Butterflies & Bags

In between my other projects I've been busy making 'butterfly' blocks for a quilt and bags for children.

At church we recently heard of an lady come and talk about the Butterfly Children's Hospice that they had set up in China. One of the ladies at church decided that it would be lovely to make a big 'Butterfly' quilt for them to out on the wall so at Brink (my craft group) we are all making blocks for the quilts. I've made three so far and have one more to make.



September is also time for Christmas boxed to be filled for the Samaritan's Purse Australia. This year instead of filling boxes I've decided to make material bags, like a library bag, for the children so that they can have a bag to keep their presents and treasures in after the boxes break.  I've made 15 so far and have enough material to make another 20 or more.

bags for Samaritans Purse Christmas boxes



The loungeroom roman blind is finished!!

I can't believe that I have finished the biggest of the roman blinds for Andrew's house. It looks fairly good although I can see the slightly crooked stitching lines, little pins marks and of course all the creased from being folded up after a little delay with my hand and foot.

The blind measures 314cm wide and 133 cm long. I had to put five pulleys along the top for the cords and as you can't buy doweling that long I had to join pieces into the pockets.  

I am so pleased that the blind is fairly easy to put up and down. I was worried that the width would cause a problem but I guess with t only being 133cm long there is not to much curtain weight going through each pulley.

I have three more roman blinds to make. After this one they have been a breeze to sew. The blinds are all sewn and the pockets for the rods are ironed and ready to sew... my planned job for today.

  

this is the old yellow curtain that I'm replacing with the roman blind.





Starting the mammoth technical operation to get the blind up



..almost there





..being swallowed by the blind



It's finally up.. a little creased but hopefully they'll drop out



one very happy man



Spring has sprung

I love Spring and getting out into the garden. This year my Weeping Cherry looks the best it's ever looked. My weeping peach doesn't have as many flowers but the color is so vibrant.

  

 

I planted 3 camellias along my back fence - an Emperor of Russia, Carolyn Tuttle and Jennifer Susanne. They look great have already have lots of new buds.

I love gardening and had fund planting my new trees. Unfortunately my great gardening effort wasn't without incident - I had another fall which left me rather battered and bruised. I had a wonderful black eye that gave great color to my right eye and the side of my face. I have a suspected small crack in the scaphoid of my wrist and also have a another broken bone in my foot. This fracture in my 4th metatarsal (the last was in my 5th metatarsal) happened before the fall but wasn't diagnosed until I had a bone scan to see what was causing the pain in my foot.

My hand is doing well and the black eye has cleared up. My right foot however, has been reacquainted with the CAM boot. Cam boot and I are working on improving our friendship. Its definitely a dislike/tolerate relationship which needs lots of work.

Just for fun: I had a sit on Andrew's new John Deere tractor (yep with my broken hand and foot!)