broderie

a new home !

this family must like living not far from here, this busy boy has been back and back picking up beakfulls of coconut fibre from my hanging basket, he was here this time last year also ! nice of you to come visiting again, your most welcome !

a couple of weeks ago the house was buzzing with another workshop with Margaret Sampson George and Jean also came down, so lovely again to be together. i was in the back row taking photos though, so i don't have many

there were lots of things starring !!! this is an element from one of Marg's new quilts

liked this little new edition to the famous pineapple quilt, a little bird looking through the floral wreath

kerry's beginnings of her crib quilt

and there has to be a rabbit in there, kerrie has found this little whimisical trio

trish had done alot of broderie purse to produce this beauty 

this was anna's, another beautiful interpretation

and around the table i found some beautiful colour combinations, this was angela's, part of her 'going blue gradually'

but amanda had no trouble being green with her 'going green gradually', she even chose a green spotty mug to keep it all matching

and it is amazing with all the fabric i have, i was a bit 'green with envy' over this piece i spied, never had any of that !

or this, i do love a rosy rose

no soft edges for this bright piece !

 

still around the table, this is looking gorgeous

and this is part of wendy's start to 'not the levenshall', nice bit of rooster fabric !

and a new beginner to the world of Marg Sampson George, justine i hope you're ready for the ride !

and a delicious bucket of pears, so beautiful at this time of the year !

might go and have one !

i have added 'fly away with me', another Take an Element pattern by Marg Sampson George to my etsy shop. you will find all the patterns now in one spot so it easy shopping 

 

and august is here, when i turned the calendar over these words were on the bottom of the page, 'where do these days go' !

august always brings with it lots of family memories that i wish i could share with my mum and dad and brother, and other members of the family i loved so much, my aunts and uncles who all loved me unconditionally as i loved them. it is only me left, time changes all things and you can't live forever, but some should still be here .......... i wish you were 

'where do those days go ?'

 

 

 

 

settling in ........

it has been lovely this week to have some milder weather, most of my unpacking was done in all the heat, but this week i have been finding just the right places for things and enjoying being acquainted with some familiar things. 

my friend has has found a happy place to be, just like me, we're feeling at home !

and the crown is not so new anymore, but i like it, something i've had for years !

and this old birds nest fern has been travelling with me for many years, its also happy in the present spot, some new fronds are shooting up !

not alot of serious sewing has been going on here, but now i feel that i'm in a good place to get on with it, now that almost everything is in it's place. it is good that things you know you have, but don't see often, come to the surface and you can look at them and wonder about their story

some of these old postcards that came from my maternal grandparents, the kingstons, are just a lovely reminder of the more gentler days of corressponding

these are the embroidered type, under the little flap of the pansy and the blue bird, there is a little pouch with a tiny card with a message, beautiful words !

and this one is like a little book, with a frayed ribbon edge and especially for christmas

and this one interests me very much, i wonder who 'murray' was who in 1916, from belgium, sent this to my grandfather, with this message ?

 

so formal and beautifully written, one wonders how long it took to get from belgium to kingston beach, tasmania

and on the reverse side, i hope 'murray' got home safely to his family

these are now stored safely in my little old corner cabinet that was handed down to me, the things that are in it are just treasures to me, they are not all very valuable dollar wise, just bits that over the years have a story of their own and that have a special meaning to me !

all part of the family tree ! some of the next generation have recently expressed interest in the history of the family, someone to hand these things onto one day, i hope !

during the hot weather, we have had so many horrible hot days, how lucky i have been to be able to rest well just under the red spotty sheets and my 'candied hexagon' quilt. 

sadly, due to the horrible hot weather, so many have lost their homes in the fires, i count my blessings and very comfortable life

many who know me well, know that i love a box, this one given by a good friend is empty, what am i going to keep in it ?

i'm still deciding, but it will be decorative as well, i love a good box ! thankyou !

and now i think i had better do some ironing ................ always there, isn't it !



 

 

before the end of january !

how time flys ! we all say this, but december and january have blurred into one for me, packing my life up, moving and unpacking once again, just about all sorted now !

 

 

this bird has flown again, my friends know i like a bird !

not harry the hirer, but harry, the friend came and packed up my life in such an ordered way ! thankyou so much harry, sharon, jenny and andrew ! you all know what you did and it was all very appreciated, you will never realise just how much !

the garden was left as a blank canvas for the new owners !

some creativity, some new patterns in progress by trish harper

i managed to find a glass that had not been packed, a cooling gin and tonic for me at the end of another busy day ! for one moment i thought all i had was a mug and i could not bring myself to use it for a g & t !!!

then not a planned trip to hobart, vale kevin anthony shaw, 'the captain' and a loved member of our family died on january 2nd. this old fx holden is just part of the story of a man who was loved by his family members and close friends and who will be missed by the wider community

and the red interior, still able to breathe in  that beautiful leather smell ! a special part of the day when kevin was farwelled by so many !

we also made a road trip to campbelltown to meet up with some other family members from the north of the state. we gathered at 'the red bridge cafe' (a good spot to stop if you are doing a road trip up the midlands highway). this was my red chair at the table we sat at !

then one evening, i looked out the window at my home away from home in hobart, we were missing someone of course, this cloud appeared in the sky just over the ridge !

in time all will be well after the initial sadness and missing of another loved family member

'the captain' will always be present ! love to all those missing him !

ready, set, go !!! a long post ..............

flicking the duster around and making up the spare beds

my version of candied hexagons on one of the beds, it was thursday night and i was off to the airport to pick up two of my favourite interstaters who were coming for another workshop, marg sampson george and jean, home we came and the planning swung into action !!!

friday we were busy doing lots of things, preparing for the two day workshop, the following pictures will tell the story

it was just 12 months to the day that all this had started, marlene had another birthday and in that 12 months this was the 3rd workshop with marg. the embroidery above, stiched by marlene, for someone elses big birthday was now complete and framed and it was part of our show and tell. what happy times we have had, the coming together of friends with a common interest and the sharing of so much colour and fabric and ideas !

these were some of the starts friends have made (you cant see anymore yet)

there were lots of bags like these !

lots of new beginnings

lots of fabric choices

patterns formed from favourite fabrics

marg performs magic to make one person very happy and emotional ! this beautiful collection of hexagons done years ago by jenny's mother are being used in this beauty !

and some very smart glasses !

just a glance at day one and this was show and tell

sue's candied hexagons

a quilt made for sue's mum featuring a favourite stripe of mine

linda made this beauty !

and here's carol peeping over the top of her liberty hexagons, she had originally set these into a grey and white spot background, was not happy, pulled all apart and this is the wonderful result ! so carol !

and these lovely clam shells, also carol, are going to be a sweet cushion !

here jo has combined her skills of embroidery and patchwork

and this version of trish harper's 'camelot' pattern, you can buy the pattern from the link on my side bar

rae made this sweet little quilt for her new grand daughter evie !

and all these stars belong to rae also, very pretty !

then we had some show and tell from barbara, julie and kerry

kerry has designed and stitched her borders for this lovely centre, it was hard to get good photos of everything, there was jostling for position going on, and i can't jostle any more !

this one made by meredithe

and this from a template set meredithe designed,  'kumo' VT968, i have talked about it before, i made my 'big blooms' quilt from it

this is judy's pattern 'guinevere' in very soft colours

and judy's flag quilt featuring the bight colours in complete contrast

and there's more ...............................................

progress on the next day !

jenny, now very happy, played and stitched with hers overnight and the result is looking very interesting

after being on the design wall with marg, carol went to the floor and on her knees and this is the result

lavina's hands were hard at work, while we invade her lovely open spaces in her home and completely take over the kitchen, without missing anything else that is happening, we do insist that she just sits and stitches over the weekend. lavina also makes all the morning and afternoon tea sweet treats we enjoy ! x o and lots of thanks !

and all stitched down, became this, so pretty linda

one of the work tables

and marg at the consulting table !

in this lovely cosy homely atmosphere we had a very happy weekend, lots of inspiration and fun had by all. the planning, shopping, cooking and sharing all worthwhile, thanks to jean for all her hard work ( i was ordered out of my own kitchen ), to the late nights and the tuition we gave marg ( ipad & instagram ), the tiredness is all forgotten and plans are well and truly underway for our next adventures with msg !

***edit / sorry my links are not linking, i need the guru who lived accross the road to come and visit !!!!!!!!! hello julia and frederick !

 

sad news last night that a lovely stitching friend of many of us, had passed away after many years of trying to beat cancer.

sally, you will be remembered for your sweet and gentle nature and your lovely work and your sharing. love to your family left behind ................

 

 

 

 

a little glimpse

iv'e been still sorting out my life from boxes, some things i just cant find, but i'm sure nothing was left on the truck, two boxes of threads are missing, my favourite fine cord pants (several pairs) and now that the horrible heat has gone, i may be needing them ! i'm asking them to be found, a friend told me to do that today !

roses at the kitchen sink have been nice, not that i spend too much time there, lots of preparation has been going on getting ready for another workshop with Margaret Sampson George coming up next weekend

love that rabbit !

more photos to come of this weekend after it has happened, if your're interested 

good to see this in woolworths last week, so i bought some naturally, just for tasmania's sake !

and refreshing some pots in the garden and filling in some spaces

and my friend euphemia is now back on the fence happily hanging on her nail

this sampler sits behind my chair now, it was stitched by my friend thelma collinson as a sample for display in the shop when 'broderie' was a retail outlet. thelma was always very happy to do some of my samples of cross stitch, of more recent years her health prevented her from doing any more stitching. sadly thelma died last week, to jeff, her husband and their family i offer my special thoughts and love ..........

 

16/4 an update !!!!!!

early in the morning yesterday i had received an email from my cousin barbie, suggesting i looked in my wardrobe for the pants that were missing, well i thought, i've done that over and over again, but just to be sure i had another look, and you know the result, all my pants were hanging with all my others, so PANTS FOUND !!!!!

then my mobile phone went not too far into the day, it was from a friend saying she had the two containers of missing threads ! i had given them to her when she was visiting a few weeks before moving to look through, so THREADS FOUND !!!!!

so the power of the blog and sending the word out, my thoughts were answered !

thankyou

 

 

hearts of hope

on the eve of good friday and the 'good friday appeal' for our royal children's hospital here in melbourne, australia, (known well for the amazing work and care they provide, worldwide) i thought i would share this story with you all.

it is the story of a special little boy called hamish, i know his grandmother kaye, she has been a long time friend of my cousin, paula in hobart.

here is a recent photo of him, his big brother in the background.

but this is a photo of him last year, at the end of november, in the children's hospital, where he is a patient. the family often have to come to melbourne for treatment. hamish suffers from hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a complex congenital heart condition.

hearts of hope australia, is an organisation set up to help and assist families of these children. kaye nugent is a director of the organisation and hamish is her beautiful grandson. www.hearts-of-hope.org is a link or you can contact kaye at her email address [email protected] 

hearts of hope is a non profit organisation set up to support families of these children born with a heart condition that cannot be cured through medical intervention.

please support the 'good friday appeal' financially if you are able, or to support the 'hearts of hope' cause directly, maybe you could make and donate something that would be suitable for them to sell to raise some funds. if so, you could contact me via my email and i can discuss with you the options.

the latest news of hamish is that he is unable to have any more surgery and a heart transplant is also not likely due to the many treatments he has had in his short life. there will content on the television programme '60 minutes' in australia in a few weeks about children born with this and other congenital heart conditions and hamish will be featured.

in the meantime, hamish and his family are enjoying all the special moments in the life of this little boy. i urge you to help 'hearts of hope'.

it's teatime here with his teddy !

footnote: the links are not direct for a reason, but please, those of you who are interested, i know, will take the time to follow this up.

 

 

'march'ing on

a colourful day was held at my place over the weekend, lots of fabric strips, a gathering of friends, something to eat and lots of chatter and laughing !

this to this

soft colours and then strong classic combinations

it would look great with a black and white stripe lining

we were plaiting fabric strips and making little bags !

my bit of plaiting that i started about 5 years ago and all the strips fell out of the cupboard and i started sewing and did some more plaiting and by monday night i had this little basket made, think i will keep all my various glasses (that is another story) in it !

mine is quite chunky (like me) and not perfect but once i got started again i could not put it down, so don't leave your strips around here at the moment or they may become plaited. trish harper teaches this method in her classes at amitie if you live in melbourne ! 

this is just a sneak peek at a new quilt, trish is working on at the moment, for big or little girls it is very gorgeous, once again, classes at amitie and there will be a pattern, so watch this space!

and these new little scissors will add to my collection and live in my cutting implement draw. i purchased them from country stitches when i was looking at some of their cross stitch patterns! me buying cross stitch patterns!!! yes i know, but i still like to keep up with things cross stitch and get some of the patterns that really appeal to me, there was a bit of a lull for a while, but the interest is coming back! i think it is something to do with economic times, more time spent at home and the need for amusement etc., you can always get lost in a bit of cross stitch and be happy, as you can with a bit of fabric!

today, march 2nd is always special to me and my family life and the things that have happened along the way. my brother was married on this date and many years later it was also the date that my dear mum died and this year it is no different, except that it is 25years this year. it takes you on a bit of a mind journey and it has today! remembering the time and what was happening in my own life and what has happened since. 25years, a long time really, but not so long! mmmmmmh, good and bad, happy and sad, things that happened that mum was spared from and so, so many others that she would have loved to have been part of and would have enjoyed. time changes all things and now of course i am 25 years older, yes many things have happened.

i was fortunate, she was my mum and a great friend x o

reflections . . . . .

this is a photo i took a couple of weeks ago, i was wanting to just take a photo of this cross stitch family, the design 'a rose for grandma'. one of my bedrooms was reflecting in the light from the window, but i liked the effect.

there have been so many natural disasters happening in australia and now in new zealand, things we have no control over and so many families and lives will once again be altered forever. it is all so sad and unbelievable. i have been in a very reflective way of mind.

once again the light reflections from another window was shining on some of my boxes of treasures, so many people have lost all their treasures but are happy just 'to be'.

thinking of you . . . . .

i have been spending a lot of my time preparing things and finishing some things

the duckegg colour is to be the background fabric, still adding and taking, this was just the start !

this is the first tapestry done by a new young friend, saskia, she is only 15 and very keen to learn all sorts of handwork, stitching and dress making. very well done so far, look how even the stitches are!

some glimpses of some embroidery, i can't show it all to you, sorry !

and this little cardigan for a friend's grand daughter, harper !

sending love to . . . . .

anyone who needs some . . . . .

 

hobart shopping

today, after some rain and a cooler change in the air overnight, (yes it has been very hot and humid here in hobart) , a little shopping was done! my comment about the weather is for all of those who say so often when i make my way down here, 'oh it will be cool down there, you will need your warm clothes'!!!!!

i went to a couple of my favourite spots to buy some more supplies and some bits you just have to have.

 

and then i went to the quilted crow , where i met leonie and deidre and added to my recent interest in reproduction fabrics and a few others bits and patterns. the birdhouses above came from there, i just put them with the ribbons from a wholesaler that i visit down here.

so if you are visiting hobart, tasmania, our island state ( for those of you who don't live in australia) leonie and deidre are very welcoming and their shop is well worth a visit. we had a happy day and certainly were enjoying the lovely cool breeze blowing off the river derwent. catching up with a good friend tomorrow, lots of you know her from our past days working together in melbourne, she now lives down here! then it is time to get on the plane and home again on thursday. another really good nine days spent down here with the family, thanks for having me again, but i will be back!!!!!

those we loved

this is a little verse that my mother always used to write in the old 'autograph' books! remember them!

'here's to those that i love,

and here's to those that love me,

here's to those, that love those, that i love,

and to those, that love those, that love me.'

i have been reminded during these hot days in such a simple, ordinary way, of someone that i loved, we loved, who twelve months ago today, died. i know he would have loved this memory, without telling you the story, every time i have a 'robbo's raspberry' i can hear him laughing. it is a good memory, loved his sense of humour.