New York - Day 2

Day 2 started with a trip down Fifth Avenue

and a visit to Grand Central Station - what an amazing place!

It was massive, spotlessly clean and so warm.

Just learnt how to use the panorama option on my iPhone :) 

We took a carriage ride round part of Central Park, then walked round it for some time trying hard not to slip over. We seemed to be walking for ages but we didn't seem to cover much of the park when we looked at the map later.

Another pano shot....

Beautiful fountain all iced up!

Dusk at the Top of the Rock

Beautiful sunset

A bit darker

and darker again. Such a change in about 20 minutes.

Thats it for today. back with more pics tomorrow.

Good night all x

New York New York so good they named it twice!!

I've been a bit quiet on the crafting front lately and that is because I have been busy planning and then away on a short break to New York. 

My family and close friends know that this is a place I have long wanted to visit and I wasn't disappointed. I guess it is a place you either love or loathe, but I loved it.

After an early start we arrived at 6pm local time, 11pm UK time and took a walk to Times Square. 

It was bitterly cold so we had to find somewhere to warm up - luckily we found a great Irish bar to have a few drinks.

Before the trip I had looked up several quilt shops in the city although I didn't want everybody's days to be arranged around these shops so one of the first stops the next day was a trip down Fifth Avenue. One of the shops we all wanted to visit was the Apple store which is open 24/7 365 days a year - can you believe it? The shop is underground, huge and absolutely heaving!

In my crafty past I have done some beading - I still do a little, usually at Christmas but my main interest these days is patchwork and quilting. We were obviously in the beading district as there were so many bead shops it was unbelievable, if only there were as many quilt shops! I just had to have a photo taken outside one of them to show my Mum the size of the shop. I daren't go inside otherwise I would have been tempted to buy and I could have been in there quite some time!

I will be back with the next instalment tomorrow, off to familiarise myself with my MacBook Air and then to catch up on some sleep.

Good night all x

Happy Valentines Day

Here is a little project I have been working on tonight. I would have been finished earlier but one of my friends has been over and we have been planning our New York trip - just a little excited - I have wanted to go here for such a long time.

Anyhow back to the sewing, I discovered this great post to make this super cute little bag the other day and decided to give it a go - well a girl can never have too many little bags!!

Better go and tidy up now as the place looks like a bomb has gone off and I need to start writing my fabric shopping list!! 

Hope you have a Happy Valentines Day xxx

A bit more fabric and a quilt top finish!!

Here is the rest of the fabric I mentioned in my previous post

I have been busy cutting hexagon templates and even put fabric on about 6 of them! 

I have also finished a quilt top - finally, although I love the middle section I think there needs to be another thin border between the two outer borders. The pattern I am following had quite different shades of fabric so there was quite a difference but mine are quite pale. I have had a scour of the internet but so far not been able to track down any of the red fabric.

I had planned to put a aqua binding on this quilt, but i think this is going to be too pale so again I think I need more red, what do you think? 

Here is a photo of the design I am making, although I am not adding the circles as they all need hand stitching :( now I love sewing on binding but am not too keen on sewing on 100 circles.

 Can you see what I mean about the borders? I need to get the backing fabric too then I can finally finish this quilt. 

Linking up to WIP Wednesday

A little stash building....

I haven't managed any sewing over the last few days as I am so shattered when I get in from work. I have been browsing lots of lovely blogs so I have a 'things I would like to make' list as long as my arm!

While I was paying for an eBay purchase for my son,  I had to have a little shop myself and this gorgeous jelly roll dropped into my basket.... The colours remind of me sugared almonds.

I have bought some other fabrics to make hexies with, discovered http://thehexieblog.blogspot.co.uk and www.moxyideas.com where they have sheets of hexie templates. Maybe I can get cracking with some hand sewing as it is just too much effort to get off the sofa and to the sewing machine at the moment! 

I have also finished a baby cardigan for a colleague.

I rarely knit first sizes but think on this occasion I should have done as when they bought the baby recently I realised just how large it was. It's amazing what effect a newborn has, lots of broody ladies despite a lot of us being past our sell by date!

Winter's Lane Quilt

This quilt has been a long time in the making, I got fed up with seeing the strips over the radiator and so sewed them together at the weekend.

I have managed a bit of sewing on the borders over the last couple of evenings and hope to get the top finished this weekend.

I am linking up with Lee @ Freshly Pieced

Strips sewn together now...".

I didn't manage any sewing yesterday as I was shattered after helping Elle paint her living room. After a long soak in the bath I just lounged on the sofa.

I had an early start this morning to watch the quilting show on Create & Craft at 8am, so I've managed quite a bit of sewing today. 

I have finished sewing the strips together, just need to find the other fabrics and put the strips round the edges, who knows, I may even get it done this week! 

The pattern is from 'Jelly Roll Dreams' by Pam & Nicky Lintott and the fabric is 'Winters Lane by Moda.

Only 3 more weeks until half term.... Not that I'm counting!! 

Another finish that has been hanging about!

This project has been hanging around for a couple of weeks waiting to be finished. It doesn't matter what I do, there always seems to be a stage that I put off, I don't know why as usually the task isn't as bad as anticipated. 

I found a pattern for a padded hanger which uses Aran wool. I have a large ball of cream Aran yarn what seems to go on for ever and ever without getting any smaller, leftover from a cardi I made myself a while back. 

I knitted it in next to no time but when it came to putting the wadding on the hanger it got cast aside in favour of other projects and believe me there are a few of those around the house! I think there was about 14 at last count although that wasn't checking out too many bags, boxes or cupboards so the true figure is most likely at least double that.... 

There were 2 more wooden hangers in the pack and the ball of wool looks like it could have a couple more in it so I think there will be a couple more of these to go in my present cupboard.

Off to finish another project ;) 

First sewing of 2014

It's 'goddess' day today, (when I am supposed to be a domestic goddess and get all my chores done) and what a lovely day it's been!

I had breakfast with Mum and a friend, a browse round 'The Works' in town while we waited for the battery to be replaced in a watch, and stumbled across a couple of lovely quilting books, right bargains at £2.99 each - it would have been rude to have left them on the shelf!

We spent the afternoon sewing, I reacquainted myself with my sewing machine, as I haven't managed any sewing since before Christmas while Mum was sewing hexagons. I even managed a finish......

I started I this pillow in early December, it was going to be a Christmas present - guess I will just have to keep it for myself now! I stumbled across the pattern somewhere in blogland but can't remember whereabouts now so if this is your design please get in touch with me so I can link up to your post.

We ended up with fish and chips for tea, which DH went to get, as I continued my sewing mission. I initially cut the pieces in September, sewed them into strips and they have been draped over the radiator ever since! I have now sewn half of them together and hope to get the rest of the them added tomorrow once I return from helping our daughter paint her living room. 

I hope to get the top completed this weekend as I really must complete some projects before I start some of the ones in my lovely new books.

Linking up to Finish it up Friday at
http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.co.uk
Enjoy your weekend xx

Christmas shopping ...

We ventured to Chichester today to do some Christmas shopping. While I was there I just had to call into The Eternal Maker, it would have been rude not to! This little stash found its way into a bag with my name on it :) 

The boys are out at football tomorrow so I am going to enjoy some me time with my sewing machine. I have just found a fabulous tutorial using triangles that I may just have to give a try.

Have a great stitchy weekend, keep warm.