Sødeste

One down....

2011-08-07T11:13:00.000+02:00

I finished a WIP! Yay for me :)
This has been in the pile of what-am-I-going-to-do with-this? projects for a while, and all I needed to finish it was really to decide to give it away!

I have had too much to do, and too much on my mind lately to focus on sewing - so I am very happy to have finished this.

I am happy with how it turned out! The circles are a pain to cut, but they really do come together pretty easily - I would definately make another one of these.

Since this is going to a good friends' son, I tried to find some boyish prints to go on the back. There just are not many guy-prints to be found!!

Anyway, I hope he will like it. I had fun making it :)

Wedding Quilt for friends!

2011-06-25T16:24:00.000+02:00

We went to a wedding last weekend.
And....eventhough I am far too busy as it is, I had to make a quilt for our friends for their wedding. It's not their fault my schedule is isane!

Obviously I waited until the last possible minute to start this, and ended up spending an entire weekend working on it :)

But I am happy with how it came out.

And the happy couple liked it too!

HST pillow

2011-05-20T23:20:00.000+02:00

The couch at my house is a rather sad-looking thing. I made a pillow last year to brighten it up a little, I meant to make more - but that didn't happen.
Miss V started complaining about us only having the one pillow - and could I please make another one? So I found a Kona charm pack and some scraps and made this

I am pretty happy with how it turned out.

I used some of my FMF for the back

- sorry about the blurry picture -

I put it on the couch and I do like it....

Maybe I should make one more? And preferably before 2012 ;)

Love

2011-05-14T16:32:00.000+02:00

Miss V: This is for you
Little A: Oh, is that for me? Did you really make this for me?
Miss V: Yes I did. Because you are my little brother and I love you :)

Mother's Day

2011-05-09T15:32:00.000+02:00

On Mother's Day I had some sewing time - yay!
I am still working on the star quilt

I really like this pattern!

I think Miss V and her friend must have caught me at a time when I was feeling particularly guilty about not spending enough time with my kids....or maybe I had just said no too many times already that day?! Somehow, they managed to make me promise that I would sew them matching bags. So I did. These are made from KeykaLou's Curvy Clutch pattern.

I quilted their names so they can tell them apart - and because I want (and need) the practise :)

They love their new little clutches, so it was worth the work - the girls picked the fabrics, and they are very proud of how well they did.

My kids woke me up with kisses on Mother's Day :) And some pretty awesome gifts.
I have not been very good at saving hand- and footprints as they are growing up, but they gave me this fabric

All the blue hands are Asks and the red ones are Violas :) I have no idea how I am going to use this, but I am sure I'll think of something.

They also gave me this Moomin mug - because they love bubbles

Cute, huh?!

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day as well. Whether you are a mom, friend, aunt or something else!

Kindle Cover How-to

2011-05-07T19:54:00.005+02:00

This is so super-fast! I made this in less than an hour, and so can you :)

What you need is one piece of focus fabric, one piece of fabric for lining and one piece of batting - I used a piece of a fleece blanket from IKEA, because that is what I had on hand.

Each piece should be cut to measure 6 1/8'' by 16'' -if you have a Kindle 3G like I do.

The fabric in the photo is folded in half.

The first thing you do is to lay out all your fabric pieces. You place your focuse fabric right side up, and put your lining fabric on top of it wrong side facing up. And then you place your batting on top of the lining fabric.
Should look like this:

Now you sew each short end with 1/4'' seam allowance.

I cut the batting close to the seam, to avoid bulk.

Do this at both ends of your fabric-pile. This is also the step where you can measure once more, to be sure your cover will have the right size at the end - just lay your Kindle on the fabric, line ot up to the first seam, fold the fabric over your Kindle, and see how much fabric is left for your second seam. I am a lazy measurer, so I need to do this....

Then you turn your fabric right side out, so you have the seams and the batting in the middle, and you lining fabric and focus fabric facing out.

Now you fold the cover in half, with the lining side facing out, and sew down each side, using 1/2'' seam allowance - like so

I have cut the fabric close to the seams, maybe 1/8'', to avoid bulk.

Now you turn the cover right side out. make sure you turn the corners out as good as you can. I use a crochet hook or a knitting needle.

The you sew at 1/4'' from the side seam, on the front. This will make a french seam, and cover those fraying edges on the inside, so you don't get lint in you Kindle :)

Once you have done this on both sides, your cover is all done!!

It is supposed to be a tight fit, you don't want your Kindle to slide out of the cover.

If you have questions or if you make a cover using this how-to, please let me know :)
This style will also work for your phone or an iPad. You just measure your phone/iPad and add 1/2'' seam allowance to the length and 1'' to the width (remember you need to cover both the height, front and back).
I would love to see your creations!

Spring :)

2011-05-03T15:49:00.001+02:00

Spring seems to finally have found its way to Denmark!

We have had picnics, and not only in the living room - real outside picnics. Needless to say Miss V is excited about that :)

It is nice to spend more time outside, without having to put on 50 layers of clothes first.

I have finished my BeeFF block for Lu - she asked for a garden, so I made her some strawberries

Also...I finally cut into my Hope Valley jelly roll. I am pretty happy with how this is turning out - more pictures to follow - there are some rookie mistakes, but that's ok. It's my first time.

I hope to get this finished soon.

Somehow I only seem to sew things that I have not planned. So far I haven't really made any progress on my list for 2011. So either I'll have a very productive fall, or I just won't get everything done :)

BeeFF for Tia

2011-04-22T10:41:00.001+02:00

I finally finished my BeeFF blocks for Tia!! Tias month was February, so I am still behind :/
This is the first block

This is machine sewn. I am just not patient enough to hand sew!

The other block is hand sewn, and so took me almost 2 months to finish :/

I am still fiddling with the Christmas ornaments, I have some ideas. That'll be the next post...

The kids and I have been visiting my parents all week, we'll be going back to Copenhagen today. We have visited the artmuseum, aRos.

I really want to see the installation on the roof "Your Rainbow Panorama" by Olafur Eliasson, but it doesn't open untiln the end of May.

So....we'll just have to come back soon :)

We also found time to visit a fabric store - obviously!

Happy Easter

2011-04-19T17:30:00.002+02:00

I am trying to catch up on some sewing. I made these pillows for my Dad. They are his birthday present. And to give you and idea of how late I really am, I can tell you that his birthday is in January *ahem*

I made these to match the Morris Workshop quilt I made for my parents for Christmas. Atleast that was done in time ;)

I used up every little bit of the prints to finish these, as you can see on the back

I have almost finished one bee block for Tia, and I have one more to do. Lets just say, that applique is not my favourite kind of sewing....

This block I am handsewing, and the next one will be sewn on my machine. If not Tia will not get these babies back until sometime in 2012 - and that would not be fair!
I have also almost finished a block for Lu, but I'll have to show you that when I am back in Copenhagen, I didn't take a picture of it yet.

On a different note....
Mmmmm....spring! You have to love it!

The kids and I are spending Easter in Aarhus with my parents, and we are having a wonderful time.

I had some good news at work, and what better way to celebrate it than buying a new pair of shoes?!

These will be for work too....perfect for spring if you ask me :)

Catching up...

2011-03-14T00:42:00.000+01:00

I am having a very strange 2011 so far. There are some personal issues I need to sort out - so be patient with me!
I have hardly touched my sewing machine all year, so I am already behind in getting bee blocks made and sent to my friends. This weekend I made a start, and I will catch up!
This is the first block I made for LauraJay for the BeeFF bee on Flickr:

LauraJay requested faded colors. Working on these made me realize that I have almost no faded colors in my stash. I knew I like bright, but still....

This is the second block I made for her:

Sorry about the blurry picture and the awful colors in this picture :(

I also had some catching up to do for the Row10 bee from 2010 (ACK!)
This is the row I made:

It was sent out a little more than a week ago, so it should arrive at its new home soon!

Also....I have finally decided on an e-book reader. I have had such a hard time deciding, but now it is here, and I LOVE it!!

Now my biggest problem is, that I still have to finish the paperback I am reading. I sooo want to read on my Kindle instead!

Positive Wednesday :)

2011-01-12T10:47:00.001+01:00

Having a busy life, being lucky enough to have kids and also to have a job that enables me to provide for them, that makes me thankful!

My daugther gave me these this morning, right before I went out the door at 6:30AM to go to work.
As I am sure you have guessed MOR is Danish for Mom :)

That makes me feel blessed and thankful - getting letters and drawings from my daugther!

And it makes me feel like that every time I look at them during the day. I have them at the office with me, as a reminder of the blessings I have.
It even makes it more bearable that I don't have time to sew!

Ice

2011-01-10T08:53:00.001+01:00

We still have a lot of snow here.
So yesterday when Miss V and I walked home from the pool (yes, it is an indoor pool!), this is what we were walking on:

I could have worn more sensible shoes, sneakers are not the best for walking on ice!
There was a lot of laughing, a lot of sliding and no falls!! I did have to catch her a few times, but we didn't fall :)

State of the WIPs...

2011-01-08T21:24:00.000+01:00

...most of them anyway!

I laid out the rows for my Row10 quilt to take pictures this evening, and Little A just couldn't stay off it!!

I have all the rows now, and I absolutely love every one of them! A huge thank you to my friends who made these rows for me. This quilt will definately be a favourite!

I have also looked at my WIPs to see how much I still have to do to have a finished quilttop.
This first one is my scrappy circle WIP. I think I need to make quite a few more of these to have a quilt in a good size.

Not too bad, though, I have more blocks than I though I did :)

This next one is going to take me forever to finish. I am not enjoying making these stars as much as I enjoy looking at them! I am sure I will love this once it is done - but I am not sure it will be done in 2011....

This week has been hard work. Getting up at 5:30AM is not easy for me, and especially not during winter when it is so dark in the morning! I'll stop whining, I really enjoy my job - it's just the getting up early in the mornings I don't like so much!

A year of living positively

2011-01-04T22:23:00.000+01:00

This year I am going to do a post every week about something positive that happened to me, big or small.

Starting work again after New Years has been both rewarding and exhausting. I really like my job, and the kids have been so happy going back to their friends, so everything is going really well.

However, I am a person who likes to stay up late in the evenings and sleep in a little - and Charles has let me do that during the holidays - so getting up at 5:30AM and being at the office by 7AM is a little challenging right now. I have managed, and I will manage to do it, though.

Anyway, Charles sees that I am tired, and since I don't drink coffee, he got me a big cherry coke. Mmmmm...just what I need after a long day at the office! Cherry coke and reruns of "Bones" and my sweetie. That makes me thankful :D

Quilty goals for 2011

2011-01-02T00:24:00.000+01:00

I am not sure if I am going to be able to finish all of this in 2011, but here's the list and then we'll see how much I get done :)

I have finally made curtains for our living room, and I would love to have an extra set! Maybe even a set of Christmas curtains before December 2011! How fun would it be to have Christmas curtains?!

I am in the Bee FF quilting bee on Flickr, so I want to be on time with the blocks for that. That may sound as an easy goal to achieve, but it hasn't been so in the past! Here's hoping I'll do better in 2011!

My growing list of UFOs should be reduced.
These are the ones I want to finish:

My SC2 quilt. I have all the blocks, and I am using this mustard solid to make sashing.

This has been waiting for a while because I couldn't decide what to use for sashing. But I need to finish it!

I also want to finish the quilt for our bed

Right now we use to regular sized quilts to make our bed, not a very good solution!

Also, I have my Row10 quilt. I still have to make my row for this

I am looking forward to this one being finished! I love these rows so much!!

I want to reduce my stash in 2011. It is not too big, but I can definately make quite a few quilts with what I have, so my goal is to work from stash. I can buy fabrics for binding and I will need to buy batting. And I know I will buy fabric, but it shouldn't be as much as it has been in 2010.

Oh...I also want to make a quilt for Charles' dad and his girlfriend, they are getting married sometime this spring. And my SIL is turning 50....and one of my friends is having a baby.

I'll be busy!!

Happy New Year!!

2011-01-01T00:24:00.000+01:00

Miss V set the table..

She helped me make our favourite food for the first course

The boys don't care for sushi, so they pretty much waited for the main course :) Which also means that Miss V and I will be having sushi for lunch tomorrow!

We went for a walk and looked at the fireworks, we turned our couch around so we sat facing the windows looking out at the fireworks and we ate way too much candy.

A perfect New Years Eve!

I wish you and your loved ones a happy and blessed New Year and thank you for all your kind words, your support and friendship in 2010 - I am looking forward to seeing what 2011 will bring!

Grocery Bags 2010

2010-12-31T10:41:00.001+01:00

These bags are the best!!
I love mine! Most of these were given away as gifts, and I have received only positive feedback.

If you click the picture, you'll see the links to each picture. The comments on the purple bag (#3) has the link to a tutorial for these.
If you haven't made a few of these already, put it on your list for 2011!

Finished Quilts 2010

2010-12-30T09:05:00.000+01:00

When I set out to make this mosaic, I could only think of 2 quilts I had finished in 2010. So with that in mind I guess having finished 4 big quilts and a doll quilt is ok.
I also have 2 quilttops waiting - they are not in this mosaic.

Click the picture to go to Flickr and see the links to tell you the story of the different quilts.

3 of the big quilts were given away, and so was the doll quilt. Maybe that's why I feel like I haven't finished any quilts this year? The only one still at my house is the picnic quilt. I do love that quilt though, right now it is under our Christmas tree pretending to be a tree skirt - a real tree skirt should be on my to-do for 2011!

Home sewing 2010

2010-12-29T16:05:00.000+01:00

I did manage to sew some stuff for our home in 2010.
I still have a lot of projects I want to complete in 2011, but let's see how much I get done!

If you click the picture, it will take you to Flickr where the links to the individual pictures are.
My favourite project is the curtains. They have been needed for so long, and once I actually started them, they were pretty easy to make.
Everyone loves a project like that, right?!

Rude candy!

2010-12-28T19:35:00.001+01:00

It is so cold here in Copenhagen, and we have a lot of snow!
These are the bikes I pass every morning when going to work and every afternoon going home.

I understand why their owners leave them there!! Mine is parked at work and will most likely stay there for atleast one more month. Probably more.

Speaking of work, my co-worker and I both love licorice, and we often buy some for both of us. I found these the other day - they must be the most politically incorrect thing I have seen in a very long time!!

They are almost too big to eat, but that just makes for a nice and quiet office. LOL!

But seriously...have you ever seen anything like these?!

I am about to kiss the kids goodnight, and tomorrow is the first day of a 5 day weekend, the kids and I are going to have so much fun! I hope!

And if I am lucky I will have time to do some sewing ;)

To do before 2011

2010-12-27T01:04:00.000+01:00

I am a part of the Row10 quilting bee on Flickr. I am so late finishing up my last row :(
LauraJay has been more than patient with me, and now I really need to get this done! I am not very happy with my free-piecing these days, so everything takes me a very long time :(

But yesterday, after my family left and I had cleaned our apartment a little, I sat down to sew. I wish I could tell you that it was easy-peasy - but no!
I am still not happy woith how it turns out. But now I am thinking I'll do it, and I'll do my best and then LJ will have her row - and it will "only" be 6 months late *shame*

I also want to make some fabric grocery bags before Miss V goes back to school January 3rd. We never gave her teacher a present, because Miss V had pneumonia most of December and didn't get to go to school. Boo.
Last night when the kids were having their baths I managed to cut 3 grocery bags while watching them! Yay!

Miss V has claimed one for herself (mom.....I need it when I go grocery shopping with dad!) and one for her teacher. The last one will be a special present for a friend of mine! Cutting them is the part that takes time, sewing them is much more fun.
After finishing these 2 projects, I can start looking at what I want to sew in 2011.

Christmas Lunch

2010-12-26T10:56:00.003+01:00

Every year we have the same Holiday plans. My parents and my sister arrive on the 22nd for Miss Vs birthday, and they live quite far away, so they stay with us until after Christmas.
During Christmas we have Charles' family come over and celebrate with us, so we have lots of company during the Holidays!

This is a picture from our Christmas lunch Dec 25th. We were 11 people in all, quite a lot for our apartment :)
Miss V had made the candles and given them to Charles as a gift - she was very proud to see them on the table.

We had a traditional Danish Christmas lunch, so lots and lots of food!! We sat at the table from 1PM until 6 PM. Lots of food and lots of fun :)

My sister, my mom share in the cooking, and Charles' brother brings the drinks. We have a wonderful time.
But every year I promise myself, that I won't eat that much EVER again!

My parents and my sister are leaving today, our home will be strangely empty without them. And I go back to work tomorrow. I work Monday and Tuesday, and then I have taken Wednesday, Thursday and Frisday off. Maybe I'll be able to sew? I have lots of stuff to finish before I can make sewing plans for the New Year!

Morris Workshop quilt done!

2010-12-25T20:04:00.000+01:00

My parents have recently moved from their house in the country and to an apartment in the city. I am so happy for them, the house was huge, they had to drive everywhere and there was a huge garden to look after.
So all in all a good thing. For the new apartment they bought a new couch...and as we all know, a new couch needs a new quilt :)

This is the label...I wrote Merry Christmas 2010" and our names. Miss V wrote her own name and did some drawings. I like how it turned out :)

The fabric is "Morris Workshop", I have had it for a while and am very happy to have used it all in a quilt, as I had planned. The solid is Kona Cotton in Mocha.

Please just look at the quilt, and not the mess :) I like how this turned out, and my parents are so happy with it. They were totally surprised by it! Yay!
Also, I must say that finishing this quilt was quite a challenge, my parents have been staying with us most of December because Miss V has had pneumonia, and I haven't been able to work on it while they have been here!

I pieced the backing using the rest of the prints, some Kona Cotton in Mocha and Moss and a dotty print from my stash.

This was a fun quilt to sew, not a lot of cutting and most of it could be string-pieced.

My only problem now is, that my sister just bought new couches too....
-and she turns 40 in January!

Merry Christmas!!

2010-12-25T00:31:00.000+01:00

Picture from www.tivoli.dk

I hope you and your loved ones have a wonderful Christmas!

Peppermint Bark

2010-12-22T15:43:00.000+01:00

Miss V and I made Peppermint Bark this morning - it's her 6th birthday, so she gets to choose a lot of todays activities :)
This was so easy to make, I don't know why we have never made it before! Yum!

We're expecting company in about half an hour, so I have to get off the computer again...just wanted to check in and say hi - and say if you have not made Peppermint Bark already - then do it!!

Oh, and the Moriis Workshop quilt for my parents is done, it is in the wash. As it should be since they are arriving any minute now!!

So...HAPPY BIRTHDAY MISS V!

Present from work

2010-12-15T14:38:00.000+01:00

At my new (well sort of new) job, we could chose one of 6 different presents for Christmas. So no surprise, but a better chance of getting something you will actually like!
I chose this

This is a SKAGEN watch - I really like it!

Moomin love

2010-12-14T22:33:00.000+01:00

Look what Charles gave me today! A brand new Moomin mug!

How cute is that? Moomin, snow and a winter-feel! I love it!

I still have lots of presents to buy - and no time to go shopping :/ So I am a little stressed out about the whole gift-giving/-getting thing this year.

And to make it even worse, Miss V has pneumonia. So I have no idea how I am going to get any shopping time. Please keep your fingers crossed that the penicillin kicks in real fast. I so want to take her Christmas shopping!

Happy Lucia Day

2010-12-13T15:19:00.000+01:00

Our neighbor brings us these every year.

Such a delicious tradition! Charles is half Swedish, so he really appreciates these ;D

How to quilt this?

2010-12-12T14:51:00.000+01:00

Somehow I never find settling on how to quilt something easy....I mean, there are lots of ways I would love to quilt this, but most of those I can't do. And I am not going to send this one out to be quilted...

I also have lots of straight-line-quilting ideas for this, but I really don't enjoy quilting straight lines....

Do you have any suggestions? I am off to Flickr to search for some inspiration.

New ornaments for our tree

2010-12-11T19:26:00.000+01:00

C and I agreed that we need some ornaments for our tree...not that our tree is half-empty or anything like that. It's just that most of the ornaments we have, are some that we have given the kids! If we don't start buying some for ourselves, we'll have an empty tree when they move out. LOL!

I got this cute coffee ornament when I was in Vienna last month. Too cute if you ask me :)

Miss V and I went shopping today, and she chose this angel for herself

The frog is for Little A

The tiger is for C - he really likes that ;)

And last but not least, these mushrooms are all mine

I love getting new decorations for our tree.

And so do the kids ;)

Mr Sødestes 40th Birthday

2010-12-06T11:29:00.000+01:00

Charles turned 40 this weekend, and Saturday we had an open house - in other words, we had a house full of guests from noon until 8PM.
It was fun - and and he loved it.
I knew what I wanted to give him, but had a very hard time finding it......he as been wanting a movie poster from a Danish movie from the 50s (60s?). Either way, they are very hard to find!
Thursday I finally found someone who had it for sale, but I wouldn't be able to pick it up until this week :(

So I made him a giftcard, and a monster giftcard holder!

He loved his present, and he thought the monster was really cool!

I have to show you some of the other artwork he got, his friends are too funny :D

Now I am looking forward to sewing Christmas presents, a birthday present for Miss V - I can't believe she'll be 6 years old soon! - and something for my sister who has her 40th birthday right after New Years....Oh...and then there's the quilt for my parents, I still need to sandwich and quilt that. Better get off the computer!!!

Tissueholders

2010-12-03T04:42:00.001+01:00

I have seen these around Flickr and blogland, and I have always thought they are really cute.
But as with so many other projects, I have never actually made any.....until Miss V saw these cuties.

She went straight for the scrap baskets and choose 5 sets of 2 prints!

So there you go...5 tissue holders, ready to be wrapped up and given away as Christmas presents.

Miss V is really proud of these, she chose the fabrics very carefully ;)

The countdown begins

2010-12-02T10:32:00.000+01:00

my oh my....

Only 23 days to go...and I still have so much work to do! I am seriously doubting if I will be able to finish eveything in time for Christmas! Oh well, one day and one task at a time, and then I'll see how far I get.

And to make matters worse, Charles' 40th birthday is this Saturday...and I haven't been able to find the thing I want to give him!!! I know what I want to buy, I just can't find it!! The stress!!

Office Christmas Party

2010-11-28T19:29:00.000+01:00

...well more like an outing, really :)

Every year (this is my first) the entire Copenhagen site is invited along with our families to a Christmas Party outside Copenhagen.

We took the train - never do that when it's in the middle of the first serious snowfall of the season ;)

Anyway...the party was great! Good food, huge decorated tree, Santa came and had brought candy for the kids.
And we got to go in horse-drawn carriages to a Christmastree lot in the woods where we chose and cut down our own tree! Fun! The kids were so excited :)

Bringing the tree back to Copenhagen on the train was a bit of a challenge, but Mr Sødeste is a strong guy, so he managed :D

Now we just need all the snow on the tree to melt, and then we can put it up and decorate it!

TGIF!!!

2010-11-26T23:43:00.001+01:00

I have been looking forward to Friday most of this week. Not because I didn't want to go to work - I did. But because we have been making progress on some home-improvement projects that have been put off for way too long.
Remember this post about curtains? I finally did it!!

I chose a fabric (IKEA) that Charles and I would both like, and then I was able to finish this whole project in an afternoon!

I am sorry this second picture is a bit blurry, but you can still sort of see what the curtains look like. I am very happy with them :) -oh, and please excuse the messes in the pictures. I have so much cleaning up to do, it's not even funny!

I am also hoping to find time to take the kids out for a snowball-fight tomorrow. We have a lot of snow here at the moment, and they have to be given the time to enjoy it while it's here :D

One down! Too many to go ;D

2010-11-20T13:18:00.000+01:00

Christmas (and in my family also birthdays) are just around the corner, I have hardly even begun sewing! I am so behind this year.

When we were at IKEA the other day, I bought a towel so I could make a Tote-able Towel following Anna Maria Horners tute.

She likes to go scuba diving, and she enjoys going to the beach in the summer - so I am thinking this will be a good idea for her.
This will either be her Christmas present or her birthday present. Her birthday is January 5, so I need to have her present ready when I see her during Christmas :)

Christmas decorations in the making

2010-11-17T18:30:00.001+01:00

Miss V has asked for at least a month if we could please put up the Christmas decorations?! I have been able to stall until now, pretty good I think :)

I love garlands, and I remembered seing this felt garland tute. So since I am spending a lot of time on the couch watching reruns of old tv-shows anyway, I figured I might as well do some stitching...

Miss V was happy to help me put all these on a thread and hang it in the window

I am pretty sure we will put it on out tree, though, I don't like it in the window. It seems too small somehow...

So I have rolled it up, and put it away so it is ready for our tree.

It looks really pretty this way. Like a felt flower :)

Vienna - at the opera

2010-11-15T22:01:00.002+01:00

Vienna has a lot of cafés and apparantly they are famous for their coffee - I don't drink coffee, so that was wasted on me. However I do eat cake. And they had lots os fabulous cake!!

Another thing Vienna is famous for is their Opera House. I first saw it at night, and it looks really nice with all the lights.

I had booked a ticket to see a ballet in the Wiener Staatsoper, but when it finally turned Wednesday evening I was so tired I almost didn't go.

But I am so glad I did.

It was a beautiful performance and everything about this building was so formal and elegant. I felt very glamorous - even if I was wearing jeans!

On a less festive note: I am sick! Eeeeks! Well-wishes are most welcome ;D

Pillowcase

2010-11-14T23:07:00.000+01:00

We have a number of pillows and cushions at our house - as I imagine we all do :)
Only, at my house these pillows are a very poor-looking bunch. When I finished the hexagon pillowcase for our floor cushion, I vowed to prettify all our pillows. And I still haven't done it.

But now I have made a start. I have made a new pillowcase for one of the pillows in our couch.

The fabrics are all Kona Cotton - 7 different colors :) The kaleidoscope blocks are 11'' square and I am so happy with it!
The orange and purple stand out a lot in the photo, not so much in real life. Funny how that happens!

I am not all done sharing pictures from Vienna, but that will have to wait for my next post.

Vienna - Hundertwasser

2010-11-13T18:57:00.000+01:00

This must be the architect of my dreams!!!

Hunderwasserhouse, Vienna

The work he did, is so unique and so beautiful. I can only imagine what it must be like, to live in one of these houses! The pictures are ones I took using the camera in my cellphone, there are much better ones on the website - also ones where the trees are green...amazing!

The other side of the building

I think it looks amazing!
There is also a museum with some of Hunderwassers paintings and models of houses....you can see some of his work at their website: Kunsthaus Wien
The museum is a work of art in itself

I am blown away by these buidings, they are such an inspiration!

And now I also know where my dream vacation would be....at Bad Blumau!

Vienna - The museums!

2010-11-12T14:06:00.000+01:00

I am finally back from Vienna...it feels like I have been gone for a really long time, but it was only from Sunday morning to Thursday night.

There was so much to see and do in Vienna, home of the Jugendstil!
....the real reason for my visit was a course at the EPO. And that was awesome, but I think you would all be really bored if I went into too much detail about that - so I won't!

Vienna has lots and lots of museums, I could only go to some of them.

This is me in front of Wien Museum Karlsplatz.

This museum has my favourite Gustav Klimt painting "Love" - it was so worth the visit!!

Klimts work was the main attraction of the next museum "Secession"

Here they house his "Beethoven Frieze", but the building itself was also impressive, all the detail and the decorations. So beautiful!

After the Secession Hall, I went to Museum Belvedere:

After going here, I went to my hotel. I had walked all over Vienna, and I must admit that my feet were getting tired!

This next building is not a museum - it's the French Embassy. But look how beautiful it is!

The windows and the balconies and all the gold...wow! I could look at this for a long long time. And really, a lot of the buildings in Vienna were so pretty!

After an hour or so in my hotel room (and some dinner) I went out to see the Albert Loos' American Bar

I love stained glass, so naturally I like this a lot :)

There is so much more to share from Vienna, but I will have to split into several posts, so come back!!

Self Portrait Friday

2010-11-05T22:34:00.001+01:00

This week has been such a busy one. But then every week seems to be that way. Come Friday evening I am sitting on the couch, not really wanting to get up...not even to go to bed! I may just fall asleep right here.

This is my picture forthis weeks' self portrait. I am happy because I had a good week, because I have spent this afternoon watching Miss V splash around in the pool during her swimming lesson, because I am watching tv and eating popcorn with Mr Sødeste.

Life is good.

-and I'm a little anxoius, I'm leaving for Vienna on Sunday. I'll be gone until Thursday night! I am going to miss the kids so much!

But it will be fun...I'm going as part of my job, but there will be time in the evenings to go and do some (other) fun stuff.....know of any quilt shops in Vienna, Austria?

DQS9

2010-11-01T14:26:00.000+01:00

Today started out not so good. Miss V is sick and I am staying home with her today.
A day with her is always welcome, I just wish it didn't have to be because she is feeling bad.

We started doing watercolors, watching movies and other low-key activities....and then the doorbell rang!
It was the mailman - with a package for me - my doll quilt for DQS9!!

This quilt has been sent to Europe from the US three times before arriving at my door - I am so happy Donna didn't give up! Look at the beauty she made for me!

She also sent lots of goodies

Miss V was so happy to see a lot of beautiful buttons, and she started laying them out on the quilt ;)

The patterns are wonderful, I think I will make some bags for Christmas, they will make great presents!

Also, look at the label

Isn't it just the best? I am feeling very lucky that Donna made this quilt for me. It is perfect!

Circles circles circles

2010-10-31T18:25:00.002+01:00

I never would have thought, but I am enjoying making blocks for the circle quilt I am working on.
To make the sewing easier, I use a lot of pins, and then they do come together quite easily.

I have 50-something blocks done. I am not sure how many I will need for the quilt to have a decent size. We'll see...

Quilttop finished

2010-10-30T20:35:00.000+02:00

This afternoon I did some sewing - and I managed to finish the quilttop for the quilt I want to make for my parents for Christmas

The prints are "Morris Workshop" and the dark brown is a Kona Cotton.

I am not sure what to use for backing, I'll have to think about that. Any suggestions??

Mail love

2010-10-25T20:48:00.000+02:00

As you know, I am taking part of the DQS9 - but my partner is having some trouble with the International Mailing. She has sent it out twice and it is taking forver to get here. I can only imagine the worry she is going through - I waited 2 weeks for the doll quilt I sent out to be received, and I was a nervous wreck!!!
Anyway...the mamas felt I should receive an angel quilt.

And...look what Carol sent me

That quilt is a work of art, Carol is incredibly talented! I wish I could show you this quilt IRL, but if you want to see it, you have to come to my apartment ;)

Miss V and I read through the embroidery book, and she found a lot of projects she wants me to help her sew! It'll be mostly me sewing, but that's fine. The book is really cool, I'll have to share some pictures from it.

And, here you have the quilt:

Isn't it just unbelievably pretty?!

Row10 August (!)

2010-10-24T14:29:00.000+02:00

Yep. I am that late! Actually it's worse, because I started with September when finishing these rows....that was Lucindas row, now I have finished Anitas row which was meant to go out in August.
I like how it turned out, she requested red/grey and a (good) 4-letter word.
I chose READ

It is meant to be horizantal, but this was the only way I could get a decent picture of the whole thing.

The row is app. 10'' x 60''

Next up is LauraJays row...it was meant to be finished in July....*shame*

Bee Row done!

2010-10-21T23:39:00.002+02:00

This evening I set up my sewing machine at our dining room table. My parents are visiting, and they are sleeping in my sewing room....so I had to "move out" if I wanted to sew. And I did.

I am hopelessly behind in my Row10 group, and that makes me feel really bad! So...I pulled some fabrics, wanting to finish the row I had started for Lu.

I am not used to the colorscheme Lu chose, she wanted square-in-square in sherbert colors. I love working with these colors!!

I am sorry the pictures are not very good, it's close to midnight here, and the camera on my cell doesn't have a very powerful flash.

But you can still get an idea of the row.

I really like the yellow print with the birds. I hope it is not too bright for the sherbert quilt!

I am so happy to have this done, and I am also really happy with how it turned out.

Tomorrow I am planning to make a signature block for Lu to put in (on?) the backing, and then this is on its way to a new home in a collaborative quilt ;)

I know this last photo is very strange looking, my only excuse is, that fitting a 60'' row into one picture is not easy!

Lucky kids

2010-10-20T22:31:00.001+02:00

This week the kids don't have school or daycare, I was able to take Monday and Tuesday off from work, but the rest of the week my parents are here - so Mr Sødeste and I can go to work.

Today they got to go to the coolest place in town - Tivoli

Picture from www.tivoli.dk

It is all decorated for Halloween, and the kids loved it!
I would have loved to go too, but I had to go to work today :/ Which is okay, I like my job, and I know the kids were thrilled to be with my parents.

Picture from www.tivoli.dk

I love Halloween decorations - maybe it has to do with my love of orange? Or maybe it's because I like fall a lot?

Picture from www.tivoli.dk

Looking at the pumpkins on this roof, you have to agree with me, don't you?! It looks amazing!

A little sewing

2010-10-19T10:00:00.001+02:00

I am so behind in my Row10 online quilting bee :/ No fun, these women are my dear friends, and I hate being late sewing their rows.
My parents took me and the kids to an awesome fabric store yesterday. And I had the best time picking out these prints for Lucindas row

Lu asked for sherbert colors, and I didn't really have any in my stash. Now that I have these, I see that not having worked with this colorscheme before is a great mistake! I love these colors!

I managed to sew 2 blocks last night, then I had to stop because I was using my moms machine and it is in my parents' bedroom.

I can't wait to get back home so I can make some more!!
These are so much fun! The colors are fab and the square in square pattern is showing off the prints in such a nice way.

My sushi-loving daughter

2010-10-18T10:00:00.000+02:00

The kids have next week off from school and daycare. I have been able to take Monday and Tuesday off from work, so yesterday the kids and I went to stay with my parents for a long weekend.
My sister lives in the same apartment building as my parents (they recently moved here), and that works out so great for the kids, because then they get to see everyone everytime we come here!

The sushi-chef made these special for my kids!!

As some of you may know, Miss V, my sister and I love sushi. So my sister was very excited to invite us all to a resturant with a conveyor belt sushi buffet -the picture is not of where we went, but the same idea. Miss V LOVED it! I have never seen her eat so much. Ever. She ate almost as much as I did - and I could have rolled out of there!
The small protions meant she could try new kinds of sushi and not worry about having ordered too much and then not liking it. Perfect! She loved being able to pick makis off the buffet.

Ask doesn't like sushi, so he had chicken and fries :)

Another Nintendo cozy

2010-10-17T09:45:00.000+02:00

I bought a Nintendo DSi for Little A this past week. He is so happy with it, and he loves that he got a blue one :) So naturally I needed to make a cozy for his Nintendo as well - also we had to ride the train to my parents' house, and I really wanted him to be able to bring it :)

Miss V helped pick the fabrics

Again I can only encourage you all to set your strippy scraps aside, it makes it so much easier to make projects like this!

Self Portrait Friday -on Saturday

2010-10-16T09:59:00.000+02:00

I am part of a self portrait challenge over on Flickr. We all hate having our picture taken, and the group is meant as a way of helping us get past that...

This was my portrait from yesterday

I am thinking the challenge may be working....I can look at pictures of myself without being horrified ;)

Favourites

2010-10-14T21:55:00.000+02:00

1. Notenschlüssel, 2. I'm A Maverick Star, 3. Quilt Show, 4. Batik Kaleidoskop, 5. The Magic Hour, 6. Mini Lone Star, 7. DSCN1605, 8. My Winner, 9. Busy Bees - Tacha, 10. Kaleidoscope quilt for Riley, 11. United She Stands, 12. Travel Quilt #3, 13. DQS9 from my partner, 14. The Wild Geese Quilt, 15. DSCN2410, 16. Jelly Roll Christmas Quilt

Looking at curtains

2010-10-13T22:37:00.003+02:00

I really really need to do something about the curtains in our living room....if I can say that when in fact we don't have any curtains in our living room.

Our living room windows face north, and we are on the third floor (fourth floor to you Americans!) so the sun is a "problem" in the way that the room gets too hot and stuffy and everything is bleached/ruined. Sooooo....I need to do something. We have been looking for curtains for a while (a couple of years...shhhhh...) and I have been planning to sew curtains for at least one year now.

I like the curtains in the pictures, they have a country-cabin feel that I really like ;)

Priorities

2010-10-11T21:53:00.000+02:00

I sometimes need to remind myself of all the blessings in my life. Also, I need to remind myself of what's important. Sometimes in my schedule with 2 small kids, a fulltime job and trying to keep a somewhat decent house - I get a little lost.

And....nomatter how much I think about this, there really is only one thing that is truly important to me, and that is my family. My kids.

Laundry has not been a priority this week, quilts are the "stand-in" for the dirty couch-cover

Obviously there are many other things in my life there are important, and that take up a lot of my time. My job, keeping our home nice and clean, cooking dinners, doing laundry.....all that stuff we all do every day.
But sometimes I need to tell myself, that if I can only choose one thing, I choose my family. They are the only truly irreplaceables.

Scraps

2010-10-07T21:07:00.000+02:00

I'm sick :(
And I missed blogging yesterday. I can't really sit up and sew, not being able to keep food down for 2 days is quite tiring ;)
But I am starting to feel better, and tonight I cut the pieces for another grocery bag. They are so fun to make, and this way I have it ready when I find a moment to sew it.

And another great thing about cutting is, that it generates more scraps!

Another WIP

2010-10-05T20:37:00.000+02:00

I bought a bunch of FQ's from Katy a while back (2 years ago...pretty much to the date), and I have had several different plans with them. Many ideas and plans later, I have finally cut into them over these past few days, and I have made a beginning

The colors are not very good in this picture, they are more subtle. Later I will get a picture in daylight. That's going to be much better!
I really like this weave-type pattern for these prints. I wanted something that would show off the prints, and I think this will be just right.
The finished quilt will have a lot more variety, I have 16 different quilts in all - this is just how much I have done at the moment.
I would love to finish this in time for Christmas.....but I have other sewing jobs to finish first, so we'll see!
This quest for my sewing mojo is working, but not as quickly as I would like. I'm not a very process-oriented person. I like results!

How did I get this tired?

2010-10-04T22:51:00.003+02:00

WARNING: This post is just my tired mumblings......

Look what Charles gave me today! A new Moomin mug!

I love this little treasure hunter :)

I am so tired this evening, I had a long day at the office. I had hoped to sew a bit this evening, but I am just too tired. Getting up at 5:30AM does that to me ;)

You'll see all the pictures are taken with my cell while I'm sitting on the couch - I'm too tired and too lazy to get up. So you'll have to excuse the poor quality of the pictures....

I am blogging, watching some Ms Marple on tv, and playing Mario on Miss V's Nintendo. And that's about all I can do this evening ;)

I absolutely understand why these are so popular with the kids!! Little A wants one too - a blue one ;) But at 3 years old, I think he is still a little young. Maybe this Christmas....or when he turns 4 in spring. We'll see.

Also I want to share a comment he made this evening that made me laugh. He wanted to try on my shoes - not my sneakers but my work shoes...I want him to not break his ancle, so I said no.

He then looked at the shoes...looked up at me with a frown and said "These are like little slides mom!"

And I guess he is right!

A very productive day!

2010-10-03T20:25:00.000+02:00

Hmmm...it feels like today has been a productive day, but really all I have done is get the laundry under control, and clean my house.

One good thing about a clean home is, that I get to decorate a little.

Miss V chose these yesterday on the way to the movies :) She has wanted to get some of these for a really long time. And now I can actually put them out somewhere, without having to either move a pile of stuff or put them on top of it!

I have also been thinking of what to do about curtains in our living room. We need to be able to close some curtains duing the middle of the day ;) Right now we don't have any. I want to sew some, but I am not sure what kind - any ideas?

I have also been thinking about Christmas sewing...nothing like dreaming of future sewing projects while folding laundry, right?

These 2 patterns are on my list of bags I want to sew. I absolutely love Keyka Lous patterns. The one I have here is the "Foldover Clutch". The other one is Amy Butlers "Blossom Handbag".
Amy Butlers pattern will be a challenge, but I am going to give it a try....sometime!

Fall is here!

2010-10-02T08:09:00.004+02:00

Look...fall is here. Miss V and I took this picture yesterday afternoon...

The kids and I were home alone last night, it was a bit of a logistic nightmare. Miss V had a swimming class, and I can't bring A when he can't go in the water.....he would scream from we arrived until we left again. I can deal with that, but the other kids and parents who don't love him unconditionally like I do - unlikely!!
So A was picked up by his uncle, V and I went to the pool, we were all home at 6PM - and had a picnic in the living room :)

I had ordered pizza - my kids' fave is margharita with 3 x olives :) They usually remember us at the pizza-place.

Since I have already made the commitment to blog everyday of October, I figured I may as well join the Blogtoberfest - the name alone makes it all worth it!

This should be fun!

I am working on a list of Christmas sewing - and a list of sewing to do before I can start my Christmas sewing!

Christmas preparations

2010-10-01T00:44:00.001+02:00

I have wanted to try this tutorial since I first saw it last year.

Like so many other things, I have been thinking about it, but haven't actually tried it until now! I found an old magazine that was going to be thrown out, and I started...

I was sure it was going to be impossible, but it wasn't that bad! I cut my strips a little too wide, and so I didn't have room for the 3rd layer - but hey! Who said I can't just leave that 3rd layer out and leave it as it is?!
That's what I did...I made a mistake by cutting the strips of paper too wide, but I made it work ;)
Now I just need to find some fancier paper - I am thinking the Christmas adds will be nice - and then I have to make some more, so we can have beautifully wrapped presents without having to spend money on the wrapping. Cool, huh?!

French Press Cozy

2010-09-30T13:10:00.002+02:00

Charles has wanted one of these for years! And I have been putting it off, until now. This was really easy to make, and now that I made it, I feel silly for putting it off for so long.

I have organized most of my scraps in 2 piles. One that is as unorganized as ever, and one with strips. It was so nice to be able to just look through useable strips and choose the ones I wanted!
It's a benefit from doing the circlequilt. While cutting scraps for that, I am also cutting 5'' squares - they then don't count as scraps anymore - and setting strips aside. It makes my scrap box(es) much easier to manage!

Edited to add:
These are my scrap boxes, I like this kind because they are stackable and they have lids. I got them from IKEA :)

The 2 larger boxes have all my unsorted scraps, and the smaller one has my strips. I have 4 of the smaller boxes. One has WIP (fast becoming a UFO) in it, one has my thread, one has the last bits of favorite prints and then there's the one with the strips.
The 2 larger boxes was once sorted in cool and warm colors - but that didn't last long!
So...this is how I have my scraps. I then have a small stack of 5'' charms in my fabric cupboard - but they are not really scraps, right?!

Mushroom

2010-09-29T10:39:00.001+02:00

Miss V found this mushroom this weekend. Luckily she knew not to touch it!

These look so beautiful, but they are quite poisonous. I had to take a picture, I don't know how many of you have seen one of these "in the wild"?

Also...blogging every day seems to be paying off! I am much more motivated to work in my sewing room :D Everything I try to free-piece still looks horrific, but I'll get there. Just need to keep going and my mojo will return.

Circles WIP

2010-09-28T15:44:00.002+02:00

I may be the last quilter in blogland to make a circle quilt - but better late than never, right?
Actually, I am not even sure the final layout will be circles, I like all the different options this block gives.

The block size I am working with is 7'' sq, that's the size of each quarter circle.
I haven't been able to sew today, but I have spent some time cutting scraps. This will be my 2nd scrapquilt this year -if I finish it in time- and I still have so many scraps! I love scraps, so I am quite happy about it ;)

I treated myself to a new blade for my rotary cutter, and OH MY!!! What a difference! It was easy to cut fabrics after that! LOL! I am going to get a couple of spare blades, so I can change it more often - having to go over every cut 3-4 times really doesn't make sense!
You may laugh - I did!

Art Portfolios for the kids

2010-09-24T12:33:00.003+02:00

Very formal name I think...nevertheless, that's what they are called :)

I used this pattern, modified it to fit colored pencils and European size paper. Little A is still very much into CARS - he has started asking me for a CARS quilt. We'll see!

I am happy with how they turned out!

I think Miss V will like the kittens. And the letters.

A commitment..

2010-09-23T21:59:00.002+02:00

This summer we got Miss V a Nintendo DSi. There was a moment there where I was afraid I would never again play Go Fish!, puzzles or read books with her again.....not to mention see her beautiful blue eyes!
Luckily that was not the case, she loves her Nintendo and does use it a lot, but it is something she will choose to do instead of watching a movie.

So, the only rule I made was, that it could not leave the house before we had some kind of bag/case/cozy for it.

And so I made this cozy for her Nintendo. Better than having to break my own rule, huh? She likes it! Yay!

Also I have the pictures of the grocery bag I made for myself. I love this Kaffe Fassett print so much, this way I get to see it almost every day.

I also like the lining, I like stripes.Don't you like these stripes too?

I just want to make a ton of these bags, they are really fun to sew. And every afternoon when I pick up the kids, I end up carrying all their art projects, dirty clothes, jackets etc in a big lump under my arm. Now I can pull a beautiful handmade fabric bag from my shoulder bag, and carry all their stuff in style. That makes me feel very organized. Bear with me...I don't get to feel that way very often ;)

I have made a commitment to post every day from now and until the end of October - except this weekend!
So you'll get to see a lot of pictures from my everyday life, because I don't get to sew every day.

A bag for my sushi-loving sister!

2010-09-18T23:08:00.005+02:00

My sister loves sushi. We always have sushi when we want to treat ourselves to something special - so naturally Miss V has been used to sushi being something really extraordinary and she has always associated sushi with my sister.
So when I said the sewing project of the day would be making a reusable grocery bag for Aunt J, the only fabric that would do was the sushi print!
I used a plastic grocery bag as my pattern, so it's a good size and my sister should be able to get some good use out of this.

The lining was also chosen by Miss V, I had intended to use this print for binding for a future project...but since that is a still-unknown-future-project it didn't seem to make much sense to make that argument with the very happy V.
This bag folds up very small, and will definately fit into most shoulderbags :)
I think it turned out pretty nice!
I have made a few of these already, my favourite one has gone missing, so I made a new one for myself too. By the time it was done it was too dark to get a decent picture, so you'll have to see that in my next post :)

Swap-treasures and projects!

2010-09-14T22:24:00.004+02:00

I am loving the weird facts you can read in the Snapple bottle caps.
This is another thing I didn't know...in fact, I wasn't even aware that there is a "rose family". Oh well...live and learn, right?! And no-one can know everything!
I have sent off my doll quilt for the DQS9, and it has been well received. That's always a nervous time...will my partner like what I made for her?! But she did, and I am relieved!

This round I have also been a swap mama, and the super talented Lucinda made a chair-quilt for each mama in the swap!!! How cool is she?! I love the chair she made for me, it is such a treasure :)
I have been working on a quilt for my bed. It is not a huge bed, but big enough that it is going to be quite a challenge to quilt it. So far it is 85" square - and I have no idea how I am going to wrestle that through my sewing machine, but I am sure going to give it my best shot!
The quilt is made from several packs of Punctuation charm squares - now I am waiting for the yardage I ordered for the backing to arrive!

Also...I want to show you the rows I have received from my fabulous Row10 friends. I love this quilt so much already!! Maybe I will use some kind of quilt-as-you-go methos for quilting this one....still debating!
My evergrowing scrappile is also keeping me busy, I have wanted to piece circles for a while, and it seemed like a good way to use some scraps. This is not a fast quilt to cut. For these blocks I do find the actual piecing much easier than the cutting.
But I will finish it!!! I will!!

Miss V is enjoying school so much - I am still a wreck, but better me than her!
My job is very time-consuming right now, but we're supposed to get some help in another month or so, hopefully that'll make it better ;)
I still do enjoy my job very much, however, I also feel like I am missing out on so much with the kids. It's all about compromize I guess.

She has started school...

2010-08-15T21:40:00.002+02:00

She was happily skipping down the street - I was a nervous wreck!!
She did great, and she can't wait to go back - which is good :)
Now I'll just have to get used to a whole new set of worries to add to the ones I have already.
Oh well...I guess that's what it is to be a mom?

Maybe all her visits to friends' houses and all the hours of having a friend visit her here, will free up some time for me to sew??
I will think of it that way, then it's not as scary - it is, I'm trying to trick myself ;)

I have been working on my quilt for Doll Quilt Swap 9. I have started quilting it, but I haven't taken a picture of that yet.
I also have another project I am working on. I am using Punctuation charm squares. I love that fabric line.
This quilt will be big, it's for our bed. I really don't want this to become a UFO!!

Clean-up job!

2010-08-05T19:29:00.004+02:00

My coworkers and I were invited to dinner at the Raddisson in Copenhagen. The fod was delicious, and take a look at the view!! Wow, right?!

I love this city :)

Speaking of things I love - or don't love.... I used to have shelves above my sewing table, to hold fabrics....but one day, one of the shelves broke!!! What a mess. Lucky for me, it was not taken as a sign that I have too much fabric, but just that I needed different storage :)
So off to IKEA we went, and I chose these:

They are really kitchen cabinets, but I like them so much as fabric-storage! I am loving this, and I have even managed to keep my sewing area cleaned up since we put these up...how amazing is that?!

I am working on my doll quilt for DQS9, and I will post pictures once it is closer to being done. That should be very soon now!

I'll just leave you with this bit of trivia:

Did you know?? I didn't!

A picnic quilt!

2010-08-03T12:52:00.006+02:00

I have tried to put my scraps and stash to use, and I have some different projects to show you over the next couple of weeks :)

First I will show you my picnic quilt!
This quilttop is made entirely from scraps. I cut 3" strips to whatever length the scrap would allow. Some are long and some are really short - depending on the length of the scrap-piece it was cut from.
I have pieced them totally randomly, and added each strip once it was finished. It's a little scary for a quilter so addicted to arranging and rearranging LOs as I am :)
I am really happy with how it turned out, though. It is bright, happy and busy enough to hide all the spills....
I quilted flowers like these from Oh Fransson - only mine are connected in a continuous line, I hate securing all those loose ends!

Here is a shot of the quilt in action. The I SPY fabrics in it helped keep the kids busy :)
My favourite thing about this picnic quilt is the carrying strap I attached to it. It is made a'la Anna Maria Horners Totable Towel. Only I didn't do the envelope sleeve.
BTW this year I am definately making a towel like that for a Christmas present for my sister!! I have wanted to since I first saw it, so this year it is going to happen!!
We don't have a car, so we have to carry everything, or be able to balance it all - and the kids - on our bikes. So being able to carry this like a shoulder bag is such a great help!

My oldest is starting school in less than 2 weeks. ACK! Where did all that time go?!
Anyway....looking forward to seeing what I have missed in blogland - I know it's a lot, so I have a lot of exciting reading to do...mmmm a cup of tea and blog-reading!

A baby quilt and lots of fabric :)

2010-06-07T11:49:00.006+02:00

Yesterday we went to see my good friends' baby get baptised...and you know how it is. A new baby means a BABY QUILT!! I haven't been able to share any pictures of this before, since it obviously had to be a surprise :) This picture is taken in the laundry room, right after I pulled the quilt from the dryer, and right before I packed it up and ran out the door...we made it to the church on time, but only just!!

My friend loves it...it 60" square

Like so many others, I like to work with solids, and since I order most of my fabric online, I treated myself to the Kona cotton solids colorcard. Wow. I love it. I see many more solids in my future.
I ordered my color card from Canton Village Quilt Works if you don't know the store, go visit. Jackie has a lot of great stuff in her store! I also bought the FQ pack of rainbow colors from her.

Last week I took Miss V to the fabric store - to buy backing fabric for the baby quilt - and she chose these fabrics. She needs new dresses and skirts, she has grown so much since last summer that all her summer clothes are too short. LOL. So I am going to start by making her some skirts. I also bought these orange and teal fabrics. Orange and teal is my favourite color combination right now.
Also....I am a swap mama in Doll Quilt Swap this round. EXCITING!!! So if you visit the flickr group or the DQS blog, you'll see me there from time to time as well!

I haven't fallen off the face of the earth...

2010-05-20T09:36:00.006+02:00

I have been busy....and I have managed to sqeeze in a little bit of sewing time, but not nearly enough! Sad but true.

I have mostly been working on blocks for the quilting bees I am in.
This is for the EuroBee I am not in this bee anymor, I had to sign out because of my crazy schedule *sniff*:

Charles and I took the kids to the ZOO, and Little A bought a snake-softie at the store, Miss V chose a bunny. But when we got home Miss V really really wanted a snake, so...I made her one: She loves it - although it doesn't look anything like the one A bought!

This scarf is still in the making....the pattern is not too difficult, just time-consuming. And to be fair, it did say so in the book (Last minute knitted gifts by Joelle Hoverson)

I have also finished a row for Tia for my Row10 quilting bee. She wanted red and white crosses.

The owl was part of Kims row...she wanted red/aqua gnomes/mushrooms/woodland creatures. You can see my row in my flickr set and Kims quilt WIP here.

So hopefully you haven't all forgotten me? I miss blogging and seeing what you all have been up to! Thank you for the emails, I love hearing from you :)

I started a new job...

2010-04-02T14:22:00.003+02:00

...and I have been sooooooo tired!
These flowers were on my desk on my first day, isn't that nice?! My first day, by the way, was March 1st. That's the main reason I have been away from blogland.

Now I am back to normal -whatever that is- and I am not ridiculously tired all the time anymore.

I haven't done a lot of sewing lately, so I am also behind sewing for my bees :( Sorry!!
I have been working on a row for the fabulous Kim, she wished for aqua and red/gnomes, shrooms and woodland creatures

This is a little ladybug....

....and some shrooms. I also have a hedgehog and a caterpillar in the works, but they are not ready for photos yet :) That'll have to wait for my next post!

I have made two of these little bags...I have put buttons in the bottom corners, so they can hang in a row. They are for holding keys, cell phones, wallets and whatever else Charles and I usually leave in a pile on the kitchen counter :)

Much neater this way.

I hope you are having a happy Easter, and I will be by to visit soon!

A week off ;)

2010-02-20T21:22:00.003+01:00

The kids and I have just spent a week at my parents house :) Aaaah! It's been fun, and I have really appreciated seeing them enjoy spending time with their grandparents!

Also, it has given me some extra free time! I spent some of that getting some sewing done. I have had this box bag on my list for ages..
Little A is getting older, and it's really not neccessary to drag a diaper bag everywhere we go. So I made this little bag to hold a few diapers, wipes, and a small changing pad. I love the orange zipper!
I also managed to finish these blocks for Aneela in the Euro Bee. These were fun to make. Maybe I should consider making myself one of these quilts??
The scarf I started back in January is finished, just in time to give it to my Dad for his birthday :)
And I started a new knitting project! This hat for Charles is already finished - I'll have pictures soon - and I started another one like it for A!
It's cold and we have a lot of snow, so woollen hats are really useful :)
I'll make one for Miss V too, but I need some purple wool....yay, shopping!!!

Plain Spoken #2

2010-02-11T09:45:00.005+01:00

I finally finished my first 2010 quilt! It's the second time I have made a quilt using FunQuilts' Plain Spoken pattern -and it probably won't be the last :)
I love the colors in this quilt. So bright and cheery!

It is a 40th birthday present for a friend, and I finally tried out the fabric sheet Karen sent me. It was so easy to use!! I'll definately be making more labels this way. Maybe I'll even put labels on all the quilts I've made?!
I used a solid red for binding, and it ties the front and the backing together quiter nicely I think.
It is difficult to find "guy-prints" so I had Charles help me pick out the fabric for the backing ;)
The quilttop reminds me of the beach, sea-glass, swimming pools, summer and all things nice!
It was hard to give this quilt away, but start to finish it was meant for someone else.....so it would have been wrong to keep it. But I can still miss it a little, right?

Just checking in...

2010-02-02T20:08:00.002+01:00

....to say hi!
Miss V loves to decorate, so she'll arrange her toys so they look pretty :) She left this HelloKitty setup for me in our bookcase.
Isn't that just the cutest thing?

She loves to take pictures, all the pictures in this post are taken by her. It's fun to see our home through her eyes.
But then, she also just takes pictures of everything!
We had that coconut for dessert this evening, and I have discovered taht eating large amounts of coconut gives me a stomachache. Oh well ;)
I guess this is how she sees the kitchen counter
and the view from the kids' bedroom window. We have had a lot of snow lately...
....oh...and the floor in the kids' bedroom. Not as tidy as I like it, but not at its worst either. Lol.
Their coat rack in the hallway....hmm...no coats. They are probably on the floor then. Ack!
I am off to finish the Plain Spoken quilt top. With any luck it will be a completed quilt by the end of this week. I am hoping to give it as a birthday present next monday! Yikes I'm busy!!!

Home Life :)

2010-01-18T20:21:00.003+01:00

It's still nice and quiet here, and we spend a lot of time inside...
The kids do love the snow, but they also like being inside. Miss V and I have started reading a longer book, and she is enjoying it so much. I like it too, the special reading time. Little A hates it. He's too young for it still....poor little A.
And, looking at this picture, you could argue that I should spend some time cleaning instead of reading silly stories and spending way to much time on the computer.

I did a little sewing. This is my January block for SC2, it's for Beth. Those fabrics are so pretty, I would never have picked them out myself (not before seeing them IRL anyway) but I just love them!
That's one of the things I like about Quilting Bees. Working with many kinds of prints and colors.

Speaking of colors.....I am in a group on Flickr called Self Portrait Friday. The idea is to take a picture of yourself every friday and post it in the group pool. That's 52 pictures in 2010. Of me. The thought is, that by the end of 2010, we should be more comfortable taking (and posting/seeing) pictures of ourselves.
I am not sure it will work. We'll have to wait and see. This is my picture for last week. I love my hair, but...I wish it would just be either blond or red. What would you call this??

Slow days

2010-01-13T07:54:00.004+01:00

There has been a lot of indoor activities at my house lately...
Miss V loves her Hello Kitty MuffinsGame. It's amazing to see just how much more fun a board game is, if it features your favourite character :)
I wonder if that would be true for chess as well??

We have made some homemade pizza. My kids like olives - and lots of them. When thinking of how many they ate while putting toppings on the pizza, I am amazed that there are any olives on the pizza at all!
I have been spending a lot of time resting, due to some health issues, and sitting at my sewing machine has been to tiring. So I have started knitting... I think this will be a scarf for my dad, maybe for Christmas?!
How is that for an early start on Christmas presents. Lol!

I have done a little sewing. I am in a quilting bee on Flickr, called Row 10.
10 of us are making a row (instead of a block) each month, and the recipient will join her rows to make a row quilt :)
This is my block for Sarah. She requested red/lime as the dominant colors - green/pink/white as less dominant. She is going to make a Christmas quilt and I think it will be gorgeous! You can see the other rows on Flickr.

The plain spoken is all ready to sew....I just need a little more energy, then I'll get to it ;)
I love these colors. Maybe I'm procrastinating so I'll get to keep it myself?

To-make in 2010

2010-01-05T23:43:00.001+01:00

One of our dear friends' birthday is coming up. And you know me....any excuse to go fabric-shopping :)

I got these wonderful solids on sale. Even better! I am going to use red for binding -I think. We'll see. Maybe I won't be able to finish on time, as there is a lot of stuff keeping me from my sewing machine these days.

But if I don't finish in time for the birthday, that's ok, we'll get another present, and I'll get to make and keep the quilt ;D

I did sort of ok reaching my quilting goals for 2009.

A quilt for both my children to put on their beds (check)
A sampler for me using fabrics from the wonderful Anne (didn't make it)

So...50%! I did do a lot of other sewing, you can see some of the finished projects here, and some of the quilting bee blocks here.

As far as 2010 goals....I want to:

Sew curtains for our living room
Put together my SewConnected 2 top and finish the quilt
Make myself a sampler quilt from the fabrics from the wonderful Anne
Make a picnic quilt (preferably before summer!)

...better stop here. I am also in a couple of quilting bees, so I have some fun times ahead :)

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T22:10:00.006+01:00

We had a great New Years Eve! I hope you did too!!
Charles cooked the most delicious 3-course meal for us, and the kids were thrilled to see the fireworks. It is pretty amazing to sit on your own couch at home, and watch the fireworks :)

The kids and I had decorated a little. We made this garland, based on Purl Bees New Years Eve Garland. Only we used craft paper and Miss V's pretty tape with stars on it, instead of using felt and the sewing machine.
I like it. I am saving it for next year! Miss V is very proud of how it turned out. And she did put almost all of it together.

Inspired by the paper garland, I decided it was time to finally make the fabric flag garland I have been wanting to make for...erhm...well....years!
I managed to finish it while Charles and the kids took a nap! I like how it brigthens up my kitchen window.
I used store-bought bias binding. The flags are 2-sided, turned and topstitched. I like it.

I didn't make as many Christmas presents this year as I did last year, but I made these Box Wallets for my nieces. It's a KeykaLou pattern. Very easy to follow, if you need a great bag pattern, I would recommend one of hers!

Did I show you my Christmas present? Charles gave me this Bernina multi-tool for Christmas. If you want to see what all the gadgets are, go here.
I love it, it's the coolest multi-tool I have ever seen ;)

And I have finished Katys spiderweb block for SC2 for (ACK) November, so I am starting 2010 without being behind!
How great is that?!

I will be back with soon with quilting goals for 2010....do you know yours??

Merry Christmas

2009-12-29T01:44:00.001+01:00

I made an I SPY for A for Christmas. I used the "Turning Twenty" pattern and made the blocks 12" square. I like it :) And more importantly, so does A. I especially like the binding!

I tried to use as much dinosaur fabric as I could in this, it's hard to find dino prints here, but much to my liking A refers to this quilt as his Dinosaur-quilt :D I even put a label on it!!

Miss V also needed a quilt for her bed, and I have been promising her a princess quilt for a very long time.
Sometime in November this conversation took place:
Miss V: Mom, I am looking forward to Christmas sooooo much!
Me: Yes, I know
Miss V: Especially because at Christmas I'll get my princess quilt
Me: Really??!! (slight panic and disbelief)
Miss V: Yes, mom! That's why I can't wait!

So I started sewing!!

This is the front, the panel was giving me a hard time, I have never worked with one before. Miss V loves it, that's a success if you ask me :)

I tried some spiral quilting in the purple border - fun!

Both kids were happy with their quilts, and so am I!!

We had a very happy Christmas, I hope you all did too.
Little A and I have been sick for a little over a week, though, so that slowed everything down a bit.

Now I need to see if I met my sewing-expectations from last New Year, and decide on my goals for 2010!

I hope you and your loved ones had a very merry Christmas!

One month to go....

2009-11-23T21:15:00.002+01:00

...and I haven't made any Christmas-presents yet!!! I have made a softie for my good friend who is having a baby...

....and I have been fabric-shopping. I won't show you all the fabric I bought, for some reason I hoard fabric when I am too busy to sew!

Oooops...the photo is upside-down!

I have started the princess quilt for Viola. This is a picture of the quilt-top. It had me so confused, I never worked with a panel before.

It's a little too pink-and-purple-and-glitter for me, but I am pretty sure Miss V will love it ;)

I finally finished my 8two8 quilt. And I love it!

I love the backing fabric, the dots are happy-happy-happy..

I quilted some spirals in the sashingstrips, and squirly-squirls everywhere else.
This is a picture of the finished quilt. I like it so much. Can you tell?!
I am going to try to get back into blogging, but I am having such a hard time getting into the new routine. I miss you. And I miss sewing. So much.

Changes in our routine..

2009-09-27T07:47:00.001+02:00

September is Johns month in SewConnected 2. He has chosen to make a house quilt inspired by Ingrid Press. I made him this little house, and is was so much fun to make, I'm thinking he'll probably get at least one more from me :)

There has not been a lot of sewing going on here for a while now. As you know, I finished my studies and started working full-time. But there has been changes for the kids too.
Miss V started a new daycare in August, and A will be joining her this coming monday.
These are his new slippers, he is very happy with them

Charles is busy writing his PhD, so he has to work most weekends. The kids and I are having some good times at home, we have to make it extra special, so we don't miss Charles so much :)

The kids' favourite lunch (besides McD or BurgerKing. Lol) is homemade pizza. And if you ask them, there is no such thing as too many olives on a pizza.

Too bad for me, I don't like olives :)

Charles had given the kids these chocolate ladybugs, they thought it was fun to pretend they could play with the ladybugs on the tablecloth. Lol!!

So.....I am hoping to get a little sewing time today. It's sunday morning, and Charles is off to work right after breakfast. So maybe a little sewing time while A naps? Or maybe no sewing for me today....we'll have to see!

LEGOLAND!!!

2009-09-15T19:39:00.003+02:00

My sister invited us all to Legoland for the weekend! Oh wow! Be warned.......this post has LOTS of pictures :)
Capitol built in Legos...
These are from the Lego Shop where you could buy all the strange kinds of Legos you can't normally buy -unless they are part of a set. Viola chose to buy lots of parts to build Lego men ;)
Very pleasing to a quilters eye that they are sorted by color....
The Statue of Liberty
And Mount Rushmore, they used 1.5 mio Legos to build this one (I'd hate to be the one who had to keep track)
This is the ceiling in the restaurant where we had lunch.... Legos, Legos...
....everywhere Legos! The kids loved these Lego fries :)
They also have an aquarium, they call the attraction "Atlantis"
Lots of fish, sharks, and of course, Lego divers!
Hans Christian Andersen
Look Diana! Giraffes!!

We had such a great weekend, it was unbelievable!!
The kids LOVED it :D
And so did I!

Hey! I finished something!!

2009-09-09T20:43:00.002+02:00

This is the finished floor cushion! Yipee! It's app. 28" square, just big enough for both kids to sit on -although Ask is certain it is his! I may have to make one more, to keep the peace :)

Also, I started quilting my 8two8 quilt. I am really happy to be doing some FMQ again. It's so relaxing :) I would like to be able to quilt grids, though....one day!

I won't be able to finish it this week, because this weekend my sister invited the whole family to Legoland!
Needless to say, we are all very excited about going :)
Viola wanted to make a present for my sister to say thank you, so today we made this handbag for her. Viola chose the pattern (I gave her 3 options) and the button, and I chose the fabrics. The outer fabric is from Marimekko sent to me by my friend Anne, and the lining is a Michael Miller print.

The pattern is Half-Moon Handbag from Keyka Lou Patterns, and it is really easy to follow. I made this bag in 2 hours :) Viola is filling it with drawings, necklaces "diamonds" and other treasures.
It should be loved :)

Still undecided

2009-09-06T22:25:00.001+02:00

Charles returned from his PhD course in Padua (close to Venice), Italy. I had hoped he would have a solution to my sashing-dilemma, but no such luck :) He brought me the beautiful glass paperweight in the top picture, I love it.
The paper it is sitting on, is the giftwrap from Ask's present. Isn't it gorgeous?! I made sure I saved it right away -it was not as if Ask was going to miss it. As soon as he saw the bag full of dinosaurs Charles had bought for him, he didn't care about anything else :)

To solve the sashing dilemma, I tried laying the blocks out on white fabric.

I am not crazy about this....maybe I just need to look at it for a couple of days. What do you think about it??

I am quilting my 8two8. Or trying to I should say. My machine is acting up :/
Hopefully I'll have pictures of the quilting next week.

LO indecision

2009-09-05T13:15:00.001+02:00

These are most of my blocks from SewConnected2. A lot of very talented quilters have made me a block, and I really want to finish this quilt as beautifully as possible. I am tempted to sew the blocks together without sashing, and then add a pieced border...

But I am also auditioning fabrics for sashing... This is where I get confused. I know these things are a matter of personal preference, however, I would like you to tell me what you think of the different colors.
I already have some opinions on Flickr, but I would appreciate to hear what my blog-friends have to say too.

This first I really like, most of the SC2 group did not ;)

It is true, as one friend pointed out, that it does clash a little with the light green....oh no...

But then, how do you like this next choice? It is bluish/purple, and it has a slightly different texture than the cotton. I like this one too.

The last one, the pale blue, looks much better in the photo than it does in real life. Strange how that works out sometimes! I like it, though.

I also tried a navy and a brown sashing, but both of those made half the blocks look chopped off, because of the colorflow. So those I don't like.

What do you think??

Lazy weekend

2009-08-30T19:29:00.002+02:00

My 8two8 has been left for too long now. I am quite intimidated by it, but since I would hate for it to end up as a UFO, I need to get started... So today I basted it while A was napping... It's large, I am a little worried about quilting it, but we'll see how it goes :)

I have all my pins in use (thank you Diana) for this one :)

I am also working on a pillowcase for a 28" sq. pillowcase for a floor cushion for the kids. I have been sewing the hexagons for a while, not having a specific project in mind for them. So now they are ending up part of a pillowcase :)

I quilted them last night.Lots of stopping and turning. I am so glad it was just a smallish square and not a full size quilt!

Charles is attending a PhD course this week, so he is in Italy. Before he left, he gave me this book:

YAY! I love it, it has some wonderful projects in it. I may just have to start doing some more appliqué!
More pictures here.

A little sewing

2009-08-23T13:59:00.004+02:00

Last weekend, while I was sick, one of my best friends got married. Needless to say, I couldn't go to her wedding, but I also couldn't bear not to see her get married. So we went to give our gift, and to say congratulations.
I had made her the bag in the top photo, and we filled it with presents.

My friend had made all the decorations herself, not traditional, but really pretty. These are our seats.

We stayed for a little while, saw the beautiful ceremony and gave them our present. Then back home -luckily the party was just two blocks away! I was so tired, pain-killers only get you so far :)

We are also getting ready for fall, Miss V needed new slippers for her daycare. We went to lots of different stores, she tried on lots of different slippers, but nooooo...
Until she saw these

She loves them, which gives me hope she will actually wear them and avoid getting too many colds this winter!

I also made her this bag to hold her change of clothes, her slippers, her rainclothes, hat, mittens etc.
V chose the fabrics ;)

I used the Jane Market Bag pattern. It was really easy to make. I think this will make an exellent project for Christmas presents!

Presents from my sweetie

2009-08-19T18:26:00.004+02:00

Charles has just spent a month at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill as part of his PhD. It was great for his research, and he met some really good collegues and made new friends.

We made do with Skype/Google video chat and emails while he was gone, and it was a great help for the kids to be able to "see" him every day.

Anyway....it is wonderful to have him back home, and he brought some amazing presents. He bought me "Julie & Julia" I have started reading it, and I like it so far!

Also....he bought me fabric....
He got to go JoAnns...I'm quite jealous!

I got this -I have had my eye on it since forever- to use as backing for a future Christmas quilt
and these great dinosaur prints to put into a pieced backing for A's I SPY
and some Strawberry Shortcake and princesses for V
and books for me, the softies in this one are so fun
and this is a beautiful book, the pictures are so pretty I can just look at them over and over again
He got me some great presents, don't you think?
The kids also got presents, and they were so happy :) Most of all, happy he is home!

I have been sick for almost a week now :/ so there is not much sewing going on around here. Or anything else for that matter. I pieced the backing for my 8two8 quilt before I got sick, so I am hoping to baste that as soon as I feel better.....hopefully that'll be before my next post?!

This once a week blogging plan seems to be a good one. I'll stick with it :) I have missed you all so much and it has been so great catching up with how everyone is doing!

Once a week!

2009-08-13T22:29:00.000+02:00

That is my new plan :) To devote one night a week to blogging.
And maybe I should devote one night a week to sewing too...it seems to be difficult for me to find time to sew these days :/

I have made the block above for SewConnected2. I really like these virtual quilting bees, it's so much fun to see all the different blocks made from the same fabrics.

I also managed to piece a quilttop for A's I SPY. I based it on the "Turning Twenty" pattern (I forget who the designer is -help!)
This was fun to make, and could be put together really quick -a busy mom like me appreciates that!

I am going to piece the backing.......and so it is waiting for me to get back into my sewing room and get to work.

And another thing I have to find a pattern for, is a dinosaur cape. A found one in the dress-up clothes at our local library, and he loves it!
If you know of a pattern for one of these, please let me know :)

May was my month in the SC2 group, and I have almost all the blocks now.... I am playing with possible layout-ideas, here is a picture that shows all the blocks I have received so far:

Aren't they beautiful?! The colors in this picture are not very good, I'll have to take a picture outside once the top is all done.

Summer vacation :)

2009-07-11T23:20:00.001+02:00

Look what I got in the mail!!! A total surprise from the creative chicks :) A super useful library bag, a beautiful apron and a big pile of gorgeous scraps!!! Thank you! Thank you so much :D

Among the scraps are some Disney Princess squares, they will be perfect for Violas quilt, however, I just had to use one right away, and I put it into Beths purple 8two8 block.

I haven't done a lot of sewing, I have spent a lot of time adjusting to working vs studying. I have managed to sew my contribution to Amandas SewConnected2 quilt. A wonky pinwheel:

I like the fabrics she chose so much, and the embroideries are so cute :)

So...instead of in front of my sewing machine, this is where I spend my days:

at the office! I am enjoying my job, I definately prefer working to studying!

I have the next 2 weeks off, the kids have their summer vacation too, so we are going to my parents' house for a while. Summer is just a little more fun when you have a lawn to play on!

YAY! I still know how to sew!

2009-06-13T23:10:00.001+02:00

...or atleast, I can still sew like before :) I have finished my pink and orange 8two8 quilttop! I find it so intimidating to make a quilttop using the beautiful blocks made for me by my friends....but leaving them a UFO would be worse than messing them up....maybe!
Anyway, I added the strips of fabric in between the blocks to make the quilt a bit bigger, I didn't want regular sashing, I was afraid it would take away from the blocks. I love each and every one of these blocks...this quilt will be treasured! -if I ever dare quilt it, that is :)

I made a block for Beth for 8two8...I am a bit behind, I am making her a green and a purple block. So far all I have is the green block ;)

I have also made a simple quilt for the kids. They need something to keep them warm in the bike. So when Charles saw Barbapapa curtains, he bought them for the fabric....a sweetie with an eye for fabric! What more can I ask for?!

I quilted rows of hearts on this, they don't show up so well here, but look at this photo on Flickr, and you should be able to see them.
Viola chose the backing fabric, a vintage sheet I had in my stash. The girl has good taste, if you ask me....

The binding came from stash, and the batting is actually a fleece-blanket from IKEA ;)

I am planning to take you to my new job soon...yep, I am now employed. No more full-time studies for me for a while (dare I say never again?!). I feel very blessed, lucky and happy!!

8two8 March and April

2009-05-22T12:39:00.002+02:00

These are blocks I made for Tia for the 8two8 group. Tia wanted liberated stars, 4 to a 15" block -which proved quite a challenge :) But we all managed, and Tia has already put the quilttop together. She's such a fast quilter!!

Next up was Lisa, and she asked for any pattern, in black and white.

I have nevet worked with black and white before, so it was fun to try :) I am very happy she likes these.

I have 7 days left to finish my paper, and it looks like it'll be fine. I am very impatient, and cannot wait to get back to my sewing machine. I wonder if I can remember how to use it??

Welcome to the kids' new room!

2009-05-08T18:21:00.004+02:00

Ohhh...this used to be my bedroom, but Violas room was just too small for both kids, so something had to be done :) Viols has been asking for bunkbeds for awhile...she really wants to tell her friends, that she sleeps in the top bunk.

But...let's go in. That huge white thing there is a closet. Gigantic, but we need the storage :) I put some stickers on it to make it a little more appealing to the kids.
Beneath the bed are some drawers one with LEGOs and one with FlexiTrax (Asks new favourite toy!)
This dresser holds their sheets....and the big white thing is Asks changing table, it opens up, and it has little shelves to hold wipes and diapers and stuff. Handy when you have a bathroom that's smaller than your bed -which is what we have. Lol! Again the stickers are there to help me not feel so bad about this taking up room in here ;)
This is also new. The red and blue buckets hold everything from Little People to trainsets. Very easy for the kids to get to their toys, and really easy to put everything away..
The black round thing behind it is a gigantig swing :)

This is their new window. They spend a lot of time looking out at the cars in the tiny parking lot next door! The mattresses are not supposed to be there, they are from the old beds. But I am hanging on to them for a while. Putting them at the bottomof the bed every night...just in case someone should fall out of bed :/

...oh, and I have 21 days of crazy stress left, and then my paper will (hopefully) be all done!

Thank you Anne!!!

2009-04-23T13:10:00.003+02:00

My friend Anne is sooooo generous! Look at these beautiful Easter baskets she sent for my children!! Needless to say, Viola and Ask were excited! A blue one for Ask and a pink one for Viola :)
Stuffed full of goodies, candy, a moomin scarf for each of them and felted eggs! They were running around ecstatically. LOL.

I have been so busy lately, that I have had a really hard time making Easter special for the kids...but Anne really saved the day! Here are their baskets all the goodies and the moomin scarves.
And Anne had packed some treats for me as well! Look at these stunning fabrics. The pirates will be perfect for the pirate quilt I hvae planned for Ask, and the birds..........ooooooh the birds!
That is such a stunning print, I can't even begin to tell you how much I adore it.

And last -but not least- there was this really really sweet figurine in the package too..
She is such a treasure!

I love everything, Thank you so much Anne!! You are truly amazing :)

Pay It Forward from Jackie

2009-04-16T19:20:00.000+02:00

When I came back from my parents house, there was a package waiting for me at our post office.... And it was my package from Jackie!!!
I was so excited I could hardly wait until I came back home to open it :)

And.....it is AMAZING!! Jackie sent me a wonderful quilt! It is so beautiful, I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love it!
She also sent me some great green fabric, yellow giant ric-rac, a glass-pin and....um...some chocolate, but that's gone already :(

The quilting is an awesome paisley and flowers pattern, it is so full of detail, I have tried to get some shots of it here, but I am afraid my camera is not really doing it justice.... Here's part of the back of the quilt, she pieced the back -it's so beautiful!

This is the front of my new favourite quilt, there are some great fabrics in here! And look at the colors, so fresh and summer-y.

Thank you so much Jackie! I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

If you would like to sign up to receive a handmade gift from me within a year, let me know in the comments :) And let me assure you, even if I am not a very frequent blogger these days, I am definately not gone. I have a HUGE paper to hand in May 29th (ack! that's pretty soon), and after that, I'll be back to normal :)

Anyway, back to the PIF...if you want to play, let me know. I'll have a year to send you a special handmade present, you will then blog about the PIF and have 3 people sign up :)

so....come on....sign up!!

I'm still here!! And I miss you!

2009-03-07T22:26:00.001+01:00

Thank you so much for your emails and your comments!
I am okay, just WAY too busy! I am finishing my BA in Library and Information Science this summer, and I have started working :)
Good things, but lots of work. I have managed to sew a little on Asks quilt, mostly because LauraJay sent me this awesome pile of scraps!! Thank you so so much LauraJay :)

My February block for SewConnected 2 is a spiderweb. Katy sent us Liberty fabrics and linnen to work with. I really enjoyed sewing this block for her :)

It is still winter here in Denmark, we don't have all the snow some of you guys have, but it's cold and I am beginning to long for spring......but don't we all (except of course those of you who are moving into fall!)

I am thinking of maybe just uploading a couple of pictures every so often, that way I won't be all gone :D I do miss you all very very much, and I hope to be able to visit your blogs soon!