Sweet Fabric [Search results for news

  • Finishing off...

    Finishing off...
    home straight

    I'm on the home straight with my "car craft" project...just one more side to go.

    I now have my fingers firmly crossed that I've hit the mark with this gift.

    In other news...
    I may or may not have had a brainwave in relation to upcoming baby gift. Now I just have to figure out how to actually make the thing!

  • My creative space...

    My creative space...
    My Creative Space Petals

    Mucking around with Aunty Cookie scraps & a bit of petal folding for some fabric flora.

    In other plant related news I am going out to the wholesale nursery with my bossy mate today to buy "splash of colour" plants for the house.

    You can visit my favourite space from last week right here.

    Don't forget to pop in & add your link if you're playing along this week.

  • Dragging my heels...

    Dragging my heels...
    Lazy feet

    We're home...it feels good.

    I love Melbourne in January.
    There's nobody around.
    Lawns are long & littered with dandelions.
    No place to be at no particular time.

    I'm struggling to drag my lazy holiday self into action so I think I'll watch from the sidelines for a couple of days.

    Looking forward to catching up on your news.

    PS...just noticed that my back of 09 post was my 1000th post - that's a LOT of drivel. Thanks for hanging around. xx

  • Needing a pants kicking...

    Needing a pants kicking...
    Slow going

    Did you know that I'm part of the Down Under Doll Quilt Swap? It was organised an embarrassingly long time ago by the gorgeous Kate.

    In true kootoyoo style I've left it & left it & left it some more. Don't get me wrong...there's been plenty of think time & in my head the finished quilt is really, really beautiful. In reality I have one (yep 1) block pieced and another cut out. Not a fabulous start eh?

    No more new anythings until this piece is finished so I'm going to share my in progress shots. If you catch me wandering off course do you reckon you'd prompt me with a comment like "Hey Kirst, haven't seen much on the white quilt front...what's up with that?".

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    In other news...
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    I've been included in Kidspots Top 50 Bloggers which is hugely flattering. Considering this is a "just for fun" gig for me & there are heaps of professional writer types included I'm quite chuffed. Thanks a bunch Kidspot.

    There's the opportunity there to win a holiday to Dunk Island which is pretty cool so maybe check out the list, see if you're favourites are there. If so - click to vote.

    I've got to say that I think that the craft blog community is pretty under represented on the list. So many beautiful, thoughtful, productive, positive, creative women I love who haven't been represented.

    A big hearty thanks to those of you who have voted for me & saved me from left-on-the-shelf embarrassment. Muchly appreciated. x

  • Words & pictures...catching up

    Words & pictures...catching up

    I pack myself and my sweet as anything one year old into the car. We’ll be gone all day and we seem to have a lot of outing luggage.

    It’s a perfect Autumn morning, crisp and fresh. The leaves from our Oak are crunching under my feet and whipping around my ankles as I circle the car making sure I’ve got everything.

    We pull out of the driveway and I’m already dreading the drive home. I wonder to myself why that is. The drive out never feels so bad but the drive home is pure torture.

    The trees that line the side of the road are being tossed around by a fierce wind. I smile, knowing that Megan will have a Hills Hoist full of washing by the time we arrive. “It’s a good drying day Koo, three loads already this morning”.

    We pull up outside Megan’s place. She’s sitting on the verandah with a cup of tea. Her two little boys are clad in gumboots and parkas and playing in the leaves. It’s such a lovely sight.

    The boys are called inside and I make a fresh cuppa each. We both have Earl Grey. Megan has hers milky with a sugar and mine is strong with a splash of milk. There’s no standing on ceremony, whoever is up makes the tea. When I’m at home I rarely drink tea but at Megan’s place I drink at least six cups.

    Flo’s scones are in the oven and dinner is already in the Crockpot. The heating is up too high – just the way I like it.

    I look out the back window and see the line full. The white sheets look so beautiful against the lush green grass. There’s something up with the drainage and Mike is slowly digging an “aggie” along the top fence. The kids really need puddle suits but make do with their gumboots and come in wet and cold and rosy cheeked.

    We spend the day catching up on all the news from the week. Even though we talk on the phone every day a week seems such a long time. We lose the day in easy chatter, cups of tea and cuddles with kids.

    After the sixth cup of tea I’m ready to face the drive and we pack up and head for home. I check my rear view mirror when we reach the bottom of the hill. Megan and the boys are waving madly and my worn out babe is sound asleep.

    More catching up stories here.

  • On the eighth day of Christmas...

    On the eighth day of Christmas...

    My true love sent to me:

    8 plates for turkey
    7 twinkling lights
    6 stuffed mushies
    5 glowing gifts
    4 waiting sacks
    3 chrissy trees
    2 drinks with bubbles
    & a sp...i...i...i...i...ng santa

    We made these as Christmas gifts a couple of years ago. Each year they get brought out for our Christmas feasting. Somehow, I've become the custodian of a couple of extra plates because certain people (& you know who you are) insist on living thousands of kilometres away in the stickiness that is Darwin.

    In other news...the light tour didn't disappoint.

    Each house was rated by the tour leader:

    c. best viewed at high speed
    b. slow down & maybe brake a second or two
    a. park car & mill about admiring the months of work by the owner/operator of the show

    The kids had their own rating system:

    Action scored points
    Quantity of lights scored points
    Appearance of cartoon character scored points
    Bonus points were awarded for the appearance of "baby Jesus"
    Mega points awarded if owner of house was handing out lollies

    "TOP JOB" was awarded to this house:

    This pic shows the small girl jumping for joy in the "snow" which cascaded from the balcony onto the crowd below at 30 seconds intervals.

  • The quilt project...

    The quilt project...
    runner

    I'm very happily back to Melbourne drizzle. It was lovely & cool on the run this morning.

    This is my most recent pair of Asics. I did actually head into Active Feet before I headed out of town & am now sporting a new pair of runners (toe not yet worn through). My shoes were stitched by hand which I thoroughly enjoyed. I used stem stitch, running stitch & chain stitch for the shoe. I chose to french knot the tongue & the ankle cushioning which was very time consuming but very satisfying.

    Perhaps not the best time to take off ... I arrived home yesterday morning to a mountain of quilt project blocks. Each of them are wonderful & I am very much looking forward to sharing the completed "quilt" with you. I am horribly behind with the Flickr commenting but you might like to see some of the amazing pieces worked in red that have been sent in here.

    If you've been following the project & if you think you might like to see the completed quilt in person ... you might want to mark 23 October in your diary. Details coming soon.

    It feels good to be home, I'm looking forward to catching up on all your news & having a chat.

  • A quilt preview...

    A quilt preview...
    Red Mountain
    Bottom Row

    Square by Jess

    Did you know that Flip is coming to Australia? It's going to be available in time for Christmas.

    I'm one of the lucky folk who gets to trial the new Mino HD Flips. The camera arrived yesterday & so I decided to make a little Quilt Project video for you.

    I have a gadget geek brother who owns an earlier model of the Flip which I've used a bit...you can see those efforts here.

    Obviously the quality is far superior using the new flip & the addition of a tripod jack is fabulous as is the mobile phone size. It's smaller than an iPhone & just as easy to use.

    The most appealing thing for me is the fact that our videos can easily be stored (if I can do it anyone can) in the same place as our images rather than hanging around on teeny tiny digital tapes which neither myself or The Date know how to manage on the computer.

    I guess the main questions are...
    Would you buy it? Yes...built in USB (for quick & easy camera to pc transfer), built in battery, super easy to use. Tick, tick, tick.
    How much is it? Look here.

    So you'll probably see a bit more video around this space in the next little while if I can get over the fingernails-on-blackboard-cringe when I have to listen to my own voice.

    The most exciting video news in ages is that Handmade Nation will be released on DVD November 3. This movie made me proud to be a maker of things. If you haven't seen it (or even if you have) signup to receive an email alert to let you know it's available.

  • This is...

    This is...

    Angela has gone with a theme free This is...

    & this is something that is very old (nearly as old as me)! She's my bluebird of happiness gifted to me by my gorgeous Grandma. She used to have a windup music mechanism. Does anyone know if there is a piece of Bluebird of Happiness music? I'd love to track it down.

    In other very exciting (& happy) news. My Softie for Mirabel has been listed in the first round of Ebay auctions. He's a silver lined cloud. I poured so much love into the making of this guy that I'm sure you'd have to feel it dripping out of his little silver limbs.

    Go ... bid & bid high!

    Thank you Mikes for organising & working hard & being nice!
    .

  • My stuff featured elsewhere ...

    My stuff featured elsewhere ...

    Fabric from one of my favourite vintage dresses

    Every once in a while something of mine turns up somewhere super lovely.

    Just for the record:

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    Apartment Therapy
    The Apartment Therapy Mission
    Helping people make their homes more beautiful, organized and healthy by connecting them to a wealth of resources, ideas and community online.

    What We Believe
    A calm, healthy, beautiful home is a necessary foundation for happiness and success in the world.

    Creating this home doesn’t require large amounts of money or space. It requires inspiration, connection to resources and motivation to do something about it.

    The basic elements of good home design can be learned and achieved by all.

    Simplicity and luxury are not mutually exclusive.

    Spool holder

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    Craftzine
    Introducing CRAFT: The first project-based magazine dedicated to the renaissance that is occurring within the world of crafts. Celebrating the DIY spirit, CRAFT's goal is to unite, inspire, inform and entertain a growing community of highly imaginative and resourceful people who are transforming traditional art and crafts with unconventional, unexpected and even renegade techniques, materials and tools; people who undertake amazing crafting projects in their homes and communities.
    Christmas Decorations, Corner Bookmark, Granny Square Necklace, Spool holder

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    Craft Gossip
    Confused about everything crafty out there? Not sure where to go and what to buy for your latest craft idea? Can't find that kitsch pattern that everyone else is talking about? Well worry no more! CraftGossip is all the latest news from real craft people telling you about the real stuff. We scour the net looking for the best craft ideas and projects and review them for you.
    Corner Bookmark, Embroidery on Dark Fabric, Hand pieced Pincushion, Photo to embroidery pattern, Twisted Cord

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    Mixtape Zine
    Mix tape zine is a collision of craft, eco-cool and pop culture kitsch it features recipes, eco tips, crafty people profiles, ethical business practices etc - you can purchase back issues here or find out more here. Find Justine here and Nichola’s blog here.
    my collection in issue 6

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    Nuts about Needlepoint
    An encyclopedia of needlepoint and thread information for all stitchers. Learn about Janet M. Perry's needlepoint projects, read book and product reviews, and find articles about techniques, threads, and more
    Twisted Cord

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    One Pretty Thing
    One Pretty Thing is a daily website dedicated to bringing you inspiring projects for a more beautiful life.
    Corner Bookmark, Drawstring Bag, Embroidered carry all, Embroidery on dark fabric, Fabric Notebook Cover, Photo to Embroidery Design, Quilt Quiver, Tealight Holder, Twisted Cord

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    Quilting Board
    The Quilter's message board.
    Thank you Sondray for linking to my projects.

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    Sew Mama Sew
    You’ll find some handy sewing tips and inspiration. Whether you’re just learning to sew, or have been sewing forever.

    The Sew,Mama,Sew! blog is pulled together each week by Kristin and Beth. Who both sew whenever they can and love fabric with a passion.

    If you’re looking for fabulous fabric and patterns, please take a look at the Sew,Mama,Sew! store.

    Drawstring Backpack, How to fold a fat quarter

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    Tipnut
    I think we all have them, those mile high piles of household tips and life hacks that we’ve collected over the years. They’re messy, disorganized and once they’ve been ‘filed’, those tips are nowhere to be found again.

    TipNut.com isn’t anything fancy. It’s simply my way of putting together all the cool tricks I’ve accumulated over the years into a simple, searchable, online filing box–this website. Some of them I’ve tried, some of them I don’t know if I’ll ever try. But I do know they’ll be here if I need them–and I’m happy to freely share everything with you too!
    Simple square pincushion

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    Whip Up
    Whip up: To prepare quickly. To excite. To create. To incite. To build. To invent. To conceive. To push. To upset. To manufacture. To provoke.

    This website has been created in order to bring the best original and exciting crafts to the attention of many.
    To create a community of artists, crafters and makers and share ideas in a central space.

    Embroidered Carry All, Embroidery on Dark Fabric, Corner Bookmark, Handpieced Pincushion, Pillowcase Shoulder Bag, Sausage Dog CD cover, Simple Square Pincushion, Toadstool Pincushion

    Thank you lovely folk for the thumbs up. It's much appreciated.

  • My creative space...

    My creative space...
    Red Dust

    Such a lot of creating going on in my head lately but not so much with the hands. I'm hoping that this little experiment comes off. I'll be able to justify my crazy crafty happy dancing about it if it does.

    The head creating is mainly about all things quilty. I got my copy of Fat Quarterly yesterday & let me tell you that little ezine(actually rather large - a huge 78 pages of goodness) has really got the mind ticking. Have you purchased Fat Quarterly? My favourite project was of course Kate's business shirt quilt. She gets two ticks from me on that one. Firstly because she's ace & secondly because of the reusing bizzo.

    The new commenting system worked pretty well I think. I used the random number generator & asked for 60 numbers. It spat them out & I had a lovely time leap frogging around the list.

    One of my favourite lily pads from last week was this one. I love her desk.

    In the news: It's Cam's birthday today. She's one of the very first creative space players. Have a happy day Cam.

    Don't forget to pop in & add your link if you're playing along this week.

  • Busy nothingness...

    Busy nothingness...
    Busy nothingness

    It's been a big long weekend.

    Shopping, cooking, footying, coffeeing, gym competitioning.

    The biggest news in this lot of "ings" is that there was no crafting to be had - not even at the gym comp & I'm usually very well prepared for the 4 hours of boring.

    & this is the way the weekend ended. Crumpled heaps in front of Masterchef last night & then falling into bed.