What to Blog About?

Because it has been a while, there is just too much catching up to do.  So, where to start and what to blog about today?

Maybe the studio journal happenings.  Right.  Shirley and I have had a few sessions together and got a bit done on our studio journals in between her hospital visits.

In the first lesson we were asked “why” and I made this my front page.  Used watercolour pencils here.

Cut out done on freezer paper and then stencilled on fabric.  As seen in Quilters Arts Gift Magazine.

Draw as I stitch.

Colour my day.

On the right, a photocopy of a shell painted in watercolours and chopped up and on the left, designs from the shell exercise.  I am very proud of the sashiko design I worked inspired from the shell exercise.  That is what the studio journal as a workhorse is meant to be all about – helping us to design our own work.  I chose some thread colours from the watercolours to perhaps do some of the other designs here. 

I love this prism design I made up from the picture out of a mag on the right.  Think I will work it as a flower.
This studio journal workshop has been a lot of fun.  The final lesson was sent last Tuesday, but I haven’t dipped my toes in the water on that one yet. 
More to come…………..

A Glimpse of Royalty

It was but a glimpse, a flashing smile and he was gone.
Prince William visited Toowoomba yesterday and we were able to just go down the road to see him passing by.

The Royal Watchers

“Now, where is that dashing Prince William?”

Here he comes!!

He’s in the white car behind the blue one.

And he’s gone……
My sister is clutching her Diana tartan scarf and watching wistfully as the car disappears out of sight.
Call us tragic, but it was such a thrill -  and we swear he looked straight at us and gave us one of his radiant smiles.

Basket Cases

A couple of weeks ago, a group of us went to Joan’s little cottage in a village called Cabarlah and had a day making some fabric baskets.  That is Joan’s husband Barry on the left who was tending to their huge garden and avocado orchard.  You are able to get a peep of Joan standing there on their front verandah (rt) The house dates to the 1870’s and Barry and Joan have painted the walls as close as they could get to the original wall colours.  The house was moved to it’s current site from somewhere else quite some years ago.

(Joan in front of the wood pile.)
They still have a wood stove which heats the hot water,warms the house in winter and on which Joan cooks the meals.

Here are the ladies busy sewing their fabric baskets, and the tubes of fabric they have created.

This is what we hoped to achieve or something similar.  ahem…..  But, being in the true spirit of ‘handmade’ none of them have turned out quite like this.  I will post photos when I am able to get all the girls’ bags together.
Mine is ummmm very different.  Only a mother could love it! 

Just have to make some handles for it now and it is going to sit on my work table and hold bits and pieces.  At least it will be a talking point.

Showing more birthday gifts

My sweet friends from quilting invited me to morning tea and presented me with gifts on my birthday.  I am so blessed to have  such lovely friends.

Marleen gave me this gorgeous bag.  Think I will take it to quilting club tomorrow!  She has put pockets inside and included a little note book for me. (She knows how forgetful I am :-)  She also had a retractable tape measure tucked into one of the pockets. Very handy. 

Joan really spoiled me and gave me all these treasures.  The tatting is some of her Mums and some of the antique laces and cottons are from her Grandmother. I feel privileged that she should give them to me.  She included a lovely cake of soap as well.  Thank you my dear friend.

Yvonne has been making these gnome pj bottoms for all her friends and I had my fingers crossed she would make me a pair for my birthday.  She did not disappoint me.  These are so fun, and tonight it is cool enough for me to give them their first outing.  

I am a little behind with my posting but next post I hope to tell you about a fabulous day we had sewing up some fabric baskets.  Mine is still a work in progress as I decided to unpick some of it.  My husband said it was looking more like a huge Rastafarian beret !!!

Another Birthday and Sweet Friends and a Rant

 Does anyone else use Picasa to upload photos directly from the "blog this" button?  Well for the past couple of weeks IT WILL NOT WORK!!  It is so frustrating.  Is there someone out there more bloggy technical able to instruct me on how to upload photos without first having to compress them?  Picasa does this automatically, but it seems a lot of people are having issues with it right now and Google hasn't fixed it!!@@@???!!!


My birthday was about 2 weeks ago, but I am just getting around to blogging it.  Life seems to be getting busier and busier instead of the expected slow down. 
One of the sweetest ladies in Blogland, Judy, from cjstitching and blooms sent me some wonderful gifts for my birthday.  All the way from Michigan.  Thank you so much, Judy.  Big hugs to you.

Some beautiful fabric, a special pin which she made herself, and a laying tool which her husband made and it is painted in my fave colour:-)  That is the really neat card on the right of the picture.  A town being covered in a whirlwind of quilts.  The card is from Sisters, Oregan.  Looks like a great place to visit - well one can dream!

My younger daughter sent me these lovely flowers and the older one gave me this gorgeous vase from House and Garden (oooh love that shop). 

 P.S.
 Shirley is still in hospital and we hope she is going to be discharged tomorrow.  We will have to just see how her blood test comes back in the morning.  She is feeling much much better and itching to get home and start reading all her emails and messages.

Making a Start - Studio Journal

A friend and I enrolled in Sharon B's "Studio Journal - A Designer's Workhorse" online class.  We got our first lessons (exercises) last Tuesday.  I have made a start and here are the rubbings - or frottage - which I have done to reveal different textures.

I used to do this type of thing when I was a kid - with a penny, and in the 70's it was a very popular pastime to visit old churches and cathedrals in England and do brass rubbings. Never did do that!
It would be great to actually now interpret one or more of them in stitching.  I particularly love this geranium leaf and think I would like to explore more leaves, bark etc. from nature.

The geranium leaf is done on baking paper.
It was really funny running around the house with paper and pencil looking for things to rub.
Then I thought of this side panel of the singer treadle machine.  I love this one and see possibilities here!


Close up.

 
This exercise was a lot of fun, now I am working on the Van Gogh exercise - stay tuned.  
Having said that the 2nd week of lessons is out.  Sharon says to work at our own pace, so that is what we will be doing.

Shirley

For those of you who read my blog and are also friends with Shirley from Shirley's Twisted Threads it is time to give you a heads up on her whereabouts.

(SHIRLEY RELAXING IN HER NEW ABODE)

Shirley is currently in an Intensive Care Unit in hospital.  We managed to get her settled into her new home, did a bit of fun shopping as she showed on her blog and then - Whammy! - last Friday she suffered a heart attack (atrial fibrillation).  Fortunately, her new unit is just a short distance to the hospital and she received emergency life saving treatment and was discharged on the following Monday.  Alas her 'freedom' was short lived, and she was back into hospital with an infection early hours of Tuesday morning, treated with antibiotic and released once more.  Then.....it doesn't stop there......she was called up by the hospital next day to come back for further tests as she had 'bacteria in her blood'.  So, she has today been transferred to a private hospital and will be there for approx 2 weeks to clear this very bad infection.  Bad luck seems to be following Shirley at the moment, but her spirits are high and she still has her wonderful sense of humour!  Pray she will be well soon and back doing her wonderful stitching.

 
(SHIRLEY IN HER GARAGE WITH OUR LITTLE LILIAN)

 This is the scrap quilt I made for the Flood Relief community quilting at Toowoomba Quilters Club. There was a whole bunch of 4" squares which had been donated to our fabric cupboard so I just joined them up in a nine patch in various colourways. The scrap quilts the ladies are making are just amazing.  Pop over to their blog and have a goosey gander.  www.toowoombaquiltersclub.blogspot.com