Australia Day

Today is a public holiday here in Australia.  AUSTRALIA DAY to be exact.  So in true Aussie style, our family is heading down to the beach to meet up with a couple of other families, and will spend the afternoon sitting in the sunshine, having a few drinks and cooking up a bbq lunch.

Today, I'd like to share with you my perspective on being a quilter in Australia.  Angie from Gnome Angel threw the idea out there........so thanks Angie!  You're making me think out loud!

Living in Australia can sometimes feel like you are so completely removed from the rest of the world.  At times, I watch news reports and read stories of far away places, and it's hard to imagine such things are happening?  But then other times, it's like the world has landed on our doorstep!

Being a quilter in Australia is somewhat the same!  By that, I mean you see all of these amazing quilt shows, websites and fabric stores in other countries and you think - "why don't we have that here?!?!!?"  And then next thing you know - you discover an amazing quilt shop and someone starts the first Modern Quilt Show in Australia!  You get yourself an Instagram account and discover UH-mazing and talented Aussies doing the stuff you've been coveting from international crafters!  And then, then you dig a little deeper, and you find an endless array of fabulous Aussies in the Blogosphere.  It's quite simply - Inspiring.

Australians are a loyal bunch.  And supportive - OH SO supportive.  We like to see one another succeed, and once a friendship is formed, it generally lasts forever (well, for me anyway!).  Over the past couple of years, I have been lucky enough to make friends with a whole bunch of Aussie quilters, and at times, they have been the ones who have encouraged me to go forward with ideas - whether it be patterns, fabric swaps or even just a quilt I'm constructing.   I've met a number of these lovely peeps, and although the majority of our interaction is online, knowing they live in the same country, and that I CAN actually go and catch up with them is really lovely.......

Angie and I meeting up at the Quilting Show in Melbourne last year...

Alyce and I spent the day fabric shopping in Tokyo in October....

Some of the gals from the Melbourne MQG on white glove duty at the Stitches & Craft Show in Melbourne 2014.

Ros & Abby met up with me for a day of fabric shopping & lunch last year....

This past year has been HUGE for me.  I was published in Make Modern Magazine with my very own quilt pattern, and continue to write my Domestic Quilting Goddess column each issue.  I started the Aussie Charm Swaps, and in turn, am encouraging Australian quilters & crafters to support Australian businesses by having them as sponsors of giveaways.  AND I have expanded my small business to selling Aurifil threads here in Australia.  All of these things could not have been possible without the ongoing support of my Aussie quilting friends, and I am ever so grateful for that!  

The talent of so many Australian quilters is being recognised world wide, and I have so many wonderful people to look up to.  Wishing you all a very happy Australia Day and I hope that you are all spending the day doing something you love, with the people you love.

You can catch up with some other Aussies here:

 Angie @ GnomeAngel.com

Alyce @ Blossom Heart Quilts

 Cat @ Cat + Vee

 Gemma @ Pretty Bobbins

 The Team @ Make Modern
Sunflower Quilting

3000 - A Facebook Celebratory Giveaway!

A very exciting (and sneaky) number crept up on me.......I was doing a little makeover on the FB page today, when I noted that my number of "followers" had clicked over the 3000 mark!?!?!  What the!?!?!?

So, in the spirit of celebrating, I thought how about a little old fabric giveaway???

I have a tonne of fabric.  Literally.  I have no idea what I'm going to give away, but it will be at least a few fat quarters, some scraps, maybe more!  If you'd like to be in the running, just follow the Rafflecopter prompts below - it's easy peasy!

Thank you to EVERYONE who has been following my FB page - whether you've been there since it all began in 2010, or whether you only just clicked on this week.  I truly appreciate you all!

The giveaway starts now and ends 12am Sunday 25th January.  I will announce a winner here on the blog later that day/night!

GO!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blogger's Quilt Festival - Original Design - Charm Dash

I am entering a second quilt in to the Blogger's Quilt Festival!  I am very proud of my Charm Dash quilt - given it is my first ever released Pattern - so I am entering it in to the Original Design category!

 

Those of you who have been around here for a while would know I released my Charm Dash pattern about a month ago, but for those of you who are new here (You'll find some captivating information about me and my work up there in the "Who is Ms Midge" section  ^^^^) - here's the low down!  The Charm Dash came to be after the first Aussie Charm Swap I ran, with Kate Spain fabrics.  I was left wondering how to use my 5" charm squares without wasting ANYTHING?  After tossing and turning one night, I spent the morning drawing up a block, which would go on to be the Charm Dash block and a whole quilt!

 

The block is a bit of a mutant churn dash - except that you are using 5" charm squares and not wasting a single inch of fabric.  

 

It is perfect for showcasing your favourite fabrics - and in my case, the Kate Spain collection of prints was a stunning example of how fabrics from a multitude of collections can mix beautifully.

 

I pieced and quilted the whole quilt using my trusty Aurifil #2024 in a 40wt.  The free motion pattern is what I'd like to call "vines", but you can call it whatever you like!

The backing is a very simple on fabric finish - but oh, what a fabric!

This quilt made me believe that I could actually reallllly be original and come up with some of my own quilty ideas!  Which in turn led me to designing my Pavement Puddles quilt.  So I guess you could say it was the start of a whole new beginning!

A BIG thank you to Amy's Creative Side for always putting on a fabulous quilt show!  You can check out the Festival main page HERE.  Make sure you allocate yourself a few hours to get through all the quilty eye candy!  And you can also nominate your favourite quilts HERE!

QUILT STATS:

Designed & pattern made by Me!

Size: 50" x 62.5"

Fabric: Kate Spain Charm squares & White Homespun

Quilting:  By Me on my Bernina

Thread: Pieced and quilted with Aurifil 40wt in #2024

Blogger's Quilt Festival - Large Quilt - Pavement Puddles

I'm being very brave and throwing my hat quilt in the ring Blogger's Quilt Festival!  If you're new here to my blog - WELCOME!  You'll find some captivating information about me and my work up there in the "Who is Ms Midge" section  ^^^^

I have a lot of quilts, yes, but the quilt I'm putting forward for the Large Quilt category is my 

Pavement Puddles.....

I designed this quilt under a little bit of pressure - from myself mostly - to come up with something original for my first ever magazine submission.  I was thrilled with the end result and loved the way the colours mixed from tone to tone and through the cool colour spectrum.  It reminded me of the puddles on the pavement after a sun shower!  I was also incredibly impressed with my mathematical ability...... As I designed the pattern all by myself!

It was also my first attempt at any type of hexagon!  It may not be a traditional hexie - but nobody has ever called me traditional, so I can live with that.....

The backing is a very simple, yet effective layout.

And all of the puddles have been straight line quilted using varying shades of my favourite Aurifil 40wt threads!

I had an absolute ball photographing Puddles......as you can tell from the above photo!  I had a couple of wonderful "assistants" who just happen to be expert bed jumpers!

I said goodbye to this quilt yesterday!  It was gifted to one of my wonderful BFF's for her 40th birthday, and I'm very happy to report that she sent me photos of it last night, settled in to its new home.  

A BIG thank you to Amy's Creative Side for always putting on a fabulous quilt show!  You can check out the Festival main page HERE.  Make sure you allocate yourself a few hours to get through all the quilty eye candy!  And you can also nominate your favourite quilts HERE!

QUILT STATS:

Designed & pattern made by Me!

Size: 51" x 74.5"

Fabric: Horizon by Kate Spain & Peppered Cotton by Studio E

Quilting:  By Me on my Bernina

Thread: Pieced and quilted with Aurifil 40wt in various colours

The pattern for this quilt is published in Issue One of Make Modern Magazine.

A Wedding Gift & The End Of An Era

You know what I love?  I love when I make something and post a photo on my Facebook page, that someone else loves it too and immediately orders one!  That's exactly what happened a couple of weeks ago when I finished the ring bearer's cushion for my brother-in-law's upcoming wedding!

The customer requested specific fabric for the cushion - which I had none of!  Lucky for me, I'm in a few fabulous FB groups, and put a call out for scraps of Sugar Flower.  Even luckier for me, a couple of lovely women came to the rescue!  And yesterday, I spent the afternoon putting the order together.....

I adore this little paper piecing pattern by Quiet Play.  I already have another one printed out, ready to make a third!  I used the old faithful Aurifil #2024 to piece and quilt all the little pebbles on the front.  I'm getting pretty damn good at those damn pebbles!  It's taken a few projects to get in to my pebbling groove - proof that practice makes better.

Can you believe the back of the cushion is made from two scraps?!!?!?  Thanks Toni!!!  I love how bright and sunny this print is.

I heart hearts!

My favourite, but most nerve wracking part of these cushions, is the stamping.  I bought these divine little stamp sets before Christmas, not having any purpose in mind - just because they were cute!  And they have already been used twice!  Who knew!??!

And just because I've been talking about it for weeks now, Chloe started school today!  In what I can only describe as "an end of an era", today ended 15 years of having a child/children home with me.  Whilst I can confirm I did not cry when we dropped her off, I cannot deny my throat closing over and choking up last night when I got her uniform out.  And I can also not deny the tears that were shed this morning whilst I was by myself.  I'm sure there will be more tears over the coming weeks and months, when I find myself wondering where my little quiet companion is?

The four most precious "little" people in my life.

And the fifth, who started work late so he could continue the tradition of taking our kids to their first day of school.

THIS is what I will miss!

I'm linking up with Pretty Bobbins and Quiet Play - You can too!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner.

Thank you to everyone who popped in and commented on my 50,000 giveaway post!  It was really lovely and insightful to hear why you keep coming to see me here, and what brought you here in the first place.  It certainly helped to reassure me that blogging is not a complete waste of my time!  You all made it very difficult for me to choose a winner too!  But here she is:

I love the thought of sitting around with a cuppa talking about quilting!  Note to self: join a quilting group.  A real life quilting group - not online!

I shall send you through an email tonight Deb and get that little stash of fabric and goodies off in the post!

Today I went in to the city to the Craft & Quilt Fair.  Had a lovely wander around and saw some fabulous quilts.  I will share some photos and conversations with you another day - I'm stuffed!

Thanks again everyone!

xxx

50,000 - Not That I'm Counting!

It's been a super cold, wet and Winter's day here in Melbourne.  But that little number up there just put a smile on my dial.  I'm not much of a statistics girl, in fact, I don't really like numbers - BUT - I just noticed that this little blog of mine has now officially gone over 50,000 page views!

I started tapping away on my keyboard back in 2009, not really having any real vision or purpose to my blog.  Or page views......hahahaha.  In fact, the majority of those before-mentioned pageviews have been in the past 12 months - when I started blogging my way through sewing and quilting.  Who woulda thought?

Long time readers will know that I started out with lots of personal ramblings.  I still come in here and ramble about my personal life every now and then, but mostly I'm sharing my love of quilting - through trial and error.  Although I was taught to sew by my Mummy, some 30 years ago - quilting has been something I have mostly researched and learnt on line!  My husband told me years ago that I needed to find a hobby.  Seems I've found it......

To say thank YOU for stopping by, viewing my blog, leaving me comments, giving me handy tips and links when I ask for them, and when I don't - I'd love to do a little old give-away.

If you've been reading here for a little while, you will know what I'm talking about when I say that my little shoe-box is bursting at the seams.  Just when I think I couldn't possibly fit any more fabric on to my shelves, more sneaks in.  So for this give-away, I'm going to send some of my fabric a packing.  To your place!

The lucky recipient will receive a surprise pack of fabric - a few scraps, fat quarters and maybe a notion or two. 

To enter, just leave me a comment telling me what brought you here to my blog, and if you are a "follower", why you keep coming back?

I really am chuffed each and every time I notice that I have a new reader!  And I read every single comment that is left - so on the odd occasion I don't reply - please know I have indeed read it!

Thank again!

Love Midge

xxx

*  Entries are open until 9am Thursday 25th July (Australian Eastern Standard Time). Winner will be chosen by me and posted via my blog on Thursday 25th of July.  Please ensure you have left your email address in your comment if you are a NO REPLY BLOGGER.

T.G.I.F.F. - The One Where My Swoon Gets Sent Packing.....

Remember this photo from Wednesday?

Well, it now has a beautiful pieced backing to go with it.....

When I bought the yardage for this backing - from The Intrepid Thread - I was not really sold on the print.  I mean, there are sooooo many divine prints in the Notting Hill range, but all of my first choices (yes, you can have more than one first choice!) were too low in stock and would not be able to accommodate this 90" beauty!  So the lovely Julie said "this is it".  And that's what I got.

BUT - now that it's made up - I LOVE IT!!!!

I had to use my brain and lack of mathematical skills to come up with the pieced section.  Lucky for me I'd only just read THIS blog post by Christa Quilts, in which she talks about how she works out her pieced backs.  Although I knew that's how it would be done, it was very helpful in this process.  I used my own technological know how to work mine out.....

Old school.....

So that's it my friends!  My beautiful Swoon quilt is finished!  Well, sort of.  This will be the first quilt that I will not be quilting myself.  And although I am VERY excited about sending it off to Jeanette to be quilted on her long arm, I am just a tad bit disappointed that I won't be doing it myself.  And on that note - I best go and spend another hour or two looking through designs and trying to come to some sort of decision about HOW I want it to be quilted!!!  Aghhhhhhh!!!!!!

I'm linking up with T.G.I.F.F. being hosted by the lurvely Molli Sparkles today!  You can too!

Now.......what to do with ALL those Notting Hill leftovers and scraps?

A Social Media Love Affair

I've been sitting on this post for a few days.  Well, figuratively speaking that is!  You see, a few days ago, I posted on Facebook - 

"How does one deactivate a Facebook account please?"

I could almost hear the sniggers from my office!  "Are you leaving FB?"  "Melissa leaving Facebook - hahahahahhahaha".  It did make me laugh!  I replied they should know me well enough to know that would never happen!

I was, in fact, asking the question so I could deactivate my teenager's account.  Now that is a whole other story, that could possibly take up a dozen posts.  So let's just say it was time for a complete social media ban for my big baby boy.

Back to the main story here.  My love of social media.  I now frequent Facebook, Instagram, Skype, Twitter, Pinterest, Flickr and of course my blog.  I'm not ashamed to say I LOVE being active in all of these platforms.  In fact, if I hadn't been on them, I can guarantee you I wouldn't be running a small sewing business, I wouldn't be in touch with all of my friends and god forbid - I wouldn't be quilting!

Facebook has allowed me to keep up with every single person I know.  Well apart from a very small minority of friends who have not actually got a Facebook account (gasp!).  I get to see the day to day happenings of my god children, who all live interstate or overseas.  I have been able to have conversations with friends on a regular basis - meaning that I never have to wonder what they've been up to.  I've joined countless FB groups - including sewing and quilting groups, which have been an amazing source of information and guidance.  I've met some fabulous online friends, whom have supported me through umpteen dramas and upheavals in my private life.  And on a different level - I've been able to keep an eye on what my teenager is up to!

I remember when Facebook started.  My BFF in London mentioned it to me and I was like "huh?"  But before long I'd embraced the concept and there was no looking back.  I am unapologetic for the fact I look like I am online 24 hours a day.  Yes, that is what I am assuming all of my friends think I do all day long.  Let's clear that up - I'm not.  My computer happens to be turned on 24 hours a day, however, I do manage to run a family of six, work part time outside of home and work part time at home.  I write this blog, I sew for pleasure and I also do a million other things OTHER than sit on Facebook!

My love for Instagram is growing by the day.  SOOOO much inspiration out there amongst the crafting community, and SOOOO many beautiful photos from all over the world!  Oh, and have I mentioned the giveaways I have miraculously won?  Ahuh!

And don't even get me started on Pinterest.....Seriously, the people who invented it are geniuses!  Want a recipe?  Pinterest.  Want a tutorial?  Pinterest.  Renovating?  Pinterest.  The lists go on, and on, and on.

And last but not least - Flickr.  Another fabulous community of people!  And it makes the sharing of photos here on my blog so. much. easier.

So why am I writing this post?  Well, because after asking that little question the other day, it occurred to me that some people seem a little embarrassed to say how much they love social media.  I know many of my friends don't post on Facebook, but I know they've been there - lurking.  How else would they know that so-and-so has stubbed their toe on the couch and had to spend countless hours in emergency to find it's not broken?  *lol*

I say embrace your social media love!  Don't apologise for updating your status 500 times a day!  If that's what you want to do - do it!  If people are offended by your regular postings - tell them to delete you!

Ok.  That's my little rant for this morning.  I do actually need to get off my ass and go finish some more cushion covers!  Oh, and check Facebook......

Are you a social media nut?  

T.G.I.F.F. #5 - Kissing Fish

In what can only be called a miracle - I finished kissing fish......and not the "in the water kind".  I definitely wanted to challenge myself with the whole quilting business this year, but think I bit off more than I could chew with this baby!

So without further ado - Here is my version of "Kissing Fish".....

Kissing Fish on Flickr

Lots of straight, stitchin in the ditch!

Gorgeous ribbon fabric I bought on a whim!

Love, love how this light has shown off the colours!

So the five million points are not perfect, the lines are not all amazingly straight and heck - I may have broken a needle!  But I LOVE it!  I used THIS PATTERN from Freshly Pieced.  Although it is classed as "easy", I would say it's easy but fiddly and at times frustrating.  Only because of the 100's of HST's!

I chose the ribbon fabric for the backing, basically because I was going to use it on the quilt top and then forgot!  And after much deliberation, I went with all the different prints for the binding - kind of rainbow-y?  And now I have to wait a whole two weeks to gift this to a very dear friend of mine, for her very much loved baby girl, who is yet to enter the world!

And yes - that is ALL I finished this week - but what a finish it is!

I'm linking up with T.G.I.F.F. being hosted by Kit Lang - Art this week!

Have you finished anything this week??
AND just in case you've missed it so far this week - The Sew Fab e-Pattern deal is still available, but only for a couple more days!

You can see all the patterns and purchase the bundle HERE!  
**  Please note - this offer is available until 8am EST (US) Monday the 11th of February!  There was a typo with the date on the original post which was provided to us!!

Happy 300 To Me! Giveaway Anyone?

Whilst logging in to Blogger the other day, I noted that my posts tally was sitting pretty on 299!  And I thought "Holy moly!  I've sat in front of this computer and tapped on this keyboard 299 times, and shared it with the world!?"  I then got to thinking of how I could celebrate this milestone?  And was honestly still stuck, until just now.....

Give away??

I've gone through my own personal stash of fabrics, and pulled out two of my favourite collections!  There's a Fat Quarter set of Flora by Lauren & Jessi Jung and Peacock Lane by Michael Miller up for grabs!  And I've also got a custom spot for a Retro Circle Brontee dress in any size from 1 to 10!

So Thank YOU for reading my drivel, and for giving me such great feedback all the time!  You may have noticed there's more of a mix of drivel and quilting/sewing these days.  I've well and truly caught that quilting bug, and it's clearly seeping in to my Blog world!  I hope you're all enjoying the quilting equally as much as the drivel.......

Just follow the Rafflecopter Directions!

Giveaway ends midnight 30/1/13.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Chicken Pox Survival Guide - According to Me

I am hoping and praying (as I'm sure you are!) that this will be my last EVER post on chicken pox!  The past 20 days has taught me soooo much about the pox I thought I should share.  If you ever have the joyful absolutely painful task of dealing with THREE poxy children in as many weeks, you too will write your own survival guide - if in fact you survive!  So here goes:

1. When your child shows you a spot, and another one the next day - don't dismiss them as sand fly bites.

2.  Plan your chicken pox outbreak AROUND public holidays.  New Years Day in rural Tasmania is not the perfect timing for medicinal needs.

3.  Keep note of the date your first child comes out in pox.  Then mark on your calendar precisely two weeks from that date.  Put an alert in your phone, something along the lines of "MASS POX HYSTERIA" to remind you that the remaining children will ALL come out in pox that day.

4.  Keep all supplies from the first child's pox episode.  You will need them - and more.

5.  Buy shares in all late night pharmacies NOW.

6.  Make friends with your local Naturopathic/Health Food store.

7.  Don't make the mistake of thinking because your child has been immunised, that they are immune!

In all seriousness though, here are the products and procedures we used that benefitted the kids the most:

* Pinetarsol - It's bright green and has a most peculiar smell that lingers weeks after use.  BUT it's quite effective in warding off the itches.  It now comes in a host of different forms, but we bought (thankfully) a decent sized pump pack of Gel.  Just work into a lather and cover poxy child in it, leave a couple of minutes and rinse off.  Can be used to wash their hair and soothe poxy scalps too.

Source

*  Solosite Gel - Comes in a tube from the pharmacy and was recommended to lessen the scarring caused by pox.  Tubes are not big enough for masses of pox - so buy a few!  It is a little annoying for the patient as it gets flakey as it dries, but seems to be working well so far.

Source

*  Calendula Tea - This mix of dried flowers can be made up as a brewed tea.  Soak face washers in cooled tea to use as cold compresses.  Reduces redness, heat, itchiness and swelling.  Can also use in the bath for soaking in.

*  Chickweed Gel - When the pox have dried out completely and the itching is driving them crazy, the Chickweed Gel worked quite well!  It has Aloe Vera and Tea Tree oil in it, so smells yummy!

Source

*  PHENERGAN - This is THE MOST essential item on the list!  Get a bottle (or two/three depending how many kids you've got) for the kids, and the tablet form for yourself!  You can use the lowest dose during the day to help with the itchiness, and the highest sedative dose at night to help the kids sleep.  My sleep cycle was completely thrown out, so the tablets over three nights got me back in to gear!

Source

*  The Ocean - If you are within walking or driving distance to a beach, make the trip there once the pox have dried up and are no longer contagious.  Whilst in Tassie we were a walk away, and it made a huge difference to Cadyn's sores.  And I took the girls last week two days in a row, and saw a HUGE improvement!  Salt water is a great, natural antibiotic and healing tool.

*  But the best thing possible to get through Chicken Pox?  Patience and a sense of humour.  If you don't laugh - you will definitely cry!  I can honestly say I have never been as cool, calm and collected as I have the past 20 days.  For some unknown and crazy reason, I just accepted that there was nothing AT ALL that could change the situation I was in, and I had to let go of ALL control.  Which, if you know me well, you would realise is a very hard thing for me to do!

All six of us have survived, with smiles intact.  I came home from work today to find that my nine year old Chelsea (who copped THE worst case of all) had returned in all her whinging, whining, sooking glory!  She's back!  Fingers crossed this is the end and we can all return to our regular routines.

Post Beach Happiness!

Have you had to deal with a trail of Pox?  How did you manage?