I love my heart quilt

sorry I can't resist a pretty flower pic

Hello friends

I know I am always saying this but sorry for my tardiness again. I am trying hard to keep my ahead above water. Some days I crack it and the day is as good as I can make it. Other days the black dog comes to visit and he just wont get outside where he belongs.
There is a website called the Black Dog Institute that has some great resources.If you or anyone needs support.

Well what have I been doing here of late? Mmm let's see. Oh yeh, I have beem finishing up some projects started in late 2010. So far I have pieced the small quilt named Mrs Bill's Heart Quilt. I came across the pattern in an old copy of Country Patchwork & Craft Vol 5, No 4. Designed by Blue Willow Cottage. This little beauty is 108cm square, a much smaller quilt than I am used to creating. I had fun as I love applique work and I am getting better on the new Janome 6600P with the blanket stitch especially as I have found that using Mode 2, number 36 stitch produces a lovely small, neat look. I am so pleased with the way it has turned out that I just want to stare at it for ages. Although I altered a few of the colour selections and the borders I reckon mine is even better than the original. How about that for blowing my own trumpet? :)

The other item I have almost completed is the chooky runner that has been a while coming, due to me misunderstanding the directions and then deciding to forgo some of the details of the original. Hah *sighs* but that is my style-take an idea and extrapolate.:)

Of course these are only finished as far as being pieced together; the quilting still has to occur and that my friends is where things can go curly. You see I want to be able to FMQ these little darlings but I am not yet skilled enough. I have tried, yes I have. I did a great job on another table runner once, looks fantastic, however it was a one-off performance, not since repeated! But I will keep trying, it will not defeat me.
I also have to quilt the tree quilt that I showed a peak of a couple of blogs back, that is goine to be delicious and will be put away for the arrival of my first grandchild, which of course needs to be a girl due to the colours used, however maybe we can set a new trend-who said boys can't have pink? Not me.

So that is the goss on the craft front.

Other things happening on the home front include out third daughter, or the middle child as she calls herself, applying to join the Defence Force-Navy. She will be in Perth later this month for the preliminary testing, interviews etc. I am both proud and anxious for her. This has been a long held dream of Em's to go into the navy and although she has been working in different jobs since she left school, the dream has neve left her and now at the ripe old age of 22 she feels the time is right to strike out. I really do wish her luck, after all following ones dreams is soul nourishing. She has been told that if she is initially unsuccesful she can apply again in 12 months or something like that. She has been working on her fitness by beach walking. Keep it up Em. :)