Yeh Christmas is coming and these will not drop their red petals all over the table - Big thanks to Gina Ferrari for teaching me how to make flowers with Tyvek and these were my go it alone efforts. Think I used too thick a red paint as my machine is now pinky red hey ho the flowers are great!!!

A Day of Domesticity on Mon day it was great - first was the mince pies made to the Recipe for the most delicious pastry ever given to me by Rob's 81 year old Mum - she is a fantastic cook
These were destined for Aston Quilters on Tuesday night to accompany Angelas mulled juice.








Pork/Apple/Cider cooked in slow cooker - yummy - I think even Master Chef would have said well seasoned!!











Then came the finishing off of the Christmas Cake - good old Mary berry!! it has been made for a few weeks, fed regularly with brandy - I do not spoon I pour!! Now it is finished and roll on Christmas Day!!!

Hey Christmas is coming - and we had this fabulous workshop on Saturday with Anne Stacey and the ladies made christmas baubles - wow were they all sooo good look at them they worked liked mad - then we all played Anne's Secret Santa game and it was absolutely a lovely day.

Made me realise I need to start thinking about making Christmas pressies and soon!!!!






















This was lunchtime at the workshop and Sarah just had to have the biggest Turkey bap possible!

We had home made mulled fruit juice and mince pies as well.

Well it has been ages since I updated my blog, i have been reading lots of blogs and they are all so interesting but I didn't seem to have anything of momentous importance to blog about but oh now I have!! Angela has also been nagging me to blog so whilst she is out today thought I would surprise her and get up to date.

Well this picture is of my quilt I have finished - and put on my bed as a 'Topper' it does look lovely and I am pleased with the finished effect - though in truth half way through I was more than unhappy but all is well that ends well!!

Now this is my baby boy, Mark aged 22, and he and Zoey aged 20 announced their engagement at the weekend - oh glassy eyes - the ring is sooo pretty and they are very happy. Zoey is lovely and very good for him so although they have no plans for an immediate wedding, some serious saving required!

But this followed on from an announcement the week before that Liz & Alistair (and I forgot to download their photo off the photo frame). Liz is Rob's 21 year old daughter - and Alistair went down on one knee in Ferry Meadows and proposed how romantic!!! They are aiming for

end of next year or spring of 2011 - so more

saving required. Must ensure I get a stock of

material now I think!!!!!

Art & Stitch without Angela - oh we have missed her!!!

It has been a fabulously busy week and Barbara and I have kept ourselves occupied whilst selling prodigious amounts of fabric - William Morris especially!!!


This is my latest Turn around nine patch put together ready to demonstrate at class this weekend.



Barbara has been finishing this Sun Bonnet Sue cushion isn't it lovely - the little girl will be so pleased to have that as a presssie.












Sam's quilt for her Mum and one of the many cushions she is currently into making isn't it super.

Well my poor Daughter bears the brunt of my quilt making he he - I have made her square dance Christmas place mats cause I thought she might need them - she just smiled!












This cushion is actually a request from Caroline she wanted one to match the last one I made for her so i hope she likes it - whopps she will love it!!

She has also requested a mobile phone cover for her new pride and joy - youngsters cannot be without their phones.

We had a lady in Art & stitch yesterday and she had never done any patchwork before, lots of sewing but not ventured into patchwork. She is now well and truly hooked, this is the tea cosey she made and was so pleased with. Then Sue came back in the evening to Aston Quilters and was making a stained glass christmas tree - she is well and truly hooked and will be back.

Steph was also making a cosey but I failed to get a photo will have to track it down for another time.

Well have to go and get my daughter's quilt wadded up she is cracking the whip as winter is coming and she wants it to snuggle under after work - also nearly finished her second cushion so must get on and show willing.

Pretty Bag
I needed a little bag as I have a 60th birthday party to go to this evening - so made myself this little one. And we are having a lady teaching Beaded Buttons at the end of October at Art & Stitch and I persuaded her to sell me one of her examples as it fitted by bag perfectly - so how good does that look.







This is Sam's first quilt (she is peering over the top just in case you hadn't realised!)
She is so pleased with it and rightly so - made from a jelly roll and the binding was a charm pack all joined together - looked like bunting when she was making it. I am really pleased for her and this was the first course I had ever demonstrated to a class so it is lovely to see it come to fruition and all finished.

Yeh I am so chuffed with this - when all the children (ranging from 21 - 29) arrive we seem to run out of seating room and inevitably someone ends up on the floor - so I decided to make a cushion - no I did not want a traditional bean bag I just had to be awkward so I made this - it has been tested by Alistair & Mark and they are quite happy - so now just have to finish the zip at the bottom and hey presto - I guess no one will visit us now!

Oh it was a great weekend - Mark (my baby at 22) bought his new young lady to see us and she is lovely. Not sure what she made of the mad house!

And yesterday in the sunshine I have painted my Tyvek so watch this space and I might just get my poinsettas made.

Yeh I just have to post this - I had my two year check up yesterday and got the all clear - gosh I wish he had warmed his hands first though!!!! I know in my heart I knew it was all good but I was like a cat on a hot tin roof all day yesterday - but carry on taking the Tamoxifen and keep checking myself are the instructions for the next year. Life is fabulous I love every minute and my experience of the National Health Service cannot be faulted they are lovely kind caring people - they treat you like an old friend and you feel important.

So yeh a good day yesterday - though my efforts at quilting certainly left something to be desired - the least said on that subject the better!!!!!

Rhodes 2009
Wow what a fabulous island and what a great holiday - we enjoyed every minute and fell in love with the Greek way of life - food - everything.
Weather was gorgeous and just the right temperature.




These table runners and clothes are on sale everywhere - some are still hand made but not many unfortunately.





Sunset taken out of our window - it was a lovely view












Wouldn't be Greek without a few ruins!













This was in Rhodes Town itself it was an absolute labyrinth of little alleys and so many tempting tavernas













Look at that beautiful blue sea -we will definitely go back it was sooooo lovely

My Birthday present (which incidentally was June) consisted of a weekend in Southwold - we stayed at a lovely B & B and had the most enormous breakfast on Sunday.

The weather was fabulous and oh Southwold is magical.

Lunch was spent watching Morris Dancing then we strolled along the prom - in seventh heaven with all the beach huts

Afternoon tea on the Pier - then Fish & Chips for supper - oh lovely.

This beach hut is for sale at the bargain price of £40,000 a mere snip eh!! No door, no window and all rotting it is the piece of sand that is so expensive.

I adored these two of them were named Victoria & Albert.

It was a super birthday treat and next year he will have to come up with another good idea!!!!

Caroline's crazy quilt cushion - yeh I have finished it at last - I now have to make a matching one in pink's and purples for her - so must get going. Also got a friendship braid quilt to finish for her ready for the winter.

I started this ages and ages ago so am pleased to be able to say it is ready for her. She has actually given up asking for it now so I should have brownie points!!!!!

Pampered fishes - hey look at our fishes one month on - the plants are growing beautifully - the fish are so spoiled and know when they are going to be fed and love the cubes of frozen foods - they are not quite so good in my G & T not nice to have floating shrimps in that. Rob has had to do some gardening - now we decked the back garden as he doesn't like gardening, but he has to keep these trimmed and neat now!

But aren't the colours of the plants lovely.

Last night was our monthly Aston Quilters Group at Art & Stitch and good fun was had by one and all - we were putting together a stained glass christmas tree - Liz & Barbara were so badly behaved we banished them outside and they had to peer through the windows - actually tracing the outline on their materials - we did have a laugh!

Above some of the part finished items, we will finish them next month.

Look at my pretty flowers - Saturday Gina Ferrari came to Art & Stitch and showed us how to make these pretty flowers with Tyvek it was a great day we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and made flowers, seed pods and beads.

I have bought some Tyvek and plan (if and when time allows!) to make poinsettas for Christmas - at least they will not drop all over the table then!!!

Well it has been ages since I last came on my blog to update and life has been somewhat chaotic but hey ho back to normal now.

We went to Woburn Safari Park on Bank Holiday monday and it was just as good as going to Africa!! The animals were very photogenic and obviously liked to show off we had a great day.

Today is back to work which is nice to get back to normal life again and I am looking forward to sewing.

Caroline and I got to see Harry Potter on Saturday which I thoroughly enjoed

Angela Neil Rob Margaret & I all went to the festival of quilts and wow this one is all hexagons and it has made Angela and I really want to do a quilt like this.

I know two posts on one morning, but Angela's Dad just took these photos of the shop - how great are they. We have had loads of new shelves to put all the new materials on. We had a delivery of William Morris last week and they are fabulous - have made a great bag out of a jelly roll!!!

But how good does the shop look . Oh by the bye Neil said we had to tidy our desks and we have they look soooooo bare!!!!!

Well the fishes are all settled in their new habitat - living plants not plastic and we had no tragedies even Gordon the most elusive fish in the world was found and transferred and has found himself a home under the log. Oh we have lost one assassin snail so have to go and buy another one.

So now life can go back to normal and I can get on with the serious business of cooking and quilting. Oh this morning I had to do the ironing but that is the first time for a year as Rob normally does all of that for me. The only time i touch the iron is to press seams on quilts!!!!!!

Angela was trimming the top of her Friendship Braid quilt which has made extra large so there was no alternative but to sit on the table! Thank goodness for all the space we have at Art & Stitch.

Here is the quilt top I put together at the Debden Summer School, it is soo lovely and now it is bordered I am so chuffed with it. Just got to get it quilted but am going to use the Bamboo wadding I am really keen to try that.

This is our aquarium at home and the poor unsuspecting inhabitants are about to be relocated to the creme de la creme of new aquariums - I might move in with them! They are having every kind of added extra you can buy, what more than water and food do fish need,but no they are having special water; co2 gas cylinder to oxygenate the water, daylight bulbs oh and more still it will look great I am sure and they had better enjoy it - but the food is now being stored inthe freezer and I have to remember not to cook bloodworm when preparing our meals!!!!!