As you know I'm in various fabric postcard exchanges, well these two photos are from a fibre book page exchange that I did. The theme was secret garden so the blue part is a block called secret garden and the silk ribbon embroidery is my English country garden. I joined them together to form something like a birthday card, the blue one on top and when you opened the card up the flowers are inside. I sent it to Mandy Stokes in Texas.

I have been considering buying a new machine for quite sometime now because the 'C' on mine is so pathetically small. No need to do it now because I have just inherrited this beauty from my Grandma. Look at the size of the 'C' its awesome. Not only that but isn't the machine georgous and it still works!!! By complete fluke I've got all the attachments too, pleating foot, hemming foot, ruffling foot the list just goes on and on.

This photo is a close up of one of the designs, I just love it. I thought that I'd use the machine as an ornament if I ever get a sewing room but on reflection its definitley going to be a working model, I can't wait to get time to play.

and as an added bonus the original instruction manual is with it too. The date on the manual is 1893 I'm not sure if that means its when the machine was patented or wether it reflects when this machine was made. I'd love to know.

Well here we are at last, the long long long overdue City and Guilds course work. (teacher is still waiting for the artwork but thats another matter)

On the left is my wall hanging its very small yet perfectly formed. In desperation to get it done, I used a combination of a greetings card which was a reproduction of a silk painting of Ingleborough and a flyer which showed the 3 peaks Ingleborough, Whernside and Penyghent, which are near my house. I drafted the 3 peaks on the flyer into the style of the silk painting and diddled it up using Cathedral windows. I've got to admit I was pleasantly surprised by the result. I may even give it houseroom!!!

This beauty is making its second appearance on my blog tho probably looked better the first time with the freezer paper still on. Using reverse trapunto I have written 'for the journey' and 'serendipity' I also drew footprints on the bag. Stuff the picky the pockets inside are well good and just right for my extensive collection of rulers!

(all hand dyed fabric)

Proof of my commitment to seeing things through (don't know when I aquired that skill or where I've stored it since i got it) but get a load of the clam shells... yes all sewn by hand the cushion and the fish with it's loose flippy flappy fins. Oh and I forgot to mention it's all dyed by my own fair hand.

This is my box with its lovely plush red interior and below is the foundation pieced lid... impressed? I was very impressed, I designed, drafted and turned my lovely rounded picture into a foundation piecing pattern. Again all hand dyed fabric (all of it) It was going to become a stable for a nativity scene but I didn't have the time so now its a box for keeping something in. Whats the something? I have no idea.

Finally here is the famous kite quilt, all hand dyed, designed and created by me
and now being snuggled into everynight by the lovely Leon. The quilt is being displayed by the lovely Natalie who will no doubt have something very unpleasant to say about my flashing her preety mug on my bloggy

Oh what a busy blogger I am today. It's my friend you see, she's having a competition and part of the entry conditions are that I post a link to her blog on my site, so here goes http://cottoncocktails.blogspot.com/ I'm quite excited about it all, can't wait to see who wins. Nice 1 Hazel x

Anyone for pumpkin pie? this has got to be the cutest pumpkin I have ever seen.

I'm dedicating this blog to my mother-in-law Muriel who is hiding behind Leon. Its a good job she can't even switch a computer on or I might be in trouble for this one tee hee!

Hello, happy halloween! or is that a bit American for a British blog?
This week has been really frought, we have survived a dose of Chicken Pox, Leon got them and then just to really make sure we weren't slacking he got a secondary infection, bless him, he was in a right old pickle. Grandad and I were beginning to think we would never get a full nights sleep ever again :( anyway he slept for 11 hours last night and even though he had me up at 6.30 life is looking a little brighter today :)

What has kept me chipper this week is all the lovely cards I have received, starting with this one by Ruthie Bishop in Clarendon Texas, its from the 'fall' exchange I did.





Check this beauty out, its from Sally Burke in Illinois for the 'halloween' swap, isn't it spooky?












Then I got this lovely chocolate boxy one from Trudy Soura in New York (my first from the big apple) I don't know if she made the embroidered flowers herself but I bet the tucks took ages to do. What a super idea!








This card came from Sarah Ellis-Steinbomer from Sevenoaks in the UK. I wonder if they still have seven oaks... didn't one blow down in a gale? Anyway she's used bleach to discharge some of the colour. I liked it so much I asked her how she did it because I might use the idea for my City and Guilds theme which is outer space, it reminds me of space clouds.

Last but not least, Pam Crawford in Maine, USA sent this one, without a cover on and it got all the way here without being damaged, that is incredible.

Thank you ladies for the lovely cards.

I've been busy finishing my City and Guilds work from last year, I had the hard word from the teacher last lesson so am pulling my socks up a bit! I've finished 4 of my 5 projects now and as soon as I've done the last one I will post all the pictures for you to see.

Once I've done that I will be able to start working on this years stuff lol. I'm only 2 months behind!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Talk more next time bye bye x

As promised here is the new stuff that Rachel and I are doing at Oswaldtwistle (Ozzy) its for a random quilt. This one is a seminole design. That means fabric sewn in strips then chopped up and put back together to make a pattern

The next two are mariners compass designs

Today's blog is dedicated to my sewing al Davina because she always used to tell me to save all my scratty bits of fabric. So after I did the seminole I used all the spare bits to make these strips. I don't think you can tell but the small bits of colour are only 1/4 inch wide, really fiddly.

well I'm off up the wooden hill now, talk again soon.

Bye x