Hi World…

Sorry to be away for sooooooo long, but where does time fly? OMG, its nearly May already.

Any way, first up, I want to thank Faharna for the inspiration for this blankie

Masha Allah I love how you did it Faharna, see it here.

It is a very similar pattern, that I thought would be good practice for my crochet, as I haven’t done much since I was little, and then I couldn’t make granny squares, square. So I gave up, until recently.

I am working on a lap blanket at the moment and I will be… if I can get a picture of it that turns out. The pattern cannot be seen at all. I don’t know if its the colour of the wool or what.

So when it is finished if I still can’t get a good picture I will post a link so you can see what it looks like with a proper picture LOL

Speak to you all soon

Bracelets

I have been working on a Victorian style bracelet which has taken me ages as it is all beaded, but I like how it has turned out.

Tell me what you think.

I think its great.

Lastly some bad news, my lovely Hubbies dad died last the weekend.

Keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

Speak soon

Mittens

Baby H’s mouse mittens

Rabbit mittens

WordPress is finally letting me add pictures again, yippee!

The mittens above are my new knitting venture. It has taken me so long to find a pattern that works I have totally missed the cold and snow for Baby H.

Never mind, I’m sure there will be more cold weather for him to wear them.

The rabbit mitts (I really don’t think that they look like rabbits) were supposed to be a birthday present for the little girl next door.

It was her 2nd birthday last week, but on the day her mum had a total freak out session on hubby, so needless to say I didn’t go to the little un’s birthday party,

so they are still sitting on my desk waiting…

I have also started making some jewelry. I am having fun making it. Its like quilting and knitting. It totally relaxes me. i have so much jewelry now that I need a second jewelry box.

Even hubby has been having a go…

This is the first thing that he made me

With these earrings to match

This is one of the first charm bracelets that I made

Turquoise is one of my favourite stones and my birthstone

If you want to see more of what I have been up to go to my Flickr page.

I even have some cards that I need to take pictures of. Will add them soon.

Hopefully I won’t be away for so long next time.

There have been abnormal cells, colposcopy clinics and antidepresant tablets, need I say more…

I haven’t even been quilting. I have made one and half quilts in four months.

I have three or four more quilt tops that are pinned and just need quilting and binding and then putting up for sale.

Be there soon.

Will be seein’ ya’ soon

You have probably noticed that I have changed my name, did it by deedpoll a couple of months ago, so no more Claire (except mum)

Still here…

Hi every one still here. Just a quick post to let you know what I have been up to. Well I did go into a load of info and try to add pictures of what I have been up too, but wordpress is having a silly session, won’t upload pictures and has deleted the whole post, so hopefully I will be updating this tomorrow.

If you would like to see pics go over to my flickr page and take a look.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/madebyclaire/

Hi Y’all

I hope that you are all doing well. Wow, been busy. Sorry for not posting pics of the cat and mouse quilt sooner, but they are here now…

This is exactly as the pattern asks for fabric wise. The quilting is too in the center, but on the border The pattern shows quilting along every line, but as it was a custom order and I was running out of time, I just did some large stippling. It still looks ok though. I am pleased with it. The only thing that I am not pleased with is the person who bought it left no feedback what so ever. Didn’t even send me an email to say that it arrived. I know the have it though as the day they ordered this quilt they had bought another one of me, which I posted. They didn’t leave feedback or let me know that it arrived, so when it was time for posting this quilt I sent it signed for so I could track it on the internet. So I know they have this one… Aren’t some people strange…

Any way, the main reason I have been away for so long is that we went back to Bahrain for the Eid celebrations to see Hubbies family and surprise them. They were all a bit shocked. It was nice to be back for a while. But back in the UK now. It has been very wet since we got back and I’m not sure if I’m jetlagged or if I have got this SADS thingy from the depressing weather, but I can’t get my backside into gear. I am so tired. Feeling a little better now though.

The socks that I knit for Baby H, I haven’t taken pics of Hubbies socks yet (Bad blogger), let me know if you see a trillion mistakes or dropped stitches. I’m sure you knitters will see something…LOL

Baby H’s socks. They are a bit long in the leg, but I followed the pattern and this is what I got. Baby H loves them. He calls them his rainbow socks. So what can I say?

Speak soon, hopefully it won’t be as long next time.

A special quilt

I have been working on a special commission quilt for a lovely lady called Natalie.

It’s all finished and sent of and I received an email from her today saying it has arrived safely and she likes it.

Phew!!!!

Natalie bought the picture blocks and sent them to me, and I went from there.

Glad you like it Natalie.

Ta Dah!!!!

I have finally finished the socks. Sorry I haven’t posted for a while, been working on a commission order. Will post pics when its finished. I couldn’t work on it yesterday as I have pulled a ligament in my right shoulder, and guess what I am right handed…

Any ways, pics of the socks

Time to knit hubby some socks,

Speak soon

Mum, you better sit down for this one…

I’ve been knitting. Toadstools to be exact. I very often browse around the blog Purlbee and a few days ago they had a tutorial for knitting a baby toadstool rattle, I thought I gotta have a go at that one. It was all stitches that I could do, that mum taught me when I was a kid. So here here we have it, my toadstoll rattle…

and it RATTLES!!!!! Yay…

I am quite pleased at how it turned out and all the stitches are right. Actually they aren’t. I had put it on the needles the wrong way round. If you see the rows of purl stitches, well there are only supposed to be a couple of rows that are purl and the rest are knit. I don’t know how I managed to do the rows in purl, but after a couple of rows I realised that I wasn’t knitting, so when I got to the end of the row I started the next purling and voila it has knit all the way down. Anyway i think it looks groovy even if the colours are naff.

I am now knitting some socks. I got some wool of ebay (the wool on the stem) and I have knitted about 3/4 of my first sock. Not bad seeing as I have never used double needles before. I have had to purchase a second set as the first ones I bought were 30cm and kept poking my eyes out, these new smaller ones are much easier for knitting socks with LOL.

Will post pictures when it is finished.

Speak soon

Not good

I have made a quilt that I think is lovely, but I can’t take pictures when it is gloomy. The light is no good. It lets the colours of the quilt down. So it will have to wait for a brighter day.

Andrea, take a look at my hexagon top, or what I have done so far.

I love this picture with the sunlight shining through the blinds.

Sun light gone…

I love how fast these grow. I am not sure yet how big it will be. We will have to see when I get bored, but it will not be for sale, this is mine.

The past few nights we have had a little visitor in the garden. It must be a male because he is quite large and loves bread and milk. Can you guess what he is yet?

A Mr. Hedgehog…

He likes having his photo taken, he just sits there and doesn’t curl up into a ball.

Will post pictures of the new quilt when I get good light.

Speak soon

Sorry…

It’s all I seem to be saying at the moment. I just can’t get my backside into gear.

As promised some pics from our little holiday in France.

This tractor belongs to the farmer from up the road. Here he has blocked the road so he can move cows. He had let Baby H in and have a go at moving the bucket up and down, but I missed it as I was talking to Hubby on the computer. Todd managed to get himself in the shot.

This is my duck, he doesn’t have a name, but he is around 4 years old now. I picked him and another (that the fox got) when I was staying with my mum before I went to Bahrain. The next picture is of my mum’s fat chickens…

My Hubby bought me a new camera before we left so I could take some good shots, not that the weather let me. But it had a macro button and I have not had this option before so I took pictures of some flowers and weeds. I don’t know the names of all of them, so you will just have to look and say OOOOHHHHH!!!!!

I don’t know what the second flower is called (mum did tell me) but I love the forget-me-nots and the rosemary.

I have been busy since I got back trying to fill the shop up again. I have finished two quilts and I am now working on a third, but I need to get some batting. The first picture and the quilt I am working on now are from half jelly rolls.

I was reading Creative little daisy’s blog and she had made a quilt out of charm squares. I had purchased a pack of 100 charms, but didn’t know what to do with them, so when I saw Autum’s blog I thought great I’ve got to do one of those to get rid of the charms. So here it is…

To finish of with, I have been making some cards, as I can do that easily around Baby H. This is one that I made for my Nan’s birthday…

Speak soon

Why is Mother’s Day not allowed by the post?

I sent my mum’s mother’s day gift a week before mother’s day and it arrived a week later. A parcel I sent to Bahrain, on the same day, arrived a week before the parcel that I sent to Brittany (France). How does that work?

Any way my mum has finally got her mother’s day gift and from what I can gather she likes it. I am pleased as it took me ages to make it.

As I promised before, the pictures of my Grans Mother’s Day gift. Even though I posted it late it arrived the next day.

I have been busy with boxes, and now a bag that I have been making for myself.

I am a bag freak, this is how I got into making them, but I dislike certain bags, I will see a bag that I like and won’t buy it just because it has a flap. I like partitions, so I might find a bag that I like and not buy it because there are no partitions. Needless to say I didn’t put a partition in this bag, but it has the opening that I like.

I have used a Hex frame, bag bottom and feet, and used the tutorial as a guide from Lisa’s blog and website.

I used Alexander Henry Flutterby fabric. Let me know what you think.

Sorry Guys…

that I haven’t posted for awhile, but I have been in an almighty low. Really tired and can’t be bothered to do any thing. Although I have still been sewing, I just couldn’t be bothered to post about them. I don’t know if its because the miscarriage dragged on for so long.

Any way here I am, bright and breezy. house is clean, laundry is done and now I have a few mins to post while Baby H watches ‘Bear in the Big Blue House, Potty Time with Bear’. I have read in a few places that it has helped with potty training. Well he’s watching…

I have been working on some new quilts and other stuff.

I have started with these two scrappy stripey pram quilts. I love making them as they are so quick. The plain one has sold already.

 

I made this toddler nappy/diaper bag with a matching tissue holder as you need emergency tissues as much as you need emergency nappies and wipes. There is a pocket that can fit wipes in so that the wipes are separate from the nappies.

I have also been making mother’s day present, but I can’t post you pictures of my mum’s gift as it still hasn’t arrived in France and she doesn’t want to see pics. She still has faith in the mail service. We will see.

I will post pictures of my Gran’s present when I have got them of the camera. Still not done it.

I am working on a website and new blog, but its very slow. Will post the big reveal when it is finished or at least when I am happy with it.

Speak soon

Be patient guys…

I am working on some other stuff, but you have to be patient with me as I can’t shift this miscarriage. I have been for medical management and now a D&C, so god willing we will be able to start trying again soon.

Will post as soon as I get some pictures.

Speak to you all soon

Lily pads and stacks of farm animals…

I have been busy with some new quilts. Do you remember the lily pad quilt that I did, well originally that was going to be a set, cot bumper etc. The filling of the bumper was quite expensive and I wouldn’t have made the money back on it, so I turned it into a quilt. Its the same design, just a slightly different layout.

The backing and the binding is the same as the 1st quilt.

The next quilt is a top that my Gran sent down with some fabric. Its a stack of farm animals. I had read in one of my new quilting books about quilting by outlining, and I wanted to try it. I thought that this would be a perfect quilt to try it on.

You can see the pattern very clearly on the back.

I am also working on a quilt for hubby and myself. Its called Le Moyne Star.

I will send progress pics as I go on.

Speak soon

Yay! I won…

Thanks to Claire for doing a pay-it-forward on her blog and I won. I am sorry Claire that it has taken me so long to blog this, but I am so tired with this pregnancy. It is wiping me out. Here is what I won from Claire

There are a few rules to this pay-it-forward;

1. You leave a comment here on my blog and request to join the Pay It Forward exchange.

2.The first three comments who agree to join will receive a little something from me (a surprise of course) within 365 days.

3.You return the Pay It Forward by making the same promise on your blog. How fun is that!!!

So there you go, leave a post.

I have received some fabric and scraps from my step-gran, and I have made a pram quilt with the scraps. I got the idea for this Scrap strip method tutorial from happythings blog. Just scroll down until you find it. there is lots of other great stuff too. It’s nearly finished, I just have to quilt it.

Take a look

Take a look at this…

I thought you would be interested.

fabric card holder

I’ve been busy while baby H sleeps today. I have been making this fabric card holder. I got the tutorial from little thing.

She does a great blog, I love to go and read about what she  has been creating. You have to go and take a look if you haven’t already been.

I had to make some changes as I don’t have pinking shears, so I had to add an extra 1/4″ so I could make a seem. It’s turned out ok.

| View Show | Create Your Own

Chelsea Bag

I have made this bag just by looking, as I don’t have a pattern for it.

 I don’t know why but the picture makes it look a bit wonky, it’s not in real life.

Internal view. The fabric is the same as for the outside material, but the colours are the opposite way round, red and gold

Couldn’t Wait

I couldn’t wait for the mac to recouperate, so I have put baggy pics on my hubbies computer (hope he doesn’t mind). I have finished the green bag with side pocket.

    

I have lined the bag with the same material as the first green bag that I did, (Pfaff doesn’t like it )

Green Bag

This is actually my third bag, the 2nd is awaiting handles. You will see it later.
The front and back of this bag are the same pattern, wasting quite a bit of material, but it’s worth it I think. With a matching tie, not sure whether to leave it where it is or tie it off to the side…
Please let me know what you think. Post any comments good or bad
I will be doing another one in the same fabric, but with a zip closing and a zipped pocket on the side. Keep a look out!