The Sewing Dilettante

After the disappointments of last week, I wasn't quite sure I had the energy or confidence to do anything remotely creative or crafty this weekend. But, my targets for the month of October called, and I sat down to my sewing machine with no small sense of trepidation on Saturday afternoon, armed with helpful suggestions from Judith and Leanne about FMQ-ing. After a methodical de-threading, cleaning, and re-threading, my machine magically began to cooperate, and I was back in business! I finished the FMQ-ing in no time, and I'm so pleased with the result!  It was a bit overcast when taking these photos, so they're not amazing, but you can see all the lovely stippling of which I'm insanely proud! While I was at it, I sewed on the binding and now just have to finish hand sewing it on. I'm calling that a success, if not yet a completion! (Near finishes count, right?!)  Since I was obviously on a roll, I also made a start on the throw pillows to match this baby...

I can hardly believe it's October already! September just seemed to fly by, not least because of my new job, and while I love all the wonderful things about October - the changing of the seasons, autumnal foliage, and the welcome opportunity to bake apple and pumpkin pies - I'm feeling slightly anxious about the passage of time. You see, the beginning of October means I've only got three short months left until Baby H arrives, and none of my baby-related projects are finished yet! Eeek!! Now is the perfect time, therefore, to follow the lead of many a fellow blogger and offer both an account of what I've accomplished in September and a projection of what I'd like to do in October. I'm trying this out through the Fresh Sewing Day on Lily's Quilts  (hope I've done everything correctly!); I'm also linking up to the Small Blog Meet in the hopes of learning more about other great blogs and maybe attracting a few more readers to my blog as well! ...

Well, I've survived another chaotic week at work and am looking forward to a fun-filled weekend with a Bee Blessed gathering tomorrow afternoon, a friend from London visiting, and a low-key birthday dinner on Saturday with a few friends. I managed to get a bit of EPP done in the evenings this week but not much else. Nevertheless, here are a few snapshots (literally) of some of the cooler aspects of my week... Hubby got me these super cute Converse earrings for my birthday yesterday.... for some reason, they make me want to sing 'These boots were made for walking'!  Also yesterday, I started the second installment of Cake School. To explain: last Christmas, hubby bought me the gift that keeps on giving... enrollment in a baking class at the local community college! I had been saying that I really wanted to learn how to decorate cakes a little bit better, so he registered me for what he thought was a decorating class. It turned out to be a more traditional baking class...

I haven't blogged, baked, quilted or done anything of note really for the past few days except work. My new job starts next week, and I'm feeling slightly overwhelmed by just how much needs to be done both to tie things up at my old job and get things started at the new one. A tiny bit scary and stressful, but also, admittedly, a little bit fun and exciting, too! Somehow, in the midst of all this work craziness, though, I managed to make a little purchase.... One metre of Kokka 'A is for Apples' fabric for the Japanese Charm Swap I joined a couple of weeks ago. I bought it from the fantastic Celtic Fusions Fabrics  after protracted deliberations and increasing anxiety that I might lose out in the fabric purchases stakes. For the uninitiated, the swap involves each person posting a picture of the fabric they've purchased, thereby indicating to everyone else that that particular fabric is now off limits. Some people were very quick off the mark, I'll tell yo...

I've joined my first fabric swap! Soooo exciting! It's organized by the lovely Sarah , and the rules seem pretty straightforward: each of the 28 individuals involved purchases one metre of Japanese import fabric, posts a picture of it on flickr to ensure no repeats, and then cuts and mails to Sarah 56 x 5" charms by the end of September. Everyone then receives an amazing package in the mail with 56 assorted charm squares in all kinds of cool Japanese prints. Bring it on!! We're not technically supposed to start shopping until 26 August, but I've already spent a couple (several!?) hours rooting around online. There's just so much to choose from, I'm not quite sure how I'll pick! These are a few I like (out of many, many, many more!) .... All from here Any suggestions for online shops to look in and/or particular fabrics to look for? xx Tina