ΤΟ ΧΑΜΟΓΕΛΟ ΤΟΥ ΠΑΙΔΙΟΥ - THE SMILE OF A CHILD

QUILTERS OF GREECE UNITED  ξεκίνησε ένα EVENT στο Facebook. Θα φτιάξουνε παιδικά quilts για το Ορφανοτροφείο του Χαμόγελο του Παιδιού.

Όπως ξέρουμε όλοι Το Χαμόγελο κάνει εξερετικές δουλειές για τα παίδακια μας. Θέλω να παρακαλέσω όσοι μπορούνε να φτιάξουνε patchwork να συμμετέχετε. Δεν χρειάζετε να φτιάξετε ολόκληρο quilt, μόνο το πάνω κομμάτι. Το στέλνετε στο Quilt Studio της  Kristine's, και εκεί θα τελειώσουνε όλα τα παπλωματακια. Η διαστάσεις να είναι περιπού 110 χ 140 εκ. και να είναι στη Κριστιν πριν  31 Ιουλίου.

Βρείτε τη σελίδα του QUILTERS OF GREECE UNITED  στο FACEBOOK  για όλες τις πληροφορίες.

Η διευθηνση είναι  Kristine Durbin May Pappas

                               Κ. Παλαμά 15

                               54630 Θεσσαλονίκη

QUILTERS OF GREECE UNITED started an event on Facebook. They will make quilts for the orphanage of the SMILE OF A CHILD.  This organization does incredible good work for sick children, lots of them cancer patients. It is started by a little boy who died from cancer. Due to the financial situation in Greece this organization(as well as lot of other ones)  isn't subsidized any more by the government. The Greeks do everything in their power to keep this organization alive. (concerts, exhibitions) In lots of supermarkets there is a money box for the SMILE OF A CHILD, and people give!!

Everyone who would like to help the orphanage and children's hospital could donate the top of a quilt. In Thessaloniki the quilts will be put together on a longarm quilting machine by Kristine and her girls. The size of the quilt should be about 110 x 140 cm (42" x 54") and be in Kristine's Quilt Studio by 31st of July.

The address is:  Kristine Durbin May Pappas

                         K. Palama 15

                        54630 Thessaloniki

                        Greece

I HOPE THAT WE CAN MAKE LOTS OF LITTLE CHILDREN HAPPY

New table runners

I am making a few summery table runners. I finished two and am sewing the binding on the third one.  I love the stylish flower print, which I bought in Amsterdam. I went to the fabric market in the Jordaan. Tonight I might finish the third runner while watching a movie.

My next project will be a few baby quilts for a pram or stroller. In Greece we live outside in the summer months, that is to say, in the evenings. Children and a lot of grown-ups, who work in the morning and the afternoons have a nap after lunch. In the evenings  mothers go to parks with their children; families visit each other and friends. So, a little quilt is very practical to use when it gets a bit chilly late at night.

I better start working now!!!!

Give Away and Book Circulation

Quite some time ago I won the Give Away of some lovely Dutch fabrics together with the book The Devil's Puzzle. This is a quilt mystery written by Clare O'Donohue. The idea is, to send to book on to the next quilter, who would like to read it. I got it from Stefanie (www.lupineke.blogspot.com)
I didn't have much time to read, but in the end I did. Then it took me some time to decide on the fabric, make a picture, but .....finally I managed!

I selected three vintage Greek fabrics, which I bought in an old shop in Kalamata. Here are some pictures of the shop.

I buy a lot of material in this shop. This is all very old stock. Most of the fabrics have a width of 80-90 cm!

So, whoever would like to read the book, send it on, and get these fabrics, should leave a  comment and then they will take part in the lottery. The winner will be announced on the 30th of June. Until that date you can participate. 

In the meantime, I finished this table runner. This one is completely made of fabrics I bought from old stock in Greece.

In the garden

And a detail 

just finished purple patchwork bag

I just want to show you this new purple patchwork bag.

Because I am teaching "Patchwork and Quilting" and "Bag Making" lessons at the moment I don't have much time to write on this blog, nor do I have much time to sew new projects.

This bag, though, I made for a friend who had her Name Day about a month ago!

The present is a bit late, but I am sure she will like it, because she choose the fabrics

Summer wall hanging and more

The weather is strange here at the moment. For a few days now it is raining mud from the Sahara! The plants in the garden look very dirty; the snow on the mountain tops looks yellow/beige and the sky looks also yellowish. The temperature is supposed to reach 35 degrees C today. I had planned to work in the garden, but slept until 9, which is very unusual for me. I must have been really tired!! So, I decided not do any gardening now, maybe in the afternoon!

                                     Instead I am going to sew. I just finished this wall hanging.

I designed this to use for a class, but decided it was too difficult for a beginners class, because it took me quite a while to finish it. The little boat is appliqued and the other one is patchwork. 

Last Wednesday I invited the groups I taught some time ago for a get-to-gather in my garden. We had a lovely time but, unfortunately, I didn't have time to make any pictures. Too busy serving, talking, admiring the work they made. A lot of my students wanted to learn how to make bags, so we decided to do some lessons. That will be fun again!

Quite some time ago I found some vintage flanel with a very old-fashioned children's design. I bought a lot of it, but don't know very well what to do with it. I will probably use it for a baby quilt. I made this pyama bag for a try-out. 

And last, but not least, I want to show you my beautiful bougainville. It took about 15 years !!! for it to start blooming, but it was well worth the time. I am glad I didn't pull it out, because lots of times I was tempted to do so. 

I get a lot of spam on my blog, so I decided to use word verification for some time. At least, I hope, that I did! I always get a bit mixed up with those Settings issues!

Back to work

As I had a lot of work in the garden (spring cleaning), I neglected my sewing projects a bit. The garden is more or less under control at the moment, so time to start sewing again.

A friend wanted a backpack for her daughter and  loved the jeans fabric with the little embroidered flowers and dots.
I choose some more fabrics to go with it, and this is the result.

The jeans material wasn't that heavy, but still jean is difficult to sew on a normal machine. The bottom of the back and the straps I made from a solid, heavier jeans fabric. No problem with the bottom, but I broke two needles, trying to sew the straps on. And then..... my sewing machine thought this was too much of a strain for it, and refused to do anything at all.

This morning I brought the machine to the Singer dealer and they will repair it. I can get it back next Tuesday. So, I got my old machine out and tried if this one would work. This one has a problem with the pedal, but, lucky me, it worked and so I could sew the new straps on. I just bought this tape for straps, which worked out fine.

Ready to start a new project. For two days it is raining over here: no urge to go out in the garden. Good weather to focus on my patchwork.

Flowers in the garden

In about one week the weather changed from cold to hot, from winter to summer temperatures! Because Sparta lies in a valley, surrounded with mountains, the temperatures drop during the night, which is nice because we have a whole summer in front of us.
Nature is beautiful at this moment. Greece has over 2000 wild plants, which bloom abundantly. Also in the garden you can see spring! Fresh green, lovely flowers.

My pink Clematis is taking off. It took a few years because I planted it in the shade. I thought that it might be too hot for Clematis's in Greece, but as a matter of fact they are doing great.
This one is planted next to an old climbing rose from the neighbours. The red,red rose flowers abundantly at the moment, but doesn't bloom again until next spring. The idea is that the Clematis takes over. Let's see what happens!

This is the Clematis Alice Fisk, which has real big flowers. It is standing in the sun and you can see the difference in the amount of flowers!. It only blooms in spring. On the packet it said that it would reach a height of 1.60 m, but it is already over 2 meters high.

The neighbour's rose, which they call Boxana here in Greece, hanging over in my garden. I have the same one in the front of my house, planted about 60 years ago by my father-in-law. This one in the picture might be 10 years younger! Both still going strong!

On the other side of the house I have a Bougainville. I planted it, in bloom, about 18 years ago. For 15 years it didn't have any flowers and I had decided to take it out and put something else there. I just didn't have the time to execute my plan, and..... suddenly, like the plant could read my mind, it started blooming.!!! This picture is taken a week ago!

My Azalea is doing great. It blooms nearly the whole year around and is normally standing in the shade. I put it here as decoration for the quilts!

My fahter-in-law loved roses. He planted a lot of them in all different colours. These pink ones are cuttings from cuttings from cuttings from the ones he planted!!! A beautiful big rose.

This is the Philadelphus. I have two bushes of these.


I love my garden in spring! It is a blessing to sit outside, look around you and smell the lovely scent of the orange blossoms.