Fusible Thread and Machine Binding Tutorial & A Giveaway!!! CLOSED

Have you ever wanted to try fusible thread?

Or bind using machine stitching that is nearly invisible from the front?

(Front)

(Back) 

Would you like your binding to be sturdier and to save time too???

 

Well if you've answered yes to any of those questions, then I've got a tutorial for you!!

The amazing Bec from Chasing Cottons has been hosting a fantastic series of quilt classes including a quilt-a-long, entitled Quilt Class 101.

 

As part of Quilt Class 101 I'm guest posting a tutorial on how I use fusible thread and machine stitch binding. It's over on Bec's blog right now!

GIVEAWAY

Do you want to win a spool of Benz Fuse fusible thread?!

 Hop on over to Chasing Cottons and have a look at the tutorial,  and if it's something you're interested in giving a go, come back and leave a message here to enter.

The giveaway will finish Wednesday 20th of July 2011 10pm Australian Central Standard Time. It's open internationally too :)

Giveaway Day!!! CLOSED

Yay!! I love Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day!!

Welcome to my blog, whether it's your first time here or you're a regular visitor!
Last year I didn't have a blog so I wasn't able to participate in giveaway day, so I'm so excited to be a part of it this year!!

'So what is the giveaway?' I hear you ask .......

 I am giving away this dresden plate pillow cover (pillow not included). It is 18" square and is made from Denyse Schmidt fabrics (mainly Flea Market Fancy) on a white solid background .....

I love how girly it is :)

The backing and binding is from DS Quilts new line Picnic & Fairgrounds .....

So if you're interested, all that you have to do is leave a comment. I'd love to know what your favourite quilt block is at the moment (if you're a quilter), or fabric line, or anything else that you'd like to share about yourself and your craft is fine too :)

Please ensure that I have a way to contact you if you win e.g. if your blog doesn't link to your email, please leave your email address in your comment. If I can't contact you I will pick another winner.

This giveaway is open to all (internationally) until Wednesday 25th of May 2011.

Good Luck!!!

Happy Australia Day and a Giveaway Winner!!

Today is Australia Day.

I love Australia!! I love everything about it .... the land, the lifestyle, the culture, the people, the generosity of spirit, the freedom ... I love it all!

Perhaps Dorothea Mackellar said it best -

My Country

The love of field and coppice,
Of green and shaded lanes.
Of ordered woods and gardens
Is running in your veins,
Strong love of grey-blue distance
Brown streams and soft dim skies
I know but cannot share it,
My love is otherwise.

I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of droughts and flooding rains.
I love her far horizons,
I love her jewel-sea,
Her beauty and her terror -
The wide brown land for me!

A stark white ring-barked forest
All tragic to the moon,
The sapphire-misted mountains,
The hot gold hush of noon.
Green tangle of the brushes,
Where lithe lianas coil,
And orchids deck the tree-tops
And ferns the warm dark soil.

Core of my heart, my country!
Her pitiless blue sky,
When sick at heart, around us,
We see the cattle die -
But then the grey clouds gather,
And we can bless again
The drumming of an army,
The steady, soaking rain.

Core of my heart, my country!
Land of the Rainbow Gold,
For flood and fire and famine,
She pays us back threefold -
Over the thirsty paddocks,
Watch, after many days,
The filmy veil of greenness
That thickens as we gaze.

An opal-hearted country,
A wilful, lavish land -
All you who have not loved her,
You will not understand -
Though earth holds many splendours,
Wherever I may die,
I know to what brown country
My homing thoughts will fly.

                                                                                              Dorothea Mackellar


So Happy Australia Day to all you Aussie's out there wherever you may be! I hope you have a wonderful day and get to enjoy a pavlova or lamington and some fireworks tonight :)
For those that are doing it tough with "flood and fire and famine" etc
I hope you are "paid .. back threefold" and that things get easier for you soon!

...............................................................................................................................

Now on to our giveaway.... It was amazing to hear and see all of the wonderful contributions to the Queensland Flood Appeal Auctions ... really heartwarming :) 

Thanks to everyone that entered the giveaway too, I wish I had more Pip's to share.

The lucky winner is comment # 5

True Random Number

Generator

Min:

Max:

Result: 5

Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Congratulations Lexie from Periwinkle Girl! Please send me an email with your mailing address and I'll get the charm pack out to you ASAP.

Only 9 hours to go ......

There's 9 hours to go for the Queensland Flood Relief Appeal Auctions!

Bidding on auction items finish at 9 pm. Raffles continue until midday Wednesday. So you still have time to get involved. You can find the auction master list here .......

..... and my auction items here and here.

There is still time to enter my Sherbet Pips giveaway here too. I'll keep it open until 12 midday on Wednesday 26th January 2011.

Thanks to everyone who has given their support to the Qld flood appeal! The devastation in some communities has been immense and the rebuilding effort is going to take a very long time and they need our support in which ever small way we can give it!!

Giveaway!!! - CLOSED

Well with all the generosity going on around blogland .... so many fantastic auction/raffle items and so many amazing and generous bids on those aforementioned items ... I really wanted to say thank you to all that have gotten involved in the Qld Flood Appeal Auctions by having a giveaway!!

If you haven't gotten involved yet it is not too late. Auctions and raffles (most raffles are now open until Wed 26th of January) are open until midnight on Monday 24th January 2011.

Click here for more details on the auctions.

So what am I giving away?? ......................

It's a much sought after charm pack of Aneela Hoey's adorable "Sherbet Pips"!!

To enter all you have to do is tell me which item you have bid on, or that you are holding an auction/raffle yourself, or that you are participating in "Quilts For Queensland". You don't necessarily have to bid on my auctions, but if you did it would make my day ;)  (my auctions are now closed).

This giveaway is open until 12 midday ACST (Australian Central Standard Time) on AUSTRALIA DAY, Wednesday the 26th of January 2011.

The winner will be picked by the trusty random number generator.
Make sure that you can be contacted by email, either through your blog (make sure your status is not set to no-reply blogger) or leave your email address in your comment.

A special THANK YOU to Toni & Carli for getting this all started!!

I Heart Long Weekends

This past week has been busy but lovely. I was down in Adelaide for work meetings at the end of last week, but also had a nice time with family doing some shopping and just hanging out :)

Then on Saturday my husband and I enjoyed a 4WD trek with friends in the Flinder's Ranges - a couple of hours away from my home. Really fun!!

These hills felt much steeper than they look!

Getting muddy .....

Look at those clouds ....

I love this old hollowed out tree ....

Can you spot the roos?

We enjoyed our Sunday with my Mother-in-law and then travelled back home on Monday (public holiday) through the beautiful Clare Valley. I didn't take any photos ... but think blue skies, gently rolling hills with lots of green grass and pretty purple flowers, fields of bright yellow canola, and cute little towns and markets - so adorable!

Talking about scenery .... and because this is supposed to be a quilting blog .....

... a quilted card. Because I've been out galavanting, these cards are all the sewing I have been doing lately. Fun to use up scraps and to make some small pieced blocks.

Finally, I have not been able to contact one of the giveaway winners, (not for lack of trying), so I have decided to draw another winner. So once again I have gone to the trusty random number generator and come up with ............

Comment number 7

Congratulations Jessica from Scrappy n' Happy!!

Please drop me an email with your postal address and I'll send it to you ASAP.

Another Year Older ... & Giveaway Winners

Today is my birthday and so it's presents all around because it's also giveaway day too!!!

I have had a lovely day! Well I had to go to work ... surely there should be a law passed saying you don't have to work on your birthday. This evening my wonderful husband took me out to dinner and we really enjoyed chatting and being together and the food was good too. It's also been nice catching up with family over the phone. I didn't bake a cake because it's just the 2 of us and my husband isn't a sweet tooth, but don't worry I still had cake.




And now for the all important giveaway "presents". The winners are ..... (drum roll) ......

1st we have no 27 Missie from Crimson Lily

2nd we have no 29 Jennifer from That Girl ... That Quilt

Unfortunately I have not yet worked out how to cut and paste the random number generator thingy, so you will just have to trust me :)


Congratulations to both of you, please email me your address and I'll get your winnings off to you ASAP.


Oh, and you know how I mentioned that "I'm not the luckiest person when it comes to winning giveaways", well not true anymore ... I'll tell you about it very soon :)

Thank You & A Giveaway

THANK YOU to all those people who have visited my blog and to those who have left heartwarming comments since I started this blog 19 days ago. When I started it I said that it didn't matter if no-one visited because I wanted to keep this blog as a bit of a journal for myself of how I improve over time, but your comments and encouragement have really meant a lot to me :)

A special THANK YOU also to my wonderful sister Kate who sent many of you over my way. She is not only inspirational to me as a quilter but also as a big sister and friend!!

Now I'm not the luckiest person when it comes to winning giveaways, but I think that hosting one must be just as fun if not more so than winning one :)

So to say thank you and to celebrate going double digits (yes this is post number 10 hehe) here's your chance to get a bit of fabric love .....



Either a panel of "Once Upon a Time" by Alexander Henry - with 16 very cute prints as shown above or ....


A very sweet "Strawberry Lemonade" charm pack by Me & My Sister Designs.


Here's a picture of a few prints that you'll find in the charm pack ....

There will be 2 winners randomly drawn on Tuesday the 28th September 2010. The first winner has first choice of which fabric they'd like. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment . That's it! Good luck!!