Matching Pegs

Whoa!  How did so many days pass without me posting, or even opening up the computer?

I am slightly embarrassed to admit that something I have done a lot of in the last few days is shop.  The beads above were for a dear friend, Leigh, for her birthday, which was on Tuesday.  She loves to make jewellery.  I had so much fun choosing them, (as much fun as choosing fabric) and I am sure she already knows what to make with them.  On my shopping trips I have bought birthday presents, anniversary presents, Christmas presents as well as a few items of clothing for the family.  Sadly I can’t show you any of that stuff, or I will spoil some surprises.

Here are some things that I can show you, Work In Progress.

Amelia and I have been making “Nesting Nellie and Her Girls”, designed by “Melly and Me” and featured in Issue 64 of Homespun Magazine.  As you can see we have only made 2 Girls so far, and they don’t have aprons or scarves yet.  It has been a lot of fun (especially choosing the fabrics - some from my stash, and some from Amelia’s), and Amelia has been learning a few new skills.

Last night I went to the North Of The Yarra Quilters Guild weekly sit and sew, (as I am now a fully paid up member) and this is what I was working on, more of “The Wish Quilt“…..

I am really enjoying this, despite the slow progress.  I know from my stats that lots of people come here after searching for Bronwyn Hayes red work on their search engines.  As a community service to anyone else that happens to be making “The Wish Quilt” (featured in Issues 62, 63 and 64 of Homespun, also known as Volume 9; numbers 7, 8 and 9) I thought I would let you know that there are some mistakes in the instructions.

My understanding is that corrections will be published in the next issue of Homespun to hit the shelves, but in the meantime, you can find a PDF here (If the link does not work, look here and scroll down to the bottom to find the link).  There are 2 pages of corrections, mainly related to trimming the stitcheries and assembling the blocks.  Luckily for me I am not up to making any blocks yet, as I am working at a snails pace, so I have not made any mistakes with construction.

Back to shopping.  While on one of my recent shopping expeditions I was drawn to the kikki.K store, which is full of Swedish style stationery.  I was very restrained, and only bought a very small, but completely irresistible item -  a container of tiny little pegs.

As I have never done one, I thought I would do a giveaway, and given the name of my blog, I thought these were a perfect prize.  To enter, all you have to do is tell me your favourite item of stationery.  Easy isn’t it.  If your number comes up in a random draw, I will send you a hand full of tiny peggy goodness (all matching of course) - but I will not send the little clear container as it is a little bulky.

So let me start the ball rolling.  My favourite items of stationery are calendars.

Today, after much deliberation - which is part of the fun - I bought this one.  It is called “The Art of Ornament, from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.”  I actually had the same one (with different plates) this year.

I spent a happy half hour this afternoon writing in all the birthdays and anniversaries for the year, a lovely, yearly ritual.  I still have to shade in all the school holidays and public holidays.

So what is your favourite piece of stationery?  I will draw the random name next Friday, Melbourne time, so you have a week.

While you compose you answer, enjoy this detail from January.  “Nasturtium” by Anna Martin 1897, from “Plants and Their Application to Ornament” by Eugene Grasset.

*Edited 1 Nov.  I had shown evidence of my poor spelling skills, which I have now remedied.  Stationery not Stationary!  Thanks Rebecca - it is just like lipstick on my teeth - I’m glad you let me know!

So I took the plunge and just got in and started quilting.  Like the Teddy quilts in the previous post, I started “Meander Quilting”, (my handy quilting bible, “The Quilters Ultimate Visual Guide” told me that this is like stipple quilting but farther apart) from the centre, outwards, in columns.

I created the quilt sandwich with the same basting spray that I used on the little ones - Helmar’s 101 Quilt Basting Spray.  The beauty of this method of creating the quilt sandwich is that you do not have to tape down a taut backing (something I always seem to have difficulty with).  You lay out the three layers and fold them back, half at a time, to spray first the backing (which you smooth the batting onto) and then the batting, (which you smooth the quilt top onto).  If you find any wrinkles, you can iron the sandwich to remove them.  The spray bond, if applied correctly, holds well over months (I’ve tested this), but I do pin the edges of the quilt, just in case :-).

The last time I had used this spray on anything larger than a wall hanging was about 3 years ago, and this time I was presented with a dilemma - where to spray.  Due to over spray and ventilation issues, the spraying needs to be done outside.  The little ones fitted on the concrete path outside, but I no longer had an empty deck to work on to spray the larger ones (we now have an outdoor setting).  Luckily I had a brainwave, the trampoline.

The backing fabric pretty much covered the mat, and as it washes out in water, (rain) I was not too worried about a little over spray on the springs. So I sprayed and smoothed away on Saturday evening, and had the quilt ready to go on Sunday.

Here is my slightly comical setup.  I was trying to create an area around the machine that was on a similar level to the stitchplate.  It was better than nothing!  So I rolled the quilt and gave it a burl.

Sadly, as I quilted the first column, I hit a snag (metaphorically speaking), and there was just a small amount of inaudible muttering going on in the kitchen of Chez M.P.  While the backing was well bonded to the batting, the quilt top was not.  I think the breeze was a little stronger once I got to spraying that layer, and not enough had landed on the quilt.  I returned to the trampoline to spray some more, which sorted that problem out once and for all.  For those that are interested, previously, the main trouble I have had with this quilt spray is when the spray does not mist properly due to the nozzle being damaged or blocked (I have had one can with a damaged nozzle that I had to return).

Anyway, I managed to quilt 5 columns before a trip to the local swimming pool dragged me away from the machine, and I think I am getting a bit better as I go.  I have not managed to make it back on the machine since then, and my kids are not the only ones keeping me away.  Some of the blame should be laid here…………………

Is there anything more delicious than sitting down and re-reading a favourite series (or two).

I love reading with a passion, and Robin Hobb is one of my favourite authors, ( Guy Gavriel Kay and Diana Gabaldon being two others).  While her work is classified as Fantasy, which might put off a lot of people who may have experienced formulaic fantasy pulp, she writes with such humanity about people who have human frailty and failings, as well as the heroicism you would expect in a book like this.  I am up to book 3 out of 6, two trilogies about the same delicious characters.  Even reading it for the 4th or 5th time, (by my estimate) it can still make me cry - a strong measure of any book by my standards.

What’s your favourite?

*****

PS. I wonder if I will ever get quicker at writing my posts - It takes me ages!  Sorry if I owe you a reply to an email or comment, I need to hit the hay tonight. I will drop you a line soon, I promise.

I quilted!  In free motion!

These Teddy Quilts are perfect for practicing quilting, as they are small, light and easy to move around.

Both Amelia and Rory’s quilts are “blog finished”, as the binding is attached, but only pinned to the back.  I can’t wait to finish them and wash the quilt basting spray out.  I love using the spray, as I don’t need pins, or to tape down the backing when laying out the quilt sandwich, (and it still doesn’t pucker).  However it does make the quilt feel a little stiff and has a slight smell, so I prefer to wash it out as soon as possible.

I managed to sew together the centre 1″ squares of Michaela’s Teddy Quilt which is in the same colour scheme as her baby quilt.

I tend to do that a bit, return to the same colour themes for particular people.

It might seem kind of strange, but I tend to associate people I know well, with certain colours.  It is not a synesthesia type thing, but it relates to my obsession with colour.

Amelia is buttery yellow, soft coral pink, aqua.  Rory is steely blue, dusty red, beige and orange.  Michaela is lavender, peach/apricot, soft warm browns.  All my kids are also fresh apple green.  I am warm red, kingfisher/peacock blue, watermelon, chocolate brown.  Luke is olive green, burnt orange, ochre.  I could go on, but I am sure most of you would find this boring, including my kids.  Does anyone else do this?  What colours would you be?

While you think about it, have a look at Michaela chauffeuring her teddy Maude (for whom the quilt is being made) around in her tricycle - just adorable, if I do say so myself.

I found this lovely eucalyptus leaf on the path, on the way home from school, and it was so beautiful that I just had to bring it with me.  It was not unique, there were quite a few of the same colour there on the ground, but this one just jumped into my field of view.  A lovely little piece of happiness.

Another lovely piece of happiness that came my way this week was being awarded my first blog award.  Rachel from Contented (over in the UK) awarded me with The “Proximidade” or “Friendship around the World” award.  What a surprise, thank-you so much Rachel. The award is for blogs that are special in some way and extend the hand of friendship around the world.  I have to pass this on to eight of my favourite blogs, and ask that they do the same.

I found 8 blogs a little hard.  So many of my favourite blogs are much awarded, (because they have so many readers), and it feels like guilding the lily to award them some more.  I have picked just 4 of the blogs that I read almost daily…….Block a Day, emzeegee and the hungry three, Peppermint Patcher and Whippet Good.  Thank you to each of you for helping to feed my blog habit - inspiring, amusing and connecting with me.

Today I managed to hang my recently finished quilt (are you sick of it yet) and here is a little before and after to show you.

If only I could “before and after” the ugly, dark brown air conditioning unit you can see peeking in on the left of shot.  Getting through summer would be pretty hard without it though.

I found two forgotten pieces of happiness yesterday as I was attempting to declutter, (watching a show about hoarders will do that to you) and I put them out into the sunlight today to show you.

Two mini quilts that I was making for the kids (to match their teddies) 18 months ago (there was to be 3 - I also have one in pieces for Michaela).

The kids helped me choose the fabric.  They are yet to be quilted; perhaps I will practice free motion quilting on them.

Here is “label girl”, who is now safely attached to the back of my quilt, (which is finished, bar the hanging).

I gave her hair like Michaela.

All up she only took me an hour.  How I love needle turn applique.  I tend to enjoy the needle turn that requires no more than a clear, drawn line on the applique pieces, a sharp pair of scissors to clip into the inner points, and a nice fine needle and thread.  It is so much faster when you don’t have to prepare the pieces with freezer paper, glue or basting first.

So do you want to look at the whole quilt?  Well here it is… Ta Da!

Bit hard to see the details isn’t it, I’ll give you a closer look, (this is a photo heavy post).

This is Luke and I - enormous aren’t we.  One of the parts of making this quilt that I enjoyed most was choosing the clothes that we would all wear.  The colours we are all dressed in are the colours we most often wear (even if neither of us get about in hats quite like that and our clothes really have a slightly different style).

Amelia’s dress is made of one of my favourite fabrics ever, a pattern that combines the colours of watermelon and peach (colours I wear as often as her actually).  Her little star apron is made of a scrap from the binding of the Pooh Bear wall hanging I made for my first baby - her.  Baby Michaela is wearing a purple that co-ordinates with her baby quilt.  I carefully selected embroidery floss to resemble the real colour of everyone’s eyes and hair.  Michaela had a slight hint of Auburn when she was a baby.

Rory is pictured with a train I based on his GeoTrax train, which was his favourite toy at the time.

This is one of the sayings that surround the centre panel - probably the most important one.  It was quilting around the words that took me the longest of all.  I just picked up the hoop every once in a while as I was watching telly in the evenings.  The other sayings are; * Count Your Blessings * Be Kind * Forgive and Forget * Be Proud of Each Other * Keep Your Promises * Bear Each Others Burdens * Be Honest * Comfort One Another * and of course, Be Patient.

Here is a look at my kids, 31 months ago when I started this quilt.  They are dressed in their PJ’s, ready for bed, one night on our holiday.

Beautiful aren’t they.  Families are Forever.

*Finished, that is if you don’t count the hanging sleeve that needs to go on the back, to hold the dowel that I still have to purchase ;-).  Now I am off to the Hardware store to buy some.

So I was browsing my stats the other day - I like to know where the few people who read my ramblings are located on the lovely google map of the world (have I mentioned I once had a reader from a place called “Medicine Hat”).  I noticed a large unexpected spike in readership.  What was going on?

Turns out all these visitors were being directed from an article written on an X-Ray technicians blog.  In other words, they were not here to look at all the crafty loveliness.  They were fans of Michaela’s lovely innards.

To be more specific, they were interested in the object on the X-Ray, which came in as number 24 out of The 25 Weirdest Things Eaten by People.

She was in some pretty amusing company.  For more recent readers, Michaela swallowed this piece of smokey quartz back in February.

For those of you that are here for craftiness, I have finished the binding and washed my “Family Matters” Quilt.  I decided to turn my attentions to the label, or as it should be known henceforth, “The Mega Label”.  It looks more like an essay than a label, but I enjoyed writing it.  This is a quilt I hope will be in the family for quite some time, so I added stuff about our family as well as the current cost of bread, milk and petrol.  This is an idea of Leanne Beasleys I think.  In saw/read it some time ago, and can’t find mention of it on the web.

I decided to add a little character from the front of the quilt.  This is going to be a little girl in the same colours as the baby on the front, as in Michaela was a baby when I started it, but is no longer.  I should probably have made this label before quilting, and quilted it in, but oh well, there is always next time.

What do you put on your labels?

I started this quilt 31 months ago in March 2006.  It has been quite a labour of love, and it is very close to completion, as I am now working on the binding.  I hand quilted around these words a few days ago - it could have been the motto for the whole quilt, and, it seems, the entire week.

In the past 24 hours the Matching Pegs household has been hit by a tedious irritating problem that we have all had to deal with, (a member of the family asked me not to be specific).  The problem is not serious, but not dealing with it promptly would make our problem multiply, if you catch my drift.  So I have been practicing my deep breathing and remembering to be patient.

When I was shopping last week for the binding for this quilt, I also picked up some binding and backing for my Chez Moi - Charisma quilt.

The red fabric (which is for the binding) is a perfect colour match, because it is another Chez Moi fabric, but this time it is from the Posh range.  The green fabric is a plain green homespun - it doesn’t match quite as well, but it will be used only for the backing, and it goes well with the binding.  I am toying with the idea of marking a design on the backing, and free motion quilting the quilt from the back, but I am not sure if my skills are up to it.  It might be a good way to learn.

Today Michaela and I were enjoying the afternoon spring sunshine, and blowing bubbles, as well as our cares away.  A little wander around the garden turned up a surprise, a ranunculi from a few years ago, growing where I thought they had been finished.  I thought I would share it with you.  I hope your week is full of happy surprises, but if it is not, I wish you patience.

While I was in the country on the weekend, I took a few minutes to wander around with the camera.

These are some lovely flowers that my parents-in-law have managed to grow, in spite of some very harsh water restrictions.  This is not usually a pink I am drawn to (I’m more into a coral type pink usually), but my tastes must be changing because I brought home some of this pink from the local Lincraft yesterday.

I only went there for some thread - Lincraft has disappointed me so much lately with it’s fabric selection that I was stunned to find something that I really liked.

Officially it is Christmas fabric, but it could be used for anything.  These two colourways were so fresh and bright (see the pink), I really had to have them.  I am going to make little bags to put presents into, rather than wrapping paper.  I bought some white grosgrain ribbon to tie them up with.  For the last few years I have given Christmas gifts in reusable Royal Childrens’ Hospital Bags, but my family and friends may have enough of these by now.  Guess now I will have to start working out what I am going to get everyone.

Has anyone else out there started their Christmas shopping?

Here is a visual equivalent to thinking music, while you think about your Christmas planning…a calming photo of grasses from the country.

Last weekend found us in my husband’s home town in the north of Victoria, with lots of the extended family (about 50 of us).  A couple of Luke’s cousins had organised a family reunion that had an Olympic theme.

The games were a little different - We had the gumboot toss, three legged race, egg and spoon, as well as few others that are not on the official Olympics list.

We all took part in different heats of the egg and spoon.  We all did better than Luke, as the rest of us finished with our eggs intact.

The under 5’s heat had special plastic eggs (with matching spoons) which “broke” to reveal tiny bean bag yolks and centres.  They were a really clever way for the little kids to participate.

I think I came in last in my heat - but I can hold my head up, I didn’t cheat, (by holding my egg onto the spoon).  That’s me up the back in the blue hat - our arm of the family was the blue team.

The three legged race was quite a scream, especially when the pairs were as uneven as Michaela and her Aunty Cint.

Overall the whole day was really well organised, thanks especially to cousin Yvette!

The only fly in the ointment was that the kids were extremely tired when they started back at school this morning.  The excitement of the weekend, added to Daylight savings starting on Saturday evening made it doubly hard to get up this morning for the dash to school.

However, it was a very small fly, and we all had a great time.

Here is Amelia with her cousin Jack, a medal winning pair.

How did the rest of you fare with the Daylight savings transition?

I am thrilled to have accomplished this during the school holidays.  Quite a bit of it was done last Sunday, while Luke took the kids to the park, and I finished it last night.

I love this fabric (Chez Moi - Charisma), and the layer cake made this so quick to cut up, so that I could get to the fun part - the arranging.  Here is a close up of some of the squares.

This quilt is to go on my lounge room chair - a tub chair that I bought second hand, which has less than attractive upholstery.  I need it to be slightly larger than it is, but was aiming for the look you get when you just finish off with binding.  I think I will give this a thin outer border and then bind it in the same fabric.

First I have to shop for just the right red fabric, or perhaps a green - but I will not be doing this with 3 little people in tow - I will wait until “normal programming resumes” next week, when the older two are back at school.