New header

While waiting for stuff to upload when working or just grabbing a 5 minute break for sanity (such as my little fabric therapy session the other day) I realized that my blog really needed the little face lift I've been trying give it for some time. While I loved my banner with Edward on it, I felt that I could finally move on and change it now without feeling like I was doing something bad - it was a major step for me. =)

So I started fiddling about during my mini breaks and looking around for blog designs I liked, and I ended up on a bunch of digital scrap booking pages. While many of them where lovely, though maybe a touch to busy for me, they had lots of interesting ideas and elements I really liked. I found lot's of lovely free stuff one could use and ended up with what you see now after many mini breaks.  It's mostly basic Photoshop shapes and a few scrapbboking embellishments.

And while I was at it, I also made a little post divider. I'd love to hear what you think about my new style! =)

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I also have to show you this little adorable fellow who accidentally ended up in my sink the other day. He was hiding in a pot which I took inside to water (since I'd forgotten all about my poor plants in the last week of work) and as I turn on the tap - up shoots this little guy! Luckily Andreas caught him quickly and I snapped a few quick photos before we let him back out on the balcony in a separate, dry pot =)

A little fabric therapy

Today I felt I just had to touch some fabrics - for no other reason then for my own sanity.

So I dumped my scrap bin on the freshly steamed carpet and dug out every, single, little scrap I had left from my Sunkissed jelly roll. Which was surprisingly much! If you've read my blog before, you already know how many projects I've made with the leftovers from my Sunkissed Summer Squares quilt. But I figured I could always squeeze out some more from the little roll and I've decided to do one (or two if I can push it that far) of the pillows from my new "From the heart" pattern for our couch.

Other then that, all I do is work, eat when I remember and sleep when there's time. Yep, I'm super boring right now, to you dear readers, to my friends and to my poor neglected kitty. I'm very sorry.

Houston, we have a problem...

Namely work...
At the moment work is taking up 110% of my day (meaning, it cuts into sleeping and eating too ^^). We're beta testing our new game and it's lot's of work and stress to fine tune stuff before it's ready for a worldwide release. However, luckily it's very fun work but it means I have no time for sewing or crafting, which is sad.

On a craftier note, today I got the pattern from Don't Look Now! It arrived so quickly!

Really love these patterns and I can't wait to get started on some pillows for the couch, thank you so very much Kellie! =)

So in order to not leave you completely in the dark, I figured I'd show you a sneak peak aka extreme closeup of what's currently baking over at my place ^^

Yep, that's Flurry by Kate Spain.

Pets on Quilts Show!

This is such a fun show hosted by Sew Cal Gal and I just had to take part seeing as I constantly have a "cat on my quilt" situation which prevents me from continuing my work until her highness has moved her pretty tushie. =)

There's still a day left to enter, hurry over there now if you have the same situation at home that I do! =)

For some reason, when you get a new catnip toy, you have to drag it up on a quilt so that all the drool ends up a quilt and not some easy to clean surface - like the floor =) So this little series of pictures clearly shows that quilts aren't just for sleeping, they're for playing too!

Just so you understand my drool comment ^^

And on the playing with quilts theme, here we're playing "hide the mouse" in my Summer Squares quilt, hence her silly facial expression: "Where is it!? Can't find it mom!"

Here's Diana on my Companion Cube Quilt, the fact that I was trying to quilt it was nothing she considered very important when she had feet's to wash and naps to take ^^

My blog header has to be mentioned here of course being a cat on quilt picture that I just love, it pictures Edward, the love of my life who passed away much to soon in November last year on my Crazy Rainforest Quilt.  I still dream of him almost every night and I will never forget him. I know this isn't exactly the happy spirit post one would expect from a contest post but I just can't have a cats on quilts post without mentioning Edward, so one more picture of him and then I'll wrap up ok?

This photo is of Edward and his very own convergence quilt, I made it for him when he was sick the first time and he loved it. This was his "hospital bed" with his pet dragon and very own much to small for him tent he got in a show. This time he recovered miraculously after months of illness and around the clock care.

Diana has since then inherited it and loves it as much as Edward did =)

I have a ton of more pictures of cats on quilts but I feel I have to wrap it up somewhere and I thought this would be good time because otherwise I'll continue forever =)

So to sum up: I love cats and I love quilts, the combination of the two being the most awesome combination in the world!

If you like my submission, I'd be really happy if you'd vote for me when the voting starts <3

I won!! (but Don't Look Now ^^)

One of my biggest sources of inspiration has been away from blogging for  months to my great sadness, however, she just came back with a bang! Kellie over at Don't Look Now is finally back and blogging, and can you believe my chock and happy surprise when it turns out I had won a giveaway over there! Three patterns called "From The Heart" in which the pillow below is included! How lucky is it that I just bought 4 pillow inserts and is planning to make new pillows for the couch!

She's the reason me and Tova made sock the monkey and kitty, she's my inspiration in so many ways from everything from my love of appliques to color love.

This is one of my favorite quilts/patterns of hers (but to be honest, pretty much everything she makes is a new favorite  so yes, this is her most recent quilt ^^), it's called Animal Alphabet and one day I have vowed to make one.

And while she makes so many cute, adorable, dainty patterns, she also makes the coolest "boy" quilts, just look at this "Little Monsters" quilt, isn't it the coolest?

You have to hop over to her blog and take a look, I promise you won't regret it! =) All the photos above belong to her and are graciously borrowed from there with Kellies permission, thank you! <3

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On another note, I've also been making bows! I found a lovely website called The Ribbon Retreat dedicated entirely to ribbons and bows and I was so inspired I just had to try my hand at this craft! The result was one big bow for me using up one of my pretty heart shaped buttons from the last post. I'm also working on a lot of stuff I can't reveal yet so for now, we'll have to settle for bows ^^

And the tiny baby bow is one with velcro closure for baby Alessandra. I think I'll have to make a black one too to match the adorable little shoes/socks I bought for her in Sweden...

Chameleon top finished

My chameleon quilt top is finished! I'm quite happy with the borders, made the whole thing a bit more fun I think. I'm about to order backing for it from the UK, I'm thinking about trying shopping from Doughtys Online this time. While I've been sewing, Diana and Andreas have been playing Witcher 2, a really awesome game.

A few days ago this little package arrived from my mother, it contained some lovely buttons, zippers and other notions I'd ordered when I was in Sweden last time. And she (being the best mum in the world) also included a pack of these amazing microfibre cloths I tried when I visited her last time. Each color is good for a special job but the best one is great for cleaning screens with, amazing!
Those zippers are each 24" long, good quality and each cost €1, how cool is that BTW? You've got to love Stoff & Stil!

*realizes she's just blogged about cleaning supplies* I'm seriously sorry for that disruption from our regular programming, we'll be back to sewing and similar more creative talk in the next post I promise  ^^

Jeans Blue Bracelet

Made a new pewter bracelet from my brand new jeans blue copper thread. It was a lot of fun to work with.

I've also been getting a lot of emails lately (thank you all for your interest, it's so much fun!) about how to make ones own pewter bracelets, what materials one need etc. So I will make a full tutorial for you as soon as I can, with every step described and also a complete list of tools and materials needed.  I hope it will be sooner rather then later but no promises =)

Chameleon walking by....

Chameleons are some of my favourite animals! I just love them - and let's face it - what's not to love? Their adorable little feet? Their long tongues? Their cool eyes? The ability to change color?  Nope, all pure love =D

So when I saw Annas beautiful lizard quilt I immediately thought CHAMELEONS! And that's what I've been up to lately with my Bali Pop - Grasshopper, but since I couldn't find any suitable artwork of chameleons that looks like the ones we have here in Malta - I had to draw my own which presented some difficulty but I think that the final result is absolutely satisfying. =)

Here's me and a chameleon we found outside Maltas old capital city Mdina a couple of years ago so you'll see what I mean, most artwork are of the more fancy looking, rainforest type chameleons. I don't have any recent chameleon pictures, they're sadly getting rarer and rarer here :(

So proud of my mother and our friends!

My mum (to the left in the photo) and 3 of our friends, Annika (on the right), Anki and Maggan are currently hosting a quilt show in Borlänge, the city I'm originally from in Sweden. And I couldn't be happier or more proud for them, it's so cool! <3

The local papers have both been there and here are some of the pictures from the papers and a link to the stories, (though it's in Swedish). Borlänge Tidning and Dala Demokraten.