One of those weeks!

19 May 2013 | Other RSS posts by

Yes, it's been one of those weeks!  I used to have a friend who mispronounced the word 'frustration'.  He used to say 'flustration'.  Now I really think that is a GREAT word because it combines getting flustered with all the frustrations!  And that's been my week!

On Tuesday at lunch time, our internet suddenly stopped working. Oh well, that happens occasionally, so a reboot of the modem and everything will be fine.  NOT THIS TIME!  I spent the rest of the week trying every conceivable isolation test, talking with our Internet Service Provider,



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Free BOM – Apples of Gold – Block 5

12 May 2013 | Other RSS posts by

It's time to share Block 5 of the free Block of the Month Quilt,
 "Apples of Gold".  


Pinwheel and Square in a Square blocks are so easy to make and I love the 'life' they bring to a quilt. I added sweet rosebuds as well:



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Paper cuts and childhood memories

05 May 2013 | Other RSS posts by

I had a happy childhood in a very stable environment with loving parents, and not many dramas or traumas. I thrived in the creative milieu that was my home. We were quite poor in comparison to some of my friends, so our creative entertainment made do with very simple bits and pieces - string and buttons, paper and scissors, wool and cotton. 

One thing I loved doing was folding pieces of paper, then cutting triangles, semi-circles and other shapes along the folds. Open it up, and voila! - a beautiful paper-cut doiley. Place



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Passing on the genes

28 Apr 2013 | Other RSS posts by

My mother and father were both very talented people, able to produce all sorts of things with their hands, tackling concepts they had never done before, always with great success. I am so thankful they passed on the creative genes to me - there is something very fulfilling about being able to express one's creativity.  

Our four children are a bunch of high achievers and our 15 (yes fifteen!) grandchildren are a hive of creative, talented activity whenever they visit our house!  Of course I'm biased, but what can I



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Off on a Tangent

20 Apr 2013 | Other RSS posts by
Life has been a bit "Off on a Tangent" in the last couple of weeks!  On top of all my birthday surprises,  we celebrated our wedding anniversary and have had various members of our family staying with us for some extra time.  It's all good - but different!

Various magazines have been arriving in my letterbox and I've hardly had a chance to open them.  I did have a look at Country Threads Vol 13 No 12 because it had my table runner on the cover:



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Free BOM – Apples of Gold – Block 4

16 Apr 2013 | Other RSS posts by

Here it is - I'm still on Cloud 9, (see previous post!) but have had a chance to get organised.

 Block 4 in the free "Apples of Gold" block of the month quilt:


Another ever so practical verse from the Bible this month:



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Surprises, Surprises!

14 Apr 2013 | Other RSS posts by


I've had a week full of surprises! 

A few months ago, one of our daughters asked me what did I want to do to celebrate my birthday this year. I replied "have my family around me".  We have one son who lives near us, a daughter who lives three hours away, another son a couple of thousand kilometres away and then a daughter living even further away - overseas in Japan.

I was overjoyed that our nearby son



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Over the rainbow

07 Apr 2013 | Other RSS posts by

It's all about colour! Early on in my quilting journey, I read that a good guide when making a quilt is to use no more than four colours in any one project.  I have found that to be quite a good recommendation. Here is my Gifts of Grace quilt with four colours - pink, yellow, blue and green applique and embroidery:


I also learned by



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Free stitchery pattern for you

31 Mar 2013 | Other RSS posts by
Happy Easter!

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend and that you have had time to stop and think about the reality of what we celebrate - God's amazing love.

I don't have any chocolate or Easter eggs to give you, but I do have a free stitchery pattern to share!


I have done three samples to show you just a few ways



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Fete fun!

24 Mar 2013 | Other RSS posts by

The school that two of our grandsons attend is having a Mothers' day stall next month and then a few weeks later their biennial Fete.  Of course I said "Yes" when I was asked could I make something! The family is coming to visit in a couple of weeks, so I thought it would be a smart idea to get a few things made so they could take them back home with them.

I actually haven't been to a fete for ages, so I'm not sure what the current trend is and what is likely to sell.  The



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