Roses and rabbits (and a cat too)

I regularly take photos of my embroideries when I'm working on them.  Mostly to see if I'm on the right track with my colours etc. The obvious spot for taking these photos is near a window, where there's plenty of natural light. A bright, slightly cloudy day is best for taking pictures.

Rain or shine, I always have a trusty assistent helping me out with these photos. ;)

Today I was taking photos of this Rabbit & Roses piece. I'm quite happy with the overall look of this embroidery so far. I did unpick some of the stitching this morning (you can still see some stray floss-fluff on the fabric) as parts of the stitching just were not good enough in my opinion. In the process I managed to push the tip of the seam ripper I used for unpicking, under my nail which wasn't a very pleasant experience. Luckily it was my right hand (I'm left handed) and with lots of band aids on the injured finger, it doesn't stop me from continuing to work on my Rabbit & Roses piece. :)

On the side

Between fine tuning and hosting the Furry Nice Class, birthdays and a lot (like: really A LOT) of school free days and school holidays between mid April and mid May it's hard to find time for 'fun' projects but I'm trying to squeeze in one nevertheless... This project is quite small, worked with two threads (instead of my usual one-thread-only-for-furry-stitching-policy) and a lot of fun to do.

You can properly view the end result in a few weeks time but I can reveal it has something to do with Alyssa Thomas' new fabric line Here Kitty Kitty which is not out until May.

Here Kitty Kitty features some seriously cute cat and crafty inspired designs and if you're quick you can pre-order a Fat Quarter Bundle and get two free embroidery patterns and a quilt pattern as well! (this offer ends the 22nd of April ) Sounds like a great deal to me :)

In other stitchy news: on the &Stitches blog we are hosting a fun embroidery swap. This is actually the last day you can sign up so go and check out the details here quickly.

Finished some stuff!

Let's be honest, most of the crafty things I show here on the blog are things that are half-finished, or not even that. But this week I managed to finish some simple items and actual remembered to write about it too. Pictured above is some lettering I designed (and embroidered) to go with the Fly me to the Moon Embroidery Pattern.

The second item I finished in the past few days was Luna's lap quilt. A cute blanket to snuggle under when she is watching tv or something. Nothing spectacular: a simple pattern and simple straight line quilting. I do prefer more densely, free motion quilted quilts but after two failed attempts I decided to do 'off the grid' straight lines. Un picking quilting isn't much fun... I have a similar quilt for Zoe that is nearly finished too, just need to make and sew on the binding. :)  Most of the fabric I used for Luna's quilt is from Lizzy House's Outfoxed line of fabric.

The stunning cat-with-quilt photo I had in mind didn't happen, Milo's thoughts were elsewhere I guess!

A new furry friend

Hello everyone! My name is Milo and I was adopted by Nicole from a local Animal Shelter yesterday. I used to live in a house with 10 other cats but sadly my former owner died and we all moved to the shelter. Me and my feline friends had some medical issues due to a bit of neglect but nothing too serious.

As soon as I saw my new owner I thought the best way to go was to sit next to her modestly the whole time she was there. I was kind and interested but not overly pushy or neurotic as some of the others. I also didn't hit her.

I'm still very shy and need time to settle in. There is also another cat in the house. She hasn't fallen for my charms yet but  I guess that's just a matter of time.

Milo xo

Winter Forest Quilt and an ignored pillow

I'm very glad to be done with this Winter Forest Quilt and I love how it turned out. It took me less than a year to finish which is pretty quick by my standards :)  My Winter Forest Quilt was heavily inspired by this fabulous quilt made by Rita of Red Pepper Quilts.

Another thing I finished last weekend was a small pillow for my cat Tijger.

I used lovely soft and pretty Anna Maria Horner flannel and by adding pom poms to the back and front of the pillow I hoped it somewhat would look like a Flying Carpet. Sadly Tijger decided to ignore the pillow all together after this photo session. Her favourite spot is right next to it on the bare window sill. *sigh*

In other news: currently I'm very busy stitching my upcoming pattern: a collection of (larger) motifs. I'm very excited about it and can't wait to share! In the mean time: don't forget about my Special September Offer. The Tales of the Forest embroidery pattern is only available in the shop this coming week and will retire when September ends.

Granny Squares

Surely it's not a coincidence that my Flea Market Fancy Charm pack (and some fat quarters) arrived in the same week that I noticed this tutorial for a Granny Square Quilt block (again via the inspiring blog of the lovely Katy). This is exactly my kind of quilt block: not to too difficult (actually quite easy) to assemble and it looks great.  I'm using a combination of modern and retro fabrics and crisp white borders which give these blocks a fresh and nostalgic feel at the same time. At least I think so.

I also like scrappy quilts a lot and this is an excellent block to use up scraps or smaller cuts of fabric. Besides the Flea Market Fancy charm pack I have used what little Katie Jump Rope I had left in my scrap baskets (I only have quite a lot of the Blue bow left now) and also some (of the nicer) squares I had from my Scrap Vomit Quilt adventure (on the last block now!). I think my favourite block of the granny squares I made so far, is the red and white one.

If you haven't entered for my Princess and the Pea Giveaway yet, you better hurry as it ends tonight.  I loved reading through the comments so far!  And (unrelated) for all cat paw lovers a close up of Tijger's lovely white paws. :)

The Cat's Paw

Is there anything better than a white furry cat paw with pink toes? Tijger has been with us for about five months now and she is probably the weirdest cat we ever had. She likes to hang out in our damp shower cabin right after we have used it, sometimes for an hour or so. She is scared of vacuum cleaners but luckily for her we don't do a lot of vacuuming around here.;)

And luckily for us she is less of a hunter/attacker than before (but still does that from time to time).  She does like to follow me around the house though, which is fine by me as long as she keeps those adorable white paws to herself!

Tijger

Meet Tijger (Tiger)! Yesterday we took her home from the animal shelter where she had been for a month or so. I haven't been able to make a proper photo of her yet, she moves around a lot! She seems to love sitting in one of the window sills though or like here: on top of the couch near the window. Apparently the project I'm working on (tutorial on the blog soon!) already has the all important kitty approval. :)