Here are the smaller doilies - most of them up for grabs, so just leave a comment here for any that you would like.
6 years ago
Monday, May 20, 2013
Coloured embroidery doilies.
I got all these ironed as promised in the previous post. I also had the rest of the white/ecru linens soaking overnight, and hung them out today to dry. The day was cold and wet and even though the linens were under shelter, they didn't dry at all, so I had to bring them inside tonight, and iron them while they were still wet. Not a bad idea actually - saves using steam to press them. So they are now waiting to be photographed - but not tonight!
Here are the smaller doilies - most of them up for grabs, so just leave a comment here for any that you would like.
This doiley (above) is the only one I would like to keep as the stitching is superb.
Here are the smaller doilies - most of them up for grabs, so just leave a comment here for any that you would like.
Saturday, May 18, 2013
White linens.
I've washed and ironed the first batch of linens from the stack I showed in the picture here. I sorted them out into large white linens, smaller whites, large coloured embroidery cloths, smaller coloured embroidery doilies. The coloured cloths and doiles are now soaking in the laundry and will be hung out to dry tomorrow (Sunday). All going well, I will be ironing them tomorrow night, but probably won't have enough time to photograph them all and post them here, so you won't see them until Monday.
In the meantime, here is what I've cleaned up so far:
This is one of two very large cotton clothes with heavily crocheted edges. This one has a seam down the centre, and I suspect it was originally a sheet that was worn through, and subsequently cut in half and re-sewn to make a 'new' sheet. Some time later maybe, the crocheted edge was added to make it a bed topper for a single bed. (I've got it hanging over the shower recess in this photo - while it is still damp, it's too big and heavy to put on the clothes horse, and I don't like to put any of my vintage linens in the electric drier.)
This is a lovely supper cloth with beautiful white stitching, and in very good condition. No stains at all.
Another white supper cloth with gorgeous filet crochet instead of embroidery. Also in perfect condition.
This is a pillow slip, plain cotton with a lace edge. Rather tattered and probably not usable as a pillow case, but I wondering if any of my readers would like it in order to salvage the lace edge for a future project?
A little white doiley that is pretty but not out of the ordinary....
until you put it on top of a coloured piece of fabric - voila!
This photo shows the drawn thread work on a very long table runner which is in good condition apart from several stains that didn't come out with Napisan. It is such a shame, and as I was pressing it, I was wondering what could be done with it in its present condition. I was thinking about all the patchwork table runners I've seen in craft magazines that I'd like to make one day, and I had a light bulb moment - why not use this runner as the base for a patchwork runner, filling in the centre to hide the stains, but leaving the drawn thread area as it is for a border? What do you think?
In the meantime, here is what I've cleaned up so far:
This is one of two very large cotton clothes with heavily crocheted edges. This one has a seam down the centre, and I suspect it was originally a sheet that was worn through, and subsequently cut in half and re-sewn to make a 'new' sheet. Some time later maybe, the crocheted edge was added to make it a bed topper for a single bed. (I've got it hanging over the shower recess in this photo - while it is still damp, it's too big and heavy to put on the clothes horse, and I don't like to put any of my vintage linens in the electric drier.)
This is a lovely supper cloth with beautiful white stitching, and in very good condition. No stains at all.
Another white supper cloth with gorgeous filet crochet instead of embroidery. Also in perfect condition.
This is a pillow slip, plain cotton with a lace edge. Rather tattered and probably not usable as a pillow case, but I wondering if any of my readers would like it in order to salvage the lace edge for a future project?
A little white doiley that is pretty but not out of the ordinary....
until you put it on top of a coloured piece of fabric - voila!
This photo shows the drawn thread work on a very long table runner which is in good condition apart from several stains that didn't come out with Napisan. It is such a shame, and as I was pressing it, I was wondering what could be done with it in its present condition. I was thinking about all the patchwork table runners I've seen in craft magazines that I'd like to make one day, and I had a light bulb moment - why not use this runner as the base for a patchwork runner, filling in the centre to hide the stains, but leaving the drawn thread area as it is for a border? What do you think?
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
A lot of work ahead for me!
Last year, a lady who I shall call Mrs H, contacted Bundoora Homestead after my linens show - she wanted to give me her family linens when she moved from her home to a smaller unit. When I spoke to her she said she would offer her linens to her daughters first, and would contact me again early this year. I have a list of contacts who spoke to me along similar lines last year, but I haven't pursued any of them for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I don't really need to add to my own collection; in fact I cull it regularly to try and keep my collection manageable.
Secondly, I have always believed that it is better for people to keep anything handmade by their ancestors in the family so future generations have an opportunity to admire their work.
Yesterday I received a call from Mrs H. She said she had got all her linen from the cupboards and was ready to part with it as she would be moving soon, and did I still want it? I said I would love to have a look, so today I visited her and was pleased to hear that her daughters had all taken a few items to keep, even if they don't use them. However, there was still a lot left, and rather than see it all offloaded to an opshop as Mrs H was going to do if I didn't take it, I ended up bringing it all home.
Most of it is whitework - crochet and cutwork, some very beautiful, but mostly common designs that I already have samples of in my collection. The embroidered items are nice, but nothing out of the ordinary as far as my own taste goes. I will spend the next few days soaking them all in Napisan, and ironing them as they come off the line - believe it or not, my favourite part of the sorting process! Then I will decide what, if anything, that I wish to keep. The rest I will show to my colleagues at the EGV, and whatever isn't wanted at that point....well, some of it may well end up at our opshop, but I'm thinking if I post photos of individual items here, some of my readers might like to take them off my hands?
I've been doing some more work on my Peacock sampler and am quite happy so far with the colours I've chosen. There are more motifs to be worked in the light purple, and two of those will have a gold filament thread running through them, so it will add another dimension to the overall piece. One thing about cross stitch samplers - it is easy to pull out something if you don't like it, as they are mostly small individual items!
Have I used my new machine yet? No....but I've cut some fabrics out for Ken's bike quilt. At least it's a start!
Secondly, I have always believed that it is better for people to keep anything handmade by their ancestors in the family so future generations have an opportunity to admire their work.
Yesterday I received a call from Mrs H. She said she had got all her linen from the cupboards and was ready to part with it as she would be moving soon, and did I still want it? I said I would love to have a look, so today I visited her and was pleased to hear that her daughters had all taken a few items to keep, even if they don't use them. However, there was still a lot left, and rather than see it all offloaded to an opshop as Mrs H was going to do if I didn't take it, I ended up bringing it all home.
Most of it is whitework - crochet and cutwork, some very beautiful, but mostly common designs that I already have samples of in my collection. The embroidered items are nice, but nothing out of the ordinary as far as my own taste goes. I will spend the next few days soaking them all in Napisan, and ironing them as they come off the line - believe it or not, my favourite part of the sorting process! Then I will decide what, if anything, that I wish to keep. The rest I will show to my colleagues at the EGV, and whatever isn't wanted at that point....well, some of it may well end up at our opshop, but I'm thinking if I post photos of individual items here, some of my readers might like to take them off my hands?
I've been doing some more work on my Peacock sampler and am quite happy so far with the colours I've chosen. There are more motifs to be worked in the light purple, and two of those will have a gold filament thread running through them, so it will add another dimension to the overall piece. One thing about cross stitch samplers - it is easy to pull out something if you don't like it, as they are mostly small individual items!
Have I used my new machine yet? No....but I've cut some fabrics out for Ken's bike quilt. At least it's a start!
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Not stitching, but cute!
A few minutes ago, our cat Tiger jumped up on to the chair Ken had just vacated after closing down his laptop for the day. Ken laughed and said "Are you going to look up Dine?" As the cats are waiting to be fed, it seemed quite possible that Tiger was going to google Dine or Whiskas to see what was available!
Friday, May 10, 2013
In today's mail.
Jane over at Loopy's Place is multi-skilled when it comes to crafts; she embroiders, quilts, knits, and will have a go at just about anything else with textiles. Whatever she doesn't keep for herself, she sells through her blog, and now and then I check out her 'shop' to see what goodies are there. I couldn't resist these two cuties - I love baby elephants, and the bathroom sign is so neat!
Someone asked me today what have I made so far on my new sewing machine. Felt like an idiot when I replied "Nothing" and she laughed and said "You're not afraid of it, are you?" Well...if you really want the truth...
Someone asked me today what have I made so far on my new sewing machine. Felt like an idiot when I replied "Nothing" and she laughed and said "You're not afraid of it, are you?" Well...if you really want the truth...
Thursday, May 09, 2013
Peacock sampler update.
I did some work on my Peacock sampler at the Guild on Tuesday. I had shown it to some ladies at the Guild last week, and asked their opinion of my choice of colours. I said I'd thought about introducing a third colour by stitching some of the motifs in yellow or teal to add some colour. K. suggested using teal (blue/green) on just the tail of all the peacock motifs, and maybe added gold or silver filament to the purple for some of the other motifs. I didn't get to finish the second peacock this week, but I'm happy with the way the tail looks.
I found this book in an opshop today, for $2. I know of Margaret Rolfe, in fact I have one of her other books on patchwork designs. This book was first published in 1987, and I've just spent most of tonight reading it...just like a good novel - I couldn't put it down! So many fascinating stories about the quilts made here in Australia by pioneers, and later, quilts made by women during the two world wars. A very important historical document if one is interested in the history of quilts.
I found this book in an opshop today, for $2. I know of Margaret Rolfe, in fact I have one of her other books on patchwork designs. This book was first published in 1987, and I've just spent most of tonight reading it...just like a good novel - I couldn't put it down! So many fascinating stories about the quilts made here in Australia by pioneers, and later, quilts made by women during the two world wars. A very important historical document if one is interested in the history of quilts.
Saturday, May 04, 2013
I am such a dill with technology!
Last Tuesday I finally got the nerve to load the bobbin and thread the machine. Another half hour studying the instruction book, and I put a piece of scrap fabric in and pressed the pedal. WAAAA! Massive thread tangle on the back! Turned out I hadn't run the top thread through properly. Nor could I figure out how to use the needle threader, so I did that by hand and eye....Long way to go before I start making stuff! I'll be heading back to the shop for a five minute refresher course next week.
My own fault - I should have unpacked it and started playing with it the same day I picked it up while the lessons were fresh in my mind.
However, once I'd re-threaded it properly, I was able to try out a few stitches, changing the length and width of them, and trying out the various functions of the computer buttons. I did a zig zag edge around my peacock sampler, as it was starting to fray, and I had no problem with machining that.
I'll get it out again this weekend and play a bit more with the standard foot, then I might try out the other feet and see what happens. I'm dying to try the buttonhole stitch, as there are so many applique projects I've had on hold because my hands ache so much when I do a lot of button hole stitch by hand.
I don't know how others manage, but I am no good at learning something unless I'm actually shown how to do it. I'm no good at teaching myself computer stuff from books, although I can figure out embroidery stitches from a good book. Fortunately for me, there is usually someone around to show me what I need to know. For instance, I have never done a Powerpoint presentation, although I've been to many, and thought what a great way to illustrate what you are talking about. While I was drafting my speech about my peacock collection, I was wondering what would be the best way to show some of the smaller items in my collection, and I remembered the Guild ladies' Powerpoint presentation at Bundoora Homestead last month. So when I was on volunteer duty at the Guild on Thursday, I asked Jenny (the admin. lady) if she knew anything about it. Silly question! Our Jenny is very clever with all things computer-related, and she showed me on her computer how it is done. She said if I make a start on it at home and load my pictures and text on to a USB stick, she will show me how to set it up at the Guild with their computer and projector in plenty of time for my talk in June.
When I got home on Thursday, I turned my computer on, looked up the programs, and there it was - Powerpoint 2007, just like Jenny had shown me! So I had a bit of a play with stuff I had on the hard drive, and it wasn't difficult at all. I'll be busy over the next week or so taking pics of my peacocks and putting labels on them. See what happens when you put something into practice immediately?
My own fault - I should have unpacked it and started playing with it the same day I picked it up while the lessons were fresh in my mind.
However, once I'd re-threaded it properly, I was able to try out a few stitches, changing the length and width of them, and trying out the various functions of the computer buttons. I did a zig zag edge around my peacock sampler, as it was starting to fray, and I had no problem with machining that.
I'll get it out again this weekend and play a bit more with the standard foot, then I might try out the other feet and see what happens. I'm dying to try the buttonhole stitch, as there are so many applique projects I've had on hold because my hands ache so much when I do a lot of button hole stitch by hand.
I don't know how others manage, but I am no good at learning something unless I'm actually shown how to do it. I'm no good at teaching myself computer stuff from books, although I can figure out embroidery stitches from a good book. Fortunately for me, there is usually someone around to show me what I need to know. For instance, I have never done a Powerpoint presentation, although I've been to many, and thought what a great way to illustrate what you are talking about. While I was drafting my speech about my peacock collection, I was wondering what would be the best way to show some of the smaller items in my collection, and I remembered the Guild ladies' Powerpoint presentation at Bundoora Homestead last month. So when I was on volunteer duty at the Guild on Thursday, I asked Jenny (the admin. lady) if she knew anything about it. Silly question! Our Jenny is very clever with all things computer-related, and she showed me on her computer how it is done. She said if I make a start on it at home and load my pictures and text on to a USB stick, she will show me how to set it up at the Guild with their computer and projector in plenty of time for my talk in June.
When I got home on Thursday, I turned my computer on, looked up the programs, and there it was - Powerpoint 2007, just like Jenny had shown me! So I had a bit of a play with stuff I had on the hard drive, and it wasn't difficult at all. I'll be busy over the next week or so taking pics of my peacocks and putting labels on them. See what happens when you put something into practice immediately?
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Fifty year update!
I collected my new sewing machine on Friday from Statewide Sewing Centre in Greensborough. I was afraid that L. (the sales lady in the shop) wouldn't have time to show me how to use it, but fortunately for me, not one other customer came into the shop for nearly an hour, so I had her all to myself. She was an excellent tutor; she got me to sit at the demo. machine and actually do all the things that I had to learn, from threading cotton to changing the various feet, of which there are half a dozen including a walking foot. She said to come back any time if I wasn't sure of something, and as they are only five minutes from home, it is very convenient.
So, here I am at the start of a new era in sewing for me. My dear old Singer Hushmatic now sits on the floor, waiting to be taken back to Statewide and fixed. L. told me that I wasn't the only one to make the mistake of pulling the machine apart to clean it and going too far. She said they had three other similar cases this year! I don't feel quite so stupid...
And here is the new one. Gulp...I'm quite intimidated by modern technology, so I fear it is going to take me a while to actually get around to making something. Thank goodness the instruction book is very comprehensive because I've already forgotten most of what L. showed me at the shop :-(
See the Pink Ribbon symbol, and the pink bits on the machine? Apparently this is a limited edition brought out by Janome to raise funds for Breast Cancer research. I didn't know about that when I signed up for it at the Convention, but I must say I quite like having a pink machine!
So, here I am at the start of a new era in sewing for me. My dear old Singer Hushmatic now sits on the floor, waiting to be taken back to Statewide and fixed. L. told me that I wasn't the only one to make the mistake of pulling the machine apart to clean it and going too far. She said they had three other similar cases this year! I don't feel quite so stupid...
And here is the new one. Gulp...I'm quite intimidated by modern technology, so I fear it is going to take me a while to actually get around to making something. Thank goodness the instruction book is very comprehensive because I've already forgotten most of what L. showed me at the shop :-(
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Hungarian Peacock Sampler
Annie over at Annie Bebop's Coloring Book emailed me a few weeks ago to tell me about a Hungarian Peacock Sampler she discovered. Knowing how much I love Peacocks, she sent me the link to Manka's website for the details.
Manka is providing the PDF file free to those who want to participate in an SAL for this sampler, so I emailed her to request it. It arrived in my Inbox last night and I didn't waste time in printing off a hard copy, then going through my stash to find a piece of 18ct Aida and some floss. The pattern suggests using black thread on the white Aida, but I had some beautiful purple stranded cotton which I thought would look nice instead. Today I started on the border and stitched one Peacock. I've never participated in an SAL before, so I'm not sure if I'm supposed to do a bit every week, every month, or just report on a regular basis what I've stitched.
I haven't done much cross stitch in the past year or so, having gone mad on patchwork, and I know that once I take delivery of my new sewing machine, I'll be messing around on that! So I thought it would be fun to at least start this sampler, and if I only have to stitch one peacock a month, I'll be able to keep up with that!
Manka is providing the PDF file free to those who want to participate in an SAL for this sampler, so I emailed her to request it. It arrived in my Inbox last night and I didn't waste time in printing off a hard copy, then going through my stash to find a piece of 18ct Aida and some floss. The pattern suggests using black thread on the white Aida, but I had some beautiful purple stranded cotton which I thought would look nice instead. Today I started on the border and stitched one Peacock. I've never participated in an SAL before, so I'm not sure if I'm supposed to do a bit every week, every month, or just report on a regular basis what I've stitched.
I haven't done much cross stitch in the past year or so, having gone mad on patchwork, and I know that once I take delivery of my new sewing machine, I'll be messing around on that! So I thought it would be fun to at least start this sampler, and if I only have to stitch one peacock a month, I'll be able to keep up with that!
Monday, April 22, 2013
AQC purchases, and photos of convention.
I have posted my photos of some of the quilts at the AQC over at my Needlecraft Shows blog here.
These are what I bought at the Quilt Convention on Saturday - mostly fabric, two kits and a HUGE cutting mat which I haven't bothered photographing, because everyone knows what they look like. The Scissorman had them out for $34.95 or two for $60. I asked Cheryl if she wanted one so we could get one each for $30, and she said "I'll do better than that". She had a word in the ear of one of the sales ladies, who asked the man in charge, who looked over at us and nodded. Cheryl came back to me grinning. "I got two for $50 - no harm in asking!"
A metre of Laurel Burch fabric. I LOVE her cat fabrics (thanks to my friend Sylvia) so I couldn't resist this. Don't know what I'll do with it yet of course, but I will find a use for it! This photo is not good at all, sorry.
I bought a fat quarter of this kitty fabric years ago, and have been making it last as long as I can, so I was pleased to see it on one of the stalls for $10 a metre.
Ken saw a small quilt when we were up at Warburton and wanted to know if I could make him one like it. The one he saw had tractors or something, and he asked if I could get fabric with bikes on. "Ask and thou shalt receive!". I asked at all the fabric stands at the show, and at the last one we went to, the guy behind the counter produced this panel, and some fat quarters with smaller patterns. Ken was delighted when he saw this, so I think my first project on the new machine will be a mini quilt for him!
I had no intention of buying a pattern for a Christmas tree (I made a wall hanging of a tree last year - why would I want to do another one so soon?) but the stall had three different made up versions of this, and one was done in Aust. Aboriginal design fabric, and it looked fabulous.
This was silly, really - $10 for a pattern using felt, when I've got books and magazines full of them already...but it is cute.
These are what I bought at the Quilt Convention on Saturday - mostly fabric, two kits and a HUGE cutting mat which I haven't bothered photographing, because everyone knows what they look like. The Scissorman had them out for $34.95 or two for $60. I asked Cheryl if she wanted one so we could get one each for $30, and she said "I'll do better than that". She had a word in the ear of one of the sales ladies, who asked the man in charge, who looked over at us and nodded. Cheryl came back to me grinning. "I got two for $50 - no harm in asking!"
A metre of Laurel Burch fabric. I LOVE her cat fabrics (thanks to my friend Sylvia) so I couldn't resist this. Don't know what I'll do with it yet of course, but I will find a use for it! This photo is not good at all, sorry.
I bought a fat quarter of this kitty fabric years ago, and have been making it last as long as I can, so I was pleased to see it on one of the stalls for $10 a metre.
Ken saw a small quilt when we were up at Warburton and wanted to know if I could make him one like it. The one he saw had tractors or something, and he asked if I could get fabric with bikes on. "Ask and thou shalt receive!". I asked at all the fabric stands at the show, and at the last one we went to, the guy behind the counter produced this panel, and some fat quarters with smaller patterns. Ken was delighted when he saw this, so I think my first project on the new machine will be a mini quilt for him!
I had no intention of buying a pattern for a Christmas tree (I made a wall hanging of a tree last year - why would I want to do another one so soon?) but the stall had three different made up versions of this, and one was done in Aust. Aboriginal design fabric, and it looked fabulous.
This was silly, really - $10 for a pattern using felt, when I've got books and magazines full of them already...but it is cute.
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Janome is my choice - thanks to your advice!
Today I went to the A/asian Quilt Convention with a friend, and spent a
lot of time at the sewing machine companies stands where I was able to
have a good look at what they all had. I looked at Husquvarna, Pfaff,
Singer and Janome, and by that time I was in information overload! so I
didn't bother looking at Bernina or Brother, but by then I had pretty
much decided on the Janome DC4030 model. The limited edition Singer machine was
there and I was shown all the features, but it was bigger than what I
wanted, and didn't have a hard case for storing and carrying. The other
Singer which might have been okay wasn't bad, but it lacked some of the
features of the Janome at around the same price. The retail price of the Janome is $699, but the show special price was $569, so for a saving of $130, it was worthwhile putting down a deposit in order for them to hold the machine for me at our local sewing centre. Here is a link to my choice of machine on the Janome website.
I had a list of questions to ask about each brand, but my friend Cheryl was way ahead of this old chook! She asked for a brochure on each machine that I looked at, got them to write the price on it, and asked questions before I had a chance to dig out my list from my bag! But my decision was made by actually seeing how the machines worked, and the Janome was by far the least complicated, and I intuitively felt that I would be comfortable with it. So, thank you to all my readers here who gave me their opinions and advice, as it gave me a starting point, whereas without you, I would have been utterly and completely confused today!
I had no intention of spending money on fabrics or anything else today; just went to look at sewing machines. Ah well, dream on. Spent about $100, and will post photos and details tomorrow when I've transferred photos from camera to computer. I also took photos of some of the fabulous quilts and will post them to my Needlecraft shows blog, but don't go there yet! Hopefully will do that tomorrow too.
I had a list of questions to ask about each brand, but my friend Cheryl was way ahead of this old chook! She asked for a brochure on each machine that I looked at, got them to write the price on it, and asked questions before I had a chance to dig out my list from my bag! But my decision was made by actually seeing how the machines worked, and the Janome was by far the least complicated, and I intuitively felt that I would be comfortable with it. So, thank you to all my readers here who gave me their opinions and advice, as it gave me a starting point, whereas without you, I would have been utterly and completely confused today!
I had no intention of spending money on fabrics or anything else today; just went to look at sewing machines. Ah well, dream on. Spent about $100, and will post photos and details tomorrow when I've transferred photos from camera to computer. I also took photos of some of the fabulous quilts and will post them to my Needlecraft shows blog, but don't go there yet! Hopefully will do that tomorrow too.
Friday, April 05, 2013
Speech writing in progress.
So far this year, I have been invited to present three talks on my collection. The first one will be to the Embroiderers Guild on a Saturday, at their June monthly meeting. I was on my way out of the Guild building on Tuesday when one of the committee ladies came running out after me. She asked if I would do a talk at the June meeting and I agreed. When she asked what I might talk about, I suggested my embroidered peacocks, and she was intrigued. "It will be different!" she said. I've
been waiting for a long time to do a talk about this particular facet
of my linen collection, and here is my chance! Now I have to decide
which items to take along to display, as I won't be able to fit them all
in. I'll have about 40 minutes to present my talk, and there are
large display boards where the embroideries can be pinned up.
The next talk is later in June, and will be at the Mill Park Library for the City of Whittlesea Cultural Heritage Program. They asked me to do a talk about collecting in general, focussing on my linen collection but touching on anything else I collect (OMG I could be there all day - swap cards, books, art supplies...), so that will be a talk in a slightly different context.
The third date is in August, when I will be doing a talk for the members of NOTY, who have asked me to talk about my linens, but one aspect in particular. At this stage I think they want me to show the aprons, but it hasn't been finalised yet.
I've got a few ideas down on paper for each presentation, but knowing my habit of procrastination, if I don't get myself organised soon, I'll be writing the outline of my talks on the night before!
The next talk is later in June, and will be at the Mill Park Library for the City of Whittlesea Cultural Heritage Program. They asked me to do a talk about collecting in general, focussing on my linen collection but touching on anything else I collect (OMG I could be there all day - swap cards, books, art supplies...), so that will be a talk in a slightly different context.
The third date is in August, when I will be doing a talk for the members of NOTY, who have asked me to talk about my linens, but one aspect in particular. At this stage I think they want me to show the aprons, but it hasn't been finalised yet.
I've got a few ideas down on paper for each presentation, but knowing my habit of procrastination, if I don't get myself organised soon, I'll be writing the outline of my talks on the night before!
Monday, April 01, 2013
Using buttons to embellish.
I am always finding interesting and informative books about crafts to borrow from our library. My only problem is to make as many of the projects in each book before I have to return it! We can renew our loans twice, giving us a total of nine weeks which you might think is more than enough time. But if like me you have half a dozen book out at one time, there is only so much you can do!
I renewed this book online tonight, and as I now have only 3 weeks, I thought I'd better make a start on the items I wanted to play with.
The first project I wanted to try (and managed to finish in one day) was this. (The flash made the colours a bit washed out).
An artist canvas board, painted a pale lavender with acrylic paint and left to dry for an hour or so. (Acrylic paint is great for projects like this as it dries very quickly). Next I took a pile of 2" fabric squares from my stash and laid them out across the canvas and when I was satisfied with the layout, they were glued to the board. Finally I went through my button stash and found a button to sew on each piece of fabric. It was fun to do, although the MOTH will look at it and ask "what are you going to do with it now?" Of course there will be no reply, as I will just add it to my pile of finished projects and look at them from time to time, remembering the fun I had creating them!
These are pictures from the book of the other things I plan to do during the next three weeks. ( I'm not missing my sewing machine at all lately, despite my recent post about wanting to do more patchwork after seeing everybody's work on other blogs! My time will come.)
Little stuffed owl toy with button eyes and feet.
Hand made cards using fabric and buttons on card.
My plans for this bag are slightly different. I've sewn some fabric on a supermarket 'green bag' and will add buttons to embelllish it in a similar way to this.
I LOVE this map done in buttons! My map will be Australia of course, which will be much easier than this seeing we only have seven states (not including ACT) and not fifty like the USA! This isn't an actual project in the book, by the way - it is a photo of someone's work in a museum over there. So there are no directions to follow but it shouldn't be hard to do.
I renewed this book online tonight, and as I now have only 3 weeks, I thought I'd better make a start on the items I wanted to play with.
The first project I wanted to try (and managed to finish in one day) was this. (The flash made the colours a bit washed out).
These are pictures from the book of the other things I plan to do during the next three weeks. ( I'm not missing my sewing machine at all lately, despite my recent post about wanting to do more patchwork after seeing everybody's work on other blogs! My time will come.)
Little stuffed owl toy with button eyes and feet.
My plans for this bag are slightly different. I've sewn some fabric on a supermarket 'green bag' and will add buttons to embelllish it in a similar way to this.
I LOVE this map done in buttons! My map will be Australia of course, which will be much easier than this seeing we only have seven states (not including ACT) and not fifty like the USA! This isn't an actual project in the book, by the way - it is a photo of someone's work in a museum over there. So there are no directions to follow but it shouldn't be hard to do.
Sunday, March 31, 2013
The best laid plans of mice, etc.
Today (Easter Sunday) did not turn out as planned. You can read about it here. So, still no sewing done. But I've been updating some of my other blogs in the meantime - art and crafts blog here, swap cards blog here, and photos of our latest baby chicken on the Birds blog here. As if people don't have more important stuff to do, like STITCHING.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Nothing done yet.
I've just spent half an hour surfing my favourite blogs, and after seeing all the stitching and patchwork you've all been doing, I feel (a) utterly ashamed of myself and (b) all fired up to get going again! It's funny (not) how something like a dead sewing machine can completely flatten your motivation to sew. I have plenty of hand stitching I could have been doing, even cutting out fabrics ready to put together, but my mojo just vanished.
Instead I've been concentrating on my art classes and messing around with paper craft.
But today was the last of my art classes for the course I was in, and although I have a dozen library books on my table with lots of paper projects I still want to do, I think I am just about ready to start sewing again... in one form or another. Helen hasn't asked for her sewing machine to be returned - just as well, because it is still on the floor where I left it last week, not even opened up to play with! But I hope to do that over Easter. The weather forecast is for some rain and cool days, and we haven't made any plans to go anywhere, although Ken will be out with his mates on a motorcycle ride on Easter Sunday, so I'll have the day to myself to mess around without interruptions.
Now I just have to decide what to start on. In the meantime, I wish you all a very happy and safe Easter.
Instead I've been concentrating on my art classes and messing around with paper craft.
But today was the last of my art classes for the course I was in, and although I have a dozen library books on my table with lots of paper projects I still want to do, I think I am just about ready to start sewing again... in one form or another. Helen hasn't asked for her sewing machine to be returned - just as well, because it is still on the floor where I left it last week, not even opened up to play with! But I hope to do that over Easter. The weather forecast is for some rain and cool days, and we haven't made any plans to go anywhere, although Ken will be out with his mates on a motorcycle ride on Easter Sunday, so I'll have the day to myself to mess around without interruptions.
Now I just have to decide what to start on. In the meantime, I wish you all a very happy and safe Easter.
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Sewing machine saga continues.
Well, I collected my machine and the box of bits from the shop at Greensborough yesterday. I thought they might have been a bit hostile to me about taking it away instead of leaving it to be fixed, but the lady was quite friendly. I think she is confident that I'll go back there to buy a new machine, but I doubt that I will.
There is another sewing machine shop in Bundoora, so I'll be visiting them shortly.
In the meantime I was telling my friend Helen about all my woes and she said "You can borrow my machine if you want. I haven't used it for ten years, and I'm not likely to now" (she had a stroke a few years ago). So her hubby lugged it from their house to my car and I brought it home, but haven't opened it up to use yet. It is a very similar model to mine from the outside case, so I don't think I should have too many problems using it for the kind of straight sewing that I have been doing.
Apart from proper quilting accessories, the other aspect that I am looking forward to of a new Janome (or whatever I get) is the facility to do blanket stitch on the machine - no more hand stitching around all my applique!
There is another sewing machine shop in Bundoora, so I'll be visiting them shortly.
In the meantime I was telling my friend Helen about all my woes and she said "You can borrow my machine if you want. I haven't used it for ten years, and I'm not likely to now" (she had a stroke a few years ago). So her hubby lugged it from their house to my car and I brought it home, but haven't opened it up to use yet. It is a very similar model to mine from the outside case, so I don't think I should have too many problems using it for the kind of straight sewing that I have been doing.
Apart from proper quilting accessories, the other aspect that I am looking forward to of a new Janome (or whatever I get) is the facility to do blanket stitch on the machine - no more hand stitching around all my applique!
Thursday, March 21, 2013
To repair or not to repair?
Ken and I had almost dismantled the Singer on Sunday, as when I consulted the little book that came with it all those years ago, there were quite clear instructions about getting fluff and dust out of the bobbin area, as well as where it needed to be oiled. We removed all the fluff and a couple of broken needles, but when we tried to put it together, we couldn't figure out where some of the bits went. So I put them into a box, while Ken managed to screw the base back on the machine and we took everything over to Statewide Sewing centre in Greensborough on Tuesday. I showed them their invoice for $185 and said I wasn't happy about getting just 18 months use from the machine for that amount of money. The lady at the counter said the bloke who specialises in old machines would be in on Wednesday.
By 4.30 on Wednesday afternoon, we hadn't heard anything, so I phoned them. The same lady said the bloke is just looking at my machine now, and I heard him in the background "Who the hell pulled this machine apart, and why?" I explained to the lady that we followed the instructions in the book about cleaning it, and after speaking to the man, she said "Well you've gone too far with it and he will have to try and figure out how to put it together again, and reset the timing".. I asked how much that would cost and again after asking the man, she said $99. I told her to just leave it there with the box of bits and I would collect it tomorrow. I said will there be anything to pay for his time in looking at it? and she said no.
I'll take it elsewhere and get quotes. Even if it does amount to $100 to get it going again, I don't want the same bloke 'fixing' it. Do you ever stop to think that these people might deliberately not fix a machine properly, to force you to buy a new one? That's probably not really fair, but I'm not going back there anyway. The lady showed me some machines, and heavily promoted the Janome, the cheapest 'decent' model being $500. Oh, you had to pay another $100 for a walking foot. I said "Don't all machines have them included?" and she said no, only the better ones, and they start at over $600."
Hmmm....I think I'm going to spend a month or two looking around at a few shops. Most of my readers have said Janome is the way to go, so I'll certainly keep it in mind.
By 4.30 on Wednesday afternoon, we hadn't heard anything, so I phoned them. The same lady said the bloke is just looking at my machine now, and I heard him in the background "Who the hell pulled this machine apart, and why?" I explained to the lady that we followed the instructions in the book about cleaning it, and after speaking to the man, she said "Well you've gone too far with it and he will have to try and figure out how to put it together again, and reset the timing".. I asked how much that would cost and again after asking the man, she said $99. I told her to just leave it there with the box of bits and I would collect it tomorrow. I said will there be anything to pay for his time in looking at it? and she said no.
I'll take it elsewhere and get quotes. Even if it does amount to $100 to get it going again, I don't want the same bloke 'fixing' it. Do you ever stop to think that these people might deliberately not fix a machine properly, to force you to buy a new one? That's probably not really fair, but I'm not going back there anyway. The lady showed me some machines, and heavily promoted the Janome, the cheapest 'decent' model being $500. Oh, you had to pay another $100 for a walking foot. I said "Don't all machines have them included?" and she said no, only the better ones, and they start at over $600."
Hmmm....I think I'm going to spend a month or two looking around at a few shops. Most of my readers have said Janome is the way to go, so I'll certainly keep it in mind.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Thank goodness!
Thank you dear bloggy friends for all the advice, which I greatly appreciate, as I've never had to go and buy sewing machine before (my father bought the Singer for me when I started to learn dressmaking at school at the age of 14).
I'm hearing more and more about Janome being reliable, but I still have a fondness for the Singer brand as I feel I know them so well, whereas when I look at Janome and similar brands, they look tricky to use. There is a sewing machine shop in Bundoora, not too far from us, and I vaguely know the owner through her stalls at various quilt shows. She does workshops and classes all the time, and I'm sure if I bought a machine from her, she would have no hesitation in teaching me how to use it properly.
As a follow up, Ken's sister did buy the $99 Singer at Aldi's. We dropped in to her place tonight for Ken to sign papers relating to their Mum's estate, and she showed me the machine. She has had a little play with it, and said it stitches okay, but there is no adjustment device for the width when you sew zig zag. Not only that, when she took it out of the box to show me, it had a plastic fabric cover, not a rigid plastic, so if you had to carry it around to classes outside of your home, it could easily get damaged. It looked more like a toy than a proper sewing machine! SIL said she is going to take it down to their holiday house so if she needs to do some repairs, or wants to make something, it will be there instead of having to wait until she gets home.
Phew! Glad I got that infection, and glad I didn't get that machine - Lucky escape! There is no way you would get even a light weight quilt through it, that I could see. (By the way, the antibiotics have already taken effect and I felt so much better today! Thanks for the sympathetic comments)
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Everything happens for a reason.
A funny thing happened just after I received advice from Sylvia and Doreen about buying sewing machines. Sylvia suggested buying a second hand one, eg. a Singer, but Doreen advised not to buy a second hand machine, as you are only buying someone else's problems. She went on to say 'don't buy a Singer, they aren't as good as they used to be'.
A day later, I received an email from another friend (Connie) who alerted me to the specials on at Aldi Stores this weekend, including a Singer machine for $99. I had a look at the advert in our local Aldi's store, and decided I would take a chance and get one. It was a basic model (which is all I want) and had a three year warranty. I thought what the heck, if I get three years sewing out of it for a hundred bucks, I'll be happy!
This morning (Saturday) I woke up around 8 am, and felt so unwell, I just could not be bothered going out of the house. I had a U.T. infection, and I was back and forth to the loo every few minutes, and in a lot of pain. No way would I have been able to stand in the queue at Aldis and not wet myself! Luckily I was able to get into our surgery and see one of the doctors. By the time I got out of there, got the script for antibiotics, it was about 2 pm. I went to Aldi's and was told both the sewing machines and overlockers (which was another special for $199) had been sold within an hour of them opening at 8.30 am.
So! As the title of this post says, everything happens for a reason, and maybe my UTI was meant to happen, to prevent me spending money on an inferior machine! My SIL told me she got years of use out of her Janome, and when it wore out, she bought a second hand Husqvarna (Sp?), and she has never been able to 'make friends with it', as she put it. She said "I hate that machine! I might also go to Aldi's and buy one of those Singers". I haven't spoken to her today, so I don't know if she did or not. But I've decided now that I won't rush into buying something cheap. I've got a cupboard full of fabric to sew up into things, and it's going to take me a lot longer than three years, so I'm going to have a good look around, and ask for demonstrations before I open my wallet.
In the meantime, I've been amusing myself with more paper creations. You can see them here if you want to.
A day later, I received an email from another friend (Connie) who alerted me to the specials on at Aldi Stores this weekend, including a Singer machine for $99. I had a look at the advert in our local Aldi's store, and decided I would take a chance and get one. It was a basic model (which is all I want) and had a three year warranty. I thought what the heck, if I get three years sewing out of it for a hundred bucks, I'll be happy!
This morning (Saturday) I woke up around 8 am, and felt so unwell, I just could not be bothered going out of the house. I had a U.T. infection, and I was back and forth to the loo every few minutes, and in a lot of pain. No way would I have been able to stand in the queue at Aldis and not wet myself! Luckily I was able to get into our surgery and see one of the doctors. By the time I got out of there, got the script for antibiotics, it was about 2 pm. I went to Aldi's and was told both the sewing machines and overlockers (which was another special for $199) had been sold within an hour of them opening at 8.30 am.
So! As the title of this post says, everything happens for a reason, and maybe my UTI was meant to happen, to prevent me spending money on an inferior machine! My SIL told me she got years of use out of her Janome, and when it wore out, she bought a second hand Husqvarna (Sp?), and she has never been able to 'make friends with it', as she put it. She said "I hate that machine! I might also go to Aldi's and buy one of those Singers". I haven't spoken to her today, so I don't know if she did or not. But I've decided now that I won't rush into buying something cheap. I've got a cupboard full of fabric to sew up into things, and it's going to take me a lot longer than three years, so I'm going to have a good look around, and ask for demonstrations before I open my wallet.
In the meantime, I've been amusing myself with more paper creations. You can see them here if you want to.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Grinding to a halt again.
Just as my neck and shoulder problems are starting to resolve themselves and I had the machine flat out making cot quilts, it DIED on me yesterday. I could scream; it cost me $185 to fix last year, and now it looks like the same problem. In desperation I looked in the Yellow Pages phone directory to see if there was anyone who did home visits to fix sewing machines. I found one bloke, but he told me he has since sold his business and is now doing something else. But he wanted to know what my problem was and he was horrified to hear how much Statewide Sewing Centre had charged to fix the gears. He told me I should take it back there and have a go at them. I said the reason I was hoping someone could come to my home and fix it is because the machine is too heavy for me to lift and carry anywhere, so he took pity on me and said as he wasn't far from us, he would come over and have a look at it today.
That was yesterday (Sunday) and he said he could only do it on a weekend or public holiday because of his other job. This morning he called to say he wouldn't be able to come today because his family had turned up for a visit, but he would ring me next week. I thanked him and said not to worry about it, I'd see what else I could do. Ken looked at my long face and said he will take me and the machine over to Statewide on his day off on Wednesday. I can almost read your minds - "why the heck doesn't she just buy a new machine?" I suppose if Ken can find $20,000 for a new motorcycle, I can put my hand up for a few hundred dollars for a new machine. Goodness knows how often he has told me to go and buy one! So I just might. But being blonde and senior, I just HATE learning how to work something new... So it is going to have to be something very basic, even if it is new.
In the meantime, this is the last thing I was doing when the Singer carked it. I had a few of those supermarket bags lying around to decorate, and instead of sewing yo-yos on them as I had done previously, I decided to make ap a little patchwork square with some left overs and sew them on to the bag. I only needed to finish one more side. I guess I could hand sew it if I was in a hurry, but I'm not.
Now the damn camera battery has gone flat. S---T. What next. I'll post a pic shortly. In the meantime I've gone back to paper craft and spent last night making some stuff using paper napkins. I'll be post them to my Art and craft blog when the camera is charged up again.
Later that night...
Here is the tote bag I was working on, and the other photo is of the sunset applique that I have now framed myself. It wasn't easy to get that mat border right, and it sure ain't perfect, but I hope nobody will look that closely!
That was yesterday (Sunday) and he said he could only do it on a weekend or public holiday because of his other job. This morning he called to say he wouldn't be able to come today because his family had turned up for a visit, but he would ring me next week. I thanked him and said not to worry about it, I'd see what else I could do. Ken looked at my long face and said he will take me and the machine over to Statewide on his day off on Wednesday. I can almost read your minds - "why the heck doesn't she just buy a new machine?" I suppose if Ken can find $20,000 for a new motorcycle, I can put my hand up for a few hundred dollars for a new machine. Goodness knows how often he has told me to go and buy one! So I just might. But being blonde and senior, I just HATE learning how to work something new... So it is going to have to be something very basic, even if it is new.
In the meantime, this is the last thing I was doing when the Singer carked it. I had a few of those supermarket bags lying around to decorate, and instead of sewing yo-yos on them as I had done previously, I decided to make ap a little patchwork square with some left overs and sew them on to the bag. I only needed to finish one more side. I guess I could hand sew it if I was in a hurry, but I'm not.
Now the damn camera battery has gone flat. S---T. What next. I'll post a pic shortly. In the meantime I've gone back to paper craft and spent last night making some stuff using paper napkins. I'll be post them to my Art and craft blog when the camera is charged up again.
Later that night...
Here is the tote bag I was working on, and the other photo is of the sunset applique that I have now framed myself. It wasn't easy to get that mat border right, and it sure ain't perfect, but I hope nobody will look that closely!
Saturday, March 09, 2013
Two quilts on their way to PNG
Ken's cousin David and his wife Yaso came to visit us today before Yaso flys out to PNG tomorrow to meet the tribal leaders of the community she is providing assistance to. She said the elders are already walking to the village where she will be driven to from the airport. It takes them four days to walk through the forest to reach this village, so she always makes sure she never misses the flight that takes her to Port Moresby for the truck that meets her to transport her to the village.
I took the opportunity to photograph her with the two quilts I gave her to take with her. One is the cot quilt I posted a photo of here yesterday and the other is a slightly larger quilt that has been on the back of our couch for a couple of years. It was given to me by one of my home care clients who won it in a raffle but didn't like it. So there is no emotional attachment to it for me, and I decided it would be of much better use in a community of people who are living in the forests of PNG on whatever plants they can find.
Yaso is in the process of teaching them to keep chickens, harvest water properly to grow small crops, and other basic survival techniques that the rest of the world take for granted. I have asked her to do a brief write up for me to post on a blog along with photos of the conditions under which the natives live and where she works with them. In the meantime, I will continue making small quilts out of my stashs, and will gladly accept any that anyone reading this would care to make. Yaso says to make sure that the quilts have names of the makers on them so the native elders can explain to the women where the quilts come from and who made them. She said it is part of their nature not to just accept any 'charity' without proper ceremony thanking the donors, even if they are not there, and she will photograph each quilt with it's new owner as they are distributed.
It would be greatly appreciated if anyone reading this would post a link to it on their blog so word can get around. I know there are other bloggers making full size quilts for our Aussie servicemen, and of course Jan Mac of Oz Comfort Quilts has been distributing quilts to disaster victims for years now. But my request might be easier to work with for those people like me who don't feel able to make a full size quilt for any number of reasons, but a little cot quilt is just a fun thing taking a couple of hours, and using up some of those scraps that all fabric collectors have!
I took the opportunity to photograph her with the two quilts I gave her to take with her. One is the cot quilt I posted a photo of here yesterday and the other is a slightly larger quilt that has been on the back of our couch for a couple of years. It was given to me by one of my home care clients who won it in a raffle but didn't like it. So there is no emotional attachment to it for me, and I decided it would be of much better use in a community of people who are living in the forests of PNG on whatever plants they can find.
It would be greatly appreciated if anyone reading this would post a link to it on their blog so word can get around. I know there are other bloggers making full size quilts for our Aussie servicemen, and of course Jan Mac of Oz Comfort Quilts has been distributing quilts to disaster victims for years now. But my request might be easier to work with for those people like me who don't feel able to make a full size quilt for any number of reasons, but a little cot quilt is just a fun thing taking a couple of hours, and using up some of those scraps that all fabric collectors have!
Friday, March 08, 2013
One small project accomplished.
I have been resting this week instead of tearing around socialising every day, and it's paid off; I haven't needed to take any painkillers today. I only took a couple of aspirin last night because I used the carpet sweeper to clean the carpets which haven't been vaccummed for a month or so and I couldn't stand the mess any more. My neck and back ached for a few hours but then the aspirin kicked in. Anyway, enough of that.
I think I've mentioned this here last year some time, about my husband's cousin Yaso (his cousin's wife actually). She works for the (Australian) government in Papua N-G, helping resettle the displaced people over there. Thousands of them have been forced from their natural living areas by the big mining companies, and they are sent up to mountain tops where it is so much colder than what they are used to, and their babies are dying from the cold. So I promised Yaso I would make cot quilts from my stash, that she could take with her to distribute among the native people. She was quite tearful about my offer, and asked who would pay for the fabric. I showed her my stash which has been mostly given to me or found at opshops, and I assured her it won't cost me anything except time, and I have plenty of that if I do less shopping, gallery gazing and craft classes for myself!
It only took me a couple of hours to whip up this little quilt using the fabrics in my stash. Ken said it wouldn't keep him warm, but even though there is only a thin layer of wadding in the middle, it will be enough to wrap around a tiny bubs in its mother's arms. I didn't use a pattern - just joined colourful fabics up for the front, and used a brushed cotton for the backing. And to make it faster, I didn't bind it - I used the 'envelope' style (I think that is what it's called, when you sew the layers inside out around three sides then turn them right side out, and sew up the top.
I think I've mentioned this here last year some time, about my husband's cousin Yaso (his cousin's wife actually). She works for the (Australian) government in Papua N-G, helping resettle the displaced people over there. Thousands of them have been forced from their natural living areas by the big mining companies, and they are sent up to mountain tops where it is so much colder than what they are used to, and their babies are dying from the cold. So I promised Yaso I would make cot quilts from my stash, that she could take with her to distribute among the native people. She was quite tearful about my offer, and asked who would pay for the fabric. I showed her my stash which has been mostly given to me or found at opshops, and I assured her it won't cost me anything except time, and I have plenty of that if I do less shopping, gallery gazing and craft classes for myself!
It only took me a couple of hours to whip up this little quilt using the fabrics in my stash. Ken said it wouldn't keep him warm, but even though there is only a thin layer of wadding in the middle, it will be enough to wrap around a tiny bubs in its mother's arms. I didn't use a pattern - just joined colourful fabics up for the front, and used a brushed cotton for the backing. And to make it faster, I didn't bind it - I used the 'envelope' style (I think that is what it's called, when you sew the layers inside out around three sides then turn them right side out, and sew up the top.
Monday, March 04, 2013
My apologies to everyone reading this.
I am very sorry that my last post was such a whinge. I should not have posted it on this particular blog, as it is supposed to be strictly for my stitching and linen collecting. I could remove it from here and re-post it to Patra's Other Place, but I've already done a similar post there, so why waste the reader's time by doing that?
I should have just simply explained that I haven't been doing any sewing for a while due to health issues, and if you wanted to know more, go to the other blog.
Thanks to everyone who left sympathetic and encouraging comments here. I won't be parting with my stash any time in the near future, but when I was typing that post, I was in so much pain that the thought of ironing, measuring, cutting pinning and sewing vast pieces of fabric, my brain just shut down at the idea of doing anything large. So at the moment I am satisfying my desires to dabble in craft by confining myself to small projects, mostly paper orientated. I won't post them here for the reasons stated above, i.e. this blog is for stitching projects.
So for those of you who are regular readers and would like to stay in touch with my activities now and then, just hop over to Patra's Other Place. In the meantime, I will continue to visit and comment on all my favourite blogs. See ya round!
I should have just simply explained that I haven't been doing any sewing for a while due to health issues, and if you wanted to know more, go to the other blog.
Thanks to everyone who left sympathetic and encouraging comments here. I won't be parting with my stash any time in the near future, but when I was typing that post, I was in so much pain that the thought of ironing, measuring, cutting pinning and sewing vast pieces of fabric, my brain just shut down at the idea of doing anything large. So at the moment I am satisfying my desires to dabble in craft by confining myself to small projects, mostly paper orientated. I won't post them here for the reasons stated above, i.e. this blog is for stitching projects.
So for those of you who are regular readers and would like to stay in touch with my activities now and then, just hop over to Patra's Other Place. In the meantime, I will continue to visit and comment on all my favourite blogs. See ya round!
Sunday, February 24, 2013
No sewing happening here.
As I said in an earlier post, I have 'lost my mojo' for sewing at the moment. In addition to the reasons I gave before, I now have a physical problem that has prevented me from doing any kind of sewing by hand or on a machine. I had a motorcycle accident about 40 years ago in which my neck was nearly broken. As the doctors and other specialists have put it over the years when they see X rays of my neck, "You've really trashed your neck!" It will be fine for a year or so, then I'll get an episode of severe pain where a nerve is pinched by some of the vertebrae which are degenerating over time. In the past month I have had 8 chiropractic treatments, four acupuncture treatments, dozens of remedial massages, and taken Panadeine Forte, Valium, Nurofen, and whatever else I can find that might kill pain. It is finally all beginning to take effect, and tonight is the first time I've been able to sit here and type for more than a few minutes.
The doctors are all telling me now that I will eventually have to have surgery to fix my neck, but don't worry - surgical techniques have come a long way in the last few years, and it is not as invasive as it used to be.
Hmmm. Time will tell. The way I feel at the moment, I may as well just sell all my fabric and sewing gear at a market because I can't see myself ever doing much of it again.
The doctors are all telling me now that I will eventually have to have surgery to fix my neck, but don't worry - surgical techniques have come a long way in the last few years, and it is not as invasive as it used to be.
Hmmm. Time will tell. The way I feel at the moment, I may as well just sell all my fabric and sewing gear at a market because I can't see myself ever doing much of it again.
Tuesday, February 05, 2013
Back online.
...thanks to a very good friend who is a genius with computers. He is someone who was a friend of ours about 20 years ago, but moved away, and has only returned to Melbourne a year or so ago. We happened to mention that we were having computer problems, and he offered to have a look. To cut a long story short, it seems that Internet Explorer may have been the cause of my problems, so he changed me over to Mozilla Firefox, and everything is now A OK. Ken and I have several friends who are fantastic with computers, and we have been very lucky to have them helping us with various issues over the years. Thanks guys - you know who you are ;-)
Saturday, February 02, 2013
Non stitching craft.
I have just posted pictures of something on my other blog (Patra's Other Place) that might interest some of you who enjoy other crafts in addition to needleworks. Well, what do you know! It worked. Given the problems I've been having with links lately, I didn't know if I could put a link here to the other blog, but there it is.
Please help me to find you!
Just a quick note to all my bloggy friends who visit this site: due to continuing computer problems, I can't access the blogs on my sidebar by clicking on them as I used to. The only way I can get to your blogs is if you leave a comment on my posts, and I can click on your name which takes me to your blog. I really miss visiting you all, so if you read this, PLEASE leave just a short comment so I can read your blog again!
Linens from Lee Ann.
Our friends Lee Ann and Rob visited us on Monday and we enjoyed a very pleasant day with them. We hadn't seen them for over a year (apart from Ken's Mum's funeral which wasn't the right time for a lengthy catch up), so we had a lovely talk over lunch, after which we took them up to Sugarloaf Reservoir for afternoon tea. Lee Ann manages an opshop and keeps an eye out for linens for me. Here are some of the items she presented me with on Monday. She also brought aprons, but I've posted those on my Aprons blog.
If anyone reading this can translate the writing on this lovely redwork piece, I would greatly appreciate any information!
Another chicken scratch gingham cloth for my collection!
This uncut child's apron is printed on pink fabric and didn't photograph well.
Aussie doiley with cockatoo design. I have an unworked set of three pieces in my collection of duchess sets, and am pleased to have a finished version.
If anyone reading this can translate the writing on this lovely redwork piece, I would greatly appreciate any information!
Another chicken scratch gingham cloth for my collection!
This uncut child's apron is printed on pink fabric and didn't photograph well.
Small project completed.
Rather than make a wall hanging or cushion, I bought a nice frame for this one.
Aust. decimal currency cloth photos.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
A fabulous table cloth is now mine!
Remember that decimal currency cloth I wrote about last year, that someone showed me while my linen collection was over at Bundoora? I posted a plea on my blogs for anyone to contact me if they ever found one of those cloths. Well, my prayers were answered! A bloggy friend who works at an opshop a few suburbs away, contacted me late last year to tell me that the decimal currency cloth had turned up at their opshop. It was in excellent condition and beautifully embroidered, and the manager wanted to price it at $100. My friend told her that was a ridiculous price for a small cloth no matter how good it was, especially for an opportunity shop. She managed to persuade her boss to sell it to me for $50, and she brought it over to me on Friday. Dammit, not being able to post photos here!!!! The cloth is absolutely gorgeous - well worth $50, and it is in much better condition than the other two I'd seen, so I am glad I wasn't able to persuade those ladies to part with their cloths!
Thank you dear Bloggy friends!
Awww....I love being part of this crafty blogging community - you are all so kind. Thanks for your understanding comments on the previous post. I know that you have all gone through those 'flat' patches now and then, and it is comforting to know that you're not on your own when it happens.
Today I was tidying up stuff, and found a patchwork square that I'd made up last year when I was making a quilt top for Aussie Heroes. The fabric had pictures of Australian birds on it, and there was just enough left over to make a little table topper for myself. I'd pieced it, but gone no further, so today I put the backing on and finished it off. Just a little start in the right direction! Sadly I can't post a photo because my computer is still not working, and I can't post photos on the blog from Ken's laptop because it would mean putting the photos on his laptop, and I don't know how to do that. Ken's not about to teach me either!! Never mind, the photos will keep. I'm just lucky I can keep posting text to my blogs on the laptop...but I do HATE this keyboard :-(
Another thing I did was to pull out the plastic bag full of ties that have been accumulating over the past year. My disabled friend Helen enjoys sitting with me and deconstructing ties over a cuppa, so I took the bag around to her place yesterday and we spent a couple of hours sitting outside in the sun, pulling ties to bits and chatting. When I got home, I washed all the fabrics and hung them out to dry, which they did in about an hour. I had time to bring them in and iron them before going to bed. Today I sorted them all out and packed them away with the other deconstructed ties, ready to use in patchwork projects. It got me all enthused again, so I've got some ties out ready to make some more CQ blocks to complete last year's CQ block challenge which only got as far as August...
Today I was tidying up stuff, and found a patchwork square that I'd made up last year when I was making a quilt top for Aussie Heroes. The fabric had pictures of Australian birds on it, and there was just enough left over to make a little table topper for myself. I'd pieced it, but gone no further, so today I put the backing on and finished it off. Just a little start in the right direction! Sadly I can't post a photo because my computer is still not working, and I can't post photos on the blog from Ken's laptop because it would mean putting the photos on his laptop, and I don't know how to do that. Ken's not about to teach me either!! Never mind, the photos will keep. I'm just lucky I can keep posting text to my blogs on the laptop...but I do HATE this keyboard :-(
Another thing I did was to pull out the plastic bag full of ties that have been accumulating over the past year. My disabled friend Helen enjoys sitting with me and deconstructing ties over a cuppa, so I took the bag around to her place yesterday and we spent a couple of hours sitting outside in the sun, pulling ties to bits and chatting. When I got home, I washed all the fabrics and hung them out to dry, which they did in about an hour. I had time to bring them in and iron them before going to bed. Today I sorted them all out and packed them away with the other deconstructed ties, ready to use in patchwork projects. It got me all enthused again, so I've got some ties out ready to make some more CQ blocks to complete last year's CQ block challenge which only got as far as August...
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Nothing to show.
I haven't had a chance to do any sewing since MIL passed away, and the way things are going, I can't see much happening in the near future, which makes me feel guilty as hell because I committed myself to making quilt tops for the victims of Hurricane Sandy, but I haven't done a thing. I've also promised to make cot quilts for a family member who works with displaced people in New Guinea. AND, offered to make a small quilt for fire victims in Tassie....
So what is the hold up? Well, I just haven't felt in the mood for one thing, with our family loss, the heat here, and just doing other things instead. I've booked myself into several art classes and workshops, as I've decided to do more sketching this year instead of sewing. I will still do some sewing, but not sure when and how much. So if you don't stop by this blog for the next month or so, you won't be missing much!
So what is the hold up? Well, I just haven't felt in the mood for one thing, with our family loss, the heat here, and just doing other things instead. I've booked myself into several art classes and workshops, as I've decided to do more sketching this year instead of sewing. I will still do some sewing, but not sure when and how much. So if you don't stop by this blog for the next month or so, you won't be missing much!
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Thank you.
Ken and I have been touched by the sympathy messages left here in response to my post about his Mother's passing. The funeral was on Monday and was a truly beautiful service with lots of lovely tributes. Among the guests at the service were some of my blog friends and their partners, and I take this opportunity of thanking them again for their love and support at this time. (Of course they are much more than just 'blog friends' now! I just mentioned that because that is how I got to know them).
It really hasn't been such a terrible time, because Ken and his sister are very lucky to have had their Mum for so long. Of course they will miss her, but we also have such happy memories of her, we can't be sad for too long. We still have some issues to tidy up, but I hope to be back with regular posts on my blogs soon. Thanks again to all my readers.
It really hasn't been such a terrible time, because Ken and his sister are very lucky to have had their Mum for so long. Of course they will miss her, but we also have such happy memories of her, we can't be sad for too long. We still have some issues to tidy up, but I hope to be back with regular posts on my blogs soon. Thanks again to all my readers.
Tuesday, January 01, 2013
Happy New Year.
Happy New year to all those who read this blog. I won't be blogging for a week or so. Ken's Mum died on New Year's Eve. Ken and I were there with his sister and her hubby. We had been taking turns in holding her hand when her breathing became shallow, she opened her eyes, gave a little sigh, and that was it. The hours leading up to that were not pleasant with her lungs struggling for air, but it was quick in the end, so we felt at peace with her.
We cleaned out her room at the Home today, and will be seeing the funeral parlour tomorrow to set a date and choose a casket. Funeral will probably be next week some time, and that will be the end of an era. She was the last to go in her generation. We are next in line. Your mortality suddenly kicks you in the face when this happens, doesn't it.
We cleaned out her room at the Home today, and will be seeing the funeral parlour tomorrow to set a date and choose a casket. Funeral will probably be next week some time, and that will be the end of an era. She was the last to go in her generation. We are next in line. Your mortality suddenly kicks you in the face when this happens, doesn't it.
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