Aussie Flags...

Why is it that when you most want to sew, your machine has other ideas??  I was totally in my quilting groove this morning, all jobs had been done early do I could make the most of the day.  That is super organised in my dictionary!  I did some more piecing on a project, then moved on to free motion quilting a little charm square quilt.  Next, consistent with the cold winds blowing outside in Brisbane today, an ill wind blew through my sewing machine.  It decided to put its little foot up, and call it a day!  The cheek! Did it not realise that 10 minutes more and I would have been done? 

So with my spare machine holidaying at the shop, I frantically looked around for 'what next'?  Of course I could put the telly on and hand sew, but that is definitely too indulgent, so instead I finished basting my 'Block of the Month', a very worthwhile task. 

Still suffering from that nagging feeling of a job nearly done, my next achievable task is to blog!  So here I am.... and the point of all the above ranting was that I wanted to share with you a cushion a lovely customer made using my 'Aussie Flag' pattern.  She started with the intention of making this as a birthday gift, but liked it so much she decided to keep it!  And I don't blame her, it looks gorgeous! Thanks for sharing Jenny!

happy stitching,
Michelle xx

A couple of pics of a distant memory......

Isn't it sad that holidays are gone so quickly?... All that planning and anticipation gone it what seems like a heartbeat?  Well, thank goodness for photos which help keep those precious memories alive.

I don't wish to bore, but I did promise a couple of pics, so I thought I should deliver.  And I can't (shouldn't) put off choosing a couple out of the 1100 photos that we took (and that's not including Elsie's camera!) 

Once I've bored you silly with these, I can then move on to much more important stuff... like retreats.... (yes Jenni, there may be a sneaky pic of you sewing, but don't worry, I won't name you!)  ..new projects.... updated old ones....  and maybe a FINISHED BLOCK OF THE MONTH..(nearly peeing myself with excitement over that one)... and .....well.... you'll just have to wait and see..

oops... I lied... it was 1289 photos.

elephants playing in the water just north of Phuket

Sally, Elsie and myself enjoying an elepant ride

Elsie and myself enjoying one of our fabulous meals in Phuket

The family, at a temple in Bangkok

Elsie with a little green friend...

total delight at being 'tickled' during a 'fish massage'

floating markets outside of Bangkok

yummy! Banana rotis from a street vendor

at Phi Phi island

the girls at 'McThai'.. yep, that's what the receipt says!

Beautiful Koh Samui, right out the front of our resort

me trying to work out what to do next... read, snooze, or just daydream....

the beach at Koh Samui is lined with all these little restaurants literally on the beach.. was heaven..

the day after Darryn and I did a Thai cooking class, I went back to the same place to take a watermelon carving class.  This is me with the 'fruit' (gosh I'm witty!) of my labour, with teacher Gino ( I know! an amazing local Thai name).  So much fun and it managed to feed my creative urges.

chip anyone??  yum yum!

Well, for anyone still reading,

happy stitching,

Michelle xx

 

The real world.......

indeedy... back to the real world.....
must I? really???  I have been a little slow, I have to admit, in rejoining the human race.  I have taken it nice and slow, but it is now time to hit the ground with my feet running.  I have a crazy week ahead, with a couple of deadlines, 3 classes to teach (two at night time), a friend from Canberra coming up to stay Friday night, then head off on a retreat Saturday lunch time.  And all this, of course, is in amongst working, mothering and house keeping!  Phew!!... I'm exhausted already.. 

I have a million photos to bore you with from our 'fantabulous' holiday in Thailand (actually there is only 1300, but I will try and limit it for you...), but I thought I would just start off with one today that tells you where my head was at while away. 

I had prepared my little 'indulgence' project to take away with me (indulgence meaning "I really should be working on something else" but is something different, that I haven't designed... therefore don't have to think about, just for me), and thought that I should at least get a couple of stitches sewn to make it worth my while taking away.  So, Darryn has taken the girls down to the pool, I sit on the balcony, and 'voila!' (french for 'oh crap look what I've done'), the first piece I sew is upside down and back to front!!  So I laugh, put it down, and go to the pool! 

have a great week,
Michelle xx

p.s. my project is an English piecing BOM, which I am making in civil war fabrics.  Yes, very different to a lot of things I do, but I am loving it, probably because I it is so different.  I have a very diverse taste when it comes to quilting.

Sawadeeka from Thailand....

What a wonderful family holiday we are having! I really wanted a place where we could all experience a new culture and something very different from Australia. Well, I got it right! Can't tell you how much fun it is to explore together and share a laugh over some of the funny experiences we have had. They all love Elsie with her blonde hair and dimples and she has had to stop many times to have her photo taken. We are on to our next phase now, having just put the 3 girls back on the plane to Australia. Darryn and I will now spend a less crazy week in Koh Samui which we are very much looking forward to. I have to say though, it was very hard to say goodbye to the girls and I miss them already:( Have just tried to add a couple of photos and can't seem to manage it at the moment, will try again later. Until then, Thai squeezes, Michelle xx

IPad Sleeve

Well... I'm so pleased with myself at the moment that I will happily quote a friend of mine.. "if I was a chocolate, I'd lick myself!" I decided that before the big holiday (only 2 more sleeps eeeekkk), I needed a sleeve to protect my ipad a little more.  I knew the design I had in mind, and had the idea of fabric but was worried it would be a little drab... so I improvised and love how the colours worked.  I'm also extra impressed for two reasons.  One, I used scraps to make the little 1" squares, AND two,  I used fabric I liked from my stash for the lining (gorgeous grass green polka dot).  Now I know that seems a silly thing to say, but I have a real problem using fabric I love, "just in case" there is something else down the track I'd rather use it for.  But what this leads to is a ginormous (yes, it is a word... maybe) stash of fabric that you're too frightened to touch, and really... what use is that?  
* editors note... the fabric MAY have gone in and out of the drawer a couple of times...

So, da daaaa!  I have a new ipad sleeve. And we sharn't (that's another made up word I'm entitled to use because its after midnight and I'm tired..) discuss how many times it was unpicked and sworn at.  But, I swear on my Mothers Bernina, that the measurements on my tape measure must of kept moving! Surely there's no other possible cause? 

Squeezes and sweet dreams (but not at the same time because otherwise you won't be able to get to sleep!)
Michelle xx

p.s. I will post this pattern as a tutorial upon my return x

Productive Sunday....

They don't seem to come along too often here, but gee they're nice when they do.  I discovered about a week ago that I had made a silly mistake with one of my borders on my BOM, which made me toss it aside in disgust.  Not sure about you, but I really strongly dislike 're-doing' something, and it takes a fair bit of motivation to get my head back in the game, so yesterday was the perfect day.  I remade one border, which made me really strongly like it, and I have to say, the mistake I made meant I needed to add an extra colour and it looks so much better so ...yay! Some things are just meant to be!

I am also making the shop sample for the new Homespun 'Project of the Month' program, using all the gorgeous Amy Butler 'Lark' fabrics.  The first project is a suit carry bag (they are all travel related items), and this photo shows the feature panel.  The cream is stitched using pearl thread (very quick and a lot of fun) and the flowers are appliqued using vliesofix having been cut directly from Amy's fabric (again very quick).  I will post more photos as I go.  We are running this program at the shop with kits available in exact fabrics.  My sample will hopefully be on display very soon.

Last but not least, school holidays are again upon us, and I have decided that Elsie needs some serious mummy crafty time.  Yesterday we mastered the art of french knitting, which she loved and today we move on to 'real knitting'.  I will have to stay very close, but isn't that the fun part since I have so much stitching of my own at the moment?  Normally I'm running from here to there, or on the computer saying "hold on Elsie, I just need to read this and will be with you in a minute"... which she knows means at least half an hour.  guilt guilt guilt.....  So!  Today we will knit..(and stitch) and I will sit right next to her, which I know she will love. 

Have a great week everyone,
squeezes, Michelle xx

The Cat in the Hat is Back.....

I love The Cat in the Hat and have been loving all the fabric that has been coming out in the last couple of years.  I got my first Dr Seuss book from Father Christmas, and it is still going strong, having been read hundreds of times to my 3 girls as well. 

Sally was 16 last Friday so I was excited to have an excuse to make up one of the raggy kits that we put together at The Quilters Corner..... please note, the fact that my daughter is named after one of the main characters is purely coincidental....maybe....  The quilt is so bright and fun and makes you desperate for a cold night to snuggle underneath! 

I also dug this photo out for amusement... my sister Suzanne and I went as "thing 1 & thing 2" to my eldest sister Jane's 40th a few years back.  The theme was 'naughty 40', and lets face it, who could be naughtier than "thing 1 & thing 2"?  We had a lot of fun and people got us mixed up all night!

have a great week,
Michelle xx