Our weekends are basically booked out at Sewjourn this year (unless mid-December interests you!) but just before Christmas I did have a cancellation for 19-21 March and have been really slack doing anything about it!  Anyhow, it’s only 3 weeks away now but I have finally gotten around to making it available on the Calendar and blogging about it.  SO, if you and a group of friends are free on those dates and would like to book a crafty weekend away please email me.  Alternatively, if there is just you or one or two friends and you would be interested in sharing Sewjourn with some other like-minded crafty people then let me know too and if enough people are interested we might be able to organise a weekend.

PS.  The girls who were there this weekend have added their photos to the flickr group.  If you have been to Sewjourn and have photos please feel free to join the group and upload your photos too!

…I was sipping champagne and getting to know the other 6 girls at our workshop at Sewjourn whilst Kellie entertained us with the story of her quilting journey (and showed us her gorgeous quilts and cushions…….up close!!)

It was the start of an amazing weekend. Lara summed it up beautifully. It’s sometimes hard work learning a new skill. And for me who is used to precise rotary cutting, sewing straight lines and matching seams and points this was out of my comfort zone! But Kellie is a fantastic teacher and her patience and encouragement nutured us all towards producing pieces we could be proud of.

We appliqued…..

And quilted….

And watched and listened….

And unpicked….

And practised….

And stayed up very late………

Needless to say I was absolutely exhausted by the end of the weekend between concentrating hard on learning and cooking for everyone as well.  But it was worth it!  I came away inspired by Kellie and by the other 6 lovely ladies who had joined us. By early afternoon Sunday we were at the stage of hanging the fruits of our labours on the new design wall. 

It always amazes me to see the different color combinations that people come up with……they were all so different but all looked fantastic!

These are the faces behind the masterpieces…….

Back L to R: Me, Kerry, Mary (one of the gorgeous girls who made the drive from Canberra to join us), Kylie, Donna (Mary’s travelling companion)

Front L to R: Lara and Leah

What a creative group of girls………and hopefully they all had the chance to relax and enjoy as well.

And here’s some close ups of my first attempt at raw edge applique and free motion quilting………..there’s lots of room for improvement but it’s not too bad (especially when it’s home here and not sitting next to Kellie’s exquisite work!)  The plan for this weekendis to make it up into a cushion……and then there’s the Pretty in Pink pattern to start on……..

because it’s only one more sleep until Kellie’s workshop at Sewjourn!!  Along with 6 other girls I’ll be spending the weekend sewing, learning and eating!  I’ve gathered together all my threads and fabrics and I’ll be heading off in the morning.  Can’t wait.  So come back next week and hopefully there will be lots to tell……..and who knows even some photos of finished projects!!!

Meanwhile last weekend we had our Giveaway Day at Sewjourn.  A few friends and I spent the day chatting and sewing along with 6 other creative ladies.  Here’s a few photos…………

And Saturday we spent the day doing this!  We’d always planned on having a design wall here so finally it’s ready to go…….just in time for this weekend’s workshop!

Edit…….this was meant to be posted about five days ago but due to lack of reliable internet access here it’s been somewhat delayed!  Sorry….fingers crossed this time.

We’ve had lots of fun over the Christmas week spending time with both families, giving and receiving gifts and eating lots!

And now it’s lovely to be in Lancefield just spending time together, relaxing and doing a few odd jobs around Sewjourn (well, Mal is anyway!) 

There hasn’t been much time to reflect on the past year but it has been a busy one.  I was reading my declarations here and whilst they probably haven’t all been achieved I don’t feel like it’s been a total loss either.

 I DID turn 40…….whether I was really fit I’m not sure!  It was lots of fun though. 

 As for finishing one project a month, well lots of things have been finished but probably not one per month.  There was of course the unexpected quilting for those affected by the bushfires and there were many projects finished there so if you count those then I think I can give this point a tick.

 Has this year been less busy?  Yes I think so although it has still been pretty crazy.  Maybe that’s just the way it’s destined to be!

 2009 has seen me join Around the Block  which is fun and challenging, meet lots of nice people through the Bushfires Quilting Bee which flowed on into making a quilt for Breast Cancer in October and with more get togethers planned for  next year, do a stint of full time work, have a couple of lovely holidays, got to know lots more bloggers, (and quite a few more so please don’t be offended if I’ve left you out), go to a few Quilt Shows and watch our gorgeous girls continue growing up.  And it’s been an incredible year for Sewjourn.  I continue to be amazed by the number of bookings and the positive feedback from everyone.  Sure it’s been hard work at times but it’s also been really rewarding and I’ve met some lovely people along the way.

 So….what’s in store for 2010?  Lots of things!  But I’ll tell you them in another post.  For now, wishing you and your families a very happy and peaceful New Year.

When I got home yesterday there was an nice surprise waiting at the front door!  The  gorgeous Suse had dropped by and given me one of her amazing calendars…….twelve months of Sewjourn!  Suse takes incredible photos……..we are getting a digital SLR camera for Christmas so I can only hope that my photos might be half as good but I suspect know that there’s heaps more to it.  I love it when Suse and her friends visit Sewjourn because I know I’m in for a photographic treat when they load all their photos to flickr!  Anyway, if you would like images of Sewjourn hanging on your walls for all of next year you can purchase the calendar here.  Suse also has another calendar for sale along with a lovely collaborative one that you can see here.

It’s been a LOONG time between blog posts (anyone still out there??) but school has finished (no more school lunches for SIX whole weeks), there’s been Carols, gymnastic displays, a bit of shopping, lots of cooking (but no Christmas Card writing I’m afraid…..normally I’m not big on the email version of Christmas greetings but prefer the old-fashioned card in the mail but this year it’s looking like that’s what it is going to be from our house….)

Also had a lovely dinner with the UFO girls, lots of laughter, great food, more laughter, our challenges revealed and declarations made for next year.

And today the girls and I delivered a car load of ‘holiday things’ to Sewjourn.  Whilst I love having other people stay at Sewjourn, love the fact that others enjoy it too and have thoroughly enjoyed this year and met so many great people through the whole experience I must admit I do get excited when it comes to this time of year and we can go and relax there for a few weeks ourselves!!!  Today we cleaned, packed the cupboards with our food and clothes and generally made the place ‘ours’ again so that when we arrive a few days after Christmas it will be straight into relaxing!  (I’m hoping there will be a bit of creating in there too – and I’ve probably already delivered more projects than I’ll get through but no doubt I’ll cart a few more up next week too).

Of course, after such a busy year of visitors (with an even busier one set for next year) there are a few maintenance things to do.  The first is new ironing board covers….DONE!

And don’t let these few photos of flowers fool you…….there’s plenty of gardening to be done!

Mind you, the pumpkins that have appeared amongst the lavender are doing VERY well!  This photo was taken last week and they are about three times the size now!

And if you are in Melbourne and happen to get on tram 253 have a look for this art work inside………………..

My parents came down on Tuesday to visit daughter No. 2 for her recent birthday but I was lucky enough to receive a a present as well!

Using the left-over wool from this  gorgeous rug that she made, my Mum has crotcheted this divine throw, using a pattern from Sackville and Lane.

I LOVE IT!  It’s meant for the other bed in this room at Sewjourn………

……..but it looks good on my couch at home at the moment………..

Oops I’ve pretty much fallen off the Blogtoberfest wagon………  Well done to all those who have managed to post each day. And a huge WELL DONE to Tinniegirl and Curly Pops  for their initiative, organisation and hard work!

And what have I been doing?  Well I had a FABULOUS weekend away at Sewjourn with some girlfriends from church.  There was much chatter, lots of laughter, eating, sharing……and a bit of creating as well. 

It was a glorious day for the Farmers Market on Saturday.

Followed by a frantic week of car buying (yes, I finally have my dream car – a Honda Odyssey!! I figure it’s the people mover we need without being a bus) and holiday organising (off to Byron Bay tomorrow in the NEW CAR – just as well don’t think the other one would have made it that far!) and work (still so far behind) and well…….no blogging.

But, I do have a giveaway!  In September I had a giveaway to celebrate one year of Sewjourn and four girls won the chance to come with a friend and spend a day sewing at Sewjourn on Saturday January 30th.  Unfortunately one of the winners emailed me to say that she can no longer come along on that date (she was extremely keen to be travelling down from NSW anyway!) SO there is now ONE MORE SPOT AVAILABLE.  Simply leave me a comment on this post if you are interested in coming to spend the day crafting awayand relaxing and enjoying with like-minded souls on 30 January.  And you can even bring a friend.  It’s sure to be fun…….last year we had a ball.  Leave your comment by 1st November but I can’t promise when I will draw a winner - it will depend on internet access availability…….and if I can drag myself away from the beach to the computer!

Now must go and pack, and finish that last overdue block for Around the Block……..and get some sleep before the big drive.

What a  spectactular day to be here!!

Blue skies, peaceful – even the garden is at it’s best at this time of year! 

So excited about the weekend ahead – just waiting for friends to arrive now……..

Have brought too many projects to do yet again!  But first on the list of priorities is Around the Block swaps!  These gorgeous fabrics arrived from Lara yesterday – which means I have 3 blocks to complete to stay up to date.

Hopefully there will be some completed UFOs to show by Sunday night!  Have a good weekend.

Just a quick word today in keeping with Blogtoberfest……don’t have much time as I am getting ready for a lovely relaxing, creative weekend at Sewjourn with some friends!  Yay – can’t wait.  But just popped in to say that Tinniegirl has just announced her Art Retreat in April next year……..it sounds great so pop on over and have a look…….but be quick I’m sure it will fill up fast!!