Another quilt finish

I recently finished this quilt as a special gift incorporating some of Surrey's shirts and some Star Wars and Batman fabrics.

I hope the recipient likes it.

My latest patchwork experiment

I'm using Surrey's shirts to make yoyo pieces about 3" wide then I'll join them all together.

Since these ones I've now discovered that bigger stitches give smaller centre holes. Makes sense because there are less folds to squish together.

A bit of patchwork and other stuff

Over the last week or so I've been very busy finishing off a few things and experimenting with others.

First, I have finished 3 quilts but they are not yet photographed officially and labelled. That will come later.

Then I was inspired by a Leader and Ender project done by Bonnie at Quiltville. While hers was done with 1.5" squares entirely, mine is done with 2.5" squares (I have hundreds already cut) and 1.5" squares for the centre of each row.

These strips will be much longer and there will be something running down between each row. I am making batches of short rows (shown here) so that I can mix and match them later. Towards the end I'll cut the bottoms off level and sew them to the tops so that I get the straight top and bottom required.

And then there have been a few days cooking.

I found a recipe for slow cooker fruit paste online but mine had not even set after two days of cooking so I have declared that a failure and packaged it as thick fruit jam to have with cheese. It tastes quite OK.

The next cooking experiment was the Microwave Lemon Curd and it worked wonderfully. Set well in only 3 minutes and tastes fantastic. No fuss, no double boiler and I did not even strain it. Fantastic.

There was time spent with Ellen and Geoff and Jen and the girls, and of course the regular babysitting scattered in amongst all that.

A Weekend of Music and Patchwork

Over the last long weekend I joined the Chorus Oz (Sydney Philharmonia) Choir to enjoy singing for two days. One day was a rehearsal in Pitt St Uniting Church and the Sunday was spent in the Opera House, giving our performance on Sunday evening. I wore my coat decorated with all the Tshirts we've been given over the last 12 years and whilst having lunch on the Sunday Jacqui from Sydney Philharmonia too some photos...

It was an amazing two days only marred by the long walk up Macquarie Street afterward and the crowds from Vivid. What a pity they did not all come to hear us as well.

On Monday I spent the day at home finishing off my pink quilt getting it ready for a competition in September. It won't win any prizes but at least it used up some of my pink fabrics of which I have far too many.

Orphan Blocks and Bits and Pieces

I have just used a lot of orphan blocks to create my latest quilt - Dancing Gorillas. I hope you like it Jenny.

Jenny donated the gorillas with mid green borders a few years ago. Now where should I send it?

Red Squares

Another quilt finished. This time for Desley and Jack and their grandchildren. I've called it Red Squares.

My Chook Scraps quilt wins a prize!

I arrived home from Norway to find that my Chook Scraps quilt had won a prize at the Milton Show! I now have a prize winning quilt.

On the back I have attached some of Surrey's winning ribbons for his Silkies shown at the Berry Show years ago.

What a hoot!

2017 in a Nutshell

This year has been quite different! Apart from my normal busy life I’ve been joined at my place by Geoff and family for most of the year. They moved in on Christmas Eve last year to await the birth of Heather in January, returned home in March to pack their belongings and put them into storage, then came back to mine in May when their house sold. In October they bought their new home in Bardwell Valley and moved there at the end of October. Of course they are still living out of boxes but it is a lovely old home (1913) with a large backyard, double garage and studio out the back. The extended family had a great day there on Boxing Day.

My blog has suffered quite a bit during the year except for my holiday and Underhill entries and now we all agree that it certainly does ‘take a village to raise a child’. We have spent a lot of the year playing ‘pass the parcel’ with one or other child being the parcel. Bonding with the two girls has been great and I will miss them now they have their own home. However, I am booked for 2 days babysitting each week while Jen returns to work so all is not lost.

Ellen is busier than ever juggling normal life with Rod’s poor health and visits to hospital. The boys continue to grow in leaps and bounds. Alex now towers over me and will start High School next year. Luke is fast catching up. They both love singing in the school choir and took part in the School Spectacular again this year. I love my times with my grandboys.

I am now doing a top to bottom ‘spring clean and sort’ and am thrilled that Kim is able to come back once a week and help as she did for a few years after Surrey died. I still have Arianne living with me and enjoy the sewing, care and social input she brings. She has been a crucial part of the ‘village’ that lives in my ‘home with elastic walls’.

When Geoff moved his many pot plants to my garden he set up a watering system for them and extended it to my whole garden. This has rescued the garden from some very long dry spells (up to 2 months without rain) so things are looking good. The lawn has now recovered too after a good downpour.

Holidays for me started with the family time at Gerroa for the New Year week. I then went on a bus trip through Outback Queensland in the middle of the year and this was closely followed by a Dinosaur Dig trip out of Winton. I now know my way around Longreach and Winton and had a great time on both trips. Yes, I actually dug up parts of a sauropod called ‘Judy’.

Underhill is often a hive of activity with my friends and Geoff and his family and friends visiting to just relax by the fire. Geoff and Nathan’s new venture - Bungonia Woodcutters - involves lots of noise with chainsaws and their Lucas Mill to cut and slab timbers sourced from Underhill and other places. Nathan makes some beautiful pieces from them or just sells the slabs. If you see their stall at a craft market take a good look.

A few days before Christmas we harvested lots of apricots from our tree at Underhill and I am still trying to handle them all with one batch of apricot jam made, apricots in the fridge and food dryer and still trays of apricots on the dining room table. If you want any come now.

Singing is still a major part of my life although I had to pull out of two choirs late in the year. They were both only ‘weekend wonders’ i.e. practice two days then perform the same weekend. I absolutely love singing with the St Stephen’s choir each Sunday. It is such a brain challenge for someone who has never had to sight read music before. This year the Chorus Oz choir (one of the Sydney Philharmonia choirs) of which I am part, performed Elijah in the Opera House. I am also currently involved in weekly practices of Handel’s Messiah as is usual at this time of year. I started with that choir in 1965 and have been in it most years since except for birth of children, year OS, and when Surrey was sick. We perform near Christmas in the Sydney Town Hall. To do this I have put my Sutherland Choral Society membership on hold as they both practice Monday nights. Just recently I joined a choral workshop at St James, Sydney. That was most uplifting with the ‘performance’ after a day’s work being a choral evensong to follow.

Of course Christmas music at church with organ, brass ensemble, choir and soloists was magnificent. We had a total of 5 anthems and about 10 carols to learn for the season this year. I am so glad that this year my what is now becoming a normal Christmas illness did not hit until Christmas afternoon when I came down with a cold.

My Sunday morning singing is often followed by a visit for lunch with Mum who is still living semi-independently at 94. These visits are usually short but a good catch up time with her and usually with Desley as well who often calls in when I am there.

Patchwork is another great passion but I have not had a great amount of time for it this year for obvious reasons. However, I was able to complete the quilt I made the top for when I went to a quilting weekend in 2011 in Massachusetts! The fabrics were mostly collected on the Canada-USA trip with Elaine. I’ve called it ‘American Fall’. My current quilt project is ‘Chook Scraps’ (above) made from lots of the chook fabrics Surrey bought me over the years and one of his shirts. I laugh when I see it because it brings back so many memories.

This quilt will be for Underhill in the caravan. I am using Surrey’s shirts to make quilts for every bed there. Not finished yet but I hope to get this one finished for a show next March. The Rainbow Connection quilters continues to make quilts for charity and I have done a few other bits and pieces including a play mat for Heather.

I'm not sure that 2018 will be any slower but then again who wants a slow life anyway. I look forward to enjoying more of the same joys and coping however I can with all the traumas that are sure to come my way. I'll pray a lot and try to stay calm and focussed on the good things. It is wonderful to be needed on so many fronts.

Remember, my home and heart have elastic walls so come and join me any time.

Family, friends and fun in April and May

I just don't seem to have five minutes to myself for such luxuries as updating blogs. Many friends have remarked at how quiet I've been lately.

Today is the performance with the Sutherland Shire Choral Society and after that I will be taking leave of absence from that choir to try and claw back just a little time. The concert should be good with Lauridsen's Lux Aeterna, Faure's Cantique de Jean Racine, and Mozart's Requiem. Great music and some really challenging pieces.

I've been able to get down to Underhill for a night with Elaine and Terry and Ellie. Elaine and I started work on the surrounds for the camp fire.

We will eventually set it in place with local clay slurry and raise the level on the downhill side giving us somewhere to rest saucepans and billies. So there will be lots of mud puddling to join in with if you are keen. And of course winter is burning off time again.

The Lady Williams apple still had plenty of fruit on it so we picked those and this time I have dried lots of them.

Geoff and Jen's house move is eventually happening though they will all be coming to mine for the months between old house sale and finding a new one. With the house moving and packing it is up to me to go down to Underhill and keep the place going until they can step up to the challenge again.

I've had a lot of time with Ivy and Heather. Often Jen brings them with Ponyo as well just to get out of the packed up house and give them a bit of outside fun.

Mother's Day saw Ellen et al and Geoff's mob all down at our local Fish and Chips cafe enjoying a feast together.

Having almost sorted my back-hip-leg issues I am now in a lot of pain which is the result of a sudden movement last week. I guess with all the massage, physio, hot showers and fisiocreme I am treating it with I'll be recovered soon. I hope so anyway because I am sick of not being able to just get on with things.

Last weekend I was able to spend a night at Berry visiting Rauri and Janice. Lots of chat, burning off and general camaraderie. The weather was glorious and dinner was superb.

I have had a little time for quilting but have not actually finished anything ready to photograph so if you want to see my progress you'll have to come and visit. 

Bonus Days

On Friday Elaine, Pernilla and I were supposed to go to Underhill overnight but due to my cold and Elaine's shingles we stayed at home and played.

Our projects started by getting out all the 'orphan blocks' I had gathered (donations, left overs from Kogarah Library Quilters and Rainbow Connection Quilters, and left overs of my own from other quilts). While Elaine sat quietly and sewed the label on one of our quilts Pernilla and I shuffled the orphan blocks. It was then Elaine's turn to make suggestions to our layouts and what to do with the spaces left that needed to be filled. Pernilla and I continued the projects on Friday evening and Saturday and the results are quite stunning.

Pernilla is taking her blue and yellow medalion to mount onto her dark blue fabric that she has been storing at my place for quite some years. I look forward to seeing the final quilt. I will continue my very happy strippy quilt and probably donate it through one of my groups.

We had a fabulous two days even though it was raining most of the time.

A busy few weeks

The last few weeks have been quite busy. My cold made my hip muscles seize up so that has made me miserable but there have been some joys too.

My orchids are flowering profusely and lighten up my house.

One achievement was the completion of my latest quilt for me. This one is from shirts of Surrey's and other bits and pieces, some of which he bought for me. It is for my bed at Underhill and I had hoped to take it down this weekend but I'll not be going as I'm sick.

There have also been my regular days with Ivy.

Walks in the cold.

Visits from Pernilla

 Then this Thursday it was so wet we experimented with what you can do with a basket and a box.

You can sit in it

You can fall out of it and say bonk as you do. This results in much laughter.

You can wear it as a hat but it falls off. You can even play Boo.

A box makes a great boat for singing Row Your Boat. Then when it falls apart it becomes a slippery dip for girls and cars and balls. Then it becomes a tunnel too.

Busy Times

The last few weeks have been very buzy. There have been many music rehearsals and performances that included being in some incredible places with high-rise views and Martin Place just full of people and flowers in the aftermarth of Monday's seige. We finished the last of 8 Westpac choir performances today.

Then there has been the round of pre-Christmas get togethers with friends.

Of course my patchwork groups had get togethers as well. A high tea at a local patchwork shop and a party at the Kogarah Library at which we officially donated our quilts to the chosen charities.

There was an overnight trip to Newcastle with Janice for brother-in-law Jim's ordination.

Of course the garden continues to produce prolifically too. So there is lots of produce to preserve or eat.

I've also had some fun with Alex and Luke - sewing games bags with them (they love sewing with me) and decorating their Christmas tree.

So now there are only five more sleeps till Christmas, one more trip to Underhill and four more opportunities to sing before a month long break. So I wish you all a Happy Christmas and a thank you for all your help and friendship throughout the year.

Two more table runners and two broken sewing machines

Last week Elaine and I were able to make progress on our table runners and two more are now complete. We should go into business!

 However, in attempting to progress even further I have now broken two of my sewing machines so they will now have to go to Fred, the sewing machine man. Perhaps I should do some sort of course in fixing sewing machines. I still have one that is up and running well so maybe it will do what I need it to do.