Plus quelques roses de mon jardin

It seems I'm not the only 'rose-tragic' out there! Thank you for the many lovely comments on my last post. Because I promised, here are just a few more roses in bloom at my farm garden right now - I couldn't resist a little French title for this post considering so many of these roses are French Delbards!

'Henri Matisse'

Gorgeous soft red splashed with white paint strokes. Works beautifully with all my David Austins.

Released by Delbard 1995

'Camille Pissaro' Another painterly rose, a real stunner, golden yellow, red striped Released by Delbard 1996

'Citron Fraise' A very pretty rose, ivory edged with raspberry. Released by Delbard 1998

'France Libre'

Not sure if I will keep this one. It is an 'in your face' orange. I don't mind a soft burnt orange, but this screams at me a bit. I will keep him a little longer & see if he grows on me!

Released by Delbard 1995 'Le Reine Victoria' Another amazing old rose, always laden with heavily cupped blooms. Released Schwartz 1872 'Angel Face' A cute, frilly lavender coloured rose. Released by Swim & Weeks 1968 'Jumpin' Jack' A low grower, with beautiful stamens on open blooms Released 1997 Happy weekend everyone! Bloom x

Ring-a-ring of roses

A relatively warm winter in Australia means the roses are out early. Yay! Here are some of mine from my farm garden. Perhaps you can smell them?

'Golden Celebration'

The most beautiful golden yellow blooms, deeply cupped & deliciously fragrant. One of my very favourites.

Released by David Austin 1992

'Falstaff'

Tightly packed double blooms can have 100 petals.

Released by David Austin 1999

'Seduction'

Gorgeous creamy ivory, tinged with pink. A 'must-have' rose, beautiful for cutting.

Released by Meilland 1999

'Reine des Violettes'

Beautiful deep pink, very double rose with an amazing damask fragrance.

Released by Mallet-Malet 1860!

'Moonbeam'

A really different rose, beautifully formed buds open to a frilled, stamen-laden bloom. I love this one too!

Released by David Austin 1983

'Pat Austin'

A real show stopper! The most wonderful shade of copper apricot, with a paler yellow reverse. Delicious!

Released by David Austin 1995, named for his wife.

'Double Delight'

An oldie but a goodie. Wonderful for cutting, the most intensely perfumed rose in my garden. I have a mass planting of this rose, either side of a path (see below), so that you can meander through them and ingest the scent - heavenly!

Released by Swim & Ellis 1977

Am I a rose-tragic? You betcha. More soon!

Sweet Menagerie

The second of my tutorials, 'Sweet Menagerie' is now up on Moda Bake Shop. Thank you to each and everyone who sent such encouraging messages about my last quilt. I was so excited!

This quilt is made from Tula Pink's cute new line called 'Hushabye'.

I couldn't resist another pieced backing! And Belinda Betts of Eucalypt Ridge Quilting worked her magic with her beautiful quilting. The quilting design is called Retro Feathers by Anne Bright.

Do let me know if you use my tutorial. I would love to see your interpretation. Enjoy! Bloom x

Blooming perfect!

I received something special in the post today. For absolutely no reason at all, except that she is thoughtful & kind, Liz at Luv 2 Cre8ate, sent me this.

She found this PERFECT ribbon during her shopping one day, and thought it was something I might be able to use - WOW! I have blogged about the amazing kindness & generosity of bloggers before, and so it continues. And if that wasn't enough, she sent some of her beautifully hand stamped & coloured cards. Thank you so much Liz for a wonderful surprise parcel - you made my day!

Mysteries solved & a birthday gift delivered

Thank you to everyone who left comments on my previous post identifying my mystery object as a button hook - how clever you all are - I know who to ask next time I have a mystery to solve! So it is used for buttoning the many tiny buttons on boots/corsets or gloves back at the turn of the 20th century, making it close to 100 years old. I feel very special to have it my possession.

Since I'm on the subject of tools to make dressing a more pleasurable experience (coincidentally!), I have been working on a little gift for my Mum's birthday.

The pattern is 'Dressy Hangers' by Marg Low, the fabrics are 'Darla' by Tanya Whelan.

I really love Marg Low's well-written patterns. She makes beautiful things. Be sure to check out her blog.

Making these hangers could easily become addictive. They require little fabric, and it is lots of fun putting combinations of fabrics together. Thought it would be great to make one for each of my children each year for Christmas, so that by the time they leave home, they will have a cute selection. Hmmm, so many ideas, so little time ... Have a great weekend!

Help! Do you know what this is?

I have inherited some vintage treasures from my Grandma's sewing box.

An old thread box, and many wonderful buttons, many still on their original cards.

But then there is this mysterious (to me!) tool. It is about 3.5 inches long.

If anyone knows what this tool is and how it is used, I would love to know!

Showtime!

I am drawing breath today after what seems to have been the busiest school term ever for my three kiddies. Term 3 at our school culminates in musical performances. I help out with the costume making which is great fun.

It is always such a privilege to work with the children & get to know them a little.

And of course, there is enormous satisfaction in sitting in the audience, enjoying the sea of colour and watching the whole show come together.

This year's musical was a Zorro inspired work, so lots of bright colours, sombreros & twirling skirts.

Rhubarb, rhubarb, rhubarb ...

Determined that no son of mine will leave home not being able to cook, I drag my 10-year-old, computer-and-lego-mad son kicking & screaming into the kitchen occasionally. Yesterday, he outdid himself!

Yummy rhubarb cake made from this delicious recipe. It doesn't take too long before he is admitting, "This is fun, Mum". His favourite bit is measuring out the ingredients & of course, consuming his creation. "Now, can I go back on the computer Mum"?!

Pom-pom poochie

You only get the chance to write a post title like that once! Monica over at The Happy Zombie has come up with an ingenious little bag made from three fat quarters. She has christened it 'The Poochie Bag'. Thanks so much Monica, perfect timing - I needed a cute little birthday something to make for one of my daughter's good friends.

The only alterations I made to Monica's Poochie pattern, are the addition of some white pom-poms, the smallest bit of gingham trim and some pellon. The fabric combination is entirely inspired by Monica - bright & cheerful!

I won't even attempt to explain why she has called it the Poochie Bag - read The Zombie's hilarious explanation here! If you've not read The Happy Zombie, pop over & visit. She is guaranteed to leave you in stitches & brighten your day!

Unfortunately, I can't give you any details about the fabrics I have used as I picked them up in a local furnishing store & there is no selvedge info.

And for Monica who is keen to know the contents of the bag ... a copy of Roald Dahl's 'The BFG' and the latest in accessory 'must haves' for eight-year-old Australian girlie's, a Smirk pencil case! A bright & happy weekend to all, Bloom.

The names people call me!

My excitement can hardly be contained as I write this post - and I'm not easily excited! Some months ago, the lovely Angela invited me to be a designer (DESIGNER, I SAY!!) for Moda Bake Shop. I know, get out of town! Could it be true? Had she accidently sent the email to the wrong person ...? Well no, the name 'Bloom' and the word 'designer' were used in the very same sentence!

Of course, there are very few people that I actually know in my 'real world' that have any understanding of how exciting this invitation was. Even my family think I'm a bit loony! So I am relying on you all to share the excitement with me, because I KNOW you will 'get it'!

This is my debut project for Moda Bake Shop, my 'Simply-a-Bloom' quilt. You can find the tutorial for this quilt here.

It is a single bed quilt, made from a layer cake of Bonnie & Camille's gorgeous 'Simple Abundance' range by Moda. It is very simple quilt, and to call it a 'design' is generous in the extreme - but I really love how it has turned out. I love the simplicity of it. And of course, it is perfect for using up all those beautiful layer cakes stacking up in the cupboard. I really think this pattern would work with any range of fabrics.

The quilt was quilted beautifully by Belinda Betts of Eucalypt Ridge Quilting, who I am fortunate to have living nearby. The quilting design incorporates blooms & birds and is called Aves b2b by Anne Bright.

In an ever-deepening love affair with pieced backings (Red Pepper Quilts is to blame!) I have pieced the back of this quilt. This meant that only the tiniest scraps of fabric remained from my layer cake.

I feel so honoured to have been asked to post for Moda Bake Shop. It has been great fun to 'dip my toes' in the big world of quilt designing without having to 'jump right in'. I now appreciate the work & time that it takes to write up pattern instructions!

Have fun with my tutorial, & let me know if ever you make up your own 'Simply-a-Bloom' quilt. And please remember to do a little happy dance with me to celebrate! Best wishes, Bloom.