I'm in Heaven!!!

Today was a very special one. I'm really a lucky girl. The postman brought me two packages.

The first one came from Leona at Leona's Quilting Adventure. I won a giveaway a little while ago and today I received my prize: A set of the most beautiful Aurifil threads. Not only that but Leona also added a gorgeous fat quarter. Thank you Leona you're most generous.

The Aurifil color catalogue will be very useful when I order more of this thread.

Next, the second package. It was a big one and came from Toni at Red Boot Quilt Company,

she was my partner at the Zippy purse swap and she sent me the most fabulous gifts:

First a beautiful applique purse              

Which had a surprise: A soap that  smell so good that I think I'm going to have a bath with it right away.

But you haven't seen nothing yet. Inside an envelope was a very cute card with a message from Toni

She also sent me a pattern of some of her fabulous bears : Basil and Hettie ( my daughter has already chosen the fabrics to make Hettie next week-end).

Being a chocolate lover, I got water in my mouth when I saw the chocolate box she sent me. Yummy!!!

By now you must think : That's all folks!! WRONG

Look at the most magnificent fabrics and buttons Toni included in the pakage.

Don't you think I'm the luckiest girl on the planet?

THANK YOU VERY MUCH TONI!!!

Dia De Portugal- National Day

Hoje é dia de Portugal e das comunidades portuguesas espalhadas por esse mundo fora. Em menos de um ano já "encontrei" duas quilters com raízes portuguesas mas que vivem bem longe; nos Estados Unidos e na Austrália. A todos os que estão longe mando um grande abraço.


Today is Portugal's National Day. It's also the  day to remenber all the portuguese that live abroad all over the world.
I've been a blogger for less than a year and in the mean time I "found" two quilters that have portuguese roots. To all the portuguese far away I sent a big hug!

Sendo feriado pude  escapar-me para o meu cantinho da costura e fiz duas carteirinhas para colocar todos aqueles cartões que agora nos "oferecem " nas lojas. Fiz uma grande para mim  e uma pequenina para a minha filha, ela pediu uma pequenina que coubesse no bolso.

As it was a holiday i sneaked to my little sewing room and made a couple of card wallets ( they give you cards and coupons eveywhere). A big one for me and a little one for my daughter - she specially requested a small one.

I know, I know...there's a button missing but it will be soon sewn.

O que tenho feito esta semana- What I've been doing lately

Finalmente terminei o Lollypop quilt. UFA!!!

I finally finished my Lollypop Quilt!Uff...

Esta tarde decidi experimentar fazer um bloco que vi num tutorial no youtube. Chama-se bloco em 10 minutos e é realmente fácil mas faz um efeito extraordinário. Este foi só para treinar, o que eu pretendo é fazer um quilt usando um layer-cake e tecido branco para o centro.

This afternoon I tried to make a ten minute block. There's a great tutorial HERE. It's amazingly easy and the final effect is wonderful. This is only a trial block. I pretend to do a quilt top using my Giddy or Sugar Pop layer cakes.

Birdie Stiches BOM -May block finished...On June 1st

It was only today that I got the block done. My finger didn't allow me to sew for a while. But now its finished!!!

Santa's Sack

O meu saco de Natal para a troca em que vou participar já está pronto. Agora só faltam as prendinhas...mas essas vão ser surpresas e não as posso mostrar.

My Santa's Sack for the Santa's Sack Swap is ready. Now all I have to do it to fill it with lots of goodies but...as they are meant to be surprises I can't show them here.

I made a large dresden plate using Christmas fabrics

O saco pronto ainda sem as fitas para fechar

The sack without the ribbon to close it

Ready!

Giveaway at Stitching Cow

Lenna Green, at the Stitching Cow in having a great Giveaway, A kit to make the new Homespun quilt a long quilt.

Don't miss it. Here is the linK.

http://www.stitchingcow.com/patterns/173/Free+Block+of+the+Month+Quilt+Pattern

FNSI Report

Yesterday FSNI was dedicated to my lollypop quilt. I managed to free motion quilt all the crosses with a small meandering ( it's what I fell more comfortable in FMQ ).

                                                                    
This is one of the quilted crosses.Sorry for the poor quality of the photo. The photographer is everything but an expert.

I chose to do a criss cross  on the small light squares, I thought it would look nice and simple.

It was late and I was getting tired. I tried to quilt the borders but I gave it up...I know that when I try to work in such condition the results are never good. So... I went to bed. Maybe I'll finish it tomorrow.



          

FSNI is just a day away

Tomorrow we get "together" for anther FNSI. I'm going to try finishing the free motion quilting on my lollypop quilt. If there is any time for more I will surely tell on my Saturday post. See you tomorrow!!!

what I've been up to...

This past Sunday I had a close encounter with one of my sharp kitchen knives. I got a deep cut on my finger and had to use a king of strips that do the same thing as the usual stitches (which is great).

 In spite of that I couldn't do any sewing for a couple of days. Today I got some of the strips off and the wound is healing perfectly. I only have one strip now. So... This evening I was able to do a little stitching on my May birdie stitches BOM. Tomorrow Band-aid again!

Plan B Baby quilt is finished!

I've just finished the binding on the baby quilt I began only three days ago. Correction...Three evenings for I work in a school from 9.00 to 18.00. IT's not what I intended to to but it was what could be arranged in such short notice.


In this picture the colors are more close to reality, the other photos were taken at night and the light turns colors a little yellowish.

When the going gets tough Plan B gets going

A friend of my got pregnant sometime ago and I wanted to give her a baby quilt as a gift but...She got pre-eclampsia and she went to the hospital in a hurry for both mother and baby were in danger. So the two months I thought  i had to make the quilt just vanished! I needed a PLAN B. SO... I found a beautiful fake quilt panel and thats what I used to make a very quick quilt.

The quilt top is ready and quilted all I have to do now is the binding: I hope to finish it this week-end.

For the backing I found a light blue fabric with the cutest baby animals

A little chick

A cute little snail

 And a baby Hippo

I hope she likes it!

   

Going Hexie

I've been following the One flower Wednesday project and I decided to try some and make hexies of my own.
 I loved doing them and I think it is kind of addictive. Besides it's the perfect project to take everywhere, it's really portable. I think I know what I'm going to do next Summer holidays.

LOLLYPOP QUILT- 36 bic circles quilted!

I managed to quilt all the big circles this afternoon... I think the flowers turned out OK.

Denyse Schimdt giveaway at Needles and Lemons

 Judith is having a great giveaway. You can win a fat quarter set of  DS Orange Picnic and Fairground and also some solids, don't miss it. It ends on May 14th.

Bastidores de madeira fazem lindas molduras - Embroidery hoops turned into picture frames

Os bastidores de madeira que usamos para bordar servem como lindas molduras para trabalhos muito simples como este...

This is a little fabric and felt wool landscape I did one of these nights and then decided to use an old embroidery hoop as a frame. I think it worked rather well

I just HATE IT!!!

I love to choose the fabrics for a quilt , decide on the the pattern, cut and piece all blocks. However I Hate basting and pinning, it takes me ages to do it and it never seems to get well enough. But  there's no one to do it for me so... It's basted, pinned and ready to quilt!
What is the task you most dislike when you're doing a quilt?

I'm still not sure how I should quilt it. I thought of flowers inside the circles and meandering on the crosses. What do you think? If you have suggestions they will be happily received.

Hoje, finalmente acabei-o - It's oficial: The quilt is finished

O quilt que comecei a fazer para a minha filha ficou finalmente PRONTO. Demorou bastante tempo a fazer pois os blocos dos corações são feitos usando a técnica do paper-piecing e depois do topo pronto todos os blocos escuros foram acolchoados à mão. Foi um trabalho demorado mas que adorei fazer e voltarei a repetir. Os quadrados dos corações  levaram ainda uma bordadura à máquina para dar relevo, depois foi só coser o binding e já está Prontinho.

My daughter's quilt is finally finished. I think I'm gonna call it Catarina's Hearts, Catarina it's her name of course. It took me a long time to finish it for the heart blocks are partially paper pieced and the dark ones were hand quilted. It's a hard task but I did love to hand quilt and I'm certainly going to repeat it. Then all I had to do was the binding. To be quicker I did a machine sewed binding. It turned quite well and it was much quicker.

I have to thank my DH and my son who are standing on chairs in order to hold the quilt 

Páscoa Feliz - Happy Easter

Desejo a todos uma Santa e Feliz Páscoa. Muitas amêndoas, ovinhos e principalmente o convívio com a familia.

I wish everyone a Happy Easter. Enjoy the company of your family and friends. Go easy on the chocolates...LOL.

Off the Rail pattern & fabric giveaway

Jaybird quilts is having the most fantastic giveaway.

Birdie Stiches BOM - I've finished my april block

It's finished, and in time. I decided not to stitch the easter eggs, I  did some applique ones instead.

You can see them better in this closeup photo