Saturday, January 31, 2015

Blues

Blues, aquas, teals, turquoises. I delved deep into my scrap bin for all the summer sea and sky shades I could find to make this quilt.


Ever since I first saw what clever Nicole Dacsiewicz had done with the humble hexagon I've wanted to try it for myself.

With the help of her easy-to-follow Modern Hexagon tutorial I made this.


But I didn't stop there.

I tweaked my hexies by rolling back those edges and slip stitching them down, so now they look like stars. Or starfish, as one of my Instagram friends described them :-)


I like the secondary pattern that's happening here now, don't you?

If you think they're a little like Cathedral Windows, you're right! I've been spending some time lately researching Cathedral Windows variations in the hope of coming up with a reasonably simple technique I can teach at St Mark's Quilters sometime.


Perhaps I've found it?


It was so refreshing to work with these cool, calm shades for a couple of weeks.

At the year's send I had staggered across the line, weary, grumpy, over-committed and emotionally fragile, and I needed time out. My friends probably needed time out from me too :-)


So, for a week I enjoyed a 'staycation' at home. I stitched, cleaned out some cupboards, caught up with my paperwork, and walked Chester the WonderLab.

With a little photo editing of this sign from the park across the road, you can get the picture :-)


I also decided to make a couple of changes that might give me more balance in my life, and I chose my Word for 2015 - Balance.


As every quilter knows, creating beautiful quilts can be wonderfully therapeutic, and giving them away can be equally heartwarming.

Di B and I recently delivered 70 Blankets of Love, made by St Mark's Quilters, to Dahlia Brigham (Volunteer Co-ordinator) at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital's Newborn Intensive Care Nursery.

It was only a short visit, but crammed with joyfulness.


For a start, as the three of us were jostling to take turns of getting photos of each other with the quilts in the foyer, a young, very pregnant mum offered to take the photo so the three of us could be in the shot together.

We got talking, as you do, and discovered that her bub (number 5) was due in just 2 weeks. She looked so serene, waiting for her husband to pick her up after her final check up. She smiled as she told us she was having a little girl, and we were full of admiration when she calmly revealed that her 4th child, a little boy, had Downs Syndrome.

This lovely young mum really made an impression on us.


Inside the nursery Dahlia introduced us to some of the staff and nurses on duty that morning, including midwife Jan Polverino who, with her sister Shirley, a quilter, started the whole Blankets of Love venture back in 1992. The concept has since spread worldwide. I was so excited to meet her! Too excited, apparently, to get a photo with her.

Finally, on our way out, we passed this wonderful, whimsical fiberglass sculpture, decorated by Penny Lovelock, part of a fundraising venture by Taronga Zoo to save wild rhinos. Called "Beauty and Hope", it's painted with Javan fabric designs and of course depicts a baby rhino ("Hope") in utero.


We left the hospital with huge smiles on our faces. As always.


11 comments:

  1. How gorgeous are those ocean colours! A change from Di Pink......sometimes we need to take a step back from life for a little while and refresh ourselves. The grop I belonged to in Sydney used to make Blankets of Love, we used them as challenges and had some wonderful results.

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  2. Beautiful quilt Di. I'd seen the original tutorial but you've taken it to another level.

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  3. Di your blues quilt is lovely and as soon as I saw it I thought of Cathedral windows. I absolutely love the rhinocerous and bubs, gorgeous. Good to hear you have taken a break for some Di time, we all need it occassionally.

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  4. Hi Di..your hexagon quilt is stunning...so soothing and calm. Just today a group of friends were discussing we wanted a new technique to challenge us..I think we have found it!! Thank you. Loved hearing about your staycation...sometimes we just need to slow down and exhale! I have been deep cleaning cupboards myself this month..very therapeutic..and where does this stuff come from LOL

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  5. I hope you feel refreshed from your break from the world. I guess we all need that once in a while. Sometimes life gets to us doesn't it. Love the quilt and the changes you made to pattern to have it be you.

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  6. Love your Star Hexi quilt! Thank you for the tutorial...I'm going to have to try these!

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  7. Love, love, love everything about your 'hexagon' quilt, the colours, the design, the negative spaces.

    That rhino is so cute!

    I hope you find the balance you're seeking -- remember, to cast your burdens at the foot of the cross and to carry only the yoke He has prepared for you. (I think I'm talking to myself as well!) if you happen to have the book "Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World" (Joanna Weaver) or can get your hands on a copy, read the story on pp 48-51 about the man with the overloaded wagon!

    And forgive me for preaching and/or meddling -- I care and that's my motivation, pure and simple.

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  8. Your new quilt is a beauty. The colours are so refreshing, and the cathedral windows look is an added bonus.

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  9. I love how you've turned those hexies into Catherdral Windows, they look wonderful!! I hope you're enjoying a bit more balance in your life. I think it's important to take time out to recharge every now and then.

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  10. And I leave this post with a big smile, too! I just love your hexes and how you tweaked them to make the project your very own. The colors of the sea are my favorites! Your Quilts of Love venture warms my heart. Am so glad you shared!

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