Quilting Owl

I have had lots of distractions over the last few months and have been very remiss keeping up with this blog.  In between these distractions I have been working on lots of different projects mainly UFOs but not too many finishes as yet. There have been some additions to my pincushion collection, some gifts from dear friends and some I have made myself or purchased at craft fairs. I have finally finished quilting a quilt top hand stitched as a gift for me by Jenny and this quilt now hangs in the studio. I have turned a panel into a quilt for the latest addition to the family, a great grandniece called Ivy. Then it was time to start on some of the UFO projects housed in plastic boxes and I finished this quilt top which is now layered and currently being machine quilted. I have assembled these hand pieced diamond blocks into larger sections which are now ready for an appliqued centre medallion.  At least I have made some progress on this long time UF...

The latest edition of Australian Patchwork & Quilting Vol. 24 No 7 features quilts from several members of the Cairns Craft Centre Sunday Stitching group including my "Victory Parade" made from two layer cakes or 70 10" squares plus a narrow border.  It is great to be in such good company. "Crazy with a Twist" by Joan Taylor "I Now Call North Queensland Home" by Jenny Edlin "Victory Parade" by Frances Leate Till next time Frances

Happy New Year to all my family, friends and followers of this blog and I hope 2015 is going to be a really wonderful one for you all. I Instead of a new year's resolution I select a word for the year and this year the word is "create".  I want to create and not procrastinate and to keep me on track I have made a mug mat with this word to keep near me when I am working as a constant reminder. Happy New Year to you all and I would like to thank you for your continued support. Till next time Frances

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

In the latest Christmas issue of Australian Patchwork & Quilting Vol 24 No 3 my project "Poinsettia" has been published.  This was a fun dimensional applique wall quilt. "Poinsettia" by Frances Leate A couple of my other projects have been re-released in a special issue "Keepsake Quilts".  On the cover is "A Summer Place" which started life as a cuddle size quick and easy jelly roll quilt and just grew to become a full bed size quilt. "A Summer Place" by Frances Leate Also in this issue is "Star Bright" another of my small hand pieced Christmas quilts. "Star Bright" by Frances Leate Till next time Frances

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...