Finished!

This is the last diamond post. Hmm, I see a bunch of you heaving a sigh of relief, well, I did too! The finished wallhanging is shown above. It is my monochromatic quilt for the 4 season quilt swap, so I can't tell you who I just posted it to. All I can say is that it is now in the hands of Australia Post. (That great bunch of people who exist only to cheer bloggers up. They're terrific!) I was very pleased with it when I had finished and any little problems I had had with it were resolved with the quilting. I quilted and bound it first and then I raw edge appliqued the raindrops on. I like the way the raindrops turned out. If you want to see any of the other monochromatic quilts go have a look at the 4SQS flickr group.

The back, showing the quilting. Gosh! It looks like someone else's blog. (I haven't finished a quilt for such a long time. It's a nice feeling, think I might do it again soon!) Now, for the story. Once upon a time, (long before I knew anything about blogs) my Bradley had some work to do that involved him travelling to four different states. He thought that the best way to do this would be to drive and camp and take the whole family with him. We were fortunate enough to be homeschooling our six children and decided to just take off and go. (Mr 14 had just turned 2. He was so cute! Sorry Mr 14.) One morning when we woke up Mr 14(2) was lying in my bed with me and we were looking at the ceiling of our tent. He said, "Mummy, stars!" and pointed to the ceiling. I looked and saw the stars, and was confused. There was a tarpaulin over the top of the tent. How could we see the stars through the tarpaulin? Hang on, it was morning, we shouldn't be seeing stars! As my mind tried to process the seemingly impossible sight of stars on the ceiling of our tent, I began to realise that what we were seeing was not stars, but ice crystals glinting by torch light. Did I mention that it was cold? Who goes camping in winter? Oh. That would be us!

We continued travelling and the kids got pretty excited because everywhere we stopped people were talking about the possiblity of snow. None of the kids had ever seen snow before. (Or I, for that matter) We eventually ended up in a freezing cold place on Mrs 24's birthday. There was much talk about the predicted snow. We went to visit a local landmark and tourist attraction hoping to see the snow. (We had heard on the radio that it was snowing at this place.) We were disappointed because there was no snow, but decided to have a touristy look anyway. Bradley and the older children decided to have a look around this landmark whilst I gave Mr 2 a breastfeed. (The places I have sat and breastfed babies and children!) They were gone for quite a while and when they came back were very excited. Apparently as they had climbed up this landmark the rain had become snow. At the top it was snowing, but down on the ground level (where I was) it was raining. That is what my 4SQS quilt depicts. I hope my swapee likes the quilt!

Okay, I'm showing the diamonds again.

So I think this is getting boring, but it's all I've been doing, so here are the diamonds again. This is the finished quilt top. (I'm quilting it at the moment) I have had some questions, so I thought I would answer them here. I put the diamonds together with the sewing machine, not by hand. I have always been a machine piecer and quilter. My excuse has always been that I don't have time to do anything by hand, but I think that I just like the look of machine pieced and quilted quilts. I guess I am impatient too. Mary said that it looked like snowflakes to her and that's kind of what I had in mind. I want to applique some raindrops on it as well. Not sure how they will look yet. I have a couple of ideas in mind and I will see what they look like once I get to that point. I am very much a "see how it goes" quilter. I don't often have hard and fast ideas. One of the reasons I like to quilt is to express an idea. This quilt is a story from my life. (I'll tell you the story when I show you the finished quilt.) So, back to the sewing machine.

Diamonds, again.

My diamond quilt top is almost together. It has been an interesting experience. I am a bit of a perfectionist so there has been lots of unpicking. (I do tend to exaggerate normally, but I'm toning it down here for the blog. Usually I would say that I had unpicked a million seams! So lots is quite tame for me.) I was despairing when I only had about one sixth together. It seemed as though I would never get it done to a standard I could live with. I was close to chucking it in the bin. (I considered getting out the fabrics and cutting out a whole bunch of squares to replace the diamonds. You know, I know squares!) But that whole practise makes perfect thing kicked in and I started to get the hang of it. The missing diamonds (it should be a rectangular shape) are together, I just need to join them to the quilt. It is just a small quilt, but I have spent soooooooo much time on it! I wanted the diamonds to be small (they are about two and a quarter inches from tip to tip on the long axis of the diamond once they are sewn in) so that they would be in proportion for a small quilt. Tomorrow morning I will quilt it and do some raw edge applique on it. I am pleased with it so far. I am also pleased with myself because I have learnt something new. Okay, so enough back patting. Back to the sewing machine!

Our Picnic

I forgot that I had actually remembered to take my camera with me on the picnic. (Wonders will never cease!) I couldn't resist posting them because I wanted to remember the lovely afternoon we had together.

Mr 8, Mrs 24, grandson and Mr 14 were on the rug. Grandson had his favourite toys with him. They follow a theme. "Babies". Babies just love babies!

In this photo you can see grandson with a mirror. He loves to look at himself. He loves to look at babies!

He spent quite a while playing with his uncles. He ate lunch. The uncles ran around. And then they all went to check out a glass house.

This shows the transition from favourite toy number one, to favourite toy number two. The doll. (A baby in fact!)

Easter is coming!

I was checking out the latest from Moda when I came across these lovely fabrics. My first thought was easter, my second birds in general. We went to the botanical gardens today. It was a beautiful day in the gardens. Blue skies, white fluffy clouds. Lovely shade and green, green grass. We ate lunch and then lounged around. Ducks came onto the grass near us, Mr 8 desperately wanted to chase them away. I encouraged him to be kind to the ducks who were in search of their lunch when a magpie swooped down and chased them away! Later we heard the magpie warbling high in the plane trees. What a beautiful song they sing. It's a song that reminds me of camping and hiking. Of my various homes as a child and the homes I have lived in as a grown up. I felt happy to just 'be' while I was listening to that magpie song.

Umbrella bloom by Sam Spenser

Isn't this the coolest? One of my favourite things on the internet is street art. (It's also one of my favourite things in real life too!) I regularly search it out. Last week I found this on the Wooster Collective blog. Beautiful. So vibrant and happy! How could you not smile when you saw this tree? Next time you're looking for inspiration, google "street art"!

"Diamonds are a girl's best friend"(and so are swap Mammas!)

I have started piecing my diamonds and have had a lovely time playing! I have no particular plan for this quilt, just a hazy picture in my mind of how it should be. I love to work like this. It is the most fun and I find that all sorts of ideas seem to flood into my head when I work like this. (Not always to do with the project at hand either!) Of course, it's a little scary working without a net (I mean plan!), so if I am making something for me very often this is the time that the project gets put away into a cupboard. This, however, is my four seasons quilt swap and MUST be finished! Which is a great motivator and the way my quilting skills grow. I am so grateful for all the swap Mammas who dedicate time to running swaps. You are the best!

Those log cabins

I have been very busy of late. X-rays, doctor's appointments, dentist visits and seemingly being out all day every day. Everybody is fine, these are just the general visits that seem to be neccessary. Nevertheless, I have still managed to sew. (How could I not?) Just haven't had time to blog about it. These are the 'fresh' log cabins I have been working on. They are going to be a bag for me so it's a bit slow going. Spent last night making a tutu for Miss 16. She had sports day at school today. Years 12's colour was pink and they were encouraged to come dressed up. So, with pink as her colour what else would she wear but a tutu? With a pink t-shirt of course. She played volleyball, basketball, netball, soccer and theatre sports dressed in a tutu. Have to see if she has a photo of her in it. (I'm sure she will, what with cameras in mobile phones etc. Never before in the history of humankind have lives been so fully documented as they are now!) Miss 16 and Miss 12 go to school on the other side of town and we have been looking for a house to rent closer to school. (For about six months now!) Finding a house to fit us all in has been very difficult. And it takes so much time! So, we're still looking. (I have 'viewed' four houses, all at different times this week, all on the other side of town!) Hopefully we will find a house soon!

Over the weekend.....

I'm sure I've said this before, but here goes anyway. When I was in grade one at school we had a book devoted to what we did "over the weekend". It starts with me drawing and the teacher writing and ends with me doing the whole thing myself. Every caption in the book begins with "over the weekend". This book has had a profound effect on my life. I now remember things I'm sure I wouldn't have from that year of my life because I kept the book. Anyway, back to the sewing and crafting! Over the weekend I sewed some new coasters to put in my etsy shop. I also made a whole bunch more "fresh" log cabins for my bag project. It was all so fun. Cutting out and sewing. It's ridiculous how much I enjoy it. So, if you love my Licorice Allsorts Coasters rush over to the etsy shop and make them yours!

Yesterday - Storytime with Grandson

We went to a friend's house yesterday to celebrate a birthday. Mr 14 and Mr 8 played Magic the Gathering all afternoon. Grandson played and played and read stories (with his Mum, Mrs 24). Friend knitted. And I alternately stitched (a new block of the month I am getting from the patchwork apple) and cut out diamonds. (Yes! More diamonds!) Grandson loves books and we all had a lovely afternoon. I will show you some pictures of my "makings" later.

"Frost on my Window"

This is Mr 14 holding up my exciting new wallhanging, "Frost on my Window" by Wil Opio Oguta. Isn't it beautiful? It is my 4 Seasons Quilt Swap 5 (monochromatic). When I got home last night the package was waiting on my desk. I got really excited, and then I saw it was from Wil! My excitement doubled! I had seen Wil's work before because we had both participated in the same Journal quilt challenge. Thank you Wil, I love it! More so because I have never had frost on my window. Now I will be able to have frost all year round!

Mr 14's new best friend.

Mr 14 must have been feeling lonely because he made a friend this afternoon. He has been building with duplo for the last couple of days. He has also discovered his future career. He wants to be a lego designer when he grows up. (I think every boy does!)

Mr 8 also befriended the duplo dude. He has been demolished and rebuilt several times over since this photo was taken. At the moment he is a bridge!

"Fresh" Log Cabin

We went to the Central Market today. I love to shop there. The atmosphere is wonderful and you can get things there that you can't get elsewhere. I was in need of a ham/bacon hock (soup is calling my name) and at this time of year the market is the only place to find them. When we got home I was still playing with "fresh" things. Moda's "fresh". I am making myself a bag and log cabins just seemed to be the way to go with the jelly roll. Hopefully I will be getting "fresh" all long weekend!

Shopping bag

The South Australian government have banned plastic shopping bags from May this year. I have started to make some cloth bags to take to the supermarket. I sewed them, but don't think of it as sewing I guess. Then I saw this lovely post on Lera's blog. My bags are quite different. My Bradley was unimpressed with them. They were not enough like the "green" bags you can buy at the shop I guess. I have arthritis (yes, at 45!) and find holding bags difficult, so I made mine with long handles which will suit me much better. (Over the shoulder). The fabric is furnishing fabric from Ikea (New Year's sale, $3 a metre) and I will be able to throw them in the washing machine. I think the bag ban is a good idea because there are those of us slackers who would go on using plastic bags just because it is easier. Sad to admit I'm a slacker, but there it is!

Mail!

Look what came in the mail. My favourite magazine. I just love it. They now do digital subscriptions. Great for us overseas (no postage!!!), but not sure if I would love it as much. Would you prefer a digital magazine? Or a real life one?

Diamonds

These are some of the fabrics I bought yesterday at the Patchwork Apple. They are for a secret project I am working on. I am using diamonds, which I have never done before, so it is all very thrilling and exciting. I love that I can be excited by a simple stitching project! I'm going to sleep now to dream about my stitching!

Big night out?

So, I applied her face and I am less than happy. I thought I would be clever and utilise my 2008 learned skill, colourque. I used my new derwent "inktense" pencils. Who knew their colour would be intense. (Okay, I'm playing dumb here, obviously!) She looks like she had a big night out on the town and went to bed without removing her make-up.

These photos were taken after she had had a swim in my front loader, and I had "fixed" her up a bit with a white inktense pencil. Hmm... it's all experience, isn't it? Next time I would paint her face on with some fabric paint. Still may do that to "rescue" her.

Hello March!!!

Hello March. Hello Autumn. Hello beginning of the end. (Of summer) Hooray! (Sorry Leanne, I can't wait for winter!) I am looking forward to this month. I painted a face on my doll today. It's okay. Now I have to name her. I am looking forward to new projects, new goals and new fun. I am going to see Jane at the patchapple this week to acquire new fabric! What a great week it will be!