Yesterday. Today.

Yesterday I cut out and basted almost 100 background hexagons.



Today I wanted to make this quilt my own, and auditioned fabric from my stash.



Today I had to decide on stripe placement. Was this one the best?



No, this one is.



Today I found a new favourite block.

Tomorrow it will no doubt have a different favourite.

Me-Made-May - the red dress dream

A few weeks ago I had an idea for a nice winter dress. Not in grey or black or any of those other typically-Canberra-in-winter colours. Oh no. I wanted to make a red dress.

I had no idea what pattern I would use, but I in my mind I knew what it would look like.

Lucky for me I have finely honed computer graphics skills.



And on the iPhone Sketch app, I'd be right up there in the artistry stakes if it were not for my clumsy fingers.



Today I discovered there is a crayon brush in Paint. Fun! And I added text. Oh, I am so the business!


Luckily for me I don't have to draft anything from these superbly drawn sketches. Because this afternoon my patterns arrived from Sewingpatterns.com.



Although I am not too sure about the V-waist in Simplicity1914 - I really wanted a straight waist so I could wear this dress with a belt.

Never mind - I'm going to have fun sewing whatever with this fabric, which is of questionable blend. It's been in my stash a long, long time.



The question is - will it be made and worn by the end of Me-Made-May 2012?

Sunday snippets

I'm rather enjoy doing Sunday Snippets - it's good not having to blather on so much.



I'm making project bags for the Old Bus Depot markets on 20 May.





I've been working on the hexagon WIP that Rita sent me last month.



I'm really enjoying autumn this year. It's my favourite season and I missed most of it last year so I am making up for it.



My feijoas this year are twice the size they usually are. We eat them straight from the tree - no jamming or pickling here.

Melbourne, oh Melbourne

Last April I really wanted to go to AQC, or the Australasian Quilt Convention in Melbourne. Except that I wasn't very well in April last year, so I decided to wait until this year instead. AQC consists of a whole lot of classes, a quilt exhibition, workshops and a retail hall, but for this year I decided just to attend for a day or two and see the quilts, do some half hour workshops and, ahem, shop a little. It was held at the most beautiful building, the Royal Exhibition Building.



Inside were exhibits including the Best of the Best from the state and territory guild shows around Australia. There were lots of New York Beauty quilts, which made me all clappy and cheery because I think New York Beauty has always been one of my favourite blocks. In fact I made a small New York Beauty Quilt about 10 years ago for a lovely friend's 40th birthday. It was hard so when I see New York Beauty quilts in shows, it makes me so happy and I have to admire the tenacity and skill of the quilt maker.









There were other quilts. Non-New York Beauty quilts. This one is a pattern by Kim McLean but I didn't check to see who had made it. I loved the fabrics used.





This quilt is by Gloria Loughman, and it reminds me of the mangroves in the Town Common of my hometown Townsville, and university geography camping trips to Hinchinbrook Island with the amazing mangroves at Nina Bay and in the Hinchinbrook Channel, and fishing with my dad in his tinnie on Trinity Inlet in Cairns.



Don't you just love how the triangles become the tree canopy?



And a trip to the Best of the Best wouldn't be the same without visiting Sarah Fielke's quilt "A Wing and a Prayer" because I'm actually making this quilt. I bought most of the fabrics at Patchwork on Central Park while I was in Melbourne , and I am starting the background squares tonight.





In my last post I alluded to it being the perfect combined weekend of football and quilting. That's because I invited the mister along, and promised him we could go to a St Kilda game.







And then it so happened that the next day was the St Kilda Members' Day at Moorabbin, so as we are both members we decided to trek out there.

They have a Heritage Museum at Moorabbin and there were some treasures there, I tell you. Treasures! Like Stewart Loewe's bronzed boots.



And a larger than lifesized photo of the man himself.



Sigh.

On our last day, we had brunch with Cam from Curlypops. Cam and I have been virtual friends for years and years and finally we got to meet. She is as lovely as I expected to be. Of course we both had bacon. It was a realtime, real-life #baconpalooza

Then Cam drove us to see Liz at Gleaners Inc. I hadn't seen Liz for yonks, so it was good to see her in her new shop. It was a complete coincidence that I was wearing a necklace that Liz made, and Cam a brooch.



And then we flew home. Perfect weekend of quilting and football and the weather was fantastic. And I'm so inspired after the quilts I saw.

But I'll have to leave the quilting for later on. Because right now I'm going to cook some dinner and THEN I'm going to get my Glee on.

Sunday snippets - a few days in Melbourne

This post could also be called "what happens when you combine quilting and football on the same weekend".

Wacky cardigan-wearing girl

Autumn hit Canberra with full frostbitten force at about, oh, 4 pm yesterday afternoon, right at the end of our lovely four-day Easter holiday weekend. About 50 kms south of us there was snow. SNOW, people!

Then, this afternoon, as I looked briefly out the window at work across the local parks to Mt Ainslie. I could see that all the trees had changed colour. Just like that.

This year So, Zo... What do you know? is having just one Me-Made/Self-Stitched challenge and this time it's in May. And I've signed up. Which should be interesting (not) for those of us here in Canberra because it will be pretty cold and all I'll be showing off is handmade skirts, and store bought cardigans and tights.

AND DO I HAVE TIGHTS AND CARDIGANS COLLECTIONS! YES I DO!
(Three more arrived from Lane Bryant today and I'm excited.)



This is only part of the cardigan component. And I can't actually open the tights drawer, it's that stuffed full.

This May you'll get to see me wearing wacky cardigans with things that they shouldn't go with AND I WON'T CARE. For example:

Stripes and plaid.


Hearts and scottie dogs


This is today's effort, because Argyle and plaid totally go together and I won't listen to you when you tell me they don't.



Of course it wouldn't me a Me-Made month without me attempting to make some new things and failing. However give me 10 points for dreaming about these particular pieces of fabric being sewn into skirts by the end of May. No deadlines though - we all know I don't do that.



Are you joining Me-Made-May too? You should!

Sunday snippets - Easter Sunday

I hope everyone has a happy and blessed Easter.

I've never played Sunday Snippets before, but I really don't have anything to say today so thought pictures of my week would be better than words.