An overdue update

Including giveaway wins (yes, more than one!) and some handmade highlights.

Well, it's been too long since I've posted - a result of being back at work and other commitments that have taken up too much time. I'm actually a bit surprised how much going back to work has impacted on my crafting time - I usually sew or knit in the evening anyway, after the kids are in bed, but I've just been too tired lately!

First, a long overdue post about a my first fabulous giveaway win! It was from the lovely quilary and it feels like it was made just for me:

It was beautifully packaged in a reusable tote, and contained the following goodies:

So perfect! I really needed the pin cushion and scrap bin, and I love the little homes for my essential tools (and the cute little paper cutouts to illustrate what goes where). And, did you notice - it's made with some scissors fabric from my favourite Wonderland line! The flower brooches will be great accessories for my little girl, and I have a bit of a soft spot for vintage patterns - my collection of vintage knitting patterns is massive and these will help grow my small sewing pattern collection. Thanks so much quilary! Such a wonderful prize for my first giveaway win - I can't imagine any being better than this!

And then, about a day after I found out I was the winner of the above giveaway, I got an email from Sew Mama Sew - I won one of the Back to School patterns - it looks like a lot of fun - here's the original post on Sew Mama Sew. I feel so lucky with these two wins!

In other news, my beautiful girl turned one last month. Here she is in her still-too-big ice cream dress, opening presents:

 And the cupcakes I made for the party:

And the lolly bags that I sewed, using some oh-so-bright fabric I got on special at my LQS:

They were fun to make, but I can't say I'll be doing it again (especially when I only had to make 7 - I can't imagine doing any more).

I'm finally ready to sit down and do some sewing now, and finally put my giveaway win to good use. It's a top secret project using some of my precious Red Letter Day fabrics - top secret since the recipient may be reading this blog!