Free stuff

In a moment of clarity: "Mum, it doesn't cost money to think!"...
...sometimes I would give anything to see into that little mind for a day!

Goals broken and made

I'm well and truly behind the unofficial (and probably unrealistic) quilting goal I set myself this week, but making progress all the same... Maybe there will be more sewing next week? (I'd love to have this one quilted by Thursday... for no other reason than that there are other exciting projects waiting to be tackled).

One job down

One of the odd jobs I needed to get done was to make Christmas cards. I found pre-cut cards (with matching envelopes) reduced to clear, and screenprinted these images onto them. The designs are inspired by old Japanese textiles, and I love how they turned out. I used my textile paint, which actually gives the cards a 'flocked' look.
I always try to make extra prints onto 'scrap' paper when screenprinting... this time there I also managed to remove the paper stencils from the screen without damaging them. They have dried nicely and I will be able to use them again!

The life of the idle rich

Now for the highlight of this week... I just had my groceries delivered to my front door! That's right, I sat at home enjoying a coffee while someone else pushed a trolley through the supermarket, collecting my groceries and delivered them all nicely boxed and bagged to my front door. Although this whole concept puts a smile on my face every time I think about it, I do feel a bit bad for them. I console myself with the fact that he/she probably didn't do it with a twirling, dancing five year old, a gravity-defying one year old, and one-yet-unborn squirming and kicking in his/her belly...

But still, isn't that just the height of luxury? Thanks heaps for the tip, Leanne. This will work wonders when the baby arrives! Now please excuse me, I have an appointment at the beauty salon while my maid cleans my house... tee hee....

P.S. you don't actually need to be rich - I thought the $8 delivery fee was well worth it in my current circumstances - grocery shopping has been my most challenging household chore lately!

Prioritising

There hasn't been a whole lot of sewing happening here, just very brief fragments of time snatched here and there. There are other priorities to focus on. Caleb and I are busy sorting out who is boss. And there is also a whole host of odd jobs to tackle in preparation for summer holidays and the coming baby.

Hannah has been busy though! Phil is in Botswana and Hannah wanted to count down to when he comes back. So she spent the afternoon drawing and cutting lovehearts......and carefully copying numbers onto sticky labels to make her 'counting-down calendar'...
...with lovehearts "because we love Daddy"...an afternoon well spent...
...only 17 sleeps left!...

Quiet

Sometimes there are moments in the day when everything is blissfully quiet, and you revel in it for a moment, until you realise with a fright that the quiet probably means that the one and a half year old is probably deeply occupied with something he shouldn't be...

This time the alarm was unwarranted... it's hard work reading all about The Very Busy Spider!

Reflecting on a journey

I have been putting off writing this post, I suppose because its a little embarrassing. But because I want this blog to record my quiltmaking journey, here goes... As I already alluded to in an earlier post, my work has been blessed with much publicity recently. Last week I received several copies of duQ138 in the mail, with my work featured. I didn't know what to expect here, but am over the moon with the look and feel of the article. Also, a week earlier I picked up duQ137 at the local newsagents, when I noticed that another WA artist was featured, only to find images of three of my quilts in that issue. I also received a box full of calendars featuring quilt images (including two of my quilts. And the colour catalogue for Art Quilt Australia (including my quilt 'What does YOUR family look like?') also arrived by post last week.

We (Phil and I) often stand in awe of how God has blessed my work to date. I never dreamt five years ago that my quiltmaking journey would have been so exciting to date. I am so thankful that I have a supportive husband, as well as the resources (time, opportunities) to have developed this interest. While the opportunities continue, I certainly hope to make the most of them, and look forward to seeing where the journey goes from here, especially which quilts are going to appear over the next years!

Perfect weather for elephants

Seems that I didn't have to wait till next winter after all, to get rain photos... It's been like winter here today - perfect weather for cutting out elephants! I got this pattern from Jodie, and can't wait to sew it up, especially after I rediscovered this old op-shopped blanket in my boxes of fabric -made at the old Albany Woollen Mills once upon a time, and perfect for elephants!

1089 - 1

The golden elm quilt is pieced. I hope to layer it tonight when everyone is in bed! Interestingly, there is a piece left over (not sure where it is supposed to go)...
...so I guess that technically, there are actually 1088 pieces in this quilt!

Tea party

Grandma treated our kids to some little containers full of 'tea party treats' last week, so on Saturday they enjoyed their tea party in their kitchen, while I enjoyed my own little tea party behind my sewing machine. Do you like my new red teapot?
I have to confess, the packet of chamomile and cinnamon tea in the background was staged. I was actually drinking a nice spicy blend from T2. The chamomile was bought on a whim recently. I haven't tried it yet, as I actually have absolutely no need for anything soothing and relaxing to help me sleep... I think I fell for the packaging :). I look forward to trying it some day, though.

Exciting discoveries

There are so many exciting things to discover in life!
Like dees... and durds, didas, dods and dats (or bees, birds, spiders, dogs and cats)...
(Bees not visible, but they were definitely there, collecting pollen from our roses)
...and playing in the rain...
...and of course, Tim Tams!
The idea of capturing the joy of rain has been in the back of my mind for a while now, so I loved seeing Caleb's pure joy at having escaped out into the rain for a while this morning. Now I just need to work out how to photograph rain. I wanted to capture drops trickling down the window, but none of our windows actually got wet this morning. Might have to wait till winter to try again!

1089

There are 1089 pieces in the 'golden elm quilt I am currently piecing. At last count I had pieced 330 of those, but I think I've done at least another 200 since then. Making progress!

What does YOUR family look like?

Please meet ours:Starring Aaron, Hannah, Grandad, Aunty Arls, Ted, Caleb and others!

As promised, this is my Art Quilt Australia 09 entry. The statement that goes with it is:

Little children love to draw themselves and others near and dear to them. Tongue between teeth, they concentrate oh-so-hard on getting all the important features in place. I am privileged to observe such artists at work every day!

I believe that Art Quilt Australia catalogues will be available for purchase via Ozquilt Network Inc after the exhibition closes, if you can't make it there in person!
Enjoy your day!

Art Quilt Australia 09

Still thankyou for all the encouraging words regarding my quilt publicity! I have since seen a digital version of the article in DUQ and am quite excited about how its looking! Also, for those who asked, the WAQA presentation went well the other night. At least, I was very happy with how it went. Although I was very nervous about it, I try to view occasions like this as good learning opportunities, which it was! An added bonus was the feedback and encouragement received on my work. That always gives me new enthusiasm for my quiltmaking!

Art Quilt Australia 09 opens at Craft ACT tonight.

Art Quilt Australia 09 is an initiative of the Ozquilt Network Inc and Craft ACT. Selected works make up this major exhibition drawing on the finest contemporary Australian art quilters. Coinciding with the 2009 Ozquilt Network national seminar to be held in Canberra. (from the Craft ACT website)

It will run till 19 Dec, so if you are anywhere close, do go and see it! My quilt 'What does YOUR family look like?' is included. I hope to post a picture of this sometime next week. Meanwhile, if you go, I would love to hear how you experienced the exhibition!

A perfect opportunity to make mess!

When the baby of the family spends the day (and night) with Opa and Oma do you:
a) make the most of a rare opportunity to relax and rejuvenate
b) make the most of a perfect opportunity to make a mess like never before...
I'm sure it wasn't too hard to guess what actually happened! We had bits of fabric and paper on every level surface in the kitchen, dining and living room, including the floor. We had fabric scissors trimming quilt pieces, scalpels cutting paper stencils, spatulas mixing paint, and squeegees making prints... We had paint at the dining table, on the kitchen sink, on our hands and our clothes... from 9am till 5pm.
But the result of all this mess is that my next quilt is now ready for piecing, with all relevant screenprints applied to the pieces that will make up the background. I don't know how I would have ever managed this without this (unplanned) Caleb-free day. I think it would have taken two weeks of intermittent printing to get this far...

Snapshots from last night

Time out

Several days (and nights) of dealing with a feverish baby have left me somewhat incoherent, which is not so good considering I am scheduled to give a presentation for the WA Quilters Assocation tonight. So last night Phil prescribed an early night, and today I have put aside various household jobs and duties to have an extra-relaxing day. I am listening to this as I piece my 'golden elm' quilt, and when my body dictates a break from the sewing machine I am putting up my feet and being inspired by the latest issue of donna hay... and rather enjoying it all!

Little lady

Pippa arrived in the mail this week, all the way from Slovenia. She's handmade by Maja, and I think she's adorable. Her etsy listing noted that she can usually be found with a pencil in her pocket, and loves to draw leaves - she can't help herself - so I thought she would fit in well at our house!

Almost exciting as Pippa herself, is all the Slovenian stamps she came with:

Baby's got style!

Edit: if you haven't seen enough of this little man yet, there are more pics over at my sister's blog!