Speaking of friends

Last weekend Di B and I had the pleasure of meeting in person one of our online friends, Eleanor from Orange in country NSW.

Eleanor, who belongs to online group Southern Cross Quilters (as Di and I do), was celebrating her retirement as well as a “big zero” birthday and she brought along the quilt her circle of quilting friends made as a birthday surprise for her.

Friendship Stars

My lovely friend Janet, from Paddington Patchworkers, has been busy with a Sue Daley quilt. She’s taken to fussy cutting in a big way. How clever are these blocks-in-progress?

 

 

Finally, Di B’s been rather fussy herself with her latest sampler quilt block. That rose looks almost like broderie perse, doesn’t it.

Nice one, Di!

‘Till next time.

Di

Circle of Friendship

In an unheard of act of self-organisation I’ve completed my second Circles of Life BOM 3 weeks ahead of time! Woohoo!

It’s amazing what you can do when you’re having fun – and I sure am with this quilt.

My various circles of friendship are very precious to me, including my online friends around the world.

Di

Circles of Life

Take these delicious fabrics (add a few extras from your stash to spice things up a little).

Blend with these pretty threads.

Add in the delightful new online quilting and embroidery magazine, Elefantz Home, from Jenny of Elefantz, and you’ll have all the ingredients for a beautiful new Block of the Month quilt, Circles of Life.

I’ve never dome a BOM before, and I really shouldn’t start another quilt but the first time I saw Jenny’s quilt (in Issue 1 of Elefantz Home) I fell in love with its freshness and references to the significant “circles” in our lives.

You can subscribe to Elefantz Home here for just AUD4.00 a month and receive at least 3 of Jenny’s patterns every month in your inbox, or buy the BOM block patterns alone from Jenny’s Etsy shop where you can also buy back issues of the magazine.

A large part of my attraction to Circles of Life was Jenny’s fabric choice – Fresh Palette by Carrie Nelson for Henry Glass – but when I went Googling I became increasingly more desperate as shop after shop had sold out. It seems I wasn’t the only quilter to have fallen in love with Fresh Palette.

I eventually tracked down my fabrics at the appropriately named Desperate Quilters.

They couldn’t have been friendlier, especially when my credit card was initially declined. (Note to self: Don’t order fabric on the internet at 2am when you’re past typing straight *lol*).

I’ve pulled several extra fabrics from my stash, and I’m more than happy with the result so far. This summery look is brightening my winter days. Would you like to join me?

You’ll have to wait to see my second completed block, Circle of Friendship, next time

Di

Chester's a big boy now

Remember this cute little puppy?

He's always been a handsome boy.

Now Chester's two years old and his dog walker took this beautiful photo of him enjoying the great outdoors in a park by the sea last week with his mates.

He might be big - but he's still very much a puppy and makes us laugh every single day.

Happiness is …

 

 

 

Cuddles with Nanna (great-grandma).

New Life – and a new kind of camera

Until recently our garden has been distinctly lacking in colour and very wintery-looking indeed.


Up close, though, there’s plenty of fresh new growth to be seen as this week we’ve been basking in springtime sunshine and daytime temperatures creeping up into the low 20s Celsius.

There’s even been some of this –  our first spray of jasmine with its heady perfume.

At my mother’s house the magnolia is bursting into bloom.



My brother, an expert photographer, took far better photos of this magnolia but unfortunately I can’t share them with you because they’re in 3D!
I’d never heard of a 3D camera until he showed us his yesterday (and you know how I like to know about these “toys” )
Hmmm… maybe I need to do a little research.
Here it is...
Di

What a lucky duck!

Tonight this precious little man is off on a big jet plane, with his Mummy and Daddy, to enjoy a holiday in a country far away.

Though it’s summer there, it can still be a bit chilly. So Nanna (his great-grandma), Sarah (his aunty) and I (his grandma) each decided to make Jack something comforting and warm for the trip.

Nanna made him a beautiful blue woollen jumper. I know he liked it because he immediately reached out his little hand to stroke the soft texture. Ahh, there’s nothing like a hand-knitted jumper from Nanna.

Sarah decided Jack needed a light but snuggly flannelette quilt, to keep him warm.

She simply sandwiched two pieces of flannelette together – one plain red and the other featuring yellow ducklings – and quilted them with straight diagonal lines.

Then she bound it with a blue starry cotton, perfect for a little boy who needs a comforting snuggle as he travels.

I’m so proud at the way she’s mastered the art of the mitred corner …

Finally, I made Jack a pair of crocheted sneaker-style booties so his little toes won’t get cold.

 

Bye bye, Jack – what a lucky duck!

Di