CHARM ABOUT YOU

**GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED**

Grunge by Basic Grey and Dottie by Moda

Or one of these jelly rolls, just perfect for baby quilts:

Avant Garden by MoMo; Monkey Tales by Erin Michael

30's Playtime Favourites by Chloe's Closet and From Bump To Baby by Gina Martin

Of course you could always chose an ever useful jelly roll of solids:

Bella Solids Colors and Bella Solids Neutral

Check out their full stock of jelly rolls to see which one you would chose!

But that's not all... it's always great to have a pattern to go with your precut so you get to pick one of these two patterns designed by Judy Madsen. One jelly roll is all you need to make the quilt top and binding!

Please leave your email address in the comment to be sure I can contact you! No reply bloggers/comments will not win.

The giveaway is open internationally and will close on Tuesday 27th January, the winner will be chosen by random.org and announced here on that day.

I am concentrating more, doing what needs to be done to feel good and productive. Sticking to a cleaning routine (following Clean Mama's #clutterfree30) and generally trying to make my house feel like a nicer place to be. I think I am naturally optimistic but I do have to work hard at being positive and a clean, organised space really does make me feel so much better. Thankfulness is also something I am mindful of everyday and I decided I would like to have some inspiration to keep next to my bed. 

I live in a 1930s house and I like mixing up vintage and modern things when I can. So when I saw this free Thanksgiving printable with a sweet nest I decided to frame it and put it on the bedside table, after all that's a nice way to be all year round! I already had this Acrylic Photo Frame (I've had mine for at least 8/9 years I think, but they still sell them at Muji! I LOVE that shop) and I like how it looks. Pretty and simple.
- About to start reading these two books my lovely husband got me for Christmas, I had been hankering after The Woman I Wanted to Be and he was obviously paying attention :)  

It was a friend's birthday last week so I made a card using some washi tape (saw the idea somewhere but can't remember where!):


It's fun making easy cards like this and good to have them to hand. Not that I go to many parties but the kids seem to have at least one to go to every weekend!

I have a habit of being overly ambitious (not necessarily a bad thing) but with family, part-time work and general life stuff, I can't always do as much sewing as I would like! My FAL lists last year were unrealistic and I didn't even manage to link up with the last quarter, even though I think I did manage to finish a couple of things. So new year and a way more focused approach to everything. Listing all the things I'm working on tends to stress me out and there's no point listing three quilts I haven't even got basted and will probably be hand quilting because that's utter craziness (hopefully I can list them when it's time to quilt them and have a chance of getting them done)! 

Here is my simple list of what I would like to get done this quarter:

1. Baby quilt commission

2. Vintage Quilt commission - I didn't make it but I'm hand quilting it, which is a big job!

3. Le Challenge project - this has to be finished by 14th February. I'm excited to get started as I've never used fabric paint before (or not since I was a girl). I got this cream jersey fabric and the gold Dylon fabric paint from Minerva Crafts. This is going to be fun!


Nat and I just announced the new theme over at the le challenge blog - so please head over there and follow us. We have a giveaway every month for one person that links up and this month's theme is easy peasy!

Linking up to the 2015 FAL:

I finally have a finish to share, although this was actually completed last year I'm only getting round to blogging about it now.

I was inspired by Jen Kingwell Designs and Collette's Full Bloom Wall Hanging, and after a quick flick through Alison Glass Applique: The Essential Guide to Modern Applique (which gave me yet more inspiration),I decided to make this cushion. It's a combination of everything I love; simple patchwork, English paper piecing, appliqué and hand quilting.

Is anyone else experiencing that thrill of the new year and a fresh start? I'm feeling oddly motivated and so ready to make changes. This is a bit of a 'mish mash of stuff' post, I will start with the sewing so you can skip the rest if you're so inclined!

I have been working on my green tea and sweet beans quilt whenever I feel like some 'me time' so over the past few weeks I've finished these blocks:

I need to finish my first appliqué block and I'm also working on the Tulip blocks. I love hand sewing so much, really relaxing and rewarding to see the blocks coming together.

Before the return to the monotonous school run we managed a family outing with my mum to the Reading Museum to see an exhibition of my great-great-grandfather's artwork and prints (that's my kids great-great-great-grandfather).

We didn't realise you weren't allowed to take photos until we were told after snapping these ones, but since we're family I'm sharing. You can see a picture of Allen W. Seaby on the official poster (bottom left) and there's our son (top right). I've grown up with Seaby prints in our house, I have a toy bear that he carved in our living room (well out of kiddies reach and so not a toy!) and my mum has a collection of his books. I even remember my grandpa reading me his stories when I was a little girl. It's really only as I get older that I realise how wonderful it is to have this connection, these memories and how very creative and artistic my family is. I felt so proud to take my children there, my son pointed out all the pictures he's seen at Granny's house and even our youngest was thrilled looking at all the beautiful bird prints. I'm also glad to have Seaby as one of my middle names (well done mum!).

The Reading Museum was a lot of fun, there's some great exhibits and 'hands on' stuff for the kids, which kept them happy. I was really taken with the Huntley and Palmers Collection, they were once the worlds largest biscuit manufacturer and, although I'm not a huge cookie monster, I was fascinated by all the amazing biscuit tins:


I totally understand why people become collectors! There were so many tins and it was cool to see how they changed through the years.

Apart from the fact I can't afford to hoard biscuit tins, there's another reason not too and that's my de-cluttering and cleaning mania. It started with me and my husband decorating the hall (just a splash of paint; Statue of Liberty, Valspar) and various DIY bits around the house. Once you start you just can't stop and I have to fix and tidy all the things I've been ignoring for too long. I want to keep going because it feels so good. I know I'll never have a show home and I wouldn't want one (and I have three kids so realistically it's impossible!) but I still want to feel happy with our stuff and get into a better routine.


I was happy that Instagram led me to Clean Mama - a great site full of advice and cool things like printables (I am totally using them) and recipes for home cleaning.
She is currently doing a #clutterfree30 challenge to kick start a declutter and provide a simple cleaning routine - check out this blog post for more info and to get a free printable routine for January. Clean Mama makes a lot of sense to me, the ideas are completely realistic and I would like this routine to become habit.

And if anyone knows a good way to hold on to this fresh new year feeling please let me know!

Along with more creativity I also need to concentrate on spending my time doing things I love, with love and that will provide happiness to me and my family.

I tend to be selfish, I guess we all do occasionally, but my happiest times recently have been when I've just let go and stopped worrying about what needs to be done and really enjoyed the time I have with my children. When we've been being silly, or reading together or colouring or whatever and I'm truly in the moment it really does make all the chores I have to do that much easier. Having time with them and fully allowing myself to be present allows us all to be happier and more connected.

I'm hoping if I can create more happiness in my life it will come through in my sewing and I can be productive. I don't want to push myself this year though. I would like a year of enjoying more, loving more, and doing things with clear intentions.