Baby Caroline and Her Antique Dolly Quilt

Baby Caroline is the first porcelain doll I ever made - peaceful little thing, isn't she? I have given the dolly quilt to my dear little granddaughter, Heidi Rose. I loved making this little quilt - it is done in the double pinks and I have hand quilted it.

I am going to make another dolly quilt, hopefully this weekend. I have a list of chores ... tidy sewing room (again!), try to install Civil War Diary Quilt CD, tidy computer desk and sort out fabrics for my Hexagon Quilt. Housework and meals are under control - I have a lovely new slow cooker, so it is great to be organized in that field - now to nicer chores!

Best wishes all.

Civil War Diary Quilt Book

More grand ideas! Ever since I was a very young person, I have been interested in the geography and history of the USA. I have been very fortunate and have had four visits to this wonderful country, so all in all have spent several months there and travelled many, many thousands of miles.

Two of our visits were with my husband and two of our children and we visited many memorials and battlefields stretching from Virginia to Louisiana, spending quite a bit of time in the Carolinas and Georgia. My husband Ed drove, so we were able to freelance and spend as much time as we wished sightseeing and spending as much time as we wished at our chosen places.

Several of my fellow bloggers are making the Civil War Diary Quilt and I have just received the book and CD from the author Rosemary Youngs. She was so lovely and efficient about the transaction. When time permits, I hope to have a little dabble at least making a small quilt. Who knows - out of small beginnings ... !

Happy sewing and best wishes all!

Cathedral Windows Bag

A lot of us girls have made the above bag - I have never used mine, but have shown many girls how to make them. The bag is lined as you go and I have put little pockets inside for mobile phone, lippie and keys.

I really don't spend a lot of time sewing little fiddlies, as most of my quilts are very time consuming with hand sewing and quilting.

I'm off on a lovely outing to Jenny's place today to join with our group Creative Threads - will be lovely to be with close friends after being so busy with QuiltWest.
Best wishes!

Orapoora - Viewer's Choice and Member's Choice

Our QuiltWest Exhibition is over and late yesterday further awards were given, raffle prize winners announced, so it was all very exciting once again!
Jenny Southall won the above awards. Jenny is one of our country members from a farm outside Esperance, on theGreat Australian Bight. Jenny's quilt, Orapoora, Australian Aboriginal for magpies, won Best Use of Colour in the initial awards. We have all grown very fond of Jenny, who enters anually and gives pleasure to all with her beautiful handwork. The applique, embellishment and quilting on this quilt are all done by hand. Well done, Jenny and see you in 2009!

Another Day at QuiltWest!

This is friend and QuiltWest Committee fellow member having fun at the Exhibition! It is just wonderful that Carol Pianto is continuing with the time honoured tradition of hand quilting a beautiful whole cloth quilt. Carol made the two teddies in the foreground from re-cycled mink - all the Committee adopted them for the day and the public held and cuddled them in their hands. Thank you, Carol, and best wishes to all!

Opening Day - QuiltWest Exhibition

What a wonderful exhibition of quilts! I will post more photos soon.

This is my Simply Japanese - it is my design using antique and reproduction Japanese fabrics and I have included the dear little pinwheel blocks that I love. I have machine pieced and hand quilted and though not a winner, I really enjoyed making this quilt and it is a favourite of mine.
Best wishes!

Reproduction Nine Patch

I'm up early having my coffee, then off to the Convention Centre to hang the quilts for our QuiltWest Exhibition. All is going very well and opening is tomorrow - I am looking forward to seeing all the beautiful quilts displayed.

This is another antique reproduction quilt of mine which I thoroughly enjoyed making. A very simple 9-patch, but lovely fabrics and there are about 50 different double pinks for the posts. I was fortunate to have the contribution from friends.

Best wishes and enjoy your day everyone!

Tyler's Year 12 Formal

Doesn't grandson, Tyler, look handsome? I'm so proud! One photo with his Mum, Angela, and one with a friend.

Oh, how the years go by - seems no time since he was born looking like a little ET! He's 17 now and thinking of starting an electrical apprenticeship next year - maybe he'll go to uni, but he has the opportunity to do an apprenticeship and Australia has such a shortage of tradesmen.

Happy Sunday sewing for those who choose to do so!

Relaxing Tonight!

Judging for our Quilt Exhibition is taking place at the moment and I managed to get away from the venue earlier than expected today.

Consequently, chores have been done, dinner is cooking and I'm going to have a relaxing evening working on my Hexagon Quilt. Some of the preparation has been done (above), so it will be nice to work at a relaxed pace, especially now Step 4 to OC has been done and my exhibition quilts entered. I was still stitching on labels and hanging sleeve until 10 last night.

'Bye!

Happy Birthday, Kris!

Hi Girlfiend!
This is a shot of a Professional Pleasure Seeker! We'd travelled from Perth/Australia to USA last October.
We arrived in San Francisco for a 4-week holiday in the USA - destination International Quilt Show 2007, Houston. No sleep and off to Macy's and the Estee Lauder counter.
This lady has made a wonderful contribution to the joy, promotion and camaraderie of quilting in Western Australia.
God bless you, Kris, and Happy Birthday!
Love -

Spinning Stars Finished - Whoopee!

Thank goodness - 30 blocks finished! That really did seem quite a chore towards the end - I guess I am just pushing for time now that QuiltWest Exhibition is so close. It really is a lovely block and should add a lot of movement to the quilt.

I have rewarded myself with a lovely lunch - Oven Semi-Dried Tomatoes with Garlic Pea Puree. See jo-da-chef's blog listed on the left hand side - the recipe for the tomatoes is his and they are divine -really worth a try.

Here is the recipe for the green puree - it is a great one, too.
GARLIC AND PEA PUREE
1-2 tbsp roasted garlic (cut a bulb into halves and roast with olive oil )
2 tbsp oil from roasted garlic or olive oil (I do it gently in the microwave with a little oil)
2 cups fresh or frozen peas
20 fresh mint leaves
¼ tsp dried chilli flakes
salt and ground pepper
Plunge peas in boiling water for 2 minutes, refresh in cold water. Drain. (I cook in the microwave for a few minutes until just cooked). Puree with all other ingredients. Season to taste.
Must away and do some shopping, then finish my binding on a quilt to go into QuiltWest - Eleventh Hour stuff. Bye!
'

Step 4 Blueberry Crush - Assembly Line

I am busily sewing away and need a little break!

Will be lovely if I can finish these blocks today.

While sewing, I have made chilli sauce (chillis from my garden) and Joe's semi-dried tomatoes are cooking in the oven (see jo-da-chef on sidebar). Must get back to sewing - best wishes!

Family - Mother's Day!

Back Row: Adrian, Angela, Ben, Bailey.

Front Row: Danielle, Byron, Ayesha, Heidi, Tyler.

We had a lovely afternoon, how fortunate am I! Adrian and Ben are my sons-in-law and sadly missing are my other two sons Aaron and David, who are away working.

Poppa gave little twins blue drinks, consequently discoloured teeth!

Best Wishes!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to All! I feel this applies to us all as we all have or have had mothers.

The "star" today is my dear Mum who will turn 90 in October, God bless her! She is happy and healthy so how lucky can we be. Doesn't she look fabulous in her Peter Alexander's lounge pants? She also has 4 new books to read.

Best wishes!

Step 4 - Blueberry Crush

Back again! Julia and I went fabric shopping this morning, so had to get home and have a trial run on Step 4. I think I am really going to enjoy this Step and I am happy with my colour selections for the Spinning Star. As my Angle Ruler has not arrived yet, I did as one of the girls suggested and ironed both fabrics together, cut 3 7/8" square then cut the 2 together on the diagonal - no line ruling so it is very quick and if you are careful with your cutting the finished half square triangle block is 3 1/2" and finished overall block 9 1/2". I actually ended up cutting 4 layers at a time.

Happy sewing!

Antique Roses

This is a favourite quilt of mine made early 2000. The medallion centre is a design published in an AP&Q magazine

by another designer and the rest is my design. It is hand appliqued and hand quilted.
I had given it to my DD and did a swap with her recently as it is not really a utility quilt! Danielle rented a lovely old Queenslander in Brisbane and the quilt became a little faded in the Brisbane sun, however, in a funny way it has enhanced it's old-fashioned charm.
In the past I was rather blase about my quilts, but have become a little precious about them now as I just don't seem to be such a prolific quilter as I was in the past - maybe too much socialising? No, not really, I do have a very busy life with family, etc. Also, I love the antique quilts which need to be handmade and take a lot of time to reproduce. I have a couple on the go and a few in mind! Hope to start work on a new applique quilt this weekend - off to Ellen's sale this morning to buy some fabric for it.

Best wishes!

Yummy Powder Puffs

POWDER PUFFS

2 eggs separated
pinch of salt
½ cup caster sugar
1 tablespoon plain flour
¾ cup cornflour
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ teaspoon bi-carb soda

Preheat oven to moderate, and line baking trays with Glad Bake.
Sift flour, cornflour, cream of tartar and bi-carb soda 3 times.
Beat egg whites with salt until stiff. Add sugar and beat in egg yolks. Add sifted flours.
Place teaspoonfuls of mixture onto trays allowing room for spreading.
Bake in a moderate oven 10 minutes.
When completely cold, place in an airtight container until required.
Approximately 2-3 hours before needed, join pairs together with fresh cream.
Lightly dust plate with icing sugar, then sprinkle top of Powder Puffs with icing sugar.

The above is a very old Australian? recipe. It was passed on to me recently, by dear friend Pat. The first time I made it I thought the puffs were a little sticky on the bottom, so Pat said she added more cornflour. I have modified the original and the recipe as above is certainly successful and I believe the unfilled puffs can be made ahead quite some time - maybe weeks? Nice to have on hand! I think cornflour is corn starch in the USA.

Enjoy!

Ayesha and jo-da-chef

This is my beautiful 12-year old grand-daughter, Ayesha. She has a twin brother, Bailey. I have boy and girl twins and so do both my daughters. A bit of a record, probably!

I forgot to mention jo-da-chef (click side bar on my blog) - son of my dear friend, Julia. Not only that, a superb chef, also. Check out his recipes - I just love gnocchi and though I love cooking have never had the courage to try making gnocchi - maybe this is the inspiration I need!
'Bye again!

Singer Advice - I Love This!

My, how times change. If you need a good laugh, read the following advice from a Singer Sewing Machine Manual published in 1949.

“If you have ever had trouble focusing at the sewing machine or been a little stressed while quilting … this may just be the help you need. Prepare yourself mentally for sewing. Think about what you are going to do. Never approach sewing with a sigh or lackadaisically. Good results are difficult when indifference predominates. Never try to sew with a sink full of dirty dishes or beds unmade. When there are urgent housekeeping chores, do these first so your mind is free to enjoy your sewing.

When you sew, make yourself as attractive as possible. Put on a clean dress. Keep a little bag full of French chalk near your sewing machine to dust your fingers at intervals. Have your hair in order, powder and lipstick put on. If, you are constantly fearful that a visitor will drop in or your husband will come home and you will not look neatly put together, you will not enjoy sewing as you should.”

'Bye!

Fabulous Sale - Creative Patchwork & Sewing

I have been to Creative Patchwork & Sewing/Mandurah this morning to collect a raffle quilt that has been on display down there. Although I am in no way affiliated with this business I would like to share the news with Perth girls and, Ellen, Debbie and Roselea are very kind and helpful.

I bought the above: 4.3m foreground fabric (a beautiful Judie Rothermal reproduction), .5m of the cats, dogs and both greens, 2m pink, and 3m of beautiful winter white Emma Louise fabric (beautiful and fine for handquilting). This little adventure cost me around A$130, Which is great value for us Aussie girls.

The shop has AT LEAST 30% sale on ALL FABRICS and another 10% off before 11am for Early Birds and is called MAY MADNESS SALE.

It is a lovely shop with lots and lots of fabrics and a great variety of themes - so if you live in WA and it is feasible to travel there, don't miss out on a bargain. The phone number is 08 9586 2733, so perhaps phone ahead first to make sure they haven't run out of fabrics.


'Bye!

Lunch At Left Bank Restaurant - East Fremantle

At the end of March, a collection of quilters got together for a retreat at Shoalwater. A wonderful weekend was had by all, Seaside Stitchers, WAGS and Creative Threads. A lot of us didn't know each other at that time and as we had such a great time together we decided we should stay in touch, so what better way than to meet for a lunch.

Group photo stars from left anti-clockwise - Tiiu, Jan, Myra, Julia, Nancy, Roslyn, Gwen, Louise, Gina, Michele (a Professional Pleasure Seeker), Yours Truly and Helen.

"Therapy In Session" was made by dear friend Gwen and her mother Kay, while Kay was on a visit from Canada. Gwen is a physiotherapist, who works and never sleeps. Consequently she gets to make some great quilts, too.

We had a great day with lovely food, wine and of course, great company and intend doing a repeat performance on Saturday 5 July.

'Bye!

A Farewell Gift from Dear Friends

When I left Brisbane, Queensland over 3 years ago, dear quilting friends, Kindred Spirits, gave me a Bunning's voucher. Upon arriving in Western Australia, and moving into our new home, I cashed the voucher in and bought a beautiful indoor fig tree.

This beautiful indoor, live plant greets me daily when I come into the TV room with my cup of coffee, to my computer. What a wonderful way to start a day!

Sadly, one of us, Jane passed away a little while ago - too, early, but at least I have a living memory of her. Please, treasure dear friends and let them know how much you care. What wonderful friendships we develop through our quilting journeys.

Best wishes!