Other projects and more...

As well as the quilts I've been making I've had a few other projects that I have been working on recently.

More doggie hats and coats

more hats

Russo's coat and matching hat

I had a call from the dog groomer wanting two dog hats adjusted for a customer. This order led to making another dog coat and hat to make for my bosses dog. 

Russo in his new outfit

 Kids Hope

tweety bird

I've been volunteering as a Kid's Hope mentor again this year. It's a wonderful program run by my chruch and World Vision. As a mentor I go to the school for one hour once a week and spend time with a child. First and second term I had a little grade three girl. We had lots of fun together making this cat, tweety bird and a patchwork bag for her to keep. The bird and cat were made from felt and apart from the seems everything was glued on and I used split pins for the eyes and nose.

Another jumper for Andrew

Andrew's new jumper

I've started knitting another jumper for Andrew. It was going to have the same collar as his last jumper but with moving from the cold of the Dandenongs I've changed the collar to a round neck so that it's not so hot to wear. I've knitted the back and have knitted half the front.



Table mats for Glen Park Cafe

Table mats for work

At work with have a cafe so I was asked to 'fix' the 'things' that were placed on the centre of each table with the salt and pepper shakers and menu's. Basically they were pieces of fabric cut into crooked squares!  I squared each piece of fabric and tried out some embroidery stitches around the hems.


 Postcards from Paris quilt 

I have finally hung my Postcards from Paris quilt. It now graces the wall in the dinning room.

A box of ties

A friend asked me if I would like some ties to make something with. She was sorting through her husbands ties and was getting rid of a few. I said yes not realising just how many ties she meant! I now have a big crate of over 100 ties all with different patterns - some flowers, some plain and some cartoon. I am looking forward to making a quilt or two out of these ties for my friend.

A box of ties

A portrait of Charlie

I am lucky enough to work at a community centre where there are many talented students and tutors. One such lady is Anne who did this chalk portrait of Charlie.

Anne with Charlie s portrait

Meeting the Prime Minister

Another bonus of working at the community centre was that I got to meet the Prime Minister - Julia Gillard

Why I'm making quilts for my family

When my great nephew and nieces were visiting in April I showed them their quilts. Lachlan asked if he could have his quilt over him while he slept - I think it was because he wasn't keen on having a pink quilt on him!

Sewing, sewing and more sewing!

I feel like I've spent every spare minute of the past two months sewing quilts. As I look back over what I have made it's probably not too far from the truth!

Kelly's quilt

Kelly's quilt ready for the binding to be stitched down

Since my last quilting post in April I have all but finished Kelly's quilt - it's just waiting for the binding to be hand sewn in place. A job I have left until I am at home recuperating after my operation which is scheduled for the 6th August.

Quilt top made from the leftover blocks from Kelly's quilt

I had a lot of blocks left over from Kelly's quilt so I have made them into a smaller quilt top which is sitting on my new quilt ladder waiting to be backed and quilted.

Quilting ladder

I love my new quilting ladder! I had been wondering what to do with all my quilts that I had on the go - each at different stages of being stitched. I decided to ask the guys in the Men's shed at work if they would be able make me a ladder - to my delight they happily made me a ladder for my quilts.

Quilts for sale

I was asked to make a quilt to sell at a fundraising auction for my work. I ended up making two quilts, a small cot quilt made from lovely bright red fabrics with beetles on it and a single bed quilt. For the single bed quilt I used my 'retro' fabrics that I had brought at the January sales earlier in the year. It was exciting and a little scary watching people bid on my quilts. I was worried that no-one would bid or if they did, that the reserve prices wouldn't be met. I need not have worried as lots of people bid and the reserve prices were exceeded!

One of the things I was encouraged to do was to put a label with my name and the date on each quilt I make. A friend made me a couple of labels to use but it's something that I need to look into getting made to sew onto the quilts I make for other people.

My 'Retro' fabric

sewing lots and lots of strips for 9 square blocks!

finally coming together...

my name label

The finished 'retro' quilt

my red beetle quilt sold at auction

Owl Quilts

Charlie checking out Andrew's quilt

Andrew has his first quilt!


After making Edna's 'Owl' quilt I decided to make another one just because I liked the fabrics. I had hoped that someone would like it enough to want it so I was really happy that Andrew asked if he could have it for himself.
The quilt is now hanging on the wall above his bed where it will stay until he sells his house.

Andrew's Owl quilt hanging above his bed

Helga's 'Owl' quilt

With the left over fabric I made up another (my 3rd!) 'owl' quilt. This quilt was brought by a lovely lady, Helga. Helga calls it her 'wisdom quilt' and has it sitting on a chair in her nursing home

Heidi's Quilt

After finishing the quilts for the auction I was asked to make a quilt for my bosses 40th birthday. This was to be quilt for her partner to give as a gift. Apart from only having three weeks to make the quilt I had to work out the pattern and colors. I found a lovely range of fabric by Moda called 'Pure'. Time, or lack of it was a major factor in deciding the design of the quilt. I decided that squares were the fastest to cut and easiest to sew and machine quilt. I decided to make six inch squares and alternate them with four square blocks.

Some of the 'Pure' range from Moda 

The design suited that fabrics but I didn't take into account just how many three inch squares I'd have to cut!  With the 200 three inch squares and 50 six inch squares cut I spent every spare minute at the sewing machine. I machine quilted the quilt with a simple 1/4 inch shadow stitch around all of the six inch blocks. After a lot of long days of sewing and late nights I finished the quilt just in time for the birthday

Blocks laid out ready to sew together

Heidi's quilt