Emilia's Christmas Fairy Dress

This is the first of three fairy/princess dresses that I am making for Christmas presents.  This one is for my great-niece, Emilia who is nearly five.  The velvet bodice is a pretty royal blue, not the dark Navy blue that the photo shows.  Also there is a gold swirling pattern all over the velvet in tiny gold dots.  With this dress will go blue wings, silver tiara with blue "jewels" and a silver wand with a blue butterfly on the top.
Next will be a similar dress for my granddaughter Juliet only in pink.  Juliet told me that she wanted yellow so I bought yellow tule, sparkly fabric and lace and then she told me "but I like PINK!"  Pink? You told me yellow!  "No I didn't, 'cos I like pink!!" Juliet is 4 1/2 so she will get pink.  The yellow can be put away for next Christmas for my nephew's twin daughters who will be two. Finally, another granddaughter Alyssa will be six in January - she considers herself a big girl now so she would rather have a floor-length Princess dress.

Australian Block for CQI retreat

I have finally finished the block which represents Australia using the colours of the national flag plus the green and yellow/gold which are our sporting colours.  The block will now go to USA where it will be stitched together with blocks representing the flags of every country that members of the Crazy Quilting International group belong. I think I've covered most things Oz - Kangaroo, Platypus, map of Australia, Gum blossoms, Wattle, Grass trees, the Sydney Opera House, Koalas, the flag, a lizard within an aboriginal pattern and Gum leaves. Ooh, I almost forgot - and the famous star formation of The Southern Cross in sequin stars. I found that blue material with the rather subdued pale blue stars and thought that the Southern Cross would really stand out on that background. Hope it does the trick.

This is the block within the lines of stitching marking the seam lines.

Grrrr! I've just noticed that in the photo, there is a tiny piece of white cotton which has strayed onto the blue velvet patch on the left hand side and a little smidgin of yellow thread on the red patch below it and there is nothing I can do about it now because the block is all packed up in the post bag ready to post to Cathy Kizerian on Monday....... Cathy, if those cotton threads are still there, remove them for me please  xxx