A retreat week

 I spent last week on retreat in Gisborne with the lovely retreat ladies, sewing was done, not as much as usual, I think the sewing mojo for some of us stayed at home! Still we had a great catch up and had a lovely High Tea lunch to celebrate big O birthdays.

the tale looked very impressive before we started.

Some happy lunchers, Abby the retreat host joined us for a while, then we went to her studio to check out what was on sale.

Margaret laid out her blocks before they were joined together, this is an Irene Blanck pattern.

Working and pondering

Carleen has finished her Peas in a Pod top

I made a quilt top to send to Jenny, this is for a friend of hers who is undergoing cancer treatment, she has the same message from the centre of the quilt on a T shirt. She loves the beach as well.

Karyn beginning a quilt top made with French General fabrics

A Maria made quilt top

Carleen beginning another quilt top, this was finished but I didn't get a finished photo sadly.

Maxine was working on these blocks, the centres are machine sewn and the flying geese are hand sewn.

Margaret put together another quilt top, this one an I Spy

I finished off this quilt made by Jan, quilted and bound, I added borders to another quilt of Jan's but cant find a photo, will have to go and search!

morning walk in Gisborne

Love the spring early leaves and blue sky. 

I finished two KOGO blankets and they have been delivered to the chemist depot

I have another 3 to finish.

I have also finished the art challenge from Soma she is planning on doing the same again next year

I found it interesting to do.

Spent some time with this little man early this week. 

I have been quilting Under the Sea and managed to catch the backing while sewing which has resulted in some interesting addition to the back of the quilt, mainly 'cos I didn't want to unpick and do it all over again

Luckily it is a wall hanging and will be against the wall!!

That brings me mostly up to date, I have three quilts to bind, two hanging sleeves to sew on, a challenge to finish - the Bellarine Quilters have a quilt show at the end of the month, so I need to get my skates on. Next week we are in Melbourne while David has surgery to have his DBS battery replaced, so I will not have time when we get back home to finish the quilt show things then.

Right I am off to do things!!

Happy stitching.

 

Another week has gone by

 I have managed to finish up a quilt, well the label still needs to be sewn on and it will be really finished!

The blocks in this quilt were made by Jan, sewn together by Margaret while on retreat, quilted by Joan and bound and labelled by me! Real community effort. Jan has had serious health issues so several of us are helping her get some blocks into quilts.

I have caught up on 15 mins a day creating art - I have a long way to go (ability wise) but am enjoying what is happening

Link to see other art is here.

I am off for a walk, the sun is shining, the wind is blowing, good to get out and get some fresh air.

Happy stitching.

progress

I have started on the Inkfortnight creations, using fabric until I get brave enough to try something else!

I have also finished two more children's Christmas quilts for SJOG.

I was given a Christmas panel by Tracee of Hummingbird Quilting and also used a jelly roll I had here. I tried to do a jelly roll race with it and it didn't work so I am happy it has now been used for something else.  

We have a portrait challenge at Bellarine Quilters due to be shown at the Quilt Show at the end of October, quilting us due to start when I figure out what to do!!  I also need to sew in the needle and cotton.

Under the Sea has progressed to the quilting stage

I am stitching around the fish, animals and stems so far .

I am off for a walk hopefully before another rain shower happens.

Happy stitching. 

Ink Fortnight

 Soma has the first weeks prompts up on her blog, nope it came in an email...woops  😀

Everything you need to get ready

InkFortNight Small Pages, Stolen Moments Hi everyone! InkFortnight starts September 17th! Here is your exclusive look at the first set of prompts and how to prepare. Remember, you don't need any drawing skills to participate. It's about making room for the small pages that don't usually get filled.   The Essentials • Theme - Quiet Earth: small, unhurried things. • Dates - 14 days, September 17–30. Wrap-up blog post Oct 1st. • Prompts - 14 prompts built around Quiet Earth. Follow them, go freestyle, or mix it up. Any medium you like. • The one rule - Size: 2″ to 3″, no larger. That's it. • Who this is for - A gentle, low-pressure challenge for beginners or anyone wanting a daily practice without the fear of perfection. And this isn't only for those who draw or paint — if you sew or stitch, small embroidery work is just as welcome here as ink or watercolor.   Prompts for the First Week   1 Low Hill and Tree Copse 2 Wild Mushroom 3 Floating Leaves 4 Mug & Thermos 5 Polaroid — 2 or 3 small things 6 Wooden Sign — give it a fictional name 7 Rolling Hills with a Couple of Trees Use them in order, or skip around. Interpret them however inspires you.   How to Prepare To help you make the most of the next two weeks without feeling overwhelmed, here are a few ways to prepare your creative space: Basic supplies - You don't need anything fancy. A simple pencil, eraser, pen and a few pieces of paper or a small sketchbook will do. Color - Use whatever you have at hand. Set yourself a small palette to keep things coherent, or change it up daily. Either way works. Paper - A smaller space feels far less intimidating than a blank page. Cut one 8.5″x11” sheet into many 2″–3″ pieces, or mark out 14 boxes in a sketchbook — just make sure the paper suits your medium. Give yourself 15 minutes - Carve out a tiny window for this. Don't worry about creating a masterpiece. Enjoy the feeling of ink on paper, and embrace the messy lines. Drop the perfectionism - I really want us to focus on sketching and community over flawless masterpieces. Give yourself permission to create messy lines and mistakes. Think sit down and unwind, not sit down and draw.   Share Your Work & See the Gallery Everything is happening directly on the website, making this a focused, cozy space for us to build a daily creative habit together. On September 17th, the official launch post will go live. It will include a dedicated community upload page where you can post photos of your daily sketches, browse the gallery, and connect with everyone else. I want to see what you make, and your fellow creators do too! (Note: If you do choose to share on social media, feel free to use #inkfortnight so we can find each other there, too!)   Grab your pens, and let's begin. I cannot wait to see what you create. It will be a lot of fun to do this together! Happy inking, -Soma I am off to get some things together ready to start tomorrow. Ink Torrents  I am sure there will be a link here tomorrow. Happy sitiching.

Progress and an outing

I spent some time last Monday on the back deck sandwiching two quilts

The wisteria is just coming into Bloom

Such a beautiful perfume wafts around  when the breeze blows.

Tuesday I was up early an off to South Geelong where I got the train into the city (Melbourne) to go to the Craft and Quilt fair. 

I had to do duty on the Guild table in the afternoon but in the morning was lucky enough to meet up with these lovely ladies

Over from NZ for the fair. It was wonderful to spend some time with Julie and her crafty ladies. We had a wander around,  sat and listened to the Ninja man giving a talk

I came away wanting to but everything he talked about but then calmed down and realised I really need to finish things I have here not start new things, even though they looked really interesting.

Julie and I at the show, plus a little present I managed to slip into her bag, Julie didn't find it until she unpacked back at the hotel 😉

I took loads of photos of quilts, here are a few 

this looks amazing up close

Then I started my duty at the Guild table,I spoke to several people about the Guild and about my cropped diamonds sewing, the general consensus was that I was mad 🙄 ah well it helped pass the time. Hopefully we will have two or three people interested in coming to have a look at the Guild and several people took the info for the bellarine Quilters quilt show in October. 

My ruby celebration once again

Love the ants

General view from where I was sitting.

Friday we went into Geelong, I watched a seal swim along the foreshore,  I wondered if it was the one that often rests on the floating walk way near by.

Water front in Geelong.

I am off to attempt some foundation  paper  piecing...it would not cooperate last night, maybe today, but first the washing calls.

Happy stitching.