Paducah!

Sunshine and Shadow has been accepted for Paducah this year

Congratulations to everyone

(and especially Lisa Walton- another from Australia who made it in)

UPDATE: Wow! what a great response, thank you for your well wishes. I've never won anything in Paducah, however I enter because I feel that more important than winning - is being present. Especially with stenciling which is not a well known quilting technique. For me, just hanging amongst the big names I so admire is exciting!

Of course, I'm always trying to better my work, but making my own original designs and showing them is reward enough.

The end is in sight!

Finally the end is in sight!

Whenever I 'plan' something, I can be sure that my idea will be diverted into something else. I had some pretty strong ideas for the next BOM...and no matter what I do...or how I work it, the same design elements continue appearing, demanding to be the centre focus. What is this insisting design? Where is the BOM?? All will be revealed soon.

At the moment I'm finishing up and playing around with details to make sure everything is just where it's supposed to be.


I've been somewhat preoccupied in finishing this stash busting bed BOM quilt these last few weeks. I've gone through my fabric piles, I've been designing and re-designing and pinning blocks on any available wall.

My DD's (who are both all grown up and perfectly capable of moving out and running their own homes) left me this nice postcard on the fridge earlier this week. I thought I'd share it with you as I'm sure many quilters can relate.


More soon....

Totally Delighted!

The Quilt Show: is running a Table Runner Contest!

I have entered my own Tulip Delight and have been really delighted with the positive feedback.

There are some great table runners there, so if you'd like a look, stop by The Quilt Show site and check it out by double clicking on this post title or via my side bar. Log in and look under the"contests" tab at the top of the screen.

In other news, I'm working busily, very busily to get the next BOM launched (it has a mind and a will of its own) - I'm always struck by how determined a stash of fabrics can become - design wise.

More on that soon....

Mess means progress

Guess which end of the table is mine?? It's been a hot weekend - exactly the kind of weather which deflates all my good ideas....but I toiled on regardless, sketching designs in front of the air con. Yes, I'm finally getting there.

Having a whole sewing room to myself isn’t enough, I branch out into the kitchen too. Well, I want to be where the action is.

I begged my DH for a bigger dining table. Both my DD’s vehemently protested – they knew it would turn into a work space. And it has. This means I’m busy. The messy half is mine. The clean half is where my family has to squeeze in to eat meals.

When my DD’s are really annoyed with my creativity nests, they swoop the whole lot into empty washing baskets and put them back into my studio. But these creative spaces are necessary; you never know when certainty will strike!

Meanwhile, my cat cooled off in a box beneath the air con. It's a bit cooler today which is good luck because we are cake baking my DH's birthday cake - which is tomorrow. My DD's now have a tradition of baking a Meringue / Pavlova for my DH's birthday every year, and every year its a different recipe. Hopefully this year's will end up being the best.

Freudian Slips

I have a journal for jotting down phrases that I want to hear again and again (I have a journal for everything) and just yesterday my DD was having a look through when she noticed this slip… have I been quilting too much or what???

Sew/ Sow, so what's the difference?

Pretty much any time is sew time in my household. I think I need to get some housework done.

Where's the new BOM?

(stitching, testing, re-cutting...and stitching again)

It's coming...soon! AND it's another Stash Buster!

I take my BOM's very seriously and am currently in the process of checking and double checking the design. Although there are many new great fabrics on the market I would love to get my hands on - I am again limiting myself to my stash - because I know that like many of you, new fabric is just another few inches taken on the shelf. If I dont like the colours - I will just have to live with it.

The next BOM is pieced and appliqued and is a bed quilt.

This time around I am making the BOM ahead of time (with Red Delicious I was making it step by step with you) and I think I would rather be waiting at the finish line. Sometimes the months just flit by or are too hectic and I didnt love the last minute sewing to get the next block out on time. So this time, I am going for organised! (also, my DD who types up the Adobe instructions demanded that it be this way as she wasnt keen on my last minute habits either!)

The next BOM is coming along nicely, and I cant wait to share it.

When I do, it will be announced on this blog.

Giving and Receiving: My Thoughts

Quilters worldwide really are the best of people. I’ve been thinking about this lately. I feel that I have an obligation to give, since I am such a great receiver. What do I mean?

If we would all share our time and knowledge freely with each other, how great a place would the world be? I know we all have to make a living, but if we all stopped and decided to give something (whatever we can – I believe we are all blessed in some way to benefit others) it would make life so much more rewarding.

I am not asking for people to give away their livelihood or something that they don’t have, just being generous with what they can afford to share – like time, information or a skill.

It might ‘only’ be a smile…or an apple (!) or a recipe (I have used many of those!) whatever it is, it makes a difference.

The other day I was taken aback by a stranger’s kindness. Then I was shocked that this deserved a comment. It seems that we are living in a consumerist – selfish- time where any act of kindness and generosity is so extraordinary that it feels like an exception rather than a daily reality. That’s a really sad place to be.

When I stated blogging I had no idea that there was such a rich community of givers out there – sharing their time, sharing their passion and freely allowing others into their inspirational space.

It is so wonderful to be able to glimpse into someone else’s kitchen, or studio or chooks or just appreciate another’s handwork. I feel like I know so many of you out there even though we have never met or maybe even communicated with each other.

Sharing the things that matter most to us really gives an insight into how different – and similar- our lives are, wherever we are in the world.

I am indeed lucky to be part of this world of friendship.