Busy Little Bear ... & OPAM 2014!!

WOW!! Is anyone else feeling life they are standing still while the days go whizzing by??? This last week has been a whirlwind of Christmas events ... morning teas, carols night, lunches, dinners, suppers, BBQ's with neighbours ... EEP! While it's all be very nice, it would have been nicer spaced out over about three weeks, I think ... I can count on one hand how many meals we've eaten at home this week ... oh ... wait ... that's not necessarily a BAD thing, right?! Tee! Hee! Hee! I'm rather relieved to say that my Beloved Geek Boy and I are now both starting a two week break from our respective work ... AAAAAAH! It will feel good to stop and take a breath ... and perhaps eat Vegemite toast or boiled eggs for a few days so our tummies recover from Christmas-goodies-overload! :0)

HOWEVER ... in the midst of all this pre-Christmas madness, I have been a very busy little bear and thought I'd share a few pics with you to prove it. All of my sewing has been giftie-related, but if I don't say who's getting what, it will still be a surprise on Christmas day, right?! :0)  Now ... I HAVE been busy and it HAS been a while since I've caught up here, so it may be a long post, so grab a cuppa and get comfy ... sorry Chookyblue!! :0) Here goes ...

I can tell you who this was for, as I've delivered it ... the lovely Marion has a December birthday and since I know she's always writing herself notes, I made her a pretty notebook cover. The fabrics will match a couple of other items I've made for Marion in the last couple of years. Next ...

 ... a pretty strip-pieced notebook cover ... it's been posted but not opened yet, so no telling. :0) ... next ...

... a bauble bag ... a pretty drawstring bag to store delicate, vintage or breakable Christmas baubles. The stitchery is one I finished during our recent trip to Mackay ... see ... I DID do some stitching! :0) It is a Gail Pan Christmas stitchery from a few years ago. This one hasn't made it to the sleigh yet, as I'm held up waiting for a snail mail address ... late for this Christmas or early for next ... VERY early! Tee! Hee! Hee!  Next ...

... a cheeky monkey made from a Melly and Me pattern, "Magoo". If you've been visiting me for a while, you may remember I made a barrel of these monkeys a few years ago for some of the nieces and nephews. Well, I dusted off the pattern again to make another. Let me tell you ... this little critter may LOOK cute in his funky dinosaur boardies ...

 ... but when you take a closer look at his cheeky face ...

... you just KNOW he's thinking up some mischief to get into. And sure enough ...

... I turned my back for a moment and he was hanging from the curtains!!! I shan't tell you the words I used when trying to stitch his long monkey arms and legs in ... they were NOT polite! I am sure this cheeky critter was hanging on to the desk, the sewing machine and anything on my sewing table he could reach ... and we will also NOT mention the wrapping process!!! I hope he will be well loved by my sweet youngest nephew who will be receiving him in two days time. 

I also finished two ... count 'em ... TWO purple butterfly quilts that I'd shared a few sneaky peekies of a while ago. One was a commission from my Mum's neighbour to give her daughter for Christmas ... which I forgot to take a photo of!! It was posted off and will hopefully be loved. The second was a bit more special. You see ... while I was making the commissioned quilt, my good friend Lynda admired the colours and the appliquéd butterflies - she is such a pink/purple/butterfly girl!! -  so with the left over purples, a few more for good measure, some cutting, sewing and appliqué stitching, I made her a special combined birthday/Christmas gift ...

... a purple quilt all of her own! ...

Ta da!! A stacked coin quilt covered in fluttering appliquéd butterflies. A friend tells me I should write up the pattern for this one, as the dimensions and butterflies are of my making and design ... still thinking on that one! :0) This quilt (and the other purple butterfly quilt, too) has been quilted by my incredibly talented quilting buddy, the Fabulous Fiona. If you click on the photo and take a closer look, you'll see she's free motion quilted some sweet 'doodle' butterflies all over the quilt. I LOVE it!! I'm going to have to make a quilt so she can use this quilting design for me, too! :0) Thanks Fiona!!!

But moving along with my story ... I invited Lynda over for a cuppa to hand over her giftie ...

This pic was already a little blurry thanks to an unsteady photographer (and that was without any 'Christmas cheer' affecting me!!!) so I played a bit in Photoshop so it's now 'artistic' ... sort of! Tee! Hee! Hee! Ready for the reveal ...

If that big grin is any indication ... I think she liked it! :0) Lynda and I have known each other for 10 years now and just like a butterfly adds splashes of joy and colour to a garden, Lynda adds splashes of joy and colour to my life ... thanks for being a good friend, Lynda! And here's to lots more years of lunches and cuppas! :0)

Right ... I think that's it for my list of what I've been up to ... I TOLD you I'd been a busy bear, right?! :0) Now for some exciting news for you gals who have been playing along with Sweet Peg and I with OPAM. We've had a chat, we've umm-ed and aah-ed ... and...

IT'S ON AGAIN!!!

Yes ... my sweet partner-in-crime, Sweet Peg and I will again be hosting the One Project A Month challenge in 2014. Now ... sign up won't be until the END of JANUARY ... but since a few of you have been asking us what's happening, we thought we'd let you know so you can start planning your "To Do" list for next year. We all have a LOOOOOOOONG one of those, right?! :0) Maybe a few New Years' resolutions to FINISH some projects????

For those of you who haven't joined the fun of OPAM before, or who may have joined us a few years ago and have had a little break ... maybe you'd like to play along in 2014. It's a great way to stay motivated to FINISH projects and it's a gentle nudge to ourselves to take a bit of time our of busy schedules just for ourselves, to recharge the batteries and let our creative juices flow. If you think you might be interested, pop back HERE to last year's sign up post and have a read of the guidelines. It's a very low-stress challenge and a lovely way for us all to be encouraged to be creative. Sweet Peg and I will both do a post updating the guidelines when sign up opens, so stay tuned! :0)

And if you HAVE been playing along with us this year ... don't forget to update your sidebar lists with your finishes for December!! I know it's a busy time of year (Believe me I KNOW!!!) but if you update your list as you finish a project, you don't have to stress about forgetting at the end of the month. Sweet Peg and I both love to see the GORGEOUS projects you have all been creating and are excited to be co-hosting OPAM again in 2014 ... hope you'll join us again to be 'repeat offenders'! :0)

But right now ... I think I've earned a cup of tea, so I'm off to play Polly, before heading back into my sewing room ... I'll share what I'm working on next time, I promise. :0) Have a fantastic week and don't stress TOO much about Christmas preparations that you forget to ENJOY this special time of year. Til next time ...

CHRISTMASSY BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!
KRIS