AHHHHH SUMMER TIME........

and the living is easy, so easy in fact that time gets away from you and before you know it another day has passed.

I have been reading blogs but just not motivated to add to mine until now that is.

Those blogs I do follow came up with some interesting facts over the festive season.....I appears that those blogs and bloggers I find most interesting and resonate with me....wait for this spooky occurrance.....it appears we all....you'll never believe this , we all have ....BIRTHDAYS around Christmas.........we are a majority of hard headed Capricorns!!!.......I KNOW...SPOOKY!!!!

Well here is a big hello to all you fellow festive birthday babies.

This is a project that has bubbled along, I have appliqued hearts slowly over the year and it appears I am getting close to a finish here.
The pattern is by Sandy Klop from American Jane and her book, 
"Quilts for all seasons...and some for no reason"
I love this book and have my eye on several other projects in her book to put on the list.

This is another I have been itching to start and this is the year I venture into its complexity.

It is from Material Obsession two by Kathy Doughty and Sarah Fielke.

I love the whole scrappy thing going on there, so in that spirit I dove into my scraps and started to sort and prepare.

And I am using the bench my wonderful husband built over the air conditioning duct......its been awesome.

This new year has also seen me sort out a lot of my materials and try very hard to reduce and take some direction.
I have over the years boarded on "hoarding" in the true sense of the word, I struggled to relinquish those scraps that really were not going in the direction I wanted, and they were holding me back.

I would sort them, and stroke them and sigh, not knowing what I could do with such a mish mash of styles. I wanted to do scrappy but didn't have the time. I didn't want to "waste" good fabric that I had spent dollars on, but they no longer sang to me and if truth be told I often bought them in a frenzy because they were a bargain.

So I got organised.... and let go......it was a great feeling.

Now I can see what direction I want to go, what makes me happy and doesn't hold me a state of guilt and "must do"....I have come to realise that I have the right to do what makes me happy. 

My load and stash is lighter, I am tired but not pressured to use those uninspiring fabrics just because they are there.
It is a conundrum because so many of you are finding uses for the vintage hoards that others kept.....but as they say one mans treasure .....

My feelings about hoarding are well known by my family, but I have a parent who hoards and I can see how she makes do with broken and worn out items, how she holds herself prisoner by stuff that she deems valuable.
I vow not to be held back by things and only to have items that make ME smile, that I use and want to look at every day.

Dont get me wrong, I am no minimalist, I adore the cluttered look of so many inspiring blogs and photos that are shown....but I have decided to develop a place that I am happy in, and it is only having to satisfy me.

Phew that was a huge download and confession! If you are still here, Thank you for listening!

See pretty things that make me smile