Just finished my little birthday gift for Happy in Quilting. Do hope she likes it! It is a Leanne Beasley stitchery and is a 'couch companion' designed to rest over the arm of your chair as you stitch.
It has lots of handy pockets & a pincushion on the inside. The design was published in Australian Country Threads Vol 5 No 6. Happy birthday, my friend!
These treasures (Zephyranthes rosea or pink rain lilies) jump up out of the garden every now and then. I have to be quick to see them, here one day, gone the next.
MANGO & AVOCADO SALAD WITH DILL DRESSING
Had the lovely company of the Club Quilt girls at my place for the day yesterday. They are all such good fun. Had a fantastic day. The photo is blurred, but reflects the flurry of activity! These women do not dillydally. They are talented & proficient quilters & churn out projects quickly & beautifully! Didn't get many photos so head on over to our club blog to see what everyone got up to.
Fiddling with felt today. I need to come up with a simple Christmas craft for some 11 and 12 year old boys and girls for tomorrow. My guess is that they may not ever have used a needle & thread, and I know for sure I've not tried to teach embroidery to such an audience, so it will be an education all-round! Wish me luck!
Here is second of Mum's quilt-a-long blocks. She's loving it. Mondays won't be the same for the next few weeks as she waits anxiously, sewing fingers at the ready, for the next set of instructions. It is not too late to join the quilt-a-long. This is only week 2 of 12. Pop over to Crazy Mom Quilts to join the fun.
I have grown liliums for the first time this year. I always thought that flowers this beautiful must be terribly difficult to grow. Well, I'm here to tell you they are a cinch! Stick the bulbs in a pot, water them & look at the reward!
This is a very old photograph (probably almost as old as me!) of a lilium my Dad grew. I remember him pointing this photo out to me in our family album many times as I was growing up; "Look, I grew that"! We lost my Dad to bowel cancer in February this year, and I find myself planting things in my garden that remind me of him.
And so here are my first liliums. "Look Dad, I grew that"!
Choose two fabrics for your handles. The contrast fabric will be the one that appears to 'pipe' the edge of the handle. Cut one 1.5" wide strip of main fabric, one 2" wide strip of contrast fabric and one 2" wide strip on iron-on pellon. The length of these strips should be your required handle length. For a small bag, I cut them about 16" long.
Fuse iron-on pellon to 2" wide strip of contrast fabric.
With right sides together, stitch the main fabric piece to the contrast fabric piece with a 1/4" seam, down one long side.
Stitch the other long side of the handle with 1/4" seam. This seam is a little more difficult as the handle doesn't sit flat. The wider contrast fabric tends to curl up a little to the left of the foot. You may need to pin the handle at intervals to assist in sewing this seam. Persevere at this point - all will be OK!
Turn handle (I have a really nifty way of doing this easily, which I will attempt to post about soon). Press handle carefully. You should have a nice narrow contrast strip on each edge of the upper side of the handle.
Top stitch either side of handle, just outside each seam, using a cotton matching the contrast fabric. I use a #10 edge stitch foot on my Bernina as it runs nicely along the seam & gives a neat 'in the ditch' line.
So hopefully, you now have before you a robust but sweet handle that looks for all money like it has narrow piping down either side. Let me know if it works for you! Best wishes, Bloom.
My mum has taught me everything I know about sewing. She has done the most meticulous stitching in her time. Tiny, perfect stitches.
This d’oyley would have been stitched when she was in her early twenties. It is difficult to communicate the fineness of her work in a photograph.
‘Big’ day today – 2nd cricket test between Australia & Sri Lanka is on the radio, and I’m trying to get all my jobs done before the World Netball Championship semi final between Australia & England on TV this afternoon.
I couldn't work out why I was getting dive-bombed by this everytime I walked out the front door:
Here is why:
Baby willy wagtails in the lilly pilly pot plant (say that 10 times quickly!).
Harvest started here today. We only have a tiny farm by Australian standards, and our main income is off-farm, but we planted our whole place down to wheat & barley this year. The crops are terrible because of the drought, but we at least have something to harvest. Many families have no harvest at all.
This is taken from our front verandah this morning. Gotta love a nice, big, new header with a wide comb when there is rain coming!
David Austin rose 'Graham Thomas' in its glory. This is one of his signature roses, well known for its prolific flowering & disease resistance. A beautiful buttery yellow.
I have always loved Amy Butler but have never been quite brave enough to use her fabrics in quilting as the prints are so large scale. But at $2 I figured it was worth a try. But what to do with them? I feel I need a design with at least some really large pieces so as not to lose the style of her fabrics. Oh how I love them - fresh & happy, perfect for a cheerful Australian summer quilt. Would love to hear what you would do with them.
This is the last of my Club Quilt Christmas swap gifts I have to show you. I made this for Christmas 2006. I ran out of time last year & unfortunately was not able to make something with a stitchery incorporated.
The handles for this one are ruched fabric over Rigilene. A little fiddly to do, but they worked really well. The pattern is called 'Pieceful Bliss' by Liz Newton & was published in Australian Country Threads Vol 6 No 11.
My 'Reine des violettes' rose is in full bloom at the moment. It is a hybrid perpetual rose & was bred way back in 1860 by Millet-Mallet in France. My rose is only 8 years old, but I think it has earned a spot in my garden with such a long history. It is a 'living antiquity'!
Oooh, I was really happy with this one too. I made this for the 2005 Club Quilt Christmas swap. It is a Bareroots design from a Country Threads magazine published a few years ago. Photos of this one aren't great. I remember being in a raging panic trying to get it finished in time, so the photos were taken hurriedly before heading off to our dinner together.
There are three embroidered & appliqued heart panels, lots of pockets, and an embroidered band around the top.
The handle was supposed to be embroidered too, but I ran out of time & opted for my favourite handles mentioned in the last post! I loved the little hearts attached to the end of the drawstrings. Hmmm, it was hard to give this one away! Always intended to make a second one for myself, but of course, it hasn't happened!
I made this little bag as my first Club Quilt Christmas swap in 2004. I was really very pleased with it. The stitchery is a sweet design by Anni Downs of Hatched & Patched.
I made a lined pocket behind the stitchery & I think there were pockets on the inside.
This is the reverse side of the bag. The handles on this bag are my all-time favourite way of doing handles. I must do a little tutorial on them sometime. I love how they look as though they are piped on the edges.
Opening last year's gift was another gobsmacking moment. This gorgeous creation was made by Carol and is a stitchery by favourite Australian designer, Bronwyn Hayes.
And of course, the bows on each side undo to reveal more treasures; a needlebook on the left, a scissor keeper on the right & a drawstring bag for threads & stitchery WIPs. Carol is another of our very prolific Club Quilt members & always has something new to show us.
How talented & generous are these women & how lucky have I been to receive such beautiful things for the last three years? Very special.
Now I suppose it is only fair that my next few posts should be about what I GAVE for the last three years! Let me tell you, you have seen the very best, so be prepared for things much more ordinary! I may well even chicken out in the next 24 hours & decide not to show you at all! BUT comparing quality of gifts IS NOT what it's all about is it? ... it's about the spirit of the giving, isn't it? ... see you tomorrow!
I have been trying to get a decent photo of this beauty for days, and this is as good as I'm going to get.
It is a flower from our Cape Chestnut tree (Calodendrum capense), native to South Africa evidently. Very pretty. For my local friends, there is a stunning specimen of this tree in the front garden of The Abbey.
If I wasn't blessed enough in 2004 by receiving Dale's stitchery basket, look what I received the next Christmas! Against amazing odds, I drew Dale's name for the second year in a row and received her stitchery portfolio.
It opens up to reveal plastic zippered sleeves for storing bits and bobs ...
and came with matching scissor holder & needle case!
The inside of the needlecase looks like this.
To say Dale is a prolific quilter & needleworker is an understatement. Her blog is here. She would love to hear from you, I'm sure!
