Blog hopping Monday

Hey guys, thank you for the wonderful comments about kiddo's new backpack... I'm working on a pattern for it... And I must tell you it is a pattern for a true beginner... It took me less than an hour to make each one of them (from picking the fabric to finishing it) This time when I make the pattern piece, I'll make it using a timer...

The pattern will be for sale in my new Etsy shop very soon... And I'm thinking of keeping it for $2 for a week!

Anyone interested???

And yeah... Monday blog hops...

The list is here

Blog Hopping and quilting

Kelly is hosting her first blog hop... Join the hop...

Also dont forget to join the Sensational Saturday...

I have been busy... 

A tutorial is coming soon... Maybe today / tomorrow!!! Stay tuned... Click here to download the tutorial. Thats my finish # 4 for Spread the Cheer!!! And I so love it...

Can you guys suggest a name for this one??? Let your imagination run wild!!! I named it!!! Its now officially the Charming Rainbow Quilt!


The fabulous fabric was sent by Elizabeth along with her beautiful quilt... For the back I've used an E studio fabric which was sent by Jodi... They both are really fabulous ladies...

Thanks for the support both of you... :)

100 FOLLOWERS!!!

I should have another giveaway soon... And dont worry I will... And I promise it'll be something beautiful...

Saturday 9: Little Miss Can't Be Wrong

1. Who was the last person you dealt with that felt that they could never be wrong?
I'm still dealing with him... And I guess he'll never think he's wrong... LOL... Its my hubby... I always haver to prove to him when he's wrong...

2. Tell us about one person who is the most like you.
One of my students, Sharvari... She started off as my student and then became my assistant and now is a dear friend... I really see myself in her...

3. What is something you really want right now?
Honestly, a redo of my home... We shifted into this house in May last year and are using it as it is... I'd relly like a redo of it... Especially the kitchen... This one's just way too small...

4. What are you doing this weekend?
Just hanging around... Its raining here and kiddo's not really that well plus we have a renovation of hubby's store in progress... So cannot leave...

5. Are you in a good mood? If yes, Why?
Yes, I am... because I dreamt that someone had sent me a HUGE box full of fabric!!!

6. Do you have an ex that you are pretty sure thinks about you a lot?
Oh, I wish there was... But no...

7. What's one thing you wish you could do but can't?
Cook! Just yesterday I had cooked some 'pithala' thats a maharashtrian dish... And it turned out so bad, I went to bed before hubby came home for dinner and didn't wake up when he called me... LOL...

8. What's one trait you hate in a person?
Egoism

9. What's one thing you like to do alone?
Spend two weeks in Goa!!!

A dilemma... no more...

I have a dilemma no more... Much to the amazement of most of my family members, I have decided to decline the business opportunity...

Had anyone told me a few years back, that I would give up a wonderful opportunity to stay at home with my kid and look after my home, I would never have believed them... But yes, today I took the decision NOT to seize the opprtunity...

A few months back, I decided that I wanted to spend some time at home... I had taken this decision for kiddo, but also for myself... Pressure was increasing from all sides and life was just not peaceful anymore... I needed to get away from all of it... I wanted to stop trying to find balance between work and home... And most of all, I wanted to be there for every little thing in kiddo's life!!!

Six months went by smoothly and then this opportunity came up... I thought about it... And in the end, I  realized, that just because this opportunity came, I'll give up my own decision to put kiddo on priority # 1 and go back to my old life? I could not do that to him... There are always temptations to take you away from your decision, and they look delicious... I felt that if I fell for this one, another one might come up later and take me further away from kiddo... And by the time, I can turn back, he might not have time for me... he might not need me then... And then I'll be feeling sorry for not being there when I should have been...

That was the one thought that made taking decision very simple all of a sudden... The smile that I see when my little one wakes up in the morning and hugs me is priceless... The way he appreciates my sewing (however bad it may be) is the best award anyone can give me... And the touch of his lips on my cheeks when he kisses me good night is the best salary that I can ever get in my life!!!

 

So dear Aadi, Mom's going to be there for you... As long as you need me...

Boost my Blog

And today's question is "What is the story behind your blog's name?"

I have already done a post abut it long back, but here's it once again for all you guys to know...

 

The place that I stay in was located in the Woodhouse Extension... And our was Plot No 13... So for a long time, it was known as 13 Woodhouse Road... It has ceased to be used since 25 years now... It was 5 years back, when I was newly married, while clearing the clutter in our bedroom - whcih was earlier my hubby's room - I found an old telephone book... I just looked up the home number and found this address... FIL gave me this information and when I started my blog - I remembered it and so - 13 Woodhouse Road it is!!!

 

 

Fun Following Friends on a Friday

The weekend comes and I spend my time going through a lot of blogs... I hop through them... Make new freidns... Learn something new... Its fun...

Come and hop in...

An 'oops' charging station!

I have realized that when I start making something from Elizabeth's tutorials, they tend to go more on the 'oops' side...

Here's another one...

First let me show you what Elizabeth made...

Now her instructions are perfect... Just like her creations... But I seem to mess up things every time and end up with something that looks like... this...

and...

I think the batting was too floppy for this one... I'm giving it a try again today... Wish me luck...

I just realized that I still have 2 empty slots in my P{l}ay it Forward post... Click here and leave comment if you are interested...

I'm 'travelling' today

 

Rakhis made by Advita!!!

My school friend (yes, we've been through a lot many years of being neighbours, school mates and friends) Madhura, stays in Gujrat (a different state) now. Her 5 yr old daughter Advita had a workshop in school to make Rakhis... It is the thread that we tie on the wrist of our brothers... These are usually decorative... (The ones I got this year had sandalwood beads woven in them).

She made these beautiful Rakhis at school and I really felt she deserved to be featured here...

Thats the lovely kiddo we're toalking about... She is a fashion freak (well, she is fashion crazy her mom must be freaking out... LOL)

She gets down from her castle sometimes...

She can look adorable when she wants to...

And here's her craft...

This is her practice Rakhi...

And this is the one she made at school...

It wasn't selected for the competition by her school, but I thought she'd love it if I feature it here... Please leave your comments and I'll pass them on to her...

Cheers!!!

Raksha Bandhan!!!

As I already told you all, today is Raksha Bandhan... The day to celebrate the relationship between brothers and sisters... I am very lucky to have 3 brothers (the closest) to dote on me... Even my other 4 first cousins equally pamper me...

A quilty post for Raksha Bandhan... Today I'd like to tell you all the story of a quilt - one which I gave to my brother as a gift... I had joined Elizabeth's (Ohfransson) Paint Box Quilt Along... With the kind of fabric available here, I was not really sure how far I could make it... But I decided to give it a go...

I raided the local markets and got fabric... I had to look for 40 solids with co-ordinating prints... I looked for monochromatic ones but could not find it... So I gave up and just looked for prints that went well together...

Coming back with 80 quarter yard pieces, bought from 6 different shops, but I spent only about 500 bucks for it (Thats like 10 US$)  i started feeling I had taken up too much... But I decided to try it and try it honestly...

I had NEVER made a quilt from blocks before... I had NO experience of attaching sashing... I was scared of even trying it...

But I did fine... Mom was in the hospital for a few days and I went over to stay with her for 10 days... It was during this period that I cut up my blocks... Sitting in the hospital, both of us spent a long time talking to each other... The doctor was afraid that the tumor in her uterus might be malignant... After the biopsy, for 2 days, I spent every moment with her thinking, I might not get another chance like this... (The doctor was proven wrong,  thank god! She  was thinking it was Stage 3 or Stage 4 Cancer). All through the time that we spent together, I cut my fabrics... I did not have a rotary cutter then, I had to mark EVERY fabric and cut it individually with scissors... Somehow, it was therauptic during those stressful moments...

Our fears proven wrong, I came back home with all my blocks ready to go... It was then that I realized that I had cut them to make a wrong size! Elizabeth had said 6" x 6" finished blocks, mine were 8" x 8" finished!!! I decided to go ahead and make a large quilt!

I pieced the blocks together with quite some difficulty... The sashings did not match... The block sizes varied, though I had tried really hard to trim them down to the right size... But working without a rotary cutter is quite difficuly...

After spending a lot many days agonizing about how bad the top was, I decided to go ahead and quilt it, because I wanted to keep the quilt as a special memory... I quilted it using straight lines... I had no option, I did not have my bernette then... The straight (almost straight)lines are about an inch apart...

I bound the quilt using all my leftover solid scraps... Then when I had laid it out on the floor to try and photograph it, my kiddo walked in... He took one look at it, ran onto it and smiled...

"Mamma, he pangrun khup chan ahe. Mala awadla!"

(Mamma, this quilt is beautiful. I like it!)

I forgot every mistake that I had made in this quilt... I forgot the agony that evey non-matching sashing strip had brought... I forgot every single mistake and looked beyond... I saw that I had taken it up and completed it...

I decided then that I will give it a go again, sometime later... And I will... Someday...

Chaitanya loved this quilt, and I gave it to him as a gift... The memories associated with the quilt were too precious to let anyone else have it... This quilt will always be special to me... For years to come!!!

Cheers!!!

And yeah, wish you all a very happy Raksha Bandhan!!!

A dilemma...

Recently I have found that blog hopping really gets more visitors to my site... I've made some really good friends, thanks to all the wonderful hops... I was rather hoping you guys help me find an answer to it...

Right now I'm facing a dilemma. I have got a proposal for a large project here in Sangli - An architectural project. Its an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The pay might not be great. But this project will surely get me settled as an architect in Sangli.

Now whats the dilemma? To do it or not to do it. But why would I feel not to do it?

Here are my reasons :
1. Kiddo does not have anyone to look after him when he's at home. No day care / no nanny / no reliable baby sitter. My MIL stays on the first floor of the same house, but she is working and I cannot really depend on her.

2. Whenever I have got work pressure, I tend to neglect home, which in turn makes hubby mad and then we have rows... He does not like me ignoring kiddo (Like i love doing that).

3. After having a really bad beginning here in Sangli I'm honestly a little scared to start with something this big! I'll update you on the history. I had a great practice going in Satara - my hometown. But after marriage I shifted to my husband's place - Sangli. I started my own office here. (afterall I had completed about 16 projects before). But I waited for an year and still did not have a single project. I closed down the shutters and started a job. That year was very taxing for me. I have spent hours in my office playing Solitaire on my PC.

If this opportunity had come at that time, I'd have jumped at it. But after 5 years of not doing my own practice, when this came along, I was seriously thinking about it.

4. If I fail at this - and mind well, I'll have to do everything on my own - I have a very supportive family!(not that they dont want to, but I know they cannot - they're all too tied up)- I dont think I'll do any kind of 'work' again. At times it will also mean disturbing the peace on the home front.

Hubby and I have been through rough times recently. But in the end we realized we both love eahc other too much to let go. We know we will always be togetehr, no matter what. But then, is it all worth it? Would I really get the pleasure of working when I'm not happy at home? Will I get satisfaction from it if I know kiddo is missing me badly?

I'm so confused. Its like someeone has given you an ice-cream just after you've recovered from a bad cold! To eat or not to eat?

What do you guys think I should do?

Making new friends on a monday...