The Wood Quilt

On Saturday I was the guest speaker at the Sydney Quilt Study Group meeting at Burwood in Sydney. A small but enthusiastic group of quilt lovers brought along some interesting old quilts for advice, and I spoke about my grandmothers' bed coverings and the Wood Quilt from Hambledon Cottage at Parramatta. I have posted about the Wood Quilt previously, but I thought you'd like to see another couple of photos.
In the first photo 2 of our volunteers are analysing and charting the quilt block by block, noting damage and possible repairs needed.
The second photo shows a highly decorated appliqued block typical of the 56 blocks in this unique old quilt. The final photo shows a mystery block. This one is situated on the top left of the quilt on the border. The same tailors' suiting samples form the backing to the block, but the appliqued fabrics are different while the stitching and the composition are definately different than anywhere else on the quilt. Was the quilt made over many years and the odd block added before the border fringeing was applied? Was the border added much later than the centre? Did a different person make the odd block? Unfortunately we will probably never know the answers to these questions. We Know a Mrs Wood made the quilt as one of her relatives inherited it and donated it to the Parramatta and District Historical Society. Mr Wood was reportedly a tailor in Queen Victoria's court. The quilt was used as a door curtain in 1927 when the donor visited her uncle Edgar Wood in London and admired it. This oral history is all we know, and the date of 1865 is also negotiable due to the odd block being "discovered" recently while analysing it for the conservation. A very interesting project, and the talk at the Quilt Group was well received.

"Springtime for Hitler" costumes

This production number from the Producers by Mel Brooks is featuring in the Performing Arts Studio end of year show in early December. I should have started 4 showgirls by now, but events have taken over my life at the moment. Hubby is having surgery on a chronic back problem on Friday and he may be in hospital for up to 7 days depending on how extensive the surgery is. So I'll be juggling hospital visits, sourcing fabric, designing and patternmaking and making the Beer Stein lady, Weiner lady, Pretzel lady and Valkyrie lady. Thankfully the Studio has provided the basic sequined showgirl leotard. I'm making the skirts and draperies and headpieces. The teachers are wearing these, so I can go a bit crazy (no rude comments thankyou!!!) so long as they are easily transportable. Really looking forward to making these ones, just have to get through this difficult weekend first. So The Schedule looks something like this:
Friday - accompany DH to hospital, send him to theatre, read book, stitch, see him in recovery, go home for sleep (yeah, right!)
Saturday - visit DH in morning, go to Burwood in afternoon with antique quilt to give talk on conservation of same, take quilt back to historic house, go to hospital.
Sunday - Open House at Linnwood (see sidebar link) start 9 am finishing at 5.30 after clean up, go to hospital.
Monday - Book ME into hospital for a rest!!!

Here's hoping surgery will be more successful on the 3rd attempt and that a fusion is not required. Recovery will take longer and be more painful if this happens, so crossed fingers and toes, laminectomy will be sufficient. Nursing is not my forte.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY OLIVE !!

Today is Olive Riley's 108th Birthday. Ollie is probably the world's oldest blogger, thanks to her friend Mike who types it for her as she tells it. Ollie lives in Woy Woy, New South Wales in an aged facility, you can read her blog here
http://www.allaboutolive.com.au/ I'd like to wish Olive MANY HAPPY RETURNS and a big hug from me and my family. I hope I can be as bright and witty as Ollie well into my own senior years. The generation who lived through the world wars and the Great Depression certainly have an inner strength that I don't think we will ever truly understand. Olive was on the news this week, and had a lovely party with local children singing to her and helping her with her gifts. I found this elegant late Victorian lady with a large hat and thought it rather appropriate for Olive. I hope she likes it.

Embroiderers' Guild NSW 50th Anniversary Exhibition

These photos show the work on display from my 2 year old local Group. Most of the members are returning to embroidery after many years absence, or have never stitched before. I think they did rather well.

After all the excitement and anticipation, and all the hard work put in by all the organisers from each Group and the Committee, the 5 day Exhibition is finished, taken down and the work returned to the owners all over New South Wales. How can I describe it? I'll do my best to paint a few "word pictures" because we were only allowed to photograph our own work, or if the owner was present and gave permission for a photograph to be taken.
- Fabulous stumpwork examples, including butterflies and moths and traditional fruit and flower arrangements under glass in subtle frames
- Exquisite hardanger mats and runners, and fabulous tablecloths, some in coloured linen
- Banners made by nearly every Group and Newcastle Branch, the requested size of 40 cm wide by 150 cm long, but with so many different techniques used it was hard to pick a favourite. Must mention a special interpretation though, made for a major exhibition in Gunndedah, a triptych of scenes from the (rural) district with stumpwork trees crossing the joins between the panels. Exquisite details !
- Stunning needlelace collar and antique parasol re-covered with needlelace worked panels, both won prizes for their well known maker
- Patchwork, cross stitch, gold work, creative embroidery, 3D objects, thread painted pictures, clothing, every technique imagineable using a needle and thread
- Postcard challenge by members, some 300 sent in, displayed on mini washing lines attached to large frames scattered around the venue
- Workshops and lectures by visiting international tutors, as well as our own tutors, well attended and appreciated by all
- Young Textile and Fibre Group work from children 5 - 18 years (including my kids' group)
- And lets not forget the Gift Boutique and the outside traders who enticed us with their embroidery "goodies" for sale.

I'm hoping we will get some "official" photos up on the Guild website (see my sidebar) in the future, but I think we'll have to wait till we all catch our breath, this was our BIGGEST exhibition so far I think, definately befitting a Golden Anniversary celebration.

Finger Knitting Part 2

Childrens' class went exceptionally well today, the finger knitting was a HUGE success. I only had 4 students as it was the middle weekend of 2 weeks of school holidays, but they thoroughly enjoyed themselves. They were so enthusiastic that they all made several pieces, which included belts, necklaces, head bands, bracelets and scarves. Sorry about the blank faces on the photos, but I forgot to get written permission to post the photos on the web, so thought it wiser to blank them out. Their ages range from 6 to 11 years old, and only one has been stitching for more than 12 months. Didn't they do well?

Finger Knitting

This week Sharon B. linked to a video tutorial by Jess on YouTube (see sidebar for link to Sharon B.'s blog) featuring finger knitting. I had intended to teach scrumbling to my YTFG children's class tomorrow, but think I'd like to give a few basic lessons on crochet first. Finger knitting seems like a great alternative and Jess's tutorial was very helpful, so here are the results. The first picture shows the hand position with the yarn wound around the fingers and the end held down by the thumb, the second the work in progress, and then the finished items. The neck scarf uses 2 novelty yarns, one very hairy and the other "eyelash" style worked together. The necklace uses a metalic tubular crochet yarn and closes with a metal hook and thread loop. The bracelet is another novelty yarn and closes with a button and loop. I'm sure the kids will enjoy this one, it's quite liberating producing this with only your fingers and no other introduced tools. Thanks so much Jess and Sharon.

Roses from the Heart Bonnet Project

I've promised to make and embroider 2 bonnets for Christina Henri for the Roses from the Heart Project. I don't have any convict ancestors, so I "adopted" 2 convicts who died while in custody, since they will have no descendants to commemorate them. Christina needs 25,000 ( yes, twenty five thousand! ) colonial style bonnets for her project, click on the sidebar link for more details. It's not too late to offer to make a bonnet, the main display is in March 2008. Here is the first little bit of embroidery on my first bonnet, nothing like leaving everything till the last minute, is there? Now I've gotten started, I'm itching to complete them. Of course, they will have to wait till after the long weekend we have coming up, and the dreaded welt pockets on the vests, see post below.

TAST Week 39 Reversed Buttonhole Bar

I can't believe I've managed to post TAST stitches 3 in a row! Must be some kind of record for me. Of course, regular readers will know that I hold a Black Belt in Procrastination. I should be making some clothing for a client, but I have to face some welt pockets. The sewers here will recognise that they can be a bit tricky, and that you don't want to start them when you're not completely ready, in case you ruin the garment. So instead I explored the TAST stitch on Sharon B.'s blog (see sidebar for link) and had a bit of fun. I'll face the welts tomorrow! I've used Perle 5 and 8 threads, on evenweave linen. I quite like the serpentine line, and I can see that the little multi-coloured "Aztec" style wheel might be great fun for kids to try. Couldn't resist stitching a French knot in the centre though.

Secret Santa stocking

My Embroiderers' Guild group made a Secret Santa bag last year, so we decided to continue the tradition and celebrate Christmas and our friendship within the group. I found this sweet little stocking designed by Michelle Ridgway in the latest issue of Handmade magazine V. 24 no. 12. I changed it a little as ours is to be used differently than the decoration she designed. It's only little, about 9 inches long, the perfect size for a small gift. We'll all put our own names on them, and then draw one secretly from a container. The idea then is to think of something suitable for that person, usually worth no more than $10. Of course people can make something (preferred) or buy a treat or small gift. It's fun seeing how well we really know each other, but I'm easy! Chocolates, chocolates and more chocolates. Or a little piece of yummy fabric, or some scrumptious threads.

TAST Week 37 catch up.

I had a great day today. It was International Talk Like A Pirate Day, so with pirate earring in place and a scorpion necklace at my throat, I waited for a ride from my daughter to Spotlight for some sewing supplies. Alas, she arrived during evening peak traffic hour on the roads, so we will go tomorrow morning instead. I should have been sewing up some bed linen for a client today, but Sharon B.'s blog (link at sidebar) was too tempting this morning so have stitched up my samples of 2 weeks of TAST instead. This one is called Square Boss Stitch and is a variation of Rice Stitch. My first sample is in the traditional style, while the second one is an exploration using sequin waste (love a bit of glitter, you know), blue metallic tubular ribbon, and perle thread. The arms on the crosses needed to be uneven to clear the holes in the sequin waste, but still looks quite interesting I think.

TAST Week 38 Knotted Buttonhole Band

Well, as promised on Sharon B.'s blog, here is a little exploration of this week's stitch. I spent several pleasant hours with this rhythmical stitch, I've really missed regular stitching. I've promised last week's stitch by the end of the week too, so will "reward" myself with some more stitching in a day or two if I get another overdue job finished.

The details : top motifs left to right. 2 rows Steff Francis silk "perle" yarn buttonhole on perle 8 ladder stitches, 2 rows Perle 5 stitches on contrasting Perle 8 ladder and the right hand one is 3 rows Perle 8 on Perle 8 ladder stitches. Below them is one row of a metallic crochet yarn on Perle 8 ladder stitches. Last but not least is a piece of Sinamay metallic ribbon used as the ladder stitches. Irregular single rows of knotted buttonhole band in metallic crochet yarn, Perle 8 and Perle 5. A bit tricky because the raw edge of the Sinamay kept catching on the thread.

HINT for next time, put a row of Scotch tape over the edge while stitching and remove carefully later to save catching threads.

What to make with "special fabric"

I mentioned in a previous post that I'd bought some more "must have" patchwork fabric at a recent craft show. I'm very reluctant to cut it up in smaller pieces for traditional patchwork as the allover design is just too wonderful. I thought a padfolio might be the answer, but searching for my bookmarked link I found a couple of alternative ideas. I think I may just have to subscribe to this "zine", I think I can find several ideas among the free projects, I wonder what else they have on offer for subscribers? No affils, etc. etc. just love finding really useful links.
Look at http://fibreandstitch.com/freebies.htm

The cockatoo tree.

This hollow tree was home to many different species of birds at "Linnwood", the local historic house where I spend a lot of volunteer hours. Unfortunately, a large truck picking up a full rubbish skip took a shortcut, knocking off the overhanging limb and tearing open the side of the tree. The birds have found alternative accomodation though, and continue to nest and raise their babies in our area. Aren't they sweet, they're real characters and have distinct personalities.

Spring is in the air.

Rainbow lorikeets and white cockatoos wake us up every morning, even more loudly than usual, so I know Spring has really sprung around here. The wild freesias in the garden are blooming, my Kangaroo Paws are ready to burst out and the deciduous trees are taking on a green fuzz with all the new leaf buds just starting to open. Can you tell I love Spring, I gave birth twice in this season and I've always loved seeing the renewal of Nature all around me. This of course leads to Spring Cleaning. I get quite strange (well, stranger than usual!) at this time of year. I feel the need to re-organise the house, pull out weeds, re-arrange furniture and sort through junk that has been accumulating over the year. The only problem is, I really don't have time at the moment, I should be catching up on projects postponed while I was ill. But the instinct is too strong, and so today I've tidied and sorted the sewing room to within an inch of its life, moved things around and even cleaned the floor. Of course, it could have something to do with the imminent arrival of my newest baby. No, I'm not in "the family way", I just mean my new Bernina 240 machine is being delivered on Wednesday and since I am having an introductory lesson at the same time, I needed to clean the sewing room to make room for 2 chairs at the cutting table.

Slight change of plans !

I added my photo to the sidebar beneath my profile recently, but have now removed it. I was a bit reluctant to reveal my face to the world, but if Sharon B. can put her lovely face on her blog, and Downunder Dale can, I thought I could too. Blogger wouldn't let me put a thumbnail in my profile, which is what I really wanted to do, and it was VERY much bigger than I really liked. So you'll just have to wait till I can get my act together with a smaller picture.

Yummy fabric

This gorgeous fabric "begged" me to buy it at the Craft Show, so how could I refuse its request, hee hee? There were several colourways, but this one just appealed the most, as well as a couple of pieces of complementary fabric. Not sure where I'll use it, I seem to have quite a stash of "must have" pieces just now, so I can see lots of hand bags and totes being made, where you don't have to cut the fabric into such small pieces. I've been admiring the "padfolios" popping up on other blogs, they look great, and goodness knows I could use some fancy folders to organise myself better. Must search my bookmarked blogs for the tutorial.... if I find it I'll post the link here.

Craft Show roundup.

The sun is shining, the birds are announcing that Spring is fast approaching, and I'm sitting here musing "What was I thinking, volunteering for 4 out of 5 days at the Craft Show???" I'm very tired and I spent a small fortune, but I don't think I was frivolous, everything will be used and enjoyed. I'm a bit reluctant to admit the total cost, but here is the shopping list.

2 packets tiny hand dyed lace motifs suitable for crazy patchwork embellishment, 4 pkts bulk silk embroidery ribbon, ergonomic rotary cutter for sewing, short quilting ruler, long quilting ruler, 10 fat quarters (or is that 12) for my ongoing scrappy old fashioned florals quilt, gorgeous piece of fabric from Logans (no affils etc.) with co-ordinating fabrics, 3 vintage Australian Home Journal magazines, 4 metres of beautiful beaded trim for my 1890's vintage dress I'm planning, a hand felting tool and mat with a cot blanket piece and wool rovings, oh, and a Bernina Activa 240 sewing machine.

Yes, you read that correctly, I finally decided to update my domestic machine. Eventually I'll have to give up sewing on the industrial due to my arthritic neck and consequent hand problems, so this machine will be the one to use into my dotage. Not top of the range, but top of the medium price range machines, and no automatic embroidery which I'm never likely to need. I'm like a kid with a new toy under the Christmas tree, waiting for the day to open the box. It arrives on Wednesday week, with an introductory lesson in my home. Gee, I'll have to tidy up a bit before then!! This last week has been hectic so very little of the domestic goddess has been seen around this house!

The Embroiderers' Guild at the Craft Show Pt. 3

The rear wall highlights the upcoming 50th Anniversary Celebrations, the Festival and Exhibition being staged in October 2007 at the Sydney Showgrounds. For more detail, click on my sidebar link to the Embroiderers' Guild. I have also included 12 examples from the 100's of fabric postcards which the members have made as part of the 2007 Postcard Challenge. The complete collection will be displayed at the October exhibition and I can't wait to see them all "en masse". Let's hope we get lots of visitors at the October Exhibition and new members of the Guild as a result.

The Embroiderers' Guild at the Craft Show Pt. 2

The right hand wall features work from the western Sydney groups. Some are novice embroiderers and were reluctant to display their work. The Guild likes to encourage all levels of embroidery from beginner to "master craftsperson" so I have included all types of work in the display. I think it all looks pretty good, don't you?

The Embroiderers' Guild at the Craft Show

The left hand wall features the YTFG (Young Textile and Fibre Group) display of children's work and information about the clubs, and the samples of the YTFG workshops at the upcoming October Festival and Exhibition. I think the workshop samples are particularly cute, and hope the kids do too. The panels with the green background are called the Australian Farm Challenge, and the children have made all the 3D objects stitched to them. There is a link to the YTFG blog on my sidebar for more information.

August Stitches and Craft Show, Rosehill

This week promises to be hectic around here. It's the Stitches and Craft Show at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse again, and the last opportunity to advertise the Embroiderers' Guild 50th Anniversary Exhibition and Festival to a captive audience, hee hee (click on link on sidebar for more details) The Guild Groups which loosely border the Great Western Highway out of Sydney agreed last year to act as hostesses, and I offerred to be the co-ordinator. Did I mention that I'm a compulsive organiser? I've spent several days contacting hostesses, arranging for work to be sent in, and collecting all the Guild information we usually display. I'm getting a ride to the Show tomorrow to set up, the best bit of the whole experience in my opinion. You get to see behind the scenes and get an early-bird look at what's going on the various stands and displays. I'll be there for the next 5 days I think, so will try to take a few photos of the general area to add to the blog. I usually come home with several more pieces of must-have fabric and threads, the odd reference book, and the latest gadget. Thank goodness I no longer have a credit card, so easy to overspend without realising it.

Bathex 2007 photos

Here are the promised photos from my weekend exhibition at Bathex 2007 at Bathurst, NSW. You'll have to scroll down 6 or 7 posts for the full report, but the first few photos are some details from the display. In order going down they are
1. My fan laced 1940's - 1960's corset, purchased on E bay about 12 months ago. This is the back view.

2. One of my grandmothers' maiden aunts' camisoles, which were the nucleus of my underwear collection and inherited about 10 years ago. Pre 1920 era.

3. My repro 1885 corset, made of coutil and grey furnishing weight woven fabric, with plastic artificial whalebone stiffening and a 5 eye busk on the front. Laced through 3 piece eyelets at the back. Size 23 inch waist.

4. A gorgeous camisole from the Linnwood Collection, assymetrical fastening with tiny pearl buttons and featuring crocheted lace trimming. About 1900 - 1920 era.

Bathex 2007 photos - some details

Bathex 2007 photos

A few of the pieces borrowed from "Linnwood" beside my fan laced corset. A photo of Linnwood helped people to visualise the house and started other converstions as well. I also found a possible guest exhibitor for Linnwood and a potential new member from a lady who used to live locally to the house but now lives in Bathurst. Like I said, a small, small world.

Bathex 2007 photos

3rd section along table. Some lovely camisoles on the homemade stands behind.

Bathex 2007 photos

Next section along the table. Note appropriate photos (copies) on the easels.

Bathex 2007 photos

Looking left to right along the table. Note the copy of a French postcard I found of the girl putting on the divided drawers on the little easel behind my pair of drawers.

Photos from Bathex 2007

Looking along the tables towards the front door

Home from Bathurst

Well, Friday morning dawned wet and cold, so I abandoned the idea of painting my little easels. I was packed and ready well before DH, but it was 1.30 pm before we eventually left the city. We stopped in Blackheath in the Blue Mountains for a late lunch in a deli cafe, where the temperature was a brisk 6 degrees C, a foretaste as it turned out. We arrived at Bathurst showgrounds and registered at the Show and, as I had been warned might happen, my allocated table was in the centre of the first pavillion. My DH promptly helped me cover the tables with the heritage green poplin I had brought along, and we pinned a skirt of the same material around the table. I had packed the large suitcase in assembly order for a quick setup and was able to pull my easels (raw wood), makeshift display stands and boxes for tiers out before I had to uppack the clothes. We had my display all set up in 1 and 1/2 hours, thank goodness, as it was starting to get very chilly indeed, down to about 4 degrees. The forecast was for a cold weekend, about 10 - 11 degrees and possible light showers. We had had several days of very mild weather in Sydney, and they had the same in Bathurst, 18 degrees on Thursday.

Friday evening we booked into our accomodation, a boutique hotel with only 3 guest rooms in a renovated 1886 2 storey home on a hill in Bathurst. The owner Lindsay showed us to the Rose suite upstairs. The decorator details were quite nice, with rose pictures on the walls, a rose wall freize, rose painted bead fringed bedside lamps and a square patchwork bedspread featuring rose design prints. The bathroom had underfloor heating (quite a luxury in Australia) which I really appreciated after a long day on Saturday. We ate dinner at a local Thai restaurant, and then went "home" to the roaring open fire in the parlour. The owners were very welcoming and we felt like visitors in their home (which we were of course since they lived in half of the house!)

Saturday morning saw us up before 7am to shower and get ready for breakfast in the parlour, near that roaring fire again. Poor Lindsay must have been up with the sparrows to light it for us, and we had a beautiful cooked breakfast and chatted to him about the Show and Linnwood, comparing the two houses and noting similarities. The drive to the Show was about 6 minutes, so we arrived in time to uncover the tables and settle in. In hindsight, I was underdressed for the weather, as I had no concept of the cold weather. Well, the maximum all day was 7 degrees, and that was in the sun. The concrete floor of the pavillion made it much colder, the hot food and drink van did very well from my business !! I can't recall ever being so cold in daylight hours. But it was worth the discomfort, as I talked my head off to everyone who stopped to read my labels and made eye contact. I gave out quite a few printed contact cards, and of course everyone offerred to give / sell / put me onto wonderful underwear they knew about. I did get an invite to display at a a local historic house open day in the future, and the local Historical Society would like me to help date some of their collection of underwear. I also spoke to two ladies on Sunday who have collections they are wanting to downsize, so fingers crossed they come to fruition.

Saturday night we went to the Show Dinner with other exhibitors, and we made up a table with 3 other couples we have known for a long time who were also attending. I also had several surprise encounters, including 2 ladies from Sydney who I haven't seen for a long time who were visiting Bathurst. I also found several mutual friends with people I spoke too, very spooky how small the world is, isn't it. We enjoyed seeing 2 dear friends who recently moved to Tasmania from the mountains. Edgar had inoperable prostate cancer and other problems as well, and the doctors have told him to go home and enjoy the rest of his life. So he and his wife have moved to Tassie, bought an 1830's stone cottage, joined the local Historical Society and been made honorary life members and patrons already!! I think he has a new lease on life, if his body will just allow him the time.

Sunday was slightly warmer, about 9 degrees I think, but I dressed in more layers, DH bought me some pantihose to go underneath my trousers, and I added a fleecy jumper. I don't own any wool ones, and Spring clothes are already in all the shops. I empathise with the Michelin Man ;} I had bought a cute knitted hat on Saturday from a trader so warmth triumphed over fashion! I hope there is no photographic evidence of how "interesting" I looked !! On Sunday I felt warm enough to do a little bit of the patchwork piecing I packed in case I felt like stitching. It was a good talking point anyway, even if only a little was done.

The taking down of the display took about 15 minutes (I'm not kidding) and after goodbyes all around, we set off for home. The traffic through the Blue Mountains was dreadful, and we took just on 3 hours to get home. The cat was very glad to see us, although the youngest daughter moved home for the weekend. We will never complain about Sydney in winter being cold EVER AGAIN !! I'm glad we went to the Bathex Show, but I've put in a request for it to be held in the Spring next time !!

Packing for Bathex 2007.

The last 2 days have been spent organising and packing for my display of antique and vintage underwear at Bathex 2007. I've been allocated 12 feet of table space and as this will probably be in the centre of a hall, this involved making small portable stands to display 4 camisoles to their best advantage, using candlesticks, sections of cardboard cylinders from fabric rolls and sewn fitted covers for same. I also had to collect suitable boxes to give a tiered effect on the table, and round up about 12 metres of matching (cheap) fabric for table covers and table skirt. In the morning I have to spray paint 5 little wooden easels matt black to display some copies of photos of vintage underwear to complement the display. I'll try to take some photos of the display in situ, but for now I will show 2 of my pieces to whet your appetite. The top photo shows my "free traders" or divided drawers, dated about 1870's. Hand made broderie anglaise trims the legs, quite nicely embroidered. The second photo shows the bottom of my late Victorian / Edwardian long petticoat. It features bands of hand made bobbin lace in between insertions of broderie and other laces. Quite exquisite, slightly grey/white in colour, and very wearable. Now I'd better go and finish packing the case, or I'll never get to sleep tonight.

TAST Buttonhole Wheel Stitch

After spending most of the day surfing the net, I felt quite inspired to get straight into this week's TAST. Here is my sample for your consideration. I stitched in a Steff Francis overdyed medium silk thread over some little white clay flat "beads" from an old op-shop necklace. The "flowers" are cut from sequin waste and they are couched down in perle thread with a DMC metallic 3 wrap French Knot in the centre and scattered about. Would make quite a nice little postcard, in fact I might even send it down to the EG for the Postcard Challenge we are collating for the October Festival of Embroidery and Exhibition. Will see how it looks when finished.

Blogging Without Obligation.

I've been feeling quite guilty lately that some folks visiting might feel shortchanged that I'm not regularly doing TAST at the moment. I'm also not very regular in updating this blog. Today I was surfing around the TAST ring and found out about BWO and so have included the logo on the sidebar. You can click on the logo to find out what it's all about, but just let me say I agree with the sentiments wholeheartedly. Blogging means different things to everyone, for me it is a way to connect with people all over the world, sharing my passions, trials and successes. We shouldn't feel obliged and guilty when life gets in the way, as it has a habit of doing when we are busy women, wives or mothers. I love reading everyone's blogs and try to do so regularly, and of course I have favourites that I identify with, or just love their quirky sense of humour, or marvel at their creativity. I hope you find this blog worth visiting, and now I have added a visitors' map I can see who visits, even if they don't leave a comment.

Beetlejuice

As promised, here is one of the costumes I designed and made last week, while still recovering from the worst cold I've had in about 20 years. But the show must go on, so while it did take twice as long as it should have for a fully lined and fused jacket, pants and shirt, and 17 ties (I made a few extra in case they lose some) I do think this outfit looks pretty authentic compared to the movie still. The wig on the model is one I had in my props box, not the one being worn at the Eistedfodd. More information on my costume blog, see sidebar.

Progress

Finally, some light at the end of the tunnel. Today I'm starting to feel a little less "under the weather" and coughing is getting less frequent and less severe. Just as well, I think, because I've put several big projects on HOLD during the last few weeks which really MUST be done soon. One of them is very urgent, and it is started, but not much progress really. I'm making some Eisteddfod costumes for the dancing studio where I freelance. For full dress rehearsal this Thursday night they need a size 8 black and white striped men's suit with a hot pink organza sleeveless top underneath for "Beetlejuice" as played by Michael Keeton in the movie. And 16 hot pink organza ties to go on the supporting dancers. The fabric supplied was black and white cotton lycra, so of course that will all have to be fused to Whispaweft for the jacket. Hope my machines behave and sew through the fabric nicely, otherwise you'll hear me yelling from the other side of the country. I'm not an habitual swearer, I was always taught that swearing is a sign of ignorance of more approriate words. So usually I just threaten the machine with destruction, replacement and other dire consequences if it doesn't perform properly. It usually works. Failing that, I have a back-up domestic machine or two, and they are so old that they don't DARE misbehave or they know they'll be on the scrap heap ! Time to head into the sewing room now, set up the ironing press, and start that fusing so I can get sewing this afternoon. I'll post a picture of the progress later.

A late reply to "You're tagged!" from Jenny B.

You may have noticed on other blogs around the traps that people are being "tagged". Just a bit of fun, recording 7 things about yourself that people might not know, a little insight into your true character. Now that's a bit of a worry, I'm not sure I WANT people to know me THAT well, hee hee. So my reveals might not be all that earth shattering, but here goes.
1. My biggest flaw is that I hold a Black Belt in Procrastination. Now the cleverer ones amongst you might have read between the lines in my previous posts and already worked this one out.
2. The previous point always results in me having to pull all-night sessions to make up for lost / lazy time. I am at my most creative when this happens, out of sheer neccesity.
3. Despite my terminal procrastination, no bride has ever walked naked down the aisle and no dancer has ever had no costume for a performance. Refer to my costume blog for more details if you dare.
4. I'm a chronic organiser. I can't stand leaving someone else to organise ANYTHING because I always think I know how to do it better. Of course, this is not 100% true, and I often drive myself nuts trying to organise every little detail myself, I just don't know HOW to delegate. A therapist would have a field day with me!
5. I aspired to be the next Prue Acton when I was 18. She was a young, hip, Aussie designer in the 1970's and I really wanted to go into Fashion Design. I applied and was successful for the Fashion Design course at East Sydney which was THE place to train at the time (Akira Issagowa, Trent Nathan etc. trained there), but life got in the way and I couldn't continue.
6. I spend WAY too much time on the computer. I belong to 15 Yahoo groups, contribute to 4 blogs, and belong to 3 or 4 other forums, not to mention my LiveJournal account. This all adds up to at least an hour every morning checking emails and links while I eat my breakfast. I don't know what I'd do if I had to go out to business every day, I'd have to get up at dawn to fit it all in.
7. I would love 8 or 9 hours sleep every night but unfortunately it doesn't happen because I can't seem to get to bed before midnight most nights. The result is that I'm always tired and frequently cranky.
As you can see, nothing too earth shattering, but I think I fulfilled the brief. Now I'm supposed to tag 7 other people, but I don't know 7 people who blog well enough to tag them !! So I'm breaking the "chain" I'm afraid.

June Craft and Quilt Fair Day 2

On arriving home from the Show, I unpacked my purchases and thought, "oh, is that all I bought?" as you do. See post below. So on the second day between my shift at Cavalcade of History and Fashion and lunch I scooted back to Dale's stand to buy a few more bits. We are very fortunate in Sydney to have 3 major craft show events each year, and that's not including various Bead fairs and ready made art fairs. But Dale only brings The Thread Studio http://thethreadstudio.com/ over from Perth once each year, to Darling Harbour. So if you want to fondle the goods in person, you just have to be there! I bought a few of the things Dale mentioned in her new book "Surface Tension" (which she kindly inscribed for me with my matching purple pen) such as jute scrim, hand painted muslin, an Oliver Twists experimental pack, some hand dyed wool felt, some felted yarn and one of her great variety packs of various threads in one colourway. I also bought a half metre of an orange metallic knitted tubular ribbon, about 2 1/2 inches wide. No idea what I'll do with that, it just appealled to me. I also added to my stash of old fashioned floral fat quarters for a WISP quilt and bought some little lacy motifs to make a challenge for my EG group ladies, who will be learning some CQ at their meeting in mid July. Now I just need to shake off this dreaded lurgie, get my strength back and Bob's your uncle.
(I can just see all the non-Aussies reaching for their dictionaries to try to translate that last sentence, hee hee. Basically I meant I need to get better and everything will be all right. )

June Craft and Quilt Fair in Sydney.

These are the goodies I bought from various traders including The Thread Studio on my first day at the show. They include some Sari "ribbons" in a hank, some stranded variegated silk mill ends threads (very reasonable, at a wool shop) some machine embroidery threads and some lovely wool tops to do some felting. I loved the little square sequins seen in the middle of the photo, they are not super shiny but will add a little zing to wherever I put them. Please don't expect any photos of any of these projects SOON, I have a bit of a reputation for buying up at these shows and using the goodies about 5 or 6 YEARS later. Perhaps this time I'll be a bit more motivated, seeing all the fabulous work on the net these days is very encouraging, and now I belong to a few Groups as well where people are just so prolific, I feel positively LAZY. Just at the moment I have a good excuse though, I volunteered 3 days in a row at the Show for my Guild and for Cavalcade, and have come down with a really heavy cold, spending the last 4 days in bed or lying on the couch feeling downright miserable. Today is the first day to even sit at the computer, a big deal for someone like me who is so email and blog driven. I'd actually forgotten what I purchased till I opened the bags to take these photos, hee hee.

Appliqued blocks on the Wood Quilt

As requested, here are closeups of some of the blocks on the Wood quilt. The quilt is 217 cm long by 212 cm wide and comprises 56 blocks with appliqued fabrics on foundation square blocks of suiting weight fabrics. Family history has it made in 1865, but there is some doubt about this. Fabrics from children's dresses are reputedly also incorporated, but the young people in question look to be teenagers in a 1920's photograph. In any case, Mrs Wood was a remarkable needlewoman who used fabrics at hand to make a useful item for her home and showed a flair for design in her composition of this lovely hanging / quilt. There is quite a bit of conservation to be done, the first photograph shows just one area where the blocks have started to separate. There are also areas where the silk pieces have shattered and dissapeared altogether. The quilt has been displayed on a bed for many years since arriving in Australia from England, where it hung across the top of stairs to keep out drafts. Scroll down for the overall view of this remarkable textile.

A UFO finally completed.

Should that be "an" UFO ? Now I'm not known for my smocking talent, in fact this is my first attempt, with a little help from one of my EG ladies who is a member of the Smockers' Guild as well. We did this little scissor ball as a class project earlier in the year, or was that late last year ? Anyway, last weekend was dreadful weather in Sydney, cold, wet and very windy. So I pulled out 2 WISPS and a UFO. Now the WISPS are "Works in VERY Slow Progrss" I'm afraid, one has been over 5 years while the other only about 6 months. They are both patchwork projects and hand pieced, and these things take TIME so don't expect finished photos any time soon, but this little ball only needed its little needle woven "cap" and a pretty "necklace" to finish it off. I think it's too pretty to use on my scissors, so might use it on a key to the china cabinet where all the children's precious objects are stored. They include birds nests, souvenir items, decorations from christening and birthday cakes, a bottle of sand from the Simpson dessert, shells and a moth case complete with piece of twig still attached. You can probably see a bit of a pattern here, I have mini collections of all sorts of odd things in my home, including vintage underwear (Victorian, Edwardian and up to WWII mostly), dolls, china shoes, sewing machine models, costumes and accessories... you could say we need a museum to house it all.

Hambledon - The Wood Quilt.

While this is called a quilt it should properly be called the Wood Wall Hanging, but it doesn't sound so romantic does it? My current project, this is housed at Hambledon on the Payten Bed. Originally from England where it was used to stop drafts at the top of some stairs and still shows the original tape for the hanging loops on the rear at the top (see the area without the scallops and tassels in the background) Reputedly made by piecing suiting fabric blocks which were appliqued with remnants of dresses and furnishings which came from a royal tailor's shop in the late 1860's, but there is some question over the dating. Certainly some of the fabrics appear to be of that vintage, but there are supposed to also be remnants from family garments worn by children of the maker who appear to be young adults in a 1920 photograph. My guess is late 1800's but I'm no quilt expert. I'm a textile specialist though, and so will be leading the group performing conservation and repair work to the deteriorating quilt, and the making of a storage cylinder and bag to "retire" it from permanent display. Study groups will still be able to book viewings of the quilt but it is hoped that resting it will lengthen its life considerably so future generations can enjoy its beauty.

Hambledon and its trees.

Here is Hambledon, nestling behind a magnificent Hoop Pine dated to the 1830's. The cottage was built in 1824 by John Macarthur as a guest house and then governess' residence for Elizabeth Farm which is situated to the East. The cottage is quite modest from the outside, but quite lovely inside with a drawing room, dining room, 2 bedrooms, detached kitchen and out buildings. We are very fortunate in Parramatta to have 3 historic properties within a short walk of each other at Harris Park. Elizabeth Farm (John Macarthur's principal residence) is to the East while Experiment Farm Cottage (site of James Ruse's farm, now Surgeon John Harris' house) is to the West in the same street. Hambledon is on the point of the triangle down in front of the other 2 properties and closest to the Parramatta River. And I am very fortunate to have connections with all three properties now, and also with Old Government House up in Parramatta Park. Through my historical reproduction sewing of soft furnishing and costumes, I get to visit all 4 properties fairly regularly in various capacities. An exciting project is beginning at Hambledon, more about that soon.

Hambledon trees.

How's this for a huge Moreton Bay Fig tree? Dating to 1850's this magnificent tree seems to have escaped from the disease which has plagued the figs in Sydney's Hyde Park, causing them to be removed. Perhaps it is due to this land being part of a private residence till the 1960's when Parramatta Council purchased it from the owners who planned to build a pharmaceutical factory behind it? The trees at Hambledon have survived the droughts and vandals, but one has been damaged extensively by a lightning strike after being damaged by borers. The arborist has placed a protective sheath around it hoping to save the remaining portion, and extensive mulching around the drip lines of the trees seems to be helping with moisture retention. A truly magnificent sight.

Hambledon trees.

A majestic English Oak tree at Hambledon Cottage Harris Park. The plaque at the base suggests 1850's as the planting date because the tree was mentioned in the census of the time. This is one of about 8 heritage listed trees in the former grounds of Hambledon, now maintained as a park by the local Parramatta council. Truly magnificent.

Amazing art in the mall

Today I went with 2 friends to Hornsby (a northern suburb of Sydney) on a quest for some mattress ticking for one of my historic house projects. The shop staff told us to look for the big clock and we could not miss the shop. Well, we did (miss it, that is) and we drove around and around in circles till eventually consulting the telephone book in the post office (no help because we couldn't find the street signs) and then asking a friendly local. She pointed out the clock and said just up there on the left. Well, this is THE clock. How could we miss THAT? It's a magnificent metal (bronze?) sculpture / clock / water feature in the centre of the mall at Westfield. The details are just fabulous. Local birds, bats, and a tribute to the local waterway (the Hawkesbury river not far away). A real centrepiece to the mall, and a drawcard for the locals and visitors alike. It made the 2 hour drive worthwhile, although the companion directing the driver disliked traffic and stop lights and took us on the "scenic route" !! I'm ashamed to say it helped that the local Target department store had chocolates at 30% off too (actually, that's not 100% true, I deserved some spoiling!) I also bought 2 giant punnets of local strawberries from the Organic Growers' Market as a treat for my DH.

My tips for Creativity.

On her blog "inaminuteago" (see sidebar for link) Sharon B. invited us to list our tips for creativity. I had to really think about that, because my creativity is so chaotic, I don't think I have any useful tips ! However, here is what I know:
1. You can't force yourself to be creative. No matter how soon the deadline to finish a challenge/ submit an entry/ do a class sample you will NOT be able to magically produce your best work on demand.
2. The irony is that you will feel most creative when you don't have the time to be. It is so hard to resist the urge to put just a few more beads or sequins on the project as it is leaving the house / studio / craft room "because it just needs a little something more".
3. Your most creative moments will strike when you don't have the materials required to hand, and by the time you gather / buy / acquire the materials, the moment often has passed.
4. The moral of number 3 is you need to have a big stash of materials so that when the moment strikes, you're ready.
5. The hours between 11 pm and 3 am are my most creative. If I can stay awake, I can do great work.
6. Chocolate is a great source of energy at 2 am, just make sure you always have a good supply in the house (that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!)
7. I love to look at other people's work and marvel at their ingenuity. I shouldn't, it just makes me feel lazy.
8. I need a "wife" to cook, clean, wash and keep house for me. Then I could spend more time in creative pursuits.
9. I need to learn to turn off the computer after I check my emails, reply to them, check out my forums and groups, post to my journal... You get the idea.
10. I should celebrate when I finish some stitching / costumes / lace / patchwork because I do good work, just not a lot of it. It feels good to finish something, I just need to complete a bit more.
Not sure how "helpful" that will be for others, but it sure was cathartic writing it down !

Another chick has flown the nest!

Well today my middle daughter's best girlfriend took possession of her new 2 bedroom flat which is about 5 minutes away by car. She invited my 24 year old to share with her and pay rent so the past few weeks have been very busy for Col, looking for a permanent teaching position, packing up her bedroom and buying a few "essentials" like pots and pans, cookbooks, kitchen utensils, ironing board, broom, fry pan and a clothes airer. Funny what the kids see as essential, her friend had about 50 glasses (gifts), candles (gifts) some Tupperware and the contents of her bedroom, and thought that would be plenty !! We bought them a lovely woollen feature rug for the living room, and furniture has been ordered for weekend delivery. It took Col all of 15 minutes to pack her life in boxes into 3 vehicles and then she was off. She assures me she'll be back home often as she doesn't have a computer yet at the flat. She has a 3 month posting in P.E. but not a permanent job unfortunately. She is looking at retraining in another subject area as there is a glut of P.E. teachers presently. Doesn't seem right that a student can graduate with 2nd class honours and still not get full time employment in their field. That leaves my oldest girl still in residence (although that could change soon too) and the youngest girl officially still living here, but we see less and less of her as she works 2 jobs and stays with her boyfriend's family a lot. Her fish and cat are still here though so perhaps I can hold them hostage? The house is suddenly looking a bit big for just hubby and me, lets hope I get some grandchildren to visit some day?

TAST running stitch - pattern darning

This sample of pattern darning from my Basic Course at the NSW Embroiderers' Guild shows a few more complicated designs than the bookmark in the post below. Here I have used positive and negative spaces to form the patterns from a basic running stitch. The threads are perles except for the purple thread which is a stranded persian wool and the work was stab stitched while in a large hoop. The fabric is an evenweave linen about 22 count.

TAST Running stitch - pattern darned bookmark

Here is a little pattern darning bookmark I worked several years ago, using a simple running stitch action to create the design. The chart is my own, so you may use it freely. Pattern darning is also very suitable for kids to do as they can easily see where to go next, you could simplify the designs onto a larger grid for them. I used perle threads in this example.

An apology

Following my lovely relaxing trip to Northern Queensland I received the news that my elderly biological father had passed away after a short serious illness. My mother and father divorced when I was just 17 so we had not been close for many, many years. It was only in the last 10 years or so that he had re-established any contact with me on a semi-regular basis. The emotions are very mixed up at present, and I feel the need to "stocktake" if that makes any sense at all. The death of one parent has caused me to examine the parent-child dynamic with my own kids and with my remaining parent. As a result of holidays and now this past week I have not done any stitching on my TAST group, but hope to get back to it soon. I apologise to group members who may have popped in to check my progress recently. I have been checking Sharon B.'s blog every day but "life events" have taken over from actual stitching just lately.