Zooooommmmmm!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday Chooky hosted another bloggy gathering via Zoom...while she started at 6:00 am with Northern Hemisphere girls and others, I was a late comer to the party only realising mid-morning that hey, I wasn't at work I could play!!...so I joined in just before 12:00 midday our time...hopped in and out at times but I did manage to get a couple of things done...nothing great and wonderous...while others were working on actual projects I did a little "clearing up"...machining binding to two table mats (they'd been waiting a while)...randomly finding some wee Christmas stitcheries with binding strips so stitched on those bindings as well...while I was standing at the cutting table I marked some more masking tape lines on the big-hexie quilt big stitch hand quilting project.  After all that preparation I thought I'd work on an actual quilt top and in a move that was scary, appliqued a pointy star down on my Anna quilt (it's dodgy but it is staying as is!).  I decided I really need to be totally concentrating when doing those with the little applique iron to hand and just generally a bit more complex that I can handle while zoom meeting...so I retreated to the couch and hand sewing and by the time we signed off at about 9:00 pm had all those bindings completed stitched...

Like I said, nothing great and wonderous but done...the orange peels are dodgy with some points missing because I'd mucked up the measurements of the cabinet tops the are to go one so were too small and had to add borders after I'd backed and quilted but they'll do the intended job well enough and better than the bin...I'm going to put ribbon hangers on the little Christmas stitcheries as tree decorations...have even found the ribbon and beads...

Thanks Chooky for a fun day with friends from far and not so far geographically...the best idea to keep us connected...

Happy Stitching...

What A Weekend!...

The stitchy fabulousness the weekend of the mini workshop with the Saturday stitching friends in the last post continued on into the Sunday...a trip to the NGV in Melbourne and fun times with bloggy friends...

That Sunday morning saw me up and at 'em even earlier than leaving the house to go to work...good reason...trekking up to the Big Smoke...right into the very CBD of Melbourne for a special day indeed.  First achievement...driving into the City from West when I have always been a North/North-East girl...a moment of panic with changes to the lanes on the West Gate - seriously VicRoads stop moving the roads on me!...I made it to the chosen car park, whew! thank goodness they haven't moved a building I worked in over 30 years ago!

Very excited I met up with Chooky (yay a Chooky catch-up!) and Carol (nice to met you Carol) at their breakfast spot and off we went to the NGV - not the St Kilda Road location but the Ian Potter Centre at Federation Square, a much shorter walk and straight into the wonderful exhibition.  We collected more bloggy friends in quick time...it was so good to see Elyte again, it had been ages, and to meet Joy and Susan.

We spent about 2 1/2 hours in the exhibition and I am soooo glad I went...a wish fulfilled...I've seen the Rajah Quilt..In. The. Fabric!  Oh my...it is Huge!!!!

 Behind glass of course - can you spot what is missing?

So much to look at...

Imagine stitching in those conditions!

There was so much fabulousness but my photos are not so fabulous....good thing I bought the book!

So glad Chooky came down that weekend, it was the only time I was maybe going to be able to go into the City for the exhibition and it was just the incentive I needed to make it happen...and an opportunity to have a lovely bloggy peeps day out...

Happy Stitching...

 

August Wrap...

August had a go at attempting to redress the extreme lack of stitchy related activity of the last few months...after the lovely stitchy day with the Stawell ladies the next weekend I was back home playing with my local friends...a technique day with Maureen from The Quilting Patch in Rochester. Maureen came down the highway and 9 of us spent the day in the local hall working on a foundation pieced spinning log cabin block.  I took a bag of fabrics with me of homespuns, backgrounds and blenders which was tipped out on the table and Maureen helped me with the selection...

I'm not particularly happy with the second colour being brown but as I only ever intended on a sample block it's really not that important.   Some finished their block on the day...I wasn't one - how surprising, not! The block has 10 rounds and I got to 5 before running out of puff...

The spinny effect really comes into play as the block grows so maybe the browns will start to show better against the beige background by the time the block is done.

Last weekend I spent a lovely day with bloggy friends...Jo came to mine Saturday morning and we set off in Larry into the City. I parked at the Museum and we walked through the Carlton Gardens and the City down to Federation Square to meet up with the rest of the group...a fabulous day starting with playing at L'ucello and the other fun/interesting shops in the Nicholas Building...

 Lovely L'ucello

So many pretties - love this counter display "tree"...

Taking a photo of each other taking photos...as you do...

...on to finding food, ending up in the food hall at David Jones - yummy food and some participated in swaps which we could all ooh & aah over...then on to the afternoon's destination - Morris & Sons...

...gorgeous yarns, so colourful...a fabulous day out...

On the sewing front, some of my Karen Cunningham Design project boxes have taken up residence at the flat and I've managed to stitch the border hexie flowers on Anna...

...the winding hexie trails are next (the hexies are all prepared)...

One of the ladies I met at Stawell lives in the town I work/live in during the week and she kindly invited me to her place for a stitchy evening. The original date had to be postponed, as I had to come home that night for a CFA meeting I'd forgotten about...darn it...luckily, this week, the postponed evening came around...lovely lovely friendly welcoming ladies...like minded in projects and stitchy attitude too...I sat on a couch with a lovely Gardener's Journal quilt - hey Chooky it was stitched along with the SAL group but on the sidelines not as a member....we have arranged a repeat for this week...M was saying how like the slow food movement now there is a slow stitching (or quilting or some such) movement...about time everyone caught up to me, I've been advocating slow stitching for years!...oh I did sew a few stitches on the night...decoration design started at the Stawell workshop stitched...left that project at the flat so no piccy...

Good to get some stitchiness back into the routine...and if you've stayed to the end of this novella of a post...well done you! reward your self with some needle and thread time!

Happy Stitching...

Bloggers, Tea Cosies and Finishes....

I had a fabulous outing today yesterday...a bloggy catch up meet organised in concert with the lovely Melody (The House On The Side of the Hill) held at Bundoora Homestead Art Centre, a gorgeous Queen Anne mansion built in 1899...I arrived to find Melody, Mistea, Simone (Quilts n Cats), Marina (Maisie and the Boys), Elyte (Tea, Fabric & Other Things) and Christine (MacDonald's Patch) settled in the cafe for the first order of the day...lunch!...I had the chicken and mushroom pie with salad followed by the lemon meringue pie and it was all yum!...food and chatter what's not to love...and during the coffee and desert portion Mistea's mum came in and joined us, always good to catch up with T's Mum as well...and you know, we were all having such a lovely time chatting and eating we all forgot to take foodie photos until the table was nothing more than empty plates and cups, not at all photogenic *LOL*...

The Homestead is also the City of Darebin public art gallery and the reason we chose to visit today was to take a look at the Tea Cosy Exhibition...

"Teacosy Tales

2 May – 27 May
Every teacosy has a tale to tell…textile artists, community crafters and teacosy enthusiasts join together in tribute to a treasured domestic icon! Curated by Marg Lanne and Maryanne Noonan, the annual teacosy exhibition is a vibrant display of handcrafted, beautifully embroidered teacosies with all proceeds donated to Cancer Council Victoria."

(source: Bundoora Homestead Arts Centre

Such a fun idea for an exhibition.  An initiative to raise funds as part of the Cancer Council's Biggest Morning Tea all the tea cosies were for sale - a condition of entry into the exhibition.

And this was Mistea's entry...Rumpelstiltkskin(oops! was reading a review of that new Once Upon A Time show focused on that character!) Rapunzel...cool huh...

After visiting with the tea cosies we wandered upstairs to check out the Melrose Art Pottery exhibition (photos not permitted upstairs)...two exhibitions for the price of one!...and given that the price was free, fabulous value for money *LOL*...

I couldn't resist taking photos of the quilting patterns pressed ceiling details...

 and the lovely applique ideas leadlight windows...

leadlight door detail

and how is this for a skylight...just fabulous...

And the finish?...the outing was also the debut of the prototype satchel bag (pattern: Large Tote and Satchel, You Sew Girl by Nicole Mallalieu) finally finished this yesterday morning...a slow process being worked on in very short bursts spaced quite far apart over the last couple of weeks...

There are a few "issues" as I tried a couple of different products for the first time - as well as using a new pattern.  Figured might as well put all the "tries" into one effort *LOL*.  The iron on vinyl that I used for the flap is awesome and I love it but it has ended up a bit crinkly due to being "over worked" because I turned the flap, then the bag had to be turned through etc, a time or two too many.  I also used a very very stiff bag interfacing and while I love the structure it gives to the bag...it stands up very well without external support....boy oh boy was it hard to turn...I had to use forceps to turn the tabs/strap supports...

A quick stop at Spotlight on the way home for poly fill and just like last weekend at Bendigo I met up with a friend I haven't seen in a long time....a friend from my previous working life, it was great to see K and her family...it's been a funny year, the universe keeps putting lovely people I haven't seen in a long time back in my path...I'm not complaining :)...so that poly fill, it was a need but I flagged last night (didn't even finish this post!) and it wasn't dealt with...maybe later today...

Have a great week, hope it is stitchy...


Happy Stitching...