute ones out there. Were do you find these pretty unpickers??

(So Me Naomi)

(Kraftylady)

Hope you have had more success in your creative endeavours than me!

For more creative spaces pop on over to Kootoyoo's place.

Lisa

xxx