Sunday Stash #30

Wow...I can't believe that this is post #30! 

Arriving at the post office this week was Aneela Hooey's first book called 'Little Stitches'. It is my first embroidery pattern book purchase and I have been keeping my eye out for its release since she blogged about it earlier this year.

I did the maths with both The Book Depository and Amazon simultaneously and found that the best deal was with The Book Depository's FREE postage. For just $4 more than the Amazon total I could get another book from TBD.

I also purchased a couple of larger embroidery hoops, a purse frame (for the Zakka coin purse) and a ribbon to fix a fraying princess skirt from Spotlight on Thursday. Their cotton batting was 20% off and so I bought 3m as I have run out of yardage.

Also I had been pricing Aneela Hooey's 'Cherry Christmas' on a couple of overseas stores and Etsy but with postage sitting at $17 from the US, I had not hit the 'pay' button.

Thankfully my call, put out on QCA, yielded fruit when Jane of 'Want it! Need it! Quilt! let me know that she had some pre-cuts just in. So I ordered a Fat Eighth Bundle and few charm packs of this delightful line. Postage was a lot cheaper but also the fabric was cheaper too! I love Australian fabric businesses.

I also ordered a couple of other charm packs of Sweetwater Designs' 'Lucy's Crab Shack' and Lily Ashbury 's 'Gypsy Girl' for a future charm pack Travelling Stash called Drover. It's our first male travelling stash - wit woo!

And if we can get 10 of you to link up for Sunday Stash today, or any Sunday, I will put you in the draw for one charm pack of Kate Spain's 'Serendade'. The prize will lay over until we get 10 linkys. I have been suggesting to a few nice ladies on Flickr that they should link up some of their photos or posts. Please pass the word on to your bloggy or Flickr friends.

Oh and don't forget that I have an almost give-away of some Kaffe Fasset charms if I can get 15 more people to 'like' Grandma Macs Quilts (my mum and I) on Facebook. Don't forget to make a comment on this post to be in the running. I really want to complete this give-away soon...been outstanding for far too long.

So what is new in your stash this week? Please link up below.

Handmade Secret Santa

With only 2 days left in July I was hard pressed to get this secret swap parcel out in today's post. I had planned on giving my swap partner, the 'Happy Couple Handwarmers'  which I made with the Zakka Style Sew Along however, research proved that she was from Queensland where temperatures in winter are pretty mild. I don't know Cate at all but she does have a blog called 'Life Behind the Purple Door'.Further research revealed that, like me, she has a 'thang' for felt Christmas tree decorations.


So I checked out Flickr and Pinterest for inspiration and set to work. I do like hand sewing.

I came up with this felt and button tree.

This Christmas house.

And I had enough Michael Miller selvedges to make a couple of these cute trees as well.


I hope that Cate enjoys adding them to her tree this year. She is hosting an event from September called '100 Days of Christmas' and she is looking for bloggers to 'guest blog' during that period. Details can be found here.

I have to thank Alyce from Blossom Heart Quilts for hosting this swap. It has added to my repertoire of sewing skills. I hope that a nice Christmas parcel makes its way to my house this week - I wonder who my swap partner will be?