Off and Running

My first finish ... Temperature Tree 2025

Around this time last year I read Susan's post about her cross stitch project. After making 2 Temperature Quilts I felt the call and joined a merry band of tree stitchers ... thank you Susan for sharing.

I always love a good declutter challenge so I've joined again this year with Just Get It Done Quilts ... 

Day 1 - Garbage ... working in the craftavan I found a few things no longer serving their purpose and today I'll re-home a few more items that don't need to be in there ... feels good.

On another declutter challenge ... I plan to work my way through the pantry and kitchen cupboards ... one shelf at a time. Some kitchen items can go into a storage box and if by the end of this year, if I haven't pulled them out to use ... they can go! 

Who loves a good declutter and what tips or hints do you follow?

Have a lovely weekend 🌺

Chookshed Challenge 2026

 Happy New Year to all ... Cheers to the 2026 Chookshed Challenge ...#3

I will admit I had my list ready a while back when I was having a good sort out and most of the projects are all in one draw for easy retrieval.

1.  EPP WALL HANGING (Fiona Ransley)  - a FefeandMe kit 

2.  ABC WALL HANGING - an online project commenced ??? years back.

3.  THE BASKET BAG --a Quilter's Angel kit

4.  EMBROIDERY WALL HANGING - Seasons Of top completed 2025

5.  PROJEC BAG - a Michelle's Patchwork kit

6.  HEATHER'S BAG - a Kadina Sewing Centre kit

7.  CROCHET RUG - this will require the purchasing of wool and may need to be swapped if #7 comes up and the weather is still warm.

8.  A MERRY CHRISTMAS GARDEN (Gail Pan) - 2014 - completed top in 2020

9.  A HOLLY COTTAGE GARDEN (Michelle Ridgway) - 2017 Stitch-a-long - completed top in 2018

10.  SASHIKO WALL HANGING - these are the panels stitched in 2025 and I have a plan!

Thank you ladies xx

Merry Christmas ... Happy New Year

 

Grandsons sleeping over ... town day ... Christmas celebrations ... other Grandsons sleeping over ... town day again today, sitting in the queue for recycling so why not pop up my last blog for 2025.

May 2026 be kind with new memories to cherish and lots of friendships and finished projects.

Busy Doing Everyday Stuff

 Just like that ... December is almost at the end and I don't think the hot weather helps either.

So for a quick wrap up of December this far ... our little Patchwork group had our Christmas breakup in the first week with everyone bringing a treat for morning/afternoon tea and we enjoyed a lovely lunch at the local cafe.  We also bundled up 55 placemats for donation to Meals on Wheels in the next town over, which also services our little town.  This was my last one made.

I'm still working on the remaining 50 December units for the Meadow Mist Mystery and hoping these might be the last of half square triangels.

The Murder Mystery Quilt layout has also been released and requires a few more steps to complete. Here is my layout so far ... I've joined the top/bottom, centre and side blocks with 4 more blocks to be made to fill the spaces. Then there are 2 narrow borders and a piano key border to finish ... phew!

Lastly I have my Temperature Tree Cross Stitch leaves added up to the 20th and have added a colour/temp key on either side of the trunk.

Christmas Lunch is at our home this year so it's time to tick off the last few things that need doing and anything else will happen or not. We also had grandsons staying over last week so not much sewing happens but plenty of baking.

I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas xx

Give your loved ones an extra tight hug this year 💞💞

There Goes November

I keep meaning to pop in to share bits and pieces and then I get distracted or busy ... so here's November in a nut shell.

Our little Patchwork group swap a small gift  at our breakup so I made a Scrappy Bucket and one for myself as well. They can be left as is, or fold the top over.

Mystery blocks have been completed. Last block for the Murder Mystery Quilt ... layout is revealed next month ... not long now.

Followed by 54 of these for Meadow Mist Mystery ... took me a while to plod through them.

I think I've mentioned that we're donating 50 placemats to our local Meals on Wheels for Xmas ... these are my last 3 ... playing with the Twister ruler and my friends special ruler.

I love this time of year when the Poinsettia trees are flowering.

Taking time to marvel at the wonder of nature around me ...

I'm off to have a little hop around blogland and see what everyone has been getting up to.

Chookshed Challenge Finish

With a few days to spare I can add another tick to my list of projects for this year's Chookshed Challenge. I will honestly say that without Deanna and Chooky behind this challenge, I would not have achieved the finishes that I have. So a huge thankyou to both lovely ladies and I do hope they are considering another round in 2026 (I may just have a few items ready to go...lol)

What did I finish you ask?  I'll whisper the year (2010) that this one was a completed top and stored away ready to quilt (I'm not great at finishing).

Pond Play ~ from the book '9-Patch Pizzazz' by Judy Sisneros

Red backing ... I was able to scrape together enough from trimming to make the rod pockets.

Closer look at the simple stipple quilting I did on my machine.

There is a little 'back story' on the red binding. My intention was for a blue binding to just blend in. That's the problem with long term UFO's ... I can't always find leftover fabric or fabric that will match well enough so I folded it away to await a trip to town to purchase some blue.  Go back a couple of weeks ago when I was searching for some oriental fabrics to border my completed Sashiko blocks ... NO! ... couldn't find that either.  Come forward again and I thought of 1 more stash where I might find some blue ... no blue ... but I did find the orientals and wouldn't you know it ... one piece was the exact red fabric used in the quilt and I was just able to squeeze a binding out of it.

Phew!  A finish!

  

FNSI + Sunday Snippets

 Friday was time to "bite the bullet" and start quilting on my Fishpond wall hanging...got halfway Friday night and finished the quilting on Saturday.

This morning I finished machine sewing the binding and am halfway again on hand stitching the binding down.

Through the week our resident babies flew the nest 🪹... not one day too soon as the next night, a carpet python had curled himself around the rafter beside the nest.

Harley and I have continued to go out walking each day ... sometimes mornings ... sometimes evenings, depending on the heat.

Time to settle in, under the fan, and watch The Block Auction ... 

Have a lovely week 🌹

Sunday Snippets

 A few little finishes here and there. The last two Sashiko blocks are complete ... now for sashings.

60 x 5" Irish Chain blocks for my Meadow Mist Mystery.

Temperature Tree leaves added up to the 14th. I double checked my records for the 2nd and yes, it was a 37deg ... yuk! Now we're forcasted a 39deg for Thursday 🥵

Ouy Willy Wagtails are back and these 3 little ones hatched just over a week ago. Here they are only a couple of days old and now this morning... I'm always amazed at how fast they grow.

Someone is always watching when I'm out walking ... this morning I even got a little serenade ... Warble, Giggle, Gargle 🎶

Have a great week.

FNWF, Challenge #1 and Other Things

More this and that as the school holidays were coming to an end. A day of putting things back as they were after our first visitors and then Summer pushed it's way into Spring on Thursday to deliver a "stinking HOT day", finishing off with a storm.

Friday was town day to stock up the pantry and to check out Mum's mystery flowering plant. A few years ago, her Grandson-in-law gave her a piece of old root he dug up in the hope it might shoot ... it's taken a while to get to this stage but has finally flowered! I believe it's known as 'Queens Wreath' or more commonly 'Sandpaper Vine'.

Friday Night with Friends ... time to wind down with some more Sashiko and another block finished.

Saturday our daughter and boys arrived for the long weekend ... we mustered ... we baked ... and they accompanied me on my walks.

Last month I registered for "Oceans to Outback" to fundraise for Royal Flying Doctor Service ... my target is to walk 45km for the month of October. So far so good with a walk each day, keeping them to early morning or late evening ... Harley's enjoying leading the way.

RADF OceanstoOutback/Narelle

Chookshed Challenge has come to the final month and #1 is to quilt my Fishpond wall hanger. I know exactly where it is and hopefully can make a start on it this week.  

Thankyou Deanna ... this challenge has kept me on my toes and finishing projects that would otherwise be still in the waiting line.

Lastly, my Temperature Tree was updated at the end of September and I've also completed the next branch ... when the power went out in last Thursday's storm.

Off to enjoy a cuppa ...