Quilting Owl

It was a close call and a joint effort yesterday but we finally managed to clear enough of the building work and debris away to add some Christmas cheer to the house. I always love decorating the tree with all the old and familiar ornaments and baubles most of which are hand made by me and friends.  I get very nostalgic as I unwrap all these treasures and really enjoy the memories of those that I received as gifts. The tree and nativity scene have a new home this year in the entrance foyer that Peter created earlier in the year from part of the old carport. We also managed to find a corner in the living room (the site of the latest renovation project) for all of our favourite santas - some large and some small. It has been an eventful year for us with the handover of the shop (now known as Cairns Create It) to Adrian and Jane and lots of building work to our home.  I think the house will always be Peter's WIP and he will always find lots to do t...

The Christmas spirit came late to our home this year but finally I managed to put aside some of the sadness and pain of the last year and get on with it.  One of the big surprises was when I got the urge to finish a long time UFO of quilt-as-you-go hexagons and create the Christmas Tree Skirt which they were always meant for.  Some very late night stitching went into the final assembly of the project which now covers a multitude of cords around the base of the tree.  Thanks Sonjia for the inspiration I needed to finally finish this project. The crib also sits on a new runner which was a QAYG hand quilted project stitched when my arm was in plaster. The studio is now adorned with a project I designed to hang along the top of the sliding plantation shutters which has recently appeared in Australian Patchwork & Quilting Vol 24 No 4.  This was a fun project to stitch with lots of embellishment with buttons and beads. "Christmas Bunting" by F...

Many of the Sunday Stitchers rose to the challenge to make a quilt or patchwork object using a specific piece of Christmas fabric and I would like to share some of the wonderful  results of this challenge.  There was a Viewers' Choice prize which was won by Lesleigh with her beautiful runner with freehand embroidery. Lesleigh Maryanne Kathy Joan Jenny Sonjia Maryanne Till next time Frances

It is Christmas Day here in Australia so I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who visits and comments on my blog and to wish them a very happy Christmas.  I would also like to thank the Sunday Stitchers and all my students for all their support this year and to wish my family and friends a truly wonderful Christmas - be safe and happy and don't get too stressed. Here are just a few of the many Christmas quilts currently hanging on our walls in the house and studio - "Santa hangs out here" by Frances Leate "Star Bright" by Frances Leate - AP&Q Vol 19 No 9 "No Room at the Inn" by Frances Leate - Patchwork & Stitching Vol 11 No 6 "Star Turn" by Frances Leate Happy Christmas Frances

The Christmas spirit was very slow to surface in this household this year but gradually we are getting there and now the house is starting to look very festive.  Once I get started I always enjoy decorating the tree with its eclectic mix of decorations most of which are hand made.  Every year I make some new additions and lovingly fondle those made by friends in years past. Our Jim Shore Santa collection, big and small, has grown and we are gradually collecting Santas representing many countries. In the studio there is the bird tree which naturally is made up of many owls.  Some of these have been gifts and some I have made myself. The walls are gradually being covered with Christmas themed quilts and more about these in the next instalment. Happy Christmas Frances

All the presents have been bought, made and wrapped and now it is up to Santa to do his bit.   We have had a lovely day and enjoyed our traditional Christmas Eve lunch on the Boardwalk with a favourite view.    and now Peter and I would like to wish all our family and friends a very Merry Christmas.   I would particularly like to wish all my blogging friends a safe and joyous Christmas and thank them for their support and friendship throughout the year.   HAPPY CHRISTMAS from tropical Far North Queensland to all! Frances

As Christmas gets closer we have been gradually decorating the house, studio and courtyard to make everything festive.  With little rain around it has been very hot here in the tropics which has slowed proceedings somewhat but gradually we are getting there.  We have added lots of new decorations this year including this beautiful Nativity Scene by Jim Shore.   In the studio I have been gradually adding to the bird tree which now features lots of new owl decorations many of which I received as gifts and I will show these in detail later.   We also have a special santa shelf in the house with lots of new ones to add to the collection.   Before dinner we often have a drink in the courtyard and really enjoy watching the light show, particularly the gradual awakening of all the solar ones as they light up one by one.   I couldn't resist adding a photo of this beautiful Hibiscus which flowered in the co...

The Sunday Stitchers celebrated Christmas early with the final meeting for the year and worked on a special mystery quilt project.  Peter and the team at Cairns Craft Centre worked very hard to make this a memborable days's stitching.  As usual Peter did an excellent job with the catering for morning tea and lunch and Leanne was the inspiration behind all the decorations and goodies and all the girls were very appeciative. "Festive Fours" by Frances Leate Some serious work did happen among all the chat and laughter and here the group are working away on their quilt project.  Not all the Sunday Stitchers were able to join us as Kathy is spending Christmas in the US and Heather is on a cruise - they were missed and if they are reading this blog I hope they have a very happy Christmas! The goodies table There is always one high achiever in every group and yesterday it was Jenny who was the first to finish her mini version of the mystery quilt.   Til...

At last, the house is clean, the presents are all wrapped and some last minute decorations have been hung so its time to sit down and wish everyone a Merry Christmas!  I would like to take this opportunity to thank all my loyal followers and everyone who takes the time to read this blog and hope you all have a very happy festive season. This morning while having breakfast we got the rare opportunity to watch a Blue Ullysses butterfly hover in this red bush outside the window for a quite a long time.  Usually these vivid blue butterflies just do a very quick flit through the garden and disappear before I can get out the camera, but today we had lots of time to fully appreciate its beauty. It has truly been a lovely day and we decided to have lunch in town on the Marina Boardwalk at a favourite spot.  It was quite novel the way they served the fish and chips in what looked like newspaper. As it was a balmy tropical night  we enjoyed a ...

There are a lot of distractions in the studio at the moment which means I haven't had enough time to truly focus on all the Christmas quilt projects and decorations I had envisaged creating.  I added a few decorations around me so that I don't lose sight of what is only just over a week away and I really must get out and do some shopping and write my Christmas cards. What I have been doing is playing with these fabrics and making some exciting new quilt projects for classes happening at Cairns Craft Centre in Term 1, 2012. While checking around a few blogs I did find a link to Jenneke and her wonderful blog Building Houses from Scraps  where you get to make a quilt in 2012 with 365 3" house blocks plus one larger one.  That is a block for every day of the year - how cute is that.  I just had to register and only hope I can keep up with everything else that is going on but I am always tempted by blocks with houses. Till next time Frances

Well the "silly season" has certainly started around here and I always enjoy digging into the cupboard and bringing out some of my favourite Christmas quilts.  This one is my all time favourite design which I hand pieced and appliqued but machine quilted. "In the Spirit of Christmas" by Frances Leate In the studio I have just been flitting from one thing to another with nothing yet ready to photograph - some days I just seem to take one step forward and two backwards but I am sure it will finish up alright in the end. I am getting ready to start on a another project involving lots of blocks so I decided to prepare some boards where I can lay out the pieces for each block as I cut them and in this way I can cut and sew several blocks at the same time.  I have used some stiff cardboard rescued from discarded packaging and covered it with an offcut of 100% cotton batting.  I fold the batting in two and cut it approximately an inch larger than the card and then sew ...

Happy Christmas to all my wonderful friends out there in blogland.  It has been an amazing experience venturing into this world in cyberspace and I really appreciate and value the friendship and wonderful comments from my loyal followers.  I hope you all have a really wonderful day today and enjoy the rest of the holiday season. Well the house is now cleaner than it was and somewhat tidy although I am sure that will not last long.  Santa has been and the tree is looking very tempting with lots of goodies for Peter and me under it - we are really just two big kids at Christmas!!! I thought I would share this special hand stitched gift I received from Lesleigh which now lives on the chair in our Studio.  Lesleigh stitches everything by hand and never uses a machine or iron and does wonderful work.  Thank you again Lesleigh for this beautiful present. Peter received a hand made card and lovely letter from one of his grandsons who is 7 years old which is n...