Soooo Civilized

Lots of lace as promised!!

This possum/mouse is the work of one of my Juniors...only the tail to go!!

The other (at school today) has almost finished this angel!
Another senior decided to take the plunge and was impressed by her progress today!

The key ring was completed by a young lass, embarking on a new and exciting time with job prospects on the horizon.

I will be in trouble,for the "rose garden"is upside down, but the end of term marked the end of the length. Now the lass must decide what to do with this piece! Next term, she is going to start this fan!

I will post some of my work next time LOL

Warm regards

This is why there is no lace!

This weekend, I enticed 7 Joey Scouts out into the wild! They were accompanied by 8 adults, who braved Bunyip (me :)), rain, wind, late nights and...

...the underground at Mole Creek's Maracoopa Cave...

...sheer cliffs at Alum Cliffs Gorge Lookout...

...rain forest and running streams at the caves......and a native or two...

...or three :)
While the leaders were planning the next lot of fun, the Joeys and Parents actually managed to find a kite in Bunyip's games box and sailed it in a clear blue sky.

Have you guessed what I have been up to for the past 3 weeks now?

Next post will definately include some lace - I promise!!

I did manage my 6 pins + on the weekend - and I have completed lesson 4 of the tat design course, but now have to take pics and post the results.

Catch you real soon...

Warm hugs, and welcome Spring .....Yay!!!

Welcome to my back door

Please allow me to show you a little of my place. Launceston is situated on the Tamar River basin in Northern Tasmania. The South Esk, North Esk and Tamar Rivers all converge in the basin, before going out to sea through the Tamar River valley. Last weekend we experienced the worst floods in over 30 years. I managed to visit "the Gorge" yesterday (Wednesday)afternoon, and whilst it is not as wild as it was on Sunday, the volume of water is still spectacular! This is the scene from Kings Bridge, 5 minutes walk from the CBD.

90% of the time, this area is a gently rambling brooke!

The Alexandra Suspension bridge and the cable chair lift - was the longest span in the Southern Hemisphere (not sure if that is still the case) - are features of our Gorge. On Sunday the water level was above the cement base you can see on the left here! Teenagers often swim in this area in the summertime, despite the constant warnings of flood waters being released from Trevallyn Dam, further up the river.

For those of us too chicken to swim in the river, there are 2 swimming pools in the foreground - the one you can see is a wading pool for toodlers, and the deeper pool is still obscured by the floodwater. To give you an idea of the magnatude of Sunday, the swingset behind the orange barrier on the left only had 4 inches of poles showing in the weekend newspaper!

On the way out, I stopped and took 2 photos about 400 meters from Kings Bridge. This one is facing East back into the reserve.

And to the west, you can see the CBD. The Myer building is the 'high-rise' just to the left of the tree, and the old Post Office Clock tower can be seen to the right. This is the middle of town and less than 10 minutes walk away!

From the base of the new bridge - built to handle the increased volumes of traffic in the area in the late 60s I think - this pic shows just how close suburbia is to the Gorge! These homes have fabulous views of the Tamar Valley to the north, the industrial area on the eastern bank and the city. Most of these homes are colonial, but behind them are some rather beautiful modern houses too.

Hope you enjoyed my tour :) Please come again, and hopfully I will have some lace to show you! Don't forget to let me know what you think in the comments ... I love letters from friends :)

Happy days

Back on line :)

Hi All,

My 'puter went on a little holiday ... even machinery feels overworked sometimes, and the box kept going to bed :( But all is well ... a week with the repair man and 'tis a happy chappy again.

Meanwhile, the postie was busy.

This gorgeous ATC travelled from Jackie Ellison in Harwick.

I *love* all things oriental so this is simply perfect for me :)

Thank you Jackie!

In November, I am going to be a grandma (or maybe a Nanna ... will have to ask :))

Here is the first crotcheted square of a cot cover ... it already has 5 brothers and sisters to go with it, but I downloaded the pics before taking a family shot.

I am using a Twilleys mercerised cotton in pale yellow - a little more colour that the pic shows.

Not my usual kind of lace, but this design works up very nicely. The pattern is from an old Engligh craft magazine that my Great Aunt used to subscribe to. Unfortunately, I was unable to rescue the magazines when she downsized, but was able to get a copy of this pattern about 15 years ago.

And finally for today...

Motif 11 and 12 for the 25 motif challenge ... nearly half way!

Again, I have used DMC Perle with verigated and solid colour threads ... I just love the colour combinations!

There are plenty of "extra" bits, begging to be stitched onto some ATCs and the length is the first piece of 'homework' for the on-line tat design class I am taking.

Speaking of which, I need to post my lesson 2 and 3 homework!

Have been out and about with the baby hovercraft today - lots of great fun for the kids!

Don't forget to grop a line before you go, and make the most of every day! Let those you love know you care!

Hugs,

25 Motifs and ATCs

Hi Bloggy Friends,

Life is busy, busy, busy so this will be a very short post to let you know I am still here.

This is motif 10 in the 25 motif challenge.

I really do love Jon's Quanti design! Another Perle 8. I really like the colours in this one.

When I got home from work tonight, I found this little surprise in the post.

2 x wax painting ATCs by Don Vickers in the U.K.

Are they not the most darling cards?

I think so!

I can only assume that these are a part of the ATC exchange I took part in some time back...still looking for a couple of takers :)

Told you it would be short :) but please feel free to drop a line...I love hearing from friends.

Warm hugs and lots of smiles,

Where has the time gone?!?

Wow, I cannot believe that more than a month has passed since I last blogged :( What a busy month it has been! Apart from quite a bit of work, I have managed a few crafty bits too.

Here is my completed cross stitch - a Gumlace Secret Pals gift from Janette in Canberra. On Saturday night I won a gift voucher from a framing business at our local Scouting Entertainment night, so this little kitty will have a lovely frame very soon. I love this pic because the kitty looks like my Sox about 15 years ago. When I get my own classroom, I intend to hang the pic there to remind students to "hang in there".

Speaking of Secret Pals - the final round of my second foray into this delightful pastime arrived last week. My Arachne package contained 2 months of gifts, so I really did feel very spoiled :) This May package had so many treasures! I have started tatting a collar with the Seashells coloured Lizbeth thread, using the silver tatting shuttle. The booklet has lots of information about Nottingham machine-made lace and is a very interesting read.

This gorgeous pewter plate, depicting a lacemaker was the June installment. I have never seen anything like this before, and will treasure it always. Many thanks to my pal Pat Hallam in Nottingham!

I have really enjoyed both rounds of Secret Pals. Finding or making just the right gift for my recipients was terrific fun, and I have made 2 new lacey friends with each round :) And I did not manage to guess either of my pals prior to the reveal, but have learned a little something interesting about each.

On the same day, Diane's parcel with threads to complete my Lizbeth doily arrived! 2 balls of thread will enable me to complete the big doily and make a pair of matching small ones. (The other ball is attached to the shuttle, but not the doily yet.) Diane purchased 2 pair of bobbins at a Lace Day she attended, then split them and shared with me - am I lucky or what! I just love the unusual shape of the bobbins and cannot wait to try them out. Thank you Diane, a little something for you will be winging it's way your way by this afternoon.

In my last post, I shared some French Beading with you. Now I have bunches of wildflowers :)

These are quite quick to make, so I have short stems to wear on my clothing or long stems to put in a vase.
I have made all the bits for the Rose, but am still in the process of lacing the leaves and petals before construction can take place. This project is taking much longer!

Apart from winding many, many bobbins for the children at school, the only bobbin lace I have on the go is this little Bucks edging. In November I will see how long it is and use it to decorate some baby goodies for my first grandbaby :) There is not much to show just yet but it does grow fast.

Enough from me for now! I have managed to drop in on a few friends over the past weeks, and have enjoyed your stories and sharing.

For now, stay well, happy and able to make and share your lace adventures.

Warm hugs.

Treasures

Dear friends,

Please allow me to share some treasures with you.

Here are Quanti snowflakes number 6 (with a new edge), 7, 8 and 9 toward the 25 motif challenge! The blue, white and gold combos are cotton and candlelight metallics. The green is perle 8 reel left overs.

Porty is also making progress! The children at school will be pleased to see he now has a beak and will soon have eyes. It will then be up to them to complete the right flipper, body and filling. He has an appointment for the 7th of August, but I will only be at the school on Fridays so I hope he makes it!

On Saturday, the calender ticked over another year for me :)

Apart from the usual (and very yummy) chocolates and meal out - counter meal at the local pub - the best in Lonnie for sure :) and text messages from a couple of my children, here are the treasures that came my way. LOML bought me the Pandora style bracelet - he knows I love these, and as I helped him pick a plain bracelet for his DD's birthday a month or so ago, he decided I could have the same :) The book is from his sister and family. She decided to have a change from lace books this year, but I am not complaining :)

So, after a rummage through the markets over the weekend I had enough materials to go to work!
Here is lesson 1 x 2 from the above book!

And up close!

The next lesson is my signature rose - I am really looking forward to that one!!

Also at the markets I found this pair of bobbins. The Wood Turners Guild of Tasmania meet at the Exeter Showgrounds and coincide with the local market. Members demonstrate the skill of wood turning throughout the day, and each turner may sell items to the public. There was a lovely bucket full of bobbins, but I fell in love with these ones! After some discussion, I found the gent who made the bobbins and he showed me how to make the loose rings. Our conversation was very interesting, and I was invited to go back, maybe join the Guild and get some more tips for my bobbin making :)

That's enough waffle from me! Thank you for reading, and don't forget to share your thoughts too. I love reading what my bloggy friends have to say!

Hugs,