All About Sewing- Retreat 2011

The forecast was for rain.
Perfect for a weekend of sewing.
Most of the ladies arrived at Raffertys Resort on Friday afternoon. We had our machines set up even before we put our bags in our cottages.

There was excitement in the air.

A few ladies did a bit of sewing that night but it was mostly about catching up with friends. We had a yummy dinner at the Thai restaurant and then off for a good night sleep before a full day of sewing.

Saturday morning saw us up bright and early for a buffet breakfast ( can you see a pattern starting here ).

We tore ourselves away from the buffet and headed to the conference room.

 The conference room

The Tuesday Girls

The Machine Embroidery Girls

Off sewing. There was two groups. The machine embroidery girls that had a set project to do. Then there were the general sewers. That was Jan, myself and the Tuesday girls, as we affectionately call them. Lots of laughs and chatting and a bit of sewing and all of a sudden it's morning tea. ( the pattern ). The day went so fast. There was trivia, which was loads of fun. Lots of different projects to be inspired by and ofcourse chatting about anything and everything. We accomplished a fair bit though.

Dinner!! What more can I say... I will be going back to this restaurant again. Al Lago for anyone that's interested. The food was divine. We were all so full from during the day (  morning tea then lunch then afternoon tea ). But we managed...

A couple of bottles glasses of wine later and the chatter was really flowing. (along with the wine)  We didn't sew after the consumption of alcohol though. A few of us were up late just chatting and laughing into the night. (my cheeks were so sore from laughing).

A glass of Chardy in good company with Neptune by Tula Pink.

Sunday and no-one really wanted breakfast. We were still full from the day before. A piece of toast and straight into it. The machine embroidery girls finished their project the day before so it was just free sewing.

After lunch I was booked in for a massage. Oh!! it was so relaxing. I need to do it more often. I was so relaxed I couldn't sew anymore. The weekend was coming to an end.

All About Sewing - Retreat 2011

I had such a great time. We have already booked for next year.
Thanks to all the lovely ladies for their company .

Just enough energy for the obligatory crazy photo.

Happy Quilting
Leanne

I'm So Excited!!!!

This weekend is "The Retreat". *Squeal*

A group of ladies from the shop where I work are spending the weekend together to sew , laugh, sew, swim, sew and my favourite, have a massage.!!

We are staying at Raffertys Resort, a beautiful place on the shores of Lake Macquarie.

I already have all my projects packed and ready to go. Suppose I should take some spare clothes. Ha.

I still have a bunch of quilting to get done before I go, so back to it.

Will be back Monday with photos

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Quiltin' up a Storm....

Milly and I are back to work. All is good so far. 

This is the back of the quilt I finished today.

I never liked using a contrasting thread on the back before. I had to with this quilt as the front needed to be off white. I think it looks fantastic...

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Shake the Blues Away.....

I have successfully quilted one quilt!!! It looks like the bugs are out of Milly.
It really got me down. I tried to keep busy while she was out of action but I really missed not being able to quilt.
I feel much better now. I shook the blues away and am looking forward.
My husband,Paul, has been great. At first he was as angry as me that we had bought a dud. During the breakdown it was him that sorted out the problem and true to his style, he just fixed it. He is so clever and I wouldn't be up and going without him. So thank you my Love.

I did get lots of stitching done  in the meantime. I have been working on a quilt that I will be submitting to a magazine.

Here's a little sneek peek.

It is made from Flower Sugar by Lecien. This fabric line is so beautiful. I can't wait to show it to you.

Back to quilting I go....

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Fingers Crossed....

The part arrived.

I put it in.

I turned it on.

It started.

I quilted .....

YAY!!

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Boo Hoo.....

My " brand new" quilting machine is broken!!! There is a computer malfunction and I am waiting on parts to arrive.
In the meantime, I have kept myself busy. I've put together all the blocks from the Guild. This quilt will be raffled at our local quilt show for charity. I have also started on a new quilt.

Guild raffle quilt

Lots of 4 patches

I hope to be back in action by the end of the week. The work is piling up.

Happy Quilting

Leanne

She's Here...

My new Gammill "Milly" has arrived. I am so excited!! She is quite different to my old quilting machine.
I've been quilting up a storm. At the moment I'm still only doing edge to edge but it wont be long and my freehand quilting (semi-custom) will be up and running.

Milly ready to start her first quilt...

The first quilt done...

A little snippet ...

Happy Quilting
Leanne

It Looks LIke.....

Looks like it's going to be a good weekend.
My old qulting machine has sold and the new one arrives tomorrow (Sun). Squeal!!
It's good to be me right now.
I have contacted some magazines to advertise in and it's not as expensive as I expected. So that will be a go. Hopefully in the next two months my little ad will be out there for the world to see. Yay..

I have done some quilting for Ally recently, her projects are going into magazines along with my details as the quilter. So it's all go around here at the moment.

The Central Coast Modern Quilt Guild is going full steam ahead. We have organised some workshops and a couple of bus trips. It's always fun when we get together.

Looks like it's going to be a good year.

Happy Quilting
Leanne

Still Waiting...

"Oh No", was what I said when Kaye the Gammill dealer rang to tell me that she had made a mistake and my new Gammill Vision was not yet in the country. I have already dismantled my other machine so I can't quilt at the moment. Oh well, it's not like I have nothing to do. I have been working on a few new projects. That should keep me out of trouble.

Lots of whirlygig blocks to put together...

Some Soul Blossoms to cut into...

and Innocent Crush

It's very quiet with the boys back at school. It's nice to be alone to do the things I love to do.

Hope you have time to do some stitching or something else you love to do.

Happy Quilting

Leanne

~FOR SALE~ 1 Pre-loved Quilting Machine

I am selling my trusty Design-a-Quilt mid arm quilting machine. It has served me well and the only reason it's going is because I have updated to a Gammil Quilting Machine. It arrives on Saturday. Yay!!
So hear it is:- For $2000.00 this is what you get...

I have had it for 8 years and it hasn't missed a beat. It has had regular servicing. It has a spare motor, a step down transformer ( this is because it originally came from the USA), a bobbin winder, heaps of bobbins, needles, 2 different feet, 4 large reels of quilting thread and I'll throw in some patterns.

The throat size is 11 inches. The table is 4 metres long and has a storage shelf, full length underneath. If it's too long, the table could be easily shortened to fit into your quilting space.

I have quilted quilts up to 3 metres in width and length. It has variable speed and a pointer to trace the pantographs (patterns).


I will be pulling it apart so my new machine can go up. I do have video that I took today of it running/quilting, so if you are interested please contact me. It is also listed on ebay.

Happy Quilting
Leanne

Happy Australia Day...

Whatever you are up to today, have a great day.

We are having a BBQ with lamb burgers and lamingtons for later. All with the aircon on! Sooo HOT!!

Cheers
Leanne

The Quilt Is Sent....

The Auction has finished and I have contacted the lovely Angela to let her know that she had the winning bid. She is so happy that she won it.
I was completely blown away to find out that Angela and her family had experienced the devastation at Toowoomba and Grantham first hand. They are all OK but devastation is all around them. Thank you Angela for your generous bidding and I'm sure you will love it forever.
I can't wait to see the grand total of all the auctions and raffles. At the mid way point, the total was already at $45000. That's a huge effort!! Well done to the crafting community and all those who supported the cause.

On the home front, there is only 1 week of holidays to go. I don't know about the boys but I am more than ready for school to start back. They have eaten us out of food, the house is always messy, the noise is constant and they are getting bored.

So bored they started doing dangerous things....

I started back quilting this week. I have a couple of quilts to get done before my new Gammil arrives. I'm starting to get excited now. It's only a couple of weeks away.
I have been doing a little bit of stitching and organising new things to start.

The beginnings of something new.... 

Happy Quilting
Leanne



Queensland Flood Appeal ~ Auction

There is no time to waste !!!   
Auction is CLOSED...
Thankyou to everyone who bid on my quilt.I will contact the winner Monday to sort out the details.

In conjunction with tonnes of other crafters out there I am participating in 

 I am Auctioning this little striped beauty.

The quilt is 100% cotton fabric,batting and thread.

It measures 42 inches x 59 inches and it is new and unused.

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $50.00 ( Australian ), and all bids will be in AUD.
2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.
3. You bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone, however $30 will be charged for International addresses. Postage is FREE for Australian residents.
5. This auction begins NOW and will END at 10pm on Sunday 23 January, 2011 ( AEST).
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address) . The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been recieved, I will post your quilt to you.
7. Good luck and thankyou for bidding

Thanks to Toni for organising this fundraising event.

From Monday 17 Jan you can find a master list of auctions at Make it Perfect. (Toni's blog). Do go and have a look, you may just find something you love.

Happy bidding and Thank you for your time.

Leanne

Relaxed...

I have really taken time for myself these holidays. I am soooo relaxed I'm finding it hard to get back into the swing of things.

I have been doing some stitching and really enjoying it as I have no deadline for the things I'm doing.
I have been catching up on all my favourite mags from cover to cover. Spending time on my verandah just enjoying the view and watching the boys play their days away. The constant drown of the cicadas is almost meditative.

I hope you too can find some time out for yourself : )

Happy Quilting
Leanne

It's Just So Sad........

Toni at Make it Perfect is putting together a list of bloggers who will be running auctions from their blogs. For more info click in the icon above.


I sit here in disbelief and shock at the horror that my fellow Australians in Queensland are going through. The rain has been falling for 19 days straight. The soaked land just can't cope with that amount of water. Towns that have been unindated with water 2 & 3 times in the last two weeks. Homes destroyed, crops lost, stock drowned. It just wont end. Then there's Tawoomba and all the towns down river. An inland tsunami!! who ever heard of such a thing. Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, will be under water just like 1974 ( the worst flood in history ) or worse.
I can only just begin to understand what they are going through. As a child, like many Australians who live in coastal areas or near rivers, we endured our fair share of floods. Water lapping at the floorboards, cars moved to higher ground, smelly water all around you.That was nothing compared to what these people are going through.
We have had news that everyone we know in the area is safe and dry and they will endevour to help those in immediate need around them.
I wish there was more we could do. I have made our families donation but it just doesn't feel enough.
Watching houses float away on TV, only to find out later that there was still people inside, has had me sobbing. I know it's not about me, but I just feel so sad for all these people.

Leanne : (

Holiday Season

We have been having a wonderful Holiday Season. Christmas was a great time spent with family. My Hubby has had 10 days off work. Its always nice to have him home. He got himself a little gift before Xmas and he has been spending a lot of time with it

AC Cobra- Paul's new baby

Our Family

The Boys on Christmas morning

Our giant Xmas table full of family. 22 to be exact!

I have got a bit of stitching done but with Paul home we have done a lot of relaxing. Just what I needed after quite a hectic year.

Happy New Year and I hope you are enjoying the holiday season as much as us.

Happy Quilting

Leanne

I Have Finally Realised......

... that I can't do everything.This year has been a huge learning curve for me. I have tried to have a finger in every pie. Machine quilting, pattern design, teaching, dance wear, President of the Central Coast Modern Quilt Guild . As well as all the stuff that goes with being a Mum and Wife and keeping a household going. I have finally realised that I can't do it all. So starting from NOW I am a Machine Quilter that teaches one day a week and I will have more time to be involved in the Guild and especially more time with the Boys. There, I've done it!! It's official!!

Now some exciting news to go with my revelation. I have purchased a new GAMMILL quilting machine. "Squeal". It's on the boat from the States right now. I should have it early Feb. I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself. I feel a bit sad that my old Design-a-Quilt will be going to a new home, but not that sad. It has served me well and given me the confidence to know that I can do this for a job. What a job hey. Doing something I love to do and being able to share it with other people. 

Gammill Vision 18-8

This is my new baby. Her name will be Millie ( I know that's not very original but I like it )You will be able to send your quilts to me to be quilted. Over time I hope to be offering not only all over designs but a bit more custom as well. My blog will have all the info about my service. ( I will be updating it over the summer holidays)

Happy Quilting

Leanne

Red Sky At Night Shepards Delight............

Some of the sunsets over our farm are just glorious.

This tree turns some amazing colours at different times of the year. It is the coolest dead tree. Even though it's dead it's full of life. There are so many bird nests in it and goannas sometimes climb it and hang out at the base of it. All different birds use it as a stop off to wherever they are going. Hawks perch up on it waiting for little mice to reveal where they are and then they silently swoop down to grab their bounty. Sometimes back into the tree to devour their catch.

Enjoy the Sunsets

Leanne

School Presentation Day

I am so proud !!! Oscar received the top class award for the year. Talk about a big old baby. The tears were flowing. I'm a proud mumma..........

Cheers

Leanne

Cousins

Paul's Sister Sheree and her son Sam came from Western Australia for a week or so. It was really great to catch up. We haven't seen them for a few years. Sam has grown so much. He and Charlotte ( another Cousin) came to stay the night. They all had fun out in the paddock doing archery and on the giant swings and the trampoline. All under the shade of our only big tree.

In the shade of the tree....

Ethan

Charlotte

Oscar

Sam

Archie

Cheers

Leanne