Thursday, April 28, 2011

Just in Time

Recently Linda purchased this panel of quilting fabric and thought it would make a nice rug for Mum for the winter ahead.

At the time she was able to find some lovely, soft and warm fabric to back it with and it has already been used to snuggle under on these cooler evenings.

The Autumn Winds Do Blow

Autumnal change has been happening where we live.

The tree in the image can be seen from out kitchen and I have been enjoying watching the colours change from day to day.

The leaves had been gathering on the lawn and I had been thinking of gathering them for our compost bin. I was not quick enough.

Tuesday turned out to be a very stormy day with strong, gusty winds. By early afternoon the power went down and did not come back on until late that night.

The next day when I looked out all the leaves on the lawn were gone. Saved me the time and trouble for gathering them but they would have been a nice addition to our compost.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

1 Doyley = 4 Mug Rugs





Ever since I wrote about Linda making mug rugs I have been wanting to have a go myself, crazy quilt style.

Recently we were in an op shop (thrift store) and I saw this sad looking doyley with some lovely hand applique work on it. It had a hand bound scalloped edge. I bought it for the princely sum of 50 cents.

I had it sitting around for a while but decided it was time to do something with it so one doyley was repurposed to become 4 mug rugs crazy quilt style.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Cowboy Quilt

When I visited Dallas last July I sent home a large package of fabrics that I bought at a garage sale from Quilt Country in Lewisville.

We have had a lot of fun with these fabrics and we still have heaps left to be used.

One of results was the quilt on the left.

Our sister Barbara is very fond of cowboy themes and, within the stash of fabrics, we found strips of fabric featuring cowboys and cowgirls together with matching strips of floral fabric that seemed ideal for a quilt for her.

Sister Linda made up the quilt for Barbara and when I went to stay with her last week the quilt was on the bed I slept in.

Barbara was able to obtain a quilt cover to put under the quilt as well as matching sheets making the cowboy quilt look quite special.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Have a Heart for Pike River/Christchurch

Late last year I wrote about the results of the call for heart blocks for the Pike River mine disaster.

The response has been huge and has now resulted in quilts being made for families impacted by the Christchurch earthquakes.

We have been involved in some way with some of them.

Our home quilting group, Sweet Peas, are making some quilts and our local quilting group, Taupo Quiltmakers have been involved in the process as well.

The quilts photographed have been machine quilted by my sister, Linda and I bound the blue and yellow one.

The many variations on a theme have been fascinating to observe.


Sunday, April 10, 2011

Family Visits

Family get togethers need to be treasured as the years go by and although not all of the family is here, five out of eight is pretty good considering our homes are quite far apart.

Brother Norman is from Christchurch and his home suffered some damage in the recent earthquakes but he came through a lot better off than many.

Linda is standing on his left and yours truly on the right.

Sister Barbara is sitting with our Mum.

More family to visit this week but not sufficient for another family portrait like this one.

Thursday, April 07, 2011

Seasons Come and Seasons Go

As I read blogs from the northern hemisphere I am aware that spring is on its way and with that the wonderful birth of new life as gardens spring to life after a long, cold winter.

For us, autumn is drawing to a close. Leaves are turning to the ember colours of a dying fire and the flowers of summer are beginning to fade.

A few weeks ago we changed the plants in the pots at the front of our house from the petunias of summer to pansies.

It has taken a while but suddenly the pots are being filled with the lovely, happy faces of the pansies that will cheer us through the winter months ahead.

Wednesday, April 06, 2011

Moving to Higher Ground

Our recent influx of visitors necessitated a few things being changed around and so our huge roll of quilters wadding ended up on our work table in our quilt studio area.

Cats love warm soft places and Cici thought this was just the best place to be.

The wadding had to be returned to its home, otherwise I am sure she would still be sleeping there.

Sunday, April 03, 2011


After our visit from Ricky, James and Amba came to stay.

I realised after they left that I had not taken any photos of them together.

The next best thing I could come up with was a photo of Amba with Linda.

How is this for a Saturday morning? Lying in bed with the two best cats in the world by your side, laptop at your feet and Saturday newspaper for a leisurely read.

I thought it was lovely that Amba felt comfortable enough to lie on the bed next to Linda and chatter away to her like they had been friends for years.

It was a lovely visit and we look forward to more of the same in time to come.