Fabric shopping and giveaways

I've been shopping again! I just couldn't resist purchasing some of Rosalie Quinlan's new fabric range when I spotted it in my local patchwork store. The range is called Grandmother's Flower Garden, by LECIEN. The designs are sweet and fresh, with a dash of funky thrown in for good measure. If you want to check out the full range, this is a good post to read from Rosalie's blog. The ric-rac and buttons were thrown into the shopping basket because they looked like they could use the company! *cheeky grin*!



I have also been shopping at Mothers Cupboard! Have you been for a visit? The gorgeous Fiona is having a sale at the moment and her fabrics sprung out of the sale pages and spoke to me! They said, "Buy me Vikki... you've got to, I'm just too good to pass up!" So guess what? I need to make some more space in my sewing room! *giggle*!! :-)

Now, we only have another day before the Gum Tree Designers' giveaways come to a close. Have you entered them all? If you are unsure you can visit the Among the Gum Trees blog where we collectively sit on the branches of the eucalyptus trees, and visit each of us in turn. But before you go, why don't you start with Vicki's blog? Just click on the link below! While you're there, check out the beautiful bag that Vicki had published in Down Under Quilts. Too, too cute! She has a link to the free download, too. :-)

I shall have a few more piccies to share with you soon. Until then - Good Luck with the giveaways!!!

Hugs! Vikki x

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A little bit of everything!

I have lots to share with you tonight! But first of all I want to ensure that if you have entered my giveaway, you have the maximum entries that you are entitled to.

By this, I mean that if you have done the following: become a member of Among the Gum Trees blog; become a member of my blog; and posted the "Among the Gum Trees" button to your blog side bar and linked it back to the Gum Trees blog.

By doing each of these things you gain one entry. So there are three entries maximum for each entrant. I have noticed that some people are leaving just one comment for me even though they have in fact done all three requirements and are entitled to three entries. You MUST leave one comment PER entry. I have been emailing people to advise them when it comes to my attention. But I'd hate for you to miss out on those extra entries when you are entitled to them. :-) So if you are in doubt, please check and leave a comment if you are entitled to it. Click here to take you direct to my giveaway post.

And last of all - GOOD LUCK!!! :-)

Now on to some exciting news!! Do you love sunsets over the sea? Do you enjoy decorative painting? Do you enjoy birthday celebrations? If the answer to these questions is yes, then you need to go and visit the delightful Anna of Anna Rosa Designs!!

To celebrate her birthday, Anna is freely offering one of her gorgeous painting designs and pattern to whoever wishes to paint it! Here is a picture of the final piece, isn't it divine? Happy Birthday, Anna! :-)




Of course, talking about free designs always leads me back to the branches of the Gum Tree Designers! Have you entered Judith's giveaway yet? There is still time... and you could win the fabulous goodies pictured below! Just click on the picture below to enter.

Ice and a slice?

So I finally decided to slice my mutant lemons! Aren't they gorgeous? I love the flower-shaped slice in the top right-hand corner! It would make a beautiful design, don't you think?

Until next time - hugs all round! Vikki x

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Sewing Citrus and Joy's Giveaway!

Do you remember the freaky looking lemons in my last post? Well, my fellow Gumnut, Cheryl, thought that the citrus sensations were just SO keen to get in my sewing room with me that they had evolved to grow lots of extra *fingers*!!

So I put them to the test!

But you know what?

They were very clumsy - as some would say - all fingers and thumbs!!! They might be more useful in a glass of cold lemonade? Oh no, now that I've personified them I'm going to feel really mean slicing them up!! But I will, and I'll show you the pics. :-) Thanks to Mandapanda I now know that the name of this lemon tree is Buddhas Fingers. Thank you Manda!

Now for a little bit of Joy!

These wonderful goodies could be yours if you are lucky enough to win Joy's giveaway! Have you entered yet? There is still time, and then you're in with a chance to win Four of Joy's quilt-as-you-go patterns, a jelly roll, a charm pack, and I'm sure there was some other fabulous fabric too! Just click here to visit my fellow Gumnut and enter her giveaway!

Until next time! Hugs! Vikki x

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Sneak peeks and Mutant lemons!

Sneak peeks! Don't you just love them?

They seem to be in vogue at the moment so I thought I'd follow suit with a few teasers of my own!! This is what I've been working on the past few days and I'm almost finished. I really love the combination of redwork on the sweet blue background. I hope you like it too! This is a new pattern that I will be releasing soon. My etsy shop is just begging for me to open its doors, so I thought I'd better oblige and plan to open up shop in a week or two. :-)

Thank you to everybody who has left comments for me and entries into my giveaway! I have been pleasantly overwhelmed by your huge response and a few people have left messages saying "do you read all of them?" The answer is YES I do! :-) I love reading your comments! I'm just so sorry that I haven't had the time to reply to you all, as I feel like I'm not rightfully acknowledging you. I just need a few extra hours in the day... just like most of us do, hey?! :-)

As the Monty Python boys would say, "And now for something completely different!"

I just have to share these photos with you! *giggle* The kids were playing in the back yard this afternoon and I heard a yell, "Muuuum.... come check this out!" So of course I go racing to the back door where my DS greets me, his hands outstretched upon which sat these deliciously humorous lemons from our beloved tree! Lol... I think Mother Nature has gone all Salvador Dali on me!

But aren't they just so beautiful and quirky? They wouldn't look out of place in a sci-fi alien movie would they? I wonder what they'll look like all sliced up? I want to admire them for a few days more before I find out! They smell so zesty too.

I've had a whale of a time playing around with the photos in a photo-editing package! Anyone would think I've got lots of time on my hands? *giggle* But it's important to play eh?!!

Now before I go play with my citrus fruits again, I just want to check and see if you have been over to visit Jenny and enter her gorgeous giveaway? Jenny is offering the newly-released Material Obsessions Two book together with some to-die-for fabrics (fat quarters, a panel and quilt labels) and one of her fabulous patterns, including beads n'all! It truly is a delicious bundle of goodies!

All of us Gum Tree designers are so frustrated that we can't enter each other's giveaways that we have each considered leaving entries as aliases!

Mine is Theresa Green.

Get it? Trees are.... Hmmm... Maybe I should stop with the bad jokes and continue with the fruit photography? What do you think? On second thoughts - please don't answer that!!!

Hugs! Vikki x

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Your House in the Country and Fiona's giveaway!

I hope that you are all enjoying your weekend!? Mine has been a good one :-)

My DS, Aaron, is now on school holidays and I love having him around! There are eight years difference between my two children and finding activities for them to share... or work in conjunction with... can sometimes be a challenge :-) Baking in the kitchen is a sure winner; and "Hide and Seek" always has me and Aaron in giggles when Four year-old Rosie announces her whereabouts before we go looking for her!

There will be lots of crafting activities as always, and I will get some designing and stitching "in" when I can grab the time! As I am doing a lot of this at the moment, dear ole' Mr SUDS has taken on extra household duties, and I don't know what I'd do without him! :-)

I am very excited because I have a number of designs in various stages at the moment, and I can't wait to share them with you!

And talking of sharing, two beautiful ladies have shared their renditions of my free design, "A House in the Country"...


This is Peg's version, and isn't it a cutie? I love the red polka dot fabric and how the colour ties in nicely to the central attraction of the house button. It's so cute, Peg! Thanks for sharing!!

Mai found the perfect house button for her stitchery which she put in this beautiful rustic frame. It's such a quick little project that Mai took her stitching on holiday with her and completed it at the poolside! Thank you too Mai, for sharing!!

Have you downloaded my free pattern and started stitching yet? If so, I'd love to see your finished items and post your photos on my blog. (If you want me to!)

Fiona's Giveaway!

To ensure that none of you miss out on any of The Gumtree Designers' giveaways, we are each posting about them every couple of days. So today I'd like to tell you about Fiona's giveaway!

Fiona's generous goodies comprise a complete kit to make her "Family Love" wall quilt. This includes ALL fabrics, Madeira variegated rayon thread, and of course, her original comprehensive pattern. So if you haven't entered already... go pay Fiona a visit. She has just released a gorgeous bag pattern too!

Speak to you soon! Hugs! Vikki x

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Cute buttons and Dawn's Giveaway!

Don't you just love buttons?

Especially when they're as beautifully crafted as the ones pictured above?!! :-) These intricate beauties are designed and created by Ella & Skysie Designs... and I purchased them from my local craft store, Missy Moo Cottage Crafts, today. Isn't the little "angel cake" fairy the cutest thing you've ever seen?

But wait...there's more...

The stunning creations pictured above had me drooling all over the patchwork store floor! I am surprised the proprietor didn't put a precautionary yellow cone by my feet, stating:"caution: slippery when wet"! he he he...

Each button is individually hand-painted and the quality is outstanding. Aren't they just divine? Their talented creator is Barb of Theodora Cleave... and thanks to her I am now in button heaven! :-) (If you're wondering what button heaven is like... yes there ARE chocolate buttons there too!!!)

I think I may have to do a future blog post on my fancy button collection. What do you think? I'd love to see pics of yours too! :-)

Dawn's Giveaway!!

As you may be aware by now *giggle*, there are a few giveaways being offered in blog land thanks to the generous band of Gum Tree Designers. :-)

My fellow Gum-nut, Dawn, has a gorgeous (and generous) array of fabrics, threads, trims, vintage wooden pegs, and a to-die-for pattern that she knows just wants to come and live at YOUR house!!

If you haven't done so already... go pay Dawn a visit and enter her giveaway while you're there. :-)

Until next time... Hugs to all! Vikki x

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Creating unique gifts :-)

There are two inspiring things I'd like to share with you this evening, and they're both centred around the beautiful name, Cheryl :-)

But first of all I would like to say a warm welcome to anyone new visiting my blog! :-) And I'd like to take this opportunity to share with everyone, a little bit about how my creative mind works :-)

Nothing inspires me more than wanting to create unique gifts for my loved ones. When you know someone personally, you can focus on their interests, desires, and preferred styles. I'd like to give you an example of this thought process with the journal cover I made for my special friend, Cheryl.


Cheryl was frustrated that she wasn't making time for her bible studies; she was always busy, she could never find her reading glasses... and she needed peace and quiet in a tranquil location to enjoy her studies to the full.

So for her birthday I created a bible studies journal cover depicting her as an angel riding on a motorbike (one of her favourite pastimes is to go 'riding'). I thought the heavenly image of the angel meditating on a bike in the sky would bring her some peace... and hopefully too... a little giggle!

I also bought her some reading glasses and made a little pouch for them to go in... with an embroidered quote on the front that I thought might put a cheeky smile on her face!

Making personalised journals is a lovely gift idea... you can see another journal I created for a friend here. Now, I promised one blogging buddy that I would do a tutorial for making a journal cover - and I do intend on keeping my promise - but it will be a few weeks away yet. The Gum Tree designing is keeping me busy for now. :-)

Would you like me to adapt my angel stitchery design as a little freebie to go on the front?

Talking of angels has just reminded me of another friend I have who is named Cheryl! :-) You will certainly think her an angel when you see the generous giveaways she has to offer! Just feast your eyes on these little lovelies...

And this is just ONE photograph of her goodies! So if you haven't done so already - please go visit Cheryl of Willowberry Designs and enter her giveaway here. :-)

On a final note I would just like to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has left comments for me over the past couple of days. I have read each and every one and visited many of your blogs... and WOW, you girls are so talented! :-)

Until next time...Hugs! Vikki x

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Are you ready for a GIVEAWAY?

Are you ready for a giveaway? Or one... or two... or perhaps NINE?! he he he... well, there are nine giveaways on offer - one each from the lovely Gum Tree Designers. But I am here this morning to tell you about the giveaway I have on offer! :-)

Because Among the Gum Trees has brought together nine established and emerging Australian designers, I thought it was only fitting that I should offer you some patterns and books from some of my favourite Aussies :-)
First up is a gorgeous pattern by the ever-popular Bronwyn Hayes of Red Brolly Designs.


Second up, is this fabulous book by Tracey North of I Luv Country. There are some exquisite stitchery designs in this 20-page book with full directions on how to colour them :-)


And last - but not least - a pattern for a Sampler needle case by Lynette Anderson-O'Rourke. I have included the house button for this project. It's SO cute!


To enter my giveaway this is what you need to do:

1. Put the Among the Gum Trees blog button on your SIDEBAR and LINK it back to the Among the Gum Trees blog = 1 entry


2. Become a follower of Among the Gum Trees = 1 entry


3. Become a follower of MY blog (or if you already are) = 1 entry

Please leave a comment for each entry telling me what you have done. :-) You only have to add the blog button (to your blog) once, and you get 1 entry into all of our giveaways - so long as you TELL US in your comment. If you do not have a blog, you can still have one entry into the giveaway if you leave a comment which also contains your email address :-)

There are nine Gum Tree Designers launching giveaways today and we will be checking your blogs to see you have added our button to your sidebar before we confirm your entry into our giveaways. Fair is fair :-)

Here is our blog button:

Deadine for entries is 10.00am Wednesday 30th September AEST

GOOD LUCK and hugs from Vikki! x

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The exciting launch of Among the Gum Trees

This exciting day has finally arrived!

The day when *our* big secret is revealed and *we* can share with you our fantastic new blog, Among the Gum Trees :-)

In a (gum) nut-shell, this is what we're all about:

A merry band of Australian designers sharing a few of their original and varied designs freely for your personal use.

Among the Gum Trees is the brainchild of Jenny of Elefantz, who's brought together nine established and emerging designers to offer something new and exciting to the world - their own original designs - free of charge!

Free designs? Are we mad?! Well no, we're not insane, but we do affectionately refer to each other as "the nutters", and we look forward to sharing our designs, our news, and our "nutty" adventures with you!

When is all of this happening?

Starting on MONDAY 5 OCTOBER and thereafter on the subsequent Monday of the following eight weeks, there will be a FREE Christmas-themed design for you to download.

Then after Christmas, on the seventh day of each month starting Thursday 7 January 2010, there will be one free design offered to you from each designer, in turn. So, one free design each month for you to use for your personal use.

So without further ado, let me introduce you to the Gum Tree Designers!

Cheryl of Willowberry Designs

Dawn of Dawn Hay Designs

Fiona of Mothers Cupboard

Jenny of Elefantz

Joy of JoyPatch

Judith of Creative Studio

Paula of Sew Little Time, Sew Little Fabric

Vicki of Tozz's Corner

and little ole' me, of course! :-)

As well as free designs, you will also receive monthly news from our editor and notification of all new for-sale pattern launches and giveaways. The only thing we ask of YOU... is to spread the word! Let's see how far those gum nuts can fall from the trees! :-) So please take our Among the Gum Trees button and add it to your blogs. It will be worth your while, because...

Because we are a generous bunch of nuts, we are EACH HAVING A GIVEAWAY to celebrate the launch of Among the Gum Trees. And you can enter them all! But... because we have become so good at teasing... we will be launching our giveaways tomorrow!! If you are a follower, or become a follower of my blog I will give you an EXTRA ENTRY! :-)

So in the meantime, grab yourself a cuppa, and sit down to enjoy touring our new blog! Be sure to become a follower so you get first notification when those Christmas designs start flowing! With a free design offered to you weekly, you will have your handmade Christmas wrapped up with time to spare!

I shall be back tomorrow... doesn't the eucalyptus smell wonderful? :-)

Hugs! Vikki x

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Day One of a fantastic workshop!

Thursday was such a fun day for me! For it was the day of my long-anticipated workshop with Kellie Wulfsohn of Don't Look Now!

I drove to Patchwork House in Hawthorn, Melbourne, for Day One of a two-day workshop to learn how to make one of Kellie's gorgeous cushions from her Pretty 'n Pink pattern.

Kellie's teaching covered topics including raw-edge applique, fussy-cutting, and free-motion quilting, which are the three main techniques required to successfully create from one of Kellie's patterns.

Pictured above are my eager hands attempting my first ever raw-edge applique. It was so much fun!

Above is a close-up of Kellie's work... DROOL....

This is my test piece. Choosing colours and fabrics was a real eye-opener. I always thought I was pretty good with matching colour and understanding differences in tones and hues. However, choosing fabrics for 'fussy cutting' enabled me look at colour and pattern in a whole new light. I don't think I will ever look at fabrics in the same way again! It was liberating! :-)

Pictured above is Kellie's "How does your garden grow?" cushion. Her work is perfect in every way... colour, fabric, quilting, technique. I could way lyrical all day! One of the most wonderful things about the day was seeing Kellie's creations close-up and being able to TOUCH them!

I know that Kellie is running further workshops across the country and if you love her designs and have the opportunity to attend - I would highly recommend it. This talented lady really 'knows her stuff'. She is an excellent teacher, and a genuinely lovely and down-to-earth lady, to boot!

Changing the subject completely... have you checked out the counter on the top of my blog? It's not long now until the blogging world goes nutty! ! I can't wait.... can you?!!

Hugs! Vikki

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Patterns, flowers and...stay tuned...!!!

It was Fathers Day here in Australia, yesterday. And I decided that Mr SUDs might need a few flowers to help brighten an already beautiful day. :-)

The fact that lilies are my favourite blooms is neither here nor there! *giggle*!

And I received this beautifully-packaged parcel in the mail today.

How exquisite is that label? The package contained the patterns I had ordered from Bella & Vintage Chic run by Kerry. I have to say Kerry - your customer service and care is exceptional! Kerry emailed me as soon as my order had been shipped (immediately after payment was made) and I'm sure you'll agree, her packaging is divine!

A big thank you to Jenny for blogging about this fantastic store, last week!

Kerry has some beautiful patterns and designer fabrics on sale at the moment, so why not pay her a visit? I'm sure glad that I did! :-)

Here are my two new patterns which will see me attempting a bit of dressmaking. And I'm no dressmaker - so please - wish me luck!

All this talk of new patterns is making me very excited!

But there is something else in the air at the moment... something even more exciting! :-) And I can't wait to share it with you all!

All I can say is.....

STAY TUNED!!!

I know, I'm a tease!!! Hugs to all! Vikki x

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Vintage treasures

It looks like I'm about to conduct a fortune-telling session doesn't it?!! Actually, what I want to share with you are these vintage treasures that Mr SUDs' parents (aka Mum and Dad) kindly gave to me during the process of moving house.

Isn't this table cover beautiful? It was a wedding present to Dad's parents when they married (I'm guessing 1920-ish) in Scotland. Dad remembers being served morning tea on this tablecloth when he was "knee-high to a grasshopper", about 60 years ago.

Check out the detail. I think the thread is silk as it has a lovely sheen, and look at how perfectly it was made. :-)

Here are some other treasures. Isn't the old cardboard chocolate box wonderful?

Wooden spools of thick cotton thread, binding tape, popper studs, ribbons, a darning mushroom (I've always wanted one!) and little 'hooks' intended for fur coats!

I have still yet to go through a lot of my gifts, but the one pictured above is a favourite and a set of three intricately woven lace and embroidered doilies.

A bundle of place mats. I'm not sure of the era but would be guessing maybe 70s?

Needles!!!

Buttons!

Most of the buttons have been cut from clothing and still have cotton attached to them. It's amazing how times change, as now instead of cutting off our clothing buttons and recycling the garment into something else; we either sell or donate our clothes to charity... and leave the buttons intact! These buttons are stored in an old cigarette tin.

Back to modern day and this is how I store my buttons. Not so visually interesting hey, but very practical! I really would love a big glass lolly jar to display my buttons... maybe one day I will get around to it!

I know another lady who is a bit crazy about our little round friends... go visit Clare and see her button collection! I also know a lady who has a thing about scissors... if you are partial to snips too, then you would have something in common with Kaaren! :-) She has one or two pairs! *giggle*!

Now before I go I need to ask... have you signed up for Jenny and Vicki's hug swap? If you are new to blogging it would be a lovely 'first' swap to participate in because it has been designed to be affordable on postage and has a "no extra gifts" policy. (I know with my first swap I worried about it 'being enough' for my partner because it is very common for blogging buddies to add extra gifts to their packages!) There is still time to sign up - just click on the icon on my side bar and it will direct you to all the details! Or you can 'click' on Jenny or Vicki's names to visit their blogs.

Until next time... happy creating!

Vikki x

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