My Quilt Show Bounty

Here is my bounty from the Sydney Quilt Show.

Hunky Dory

Verna

Hushabye

Hope Valley

Nicey Jane

 

Kaffe is always good for the stash

Good Folks Voile for a soft scarf. Mmmm

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Sydney Craft Fair

On the weekend my Sister, a bus load of crazy ladies and myself attended the Sydney Craft Fair and Quilt Show at Darling Harbour.
The weekend for me ( and my wonderful, understanding Husband ) started with a very chilly start. We went to get in the car and the whole car was covered in ICE. Brrrrrrr. Paul had to use a credit card to scrape the ice off the windscreen.

I met up with the bus at the shop. We headed to the big smoke. On the way Rachel had a questionaire for us to do. It was so much fun. The winners were announced on the way home.

We arrived in Sydney, dropped our bags at the hotel, and down to the show. My sister was waiting for us. Squeal!! Monique and I had a great weekend planned.

Firstly, the first day at the show. We rushed to see a couple of stalls we knew what we wanted from. One was Prints Charming. We really love their fabrics and ideas for printing our own fabric. Monique and I are hoping to do a class with them next year.

Then as we were going row by row we came across a charity stall. We could sew a block to be incorporated into a quilt for battered women and their children. It was a good excuse to sit and have a sew. We each sewed about 4 blocks.

At about 2pm we were a bit tired. We headed of to get tickets for Sex and the City. I was really excited to be seeing this with my sister. We decided to see it before we returned to our hotel. It was a really good movie. It was like catching up with old friends. We laughed, alot, and cried a bit too.
For dinner we caught up with a bunch of ladies from the shop and had dinner on a boat in Darling Harbour. I had the Salmon and Monique had Lobster!

The next morning started with a yummy buffet breakfast. On our way back for our second day at the show, Monique and I took a detour through Paddys Markets. There is some really good cheap knock-off stuff here. At the show we went back to get the things that the day before we had seen and said " If it's still here tomorrow it's meant to be mine", spending way too much, but the high kept us going.
By lunch time we were shattered. Monique had to go home and I just meandered around waiting for 3pm when our bus was leaving.
We had a great time with lovely people. I think we are going to Melbourne next year. Watch out Melbourne!!

Happy Quilting

Leanne

The Rain Went Away

Finally it stopped raining!! The boys got to go to their sport carnival. It was a nice day except for the freezing wind cutting right through us. ( will nothing make me happy ). Oscar & Archer had fun and attempted all the events. I must say that we really aren't a track and field family. We do better in the pool.

This is my little Archer at the carnival. On the start line with his hands in his pockets.

Here is Oscar (in yellow)in his age race. He did well. He didn't come last!

I can't believe how the time flies. I know I say it often, but really, it's getting rediculous. I think it's because I have to fit everything in while the kids are at school. Work, Quilting, Class Projects, Quilt Designing and all the stuff that comes with running a house and after school sport. God, no wonder I'm exhausted on the weekend.

There is always plenty of cleaning up to do !!! Lego, one of my favourites.

Last week I had 3 quilts come to me for quilting all on the same day. I do love quilting but it takes me a bit to get going. Once it's loaded up and the bobbins are wound and the panto is in place, I have to gear myself up to actually quilt. Once I start doing it, I always wonder to myself, why? did it take you so long to get started. I love quilting.

This is one of the quilts that I have to quilt this week.

Last week I said I had to get a class project finished. Well here it is. I really love it. I would love a whole quilt done in this design. It is made up into a cushion. The photo was taken before the cushion was made up.

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Long Weekend Fun at Our Farm

We just had a long weekend to celebrate the Queens Birthday. Any excuse for a day off, right?
The weather is finally beautiful , crispy, winter days.
Paul decided while the weather is good he should mow the paddocks. Unfortunately for him and Henry (our little blue Ford tractor) the ground is still really wet from all the rain. Henry got bogged!!

When Henry gets bogged I have to help get him out. The last time I was in the ute and I rode the clutch to much and nearly burnt it out, so this time I had to drive Henry.I haven't been on Henry since before we moved in. I forgot how much fun it is. Anyway here are some photos of the occassion.

We love being home. At our last house we went out a lot on weekends. But living here in the country just makes us want to be home.Paul and the boys went scouting for a place on the property to build their new cubby house/fort and here is another view of our barn/house. 

My Blue Boys

It really is a beautiful place to live!

Cheers

Leanne.

Rain Rain go away.........

Oh my goodness, what a wet time we are having. The boys sport carnival has been postponed twice already and it looks like it will be wet on Wednesday, the next day it has been set for. The weekend has been lovely though. It gave the boys a chance to get out and ride their motorbike and work off their cabin fever. The ground is still very wet so there was lots of mud. ( Yay, for me the washing lady!)

On the sewing front, I started the week off well but have achieved nothing over the weekend. I did work at the shop on Saturday and didn't feel like doing anything when I got home. Today we spent the morning cleaning the house ( it wasn't really that bad) because my parents came for lunch. I cooked a yummy pumpkin soup and picked up some sourdough rolls and a damper. Add a bit of sour cream and it was delish! I did get some unpicking done today so that will give me a good start for tomorrow.

I have been designing some new patterns lately, one of which is for a special someone. I saw this fabric and new immediately who it would be for. Add some other great fabrics from the stash and I hope to have it underway soon. 

I really need to get my finger out and finish the samples for my class projects. I will endeavour to finish one of them this week. ( New York Beauty Pillow)

Soon I am hoping to be having a giveaway, so stay tuned for details.

Happy Quilting

Leanne 

Modern Quilt Guild- Second Meeting.

This meeting was always going to make me nervous. We had been promoting the Guild at the local quilt show and shops. Over the month we had about 15 ladies sign up on line and others who signed up at the shop were we are holding the meetings, All About Sewing.

Jody was our Vice President, but owning a shop and doing dancewear as well was always going to be a stretch, so we asked Ally and she was very excited to be asked and said yes. I'm looking foward to working with Ally. Her enthusiasm is quite infectious.

It was all very exciting. The ladies arrived and filled in their membership forms and paid their yearly dues and then it was time to get to know each other. It was great meeting other ladies from all over the coast and talk fabric, designs and everything else you could imagine when a bunch of women get together. Chat Chat Chat.
Here are some of the photos I took.

A great day was had by all

I can't wait til the next one.

Happy Quilting

Leanne

I Don't Have A Title

After the whole crushed wrist thing I had to clean out my sewing room. I had boxes of magazines that had to be sorted through and fabric I had to say yes or no to. With the fabric, I did have a pile I was going to pass on to someone who wanted it, but once it was in a pile together I looked at it and they all went together and now I will be making a quilt from them. It will be a bit more country than modern but I do live on a farm so I can justify the country look. It will be a modern style though. So the fabric cupboard is no lighter. Once it was folded and stacked neatly I realised that I don't have as much fabric as I thought. I did separate it though. The precut fabric is in a different spot.

This is half way through sorting. That is the new cupboard on the left (beech colour).

It took a few days to get through it.

My fabrics all colour coded.

Now all neat and tidy ( for now anyway)

The boxes of magazines will be going to Cassie. She is one of the girls from the Central Coast Modern Quilt Guild. Cassie hasn't been quilting long so I thought the magazines that set me on the road to patch addiction might just be helpful to her. Enjoy Cass!!

I haven't been stitching much this week but when I have I seemed to get heaps done.A Bonus.

Oh Cherry Oh.

This is a quilt I started for Oscar about 2 years ago. I can't believe I left it there so long. It's back out now and it should be finished soon.

My Pledge: to get ALL my UFO's finished this year. (oh no, what have I done) there I said it. Now I gotta do it!

Best go sew

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Livin'in the 80's

OMG, our local radio station has been playing 80's music all weekend. I have been having super flashbacks to a time in my life that was fun, full of laughter and play and when my family spent every weekend at "The River", water skiing, sailing and spending time outside and NO TV.

My sister a I made life long friends at this caravan park. We are still in contact with them today.

This was the decade where I looked like this-

That's me at the back right. I was 14 . We had just had a red iceblock. From the left is my brother Michael, My sister Monique, my cousin Elise and my little brother Graeme.

We looked like this every weekend(minus the red tongues). We were always in the water.

This is Monique and I skiing together. It was so much fun.

This is me in the parafly. It was so high. I can't believe I was such a daredevil back then. I would never do that now.

If there was a horse I was on it. Look at that gorgeous blond hair and long legs. Sometimes I feel like an imposter in my own body. If only I looked like that now.

This is me at home. I loved riding.

Not only did we have great weekends but we lived on a small farm so home was heaps of fun too. There was always something to do. We had a menagerie of animals to look after and heaps of space to run. Mum had a cow bell she used to ring for us to come in for showers and dinner.

The music today brought back all of those memories. I started looking through a box of photos of my Mums' that I have to scan for her. I laughed alot and kept annoying my boys to look at them. Right at the end of the photos I saw one of Adam. I started to cry a little. He was a life cut way to short. We all miss him.

So living in my little bubble in the decade of the 80's wasn't without sadness but most of all it was GREAT! We were kids having fun

Cheers

Leanne

What A Week

Sorry I haven't been here for a while. A lot of things happened in the last couple of weeks.

*I made a quilt for my nephew. I only had 6 days to get it done.

*On the 3rd day I crushed my right wrist helping my husband lift my new sewing room cabinet. I thought it might be fractured but I didn't have time to get it X-rayed so I battled on. Silly me.

*My car has been playing up. I've had a tyre go down, and now it taps when I start it. Time to get rid of it.

*Cleaning out my sewing room. We only moved in 6 months ago, who would have thought I already needed a clean up. It was mostly because of the new cabinet. I rearranged and finally put away all my magazines.
*The wrist is feeling alot better now. I have a couple of nurses in my Tuesday sewing class, one of them checked it for me and she thought it wasn't fractured, just badly bruised.
*I have just spent the weekend finishing the sewing room and catching up on all the house work that is neglected for my obsession

I got the quit finished and I love it and so does the recipient.

So all's well that ends well.

Wyong Quilt Show - Day 1

Today was the first day of our local quilt show.It is a charity event for the cancer care services of Central Coast Hospitals. It is a lot of work but alwasys ends up being fun.
I was promoting the Central Coast Modern Quilt Guild. I met heaps of people who are interested and we had a few sign- ups right on the spot. So the word is spreading. All the usual suspects were there.All About Sewing, Blueberries, Cherry Pie Designs, Floriani, Red Shed Quilting, Down Under Quilts Magazine and a bunch of other talented people. I met Kate Conklin, a local quilt designer, whose blog I have been following for a while. She is just as passionate about fabric as I am and she is very excited about the Quilt Guild. 
My Aunty Judith came all the way from Parramatta on the train to check things out. She was happy that I showed her how to use the stitch regulator on the Bernina 440. She owns one and hasn't yet used this feature. There will be no stopping her now. Happy Quilting Aunty Jude.
Tomorrow is Mothers Day so we are not sure how the day will go. We have heaps of machines on the All About Sewing stand and we all bought something to sew if it gets too quiet. Guess we'll have to wait and see.

More to follow tomorrow

Happy Quilting

Leanne