patch andi

End of a crafty year

2011-12-31T09:46:00.000+11:00

2011 has been a challenge on many levels for me and my family. That's why I can't wait to ring in 2012!!

I hope the coming year brings love, happiness, good health and great creativity for all of us.

Andi xxx

Test pattern quilt

2011-12-22T06:37:00.000+11:00

And now, here is my final contribution to The Beehive.
A finished quilt made by me and 11 fabulous women.

Specifically: Sheridan, Amy, Karlyn, Belinda, Kat, Megan, Julie, Jo, Annabel, Tanya and Megs.

To appease my husband (who says "its too busy and bright to have in a bedroom ... or any other room for that matter") I have made the back of the quilt much simpler with just a strip of busy patchwork through the centre.

The incredible quilting has been done by Karen Terrens. She is a genius with a long-arm quilting machine!! (And she comes from such a creative family. Her mother is an incredible craftswoman and you just may have heard of her sister).

So, now all that's left is to snuggle up with her and enjoy my memories of this wonderful quilting bee.

Thanks girls! I'll miss you!!

Andi xxx

PS Why "The Test Pattern Quilt"?

That's why!!

Bye bye Beehive

2011-12-20T11:52:00.000+11:00

After 2 lovely years together, the members of the Beehive have decided not to continue with the Bee next year.

Although it has been a lovely bunch of stitchers, making such beautiful quilts together, many of us have new priorities to contend with in 2012 and the Beehive has simply had to take a back seat :(

These are my last blocks for the Beehive.

They are for Megs who is making a very pretty quilt for her daughter.
I'm really looking forward to seeing this lovely quilt come together!

In fact, there are a number of Beehive quilts that are not yet completed so some beautiful surprises will still be coming via the Beehive in the coming year as quilts are completed and shared.

And my 2011 Beehive quilt is now complete. I will be posting pics very soon!!

Andi xx

Quilt - finished and given

2011-12-18T14:22:00.001+11:00

For Jake's teacher who had a birthday last week.

All quilted, finished and bound.

You can see more info about this quilt in this earlier post.

Hope you are having a stitchin' weekend.

Andi xx

Lucky

2011-12-08T01:15:00.001+11:00

I am lucky on so many levels!!
Today, I am lucky to have in-laws whose holiday house is now built and ready for us to HOLIDAY in!!!
We have been madly purchasing furniture so that the house is ready for a Christmas-time visit.

And I was incredibly lucky to find a couple of fabulous chairs being discarded by the roadside a few months back. I knew EXACTLY how I wanted to recover them and where they will live in the new house.

I have only managed to transform one of the chairs so far but here is a shot to give you an idea of 'Before' and 'After' ...

And the backs ....

From this ...

To this ...

From "No thank you. I'd rather stand" ...

To "Yes please. I'd love to sit and stay for a cup of tea" ...

The fabric I have used is Night Tree in Cilantro by Amy Butler.

I'm looking forward to showing you the chairs in situ at the new house. In fact, I'm looking forward to seeing it myself!!

Hope you've had a lucky day.

Andi xx

The festival of Ella

2011-11-30T22:02:00.001+11:00

Our Ella is 6 and the last month in our family has been all about HER!!

First came the invitation to see the Prep children showing off their projects for this term.

That is (apparently) a dolphin!

Then came the school circus concert.

Yes, Jake was in the concert too but my 'Festival of Jake' post will be coming in a few weeks.

Then the dancing party for her friends .... My girl is so very shy and retiring ;)

Of course a fabulous cake was baked. (Thanks Corrie for the inspiration).

Then came her actual birthday ... a Wednesday. I took treats into the school for all the children in her class and after school a small family dinner with a candle in some donuts.

Ironically, no photos taken that day.

Followed, on the Friday night, by a BIG family dinner with, of course, another cake!

My shy girl!

And to top it all off, a ballet concert the next day.

Happy birthday my beautiful gingie girl. It is so amazing watching you grow up into a confident, happy and rather feisty girly person.

We love you.

xxxxxx

Published!!!

2011-11-28T13:12:00.001+11:00

I've been remiss in posting about this but here goes ... I'm in a magazine!!!!!

This one ...

This is my first published quilt pattern and I'm so excited. Here is my 'Scrappy Log Cabin' quilt as it is shown in the magazine ...

And here is a photo that I took in my backyard ;)

You can get a free download of the magazine (online version) here.
The online version doesn't have the full instructions but you can get those by purchasing a copy of Down Under Quilts issue 150 at your local newsagent. They are on the shelves NOW!!

You can find out more about Down Under Quilts by visiting their Facebook page here.

Hope you are having a lovely Monday.
Andi xx

Winner!!!

2011-11-18T09:43:00.001+11:00

Congratulations to Simone who said:

I look for modern quilts that are realistic to make. They can be large or even complicated quilts, but if there is an explanation that could be followed with great photos, a layout diagram for blocks, I get inspired & I am a sucker! The other thing I love is fabric colour & pattern size suggestions (small, medium or large scale prints).

I have emailed you to send me your address so that the kind people at Chronicle Books can send you a copy of Little Bits Quilting Bee by Kathreen Ricketson.

Happy stitching!!
Andi x

DIY chic geek quilt

2011-11-17T06:00:00.000+11:00

When my 7 year old son asked for "a periodic table quilt" for his next birthday, I was a bit flabbergasted. Where to start???

But trusty Mary came up with the perfect idea ..... get Michelle to print the design with her fancy shmancy (and extremely awesome) new fabric printing business and ask Cindy to help out with creating the digital file. (I LOVE my crafty friends!!!)

So I went along last week to Frankie & Swiss headquarters to experience the magic in person and the amazing light and airy space took my breath away!! Here's a few examples of the space and the amazing pieces on display ...

This is the beautiful dress made by Cindy.

Look out for Cindy's classes where she teaches how to make this dress!!!

Yep, that's Cam's fabulous 'Granny Square' fabric

So once we had the file just right, we started to print ...

And to give you an idea of scale, here is Michelle and her lovely sister Jacquie setting up 'Flo', the huge printing machine ....

Yesterday I sewed on a border and ... voila .... instant single bed quilt top ...

Now I just need to find the perfect backing fabric and get it quilted and bound before January.

I think I can! I think I can! I think I can!

So what do you think? Do you have a chic geek in your life who would love this in their bedroom? Maybe as a cushion?

Andi xx

Book review and GIVEAWAY!

2011-11-16T07:30:00.000+11:00

You know Kathreen don't you? She's the WhipUp chic!!
And she's written a quilt book. Yay!!!

The first section of the book looks at communal quilting projects like quilt bees, friendship quilts, etc. Lots of great ideas here!

In the spirit of this communal project, Kathreen asked a number of bloggy quilty folks to be involved in creating the quilts for this book. My contribution was to sew the quilt top for this quilt ...

The second part of the book gives some quilting basics followed by the main section of the book with quilt projects using pre-cut fabrics. Everything from charm squares to jelly roles to fat quarters.

When I buy a quilty type book, I usually just peruse the pictures for inspiration rather than reading the 'how-to' bits ... so I really LOVE a book with fabulous photographs.And this book doesn't disappoint in the photography department ..

Like what you see? Well you might be lucky enough to win a copy of this book ... courtesy of publisher Chronicle Books!
Just leave a comment on this post telling me what you look for in craft books! (No "pick me" comments please!)

Also, please make sure you include an email address and let me know where in the world you are.

I'll draw a winner this Friday 18th November.

This blog tour has been going for a week or so already but if you would like to visit any of the blogs on the rest of the tour, you can find the whole list with all the links over at this post.

Happy blog hopping!
Andi xx

Edit 18/11/11: The prize has been drawn and comments to this post are now closed!

Bag in a day!

2011-11-15T11:58:00.001+11:00

2 Saturdays ago (I know ... I'm a rotten blogger these days ....sorry for the delayed update) I spent a fabulous day with a bunch of ladies eager to learn all about bag making from the master herself.

I have made a few bags before but knew that I had A LOT to learn about finishing things off nicely, using interfacing and other tools of the trade.

Nikki's studio was literally dripping with gorgeous samples and inspiration ..

Nikki is an excellent teacher. Always encouraging and always with a clever little trick to teach.

Here we are busily working away ....

Hi Cathy!!

Here's my work area .... do you detect a bit of a colour theme? (I'm so predictable!!)

Nikki was also a very patient and calm teacher ... even when I accidentally steamed up her cutting mat causing it to buckle.QUICK .... get the weights on to it!!!! (Coolest weights ever!)

And here are some of our finished products:

Can you guess who this belongs to? He he!

Thanks Nikki for a gorgeous day. I learned so much and had a lovely time doing it.

Nikki and Cathy have more shots in their blog posts. (You MUST check out Cathy's gorgeous bag. Somehow I managed not to get a shot of her gorgeous fabric).

Have a lovely Tuesday and try to drop by again tomorrow for a book review and GIVEAWAY!!

Andi xx

Sewing therapy

2011-10-25T10:46:00.000+11:00

Been stitching! Helps me to feel better.

This quilt will be a gift for Jake's teacher after 2 years of magnificent teaching and support. Jake has come so far in the last 2 years and I give his teacher a significant chunk of the credit. We are so very grateful.

When I asked her about colours she answered that her couches were neutral coloured with red throw cushions (PERFECT!!) but then added that her bedroom was blue and yellow. "I really love blue and yellow" she added hopefully. Not so perfect in terms of the colours I like to work with but I hope I have found a combination that will work in either room.

Fabrics are mostly from Denyse Schmidt's "Picnic and Fairgrounds" range from earlier this year with a few other staples in the mix.

Attempting to channel the great Red Pepper goddess of quilting with this one. This quilt in particular!

Now on to basting and quilting. Hopefully I'll get it done soon so I can relax a little before our family birthday season is in full swing.

Happy stitching to you and yours.
Andi xx

Thanks

2011-10-23T07:52:00.001+11:00

Thank you to everyone who has left beautiful and supportive comments on my last post.
I have read all your comments and have appreciated every single one ... even though I haven't responded to them individually. I hope you understand.

I am feeling ready to move forward and need to step back into crafty blog posts. Good therapy I say!

As part of my moving forward process I will lock this post to comments and will close comments on the last post.

Thanks again!
Andi xx

My Abba

2011-10-17T16:29:00.000+11:00

I've been wondering how to write this post. I have no real answer so have decided to just write and see what comes out.

On Friday October 7th, just before he was due to leave for synagogue services for Yom Kippur, my Dad had a massive stroke. He was rushed to hospital in an ambulance where he spent the night in the Emergency Department. The next day we realised he was continuing to have strokes and had so much damage to his brain that he was not expected to survive more than a day or so.

He held on for another 3 days and passed away very peacefully, surrounded by love and support, last Tuesday. We held his funeral and memorial services yesterday.

I'm exhausted.

There's so much more to tell.... about my Dad and his amazing life.... about my family and how we have supported each other ... about my pain at the loss of my Abba (Hebrew for 'Daddy').... but this doesn't feel like the right time or place. Equally, it doesn't feel right to just press on with this blog without acknowledging events of this past week.

This memorial candle will burn in our home for seven days. Maybe after that I'll feel ready to get back to this space.

Until then, cuddle your loved ones tight and live your life fully and with purpose. That's my plan!

Andi xx

Some fabrics are just too pretty to cut up

2011-09-30T19:48:00.001+10:00

So I'm making a whole cloth quilt out of Anna Maria's Loulouthi Totem print.

I had to piece two lengths together which was a challenge but I'm fairly pleased with my joinery skills....

Can you see the join running across the center of the image?

And for the back, another fabric from the same range.

I plan to hand quilt this one with Perle 8 thread because I've been needing a new portable hand stitched project. (I can only handle so many hexies at a time).

The question is do I stitch around the fabric design in coordinating colours like Anna Maria did?

Or do I go for a simple cross hatch in cream thread? Or maybe pink?

Your thoughts?

Andi xx

When quilts have babies

2011-09-29T18:33:00.000+10:00

Often, when I'm making a quilt, I make a LOT of blocks and then arrange them to the design and size I like. This usually means left-over blocks to make little baby quilts with.

So when I made this quilt for Ella's next birthday ...

... there were enough blocks left over to make this cute little baby quilt ...

(It hasn't been gifted yet so I won't say who it might be for!)

I blogged about this quilt a while ago ...

But I haven't yet shown you the new baby ...

This one will be sent over to the Bumble Beans Quilt Basics charity organised by the wonderfully talented and generous Victoria.

Quilt Basics provides handmade quilty love to homeless families in the NYC area. It is a wonderful cause and I encourage you to get involved if you can.

I just love making babies ;-)
Andi xx

More cushions ... but this time not for me

2011-09-27T12:26:00.001+10:00

Its a busy time of the year for us. Jewish New Year begins tomorrow night and we are hosting a dinner for 26 people. Among those 26 are my niece and nephew who each have birthdays this week.

For my niece, who is turning 40, I asked her to chose a colour scheme and she chose "dark red and burnt orange".

I couldn't resist throwing in a touch of pink. (I just can't help myself).

And for her 'little' brother who is taller than both of us ...

He's just moved into his own place for the first time and is rather car crazy (to put it mildly).

"Shana Tova" to those of you celebrating this week. And a happy new year to all!

May the coming year be sweet, healthy and peaceful.

Andi xx

More patchwork on the bed!!

2011-09-26T07:26:00.000+10:00

My ever-patient-and-indulgent husband!!!
We now have a patchworked artwork above the bed, a quilt on the wall, a quilt on the bed (of course) and now patchworked cushions too!

He must love me, that one ;-)

Thanks to Malka for the hand made charm squares. Can't wait to see your new fabrics up close and personal.

Andi x

Beehiv'in

2011-09-24T13:19:00.001+10:00

This month in the Beehive, Tanya has asked for a Mod Mosaic block using Elizabeth's cushion tutorial.

Rather than making cushions, Tanya plans to make a quilt for her son.

This is a fiddly and time consuming block to make so I can understand why Tanya wanted to share the load.The end result is going to be wonderful!!

Hope you are all planning a lovely weekend.
Andi x

Warning! You might be about to drool all over your keyboard!!

2011-09-23T11:38:00.000+10:00

So my local has moved (but its still my local!)

I was in the new shop for the first time yesterday to teach my Thursday afternoon class and was blown away by how gorgeous it is looking .... after only 2 days of setting up!!

Here come the photos ......

Don't say I didn't warn you ;-)

Amitie's new details are:

Happy shopping.

Andi xx

With a little help ....

2011-09-21T12:24:00.001+10:00

I've said it many times but I love the way this crafting community helps each other out.

I had the opportunity a couple of weeks ago to help out my mate Mary who has been so very good to me before!

Mary and her friend (a newbie crafter) are making a quilt for a mutual friend's wedding gift. It is HUUUUGE!!!! Constructed as a massive quarter log cabin block.

The quilt is so huge I couldn't get the whole thing in shot!

These 2 friends are completely nuts ... in as much as they have decided to hand-quilt this big monster quilt so, of course, it needed basting!!!

That's where I came in ....

The back is also pieced and possibly even lovelier than the 'front'.

A truly reversible quilt!!

Meanwhile ... while all the basting action was happening on my dining room floor ....

Too sweet!!

Good luck with the quilting you two nutters!

Andi xx

Friendship quilts

2011-09-13T12:01:00.000+10:00

There is no secret in blogland about the wonderful friendships to be made via this incredible community!

I have been so blessed by the friendships I have made both on-line and IRL.

One blog friend of mine (who started out as a real-life friend) is Judy .... quilter, teacher, designer, blogger and very cool chick! She is currently collecting signature blocks from her friends using a standard block design and has asked for us to use red/white 1930's reproduction fabrics.

Knowing Judy the way I do, I know this is going to be a stunning quilt!!Thanks Judy for including me. xx

Another stunning quilt-in-the-making is the one(s) that Sarah and Katy are putting together for Amy and her daughter who are having a particularly difficult time at the moment.

I've seen blocks popping up all over blogland and flickr from all over the world.

I am thrilled to be able to contribute (although I wish the circumstances were very different).

Much love and friendship.

Andi xx

So this one time at craft camp ....

2011-08-29T12:51:00.001+10:00

Just back from a lovely weekend of girly crafting!
(My first weekend away just with the girls since having Jake 7 1/2 years ago)

Lark House in Daylesford is gorgeous (if slightly lacking in washing up liquid and tea towels).
Lovely vintage details and very comfy!!

Of course we ate exceptionally well ...

And we made stuff ...

And here's the stuff I made:

A very graphic (and HUGE - 106 inches square) quilt top as a surprise for my husband's next birthday

A pretty vintage sheet quilt for Ella's next birthday in November

Thank you so much to Cindy, Judy, Kat, Lisa, Narelle, Holly and Cate for a seriously lovely weekend.
I will NOT be waiting another 7 years before my next one!!

Andi xx

This month in the Beehive

2011-08-18T10:16:00.000+10:00

Blocks for Sheridan ...

More of the same type of blocks as last year's to make a massive king sized quilt for her bed.

More Beehive blocks over here.

Andi xx

Inspiration

2011-08-15T21:46:00.000+10:00

Some images that I've found inspiring recently:

1. Hole In The Barn Door Improv, 2. Melissa's Quilt, 3. Dancing Diamonds #3, 4. Binding on Scrap Log Cabin, 5. Dancing Diamonds II, 6. Cherry Street, 7. My Favorite Crayons, 8. Bob, 9. Mod-Mood Quilt, Summer 2010, detail

Been thinking about improv quilts using solids.
What have you been thinking about?

Andi xx

Beginnings

2011-08-10T10:55:00.000+10:00

A bit excited.

I got the latest Australian Homespun magazine yesterday and look what I found on the customer creations page ...

That's my camel!!!!!

And I'm sharing the page with another customer who has made some of Louise's gorgeous turtle softies. Yay!!

And why 'beginnings'? Well, I have just submitted my first quilt pattern to Down Under Quilts magazine. I'm hoping this is the beginning of more patterns and more magazine features.

Just a bit excited.

Andi xx

For Zaida

2011-08-06T10:45:00.000+10:00

A new commission given as a gift for a 70 year old Zaida ('Grandpa' in yiddish)

A challah cover with photos of his gorgeous grandchildren

Shabbat shalom.
Andi xxx

Vintage meets modern technology

2011-08-01T21:43:00.000+10:00

My very talented niece recently had a birthday.
I didn't quite know what to get for her so after some consultation with her mum and later on with her, it was decided that she needed a cover to protect her ipad when she carries it around in her bag.

She asked for 'red and purple' and my mind immediately went to a gorgeous vintage table cloth in my stash.

I don't have an ipad so Amber's tutorial was invaluable!!

I hope she loves it.
But if she doesn't, I might just have to buy myself an ipad so I can keep it for myself!

Happy birthday Emily Delicious!!
Andi xx

Self portraits

2011-07-30T15:06:00.000+10:00

I'm very excited about today's finish.

I've been working with the children in Ella's class to create a class quilt. They are all about 5 or 6 years old and are in their first year of school. (In Victoria, we call it 'Prep').

Each child was given a white fabric square with a smaller square drawn on (so I would have some seam allowance) and a selection of fabric markers.

I worked with them in small groups and told them to draw a picture of themselves with some things they liked.

I am so thrilled with the result. I'm pretty sure they (and their teacher) will be too.

The back is a fun colourful fabric piece from IKEA.

I've finished it off with a label and tied it all up with a pretty ribbon ... ready to be given on Monday morning!

I hope you've done something satisfying today too.

Andi xx

I can barely contain my happiness

2011-07-26T13:40:00.000+10:00

Spring is coming to my garden!!

I can't wait for my bones to thaw!!

Andi xx

My new favourite quilt

2011-07-23T16:05:00.000+10:00

Nuff said.
I'm off to snuggle.
Have a great weekend.
Andi xx

So very me!!

2011-07-21T11:00:00.000+10:00

I recently purchased a small art work by the ever gorgeous Auntie Cookie.

It's me to a 'T'.

Thanks Shannon!!

Now I just need to find a gorgeous frame to keep it in.

Happy Thursday!!

Andi xx

Thanks

2011-07-20T18:36:00.000+10:00

Thanks Leonie.

Leonie's new fabrics for a quilt for HER!!!!

May the quilts be with you.

Andi xx

Oh Denyse .... how I love you!!!

2011-07-18T13:58:00.001+10:00

And your gorgeous fabrics!!!

I finished up this quilt top recently and I absolutely love it!!

Not sure I will ever make another quilt with so many 2 inch (finished) squares but I'm so glad I did this one with my gorgeous Denyse Schmidt fabric collection.

Every Flea Market Fancy fabric is featured as well as some of the newest collection from Joann's / Spotlight. Also, because I needed to put in some more red, I added one print from the Katie Jump Rope line (the Red Daisies).

I started hand quilting this on Saturday and I'm loving the process so much I'm already half way. No doubt by this time next week (probably sooner) I'll be blogging about a finished quilt.

Can't wait to pop it on the bed.

Andi xx

Testing .... testing ...

2011-07-15T08:17:00.001+10:00

Henceforth to be known as the "Test pattern quilt"

My Beehive quilt this year is vivid and bright.....and HUGE!!
For the first time in many years I'm planning to have this one professionally quilted. I don't really want to hand quilt it, and it is way too big to smoosh through my little Bernina.

My husband has said it is too busy for the bedroom (which was my original intention as the colours I chose were to match the Echino wall hanging above our bed).

He's also not sure about having it in the living room.
He's going to have to deal with it because I absolutely love it.

Thank you Beehivers for your stunning work!! Love you long time!!

Andi xx

Thank you!

2011-07-14T11:36:00.002+10:00

Thank you for all your lovely and kind comments on my recent 'sharing' post. I really wanted to give you ALL some fabric. But I compromised and decided to double the prize and give a fabric parcel to someone from Australia and someone overseas.

I divided the names up into two bowls (my new $2 mellamine bowls from Spotlight!!!).

...and picked a name from each.

Jenny ... you said such lovely things in your comment and I so appreciate our catch ups and crafting sessions. Here is what I've selected for you:

I tried to find a nice balance between my love (and your emerging love) of brights and your love of linens and neutrals.

Susan...it has been so lovely getting to know another Jewish quilter and I so love seeing your regular posts about your local Jerusalem (one of my favourite cities in all the world). Here is what I've selected for you:

All very bright. With spots, flowers, birds and butterflies. (And the Kaffe fabric on the left is actually a cotton voile which is so deliciously soft).

Thanks again to everyone for your kind words and friendship.
Andi xx

A fabulous new tool

2011-07-13T12:37:00.000+10:00

I mentioned it recently on this post and lots of you wanted to know more about the wonder-tool that allows you to make HSTs without ruling a single line or using a pin.

Well, it is now available at Amitie's online shop.
The listing is here.

Andi xx

Sharing

2011-07-11T08:57:00.002+10:00

I tell my kids to do it all the time. It's time for me to practice what I preach.

This is my 300th blog post and since beginning this blog 2 1/2 years ago, my life has changed in so many wonderful ways.

Most importantly, I have met many new friends on line and IRL! This 'sharing' post is for those people who have shared with me their time, their creativity, their 'stuff', their friendship.

Here's what is on offer: fabric. I have LOADS of it and I want to share some of it with one of you.

Some photos from my stash. Not necessarily what I'll be giving.

Rather than make a selection of my own, I will base the selection on the winner's fabric preferences.
So, to be in the running for a parcel of fabric loveliness, just leave me a comment with 5 words to describe your favourite types of fabric.

Here are some examples to get you thinking:

floral
vintage
linen
Japanese
solid
geometric
green/blue/purple/pink/etc
designer
voile
spots
bright
childrens
and so on .....

More stash photos

Only people I have already connected with will be in the running for this prize. No need to blog about it or tell your friends. If you are new to my blog today, I hope you stick around so I can get to know you before the next time I do such a giveaway. But you won't be in the running today.

International entries welcome. I will do the random number thing on Thursday morning (Melbourne time). After that, comments to this post will be closed.
Please make sure I have a way of contacting you!!

Thanks again for all that you have shared with me.
Andi xx

Edit 9:30 Thursday morning: This post is now closed for comments. ~~I'll draw a winner very soon!!~~ See here for the winner announcement!

Tidy!

2011-07-10T17:48:00.001+10:00

Once my sewing room gets tidied, I get seriously productive.

This week, a dear friend told us he was getting married in January.
Plenty of lead in time I know but I had an idea that needed to 'get out'.

So I raided my red scraps bin and some beautiful linen, and made them some cushions for their couch.

Patch-worked fronts and backs.

And quilted on both sides.

I inserted invisible zips using this excellent tutorial.
I wonder if I'll be able to wait until January before I give them!!

Also sewn in the last 24 hours:

Patches on a small friend's jeans where he had worn through the knees
Beehive blocks for Belinda
Completed the last 6 blocks on this quilt
A little more hand stitching on this quilt
Binding on a baby quilt that I haven't shown you yet.

Tomorrow I have no 'proper' work to do and no kids in the house. I'll be stitchin' up a storm.
What's your plan?

Andi xx

French strings

2011-07-10T13:10:00.002+10:00

This month in the Beehive, Belinda has sent a gorgeous range of fabrics to make string blocks.

The centre strip of each block is a beautiful French newspaper print fabric.

This is going to be a stunning quilt.

Whatcha been stitchin'?
Andi xx

My local

2011-07-09T11:41:00.000+10:00

Those of you outside the US will be familiar with the struggle to buy local while online fabric prices from US based shops are so very much lower.

I also struggle with this and I do buy some fabric online.

But what the online shops fail to provide is the creative atmosphere, the friendly welcome, the fabric touchability.
I am lucky enough that my local patchwork shop is Amitie. Compared to many other shops I have been into, Amitie staff always have a friendly smile and are always happy to help you put together a project no matter how large or small. And I have noticed that recently they are working their bums off to keep prices down.
And they have some awesome classes coming up. Ever wanted to meet the mad-capped Madame Ricrac in person and learn to make one of her wonderful softies? Well you can here!! (Incidentally, you can also come along on a Thursday afternoon and take a patchwork class with me! Just saying...)

Anyway, I thought I'd show off some of my recent Amitie purchases.

Beautiful variegated Perle 8 thread and stunning new ribbons. (Yes, that IS Kaffe Fassett ribbon!!)

Pretty Liberty fabrics in my favourite colours.

Home dec fabric from the half price shelves.

And an amazing new tool that helps create HSTs without having to rule a line!!!

I hope you have a lovely local bricks 'n' mortar shop like I do. And I hope you give them your support so we get to keep these wonderful shops in business.
I know the lure of online shopping is great. But maybe just put aside a percentage of your crafting budget for local shopping.

What do you say?
Andi xx

WIP Wednesday

2011-07-06T07:04:00.004+10:00

Another WIP this week. First mentioned on the blog here, nearly 2 years ago.

An homage to my grandmother's one-and-only-quilt-she-made (shown here) that I inherited, re-quilted and absolutely cherish.

Another great scrappy project. All paper pieced and hand stitched. Each hexagon measures 1 inch along each side.

I have 14 more flowers to make, white 'borders' to tie them all together and also some work to do on the edges to straighten them up a little. And that's before I've even begun to think about quilting (which I plan to do by hand).

This is most definitely my slowest stitching project but a great one to pick up when I'm running out the door to Perle 8's and don't want to lug around a sewing machine. Also great for taking on holidays, or even having some piecework to keep in my bag for those moments when the craft 'itch' takes hold and I'm out and about!

Do you have a portable project like this one that you keep on hand? What is your 'go-to' slow crafting project?

Andi xx

WIP Wednesday

2011-06-29T16:31:00.000+10:00

I've made some more progress on this quilt

These are all individual blocks (not made using an online mosaic maker).

I have 6 more blocks to finish making the quilt square.

Then I'm thinking about borders. Not sure.

But I DO know that I'm loving it so far.

I had a lovely day today hanging out with my mate Clair. We ate. We shopped. I stitched (Clair left her stitching project at home ... oops). And we had a lovely catch up.

How was your Wednesday?

Andi xx

Term 3 classes

2011-06-28T12:46:00.001+10:00

It's been a while since I've blogged. Temporarily lost my blogging mojo!
But I'm back with lots of stitchery to show!!

Thought I'd start by showing you a gorgeous quilt top made by the lovely Simone in my Scraptacular Class at Amitie:

Simone loves autumnal colours and has used them to wonderful effect in this scrapalicious quilt top.

We are having a break over the school holidays and will be back next term but this time on Thursday afternoons. 12:30 til 3:00pm so there's still time to make it to school pick-up!!

Want to make a quilt as gorgeous as Simone's? Come on over and have a play with us next term.

I'll be back soon with more of my stitching to show.

Have a great day wherever you are.
Andi x

Falling Bee-hind

2011-06-09T09:31:00.000+10:00

I received my fabric parcel for May's Beehive in the first week of June.
Long story! But ... being a person who hates falling behind, I quickly put together Kat's gorgeous voile string blocks. I anticipate another super soft and snuggly voile quilt. I adore these!!

While I was at it, I made a couple of little blocks (5.5 inches) for Annabel. She is making a quilt for her little boy called "The Busy Sea at Night".

She has asked for pieced blocks, rather than applique which ... at this scale ... caused me a little anxiety. But in the end I really enjoyed making these 2 little blocks.

Now I just need to find the time and energy to get to the post-office!!

Andi x

Mmmmmm .... cheesecake

2011-06-04T11:15:00.000+10:00

Next week will be a Jewish festival called Shavuot. At this time of year, it is traditional to eat dairy foods. So I have re-named this festival "The Cheesecake Festival".

Last night my family and I shared a cheesecake I had baked. It was delicious!!
The recipe is from a book that belonged to my grandmother, first published in 1951, called Jewish Cookery by Leah Leonard.

I've been making this cake for many years with consistently great feedback.
I don't usually include recipes on this blog but this one is so amazingly good, I have decided to share it with you ....

Ingredients

Crust
1 packet Marie biscuits
1/4 cup sugar
135 grams softened butter

Cheese filling
125 grams cream cheese (I used Philadelphia)
125 grams fresh ricotta cheese
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornflour
Pinch of salt
1 cup sour cream
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Method

To make the crust:
- Put Marie biscuits into a food processor and break down into largish crumbs
- Add the sugar and mix well
- Work in the softened butter until well mixed
- Prepare a spring-form cake tin using baking paper and butter.
- Tip the crumb mix into the cake tin and spread out evenly, pressing the mixture down to a flat smooth crust.

To make the cheese filling:
- Add each ingredient (in the order listed above) slowly into a kitchen mixer, allowing for mixing time in between each one.
- You will end up with a very loose batter.

Pour the batter carefully into the crumb-lined tin.
Bake at 180 degrees C for an hour.
After an hour, turn off the oven but leave the cake in there for another hour to cool.
Once it is out of the oven, it really benefits from a couple of hours in the fridge.

This cake doesn't usually come out looking so great so I often sprinkle some icing sugar over the top to make it look a bit better. Once you cut into it though, it looks (and tastes) divine.

Serve on its own or with some cream or vanilla ice cream.

YUMMMMM!!!!

Andi xx

Been shopping

2011-05-28T15:35:00.000+10:00

Andi xx

And back to the quilting!!

2011-05-27T09:29:00.002+10:00

A new commission for a new baby boy.

Echino and coordinating fabrics on the front.

And simple Kona solids on the back.

The baby's name in Hebrew and English.

And some lime green binding.

Phew. It feels good to get back to 'normal' blogging.

Andi x

Craft = Community

2011-05-26T14:21:00.000+10:00

We had our local school fete last weekend and we decided to have a craft stall this year with lots of gorgeous handmade items. I put my hand up to coordinate the stall together with Maddy, another mum without a lot of crafty experience but with heaps of enthusiasm and a whole lot of style!

I knew this would be a lot of work but what I didn't expect was a wonderful community experience.

We decided to have a couple of "making days" at school where mums came along to help make items for the stall.

Some people were experienced crafters and others had never threaded a needle before.

People brought along donated materials and also donated finished items that they had knitted/crocheted/sewn/etc.

We made hair clips, hair ties, library bags, door stops, bunting, tissue cozies, wands, tooth fairy bags, button jewellery and HEAPS more gorgeous items.

But more than that, we had a lovely time, we met people we hadn't met before and we connected over the wonderful creative process!!

The day came and after a very rainy week in Melbourne, the sun gods shone on us and the weather was glorious!

The stall looked great (with a couple of PatchAndi quilts for decoration) and it was a beautiful day.

We sold most of our stock and raised lots of money for the school.

While I'm not in a hurry to get stuck into more making for the school at this stage .... come next year, I look forward to another stall with more beautiful community "making days".

How good is craft?!?

Andi xx
________________________

I wanted to add a note to thank everyone for all your well wishes after my last post. It was so amazing to have such support from you all. I can't tell you how much I appreciated it.

The latest update is that Jake is happily back at school, my Dad is cantankerous as ever and I saw my surgeon today to get my stitches out and get the official all clear!!!

Much relief! Moving on .... xxx

_______________________

The one in which there are no crafty pics. Just a bit of my news.

2011-05-20T18:24:00.000+10:00

Hey there! If you are hoping for any crafty news or pretty pictures, turn away now.

I don't usually put lots of personal stuff in this space but I have had such an eventful time recently that I feel the need to document the experience here.

So, last month we had a big family passover dinner at my parents place. My 84 year old Dad had been feeling pretty unwell and had a terrible pain in his back. Within a couple of days, he became quite confused and developed a fever. We got him quickly to hospital.

It turned out that a bacteria that lives normally in the gut had made its way into his blood stream and his spinal column. The infection was causing lots of pain as well as the confusion which manifested as aggression and agitation+++. My Mum was at the receiving end of most of the aggression so my siblings and I were spending lots of time at the hospital to try to give her a break.

After loads of intravenous antibiotics and an operation on his back, followed by a stint in rehab, he is home again. Still having the IV antibiotics and still fairly agitated but seems to be on the mend.

While all this was going on, I was having a fairly routine procedure at my doctors and a nasty looking cyst was found on my left ovary. Although it was likely a benign cyst, it (and the ovary) would have to be removed. Only a post-op pathology inspection would be able to tell us for sure whether I had ovarian cancer.

My surgery was booked for yesterday. Naturally, I have been extremely anxious and worried about the outcome of the surgery.

To take my mind off it all, my 7 year old son kindly provided a perfect distraction by breaking both his arms at school on Tuesday. A friend dared him to jump off some play equipment and, being a 7 year old boy, he did!! Landed on both his hands. Crack!

Not only have we been dealing with doctors and x-rays and plaster casts, we have discovered that without the use of his hands, he needs to be spoon-fed, dressed and taken to the toilet. It's just like having a baby again.

We have also had to work quickly to find him a carer to help with his personal care at school. Otherwise, he'd potentially be at home for 6 weeks until the casts are taken off. That would drive everyone crazy and simply isn't an option. He'll be back at school next Tuesday and we hope we have found a suitable person. We are meeting her on Monday. Fingers crossed.

Wednesday night came along and we got the news that Dan's grandmother was in hospital after having on of her 'turns'. She's home now and doing much better.

In other family news my 15 year old niece has had to have some dental surgery which has left her very sore and sorry for herself. I wish I'd had the chance to give her a bit more support but my hands have been fairly full.

And so, I had my surgery yesterday and was in hospital overnight. The fantastic news is that surgeon feels it is almost certainly a benign cyst and he was able to save most of my ovary. Relief doesn't even begin to describe my emotions.

I'm home now and feeling pretty sore. But at least I'll be able to spend a couple of hours at the school fete tomorrow. Did I forget to mention that I am coordinating the craft stall? Of course there has been lots of making going on for that and hopefully I'll have some good crafty shots to show you after tomorrow.

I haven't told many people about all this stuff going on for me, until now. But to those of you who have known and sent messages, meals and been so very supportive in other ways, thank you!!
I feel so blessed to be surrounded by caring people ... a wonderful community ... and incredible friends.

Love to you all and I promise the next post will be much cheerier and more colourful.

Andi xxx

Vintage yumminess!!

2011-05-16T20:02:00.001+10:00

The delightful Kel has organised a Vintage Sheet Swap and today I got my LOOT!!!

I hacked into my stash and sent 83 fat quarters (which I neglected to photograph).

Here are some more of my lovely new vintage fat quarters.

And these are my favourites. Earmarked for a quilt for Ella's next birthday.

Thanks lovely Kel for enhancing my stash so beautifully.

Andi xx

Bloggers Quilt Festival

2011-05-13T10:48:00.076+10:00

It's Blogger's Quilt Festival time again!! A lovely time when we get to enjoy a fantastic quilty display from bloggers all over the world!!

Here's my entry. A quilt for a brand new baby, Joshua.

This is a small quilt, measuring 28.5 inches x 36.5 inches. Perfect size for a bassinet or pram or just for having a kick and a play.

In this quilt I've used some of the red and grey designs from Aneela Hoey's Sherbet Pips range and I've added in some Kei Honeycomb in red and grey and some Robert Kaufman 'Ring Toss' in pewter.

The binding is a simple black and white stripe.

And the backing is a Michael Miller red and white dot.

And finished off with a Patch Andi label in red.

Baby Joshua's big brother needed a present too. He has become quite the little car enthusiast. (Well as much as you can be at age nearly-two!)

These gifts have been given and much appreciated! (Big brother's eyes lit up and he said "kah!!!")

I hope you have enjoyed my entry into the quilt festival.

Go and check out all the other wonderful entries. But make sure you have PLENTY of time and a good strong cuppa!! (Just click on the button below)

Thanks to Amy for being the hostess with the mostess!!!
Andi xx

Long overdue

2011-05-03T12:35:00.001+10:00

I have been remiss in posting about some recent purchases, winnings and lovely gifts!!
Apologies to all for putting them in one big photo filled post.

Way back in February, I won this delicious pile of fabrics (stunningly folded) over at the lovely Malka's.

I haven't been able to even remove the ribbon yet, they look so very pretty!!

Some of you may be aware that I have been collecting Flea Market Fancy fabrics for this quilt (having been a bit late hopping on to that particular bandwagon).

So I found an EBAY listing of Jeanette's for an FMF charm pack which I quickly snapped up.
I was so delighted with my purchase that I asked her to whip up a couple more for me which she very kindly did!!

Yep!! That's the WHOLE collection!!!!

Still on the FMF front, the lovely Amy sent me this little collection of FMF scraps .... just because she thought it would make me smile.

And it DID Amy!!! Thank you so much for being a thoughtful and lovely bloggy friend!!

For that same quilt, I have decided to use some fabrics from Denyse Schmidt's other ranges. Specifically Katie Jump Rope and her newest offerings "Picnics and Fairgrounds" available at Joann's in the states (and soon to be released in Australia via Spotlight).

I snapped mine up at this lovely ETSY shop. (Thanks Rita for the heads up!!)
Unfortunately, when it arrived, one of the prints was missing but Amanda was so sweet about sending me the missing fabric (with a few shnippets of FMF in the parcel too). :-)

Another recent purchase was this awesome book by the lovely Nikki.

Tanya is doing an awesome sew-along, stitching every single project in the book. Want to join her? Check it out here!!

Next purchase is a divine brooch from the fabulous Ms Curlypops herself!!

I have worn it on bags, jumpers, jackets and even in my hair (there is a hair clip bit on the back as well as the usual brooch pin). Thanks Cam. I LOVE it!!!!

"More?" I hear you ask!!! "Surely not!!!!"

Oh yes there is!!

The lovely Judy (bestest yarn wrapper in town) has been doing a bit of stash busting, pulled out this amazing Alexander Henry print and thought of me!!

Thank you so much Judy. I have challah covers being planned in my head as I type!!!

Also .... Jenny has given me a new product to try. (Still haven't yet but I have plans Jenny. I have plans!!!)

For those of you who are already Steam-A-Seam fans, you can get yours at Amitie!!!!

And last ... but certainly not least .... I won some more fabric!!
I'm a very lucky girl. I know!!!!

Leanne of Mount Vincent Quilts was a guest blogger over at Chasing Cottons (where Bec is doing the most wonderful Quilt Class 101. You should go and check it out!!!)

As part of the guest blog post, there was a giveaway of a Fat 1/4 pack of the new range from Melly and Me called Where the Wind Blows. It is a lovely fabric range and I am looking forward to slicing into it!!!

Phew!!! What a long post full of so many wonderful links to wonderful people!!

Thank you again to everyone.

Andi xx

Scraps by Denyse!!

2011-05-01T11:34:00.001+10:00

I have been looking for a scrappy looking quilt design to use for my "FMF-and-other-DS-fabrics" stash, and I came across this stunning quilt on flickr.

My version will be 6 x 6 blocks, but as I have only made 6 blocks so far, I've used an online mosaic maker to mock up a possible end result.

It will need a bit of tweaking but I think I'm going to LOVE this quilt.

(Ella has already laid claim to it too).

Another scrapalicious quilt!!
Have you heard I'm going to be teaching all about scrappy quilt making? Check it out here!!

Andi xx

Scraptacular!!!

2011-04-30T12:09:00.000+10:00

There has been a change of plans for my quilt-making class .....

I will now be teaching The Monday Scraptacular at Amitie every Monday afternoon.

It will be a class where you can bring in your own scrappy quilt projects and I can help with designing, piecing and finishing your quilt tops.

You can learn techniques for making scrappy quilts including:

String quilts
Flying geese
Log cabins
Postage stamp quilts
Half square triangles
And LOADS more!!!

You can read more about it here.
I hope to see you there!!

Andi xx

A quilty finish

2011-04-24T11:19:00.000+10:00

Aaaaaaaahhhhh .... back to my usual bright warm colours!

I finally finished this quilt started way back last year.

It has been sitting in my UFO pile for way too long, basted, just waiting to be quilted and bound.

Of course, once I got going, it was a pretty quick finish. Just a day or 2.

It ended up pretty big .... 78 inches square.

I went for the fancy shmancy binding again after using it on this quilt.
I really like the effect of this technique!

For the backing, I have used a gorgeous Kaffe Fassett floral print.

It sits very happily in the quilt stack in our lounge room, waiting to be snuggled under on a cold wintry day.
I fear these are coming all too quickly. Where did you go Summer?

Andi xx

Not my usual pallette

2011-04-20T20:31:00.001+10:00

2 matching cushions for my niece and her husband (who each had birthdays in recent weeks).

Their house is decorated mostly in neutrals.
I used a newspaper print for the backs.

And I couldn't resist a touch of red!!!!

Happy birthday Kim and Stu!!

Andi xx

Keep your eyes peeled

2011-04-17T08:04:00.000+10:00

For this bag, stolen from Nikki's stand at the AQC this week.

It has great sentimental value!!

A pox on the thief!!!

Andi xx

Quilting - From Little Things .... Check. It. Out.

2011-04-12T08:00:00.002+10:00

Sarah Fielke is not only a seriously clever quilt maker, fabric designer and blogger .... she's a fab book writer type person too!!

She's half of the creative duo that brought us MO and MO2, but now she's a solo authoress with the mostess too.

The newest yummy book

I don't know about you but these days I don't actually buy quilting books for the patterns.
I buy them for the pictures ... the colourful inspiration that gets me out of my comfy chair and up to the sewing table.

For example:

I soooo want to crawl into Sarah's fabric stash and wallow in the colourful goodness.

But what took me by surprise about this book, is that I was actually REALLY interested in reading the patterns. The concept of the book is so very clever. 10 different quilting techniques, each illustrated with a dolly quilt pattern (in case you want to try it out before committing to a larger project) and a larger bed-sized pattern.

Great illustrations and well written patterns.
I really HAVE to make this quilt (LOVE the little 3D tabs in the border!!!) .....

So .... do yourself a favour and go check out this ACE new book!!

Want to find out more? There's a whole week of bloggy-touring to enjoy.

Details are:

Monday, April 11: Red Pepper Quilts (Rita's giving away a copy of the book. Ends 12 noon (AEST) on Wednesday 13 April)
Tuesday, April 12: Patch Andi - HERE!!!
Wednesday, April 13: Rosalie Quinlan
Thursday, April 14: Whip Up
Friday, April 15: Fat Quarterly blog
Saturday, April 16: Cinderberry Stitches
Sunday, April 17: One Flew Over

Enjoy!

Andi xx

An apple for the teacher

2011-04-08T13:18:00.000+10:00

I also accept Mint Slices and all forms of chocolate!!

I'm teaching a class at fabric heaven starting next month!!! Can't wait!!

You can read all about it here.

Interested in coming? I'd love to see you.

Andi xxx

(Nearly) Wordless Weekend

2011-04-03T14:24:00.001+10:00

Happy birthday Sweetheart!!

xxxxx

Right under their noses

2011-03-27T12:15:00.000+11:00

We went to visit some friends in their holiday house recently.
They have 3 adult daughters who call the house "The Op Shop" ... and it is NOT meant as a compliment. What do they know?????

I walked around the house snapping away with my camera, totally in awe at some of the treasures they have hidden away ...

This sideboard has the most inspiring geometric details...

And check out these beauties. So much potential ...

Not to mention this little gem ...

I'm posting these images not only to share with you these fabulous retro treasures, but also so that my friend can show her daughters .... so please leave all your positive (but of course honest) comments for them to read.

Also, here are some fab images I have collected to show them (and you) via the wonder that is flickr.

Hooray for vintage chic!

Andi xx

My Beehive month - solids fever!!

2011-03-21T12:01:00.000+11:00

I definitely have 'Solids Fever'!!!

This month is my turn to send out fabric parcels to the lovely Beehive ladies. They will be making me quilt blocks that will coordinate with my Echino wall hanging above my bed:

I have asked for blocks like the ones in this gallery. But I've asked for BIG ones .... 20 inches square!!

With one block from each group member and five made by me, I should end up with a quilt 80 inches square .... perfect for my bed!!

And before I forget, here are the blocks I made for Julie in March.

Her quilt will be amazing when it's all done!!

I'm really loving this quilting bee thing but I'm glad I'm only doing 1. Enough is enough!!

Have a stitchin' week.

Andi xx

Seuss!!!!

2011-03-14T21:20:00.000+11:00

A while back I told you about Ella's room make-over and how I still hadn't finished Jake's cosy comfy space.

Well ... now I have!
Here's what 7 uninterrupted hours of sewing time gets you.

Seuss curtains .... closed.

And open.

Seuss on the front

AND the back ...

A cosy little nook for reading and playing PEEK-A-BOO!!

Even hanging out with your sister!!

My work here is done.

Andi xx

My creative space

2011-03-10T10:35:00.000+11:00

My niece turns 14 today.

And a girl needs a bag. Am I right?

I recently purchased a fat quarter pack of Kumari Garden by Deena Designs in the Gem colourway.
It's a gorgeous bright collection that is not too heavy on the floral. (My niece is not a fan of the floral).

With pockets inside and out and a nice long strap, I'm hoping this messenger style bag will get plenty of use.

Happy birthday Ruby!!

Love Andi xx

PS Heaps more creative folks can be found over here.

Voile -a

2011-03-07T11:04:00.002+11:00

It's been a long time since I posted about this hand quilting project but I have finally put the last stitches into my Anna Maria Horner voile quilt ..... now happily residing on my bed.

Each square is quilted in a coordinating Perle 8 colour (single thread)

Once this was done, I wanted to add some more contrasting quilting so I used lots of different contrasting Perle 8 threads (doubled) to create a grid across the whole quilt

And these are all the pretty coloured threads I had to play with. (Purchased here)

This quilt is so amazingly soft. The combination of the voile (front and back) and the hand quilting makes for a deliciously soft and floaty quilt.

Now I need to get back to some other WIPs languishing in the cupboard.

I'm very pleased to have this one finished.
Hope you've had some pleasing finishes lately.

Andi xx

Following in our parents footsteps

2011-03-06T09:50:00.000+11:00

Ella following Mummy

And Jake following Daddy

Of course we are all more complex individuals than that would suggest.
But I do detect a bit of a pattern.

Do you see these patterns in your family?

Andi xx

Lovely crafting with lovely people

2011-03-05T09:53:00.001+11:00

One of my favourite ways to spend my time.

This week I had the chance to catch up with the lovely Cathy at my place for a day of fabric chat, eating and stitching. We made a bit of a mess ...

Played with quilts ...

And took a silly DIY photo ...

Cathy brought along a very old WIP that she is now madly trying to finish ...

And a newer one too ...

I am so in awe of this woman's talent. Very pleased to be able to call her a friend.

During our crafting session, I managed to finish up a WIP of my own. I'll save that for another post but here's a sneaky peak ...

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Andi xx

Playing along with the snoop

2011-03-02T07:00:00.005+11:00

Kirsty suggested we share images of the shelves in our homes to give a bit of an insight into ourselves and our lives. (And so we can also have a bit of a snoop into each others homes too).

So I started wandering around the house snapping shots of shelves, collections, bits and bobs .... and realised I had a little theme emerging ...... my covered tissue boxes.

So here they are:

On the piano, next to our wedding photo from 2009. A quilt in the background. Lots of quilts around my house!

On the table in the living room. Next to our (rather dusty) photo box and the chess set. Dan has been teaching the kids to play. Another quilt used as a table covering.


Ella's bedside table. Surrounded by treasures and a vase of fresh flowers. She picks new ones every couple of days.

So there you have it. What's hiding on your shelves?

More shelves to snoop at here!!

Andi x

It's a fish-eat-fish world

2011-02-28T11:12:00.000+11:00

We have embarked on our first attempt at pet ownership ... FISH!!!

After many warnings of impending fish funerals and general kiddie disappointment, I was optimistic as everything started out well.

Until Day 2 ... when Flora (the gold coloured one) started 'bullying' Spotty.
When I say bullying, I mean nipping at him constantly, pushing him into the corner and generally harassing him.

Without telling the kids, I took Flora "the bully" back to the pet shop and replaced her with Flora 2, a much more acceptably behaved fishy who looked remarkably like her predecessor.

In hindsight, maybe Flora 1 was just defending herself from impending doom.

Day 3: Flora 2 has disappeared completely from the tank. I fear she has been EATEN!!!

RIP Flora 2

What to do now?
Do we add another fish to the tank and cross our fingers?
Do we get rid of Spotty "the cannibal" and start fresh with 2 new fish?
Do we abandon this caper altogether?

Fish for dinner anyone?

Andi xx

Respect

2011-02-27T18:08:00.001+11:00

A new found respect for folks who make softies

And especially for those who write softie patterns (like you, you, you and you)

People who can imagine turning flat shapes into rounded ones

With a head, a body, a hump and four legs (albeit slightly splayed ones)

Who can help to create this kind of happiness

(Except she doesn't actually get to keep it. The toy is a gift for a camel-mad sixty year old man.)

Not sure I'll be making another one in a hurry. It was rather labour intensive.

But I do know it will be well loved.

Happy Sunday to you.
Andi xx

PS Camel pattern purchased here

Babushka needed a friend

2011-02-26T13:11:00.000+11:00

Have a great weekend.

Andi xx

My creative space

2011-02-24T10:53:00.000+11:00

... is soft and cuddly

... and smells delicious

Recipe from here with loads of added seeds and grains.

And here's Ella's creative space after a day off from school yesterday

At least she included a little quilt!!

Hope your space is a creative one. More spaces here.

Andi xx

My day with Kaffe and Brandon (and 30 other squealing women!)

2011-02-20T21:32:00.000+11:00

Get ready for a long post with LOADS of photos ....

Kaffe and Brandon are in town and I was lucky enough to get into a workshop they ran today at Amitie, the happiest land of them all!

This image above is of the original bordered diamonds quilt from the book Simple Shapes, Spectacular Quilts. It was our focus for the day.

There were so many lovely people there today:

That's me with Jenny, owner of Amitie

Miriam, Me (and my chins) and Cathy

Melissa, Cathy and Me


Blogless Sue and Judy

And so many other awesome women........

..... who brought with them LOADS of delicious fabric:

Lisa was obscenely neat and organized.

We ate well:

And drank well ...

But mainly we worked hard!!
There were design walls everywhere:

Here are some of the wonderful designs that were created today:

Here I am hard at work:

Check out the progression of my design wall:

It eventually became this:

After all the designing (and eating and drinking and singing and laughing and chatting) was done, Kaffe went from design wall to design wall offering insights and lashings of praise and encouragement.

Here he is critiquing my design:

During the day, Kaffe was generally quiet, measured and a bit serious.

The only real 'smiley' shot I got of him was standing in front of Linda's quilt ... my favourite of the day:

Brandon on the other hand ...

What an amazing day!!
Thank you to EVERYONE who made it possible.

Andi xx

What the tuck?

2011-02-19T10:24:00.001+11:00

Textured block for Jo for this month's Beehive.

I call it 'organic' pleating.
AKA: I didn't really know what I was doing!!

Hope you are having a stitchy weekend.

Andi x

My creative space

2011-02-17T08:33:00.000+11:00

I'm hoping this has a Moroccan feel.

What do you think?

The back really shows the quilting!!

More spaces over at Madame Koo's. Go check 'em out!

I hope your space is creative today.

Andi xx

Cute t-shirts for a cute little person

2011-02-14T21:08:00.000+11:00

Happy birthday little man!

Love,
Andi xx

Celebrating and remembering

2011-02-11T13:32:00.000+11:00

Happy birthday Dad!

Nigella's Chocolate Fudge Cake

And the remembering bit ...

3 years ago today, on my Dad's 81st birthday, my brother-in-law John, a beautiful man, passed away from an AIDS related illness. We loved him very much.

He was a big kid at heart who would have loved to lick the bowl!

With love,
Andi xx

A new beginning

2011-02-08T20:21:00.000+11:00

Andi xx

Gifts for small people

2011-01-30T09:05:00.000+11:00

2 small friends.
Both turning 5.
Both about to start school.
Both with names starting with 'A'.

Happy birthday you guys!

Andi xx

The Beehive is back!!

2011-01-28T14:34:00.000+11:00

Round 2 of the Beehive has kicked off with a bang.

Meg (a mad quilting librarian) has requested book shelf blocks using our own scraps. You should have a look at some of the amazing blocks offered by our other Beehivers.
Here are my offerings:

An homage to books arranged by spine colour.

and ...


I've added bookends to this one but I left one of the bookends unattached so Meg can place it where she likes on the 'shelf'.

I've posted them off today Meg. I hope you like them.
Can't wait to see how this quilt comes together.
It's going to be a ripper!!!

Andi x

A place of her own (and some Patch Andi news)

2011-01-26T16:18:00.000+11:00

I've always loved the feeling of snuggling up in a confined comfy space. A cubby house full of cushions or a tent filled with mattresses and bean bags.

My kids seem to like that same comfy 'womb-like' feeling. So this summer, my crafty goals have been to create a fun and snuggly place for each of them in their bedrooms.

For Ella, I designed a "bed tent" that gives her that snuggly feeling but doesn't diminish the sense of light and space in her rather small room.

So I used some pretty fabrics from the Dream On range, recycled the bunting from her room and added some sheer netting to create the tent surrounds.

So far, she loves it so much, it has already fallen down and I need to come up with a better way of securing it to the ceiling. I have a plan but just need to get to the hardware store to buy supplies.

Jake's space is still a WIP so I'll show you that when it's finished.

____________________________________________________________

And now for that Patch Andi news:

My husband (together with me) has made some decisions about his working life this year that mean I will have to ramp up my own earning somewhat. This probably means reducing my crafting and going back to my other career which pays better and still offers significant flexibility.

Nothing to worry about. We're OK. Just changing things up a bit this year which is good.

So, I'm still happy to accept quilt commissions but won't be actively seeking them out. I'll still be blogging and crafting, but perhaps a little less regularly.

I am hoping to do some crafty teaching this year to keep my creating mojo humming along. Stay tuned for more details.

Andi xx

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

2011-01-08T11:55:00.000+11:00

(Apologies to Mr Dickens)

The last week has held some real highlights and some major lowlights.

With a family trip planned to Ballarat to visit some lovely stitchy friends for a picnic, and then some good old family fun at historic Sovereign Hill ... what could possibly go wrong?

Well to start with, Mr Patch Andi came down with tonsillitis and couldn't come along.
But we pushed ahead with our adventure, leaving the Mr to get a couple of days of much needed rest.

We (my kids, my parents and I) arrived in Ballarat at chez Ric Rac late on Tuesday morning where Jodie and her son Connor were the hosts with the most.

Jodie had even 'made' bikkies for the kids.

We were soon joined by Kate and her girls, Rachel and her Maya and Lizzie. We all wondered off to the local park for a picnic.

Here are a few more shots. (Check out all the quilts we bought to use as picnic rugs)

Annie joined us a bit late as she was rather busy finishing her latest creation!!!

There was even some impromptu creating going on ...

After the delightful picnic, I sent my parents and kids off to check in to our accommodation while the girls took me to visit a local icon.

Oh the pretty fabric ....

I was seeing spots!

(These pretties came home with me along with a few other delicious selections!!)

Thanks Emma for being so very hospitable.

SUCH a very lovely afternoon! Thank you to everyone for coming along and playing with us city folk!!

Soon after leaving Ballarat Patchwork, I got a grumpy call from my dad wondering when I would be resuming my parenting responsibilities. Oops!!

A happy family dinner followed, then back to the hotel to rest up for a fun day of gold panning and ye-olden-days-lolly-eating the next day.

Unfortunately, my Ella woke up with a tummy bug so she and I went straight home, leaving my parents to take Jake around Sovereign Hill. They had a lovely day.

We'll get back there one day .... all of us!!

Hope you all have a lovely weekend!

Andi xx

A 2010 crafternoon

2011-01-02T15:10:00.001+11:00

I have been remiss in not posting about a lovely (cr)afternoon spent with Bec and her daughter Sibby last week.

Bec and I shared in a super cheap fabric deal and we took the opportunity for a fabric hand-over and had a bit of a catch up!

I didn't manage to get any shots of the kids but here's a bit of what we got up to:

Bec gave me Ella a divine vintage book with the most awesome illustrations.

And she also gave me a vintage pillow case with the sweetest print on it.

We played with lots of Hama Beads

Ella did a bit of this:

while the bigger kids did a bit of this

and just as Bec and Sib were leaving (and having a nibble on some walnuts), Bec mentioned making walnut shell boats ... so Ella and I did that too

A lovely time had by all.
You can read about it at Bec's blog too!

Happy new year to all.

I hope you had a sparkly one!

Andi xx

On a roll

2010-12-27T20:28:00.000+11:00

I just couldn't rest until it was finished.

I made the back using left over bits from the front and some solids I had in my stash.

The quilting is a new approach for me, thanks to inspiration from the fabulous Ashley of Film in the Fridge. She uses this sort of random line quilting to wonderful effect. Like on this quilt.

You can see the quilting much better on the back.

And for the binding, more scraps from the front. The scrappier the better, I say!!

I hope you're having a crafty Monday too.

Andi xx

A new generation

2010-12-25T10:36:00.000+11:00

I was basting a quilt this morning and my littlest one asked if she could help.

I suggested she put in some pins for me.

She found it quite tricky. Her little fingers are not quite adept enough to do the job.

But I'm glad she wants to be involved.

I must admit, I've been having little fantasies of never having to baste a quilt again. My little helper can do it for me.
;-)

Hope you and your families are having a lovely Christmas day.

Andi xx

Piping

2010-12-23T13:54:00.000+11:00

Practicing some new skills learned here and here:

Using some tools of the trade(s):

A bit of an improvement from the original, I think:

It wasn't all that bad to start with but it certainly wasn't 'me'.

The new fabric is Echino purchased here.

Have a happy christmas and a great weekend!

Andi x

Well, maybe just one more quilt

2010-12-20T20:08:00.001+11:00

Even though I have summed up and signed off for 2010, I got my hands on a fat quarter stack of Momo's "It's a Hoot" and a charm pack of "Just Wing It" by the same designer and a quilt instantly designed itself in my head.

I had to sew it IMMEDIATELY. You know when you get into the flow and can't stop until the thing is done?

I am hoping to teach some classes next year at Amitie (the happiest place of them all) and one idea is to have a class aimed at sewists who don't want to dwell on perfect points and following rules. This would be a class aimed at people who want to learn the tricks of fast and furious (but still rather gorgeous) quilt making.

Patchwork where your mistakes don't get re-done. They get hidden away or simply embraced. Besides, who will ever actually notice???

This is the quilt I thought I'd teach. Would you be interested in a class like that?

Andi xx

2010 - in retrospect

2010-12-16T14:32:00.000+11:00

It has certainly been a very crafty year.

Lots of quilts, cushions, bags and toys. Loads of fabric and colour!!

But more importantly, 2010 has been a year of transition for me.

It has been the first year of turning Patch Andi into a business. I have made mistakes. I have learned a lot. I have made new friends, both online and in 'real life'. And I have tried lots of new crafts. New techniques, new traditions.

In more personal terms, I have discovered that I really like the freedom of not being in a 'regular job'. I love being with my family and watching my children grow and develop into unique and wonderful little people. I love having a home that reflects my creativity. A home that can welcome lots of guests to share meals and play dates with. I love that my dad describes me as a Balabusta.

It has been a year of getting to know so many of you via this blog. I love the crafty blog world. It is a community of people who truly 'get' each other and can relate to each other's stories.
Thank you to each and every one of you who has shared my journey via this blog. I truly appreciate every visit, every comment.

I wish you all a happy festive season. Whatever you celebrate, may it be fun, creative and full of love!!

See you next year.

Andi x

Chuffed!

2010-12-10T13:59:00.001+11:00

Apparently, my kitchen is much Better After.

I think so too!
Thanks for the mention!!

Andi x

I'm in love

2010-12-08T18:53:00.000+11:00

with Squint Design ...

The most amazing patchworked furniture I've ever seen.
Treat yourself and go have a look!!

Truly a feast for the eyes!!

I'm inspired!!!!

Andi x

Matching quilts

2010-12-05T10:44:00.000+11:00

Earlier this year, friends of ours had their second baby boy, Ezra. Here is the quilt I made for him:

And here is the matching cushion I made for his big brother Jacob (so he wouldn't feel left out):

Well it turned out that big brother adores the cot-sized quilt and can often be found snuggled under it on the couch.

It became clear that he needed a quilt of his own. This time, sized for his big boy bed!!

Happy 4th birthday Jacob!! Now you and Ezra can snuggle together!!

Andi xx

Furniture re-fashion!

2010-12-03T10:40:00.003+11:00

I finished my upholstery course and I'm thrilled with the end result!!

Here is the 'Before' and 'After' shot:

And here is an animation showing a bit of the process along the way:

If you're in Melbourne and interested in a fabulous and fun upholstery class, take a look over here.

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Andi x

My creative space

2010-12-02T07:14:00.000+11:00

End of year teacher gifts. Check!

More creative peeps over here.

Andi x

Sorry girls

2010-11-30T12:21:00.000+11:00

When Kate suggested we meet for coffee "at my kitchen table" this morning, I actually thought she meant we would have a coffee at her place ... not at the cafe called "My Kitchen Table". Oops!!

Seing as I don't like to arrive at someone's home empty handed, I stopped in at a divine local middle-eastern bakery and picked up these treats for us to share.

Sorry girls. I couldn't bring them into a cafe so I guess my kids will be having a rather gourmet afternoon tea.
(Minus the 'rosewater, raspberry and white chocolate' one that I have already eaten).

Despite the mix up, it was so very nice to catch up with you Kate, Rita and Christie.
I feel so lucky to live in a city with so many lovely and talented crafty bloggers that I can actually meet up with in the 'real world'.

Andi x

Super cushion!!!!!

2010-11-29T14:55:00.000+11:00

What to do when your son's favourite Superman comic book falls apart?

Take some of the fallen pages .... scan 'em ...... print 'em ..... stitch 'em .... and voila ....

Instant bed-time reading!!

Andi x

A very special quilt

2010-11-28T20:10:00.001+11:00

A while back, I gave you a peek at a commission I was working on using printed text.

Well, I couldn't show you much more than that, as the piece was destined to be used as a chuppah at a wedding and I didn't think it was right to show you the quilt before it was seen by the wedding party and guests.

That time has passed now, so I can reveal all.

The idea behind this chuppah was to create a communal piece with input from many of the wedding guests.
Guests were asked to send in a message for the bride and groom. I then formatted the messages in a variety of fonts and printed them onto printable fabric sheets.
As well as messages, a selection of black and white wedding photos of the couple's parents and grandparents were included.

These sheets needed to be soaked to set the image.

Once they were dry, they could be pieced together.

I was nervous about pin basting this quilt as the printable fabric is very tightly woven and the pins really do leave little holes in the fabric. So I compromised and spray basted the central part of the quilt and pinned the regular white cotton of the border.

Then I quilted and quilted and quilted. Straight line quilting in the central part and stippling in the border.

You can really see the quilting with the light behind the chuppah.

Around the border of the quilt are appliqued words in hebrew that roughly translate as:
Song of joy and gladness, song of bride and groom.

Bound in black satin:

Finished and folded:

And here it is in use.

Mazal tov Len and Davina.
Thank you for allowing me to play a part in your special day.

Andi x

I have COMPLETELY sold out!!!

2010-11-20T13:53:00.000+11:00

Happy birthday to my mermaid loving, super pink, 5 year old girl!!

Love, Mummy
xoxox

My creative space.

2010-11-18T08:24:00.000+11:00

... is full of possibilities.

Thanks so much Suzanne for a fabulous and very generous giveaway!

Andi x

PS More creative spaces to be admired here.

A very happy un-birthday ...

2010-11-15T14:39:00.000+11:00

.... to you my delicious Jake.

Your birthday is is in the middle of summer when everyone is away on holidays so we had your birthday party VERY (almost 2 months) early this year.

You had a fun bowling party with good friends and all I had to do was make a cake!!!

Take a $5 mud cake from the supermarket and cover it with blue butter icing and some chocolate coins.

Make a chocolate dome in a greased bowl to put over the top.

Decorate with lollies using a bit more melted chocolate.

Sing the birthday song, blow out some candles and give the birthday boy a nice clean hammer.

And you have a pinata cake!!! (And a happy chocolate eating boy!!)

And here you are opening your presents at home.

I love you my Jakey Boy and wish you such happiness every day of the year .... even on your actual birthday!!

Love, Mummy xoxox