Christmas Cheers to you all!

Here's an angel wishing you all a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
For me it is a time to recharge batteries, with a small break from the shop and enjoy my family and home. Although we are in our busiest time of year with cherries it's still good to be a part of it all. Men in for food and more food... it seems....its no going away on holidays for us.... I do hope to get some lovely sewing done while home. I have so enjoyed it again in the last 6 months.
Recently I have been on about (to my club girls mainly) about my favourite products. Lately I'm in love the Hera Marker. I'm not much of a machine quilter really but while quilting the Pinwheels quilt, (last post) I used this to mark the quilting lines. Just rule lines as you would with a pencil. It leaves a beautiful crease for you to follow. No blue pen or pencil marks ever again! Marvellous! Another product I'm using alot more is the Helmar Basting Spray. No more pins, just sandwich your quilt with the spray adhesive. Easy.

AND the other product I really love is the Roxanne Glue. Especially when I'm doing applique. I'm using it to attach my pies (Pies and Tarts BOM) to their background fabric, instead of pins. Glue around the circle, stick to fabric and stitch around. That is just one use! It's also great to attach your bias strips for applique.

Well, Im about to close the shop and head for home. I will be back here on 5th. January, although I won't be far from my computer and will do some posting.

This is what I'll be tending to while away... the garden.

We have been putting the last of the vegetables in our garden. Here is DH, working madly (he wouldn't keep still for the pic!) We are late this year, so hopefully things will still be okay before Autumn. I think there is still alot of Summer to go!

Tomorrow I'll be making the pavlova for Xmas Day as well as nibbly treats. yeh...

Christmas cheers to you all , ***Jane ***

Christmas Cheer

We have had a great couple of weeks, with all our Clubs having Kris Kringle and Christmas break-ups. I must say I am overdosed on sweets! And some lovely KK pressies. This 'Baguette bag', I made for our Apple Piecers group, (pattern from Homespun magazine.) The theme this year was 'bags'.

And this is my present in return, a cute 'champagne bottle' bag. I reckon I can hold two bottles in it, with no worries! Thank you Di, I love it!

I have also just made this cot quilt for my cousin's new granddaughter, 'Ruby Grace', whom we'll see on Christmas Day. I felt it needed to be in red and at the moment, I'm pretty keen on pinwheels. I loved making it, I hope they'll like it too.

Now with the 'shop' rush over, I have a bit of time to do a little bit more shopping and baking next week and I'll be right for Friday! I am open on Tuesday then closed until 5 January. Looking forward to a few quiet days sewing, somewhere in that time.

On the home front, the boys are now full swing with the cherry harvest. The rain being unkind to us again this year. Lots of cracked cherries as well as bird damage. You do wonder, why we do it......in the hope of a good year?? one day....

**Jane**

A 'bag' of a week

I actually have been rather busy, besides preparing all the fabrics (previous post). Friday I joined our class and (finally) made a Market Bag with Sara. Pretty rapt, took it to the pub for dinner that night... looking very squish. No-one commented on it though....
Thought I might make a couple more, for Chrissie pressies. They are great to do. AND I completed another bag this week, for my Kris Kringle with one of my Apple Piecers Clubs. So I just better give you a sneek peak of that one. Had all year to do it! As usual I leave things to the last minute. Better than last year though, I think I was still stitching the day before!

Heaps of Fabric

Just unpacked, priced, cut fat quarters (not folded yet) and displayed the new ranges which have arrived this week! This one being 'Meadowsweet' by Sandi Henderson for Michael Miller. We have the Peach collection. This is a wonderful new complete range by Denyse Schmidt, 'Hope Valley'. A beautiful feel to this Free Spirit range- smooth and luxurious...vintage and different. Another fabulous range is 'Civil War Homefront' by Barbara Brackman and Moda. This is a great addition to our reproduction range.
We also have Fat Quarter Bundles of the full range available, jelly rolls and turnovers.