the day at the ducks...

what absolutely, positively glorious weather we are having! and while out enjoying the marvelous weather (i was sunbathing) i get ambushed by mr. frog that was obviously my cue to go and get some work done.

on saturday i just took the notion that i had to make a swoon block like right away! by sunday afternoon i had a cute little quilt.

i got to get my wooden ladder out for a wee photo shoot this afternoon :) it's the small things that make you happy :) i'm a little bit smitten with this quilt. i had tried making a swoon block once before, and well it was a disaster! but this time i used camilles craftsy class and all my points lined up, yay!

they really are massive blocks, finishing at 24 inches, i added two borders to make it the perfect quilt size. i also did my loopy quilting again, this may be my new favourite way to quilt.

i even did a pieced backing which i might start doing on all my quilts, because it's sooo pretty! well in my humble opinion haha.

i'm already planning on making a full sized swoon quilt when i'm not as busy now i just have to pick out the perfect fabric. i feel like a quilter now, for making a swoon block haha

and on a completely random note, this is what happens when you find a spider, you throw your basket of fabric out the front door while screaming loudly and hoping the spider hasn't somehow crawled onto you!

rachael x

linking up with lets get acquainted at plum and june

jellytots!

this is me! as you can see i'm rachael :) and i'm going to the fat quarterly retreat or the FQR for those people in the know haha. i think i'm going to be the baby of the group as i'm only 21 (which is like really old, i'm practically an adult, ahhh!) i come from sunny belfast and this will be my first time at the retreat annnddd the first time flying by myself, oohhh!!

i shall be wearing this fantabulous name tag made by the wonderful trudi you should seriously see the itty-bitty quilting, it's just soo totally wow!!

i'm doing the pj's class, portholes and handquilting with lucie summers and stamp carving, i'll be awestruck in every class cause it'll be like meeting celebrities!! i'm really looking forward to the pj's class, mine are going to be pink! the best colour ever :)

i'm really shy like really, really shy but i'm sure after about 10 minutes i'll be my giggly self :) (just warning you now i've been told i have quite a loud laugh and have even been known to snort haha)

oohh i'm sooo excited but as equally nervous, aahhh it'll be soo fun!!! :)

rachael x

penelope the dinosaur

another craft fair finished and i have to say i LOVED it, it really was a brilliant day!! i just love the whole craft fair experience!
this was a new market the fine and dandy market and it will be held in the crescent arts centre on the last sunday of each month. it was run by the amazing kelli, she was just fantastic and created such a lovely fair.
everyone you meet is so wonderful at craft fairs, it's not even about selling (well it is haha) but that's only half of it, it's about the other crafters that you get to talk with and to learn new stuff.
actually that's not entirely true the absolute best thing about doing a craft fair is all the items you get to buy when you're there.

pretty fabric!

first up is my absolutely, totally fan-dabby-dosey picture from Smudge Illustrations i fell in love with her work in st. georges market in belfast and i just had to commission an original, you should go and visit Ciara at st. georges to see how brilliant her work is!! i even think i'll have to buy another original  :)

and penelope the dinosaur from the lovely Pictureofgrace. now i'm 21 and don't really need a purple dinosaur but she was just too cute to not come home with me. penelope is my sewing room buddy and you'll find her wandering around all the fabric :)

i also had the nicest vanilla cupcakes from the little cupcakery ni i didn't get a picture of them because they were so delicious i just had to eat them straight away!!

i'll be back at the fine and dandy market next month too! yaaayyy!!

rachael x

4 a.m bobsleigh

i find the writing part soo hard, i should just post pretty pictures instead of even writing stuff, buuttt i'm a talker sooo i'll continue rambling on :)

after taking 2 of judiths classes i just had to sign up for a 3rd cause they are just so super duper fun and i really think that everybody everywhere should go to judiths classes!! this time it was for a quilt, oohhh!!! the ferry floor quilt, double oohhh!! it's a layer cake quilt, which was good cause i have loads of layer cakes and never seem to use them. so after umming and ahhing for ages i decided to use my long hoarded sunkissed layer cake with aqua for the sashing bits.

purdy, ain't it?? i'm really pleased with how it turned out, it's so summery and pink :) and people i have discovered hand stitched binding!! why did no one tell me how fun it is?? i'm completely hooked and will probably never machine stitch it again.

i quilted it in swirly blue loops (using aurifil of course!! is there anything else??) i think quilting is the most fun part along with stitching the binding on. i like that the swirly-nee soften the sharp lines

as soon as my mum saw this quilt she announced it was hers, so it now resides on her bed. i'm really happy with is quilt and it was such a great class!

right have to go and get packed for my craft fair tomorrow :)

rachael x

flopsy. mopsy. cottontail and peter

: :  my new quilt (big reveal on friday!)

: : doodles

: : house cushion top

: : circus cushion top

: : spending the day playing with buttons :)

rachael x

linking up with fabric tuesday

happy longest day!!

*this day two years ago i got my first knee operation*

it all started when i was eight, i was running around and playing outside and then *pop* my knee dislocated, it was mighty sore! no one knew what was wrong with my knee and just thought it was growing pains, so nothing was done. my knee kept 'popping' so we went and got x-rays and i was told that i had very pretty knees :) but still nothing was done. fast forward about to lower 6th when i was walking to my bus and my knee popped and i blacked out on the malone road for about 10 minutes and the worse thing was i missed my bus!! after that we met Mr. Chris Connolly if you ever need your knee fixed he's your man!!

look at how well he fixed my knee, yes those are 4 metal bolts and then i have a big bolt through the knee. i had been going to see him for about 4 years and he had never seen anybody with knees as bad as mine, i take this a s great compliment!!

aren't x-rays fun? after the operation i was in a full leg splint for 6 weeks and then had about 6 months of physio.

before the operation i asked how big the scars would be, so chris drew on my knee how big they'd be and it was tiny, so i didn't mind, i didn't get to see my scar for 10days after the op and i realised chris drew the line way smaller, but it's ok cause i actually love my scars. most people don't like scars but i really think they're like the coolest things ever.

sorry its a terrible picture, but it's surprisingly hard to take a photo of your knees. well these are my scars they're about 8 inches long. in the operation my knee nerves got cut (eewww) so i can't feel my knees so you could hit them as hard as you like i would never know haha it's actually become a game among the cubs.

i got my second one done in january 2012 again by the best surgeon ever!! he is truly amazing!!

i've prattled on long enough my knees, even though i could seriously talk for days about them. but now you know the story of my (bionic) knees :)

rachael x

500 days is more than a year

see the zip. be the zip. you are the zip.

after being scared of zips for way too long i decided to tackle them!! at the craft fair, nearly everybody asked if i had oilcloth pouches for make-up or wash bags. so i thought 'hmm that could be an idea' and after many, many failed attempts and patterns, i did it! i have successfully made 1 oilcloth pouch.

it looks absolutely massive here, it's not it's about 6 inches high (the sewing machine is just tiny) do ya want to know a secret?? zips actually aren't that hard at all once you understand that you're sewing a zip.

in fact zips are quite fun to sew, so if you've never tried, go and sew a zip its fun :) 

i had better get sewing i keep forgetting i have a craft fair next weekend. 

question: i have done oilcloth on the inside and outside, would it be better only on the inside? or should i do both on the inside and outside??

rachael x

linking up with fabric tuesday