Does it look the same

Does it look the same... in a blatant copy of Theresa's blog on pavlova I invite you to comment- does it look like the picture. The Jamie's 15 Minute Cookbook is the key. But even though it looks a bit different it still tasted great!

Stuff

Lots of stuff happening. Currently enjoying a mini holiday before a work meeting with gorgeous old friend Josephine. And I made her a bag for her 50th. And what fabulous hospitality I have had from her and Nick..... I am a lucky girl.

How time flies.

This day last year I was celebrating turning 50 on a tropical island. Today I had a curry lunch with my work chums... both nice just different. And 30 years ago today I was celebrating my 21st. With a garden party of 100 friends for lunch all dressed in white. It was the 80s after all... Onwards and upwards....

Me

I have not been sewing. I have been very busy. My work as an arts worker involved in community, disability and regional arts takes me in many directions and this last week has been a whirlwind ride. Since Thursday I have been at Kumuwuki/Big Wave in the gorgeous regional town of Goolwa. Here I have met people, made stuff, talked to artists and arts workers, eaten amazing food, traveled on the Southern Encounter train and made a few new friends. One very interesting person I met is Fee Plumley. She describes herself as a tecnoevangelist but I think she is way more than that. She is planning the reallybigroadtrip which is a fantastic project where she gets in a bus and takes ideas and technology around Australia and helps communities  think about this stuff. And she knits.   (and this is my next knitting project)

And I offered to make her a quilt to take on the bus- which is now officially my next project. Scrappy background with the following image appliqued on - I always knew that one day applique would become a part of my quilting journey so now is the time to start. Not so sure about the letters but I am sure I can manage the bus........

A Place To Sew

Easy Come

Easy Go

A new place to sew

Starry Starry Night

Having great difficulty piecing my Stars in Her Eyes quilt. I think it may be beyond my capabilities.... I 'll keep going but I am a bit worried it will just be too wonky to quilt. Do love the look of it though do that is a good thing.

The Greedy Granny

Last week at Sew and Sews we were finally able to get together and begin our scrap swap so that all four members have enough coloured squares to make a granny quilt . ah la Blue Elephant. We started well and everyone was collecting squares but not enough for us to all get enough scraps. Fast forward to this week's Sew and Sews. Back to two - Theresa and I - and she had dipped into her stash  - collected enough fabric for a 25 x25 quilt and had sewn her squares as well. With no other project ready to go, ( Theresa did - a gorgeous grey and pink number I'm sure she will show soon) I kept going with my square collecting. The plan had been to add a few mores squares in and I had cut a few but not enough to cover what I was removing. And so into the swing of the evening - the best bit of quilting - matching and auditioning tiny coloured scraps to bring together such lovelies and with just me rummaging in our Granny Box I had the pick of the fabrics. I was so engrossed I was not really thinking when Theresa asked? "is there enough left for everyone else?" - so fabric guilt set in and I went to bed thinking that I really had been a bit selfish. It was supposed to be a scrap swap - not a scrap plunder!!!. So last night I spent some time going through all my stash and bits and bobs and cut an additional 200 squares to put back into the box. A wide range, some vintage, some Heather Ross, some Amy Butler, some Denise Schmidt Eyelet in Blue (which seems to be so rare I could not find a picture!) and some nice reds and greens. Hopefully enough for everyone else to finish their squares. It seems to me that our Granny Box could become a bit like the Magic Pudding- the more your put in the more you can get out..........

Happy fathers day

The first sunny weekend. Fathers day lunch in the garden...... Yum

Bella's Beauty

It started as Lee's Lovely but now it is finished I really think it is a beauty - I am sure 7 year old Bella will think so . What do you think?

my special leafy binding

The full quilt

the back and a cool shadow

a view of the different quilting stitches

another back

You turn away for a moment 3

Our gorgeous cat Charlie is really affectionate - particularly with people who don't like cats. He really works the room to make you love him. This week at Sew and Sews we were finally doing our granny square swap - but Charlie really wanted to join in - even if most of the girls are not cat people - he still tried pretty hard...... and I love him for it.

love you Charlie

Quicky

I feel pretty good when a quilt is considered and completed before it even gets a chance to hit the wip list. I have a group of girlfriends that I met when G was five weeks old. And the six of us still catch up 15 years later. However this week one the CAYHS group is returning to live in England after many years here in SA. So a last minute decision to make her a quilt. Decided at work on Monday, chose fabric and cut that night, pieced on Tuesday, attempted to quilt on Wednesday, didn't work(a story for another blog) so I quilted tonight, will sew on the binding tomorrow and finish with the embroidery of all our names. And then to Karen on Saturday. Quick but satisfying. .... What do you think. Ps I had the swoon block already made !

You turn away for a moment ....2

Charlie and the ironing board LOL

Pretty Pretty

So happy with my latest finish (although I do subscribe to the mantra ' it's not a quilt until its quilted) so its my latest almost finish.

A new home

With Alan no longer running his business from home there was a spare room in the house that used to be an office....... What's a quilting gal to do! So happy to have a home for my sewing.

Sunday Stash

It's not often that I have new fabrics to show but today - when wandering around my local Spotlight I found some special fabrics - hidden away under some dodgy drill - gorgeous Prints Charming cottons. I just got few but with an add tonight on TV for 30% of I might be back. They are sooooo pretty.

Oh Dear

And I started the year so well and was a regular blogger and then life gets in the way. But I am really so busy sewing and quilting and knitting that it has to be my excuse for only 1 ! blog in July. I have been busy with three major quilts on the go. The lovely starry one from my New York fabrics, the Gorgeous Granny made for my friends Judi in collaboration with my Sew and Sews friends and most recently a fun girly quilt for an 7 year old girl. All roses and checks and pinks and greens- having such fun  sewing out of my normal jade, red, cream, blue, brown pallet. Have taken lots of photos but having currently misplaced the little white boxy thingy from Apple that makes blogging on the Ipad such a sinch.. Will have to keep looking and then hopefully my blogging will be back on track. And in the meantime a totally random photo from my computer because what's a blog without a photo!!!!

Here are the sew and sews girls enjoying at night out at Bario in March - with a messages as to what will happen without a fabric stash....:)

A Domestic Godess?

A joy of being on holidays is the time yo do homely things - like picking bounty from the garden and turning it into goodies - in my case today it was Cumquat Marmelaide.

A Material Obsession

The first quilt I ever made was a pattern made up by me. The second quilt  I made was a variation on a Sarah Fielke from Material Obsession 1. But I knew then that exact cutting and perfect 1/4 inch seams were not for me. So I went on to other things. I did have a brief encounter with a triangle ruler and the Ginger Bliss quilt but mainly I have felt that Sarah's gorgeous quilts were a bit too hard. But after a summer of simple squares, and my successful Swoon quilt- when it came time to use all my lovely Purl Soho fabrics I again turned to Sarah for inspiration.

I like a quilt that I can fathom the pattern from the picture - then I know that it will make sense to me and be within my skill level- but then I found a picture of the Stars in Her Eyes quilt and it was love at first sight. But I couldn't work it out without the pattern - kindly supplied by my star friend Theresa from Sew and Sews. So with some extra time this weekend I plunged into its intricacies . Starting by cutting all the star fabric strips. I then had a bit of a panic about how complicated it was going to be - I still wasn't sure what a 'set in' seam was, so I decided to make the first star before going any further. And I am glad I did.... It wasn't hard but it has puckered badly in the middle.

And now I don't know whether to plunge on ahead and hope that practice makes perfect - or abandon ship. Am sure there are lots I could do with 55 -2.5 inch strips.....what do you think - will they get better with each passing star or should I give up while I am ahead. Either way I am off to sleep on it. And one more thing - there is A LOT of waste in this pattern. All this from one star and there are 12 in the pattern.