Maybe it’s because the ducted heating is playing up and they realised how cold it was outside.  Or maybe it’s just because the kind crafty peeps at Sewjourn last weekend felt for the poor stork who has to sit amongst the prickles day in day out.  Or maybe they just wanted to let future guests know they’d been there.  Or maybe the scarf was meant for themselves but they read the pattern wrongly. 

Whatever the reason – the stork is the lucky one!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24938442@N05/4782809546/

Question is – who is the clever crafter?

Well, it had lots of things in it that I really didn’t want to lose but……..it also had my FABRIC PURCHASES!!!  And yes my bag did eventually turn up in Melbourne, and yes I know it’s taken me a while to stop falling asleep at 8pm and to get back to writing a blog post, and yes someone has been prompting me to share my purchases so here goes………

Here’s my bundle of fabric – some from our day trip on the first day and some from the Sample Spree

The whole bootie including some voile intended for curtains in Daughter No. 1’s room, but now not sure…..

It’s A Hoot by MoMo for Moda……the Around the Block  girls will have some of this coming their way soon……my month is July – YAY!

And there might be a spattering of this in there as well.

And in the closing minutes of Sample Spree I discovered this and couldn’t resist – the colours match my ‘sewing room’ (AKA ‘junk room’ or ‘front room’) so well!  And it’s gorgeous just rolled up like this so if it takes a while to make the quilt then at least it will look good in the meantime…)

And then there were these other goodies fromSample Spree (sorry about the por quality photo).  My favorite is the Kaffe Fasset umbrella….but of course I couldn’t take it on this  day because it was a bit muddy!

(Edit….oops so long since I’ve done a post forgot to push the ‘publish’ button a last week when I wrote this!)

I love school holidays….not having to get up early and rush everyone into getting ready, not having to pack school lunches, not having all the extra activites that accompany the school term…..

We have some extra children at our house today and everyone is having lots of fun.  Even me.

There’s been beading,

some time on the computer (AND the Wii AND the Nintendo DS),

lunch in the cubby house (playing with toys that seemed long forgotten),

and taking turns on the trampoline.

I’ve even had time to read some blogs for the first time in a while.  AND time to post as well! I’ve been deftly turning a blind eye to the many things I SHOULD be doing however……..like washing and ironing and the piles of housework that slowly builds up by the end of term.  But I know it will all be there tomorrow.  Today I’m just enjoying the laughs and squeals and general chaos that ensues.

PS  There’s been a lot going here……..and a little bit of sewing – I’ll try to show you over the next couple of weeks

Last Saturday  a group of lovely ladies got together and spent the day cutting and sewing and ended up with two completed (almost!) quilt tops.  These are made from left over fabric from our Bushfires Quilts and are destined for a Women’s Shelter.  It’s such a fun way to spend a day!  Thanks girls to all of you for joining in.

Thanks Susie for the photos (I forgot my camera!!)…..sorry I can’t post more but can’t manage to make them small enough in size to load quickly.  But you can find other accounts of the day here and here.

PS.  We missed you Bron (and a few other blogless girls who usually come along) but are planning our next get together on May 1st when we will be making children’s quilts for the Royal Children’s Hospital, so mark it in your diaries!  If anyone else would like to join us you are most welcome – please just email me to let me know.

…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!

Finally.

Big box.

Lots of bubble wrap to play with.

Loads of instructions, cords, plugs etc.

Hopefully loads of good photos (certainly loads of good fun!)

The girls REALLY, REALLY wanted to go.  Parents (especially the male one) were a bit more dubious – especially as it costs almost as much as the camping site for the week AND it’s 90 minutes drive from Byron Bay. 

BUT, I’m pleased to report, we DID go and the most amazing day was had by all. 

In fact, I say, all FOUR of my children has an absolute ball.  Even the youngest who is only 7 went on all the extreme rides! I was very proud of them (particularly as their Mum stood and watched for quite a few of them!)

Lots of fun, great company, catching up with friends, delicious food…….oh, and a really worthwhile conference too!

….inside at least with these gorgeous daffodils. 

Outside the weather has not been ideal for school holidays but at least the tanks are filling up and the gardens are looking revived!  This afternoon the sun has poked through the clouds and it does feel like spring after all. Today has been an ‘at home’ day and everyone has had lots of fun – the girls just ‘playing’ and me just sewing…….some goodies to show you soon.