Christmas QAL - post 5

Fancy a bit of music?

I found this - possibly the catchiest, but most irritating piece of music ever made into a Christmas song.



Don't forget, the Linky if you are joining the party today can be found here.

Christmas QAL - post 4

There's always a quiz at Christmas isn't there?  Well, I don't want to disappoint you, so here it is:

1.   On which date is Epiphany celebrated in the traditional Western calendar?

2.   Who are the four ghosts in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol?

3.   What liqueur goes into making a 'snowball' cocktail?

4.   What is the English title of the carol written in 1818 by Austrian priest Josef Mohr originally called Stille Nacht?

5.   The Nordic countries (Denmark, Sweden, Norway notably) tend to celebrate Christmas chiefly on which date?

6.   Which US state in 1907 was the last to declare Christmas a legal holiday?

7.   What is the popular name for little baked sausages wrapped in rashers of streaky bacon?

8.   Which of the Wise Men was said to have brought the gift of gold for the baby Jesus?

9. The 1954 movie White Christmas was the first to be made using what new Paramount film format?

10. Which river did George Washington cross on Christmas night in 1776 in the American Revolutionary War?

11. What changed in 1752 which caused England to have a White Christmas less frequently thereafter?

12. Traditional in Germany at Christmas, what sort of food is stollen?

13. How many gifts are given in total in the song The Twelve Days of Christmas?

14. The words "Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume breathes of life, of gathering gloom..." come from which Christmas carol?

15. Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean is a territory of which country?

16. Which diarist noted on 25th December 1662, "(Christmas Day). Had a pleasant walk to White Hall,      where I intended to have received the communion with the family, but I have come too late..."

17.  The USA's official National Christmas Tree is in which National Park?

18.  John Callcott Horsley designed what first commercial Christmas item in 1843?

19.  Which popular poem was alternatively known as A Visit from St Nicholas?

20. What animal is Snowball in George Orwell's book Animal Farm?

There's no prize for this, it's just for fun.  If you want the answers, I will post them on the blog tomorrow.

Christmas QAL - post 3

Sky have just started up 2 channels on TV which show just Christmas films, and you know what a sucker I am for Christmas, so I will not be doing any more machine sewing today as I'm about to make a coffee and sit with some hand-sewing.




Just in case you're short of some inspiration I've found a few free Christmas projects for you:

Quilts:
Candy Cane Stars
Christmas Ribbons

Wallhangings:
Jingle Bells
Christmas Star
Santa 
Dear Santa

Other things:
Table runner
Paper pieced Christmas Stocking block
Applique for sweatshirts, etc
Holiday Star ornament

The Linky is here for you to sign in if you're taking part.

Christmas QAL - post 2

Hello again everyone.  It's lunch time here in the UK, so I thought I'd just pop in and let you know what I'm doing.

Remember this?  It's my Crazy Christmas Trees quilt.  Last month I thought I'd finished it, as I decided not to put borders on, but the more I thought about it, the more I realised it needed them.  Now I am adding a narrow cream and then a wider red border, but that gives me a problem.  I had bought the backing already, and don't have enough for the enlarged version, so a pieced backing is what is in my future.  I've never done that before, so I am a bit nervous - no I'm not, I'm actually scared stiff.  Wish me luck.

The Linky to sign in is on the previous post, here, by the way.  I'll be back soon and come visit everyone to see what you're all doing.

Christmas QAL - post 1

Happy nearly-Christmas everybody.

I can hardly believe that it's already the middle of November and there's only one more Christmas QAL day after today.  I'm afraid you're stuck with me as your hostess today, as Janet, who had originally volunteered, had to change her plans.  Anyway, if you think you can cope with coming to the UK instead of a very remote bit of Canada, then please sign in below, and then we can get this party going.

Tomorrow is ...

The penultimate Christmas Quiltalong day.  Can you believe that it's mid-November already?  Anyway, I am the hostess for the day this month, so won't you come and join me in sewing up some Christmas tomorrow?

Word verification

I'm sorry, but I have had to turn on the word verification thingy, even though I hate it with a passion.  I am getting so many comments of the "buy this drug" type that I am fed up with it.  Hopefully, by doing this, "they" will leave me alone again, then I can switch it off.

Lone Star day - post 3

46 done and I'm bored with them and calling it a day.  If anyone ever hears me saying I'm going to add a border of stars to another quilt, please lock me up in a padded cell somewhere.

I am happy with what I've got done, although I had hoped to have finished them, got them sewn into border strips and added this border to my top.  But then, I have always been an optimist.

Lone Star Day- - post 2

20 done ....

a lot still to do.

Lone Star day

whoops, I was thinking it's Jayne's day to host, but it's not, it's mine.  So, without further ado, here is the Linky for you to join us.


I'm off to just put a casserole in the slow cooker, then I am going back to my machine to make 56 friendship star blocks for the borders of my quilt.

It's Halloween ...

... and I make no apologies for showing this again this year, but I just love it. Happy Halloween everybody.

It’s Monday …

… and my fabulous weekend is over. 

There was lots of this:

 

plenty of all of these:

      

and a lot of this:


There were presents from all of us to all of us:

and we even did some of this

    

Thank you Bilbo and Mrs Flummery for a fabulous weekend, even if I can hardly talk today as I am so hoarse.  Sewali we really missed you.

Tomorrow is Friday and ...

...  I'm excited.

Why?

Well because tomorrow my friends Bilbo and Mrs Flummery will be travelling by boats and planes and ships and trains (remember that song?) - well OK, by car and train - to my house for a long planned get-together.  Unfortunately, Sewali is not well so she will not be with us this year.  Because we live quite a distance from each other, this sort of event needs some organising ahead of time, so we set a date months ago, and I know roughly what time they'll get here, so I can have the coffee on.  There will be lots of eating, lots of talking and maybe even some hand sewing, but that's about as far as the plans go.

So that's why I'm excited, and that's why I can't help singing ....

Better late than never ...

... I promised you I'd tell you about the workshop I taught at my local quilt group a couple of weeks ago.  It was on 13 October, which, in hindsight was an unlucky choice of date, as several people had to cancel due to clashes with other events.  Two people had to pull out when they were offered the chance of a stand at a craft fair.  Imagine, they turned down the chance of a workshop with me to go and possibly earn money.  Someone else was going on an exotic holiday, and refused to cancel, and another person had family descending on her at short notice, and she refused to tell them not to come.  There's just no understanding some people is there?  Anyway, there were still seven people and I think they enjoyed their day.

The quilt everyone was working on was Stepping Stones, from my book, and the skills ranged from almost total beginner to very experienced indeed.

In fact, one of the students was my friend QuiltHaze, whose chosen profession is that of quilt teacher.  She came along as she really fancied being a student for a day and just sewing.  I've included this photo of her as she told me I wasn't to - fair's fair Ms QH, you do it to me regularly!

In the following photos you can almost feel the concentration, can't you?

I wonder when we're going to get a design wall at Tuesday Quilters?  It'd be so much easier than doing it like this




 

By the end of the day, everyone had almost finished the centre of their quilt.  All the blocks were made, and about three-quarters had been sewn together as you can see here.  I always find it amazing how different the same quilt can look when different fabrics are chosen.  Now I am looking forward to seeing some of them finished at our next meeting.

What is it ...

... with builders?  I thought there was a recession on?  I thought builders were desperate for work?  Well, now I think I'm wrong.  A few weeks ago Dad decided he needed to make some lifestyle changes, so first he debated about moving into sheltered accommodation  but then changed his mind.  The main problem he has is with the stairs in his house, so the next idea was to build a downstairs bedroom and en-suite.  So I get on the phone to arrange for a builder to come and give a quote.  He finally turned up (a day or so late!), spent a few minutes with us, then went away promising to let us have a quote within 3 days.  Well, 7 days later, still no quote, so I phoned him.  The quote would be with us in a day or so.  Hmm.  Yep, you guessed it.  It finally arrived about a week later, and was ridiculously high.  So it was time for another rethink.  Since the stairs are the problem, why not just have a stairlift installed?  More appointments, more quotations, decision made and the lift will be installed in a couple of weeks.

We've also been getting quotes to have solar panels installed on our roof, and they should be fitted on Thursday (or is it Friday?) this week.

In addition to that, this weekend Mr Fixit celebrated a birthday.  I can't tell you which birthday it was, but the numbers include a zero and a seven.



Tomorrow I will be back to tell you about the workshop I taught last week, and about my plans for this weekend.

Christmas QAL - post 2

Pheww.  Done it.

I really love it, but just can't decide if I'm going to add a border.  The pattern doesn't have one, but I am thinking of making a piano key border.  What do you think?

Now I'm done in, so I'm going to be a party pooper and leave early.  Thanks so much Elizabeth for inviting us all and looking after us all so well.

Christmas QAL post 1

Hellooooooo, here I am.  Did you all miss me?  The workshop was fun, and I think everyone enjoyed themselves.  I'll do a separate post tomorrow about it.  Now I've been home a while, and we've had dinner.  Being a bit more efficient than I sometimes am, I actually organised the dinner yesterday, so all I had to do was heat up the meatballs in sauce while I cooked the pasta, and 20 minutes later, dinner was served.  Now I plan to watch Strictly Come Dancing, then I have a Christmas plan!

Do you remember these?  That's where I got to last month with my Crazy Christmas Trees.  Since then, I have finished all the blocks, so tonight I am hoping to get them all sewn together to make the top.  Fingers crossed for me.

Don't forget, Elizabeth is our hostess this month, and she has decorated specially for us with some wonderful Halloween decs, cos that's her daughter's favourite time of year, so hurry over there to see her.

Yippee ...

Tomorrow is Christmas QAL day.  Our lovely hostess this month is Elizabeth from Sand and Sunshine.  I don't know what she has planned, but I am sure it's going to be great fun.  I am looking forward to it, but this month, instead of being one of the first to arrive, I will be making a grand entrance later on.  I am teaching a workshop during the day, but will be home again in time to drop in to the party at some point.  I already know that I am hoping to get my Crazy Christmas Tree quilt top put together during the party.

By the way, would you like to win fabric for life?  If the answer is yes (and why wouldn't it be?) and you live in the US or Canada, then pop over to visit Elizabeth and read her post here.  If you enter through her, she will get an extra entry, and I bet, if she won, she'd send you a little something to say thank you.  (Teehee.  She doesn't know I said that!)

Lone Star day - post 3

 I've made good progress today.  I have cut out  224 red squares and 56 white squares, and finished making my HSTs, so then I decided to make some of the star blocks just to see what they looked like.  Then I went back to what I should have been doing , and cut the red borders.  I have only sewn on the top and bottom ones so far.

One thing that occurred to me today, after reading what Elizabeth had to say about her Lone Star progress, is that I am going to have to square this beast up 3 times!  I had to do it before adding the red borders,and again afterwards, to make sure the pieced border fits properly and I'll have to do it again at the end.  What was I thinking when I designed this?  I hate squaring up tops, largely cos I really don't have anywhere to lay it out properly (a round table is not the best place!).  I think I need to buy some lottery tickets so I can afford a mansion.

I am happy with my progress today, and happy with what I have achieved in the past 10 months.  Thanks specially to Jayne who co-hosts this and to Elizabeth who has been joining in with us every month. Now the new series of Strictly Come Dancing has just started, so if any one needs me, I can be found in front of the TV.

Lone Star day - post 2

OK, I promised you a progress report didn't I?

I have added an inner border to the top and bottom of the star, cos I want a rectangular quilt, not a square.  Next I will add a red border all the way round, but I haven't done that yet, as I allowed myself to get diverted.  Sorry about the wrinkled photo, but this top is getting quite big and I'm running out of floor space to smooth it all out.

After the red border, I am going to add a pieced one, made up of friendship star blocks.  I worked out that I'll need 56 blocks.  Do you realise how many half square triangles that means?  I'll tell you.  It means I need 224 of them.  So, I had already cut them out.  This time I used my Go cutter to do that job for me, and then I started sewing them together, and that's what diverted me.  This morning I finished sewing them together and now I am off to cut the remaining squares I need for the blocks and the red border, then, if I have time, I will start sewing the blocks together.  This is what EQ7 reckons my top will look like when it's finished.