Red, White & Green!

I have no idea where the time has gone lately, but it sure is puttering along at quite a speed, only 22 days before Christmas!!!!  November just whizzed past LOL!  it didn't register at all this year!!!  (to me anyways, dont' know about you!)

We're getting very close now to the end of Barbara Brackman's BOW's,  somehow I have managed to keep up my weekly habit of getting these blocks done!

#47 Dixie Tea.   I really enjoyed choosing the fabrics for this block, I'm happy with how it turned out!

I just loved the opportunity to use some of these rich brown/reds by Jo Morton and Judie Rothermel, and the maple leaf block is one of my favourites!

# 48 West Virginia

I badly needed to include some more purples into my collection of blocks for this quilt, so this block lent itself very well.  The centre print was a 10"x 10" square in a small bundle of purple prints I bought recently at the Brisbane Quilt Show.   Luckily I had just the right purple print to go with it and another wonderful rich red as well.  That shirting has been hanging around in my stash for the longest time and finally found a home!

I decided to Paper Foundation Paper Piece this block to stabilise it due to the 'y' seams and the fabric being cut on the bias, didn't want any unwanted stretching LOL!!!

Well, now that December has arrived I have been able to put up a couple of small Christmas quilts on my walls.   I love the look of these cheery pieces, and I will have to make a few more for next year.   I always love sewing with Christmas fabrics, they are kind of special and fancy!!!!

I made this wallhanging for last Christmas!   I was inspired to make it because I had been in a 'crazy heart' block swap (Carol Doak's yahoo group), and received one 'crazy heart' block made with Christmas fabrics from a lady in New York.   http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CarolDoakQuiltingGroup/#ans

Sandra did a beautiful job with this block using all my favourite type of traditional fabrics. I had held onto it for a while before deciding to add to it and create a wallhanging and use some very similiar style of fabrics that I had in my stash!

I used Carol Doak designed blocks for the other three: 'tree', 'gift' and 'candle'.  I used stitch in the ditch and free motion quilting in this piece!

This next little quilt is a Kathleen Tracy design.  It's called Turkey Tracks and was a Christmas Challenge on her yahoo group October last year!   http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smallquilttalk/

I just loved the blocks in this little quilt!  I did both machine and hand quilting on this one!

During the Christmas season I also like to bring out and use special cups with a Christmas theme!  So I've put away my usual blue & white cups and now have my tea in my little Chrissy cups!

I made some little placemats using another Carol Doak 'crazy tree' block!!! 

The red, white and green theme is carried through in my rather feral garden as well!  At this time of year my little gardenia tree is in full flower, I just love the smell of these blooms as it wafts up to the house from the garden below!

This little tree is completely neglected yet it rewards me every Christmas with beautiful flowers!!  I cut some to bring inside too, I especially love to have them in the bathroom!!

I can't remember where on earth I got the vintage brass vase, but it seems perfect for Christmas blooms!!!

Out the front my hibiscus is also full of gorgeous little red flowers!!

It was a bit bright and sunny when I took this photo a couple of hours ago, but you get the general idea, the bush is just full of blooms.

These are known as a single, as apposed to a double flower, love that red!!

I've also been doing some Christmas gifty sewing, but I won't be able to reveal just yet!  When the girls open their packages at Christmas I will then show you what I've been up to!

Hope you are all having a great weekend! 

Thankyou all who drop by and leave a comment, it is most appreciated!!!

Take it easy,
Merilyn