A taste of this year...

Something a little special for post 100!!

Here is some of what I have been working on over the past 12 months.

These are all my own designs so I hope you enjoy :)

I may be able to share a little more later :)

I do not do sewing!!!

...but I put this quilt top together in less than 7 hours, and I love it!!  It will be for my 2nd grandson when he moves into a "big bed" around Christmas time :)

I also made this cute little bag at craft last night.  It has ducky little pockets under the flap, so it will be ideal for bobbins, thread and bits and pieces for lace making :)

 Now for some lace...

How about...

this gorgeous gift box that I found in a local el cheapo shop this morning...this is a small one and they come in 7 or 8 different sizes and 2 different colours...I liked this colour as it would show up better in a picture :)

Now I just need an excuse to use it...

 Not real lace?  How about these...

Gumlace had a tatted bookmark exchange.  Here is the lovely bookmark I received...I will share the "surprise" component of this gift in my next post...(I didn't take any pics of it before the camera decided to call it a day...)

 This bookmark was my gift from England as part of the Arachne bookmark exchange. See my  contributions 2 posts down :)

I just love morning glories!!! 

 What about my lace, I hear you ask?!?

Well, yes, I have been crossing and twisting in between tatting and teaching :)

The bookmark on the left is almost the same as the exchange bookmark mentioned above...this time in Brok 100/3 and with a compound spider variation. 

The bookmark on the right is made from leftover pipers silk 140/2.  The pattern is from 'Tradition Into Creation' by Jacqui Barber.

I will share the tatting soon, when I block it out...I hate blocking!! 

Finally, from my little fisher friend and I, happy lace making :)

We look forward to hearing from you until I post again soon :)

As promised, some pics of my garden!

There used to be a dead pine tree here...the vines from next door strangled it several years ago. The holes in the fence remain, but we plan to fix that soon...

This is my favorite place to make lace these days, especially in the summer time.
These plants were only inches high when I planted them a couple of months ago.
Before that, this area was overgrown, full of blackberries and weeds.

This cute butterfly flutters when the sun hits the solar panel...in some light, the wire is impossible to see and it looks sooooo real!!

This window box was planted with faded fabric roses when I moved in. I have planted pansies, impatience and petuniias in here over the past 3 years.

Now I have other plans for it :)

I have started experimenting with Bonsai!

This will be my Japanese garden!

My fisherman is perfectly happy already!
There has been a little more progress here already, but no pics yet.

Now, for Tavis' quilt!

I made a mistake when cutting the squares for the border, so I made this cute cushion to go with the quilt.

Here is the quilt name plate...I LOVE my new sewing machine VBG

Some of the blocks up close...

And the big picture :)

Travis thinks it is just great!!!

And now for some bobbin lace...do you remeber this project??

I finally took a 'finished picture'!

Enough for now!

Thank you for dropping by :)

Til next time, may your pins never bend and your threads never break :)

Happy lacemaking

Just for starters

Ohhhh how I have missed my bloggy friends :( Life has been crazy, but what's new?!?

This scarf is now almost 150 cm long and is being worked by one of my students. The pattern is in an Australian Lace Magazine from a few years ago and it is being worked in 'Misty' Alpaca wool...mine will be shades of mauve and I am soooo looking forward to some time to make it as this really is gorgeous!! BTW - the maker started making lace 1 year ago today!!

This is also the work of one of my 'girls'. The design is from Rosemary Shepherd's "Fantasy Flowers" and worked in Lizbeth thread.
I have finally finished my last 'big' project...will share some of it in June or there abouts. At the moment, I am just chilling and making bookmarks...these are from one of my favorite patterns...a possum...also from an Australian Lace mag. They are made in Thai silk, available in a large range of gorgeous colours from a local thread supplier...when her website is up and running I will be happy to share :)
These little friends will be winging their way to Canada and the UK by the end of the week with the following...

The Bucks Point design on the left is by Irene Tomlinson and another favorite...it always reminds me of Guzzie Sue - a bloggy friend - and this is the 3rd time I have made it (and the bobbins are wound to make number 4!!) I used brok 80/2 with a perle 8 gimp this time.

The torchon bookmark on the right was given to me to 'work out the pattern' for a friend.
this one has been worked in the Brok 80/2 and I have wound bobbins to work it again in Brok 100 as suggested...I guess that means it was fun to work lol.

This cool Aussie Green Tree Frog eating an Aussie Mozzie now resides in Thailand, in a quilt made by a local church craft group. I have been teaching lace making there since June last year, and felt that the quilt needed a little lace. Everyone contributed a square with an Australian theme and then the quilt was constructed by 2 or 3 of the members. It has candlewicking, embroidery, painting, printing and quilting as well as this lace. I did not have my camera on the night it was shown to the group after being completed, but I can assure you it looked fantastic!!

On top of everything else I have made 2 of these wire lace horseshoes for friends. I do love working with wire and they were both received with open hearts.

The design is from Christine Springett's Lace for Children of All Ages.

Next visit I will show you the completed truck quilt, which now resides with my gorgeous 2 year old grandson and is very well loved, and my garden make over...although I am not so sure I have a "before" pic for you to compare?!?!

I promise it will not be sooooo looonnngggg into the future when i drop in again, so please say hi before you go :)

Hugs and happy lace making to all.

Just dropping in to say hi!

Life has certainly been very busy of late. I am trying to find a little time for catching up with friends, including my blog friends, but the clock just will not co-operate!

This weekend just gone, I was demonstrating lace at the Launceston Show, in between work. I won several awards for my lace, beads and sewing, as did a couple of my students.

I introduced this quilt top some time ago, but I have finally got to put the applique squares together. Now to add the posts, and edge panels to finish the top...have to get my stash out again!
This one has been on the go for even longer, but the top is finally sewn together. This one is paper piecing and all done by hand. Now I have to find a fabric I like for the backing and the hand sewing will start again!


I cannot share the lace I am working on at the moment...yet again, but rest assured there is plenty of it. I hope to have something to share after the weekend - workshop with Britt Fairchild but getting back to blog will be who knows when.



Thinking of my bloggy friends often, but cheers for now.

75 Motifs in less than 3 years!!

Number 22 is a little round-tuit.

Number 23 is a nice mix of open and filled spaces.

Number 24 is not quite what I was after, but could be tweeked.

Number 25 is a tatted take on a crochet granny square...maybe need the colours to see it, but that was the inspiration.

so there you have it...25 motifs of my own designs..the 3rd in less than 3 years! When I started this one, I thought I was crazy!!

I will post all 25 motifs over the weekend and find the most popular 15 of the collection to write up and publish.

BTW, I completed the last corner of my Bucks hankie today...only 7 more "hills" to go!!

Cheers for now, lace day tomorrow so watch this space come Sunday :)

Quick update...

The shadows in the pic are not great, but I am at corner number 3 of the bucks point hankie/bonnet!!

Yayyyyyyy!!!!!

Even the cover cloth is happy VBG

More next time... thanks for dropping by!

Hugs and warm wishes