Some Finishes For Today...

This is a little "Altoid" candy tin which I've covered in fabric. I got the idea from Val on the Dear Jane list. Many thanks for the inspiration, Val! I picked up a few of these tins on my last trip home to Canada! I think I may to find some more, as they would make nice little gifties!!!

I sewed this little pin-cushion a while back from a pattern from designer, Heather Bailey. I had originally filled it with sand, but wasn't 100% happy with the results, so today I replaced the sand with fibrefill! Much better!!!

Note the little antique "fly"hat pin! I found it at an outdoor flea-market last summer. A bit macabre, but nonetheless, extremely original!

Last, but not least, tulips from my dear husband who continues to brighten my life, especially during these dark, December days! xoxoxo

Another Cinderberries Needle-Case!!!

After making one of these great little needle-cases for a friend a few weeks ago, I decided that I needed one for myself!!! I'm working on the embroidery now and hope to have it done tomorrow. I was visiting a rather gorgeous quilt-shop called Patchwork Butikken last week and found this pretty fabric from Northcott. I also want to make a bag with this fabric and found the perfect ivory pom-pom trim to accent it!!! I remember this trim from the sixties when it was used to embellish sombreros and vintage cars!!! Now, it'll work great on my new bag!!!!

This needle-case pattern, as I mentioned in a previous post, is a freebie from Cinderberry Stitches. Many thanks to Natalie for posting this great design!


I'll sign off with a picture of my favorite pair of "nisser", or elves in english! I didn't make these two myself, but couldn't resist buying them last year during a Christmas shopping trip! I think that they're just wonderful and they sit happily on my shelf all year round! I've heard somewhere that it's good luck to have "nisser" in the house to keep watch over things!!

Until next time....Mary Ann :o)

Christmas is Coming....!!!!

....and I'm getting very motivated with regards to creating a bit of holiday cheer around our house!!! I've been making a lot of sweet things from my new book, Tilda's Julehus, by Norwegian designer, Tone Finnanger. It's full of wonderful ideas which I've been very busy with!! This is a plate of yummy apples!! They're just cloth, but still are very delicious-looking!!!! I've made three dozen of these, by the way!!! :o)

I've also made 36 of May Britt's pincushions which I thought I'd let double as ornaments for the tree...I added a string to hang them with!!! I may also thread some of them together with the apples and create a nice little garland! I've used a lot of mother-of-pearl buttons from my collection...I think they add a nice touch. These little pin-cushions/ornaments are actually quite addictive to make! You can get into quite a rhythm winding the string around the buttons!! I had some DMC pearl cotton which I used for this.

And this is one of the little angels...also from Ms. Finnanger's book. I chose to make her hair a bit on the wild side!!! I still need to attach her wings! I'm currently working on three more of these little ladies for Christmas gifts. Very fun to do!!! She measures about 19 inches from head to toe and is supported on a little wooden stand. I am considering making the large version of this angel to welcome guests in our entry hall. I'm just in love with these little gals!!!

Cinderberry Stitches Needle Case

I just finished a little needle-case as a gift for a friend. It's made from a free pattern I found on Cinderberry Stitches . Natalie Lymer is a fantastic Australian designer whose patterns are heart-warming! Check them out! It was great fun to stitch and should hold lots of goodies!!! I glued some rhinestones onto the stitchery as accents and the dragonfly is a little magnetic pin...just for fun!!


What every quilter needs - needles, thread & CHOCOLATE!!! This variety is the famous, yummy Danish marcipan, covered in luscious dark chocolate! I fused a couple layers of pink felt together to make a nice, thick cushion for pins. There's also a couple of straps so the holder can be carried like a little bag. I think I just might have to make one of these for myself!!!!

Mormor's Little Pumpkin!!

I recently received pictures of our little grandson from Hallowe'en that I thought I would share! Axel was able to choose his own pumpkin this year! What a difference 12 months can make!! Last year, he wasn't quite walking yet and now he's running through fields of pumpkins!!

Squishy, squishy!!! Now that's quite a big pumpkin for a little fella to empty all by himself!!! I'm hoping Axel got a little help from Mommy and Daddy to complete this task! Maybe there was some yummy roasted pumpkins seeds, too??!!

Axel's favorite movie character is none other than Mr. Shrek, so that's who he was for Hallowe'en!

Love those green eye-brows, Axel!!!! Hugs & Kisses from Mormor & Morfar!

Miniature Baby Jane...

I was quilting a bit today on my miniature Baby Jane. The little quilt consists of 25 2.5 inch blocks that I re-sized with the Dear Jane pc program. This project has been in the works for quite a while now, but I'm fine with taking my time finishing it. I've been using it as a practice piece for when the time comes to assemble the larger version of this quilt! It's been great for learning how to sash the blocks and set the corners in so that everything fits properly! It's given me the courage to tackle my BIG JANE! Which, I should say, is getting very near completion. I finished my 30th triangle for the borders today, so that leaves just 22 more! Oh, I still have the four corner blocks to make, as well. They'll be a bit of a challenge, so I thought I'd leave them for last!

I can't wait to actually sleep under this quilt one day!!! My helper, Kiki, thinks that would be great, too! She's been the official quilt inspector since I started this project 3 years ago!!! She does her job quite thoroughly, don't you think???!!!

Mountains...

I've been thinking a lot about mountains today. I sometimes get this incredible urge to climb to the top of a peak, listening only to the wind and experiencing the wonderful hugeness of it all. Living in Denmark, it's not that likely it'll be happening anytime soon, but that's when my photos and memories of Canada keep me fulfilled.

This a view over Peyto Lake, in Banff National Park, from our summer holidays this year. I would have made it to the top in my younger days, but this sufficed quite nicely!!

Well, so much for day-dreaming!! I'm going to retreat into my sewing room and see what I can create! There's a pin cushion pattern that I've been meaning to do a little experimenting with!!! Have a nice day!

Threads and Buttons....

I was doing a bit of fun stuff this weekend... playing with some Japanese flower patterns! It was quite contagious...I made several different varieties!! These are quite simple. You just start with a little circle of fabric, whatever size is up to oneself, but I used 1 1/2 inch diameter for mine. Fold it in half and then in half again, hand-baste the unfinished edge and pull the thread tight.

















Do this eight times and VOILA! You have a sweet little flower! Add a yoyo and a button for the centre and it's complete! Many thanks to Rosane for getting me started on these!!!



I also finished this little wall-hanging. It's an embroidery from Bronwyn Haye's book, Miss Millie's Flower Patch. I just love her designs...they're so cute! Now I just need to find two buttons to go onto the straps...I can't believe there wasn't something suitable in my rather large collection of buttons!!! I'm quite proud to say that over the years, I've scrounged through many a flea-market to acquire my fabulous buttons! There's nothing quite like the feeling of rummaging through a cardboard box and discovering an old, worn metal tin full of some dear grandma's treasured buttons. It's really wonderful to be able to bring them back to life!!!

I'll sign off with a picture of a rather dramatic sunset taken from our back yard. In our hectic world, the beauty of simple things can sometimes be taken for granted. Pictures like this one can very quickly remind me of my love and appreciation of nature.

Have a great week!