tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35909271833267817382024-03-14T04:19:25.592+11:00All Toile And No Rewardflickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.comBlogger394125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-30921979385454668442013-01-18T13:46:00.001+11:002013-01-18T13:46:23.939+11:00Meet the new Hoots!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
At last, I've made some new Hoots!<br />
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These little ones are ready for the Shirt and Skirt Market at Abbotsford Convent this Sunday 20 January. I am having a bit of a fire sale, so come on down!<br />
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flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com64tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-89073968265787283702012-11-10T12:54:00.000+11:002012-11-10T12:54:44.550+11:00On the road to Varanasi<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Driving through the thick fog, it’s as if the universe has shrunk down to just this. The road disappears five metres in front of our eyes. Beyond that, there could be anything … sea monsters, a fairy castle, the god Ganesha reclining on a cupcake. You would never know.<br />
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It’s six am and the sun’s not up – or at least not visible
through this unseasonable fog. The mist ridicules the headlights, diffusing the
puny beam so that they’re less than useless. Everything is invisible.
Everything is white. This must be what the world looks like through cataracts.</div>
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Painted trucks loom up at us without warning, their dark
windows like eye sockets in a metal skull. The van swerves to miss them, and a
cacophony of horns throws blame onto the road as we pass by the skins of our
teeth.</div>
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As the hour wears on, the fog stays stubbornly in place,
though the world starts to warm up inside it. Bicycles begin to appear, and
women walking along the edge of the road, and bullock carts stacked high with
bags of wheat. Every now and again a fire flickers through the veil, but it
swallows the smoke without trace. </div>
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I crossed the border from Nepal this morning. The
immigration office wasn’t open and the touts hadn’t started to mill around the
boom gate. A man with a scarf tied around his head took my passport, and
checked every letter and number on the form I’d filled out against it. He
carefully stamped the page and in ten minutes I was across the border and
instantly into India.</div>
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I’d thought Nepal was quite like India, right up until that
moment. But on stepping through the change was so palpable that I breathed it
in. India has its own smell, its garbage is an art form and the way the shops
are arranged is just so …. quintessentially Indian. In the space of a ten-metre
parentheses, the whole world tilted slightly on its axis, I left Nepal behind,
and India came sharply into focus.</div>
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It’s 300 kilometres to Varanasi, India’s holiest city, and
it will take me ten hours in this car to get there. We’ll join another four
lanes of traffic on this one-lane goat track that is the major highway, and
we’ll go at an average 30km per hour while we avoid disaster on the pitted,
pockmarked road. In some places there’ll be cows asleep in the middle, curled
up like cats. There’ll be vegetable markets for miles, all selling the same
combination of apples and bananas, or cauliflower, potatoes and eggplant. I’ll
want to buy one of the hand-woven reed baskets with its pretty patterns of pink
and green on the inside, but we won’t stop for that, not for love nor money.</div>
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And every time my driver, Mr Yadev, swerves to avoid a dog,
or manfully passes a motor bike, or leans on his horn, or tops out the
speedometer at the grand total of 43 km per hour; he’ll give a small, burbling
wet belch of quiet satisfaction; all the way there.</div>
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<br />flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-30264793275957273082012-11-09T02:11:00.002+11:002012-11-09T02:11:29.123+11:00Reaching Nirvana: are we there yet?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Six hundred years before Jesus or the prophet Mohammed, a baby boy was born. <br />
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Siddhartha was a prince born into a royal household. His mother gave birth to him after bathing in a pond.<br />
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When the astrologer came to read Siddhartha's horoscope, he predicted that Siddhartha would be one of two things: a great and powerful king, or a saint.<br />
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Siddhartha's father, the king, wasn't super keen on the idea of losing his heir to a sainthood, so he kept Siddhartha cosseted inside the palace. The king wanted to make sure Siddhartha had everything his heart desired, so that he would never want to leave. <br />
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But Siddhartha wasn't content. When he was 29 he left the palace for the first time, and he was shocked to see the suffering that had previously been hidden from him. <br />
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To cut a long story short, he meditated on this, trying to understand why people suffered, and after many years he reached enlightenment under a banyan tree. He became the Lord Buddha.<br />
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His realisations were that to live is to suffer. That desire is the root of all suffering.That rising above attachment is the only way to relieve suffering. That to be enlightened, to reach nirvana, is the ultimate state of being and the purest form of detachment.<br />
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Lumbini is the place where Buddha was born. It is a world heritage site and a place of pilgrimmage. Baby monks come here.<br />
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You literally leave your shoes at the door, and walk barefoot inside the grounds.<br />
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A golden stupa marks the site of Buddha's birth. It's called the Maya Devi temple.<br />
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People light candles and incense.<br />
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There are many colourful prayer flags, from all over the world.<br />
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And people pray under the big banyan tree. Sometimes for hours, in positions that look terribly uncomfortable.<br />
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And monks receive alms, and pose for photos. </div>
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Sadhus - holy men - come from all over India to pay homage to Buddha.<br />
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For Buddhists, it's one of the holiest sites in the world.<br />
<br />flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-9817794113033945862012-11-08T12:16:00.001+11:002012-11-08T12:16:46.548+11:00Pictures from NepalInternet very bad! Cannot connect! Trying desperately to post photos instead! (This always seems to happen when I'm over this part of the world, doesn't it?)<br />
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I am reliably informed that access from India will be better. I'm due there tomorrow, after visiting Lumbini today. Lumbinin is where the Lord Buddha was born.<br />
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So I am hoping enlightenment will follow shortly afterwards.<br />
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<br />flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-67830728329346203002012-11-05T00:06:00.000+11:002012-11-05T00:06:08.255+11:00Kathmandu, I could Kist you<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Whoo, Kathmandu Nepal!<br />
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I am a mere 250km from Mt Everest. You cannot see it from my hotel room, but I did not know this. I thought I'd be able to just, you know, look up and see it EVERYWHERE. That is not the case.<br />
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Today I've visited a bunch of Buddhist temples and learnt about samsara and kharma. I've drunk yak milk lassi and waited in line for Amma, the hugging guru. (I did not get a hug. I do not hug strangers.)<br />
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But the internet, alas, it is very spasmodic and not at all reliable. So I am quickly posting this and I'm afraid I haven't been able to spend time polishing it.<br />
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The first thing that struck me about Kathmandu is that no ATM would take my card and that meant I had no money. Not a great start. Especially when you consider that the hotel we first arrived at also had no record of my booking (which I totally booked, and totally confirmed before we left), and therefore we had nowhere to sleep. It was midnight<br />
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It took me some time, but we worked through it and eventually got a room at the Kathmandu Guest House. The next day, it was ATM number five - for Kist Bank - that eventually accepted my card and gave me some money.<br />
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I immediately went out and bought the Mount Everest of had-embroidered felt balls. A thousand of them, to be precise. For a little over $25.<br />
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Score! flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-87834077306548028202012-05-13T09:03:00.000+10:002012-05-13T09:03:27.947+10:00My Life As A Blog<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Are you a Sunday Age reader? Maybe you saw the cover story in today's M Magazine ......<br />
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<a href="http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/my-life-as-a-blog-20120512-1yjbc.html">http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/my-life-as-a-blog-20120512-1yjbc.html</a>
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If you want to follow the epic project to bake every single cake in the Australian Women's Weekly Children's Birthday Cake Book, you can <a href="http://www.womensweeklybirthdaycakeblog.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">follow my blog here</a>, or <a href="http://www.facebook.com/womensweeklybirthdaycakeblog" target="_blank">join my Facebook page here</a> !<br />
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<br /></div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-68360285747762589372012-04-19T10:46:00.000+10:002012-04-19T10:46:34.339+10:00Cake it to the limit<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VhJ9XiOc2f4/T49gQysLx7I/AAAAAAAAB98/RNW7dY3G3kc/s1600/womens+weekly+book.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VhJ9XiOc2f4/T49gQysLx7I/AAAAAAAAB98/RNW7dY3G3kc/s320/womens+weekly+book.jpg" width="235" /></a></div><br />
Dear readers, I have begun a new blog project! <br />
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Having not had a birthday cake since I was ten or eleven - and that's a long time ago - I've decided to rectify the situation. <br />
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I'm going to bake every single cake in the Australian Women's Weekly Children's Birthday Cake book. <br />
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Yes, you heard correctly. There are 104, so if I bake one a week, every week, it will take me exactly two years. That's a lot of cake. I may have to start training for a marathon in parallel.<br />
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I'm still going to be posting my craft projects here at All Toile And No Reward though, so just add my new blog to your list.<br />
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You can visit me at <a href="http://www.womensweeklybirthdaycakeblog.blogspot.com.au/">www.womensweeklybirthdaycakeblog.blogspot.com.au</a> -prepare to be covered in flour and icing sugar and tales of disaster!flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-39081125376830891482012-03-09T15:36:00.000+11:002012-03-09T15:36:58.263+11:00My first ever neutral quilt! It's actually, um, red.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cLaC-BJ6IsI/T1mFFUDGdCI/AAAAAAAAB9k/sPb6tDq1bVM/s1600/043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="302" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cLaC-BJ6IsI/T1mFFUDGdCI/AAAAAAAAB9k/sPb6tDq1bVM/s320/043.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Ta da! I have completed my baby quilt for The Headmistress. And if I do say so myself, I think it's rather tickety-boo.<br />
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I spent months agonising over this quilt. First, the choosing of the neutral colours, because The Headmistress is very tasteful and elegant. My usual baby quilts are brightly coloured and patterned, and I knew that kind of thing just wasn't going to fly with her. This may be the first time in my life I have sewn anything that has "taupe" in it.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z06rwpkBsd8/T1mFGR52FKI/AAAAAAAAB9s/SYjwlBobebU/s1600/044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z06rwpkBsd8/T1mFGR52FKI/AAAAAAAAB9s/SYjwlBobebU/s200/044.JPG" width="200" /></a>I ended up choosing <a href="http://www.frenchgeneral.com/" target="_blank">French General </a>fabrics, because they have that sort of quiet refinement that suits her; plus they are in tasteful colours and patterns. I ended up focusing on red as the base colour because The Headmistress has a few cushions at home with red accents - and I thought if I got this right, it could get a look of the olde-worlde-heirloom-item about it. Do you think I managed it?<br />
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I set all the squares on point, and then cut out the triangles for the outer framing. When I sewed them together, I realised I'd cut the triangles the wrong size.<br />
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I was lucky enough to be able to ask my crafternoon companion, the Quilting Queen, what I had done wrong. She told me there was a formula involved. A formula! Did you know there was a formula involved? No, neither did I. I thought I'd left formulas behind in high-school maths, and I'm sure I never learnt anything HALF as useful as a <i>quilting </i>formula in school. Calculus and quadratic equations, yes. Quilting formula - SOMETHING I COULD ACTUALLY USE - no. If you are wondering what it is, <a href="http://quilting.about.com/od/quiltsettings/a/settingtriangls.htm" target="_blank">you can find it here.</a><br />
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Anyway, once I had the formula then I realised I'd used up all my edging fabric in the wrong-sized triangles. I had to order more from the States and wait for it to arrive. Which took a month. Then finally the package appeared on my doorstep and I was able to get this finished in a single weekend.<br />
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I did the quilting stitch a little differently, too - if you look closely you'll see that each square on point is divided into four triangles by the stitiching. I think it gives it a really interesting texture.<br />
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And did you notice the polka-dot binding? I made that sucker from <i>scratch</i>, readers, from scratch. I am even impressed by my own self.<br />
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Here's the quilt draped over the cot it will adorn in just a few days time. The Headmistress is waiting patiently for you, Baby A ..... and I look forward to meeting you soon.<br />
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<ol style="background-color: #fefbfa; color: #575757; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Amateur Actress</strike></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Baby quilt </b>for Beck</strike></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Headmistress</strike></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike>Cup of tea and a lie down after three baby quilts in quick succession</strike></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Complete the massive <b><a href="http://alltoileandnoreward.blogspot.com.au/search?q=postage+stamp+quilt" style="color: #38761d; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">postage stamp quilt </a></b>I started early last year. I was doing fine until I realised I'd accidentally doubled the recipe and was now making the quilt twice as big as it needed to be. King-size. In three-inch squares. That's a lot of seams. It's been stuffed into the back of a drawer (a big drawer) for months now, because I get a cold shiver every time I even think about going back to it.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Curlicue Crush </b>quilt </li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Complete a<b> patchwork screen</b> using the antique wooden frame that's shoved into a corner of the sewing room and has been unused for years. In the hope of selling it at a market later in the year.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Start the <b>Autumn Daze quilt</b> from Kaffe Fassett's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kaffe-Fassetts-Quilt-Romance-Patchwork/dp/1600852599" style="color: #38761d; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Quilt Romance</a> book</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Bit of a breakdown as I realise doing all those quilts is probably impossible, and why do I always set my sights on unattainable goals and is this a major character flaw and do I set myself up for failure this way and why can't I just live more in the <i>now</i> without having to constantly achieve, achieve, achieve; ...valium now please.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Finish those <b>grey wool pants</b> I cut out in the middle of winter last year ... sigh ....</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Put up shelves</b> in my sewing room so that my wondrous and ever-growing collection of lovely new and vintage tins can be displayed to its best advantage so that I can actually see and enjoy them. Right now they are piled on top of each other in a heap on the sewing table.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Make a curtain</b> for the sewing room window. It's been naked-of-curtain for more than 18 months now and I can't stand another winter without one.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Organise myself for a <b>destash sale</b>. Gulp.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Get Etsy sorted out</b>. With current stock. Take some damn pictures, Flickettysplits!</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Start blogging again</b>. </strike>Oh, I've done that one! Tick that box. </li>
</ol>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-80438248198567403362012-02-17T10:59:00.000+11:002012-02-17T10:59:00.578+11:00A surprise Hoot!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
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Well, look at this! What do we have here?<br />
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This is an early edition Flickettysplits "Hoot" owl .... that I discovered, quite by chance, on display at GJ's Discount Fabric Store in Lygon Street!<br />
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It was such a nice surprise to see this little guy set up on a shelf. I remember selling this one at a Made N Thornbury market a looooong time ago - maybe three years? - so it was a really pleasant shock to see him again.<br />
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GJ's have lots of toys on display to show what you can do with fabrics when you put different colours and patterns together. I feel very proud to have one in the mix.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PvYd9T8kA0M/Tz2WkMZqcHI/AAAAAAAAB9U/neuSzfAXKhY/s1600/016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PvYd9T8kA0M/Tz2WkMZqcHI/AAAAAAAAB9U/neuSzfAXKhY/s320/016.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-57837595055961161702012-02-11T07:47:00.001+11:002012-02-11T07:47:00.287+11:00Strange Places My Cat Sits: on the rag rug<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s3LZYPACQz8/Ty5DCGIMNPI/AAAAAAAAB88/-3UDshJA9MU/s1600/018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s3LZYPACQz8/Ty5DCGIMNPI/AAAAAAAAB88/-3UDshJA9MU/s320/018.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />
Actually, Podae does not sit in many strange places. <br />
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He is a very proper pussin. Very well-mannered. He sits on the sofa, or the chair, or the bed, or the rug.<br />
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He does not choose wild and crazy spots like the sink, as do some other pussins I could name.<br />
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So I feel he's missing out on his share of the limelight in this series. Henceforth, I shall include the odd random photo of Podder being his lovely normal self.<br />
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Or not ......<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5rQoW83p7vY/Ty5CxbjeY-I/AAAAAAAAB80/uJCzqTKe2B0/s1600/017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5rQoW83p7vY/Ty5CxbjeY-I/AAAAAAAAB80/uJCzqTKe2B0/s320/017.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-3014662098639850962012-02-09T07:56:00.001+11:002012-02-09T07:56:00.164+11:00More vintage cushions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O-CQ8ImZBZY/Ty5FrQrZx8I/AAAAAAAAB9E/d6wJtyN1U08/s1600/045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O-CQ8ImZBZY/Ty5FrQrZx8I/AAAAAAAAB9E/d6wJtyN1U08/s320/045.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Ah, there's something about a tea-towel that warms the cockles of my heart.<br />
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Vintage or otherwise, I love Australiana tea-towels. Wherever I go, I pick one or two up. My One True Love knows that any trip to anywhere has to include a visit to the local purveyor of tea towels. I can happily spend hours fossicking through great piles of tat if there is even the mere <i>promise</i> of a tea towel at the end of it. In this matter my patience knows no bounds.<br />
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I have quite a lot of them now as a consequence, but in my view you can never have enough. They're kind of like orange shoes in that respect.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uwxb1OhQVJQ/Ty5F9vZwdqI/AAAAAAAAB9M/dNYX8o3D4Hg/s1600/042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uwxb1OhQVJQ/Ty5F9vZwdqI/AAAAAAAAB9M/dNYX8o3D4Hg/s320/042.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I can't bear to actually <i>use</i> them as tea towels, of course. I make them into cushions, or peg bags, or other kitschy pieces. I'll have quite a stash at my next market stall, at the Abbotsford Convent on the third Saturday in March, including these two here.<br />
<br />
I need to start selling them, you see, in order to make room for more!flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-59722477583255280442012-02-08T07:33:00.002+11:002012-02-08T07:33:00.625+11:00Kapow!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UtnxblZjzQg/Ty4_HLVKcxI/AAAAAAAAB8c/XSLrTMfA6T0/s1600/001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UtnxblZjzQg/Ty4_HLVKcxI/AAAAAAAAB8c/XSLrTMfA6T0/s320/001.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I am not ordinarily a car fan.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But LOOK at this car! Look how ORANGE it is! This is my new favourite car EVER.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I photographed it in the carpark at my local gym, just as the sun was hitting it in exactly the right way. It's so vibrant it just seems to burst with colour. Wow. This is not a car you can (or would want to) hide.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">No one accidentally chooses an orange car, or decides it's just "okay". It's a very deliberate selection. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We all know that Tangerine Tango is the Pantone colour of the year for 2012. As orange is my favourite colour, I've been wearing this shade for many, many years now .... and at last, it is on-trend. Even in car paint. (What is the technical term for car paint?)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It just goes to show that if you put a stake in the ground early enough, and wait long enough, fashion will catch up with you. Eventually.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Of course next year there'll be a different colour of the year (I'm betting it will be some kind of minty turquoise-y colour) and I will be out of fashion again. And this time I will be<b> excruciatingly</b> out of fashion too, as orange will be <i>so last year</i>, as opposed to just my own quirky eccentricity. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Did you know I have four pairs of orange shoes? And three more that have bits of orange incorporated in them? My One True Love thinks that is enough, but I stand in defiant physical proof of the fact that there can Never Be Enough Orange Shoes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Anyway, back to this car. Apparently it's a Ford Focus - and did you know the Focus will be coming to Australia in an electric version in 2014? I think I might start saving ...... as long as I can still get it in this colour. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>Soooo</i> 2012.</div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-7723769450493042842012-02-06T07:22:00.001+11:002012-02-06T07:22:00.356+11:00The Kaffe Fassett quilt - finished!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MlYfsZqhBg4/Ty49UM9MP5I/AAAAAAAAB70/c_jzbbBURlA/s1600/002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MlYfsZqhBg4/Ty49UM9MP5I/AAAAAAAAB70/c_jzbbBURlA/s320/002.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div> At last, the Kaffe Fassett quilt is finished, and I LOVE IT. It's a fine piece of work, if I do say so myself.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m9_v--bK7UU/Ty49WakYSUI/AAAAAAAAB8I/qg4VHKLYxjw/s1600/009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m9_v--bK7UU/Ty49WakYSUI/AAAAAAAAB8I/qg4VHKLYxjw/s320/009.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />
I think it's the best quilt I've ever made - all the seams match up, the colours are spectacular, the flannel backing is particularly soft and lovely,and of course there's that invisibly hand-stitched binding to top it all off.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QT-GV3oM4Zw/Ty49-xAANeI/AAAAAAAAB8U/Mb9FU1gS2_w/s1600/003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QT-GV3oM4Zw/Ty49-xAANeI/AAAAAAAAB8U/Mb9FU1gS2_w/s320/003.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
So I'm glad it's going to the Amateur Actress. She came to pick it up yesterday and we took these photographs. I especially love the one of her reclining, considering it was actually 34 degrees outside in the burny sun, and she put up with me fussily arranging and re-arranging a super-warm flannel-backed quilt over the top of her bump and making here stay there while I took a range of photographs from ever-so-slightly different angles.<br />
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She's a good egg, that Amateur Actress.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uO7RiN_NEKI/Ty49VhFciII/AAAAAAAAB8A/uqxINBwY6Cg/s1600/008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uO7RiN_NEKI/Ty49VhFciII/AAAAAAAAB8A/uqxINBwY6Cg/s320/008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<ol style="background-color: #fefbfa; color: #575757; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Amateur Actress</strike></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Baby quilt </b>for Beck</strike></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Headmistress</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Cup of tea and a lie down after three baby quilts in quick succession</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Complete the massive <b><a href="http://alltoileandnoreward.blogspot.com.au/search?q=postage+stamp+quilt" style="color: #38761d; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">postage stamp quilt </a></b>I started early last year. I was doing fine until I realised I'd accidentally doubled the recipe and was now making the quilt twice as big as it needed to be. King-size. In three-inch squares. That's a lot of seams. It's been stuffed into the back of a drawer (a big drawer) for months now, because I get a cold shiver every time I even think about going back to it.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Curlicue Crush </b>quilt as posted on a few days ago</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Complete a<b> patchwork screen</b> using the antique wooden frame that's shoved into a corner of the sewing room and has been unused for years. In the hope of selling it at a market later in the year.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Start the <b>Autumn Daze quilt</b> from Kaffe Fassett's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kaffe-Fassetts-Quilt-Romance-Patchwork/dp/1600852599" style="color: #38761d; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Quilt Romance</a> book</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Bit of a breakdown as I realise doing all those quilts is probably impossible, and why do I always set my sights on unattainable goals and is this a major character flaw and do I set myself up for failure this way and why can't I just live more in the <i>now</i> without having to constantly achieve, achieve, achieve; ...valium now please.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Finish those <b>grey wool pants</b> I cut out in the middle of winter last year ... sigh ....</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Put up shelves</b> in my sewing room so that my wondrous and ever-growing collection of lovely new and vintage tins can be displayed to its best advantage so that I can actually see and enjoy them. Right now they are piled on top of each other in a heap on the sewing table.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Make a curtain</b> for the sewing room window. It's been naked-of-curtain for more than 18 months now and I can't stand another winter without one.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Organise myself for a <b>destash sale</b>. Gulp.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Get Etsy sorted out</b>. With current stock. Take some damn pictures, Flickettysplits!</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Start blogging again</b>. </strike>Oh, I've done that one! Tick that box. </li>
</ol>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-11226306154371613192012-02-02T10:42:00.000+11:002012-02-02T10:42:52.848+11:00Crafty Goals List: baby quilt for Beck - tick that box!<span style="color: #575757; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l2sO61Th2ag/TynNfy-NDgI/AAAAAAAAB7c/pbT0g8h3Mp4/s1600/008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l2sO61Th2ag/TynNfy-NDgI/AAAAAAAAB7c/pbT0g8h3Mp4/s320/008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Mp7Yj-yZcb8/TynNe2fwMEI/AAAAAAAAB7U/KrdZnwAqTuE/s1600/007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Mp7Yj-yZcb8/TynNe2fwMEI/AAAAAAAAB7U/KrdZnwAqTuE/s320/007.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fBz7wkZCxLI/TynNhAO6ZcI/AAAAAAAAB7k/5YT6zHBjTYw/s1600/009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fBz7wkZCxLI/TynNhAO6ZcI/AAAAAAAAB7k/5YT6zHBjTYw/s320/009.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-35v0PvESfF0/TynNh_ihlTI/AAAAAAAAB7s/YffZdjAAbpc/s1600/010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-35v0PvESfF0/TynNh_ihlTI/AAAAAAAAB7s/YffZdjAAbpc/s320/010.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #575757; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b><br />
</b></span></span><br />
<ol style="background-color: #fefbfa; color: #575757; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Amateur Actress</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><strike><b>Baby quilt </b>for Beck</strike></li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Headmistress</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Cup of tea and a lie down after three baby quilts in quick succession</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Complete the massive <b><a href="http://alltoileandnoreward.blogspot.com.au/search?q=postage+stamp+quilt" style="color: #38761d; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">postage stamp quilt </a></b>I started early last year. I was doing fine until I realised I'd accidentally doubled the recipe and was now making the quilt twice as big as it needed to be. King-size. In three-inch squares. That's a lot of seams. It's been stuffed into the back of a drawer (a big drawer) for months now, because I get a cold shiver every time I even think about going back to it.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Curlicue Crush </b>quilt as posted on a few days ago</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Complete a<b> patchwork screen</b> using the antique wooden frame that's shoved into a corner of the sewing room and has been unused for years. In the hope of selling it at a market later in the year.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Start the <b>Autumn Daze quilt</b> from Kaffe Fassett's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kaffe-Fassetts-Quilt-Romance-Patchwork/dp/1600852599" style="color: #38761d; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Quilt Romance</a> book - picture at the top of this post.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Bit of a breakdown as I realise doing all those quilts is probably impossible, and why do I always set my sights on unattainable goals and is this a major character flaw and do I set myself up for failure this way and why can't I just live more in the <i>now</i> without having to constantly achieve, achieve, achieve; ...valium now please.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Finish those <b>grey wool pants</b> I cut out in the middle of winter last year ... sigh ....</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Put up shelves</b> in my sewing room so that my wondrous and ever-growing collection of lovely new and vintage tins can be displayed to its best advantage so that I can actually see and enjoy them. Right now they are piled on top of each other in a heap on the sewing table.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Make a curtain</b> for the sewing room window. It's been naked-of-curtain for more than 18 months now and I can't stand another winter without one.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Organise myself for a <b>destash sale</b>. Gulp.</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Get Etsy sorted out</b>. With current stock. Take some damn pictures, Flickettysplits!</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.25em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><b>Start blogging again</b>. Oh, I've done that one! Tick that box. Only fourteen to go .....</li>
</ol>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-17350108341826792782012-01-30T09:54:00.001+11:002012-01-30T09:55:44.449+11:00Blister In The Thumb<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i9uYYpqYZc8/TyXKhCmjBVI/AAAAAAAAB7E/pab0kjHRAsw/s1600/Violent+Femmes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i9uYYpqYZc8/TyXKhCmjBVI/AAAAAAAAB7E/pab0kjHRAsw/s200/Violent+Femmes.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Over the weekend I incurred a devastating, debilitating sewing injury.<br />
<br />
Oh I know, sewing is supposed to be a non-contact sport. Done inside, with cups of tea and biscuits. But people, it is DANGEROUS. There are SHARP things involved. Rotary cutters. Needles. Scissors. I tell you, I'm surprised that the emergency rooms haven't <i>filled</i> with people who've done themselves a mischief in this current resergence of craft.<br />
<br />
So what's this incapacitating damage I have incurred? You can't see it in a photo, but I have a laaaaarge blister in my thumb.<br />
<br />
Right in the middle of the tip. Right in the exact spot where you use your thumb to push the needle through three layers of fabric when you are hand-sewing the binding to a quilt. In exactly that spot.<br />
<br />
This is my own fault, of course. This is what you get when you spend virtually all weekend hand-sewing binding to not just one, but two baby quilts.<br />
<br />
The good news is that I have now finished the quilt for the Amateur Actress (photos to come). Hooray! It looks absolutely beautiful and may be my best quilt ever.<br />
<br />
And the binding is now virtually completed on the baby quilt for my crafternoon friend The Design Diva as well.<br />
<br />
This is what happens when you spend practically the entire weekend inside, on the sofa, doing needlework because your One True Love is off cycling up and down mountains in the country. You get a lot done.<br />
<br />
The bad news is that I now cannot stand to pick up a needle again for quite some time.<br />
<br />
This is something of an issue, to be honest, because I'd quite *like* to pick up a needle again as I have about 15 centimetres left on the second quilt and I am itching to get it done. I was so tired last night that I just threw it down and went to bed when I couldn't keep my eyes open any more.<br />
<br />
This was a bad move, people, a bad move. I was obviously in some sort of focused zen-like state yesterday, concentrating so hard on doing nice neat little stitches and getting through the metres, because I felt no pain at all. Obviously my poor thumb was completely numb from exhaustion.<br />
<br />
But today? Well, <i>today </i>when I picked up the needle, thinking I would just do a little bit before heading off to work .... well, then I knew ALL ABOUT MY THUMB, let me assure you.<br />
<br />
The truth is evident: I need to rest my silly thumb. The poor thing needs convalescence time.<br />
<br />
But .... just fifteen centimetres to go! Fifteen!! ........gah.flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-8985713752500358832012-01-28T02:53:00.000+11:002012-01-28T02:53:00.964+11:00Strange Places My Cat Sits: on top of the suitcase, on top of the wardrobe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-auqPEa2tBFM/Txza_zJsIjI/AAAAAAAAB6U/tJhXMvd--WM/s1600/091.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-auqPEa2tBFM/Txza_zJsIjI/AAAAAAAAB6U/tJhXMvd--WM/s320/091.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>A double entry this time, with honours to both Grimth and the Fathead.<br />
<br />
They both like to climb into high places, and this effort on top of the wardrobe in my sewing room has to take the cake.<br />
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Apologies for the poor iPhone photos! (and yes, the room really is that colour.....)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9op6zpnhCzM/TxzbTlY7-aI/AAAAAAAAB6c/2B-fssDTgWs/s1600/095.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9op6zpnhCzM/TxzbTlY7-aI/AAAAAAAAB6c/2B-fssDTgWs/s320/095.JPG" width="239" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zEakzsZXxN0/Txzb2ew72mI/AAAAAAAAB60/XUD82zf3e30/s1600/108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zEakzsZXxN0/Txzb2ew72mI/AAAAAAAAB60/XUD82zf3e30/s320/108.JPG" width="239" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KJ9Z5F5Rzrg/Txzb2ziMD8I/AAAAAAAAB68/NYIksAWO5Fc/s1600/112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KJ9Z5F5Rzrg/Txzb2ziMD8I/AAAAAAAAB68/NYIksAWO5Fc/s320/112.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-59390800796088570952012-01-27T01:42:00.003+11:002012-01-27T11:15:03.145+11:00Amaretti loveI have a thing for Amaretti tins. Not the biscuits, just the tins.<br />
<br />
I have two at home already ... and then, when I was out and about in Fitzroy the other day, I spied both of these in the Jasper Caffeine Dealers shop.<br />
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Aren't they beautiful? I just want to eat that shade of pistachio green.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-76261518788865433802012-01-25T10:15:00.000+11:002012-01-25T10:15:00.591+11:00CUSHION is a seven-letter word<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N_jNeIAiEZA/TxyqUrjJnII/AAAAAAAAB58/zN1zdt_0QIQ/s1600/064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N_jNeIAiEZA/TxyqUrjJnII/AAAAAAAAB58/zN1zdt_0QIQ/s320/064.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
In between all the work on my baby quilts, I've taken some time out to make a few of these cushions as well.<br />
<br />
I'm a Scrabble fan from way back, so when I saw the new range of merchandise the Scrabble people have released, I jumped on the fabric. And just about everyone I know got a Scrabble mug for Christmas with their initial on it.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zZTfBOMILuo/TxyqTPx-ZGI/AAAAAAAAB5s/tAcPolJ0azk/s1600/062.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zZTfBOMILuo/TxyqTPx-ZGI/AAAAAAAAB5s/tAcPolJ0azk/s200/062.JPG" width="133" /></a></div><br />
They're actually tea-towels, printed on linen, in the same size as the Scrabble board itself (that's 60 x 60 inches for those who aren't as nerdy as I am). I've backed them in a gorgeous black and white ticking, and each cushion has a zip so the cover can be washed as well.<br />
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I am in love with them. I think they are the ultimate in geek chic.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vcyU2g8Qxvg/TxyqTjAltUI/AAAAAAAAB50/5tPQMqQzF4o/s1600/063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vcyU2g8Qxvg/TxyqTjAltUI/AAAAAAAAB50/5tPQMqQzF4o/s400/063.JPG" width="266" /></a></div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-69216561970807086442012-01-24T14:23:00.001+11:002012-01-24T14:23:00.491+11:00Oh my goodness, chair of my heart!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B9x40LHu3Ac/TxY7TUwDiAI/AAAAAAAAB5k/tNW-FmJTJ-A/s1600/tumblr_lx7ca8c2Fd1r9pxklo1_500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-B9x40LHu3Ac/TxY7TUwDiAI/AAAAAAAAB5k/tNW-FmJTJ-A/s400/tumblr_lx7ca8c2Fd1r9pxklo1_500.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Okay, so I saw this chair on <a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/91690542383251247/" target="_blank">Pinterest </a>recently (I'm getting addicted, it's an absolute feast for the eyes).<br />
<br />
I want it. I need it. I MUST HAVE IT.<br />
<br />
At the very least, I want to know what fabric that is. I have a new two-seat sofa in EXACTLY (exactly!) the same shape that would look perfect in this coat. It is currently upholstered in a horrible neutral linen that I'm sure is very lovely and tasteful, but I cannot abide it.<br />
<br />
I followed all the pins back to the source and found that the image was originally posted on tumblr .... without an acknowledgement.<br />
<br />
I spent a good three hours on the interwebs trying to find it. And then, at last, success! It comes from <a href="http://www.grahamandgreen.co.uk/">www.grahamandgreen.co.uk</a>. That's the good news.<br />
<br />
The bad news is that the customer service people aren't allowed to tell me who their supplier is. One kind woman disclosed that it is a suzani print that is produced in India, but ... well, India is a big place, isn't it, and I've no idea how to even go about trying to find it in that vast country.<br />
<br />
I am sad. This is my perfect fabric.<br />
<br />
Please excuse me while I go and sit in my horrible linen sofa and sob a little.flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-60287039197006053282012-01-23T09:43:00.000+11:002012-01-23T09:43:00.123+11:00The Kaffe Fassett quilt progresses ....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cQAQLAW3rLA/TxYEK9LnAbI/AAAAAAAAB5c/G7iyep1rpkI/s1600/mosaic846769afee7a949119615a45465f3744c59d5a4e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cQAQLAW3rLA/TxYEK9LnAbI/AAAAAAAAB5c/G7iyep1rpkI/s400/mosaic846769afee7a949119615a45465f3744c59d5a4e.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #999999;"><i>some of the fabrics I'm using in the Amateur Actresses' quilt</i></span></div><br />
So I was awake early this morning, and by 5.02am I was at the sewing machine. Is that crazy?<br />
<br />
I've been making excellent progress on the Kaffe Fassett baby quilt for the Amateur Actress, you see, and sometimes when everything is going really well and the colours are wonderfull and I feel my workmanship is is good, I get the urge to craft as much as possible. It's being on a roll, I guess.<br />
<br />
I want this quilt to be really good. Really, really good. It's her first child and a much-anticipated baby, and I want to give her a fabulous present to say well done.<br />
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So I've taken lots of care selecting the fabrics, and I was very uptight about cutting out squares that were exactly six inches on each side, and I laid out the patches four or five different ways until I got the right combination of patterns and colours. Then I pinned. Readers, I pinned a <i>lot</i>.<br />
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I sewed the strips together with more patience than usual, and I did an endless amount of pressing all the seams in one direction.<br />
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I even went to the extent of buying the really nice bamboo cotton wadding for the centre of the quilt sandwich. Normally I just use the polyfil wadding - it's good and puffy and feels lovely - but it's a horror to work with. I always find the fabric bunches up oddly when I'm actually quilting it, and it pulls the nice straight lines out of whack.<br />
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I did not want to give the Amateur Actress an out of whack quilt that looked like I'd thrown it together. So I bought the good wadding instead.<br />
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Last night I laid it all out on the floor, and accompanied by a number of very helpful pussins, started assembling the quilt sandwich. Backing fabric on the floor first. Smooth it all out. Then bamboo wadding on top of that. Smooth it all out. Pin. A lot. Cut out bamboo wadding with a bit of room around the edges. Then ever-so-gently lay the quilt top on top of everything while holding Grimth at bay with elbow.<br />
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It was a bit challenging, as the quilt top is EXACTLY the width of the backing fabric I'm using (<a href="http://quilthome.com/product_info.php/cPath/30_794/products_id/7109" target="_blank">Amy Butler's flannel from the Love collection</a>) and of course I'd cut the bamboo wadding a bit wider for safety's sake, so I had to somehow magically see through the wadding and ensure the edges of the backing and top were exactly together.<br />
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There was no room for error. Everything had to be perfectly aligned. Per-fect-ly. Let me just say this: four pins per six-inch square - one on every side, to hold everything exactly in place. It was the quilty equivalent of one of those cages they put people's heads in when they've had brain surgery. (hm, have I drawn too long an analogical bow there?).<br />
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Anyway, as I put the last pin into place and stood up to stretch my aching back, the clock struck ten and it was time to go to bed.<br />
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When I woke up this morning I was all full of anticipation at actually doing the quilting part - so there I was, at 5.02am, stitching in the ditch.<br />
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And can I just say, that two strips in, things are looking very good indeed .....flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-36815150099795931702012-01-21T09:44:00.016+11:002012-01-21T09:44:00.794+11:00Strange Places My Cat Sits: in the succulent picture frame<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nmP9AVwdxs0/Two6LcX1VoI/AAAAAAAAB4U/dcDF4zeo3Zk/s1600/045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="528" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nmP9AVwdxs0/Two6LcX1VoI/AAAAAAAAB4U/dcDF4zeo3Zk/s640/045.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br />
Ah, the Grimth. He does so love to sit in strange places.<br />
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This is a picture frame which I put a backing on to create a shallow "pot". I sowed it with succulent seedlings so I that I could hang it up on the garden wall, a la <a href="http://www.lushe.com.au/2010/02/16/succulent-living-wall-frame/" target="_blank">designer-garden style</a>.<br />
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Suffice to say that no succulents have survived. It is now a very expensive cat seat. And doesn't he look happy to be photographed on it?!flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-76791432909850504522012-01-19T08:43:00.000+11:002012-01-19T08:43:03.633+11:00Time to take the wreath down<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-InbZ5jMfmbU/TxOLYAxZPbI/AAAAAAAAB48/o2jGVm6SEYA/s1600/014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-InbZ5jMfmbU/TxOLYAxZPbI/AAAAAAAAB48/o2jGVm6SEYA/s320/014.JPG" width="259" /></a></div>It's well past Christmas now, and so it's time to take the wreath down.<br />
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I really like this one, and I really feel like leaving it up, because every time I look at it I think of boiled lollies or chocolate freckles or smarties, and it reminds me of childhood and happiness. Obviously I associate childhood with chocolate.<br />
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But if I leave it up there, it won't be special at Christmas time, will it?<br />
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And I suppose part of loving things means appreciating them at the right time and not taking them for granted. (Hm, sounds like a life lesson snuck in there somewhere.)<br />
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I got the idea for this wreath from the famous <a href="http://www.pickles.no/wonderful-wreath/" target="_blank">tutorial on Pickles</a> - I knew straightaway that I wanted to try it.<br />
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It was a long project and I have the calluses to show for it - in addition to stringing the felt balls, I also anchored every individual ball to the styrofoam wreath with a metal dressmakers' pin, for added security. It was worth it. It's a wonderful object to be greeted by when I get home, and everyone who comes to visit has commented on it.<br />
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If you want a felt ball wreath like this for Christmas 2012 .... then let me know now! They take forever to make <insert here="" smile="">.</insert><br />
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Here are some other great felt ball wreaths - and the first picture is of the original Pickles one:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NDG8mFx8Es4/TxOMn4JUfNI/AAAAAAAAB5M/gJntAISxU5w/s1600/Original+felt+ball+wreath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NDG8mFx8Es4/TxOMn4JUfNI/AAAAAAAAB5M/gJntAISxU5w/s400/Original+felt+ball+wreath.jpg" width="308" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #999999;"><i>image from <a href="http://www.pickles.no/wonderful-wreath/" target="_blank">here</a></i></span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pjFvaX6-O4Y/TxOMGQumUYI/AAAAAAAAB5E/sqa874nH-lg/s1600/i+make+stuff+felt+ball+wreath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pjFvaX6-O4Y/TxOMGQumUYI/AAAAAAAAB5E/sqa874nH-lg/s400/i+make+stuff+felt+ball+wreath.jpg" width="247" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><a href="http://imakestuff.typepad.com/i-make-stuff/2010/01/felt-ball-wreath.html" target="_blank"><i>image from here</i></a></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-18l7Dca6TK0/TxONPLIil6I/AAAAAAAAB5U/rP1PTyps2zs/s1600/brick+wall+wreath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-18l7Dca6TK0/TxONPLIil6I/AAAAAAAAB5U/rP1PTyps2zs/s320/brick+wall+wreath.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: #999999;">image from <a href="http://stoopmama.com/2011/11/20/craftastic-explosion-felt-ball-wreath/" target="_blank">here</a></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br />
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</i></div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-69763969398104459552012-01-17T10:56:00.028+11:002012-01-17T10:56:00.084+11:00Crafty Goals List for 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QZAX5XUphic/Twu4pGOIZII/AAAAAAAAB4k/3xIAx64S1p4/s1600/Autumn+Daze+quilt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QZAX5XUphic/Twu4pGOIZII/AAAAAAAAB4k/3xIAx64S1p4/s400/Autumn+Daze+quilt.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><ol><li><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Amateur Actress</li>
<li><b>Baby quilt </b>for Beck</li>
<li><b>Baby quilt</b> for the Headmistress</li>
<li>Cup of tea and a lie down after three baby quilts in quick succession</li>
<li>Complete the massive <b><a href="http://alltoileandnoreward.blogspot.com.au/search?q=postage+stamp+quilt" target="_blank">postage stamp quilt </a></b>I started early last year. I was doing fine until I realised I'd accidentally doubled the recipe and was now making the quilt twice as big as it needed to be. King-size. In three-inch squares. That's a lot of seams. It's been stuffed into the back of a drawer (a big drawer) for months now, because I get a cold shiver every time I even think about going back to it.</li>
<li><b>Curlicue Crush </b>quilt as posted on a few days ago</li>
<li>Complete a<b> patchwork screen</b> using the antique wooden frame that's shoved into a corner of the sewing room and has been unused for years. In the hope of selling it at a market later in the year.</li>
<li>Start the <b>Autumn Daze quilt</b> from Kaffe Fassett's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kaffe-Fassetts-Quilt-Romance-Patchwork/dp/1600852599" target="_blank">Quilt Romance</a> book - picture at the top of this post.</li>
<li>Bit of a breakdown as I realise doing all those quilts is probably impossible, and why do I always set my sights on unattainable goals and is this a major character flaw and do I set myself up for failure this way and why can't I just live more in the <i>now</i> without having to constantly achieve, achieve, achieve; ...valium now please.</li>
<li>Finish those <b>grey wool pants</b> I cut out in the middle of winter last year ... sigh ....</li>
<li><b>Put up shelves</b> in my sewing room so that my wondrous and ever-growing collection of lovely new and vintage tins can be displayed to its best advantage so that I can actually see and enjoy them. Right now they are piled on top of each other in a heap on the sewing table.</li>
<li><b>Make a curtain</b> for the sewing room window. It's been naked-of-curtain for more than 18 months now and I can't stand another winter without one.</li>
<li>Organise myself for a <b>destash sale</b>. Gulp.</li>
<li><b>Get Etsy sorted out</b>. With current stock. Take some damn pictures, Flickettysplits!</li>
<li><b>Start blogging again</b>. Oh, I've done that one! Tick that box. Only fourteen to go .....</li>
</ol><div><br />
</div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-4989410128209940382012-01-16T13:17:00.000+11:002012-01-16T13:17:51.264+11:00Neither positive nor negative .... just neutral.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DR5HAZSk34o/TwuyjAO_keI/AAAAAAAAB4c/J0oFlJhmlY0/s1600/Rouenneries+Deux.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DR5HAZSk34o/TwuyjAO_keI/AAAAAAAAB4c/J0oFlJhmlY0/s320/Rouenneries+Deux.png" width="319" /></a></div><br />
On the aforementioned Crafty Goals List for 2012 are a number of quilts, of which about half are baby quilts this year.<br />
<br />
I have three pregnant friends you see, and as dire luck and happenstance would have it, all of these friends are due within a six-week time frame of each other. So to say that I have a mountain of work ahead of me in the next month (the first baby is due to arrive on February 12) is probably an understatement.<br />
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Luckily my baby quilts are a little bigger than a metre square, so they don't take too much time to put together. And two of the suckers are easy-peasy:<br />
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<ol><li><b>Number One </b>is going to be a classic mix of new and vintage fabrics in a wonderfully clashing range of colours and textures</li>
<li><b>Number Two</b> is going to be made up of Kaffe Fassett materials that are as bright as possible.</li>
</ol><div>It's Number Three quilt that is posing a little more of a problem. It's for the Headmistress - she of perfect taste and quiet restraint. The Headmistress lives in a beautiful house which is elegantly decorated in neutrals. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Neutrals. That's the crux of the issue. </div><div><br />
</div><div>I don't do neutrals. I don't know how. And I don't have any neutral fabrics in my stash. </div><div><br />
</div><div>The dilemma is actually causing me heartache. I want to start on her quilt but I haven't any fabric! I'm going to have to find a shop that specialises in elegant and refined neutrals - and I haven't the faintest idea of where to start. Can anyone help?</div><div><br />
</div><div>Maybe I could order something like this fabric set - it's in the lovely French Provincial style that French General do so well. It's about as close to neutral as I can stand. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Many years ago I was in an Indian restaurant with a vegetarian friend, and he ordered a vegetarian curry. And when the curry arrived, it had chicken in it. And when my friend called the waiter over and politely asked how chicken could have found its way into his vegetarian curry, the Indian waiter waggled his head and said "oh but sir, in many parts of India chicken is considered a vegetable".... !! </div><div><br />
</div><div>I feel a bit the same way. Red is a neutral isn't it???</div>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3590927183326781738.post-3992640202733262482012-01-14T09:44:00.005+11:002012-01-14T09:44:00.549+11:00Strange Places My Cat Sits: the gymwear cubby<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><b><br />
</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I am the Fatpuss. I do like to sit in strange places. I am especially fond of a small, confined area ... though it often takes some effort to squeeze in my great bulk. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I am not the devil, however. I looked straight at the camera and got laser eyes as a consequence.</span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-89qZSlQx31E/TwTywcdtwSI/AAAAAAAAB20/SD0FXAIRNWc/s1600/028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-89qZSlQx31E/TwTywcdtwSI/AAAAAAAAB20/SD0FXAIRNWc/s320/028.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I like to climb into this cubby and push out all the clothes onto the floor, leaving just enough to cover the bottom and make a snug little nest. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I then proceed to put my furs all over the clothes. It is only right and proper. Good night .....</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Xnsb1m7c_hI/TwTy82zsf1I/AAAAAAAAB28/vzcEXr2DSW4/s1600/027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Xnsb1m7c_hI/TwTy82zsf1I/AAAAAAAAB28/vzcEXr2DSW4/s320/027.JPG" width="239" /></a></div><b><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></b>flickettysplitshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11425564918817490162noreply@blogger.com0