Happy New Year!!! A new year and a new calendar. I was given this calendar from a friend who had a spare, from Molly Makes Magazine and it is so pretty. I especially like the quote because it reminds me I’m not the only one who can’t keep my resolutions.

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As for resolutions, I haven’t made any strict ones, just those general ones that you can get away without doing because they weren’t really resolutions just things you hoped you’d get done. On a crafting point of view there are some “things” (not resolutions mind) that I would like to accomplish. A while back I bought some fat quarters, fabric, for those of you who haven’t come across the term before, I know it sounds like some kind of delicious cake portion. However inedible it is delicious fat quarters of pretty fabric that I picked up in a sale.

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I was hoping to try my hand at quilting. I’ve never tried it before but couldn’t resist the bright colours of these floral prints. I have to admit I prefer sewing by hand in comparison to sewing machine, I haven’t found one yet that likes me.

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I know it’s a bit of a mis-match but I got these fat quarters to go with the floral. I quite like the way their both bright and sort of compliment each other, I also like the maritimeyness (?!?) of the stripes. I also purchased another bundle of stripes but in pastel shades, I thought I might try something smaller like a baby’s quilt with these.

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I also have a project on the go which I’m sewing by hand. Just over a year ago I was in a little charity shop in a village not far from me and spied a gorgeous vintage rocking chair (at least I think it’s vintage). I purchased said item for an absolute bargain price and now it sits at home waiting for its cushions.

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The chair itself is wonderful albeit a little hard to sit on, so seeing a solution in my minds-eye I scavenged some packaging foam and went about making seat pads and a back for comfort.

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The foam was a little thin so I simply tacked two pieces together to make the optimum thickness. This is the seat cushion and I tacked a longer piece for the back rest. After careful planning I cut the pattern out of my fabric.

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I got the fabric on sale and just adore the coral background and the pink and white flowers. I’ve made some ties to tie it to the chair, but it’s still a work in progress, I’m hoping to finish it with crocheted edging and some chunky beads to weigh down the back rest so it doesn’t slip. I’ll keep you posted.