Lutradur

I am not doing very well at posting lately.  I need to get a bit more focused, but have been dealing with writers block.  It has been my intention for some time to use this blog to provide comprehensive details on how to use various products, techniques and ideas.  I started with the download page, but I wanted something interactive.  Tonight, I have loaded the first of many more comprehensive examples of how to use various products.  I have started with Lutradur.  Click on the page and you will see a number of different examples of its use.  I will update with new ideas as I go and will be adding different pages as I move forward.

Now, for some other things.  I have been working well outside my comfort zone over the last few weeks, making a wedding quilt for my niece.  I can talk about it here because I would be astounded if she read my blog, but I know she is on my Facebook page.  She wanted a brown and green quilt.  OMG Really!  Brown – Green! My two most unfamiliar colours. YUCK.  Anyway, I delayed, I procrastinated, I bought border fabric from my friend Kerry at Tulis Textiles almost a year ago and it was not until Houston this year that I got not only an idea, but fabric. 

I will show you a picture of the quilt.  It is not a good photo and it does not have the final border on, but I am interested in what you think. Here it is.   I really like the addition of the little blocks, despite how fiddly they were to sew.   Don’t tell anyone related to me!

The final border is green.  I have dyed some ghastly mustard yellow fabric (yes, I still have some!) with blues and teal to make the backing.  Here it is:

from this

to this

Finally, please consider putting the Textiles Art Festival into your diaries for June 11-13.  I have one of my bestest US friends coming out to share her work with you, so please come and say hello.

Milestones continue

Gosh the last few months have been full of milestones.  My head keeps spinning.  Since November last year, we have had an eighteenth, the end of year 12, coasties, the Yr 12 Graduation and the Yr 10 Graduation.

This week, Stephen got into either Canberra Uni or Charles Sturt doing middle school education and Andrew can get his Learners permit.  I am getting old.

On a positive note, the current Quilting Arts mag arrived today and is now packed ready to go out to subscribers as soon as the post office opens.  There is some lovely stuff in this edition. 

I also received my Liquitex Surface Design Centre.  This was a Houston impulse buy, but I am quite excited about the range of support material and material that goes with the centre.  Over the next few days I will get all of the individual products onto the website, but the picture below shows a sneek peek.   Not that the photo is great.  I will take another one tomorrow.

An extremely rare opportunity

My baby boy does not like photos. In fact, we have about a decade where there are no photos other than school ones to prove his existence.   Anyway, he conceeded that the event of his Year 10 formal probably justified one or two, so I have to share.  They are not great, because I was rushed and the lighting was not great, but there is no way I would have gotten more constructed photos, so beggars can’t be choosers. I refer to him as the ‘little one’, though at 6 foot he is starting to take exception to this. Many of you may have met him at shows over the years, but he scrubbed up nicely in the suit.  He and his friend had a lovely night.

 

so behind – trip to Bendigo

I meant to make this post before I went to the Melbourne Craft Show, but ran out of time. However I am determined to load it up so there may be a couple of posts over the next few days that are retrospective.

Last weekend Glenn and I went to the Bendigo Wool Show.  It is at events like this that I remember that I am from the bush, not the country.  In some parts of Australia, there is a big difference.  It was a 15 hour round trip and we spent 3 hours there, but it was worth every second.  I finally sourced a couple of products that I have been trying to lock down for a long time.  I was excited.  And then I came across something that really blew my mind with possibilities.  I just need to put a couple of things in place before I purchase “the machine” then watch out for some truely spectacular new products.

I asked the boys, particularly the “little one”, if they would come to the show with us to see the sheep.  They thought I had gone quite mad and declined to accompany me despite the valuable family time we could have had.  The “little one” – Andrew – is my nearly 6 foot 15 year old who believes he is past patting sheep so I took some photos to show him what he is missing.  The first photo shows a ute cover that I could not walk past.  What fabulous marketing.  It was not until I looked at the photo that I even knew what was being advertised.

Cool Ute Cover

Just for Andrew, here are the sheep and alpacas.

"Coloured Sheep"

Judging the Sheep

The cutest alpacas - I think

Corriedales - I think!

While we were there, we met up with Mandie Chandler from Ewe Give Me the Knits.  Mandie does some of the most amazing hand dyed fibres.  Check out her website if you have some time.  Mandie and I have been communicating via email for some time, but finally put faces to names. 

Mandie busy selling stuff