Something old for somebody new - Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew

Welcome to the September Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew Link Party! Despite the glorious sunshine here yesterday, we are definitely on the run-in to that big holiday at the end of the year, so what better time to get started on those crafty gifts and decorations that you have been meaning to start since January :)

If you are lacking inspiration, each month we add a brand-new Christmas or Holiday project to the Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew archive. Click on the button at the top of the page to see all of the brilliant projects dreamt up to date by our fabulously talented guest hosts and be inspired!

As an added incentive to get cracking on that crafting every month there is a great giveaway prize for one lucky linker and this month's prize, courtesy of Stephanie at Elephant in my Handbag is a cracker!

I am sure that you can all think of someone who would love a coin purse from this great pattern!

Not only has Stephanie donated the perfect pattern for gift crafting, but she is also giving all budding Ho, Ho, Ho'ers a 10% discount on their first purchase from her lovely online store. The discount code is naturally enough HOHOHO and is suitable for one time use between now and when this month's link party ends on September 30th.

Our guest hostess this month, Sandra, has been known to whip up a novelty purse or two in her time, so there couldn't have been a better fit of hostess and giveaway :)

My own Christmas crafting revolves around the arrival of this little fellow

our gorgeous grandson!

We have already managed to hurtle down the road for one visit and are busy planning the next, but in the meantime I have been working on a project to keep him warm and cosy this winter.

My new patchwork class were working on log cabin blocks and I decided to use that as an opportunity to do something that I have been meaning to do for a long time; make a quilt from my stash of used shirts. The shirts in question were discarded by my husband and sons, so there are some of grandpa's and uncles shirts as well as the new dad's!

I used all 100% cotton shirts except for one which was a linen and cotton mix, so I presume they will all be able to stand up to whatever our gorgeous grandson can throw at them :)

I am thrilled to bits with how this turned out, and can't wait to see the new man in my life wrapped up in it come Christmas.

So that's my Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew project sorted, now it is your turn so head on over to Sandra
and link up your Christmas and holiday makes for September and be in with a chance to win that brilliant novelty purse pattern. The link closes at 23.59GMT on September 30th so you have plenty of time to get that project finished and linked up, and don't forget to take advantage of that 10% discount code too.



Thanks again to all of these lovely sponsors who have provided such great giveaway prizes as an extra incentive to get those gifts done and dusted.

  

 

Tapestry Brooch Tutorial - Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew

Welcome to the April Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew Link Party.

The Link Party that aims to have you all organised with a cupboard full of handcrafted goodies by the time that December comes around :)

This month I am delighted to bring you a guest tutorial from Tina Francis, the creative genius behind such gorgeous makes as these colourful cushions,

and the driving force behind

Something we can all empathise with!

Tina has generously provided us with a tutorial for one of her lovely tiny, tapestries that can be made into a brooch or necklace like these. Aren't they great?

"You will need

12 count Interlock canvas
50 cm of each wool colour
A tapestry needle
Brooch finding (if using)

You can use tapestry wool or why not search in your wool stash for 4 ply, this project is about using what you already have so if you want to use the stitching for a card or gift tag (just attach it with stitch) then it does not matter what count of tapestry canvas you use.

These patterns are great scaled up and you can see from the images that they suit cross stitch too!"

 You can find instructions for the tent stitch used in the brooches here

The chart for the Inca pattern above can be downloaded here

If making a brooch, once you have completed the stitching from the chart trim the canvas so that is has a border of one canvas hole around the stitching. Place the trimmed stitching into the brooch front then push the back into place and fold down the flaps to hold the brooch back in place.

Tina has also offered either a Small Squares or Inca Pattern Booklet (£10), 2 goldtone brooch findings (£6.40), 12 count interlock canvas enough for all 7 brooch patterns in the booklet (£2.50), two John James Needles one size 18 and  one size 24, a small amount of wool to complete one brooch front as this month's giveaway prize. So, one lucky linker could be adding one of these lovely brooches to their Christmas gift stash!

The winners of last month's sewing themed charms were Melissa at Happy Quilting and Sally at Wonky Patchwork.

As ever the link party closes at 23.59 GMT on April 30th, so you have lots of time to get those projects linked up. No blasts from the past though, we are all about stockpiling throughout the year here so restrict yourself to links to projects you have worked on this month:)

An InLinkz Link-up

Thanks again to our lovely giveaway sponsors who have been so generous in their support of the link party.

  

 

Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew - getting closer!

Well you probably don't need me to tell you that that big holiday starting with a C is not too far away, so I shall just say that there are only two more Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew Link Parties before the big day!

This month's Link Party is hosted by Joanne, who blogs at Rose & Dahlia. Joanne is a knitter of the loveliest shawls and is becoming quite the avid swapper with fabulous mini quilts and bags winging their way to very happy swap partners in recent months! Check out her brilliant idea for hanging up your handmade Christmas stockings here


If you need a bit more than inspiration to kickstart your crafting then, of course, there is another wonderful giveaway to tempt you too.

Last month's giveaway of  lovely Liberty fabric generously donated by Sarah at Duck Egg Threads was won by Vicki, who linked up her fabulous snowmen.  This month we have this lovely Christmas fabric, Lost and Found Christmas by Riley Blake designs to help you with those last minute makes, and as usual all you need to do to be in with a chance of winning is link up your Christmas and Holiday makes this month to the Link party at Rose & Dahlia.

Whilst I have a couple of Christmas craft projects underway this month, I have only one finish so far, which is the table runner for my son and daughter-in-law that I made whilst testing Leanne's Friendship Galaxy pattern

If you have made any Christmas or Holiday gifts or Home Decorations this month head on over to Rose & Dahlia  to link them up and you might be the lucky winner of that bundle of lovely Christmas fabric, you know it would be a great addition to your stash :)
The Link Party will remain open until the end of the month so you have plenty of time to get crafting!


As ever, these lovely sponsors deserve a big thank you for their generous support of the link party.

http://www.patchworkelephant.com/

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day - FQ Fabric bundle

Hello and welcome to another wonderful Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day, a chance to discover lots of interesting new bloggers and win some great prizes too, what more could you ask for?

If you are visiting Celtic Thistle Stitches for the first time, welcome, I am delighted to make your acquaintance. Feel free to have a look around and get a flavour of my quilting, crafting and travelling. On the other hand if you are an old friend, thanks for your support and general quilty goodness, sometimes it is all that stops my quilting adventures from descending into chaos :)

Let's cut to the chase though, today is all about giving you the chance to win some quilty goodness, and, boy, do I have some great quilty goodness for you. Thanks to the lovely Kellie, at

there is a fabulous FQ bundle of 7 fabrics from the Dulce Brasil collection from new UK fabric designers, Lewis and Irene, up for grabs for one lucky winner.

Don't those fabrics just scream summer :) (unlike the weather outside my window!)

So, what do you need to do to have your very own Samba party? Head on over to Plush Addict and browse Kellie's fantastic fabric range, then pop back here and tell me your favourite, that's it!

One random winner will be drawn when the giveaway closes at 08.00 GMT, Saturday 17th May (24.00 PST, Friday 16th May).

International entries are of course welcome :)

If you are a no-reply blogger on Blogger hosted blogs, please make sure that you include your email address in the comment. I would hate for you to miss out if drawn because I can't get hold of you!

Good luck!

Ho, Ho, Ho and on We Sew April Link Party

  

With Winter all but out of the way here Christmas past is an almost forgotten memory and Christmas to come seems like such a long way away. However, Paula and I continue in our efforts to encourage you to get ahead this year with our monthly Link Party.

This month we have a lovely mini winter-themed Cross Stitch kit for one lucky linker, courtesy of the lovely Rachel at

http://www.raystitch.co.uk/

To win, all you need do is link up a Christmas- themed or gift project that you have created this month and you could be the randomly drawn winner. So, not only will you have one reason for feeling smug by having a Christmas project done and dusted already, but you could be a winner too :)

This month's Link Party is hosted by Karen at Practically Pippy, who happens to have been the winner of last month's thread bundle from Fluffy Sheep Quilting :) Don't worry winning the giveaway doesn't mean that you will be asked to host the next Link Party!

As ever I would like to thank all of our lovely prize sponsors for their generosity in supporting our efforts to make this your most organised Christmas crafting year yet!

  

I do have a Christmas gift project made and tucked away for December, but it has to remain secret for a while longer, so all I can show you is this sneak peek!

Liberty and Lace, weren't they just made for each other? There is also a bit of linen and Lizzie House in this project too, how much alliteration can one person fit in a project :) ??

Head on over to Karen and get linking up those projects!

As ever you have until the end of the month to link up, so there is still lots of time to finish off that project that is on your to-do list every December but then put away every January for next year! This year we are going to be so organised we won't know what to do with ourselves in the run-up to Christmas :)