Moore Patchwork & Quilting

Ric Rac sanity

Remember the ric-rac braid madness I showed you the other day?  Well what a difference a day makes -

I took Gina's advice.  I cut pieces of cardboard from a cereal box (actually it was a couple of boxes); I made notches a couple of centimetres apart down the side of each piece (this helps hold the braid in place); and then wound the ric-rac around the cardboard.

When Gina suggested doing it, I remembered that we used to keep our embroidery floss that way when I was younger. 

All the left over bits and pieces -some of them were no more than scraps - I put in this container and I'm going to put in my art corner to use in my mixed media art.

I'm pleased I took the time to tidy up the basket (it really didn't take long at all) because I can now see exactly what ric-rac I have.  I discovered that I have oodles of black - in all widths - really don't know why I bought that. I don't think I ever use black!  I have heaps of purple - in different shades and widths - and very little blue.  At least now I will know what to buy and what not to buy.

Thanks again Gina.  You are a wise woman.

Until next time

Lyn

Through the Garden Gate

My copy of Creating Country Threads magazine (Vol 12 No 11) arrived today and on page 16 is a project by me!

This issue of the magazine is a Stitchery special and I was asked to design a cushion cover using the 30s reproduction fabrics. It of course had to have a stitchery design.

The finished size is 14" square - I find that a good size for a cushion.  Sometimes I make them bigger but generally I make them this size. The stitchery is worked on my favourite cotton/linen fabric and I hand quilted the strips around the stitchery with Perle 8 thread (another favourite).

They don't show the back of the cushion, but I always finish mine with a button closure.  Mum always uses zips on her cushions  but I use buttons simply because I always have plenty on hand.  When I first started making cushion covers, I tried making the back without buttons or zips - a bit like a pillow case where there's an overlap of fabric.  But, I found that the cushion became untidy fairly quickly.

One tip for cushions is to use a size larger insert than the cushion cover.  This gives the cushion a lovely  'plump' look. Hope you like the cushion!

Until next time

Lyn

Canberra visit

I had a lovely time in Canberra.  I had forgotten how pretty it is this time of year - with all the Autumn colours and before the leaves fall off the trees.  The weather was 'fresh' but not as cold as I thought it might be.  It's the first time I've been back to Canberra since moving up to paradise 3 years ago so I was interested in seeing how things had changed.  Civic (the city centre) is still my favourite shopping centre and there are even more nice little cafes around town.

At Addicted to Fabric in Phillip I bought a couple of pices of fabric - just couldn't resist the brown and pink spot - don't know what I'll do with it but it was so pretty.  I also picked up some felt flowers and some crocheted flowers.  I plan to use these in my mixed media art.

At Rosemount Patchwork Shop I bought the book - Back to Charm School.  It's one of those books that have been on my Amazon Wish List for a while but was pleased to be able to see it in person.  I love the projects in it and I've already picked out one project that I will start working on first.

They were the only 2 patchwork shops I managed to visit this time but plan to go down again later in the year so will visit the rest then.

I enjoyed my visit but was pleased to be back in paradise.  I enjoyed living in Canberra all those years but I know that I could never go back to the cold weather and paradise is where I intend to stay.

Until next time

Lyn

 

Winner and Colour

It was nice to see that I'm not alone - most people seem to like to take along a project with them when they go away.  I'm just back from Colour Conference for a couple of days.  I took along my project bag with a stitchery in progress and wouldn't you know it? I didn't do any stitchery at all for the 4 days I was away!  The only time I opened the project bag was to take out the scissors to use on something else.

Thanks for your comments.  I have plugged them into the random number generator and number 2 came up. That's you Meredith. Congratulations.  I hope you enjoy the pattern.

Colour...

I had a wonderful time at Colour.  The speakers were fantastic as was the music, the food, the people.  Everything in fact.

' Every year we are given a gift at the conference - something that represents the theme of the conference.

This year the theme was Revolution of Peace. We were all encouraged to take home the messages we heard and apply them to our lives.  We were also made aware that we are not alone - that there are lots of women standing with us.  At times we think we are insignificant and can't make a difference.  But when each one of us joins with another - the influence is multiplied and strengthened.  We have in us the capacity to change things.  You can see the mug I bought - it has the slogan 'She is one, she is many' which reminds me that I am a part of something.

The gift was a beautiful prayer journal.  It is divided into sections with each one representing the nations of the world. Each section has a photo of women in that region; a brief description which might include a testimony, bible verse or quote;  and a space for me to record my prayers for them. It's beautifully presented and I'm determined that I'm going to commit to using it for its intended purpose and not just flick through the photos!

I was really tired today just trying to digest everything I heard on the weekend.  I know that it will take a while for it all to outwork in my life.  I can't wait until next year.

Until next time

Lyn

 

Relax

At the start of the year I always write out a list of goals I want to achieve in the year and then at the end of the year check back and see how I went.  I surprised myself last year - I actually achieved most of my goals and the ones I didn't reach are in progress. Last year I went a bit further and chose a 'word' to reflect what I wanted to achieve.  The word for 2011 was Bloom.

For 2012, I've chosen Relax.

Sometimes life gets very busy and there always seems to be a million things to do and not enough time to do them.  I compound this myself by trying to do more than I need to. This just makes me tired and stressed.  So this year I'm going to do things a bit differently. I'm going to relax.  Relaxing for me involves taking time out to do something creative especially something with my hands. For example, knitting or stitchery or drawing.  Helps me to slow down, take a deep breath, and re-group which helps me to get things in perspective and focus on those things which are most important.  The funny thing is, those days when I feel like I don't have time to stop and relax, that's usually when I need to!

But things are going to be different this year, when I feel my blood pressure rising and I'm breaking out in a cold sweat - I'm going to reach for the knitting needles/stitchery/pencil - and take a break.

I made a mixed-media poster for my studio noticeboard to remind me to refresh, renew, revive - in other words Relax!

Until next time

Lyn

Another year older....

Well, as it happens every year, last Friday was my birthday. We celebrated by having brunch with one of the boys and his partner and then in the evening we went to the Brisbane International Tennis Tournment to see the womens semi-finals. It was very exciting and I must say, much better than on tv. You get a real idea of how fast and hard they hit that tennis ball. At times it was difficult to see the ball so I don't know how they manage to hit it at all.

I picked up my mail today and there was a parcel from my very thoughtful friend Caroline.

The big button in the front is actually soap - very nice smelling too. Isn't it great? Being such a button lover, it really took my fancy.

Just behind it is a set of beautiful note cards with very summery photos evoking feelings of lazing around.

The parcel was a complete surprise to me and really made my day. Thanks Caroline.

 

 

Nigella in the Kitchen....

Another present I received on Friday was this Nigella Lawson cookbook.

I have to confess that I am a Nigella fan. It only happened quite recently - in the last month or so - when I started watching her cooking show on ABC1.

I think what I love about her is that her recipes are easy to make and she uses ingredients which are readily at hand. (Admittedly some are fairly indulgent like the bread and butter pudding made from croissants.) I also love the way she enjoys eating what she makes. (You should have seen how she tucked into the aforementioned bread and butter pudding.)

I'm not a keen cook but when I do cook I like it to be fairly straightforward and this book is full of recipes that fit the bill. There's a great recipe for Blondies in the book - keep turning to that page - think I will have to succumb!

Until next time

Lyn

Merry Christmas

Well, I say it every year, but I honestly can't believe how quickly 2011 has sped by and we are now at another Christmas Eve.

Christmas can be a really busy time of year with shopping and cooking and eating (love the eating) and it's easy to get sidetracked by all the craziness and forget about what Christmas is really about.

Christmas is a time when we celebrate the birth of a son (Jesus) given to us as a gift by a father who loves us unconditionally. He doesn't care if you've brought the right present or cooked the best pudding his desire is to be in relationship with you just the way you are.  Through Jesus, I have grace (love and forgiveness that I've done nothing to deserve) and hope (I don't have to fear the future).   The best thing? These gifts don't cost me anything and last an eternity. Now that's worth celebrating.

From my family to yours - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. (Don't eat too much pudding.)

Bloggy Holiday...

It's holiday time again and I will be taking a bloggy break until 9 January.

Until then

Lyn

Winner and Stash Busting

I think that the Quick Unpick is reluctantly the most popular gadget.  I say 'reluctantly' because it's one of those things that no one actually wants to have to use but all do.  I actually have 2 within easy reach - one in my needlecase for stitcheries and one next to my sewing machine.  Both are well used.

I plugged the numbers into the random generator and number 5 came up. That's you Erin.  Congratulations. If you could please email me your postal address, the patterns will be on their way.

Stash Busting Summer....

The other day I was looking for a project to start and I started going through my stash and like my knitting stash, I was a little surprised how it seems to have grown over the last 12 months.  There are pieces of fabrics in all different sizes - from 2" squares to one metre pieces.  I then made a rash decision - I'm not going to buy any more fabric for the remainder of the summer but only use fabric from my stash. The only exception is my fabric club instalment other than that it's strictly fabric stash until 1 March. I'm calling it the Stash Busting Summer (SBS for short).

Once I made that decision I actually felt inspired and made a list of things - table toppers, throws for the sofa, bags - that I would like to make and just haven't gotten around to.  I'm hoping that by the end of summer not only will I have some nice new items around the house, but will have a few empty drawers in my stash cupboard.

Charm Square Quilt...

The first thing I pulled out of my stash was a pile of charm squares.

They've been sitting in a basket on my studio floor for quite a while now.  I think I had originally planned to make a cot quilt from them but that just didn't happen.  I can't remember the name of the range but I think they are an American Jane range.

I really need some small quilts to use as table toppers on the deck and I think this range would be perfect.

I thought about different blocks I could make but in the end chose half-square triangle and four-patch blocks.

My plan is to alternate the blocks in five rows of 5 blocks. I'm not going to add a border - I will just bind it.  Finished size will be 20" x 20" - just right for the small table on the deck.

I made a good start on the weekend and have finished up with 32 x 4 1/2" blocks which gave me a couple left over.

I have just finished laying them out on my design floor and will hopefully have them pieced in the next couple of days. 

Until next time

Lyn

Studio Tour

On a narrow bit of wall in the kitchen area of my studio, is a series of four cross-stitch designs.

 (they do actually hang in a straight line but I was standing at an angle when I took the photo - think it's because they are behind a door!)

Anyway, I stitched these quite a few years ago now and they are part of a series in the Cross Country Stitching magazine.  They always run series called Collectibles consisting of at least four cross stitch designs based on a theme.  This collection was a seasonal angel and each design has a Bible verse relevant to the season and a different angel.

I also used some beads (the small Millhouse beads) and buttons in the designs as well. The actual stitched area is approx. 5" x 7".  I think the designs are timeless and add a bit of 'country' feel to my kitchen area.

Rocky Road....

I'm not a big chocolate eater but I do love Rocky Road.  Every year I make up a batch for Christmas and we are having a family 'thing' this weekend so I made a batch on Sunday.  I filled a large container to share around but put some in a smaller container for Robin and I to enjoy.  Needless to say we have enjoyed it already and every time I look at that container sitting in the cupboard I'm tempted! Will it last until Sunday?

Until next time

Lyn

Sewing Notions

Still cleaning out the in-laws house and this week I unearthed some more treasures.

In a drawer of an old desk in Joyce's sewing room there was a supply of 'old' sewing supplies.

This is just a sample - old buttons and fasteners; thread on wooden spools; Semco embroidery floss; and bias binding.  And see that pinkish thread on the cards? That's for darning hosiery. What a novel concept.  I'm glad those days are over.

I also found a box of old paper sewing patterns - from the 50s and 60s. Some were so old that they literally fell apart at the touch. Others were still okay.  It was fun looking at the different styles and I tried to picture my mother-in-law wearing them.

It's kind of sad going through someone's life.  Made me more determined not to keep 'stuff' for the sake of it but enjoy things I have and give them away when I no longer use them.

Until next time

Lyn