Grey Day Dyeing

I've been out on the back porch dying some fabric. I'm trying to get a purple/dark blue/grey effect for some backgroung fabrics and have used Procion Navy (MX3R), Deep Purple (no number - it depends where I get the dyes; Kraftkolour do give the proper numbers which is excellent) and Black MX2R.

Underneath, I used purple, navy and Yellow (MX8G), so there should be some green there as well.

The weather is perfectly autumnal...cool crisp mornings and warm, sunny afternoons. A butterfly dropped by as I as taking a photo of the fabric:

About to send off another activity for Creative Quilting...

Ironing!

A gorgeous Autumn day outside, so what did I do? Ironing! Well, not the normal, run of the mill, type ironing, but the 'I've got some fabric for a new quilt that has been washed and needs ironing' ironing.

Much more enjoyable!!

Needless to say C&G is still going nowhere...it's like every time I have a go at a new activity, it goes horribly wrong and I don't know what to do about it. Went to the museum again, and the photos are very ordinary, again; pages bleeding into each other and spoiling the work that would've been ok, etc, etc. It would be nice to have some help, but I think that I'm the only one who can deal with it. I think that I'm kidding myself that I have any creative bones in my body at all. How did I ever do the Art for the Stitch?????

Another Sunday...

Another lovely Autumn day! I think it is my favourite season. The mornings are sunny, but crisp, and the afternoons warm up to a very pleasant day.

Gardening entailed killing more harlequin bugs...a never ending job this summer! I also started to clear out the vege patch ready for some winter plantings: broccoli (purple sprouting, if I can get it!) and some cavalo nero. I thinned out the carrots, so hopefully with have some pretty coloured ones, soon.

I made some paper this afternoon. Can I say, not too many scraps go a long, long way! Hopefully, it will be dry by the end of the week and I can try some waxing (thanks, DMTV!).

 The 'studio' bench (in reality the billiard table!) still looks like a disaster:

However, the magazines have been sorted through and given away, so the spring clean is on its way!

A funny day!

As I was reminded this week (thanks, Amo!), I have been absent from the bloggersphere for quite a while now! A few reasons...firstly, had to find a way to change my email address on this blog (VERY difficult!!!) and i've only just succeeded today. It's only taken me a month! One has to be very creative in the questions one asks blogger help!

I have been cleaning out my stash today, Can you have too much stuff?? I have turfed a lot of scrappy fabric which realistically will not be used. Magazines are a bit harder. I will admit I am a hoarder and have copies of Quilting Arts and Cloth Paper Scissors (not to mention Studios, Stitch etc.). QA dating back to about issue 5 or 6 and CPS all issues. I really need to edit my collection, but don't want to send them to the recycling centre. And no, I don't have any friends who would like them! :( Any suggestions would be gratefully accepted. As for Aust Smocking and Embroidery, at least I only have the copies with dresses I made for Allison...should I take the individual patterns out though?

Congratulations to Amo on completing Design Matters C & G Creative Quilting! Check out her fantastic work at their Creative Quiltmaking gallery. I'd have put in a picture, but not sure of the copyright issues. My C & G work has been nonexistent, though I feel that with starting to clear out some 'stuff' (wool to go next!) it will help clear my mind to get back into it. I've had the images of butterflies, but will need a return trip to the museum for some better photos and some drawing time. 

I have at lease done some sewing. I made a top from the book ShapeShape:

I love Japanese style. The unusual cut and manipulation of fabric is beautiful.

Something to do!!

52 art prompts...

The challenge...actually do some!!

ICT!!!

Today has been a day spent dealing with technology! Whilst the Mac computer is great, changing internet providers and as a result email addresses had been a bit of a pain. I hope that I have changed all the important accounts and links, but am sure that I've forgotten some. I also hope that I am able to keep using this blog, as I can't seem to totally change my email address for signing in and that blogger is a forgiving system!!

New Year!

Having been absent from the blogger sphere for a long time, it seems a bit strange to be back! Things piled up during the second half of 2011, but it is a new year and I have felt able to return to the creative things that I love.

I have been working on creating some rubbing plates for City and Guilds, using the shape of a saw handle in the Melbourne Museum.

I wasn't sure about the pastel/paint version, but as it dried it looks ok:

Poor old Angus has an old dog's back at the moment, so lots of TLC is required. Kenzie, however...too much play is never enough!

Given up!

I have spent be trying to post a comment on another blog, but have given up!! Sorry Amo and Edwina....aaaaaaaaaaaaargh!

Stuff!

I've been doing some more knitting and sewing and finishing off the first module of Creative Quilting!

So two hot waterbottle covers and a big white shirt later...Turkey here we come!

I have a technical problem too: I can't put any comments on other blogs! Don't know what I have done...any suggestions in the bloggersphere????

Knit wit!!

It's getting cold, so what's a girl(!) to do, but...knit! A new scarf and hand warmers, coming up!

Both patterns are from Thr3fold (thanks, Catherine!) and were easy. I made the hand warmers a bit longer, to cover my wrists and keep them a bit warmer. The twirly, whirly scarf is pretty cool!

Over the weekend...

It was a rather busy weekend! I made the Purl Soho Vege Patch quilt for our wall in the hall. It's the first time I've done machine applique, but it worked out ok and given it is machine quilted, went together pretty quickly (as opposed to the French provincial style quilt that I am still hand quilting 12 months later...thank goodness for the new Ottlite!).

I'ts nice to have a change from the small Baltimore wall quilt that has graced the wall for the last 8 or 9 years and Baldrick would be very proud of the turnips!

Hello, again!

Been away from the bloggersphere for quite a while...no proper excuse, other than there's been other stuff to do!

What's been happening? I've had a 'special' birthday; been to the Australasian Quilt Convention and took Linda Steele's Scottish Reel class> Her quilts are quite magnificent, As you can see:

Also, the Creative Quilting course is continuing, slowly (very!, but surely:

I'm still on the drawing/colour/painting module, but getting towards the end.

Thankfully, given this week's wintry weather, I've been able to keep warm with my hand quilting!

Wet!!

Woke up to a very wet morning...the garden is soaked after it rained all night!

A perfect day for my birthday present, but more of that later in the week! I'll just have to hope for more rain, to christen them.

Crafty Day

As usual it never rains, but it pours!

Spent this morning working on my Friday Night Fix book:

I do not know why the images are the way they are, but I'm unable to fix it...quirks of technology, I guess...one upside down and the other portrait, instead of landscape.  There is a silver sugar spoon in there and a photo of it as well, with inks and pastels.
Then is was onto dyeing some silk organza and threads, for the trial run of a project that has been in my head for about 18 months:

Still in the bags at this stage, will wash out later.
And then onto photos for Creative Quilting...not good as usual! The feather was impossible, so I have substituted a blue ginger jar. Now all I have to do is the real work of swatches and paint!

Gardening

A big gardening weekend!
Yesterday, I harvested about 3 or 4 kg of potatoes (kipfler, nicolas and purple) and a good crop of red onions. Pulled out the tomato plants and spread the contents of the compost bins out onto two beds...zoo poo, did for the third!

Today, it was repotting the rhodedendron, with extra drainage holes and crocks at the bottom to improve drainage; planting garlic, shallots and lettuces, and sowing some broccoli, cauliflower and 5 colour silverbeet.

Frustrated that I can't seem to my head around any textile or C&G work at the moment...lots of procrastination going on...

I guess that why...

I guess that's why they call it the blues:

Here are the blue's samples and they've all be sent off, which is a relief!

Puppy School and Cricket

I spent the morning at puppy school, with Kenzie. She was so excited to meeting other puppies and couldn't understand why they didn't want to 'play', as in wrestle, like Angus, our lovable Cocker Spaniel. Given that most of the other puppies hadn't seen another dog since leaving their litter, Kenzie was a bit too OTT!

The afternoon was spent watching Broadmeadows 3rd XI, playing their semi final in the sub-district cricket. Tom only made a couple of runs, but the light was very bad and the storm blew in, about five minutes after he went out. Still, a bit disappointing for him and a wet walk home for me!

More Watercolours...

Here are the latest watercolours (therapy!)...this time yellow:

This last picture is the official Creative Quilting sample page:

I think that they are pretty close to the swatches. The deeper yellow is a little to close to the Windsor Lemon, so I've bought a Cadmium Deep Yellow to have play with.

Tomorrow, I will have the blues...

Watercolour!

Lovely day! Queen Vic Market, this morning, then book buying with Dianne for the school library at The Little Bookroom, in Carlton. It's lovely to go shopping, especially with other peoples' (or in this case, school's) money!

After that, off to the art shop to get some more watercolours. Using Janinka's beautiful samples as inspiration, I began to systematically (as much as you can with watercolour!) mix the colour, with the following results:

I was able to match the colour swatches from the above samples, for the colour RED:

It's not too bad...tomorrow, bring on BLUEs and YELLOWs!!

ACO!

Went to the Australian Chamber Orchestra concert, yesterday, with the lecture by Alex Ross. The lecture was great, ranging from early Spanish music to Led Zepplin and the legendary ( though I know this is heresy, awful) Bob Dylan.

Fiona Campbell's singing was sublime and Richard Tognetti's(?) playing magical.
A lovely Sunday afternoon!