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good mail!

November 24, 2009 By corrie 11 Comments

I love mail…especially when it’s swaps and giveaways. First up is the lovely rainbow swap parcel I received from silly gilly…..a super cute retro softies pattern, journal book and rainbow cover, rainbow yarn, binding in rainbow colours, skittles and I wish I could show you the m&m’s and lifesavers that also came with it but they were quickly taken by keira yesterday! thank you for spoiling me, everything will be put to good use…

don’t you love a little handwritten note tucked inside the gorgeous journal cover. Thank you for spoiling me!

and on sunday I was lucky to receive a giveaway from Katia…..now Katia is a lovely russian girl living in sydney with her helicopter pilot hubby (now doesn’t that sound like an exciting occupation)! She does amazing embroidery and sewing and just check out her etsy store….she amazed us on Sunday with her lovely stitching and she has such attention to detail. Wow, I’m looking forward to having some of her sweet things at my Allie’s Attic stall in December…..

So thank you Katia for the lovely giveaway! I’m going to make a little bag for my mum (the french teacher with a love affair of everything parisian) and pop the notebook in for her. Unfortunately she will be in hospital again as her cancer has come back again. I guess when they give you the all clear it’s not for long but we’re all keeping positive and she is amazingly brave!

Filed Under: giveaways

Cotton Time Christmas Issue

November 23, 2009 By corrie 4 Comments

The Japanese do cute so well…..and the Christmas issue of Cotton Time is one of my favourite magazines! I treasure all of my Cotton Time’s…this issue is 98 pages packed full of ideas and inspiration for presents and decorations…

and is this wreath not the cutest little Christmas wreath you’ve ever seen

cute notebook and accessories

SOLD OUT

Filed Under: cotton time, store

grandmother’s flower garden giveaway

November 23, 2009 By corrie 323 Comments

look what arrived on my doorstep this afternoon! It’s been a little bit of a wait as apparently the first shipment sold out before they could fill my order but I don’t mind waiting when fabric is this lovely! Perfect for quilters and sewers….

It will be up in my store tonight once the little people are asleep but how about a giveaway? ALL CLOSED THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Keira is already a fan as you can see…..and don’t forget that I still have the PVC and precuts coming too NEXT WEEK!!!!!!!!! oooohhhh what to make, what to make!

Just a little note that your comment won’t appear straight away as my blog is set for me to approve them first, but don’t fret it will appear! thanks!!!!

Filed Under: giveaway

and another quilt top

November 21, 2009 By corrie 4 Comments

I quickly turned a Botany charm pack into a quick quilt top on friday night…this is not my usual colour palette as you can see but I really like it! Just like Hunky Dory this range isn’t due out till March either and they have been hot little sellers so I might sell more charm square packs next year! I was hoping to quilt this today at our sunday craft day but it’s going to be a scorcher here at 41 degrees

and to tell you the truth I have so much to take to the hall that adding my machine and paraphanalia just wasn’t going to happen! So I’ve packed yo-yo makers, scraps and some cotton knitting and we just might need an ice-cream run after lunch with all this heat!

Filed Under: quilting

another day, another quilt top

November 18, 2009 By corrie 11 Comments

The pile of quilts needing to be finished is growing…here is last week’s offering, Love by Amy Butler with a patterned white fabric that just seemed a perfect match. Love the colours in this one…..

and last night I made this one out of Hunky Dory charm squares…the colours are so sweet and lovely and the fabric range isn’t due out till next march so I am loving that I have it in the store now!

I was raring to quilt it until I realised I was out of cream thread so it’s back to spotlight for more thread. And I think I’ll need to start buying it wholesale as free motion eats it all up!! I’ve lost count of how much I’m going through…….

Filed Under: quilting

what’s up pussycat…

November 16, 2009 By corrie 15 Comments

whoah ohhhh ohhhhh ohoh…you can’t help but sing it when you see 20 little pussycat’s…and oh such cute ones! Last night was keira’s first ballet concert…..

she had a ball and danced perfectly…

unfortunately for mummy, miss tillie went into major meltdown before the show started and I had to watch from the monitor in the dressing room

but I’m a mummy helper tonight and hope to watch from the wings

Filed Under: everything else

birdy quilt

November 15, 2009 By corrie 13 Comments

I’m still practising my free motion quilting…….I started this on thursday with the lovely Feathered Friends range by Wendy Slotboom. One big square in the centre surrounded by 12 x 6 inch squares and white homespun all around. I don’t want to spend too long on my quilt tops while I’m still learning…

I just love the look and feel of the quilting on the white homespun…..

but I think I should have chosen a patterned fabric for the back while I’m learning…but since this is going to be hung in the twin’s room I’m not too fussed.

Now all I need to do is find the perfect fabric for binding in my stash and finish it off once dance concerts are behind us!

And to those readers who want to free motion just go for it…I’m totally self taught with some help from blog tutorials and you tube videos!

AND DON’T FORGET TO GET YOUR ENTRY IN THE MOST EMBARRASSING GIVEAWAY…EXTENDED UNTIL TOMORROW NIGHT AS WE’RE BUSY WITH DANCE CONCERTS FOR THE NEXT 2 NIGHTS!!!!!

Filed Under: everything else

cute buttons

November 12, 2009 By corrie 8 Comments

A trip to spotlight is never a budget outing for me…..and look at the cute buttons that came home with me today (amongst other things)!

the label said made in thailand but they are definitely japanese cute!

Filed Under: everything else

happiness is a new hydrangea…..

November 11, 2009 By corrie 9 Comments

yes, a new hydrangea…and especially at half price while I was doing the groceries this morning! I have a few planted in the garden but there is always room for one more at our house….

I just can’t say no to pretty hydrangeas! Happiness is also retro daddy coming home tomorrow after a week away for work….it’s been busy busy without him!

Filed Under: gardening

fairy tale + free motion

November 9, 2009 By corrie 16 Comments

I looooove fairy tale fabrics and I’m learning to love free motion quilting. I’m definitely a beginner and sometimes get myself stuck in a corner or move too fast taking my stitch with me but thankfully keira doesn’t have a critical eye!!!!! And practise makes perfect so I just need to practise!

I made this quilt top a few years ago and it has been sitting patiently just waiting for me to finish it off!

I also made the top before I got too precious about my older fairy tale fabrics….I find it very hard to cut into them at the moment!

Filed Under: japanese fabrics, quilting

little mummy

November 8, 2009 By corrie 9 Comments

Keira loves to call herself little mummy and is becoming very protective of little tillie. She has no trouble pulling or twirling Finn’s hair to make him cry but loves her little tillie and wouldn’t do that to her!

here they are wearing little outfits made by mummy over the weekend. Tillie has a little liberty dress that I finished with some vintage lace from that garage sale and keira is wearing a little skirt I made from new fabrics in the store!

Filed Under: sewing

sweet dress

November 7, 2009 By corrie 10 Comments

As soon as the new fabrics arrived I knew I needed to whip up a little dress for my litle miss…..

so easy and so cute…Keira accessorised it nicely with gumboots, 7 or more hairclips and a denim jacket for playgroup yesterday!

And this morning she is loving her new nails as retro daddy treated us to our nails done while he did the groceries…..nice!

I am also loving all of your embarrassing moments….you must read through them if you need a little laugh today!

Filed Under: sewing

my most embarrassing giveaway

November 6, 2009 By corrie 76 Comments

I think it’s time for another giveaway but I want you to work for it. I’ve gone deep into my personal vault of embarrassing stories and am asking you to do the same. You need to fess up, tell me the MOST embarrassing thing that has happened to you and I’ll let retro daddy pick a winner….who will choose 12 fat quarters from the fabrics in my store!

Ok so here is mine…..before children I was a city girl for 10 years, a credit analyst working in securitisation for big investment banks. Long days but I’d try to get to the gym in my lunchbreak a few days a week. I’d keep my shoes in my bag and put new clothes and towel in each day.

On this particular day, it was just after 12, super busy at the nice city gym I went to….I got dressed into my gym gear, grabbed my handtowel, started on the treadmill and flung my towel over the handrail. There were rows of treadmills and I was smack bang in the middle. The treadmill was moving and all of a sudden a flash of white went past my feet….what was that I thought. I turned around and there on the floor behind me were my undies!!!!!! Yes they had been the clean pair wrapped up in my towel! I swiftly turned off the machine, quickly picked them up and put them in my handtowel on the floor and got back to my workout before putting them back in my locker.

I was so mortified and also hysterically laughing afterwards that I couldn’t tell my colleagues till the next day and even then I was crying with laughter. It truly is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to me.

Now its your turn……..winner takes all so it’s totally worth outing yourself!!!! Entries open until next Sunday 15th November and for the same period I’ve taken $2 a metre off all the new fabrics in my store…happy shopping!

Filed Under: everything else

group hug

November 5, 2009 By corrie 8 Comments

I thought it was time for a photo of my little ones….they love it when we have a big group hug so I thought that would be cute! thinking and doing are two very different things (and no child was harmed during this photo)

I tried and tried … I even tried blueberries to distract them but tillie just smooshed them into her jeans and they were too distracted for the camera…..

After 10 or so photos like these I just called it a day!!!!!!! They are so very cute but oh so very active!

Filed Under: twins

all good now

November 1, 2009 By corrie 13 Comments

Phew, I’ve had to apologise to my lovely sewing machine. I said such mean things to it on saturday afternoon when it wasn’t sewing for me. Turns out after I tried to fix it internally I put the bobbin case back in all wonky and that made things worse.

Thank goodness its working and we’re friends again! And here is a sneak peek at my sewing room almost done. Its actually 2 adjoining rooms with its own little ensuite for toilet breaks. I am loving the brightness of the room but once the door is open I hear 2 little scrambling babies hurry in…..can you see that little head down there!

Filed Under: everything else