The Most Ridiculous Thing

I bought a new nightlight for our master bathroom outlet.  It's LED but too bright at night for our dainty eyelids (can't sleep with a light on anywhere syndrome )

So I started to work in an organic way to make a cozy for my nightlight.

I cut 1 inch wide strips from two fat quarters.  Then resewed them together to make a grid.  The result was four tiny squares by 9 tiny squares.  I cut a piece of white fabric and lined it by sewing the two long sides.

Taking two smaller rectangles for the back part... sandwiching in the checkerboard part...

The very top (upper right in photo) is open raw edges.  Then I made a lid if you can believe it.  Sort of shell shaped as this is my bathroom...

I turned it and made some shell like hand quilting lines on the lid.  Then I attached the raw edges with a small seam and topstitched it down.

Here it is in situ.  After one night we love it.  It is just the right amount of darkness and easily removed for more serious business.

Christmas Wheel Quilt

I made this a few years ago and it always makes me smile when I pull it out this time of year.  It is all hand pieced and hand quilted.  It was fun to make and I realize how much pleasure I get from looking at all those careful and not so careful stitches.  I think in this fast paced world we  cannot forget the pleasures of slow both during a project and after.

When a quilt is finished by machine there is a great sense of accomplishment that goes with the finish and after, at a job well done but I challenge you all to try the slower pace of the hand made for a deeper sense of how our foremothers operated and as a testament to what we can accomplish with our own two hands.

My Amy Butler Weekender

I acquired the pattern for this Amy Butler wonder shortly after it came out a few years ago.  I went straight on and made this bag.  I love it.

I am seeing it in lots of other people's blogs and I thought I should show off my early efforts.

The instructions were so well done that I didn't make one mis-step.  It's a very useful size for real travel.  I only wish I could figure out a way to make the bag itself lighter - without sacrificing stiffness...

Watch for my next blog to see what I used to stuff the bag with for shape holding purposes...

Hexagons, the progress

I have been positively addicted to these.  Between company and housework I have been making really good progress.

lots of blue, huh ? But look at this...

More of the browns here. I'm not quite sure how the two will interface but I must figure that out soon and join them.  I am about 2/3 done I estimate by the hole between these two sections on the floor.

Maybe I shouldn't have laid these down on the rug for picture purposes but it was such a lovely sunny day and they were handy here.  You can't see but I have lots of little papers to remove from the blue hexs but I will get to that too.

Bear Head Hat

Pretty cute.  I used a Simplicity pattern I got on sale at Fabricland on the weekend.  It is supposed to be fully lined but the polar fleece I bought is reversible.  So I did it in a single layer so as not to be so hot.  It's orange on the inside.  T and I thought the fabric looked like a red panda.  Maybe we weren't so successful but I think he's over the top cute.

Blue Hexagon Love

More is more,

I don't quite know why I keep at it.  It just calls to my inner hexagon I guess.
Maybe my DD will come by and remove all the basting threads.  That is a chore for a long view of Downton Abbey I think.

Happy Halloween Jacks

Yeah, I know it was yesterday, but what the hey...

I think they are so simple, cute... kind of like two chummy old dudes taking in the season and doing a little people watching...

OK so no trick or treaters came by last night - wait, is that a small tear I see....?

That is what happens in an ageing neighbourhood, the kids grow up and leave us - sniff- all alone....but we're still smilin'...

                                       (all that chocolate just for me!!)