Minty green sewing machine

I must admit I was very tempted to buy this vintage Minty Green Husqvarna Sewing Machine. Isn't it beautiful? I bet it weighs a ton though and where am I going to put another sewing machine? But still... so lovely shiny and elegant and green!

Today is Koninginnedag (Queensday) in the Netherlands, a national holiday. Traditionally people try to sell each other junk from their attics on that day. The sewing machine was one of the nicer items I saw. In the end the only thing that came home with us were four books (only 1 euro for the set!) for Luna to read.   She is just starting to read and of course we want to encourage her as much as possible!

Sun, Swans & squares

We have been enjoying some wonderful sunny days here during the Easter weekend. Today we visited a small local amusement park and of course the kids wanted to do some water biking in these huge white Swans. Does water biking even exist in other countries? Sounds like a very Dutch thing to me...

I have also been busy cutting even more squares for my Scrap Vomit Quilt. There is even a Scrap Vomit Appreciation Society on Flickr  administrated by yours truly, Katy (she started it all) and Thomas.  Thomas is making a large non-repeat Scrap Vomit Quilt. This means that he needs well over 2000 different 2.5" squares to make his quilt. So if you think you can contribute to that by sending him some squares, hop over to his blog for the details!

I have also been embroidering and I hope my next post will feature my new pattern! Woohoo! So it's time for me to stop chattering and start stitching everyone :)

Onedaysaleonlycouponcode!

Don't be too late for my Onedaysaleonly! If you use the coupon code BUNNYONEDAYSALE on check out you will receive a 24% discount on  ALL PATTERNS! Woot! Find the shop here.


In the mean time I'm trying to get the new pattern finished, I'm still pondering about which details to include and what stitches to use. Can't wait to share this one with you all though. :) 

Many thanks to all the sweet peeps who commented on my last post or sent virtual hugs via Twitter etc. I appreciate it a lot! I wish everyone a sunny or otherwise pleasant Easter and I will 'see' you all back after the weekend!

You got to put your behind in your past

Two days ago I was planning on writing something about this photo, it was going to be a happy post actually. Because I love sewing squares together, I also love how my sewing and piecing skills improve with each block I make. And what I love most of all is the kindness and generosity of many of my sewing and quilt friends from all over the world.

Alas.. the crafty world is not all rainbows and unicorns and happiness etc as I experienced with my little embroidery business a couple of days ago. I have been in doubt whether to address the issue here on my blog. Part of me really wants to but at this moment I think it's better to leave the negativity behind me and move on. I always like to quote Pumbaa from the Lion King in situations like this. 'You got to put your behind in your past'. So that's what I'm trying to do! (but it's not easy)

Spring bunny

The best thing about making patterns is when you see them stitched, preferably by others, and turned into beautiful embroideries. I think Lisa's version of my Spring Bunny Pattern is absolutely adorable! As you all probably know I'm a big fan of fill and fur stitching and this bunny has it all. I have different plans for my bunny though. He's already transferred to a pillowcase and I'm thinking of embroidering him in one single colour. :)  Having said that, I have many projects on the go right now, so I'm not sure if my Spring Bunny will actually be finished this spring!

Tiny Stitches on a Mini Sewing Machine

This weekend Luna finally received her own little sewing machine, a Janome mini! Because we had lots of family over to celebrate our birthdays on Saturday we had to wait until Sunday to actually try it out. I set up a little table and chair right next to my own sewing table. In the green basket Luna has her own 'stash' and her own fabric scissors. I had planned on continuing work on the patchwork doll's quilt we were making but Luna decided she wanted to make a bag for her doll. 

So we made a bag! (probably hardly visible on the photo) A bit fiddly as a first project because it is so small, but at least she got to practice sewing straight lines. The Janome Mini is a very basic and light machine but it's perfect for kids who want to learn how to sew. It has ten stitches, all of them varieties (different lengths) of the straight stitch and the zig zag stitch.  It's actually recommended from age 8 and up but since Luna only gets to use it when I'm around and she is very precise in everything she does I think it's fine for her to use it.

Scrappy Goodness

I think I mentioned Katy's Techinicolour Yawn Quilt once or twice on this blog, although I usually refer to it as the Scrap Vomit Quilt (Katy's own words). There is something incredibly satisfying about sewing 49 random fabric squares together. This is Block A. Block B has a diamond pattern of solids. I traded and was kindly donated scraps so in this block alone there are 18 fabrics that I received from other people, isn't that great? Also, I try to combine not so exciting scraps with a few of my all time favourite prints.



This is Katy's wonderful Technicolour Yawn Quilt. Clearly I need to find someone to quilt it for me if I decide to make it as large as this one!

In other news: my friend Annie has a fun giveaway on her blog right now. She is celebrating her 500th blog post and there are lovely Bird and Little Bird items to be won (like the Semi-Fantastic Mr. Fox pattern) and some of my stuff too (Castle Peeps Pattern and voucher)! So hop over and say hi!

Free Spring Embroidery Pattern

Last year I posted a freebie pattern on my blog around the time of my birthday so I thought it would be a good idea to repeat that this year. With another pattern obviously ;)  Hope you will enjoy this little Bunny embroidery pattern! It's got a spring-like feel to it, at least I think it has. I'm looking forward to see it stitched (who will be the first?). You are welcome to put a link on your blog but please link back to the post not just to the download. Thanks! Oh and don't forget to post your Spring Bunnies on my Flickr group or on Facebook.

You can download the pattern here: Free Spring Embroidery Pattern.  Enjoy!