Quilting Owl

I am still having a lot of problems with my left wrist and hand and at times over the last couple of weeks have been trussed up in compression bandages to reduce the swelling. This has given me a lot of time to spend hand quilting on a commissioned quilt for future publication in AP&Q. For distraction I have been indulging myself by playing and sorting out my growing thimble collection.  This has been time well spend and brought back memories of past travels and the many gifts received from dear friends.  I have also spent much time on the net researching the history behind some of the collection. The thimbles now have a new home and it is wonderful to finally have most of them in one location. I would also like to share this lovely dual purpose birthday quilt made by Shirley from West Australia who is a seasonal member of the Sunday Stitchers (Shirley and her husband, Tony, spend the winter months in Cairns). Jenni has been busy strip piecing with...

While it is still the calm before the storm, or I should say Cyclone Ita, I thought I would share some of the latest quilt happenings. My third sister, Anne, has been having a very rough time healthwise of late so I made a quilt to celebrate her 70th birthday.  It is often difficult choosing colours for other people so I opted for somthing bright and cheerful and was pleased to hear from her and her daughter how delighted she was with her present. "To Anne with Love" by Frances Leate Meanwhile I am still keeping on track with Barbara's Brackman's BOM "Threads of Memory" and here is Block 3.  The next temptation is to start on her Jane Austen Album quilt. "New Garden Star" Block 3, Threads of Memory Pauline has now layered her version of my "Night Owl" quilt and I am looking forward to seeing the finished quilt. Currently it is still calm outside the studio with just the odd shower of rain and I am now just waiting ...

Here are some more photos of the lovely work produced by some of the Sunday Stitchers.  Kathy has made this colourful table runner from a free Moda pattern and also these lovely bags.   Jenny has finished the top for another table centre in a different colour palette. Back in the studio I have been layering and machine quilting this scrap quilt and also spending some time at the design wall for a new kit quilt for Peter with some coffee themed fabric. While in our home Peter has been recovering after tripping over this rather viscious looking piece of garden equipment which resulted in a nasty gash in his leg plus lots and lots of cuts and bruises.  After a week he is slowly recovering although still sufffering quite a bit of pain and discomfort. Till next time Frances

I have been spending more time on the computer than I prefer lately so have fallen behind with blogging but here is a quick catch up.  My design "Hampton Court" has been revisited as a project in a special magazine "Patchwork Keepsakes".  This quilt was inspired after a visit to Hampton Court Palace in 2009 and a walk around their magnificent rose gardens. Now for some show and tell from the Sunday Stitchers and first up is Kathy's wonderful apple core quilt - Jenny had a couple of quilts to show us - this lovely one had some very useful tips and a nice bright table centre Linda's version of "Mary Mary Quite Contrary" has reached the final border stage and is looking stunning with the deep blue feature fabric. and Helen has been very busy making some dolls. To finish off I couldn't resist showing this lovely Blue Ulysses butterfly which visited our garden the other day. Till next time Frances ...

I have been missing in action from blogging for the last few weeks with lots to distract me but I just had to share some of the lovely quilts from Sunday Stitching at Cairns Craft Centre the other day. We were lucky that Thora was able to make the trip down the mountain so we could see this lovely quilt top she has just finished using fabrics by Kaffe Fassett and friends. Lesleigh has turned another project from the mini quilt workshops into a cushion for one her kids. While Jenny has raided her stash for lots of her favourite dog prints to make this cute little quilt. I couldn't resist adding this photo I took outside the studio the other day of a beautiful little sunbird getting into the Zygo cactus. Till next time Frances

Cairns has enjoyed perfect weather for the Queen's Birthday holiday long weekend and we really enjoyed getting outside to lap it up.  It makes the wet and high humidity of the summer all worthwhile when winter comes with such wonderfully warm and sunny days. I did manage to drag myself into the studio to have some fun with the Farmers Wife project and finished six more blocks to take the count to 50.  The blocks are getting very scrappy and so far I haven't repeated the fabrics in more than one block.  I have really enjoyed digging deep into the stash and so many of the fabrics bring back happy memories of earlier quilt projects.  The centre floral fabric in the bottom right-hand corner block features in the quilt I will be sleeping under tonight - yes it does get cold enough in the tropics for quilts.  Sorry about my poor photography skills and I should have waited till tomorrow to take the photos in a stronger light. Earlier in the wee...

The last few weeks have been quite busy though there is not a lot that I can show you.  Autumn has finally come to tropical Cairns and there is now actually sunshine between the odd shower of rain.  The grass is still leaping out of the ground needing to be cut at least once a week and the temperature usually hovers around 30 degreesC with the humidity often around about 60 percent.  Peter has started a massive clean up in the garden to get it all nice for the winter months which is the best time of year here and sees us all come out of hibernation. In the studio the design wall has been stripped bare and is gradually being filled with the latest design commission.  I just love a blank canvas to create with.  Lots of different fabrics have been taken off shelves and out of storage boxes, played with and often put back while I decide on a colour pallette to work with.  This is the best part of my job and I just love it. While all this has b...

There were some lovely quilts for us all to enjoy on show at the Thursday night class.  First up is Anne's finished sampler quilt which she has now machine quilted and bound.  Then Margaret proudly showed us her completed version of "Jacob and Friends" and also the striking quilt she is making for her daughter's bed which just needs a few more borders. Catherine, a new member of the group, brought along a couple of quilts she made which have been professionally quilted - a stunning red and white quilt with lots of wonderful textured reds  and this lovely applique quilt which I think is from the first Material Obsession Book. Cairns has had a lot of rain lately and as a result all sorts of interesting fungi have popped up in our garden. Till next time Frances

One of the highlights for me over the last couple of weeks has been introducing new quilters to the absolute delight of patchwork and quilting.  Here is Noelle's completed quilt top which she should be proud of as I think it looks absolutely stunning. Another stunner is Barb's quilt which just needs the outer border to be stitched on.  Well done girls and I hope this is the beginning of a wonderful journey. I also enjoyed a girls day out to visit a local quilt show at Gordonvale with Jenny and Joan.  I didn't manage photos as the strong sunlight streaming through the windows made it very difficult for me with my limited photographic skills. I have spent a lot of time at home during the last few weeks after my flu bug turned into a very nasty cold and while stitching in the courtyard I was lucky enough to catch this Kookaburra sitting on top of the flag pole in our garden. Till next time Frances

I have been very busy working on a lot of different projects inside the studio but don't seem to have a lot to show at the moment and every day I seem to be getting into a bigger mess so I thought I would take a few photos of some of the things in the garden just outside the windows. Grevilleas Lipstick Palm Orange trees During the day while I am busy quilting Peter can often be seen working away in his gardens - there is always a lot to do particularly after the very long wet season we had as everything grows so fast here. Till next time Frances