Home again

I came back home yesterday afternoon after a wonderful time away, sewing, eating and chatting.

Maria finished a quilt for her brothers 70th birthday present, made in fabric reminiscent of the checked shirts he work to work, she also included sayings

Apparently he is a sayings person.

I finished the strip quilt it needs borders now

And put shashings on this lovely panel I got in Coonabarabran two years ago.

I love the images on the fabric

Another is in production, plainer this time

oh yay!! Blogger has turned it upside down!! Will fix it later.

this was dinner Wednesday evening and it was amazing!! Followed by paclova with berries,no photos of that sorry!!

the garden at the retreat was showing signs of spring. 

That is all from me just now

Happy stitching. 

Gisborne retreat

Enjoying our last retreat for the year at Gisborne,

I have been working on an Aussie Hero quilt today, the top is finished

Blogger has decided to out the photo sideways, sorry, will fix it at the end of the week when I go home - now fixed .

Margaret visited today and worked on her applique

And finished up this section.

Sue got her quilt top together

Maxine is going to put another two sections on her bookcase quilt, I will get a photo tomorrow of her beautiful tiny blocks.

So that is me up to date, off to sew some strip blocks now.

Happy stitching.

Challenge for October

 This is the last one on the list - I have changed the list a bit as things were done, but this month is Finn's floor quilt.

I got this panel from Tracee at Hummingbird quilting in Gisborne, Finn loves the birds and animals

starting to sandwich on the back deck when we had a fine day this week

this panel is about 3 metres long, so it takes a bit of wrangling under the machine.

I have started on the quilting

I have outlined some animals and birds and outlined feathers for a bit of texture

the images are beautiful.

Today I planned to get lots done but the quilt has not gone near the machine, I dropped of quilts for the local group exhibition at the end of the month, came home and then went to help Beth with Finn for a while, came home to find 2 metres of mulch delivered so after a quick lunch went out to spread. A friend of Davids came to help, David filled the wheel barrow, his friend delivered it to the garden and I spread. I have several muscles that are complaining this evening!! Later this afternoon, once I had cleaned up and cooled down, I had a very becoming bright red face, I went back over to play with Finn for a few hours - a storm came over with lightning and thunder, but we also had a double beautiful rainbow - Finn kept me busy walking to different windows to see the bow!!

Tonight I am too tired to do any sewing, might go and soak in the bath! 

Tomorrow hopefully will be a sewing day!

Happy stitching.

End of the month

 And challenge #7, the quilt top is finished. Yippee!! I did have a few hiccups on the way (again)

something looked wrong here 😁

Mmmmm another woopsie

Phew, many hours later!!!

the quilt top is finally finished - this is based on the Daylesford Quilt pattern by Jen Kingwell.

We had some visitors to the garden, first time since we have lived here, the cockatoos came and were munching on the wisteria - they picked flowers had one bite and threw the rest on the ground!!

I do love to see them in the garden but not when they eat the flowers I like to have around. I went and told them off, they flew up onto the roof and clumped around up there for a while and then flew away.

Yesterday I went to Torquay to do some geocaching, it was raining and cool when I left but as the day went on it fined up and warmed up

coastal view near Bells Beach

Limestone being slowly worn away by the sea

Looking over Torquay, the rain heading to Melbourne

Bells Beach - a huge surf carnival is held here  around Easter, Sunday things were quiet.

I had better be off and get some dinner.

Happy stitching.

Progress

 on challenge #7 has been slow here as I have had a cold and cough that has laid me out for several days. When I returned to the Daylesford quilt I needed to do a Pinwheel border, that wasn't happening as my brain was too foggy, so instead I did a strip border

I was happy with that, the next border was a straight strip and I managed that.

Today I sat down to make a 9 patch border, not too hard, I needed 3 strips of the main fabric and 2 of the contrast as one strip of contrast was used to separate the 9 patches. Yep, got that I thought as I happily sewed all the strips together and then cut another to go in between. It wasn't until I started to cut into one and a half inch strips that I realised I had mucked up, you only need three strips for a 9 patch

 

so, I just sewed the strip on!!

There are no quilt police here and the quilt can be how I want it or make it I have decided!!!!

Fortunately the next few rows are plain strips, hopefully I can  do them ok!

Spring has come in the garden, along with very windy and sometimes wet weather

the orchids are inside to stop them being destroyed by the weather

the have new hazards now, small boys and dogs!

The wisteria on the back deck is beautiful and the perfume is amazing, the back door has been open today and the perfume is blowing in on the breeze.

the ornamental peach tree is now in flower, the dark blossoms are the ornamental, the light pink is the fruiting peach that has come from the root stock and produces the most tasty Queen Ann type peaches.

If we can get then before the birds and possums!

progress so far.

I am off to try again!!

Happy stitching. 

September challenge

 

A new month and a new challenge - #7 for me is to finish the Daylesford Quilt.

Started on a whim - I don't remember when, but it wasn't that long ago, maybe it was last year? I just looked back it was June 2023!

I think I need to make pinwheels for part of the next border, but I didn't write down the size - the book has been returned to the library so I am going to guess!!

Happy sewing.

August Challenge

 Here it is nearly the end of August, my challenge has gone well

My EPP finish was in my last post

I have also completed two Aussie Hero quilts, the second will go in the post today

the requests were for the same thing, blue, yellow, green, islands, water, tropical flowers, the Rising Sun badge and other badges. The Rising Sun is machine embroidered by a lady in Sydney, and the other badges are created on the computer and printed on fabric ready to be sewn in,

#1 quilt

and #2 quilt. Very happy to have them done and in the post. I wonder what next month will bring.

Happy stitching.