Teddy Bear Quilt

                 I have just received back from my wonderful mother, my teddy bear quilt, she has HAND Quilted it and done a beautiful job.  I made this quilt a few years ago but stopped after Felix, my grandson was born (stillbirth). It has taken a while to finish it and mum to quilt, but I'm happy with the finished result. Have a look at some of the photos I actually took this time :-)

             The applique is hand buttonholed in a material matching colour and the quilting is done with a variegated thread. The pattern and material was from Kids Quilts.    
           I am still intending to send this quilt to my son Nick & Tegan,  and hope that they like it as well.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

             Wishing everyone a very

 Merry Christmas and a safe New Year

Hoping your name hangs on the nice side but if not I'm sure you will try harder next year

Love and hugs

Alison

and all her family

I can show you now.........

      Here is the makings of my latest Ghost Imaging. I made this for a friend for a Secret Santa gift, its her face and I know she likes birds so I used both images.

This was the first stage finished getting all the small pieces in the right order.

Then came all the quilting, which I echo quilted and then bound it in the backing fabric

  The last photo is of it drying as I soaked it in Paverpol, a waterproofing and non-fading solution, so Roxy could hang it outside if she so desired. I hope she likes it....

         

Stuff I have done lately.....

                      I haven't posted in a while due to the fact I didn't want to show presents too early, just in case.... but I have found some photos in my phone and thought I would share them. The first is a polystyrene head covered in buttons for my sister.

 

        I didn't take a photo of it finished but hopefully you will get the idea. I carried the hair down to look like a ponytail and drape down the back and the scarf draped over both shoulders. I really enjoyed playing with the buttons but doesn't everyone......

      Next is a gift for a really close friend, this is the top of  a letterbox it depict a view of her home and beautiful garden which has to be seen to be believed. Here are another views of it......

    Sorry about the photo, it was very very sunny . So we will see if she likes it in a day or two.

                     Anyway hope you have a great week and hopefully post again very soon.

Celtic Knot Tree

                    I have taken a while to post as it's been a busy year. I made this wall hanging for a friends 40th birthday present back in June. I firstly made the smallest bias and attached with a gold thread to look like the foliage and the constructed the trunk from beautiful batik fabric. I then coloured in the foliage area with Inktense pencils and fabric medium. I attached small brass leaves all over and made the ying/yang symbol, traditionally black and white, out of the trunk material. I think it gave it a more natural feeling. The braid around the border is made from endless bias  to demonstrate that life is endless... 
                     These aren't the clearest of pics but they are all I have. I forgot to take one finished.

A Cup of Tea anyone......

                 I was a participant in a Mothers Day Swap with the girls in Quilters Cove. My Secret sister was Tassie  (Judy from Bagdad Quilters).  I have been experimenting with the ghost image and colour wash technique, that I have shown here before and I thought that this was an excellent time to do a steaming cup of tea.

      
                                 I had alot of fun playing with this and trying to get the fabrics right, I think I got it right.  I know that Tassie liked it (she told me so).
                             Next project I'm going to try and do a selection of green leaves with rain drops or possibly sun rays. We will see what I can find.

Wedding Day

    Glenn and Sarah were married at 3.30pm on the 24th March 2012 at Corinda Gardens in Hobart Tasmania

Wedding Quilt

                    Today I presented my wedding quilt to Glenn and Sarah ( Son and DILTB).  They are to be married on the 24th March 2012, but I wanted to give them this early.
                    I started this quilt 2 1/2 years ago, before they got engaged, I found the pattern for the centre and decided to would be great as a wedding quilt centre. A couple of months later they announced their engagement  and off I started getting fabrics. The butterflies are hand dyed  fabrics hand sewn on in a variegated thread. A soft muted blue for the sky sewn on point. The border was foundation pieced in various greens to give the impression of lying on the grass looking up and seeing butterflies fluttering by in the wedding ring formation. My mother (Glenn's grandmother) hand quilted it for me. She has done a beautiful job of outlining the butterflies and grass. Not bad considering she is 80 years young. I finished off with a scrappy binding of leftover fabric from the grass.  I am very happy with the end result.

Playing with Ghost Images

            I recently borrowed this book from Roxy titled Ghost Layers and colour washes by Katie Pasquini Masopust.  I found it very inspiring and a challenge. I changed a few things just to make it a bit quicker and easier but it was a fun process. Can you see the ghosts.

Here is the process

Plus I added this one so I could keep track off all those pieces

All ready for stitching

All the edges are zigzagged down

Finished result after echo quilting

                I will try  a couple more small quilts but I'm itching to do a large one... I have a few ideas already....

Have a good week and enjoy

Alison

A rather bright Peacock

        I haven't made myself a quilt in a lot of years so I thought I would start with a centre and make it grow.   I started organising the fabrics for my quilt a few years ago at the Sydney Craft Fair and I think I might have been wearing sunglasses at the time. I mean they are bright.... even for me......


But I will keep sewing it as I do like the effect... What do you think????

I started with the peacock fabric and these are what I chose.

Have a lovely day


Alison

Naughty Lists

                      I thought I would get your attention...
I made a Christmas wall hanging for the Tangled Web Quilters Christmas Swap ( thats a mouthful) and loved doing it so I made 2 more for my sons and their partners.

             I found this pattern in A Christmas Story By Anni Downs Hatched and Patched....and I changed it a little so hopefully she would like the result....
             I made one traditionally for Nick and Tegan, that they sadly never received it, somewhere lost in the post  but I will redo it so they have one for next year and one for Glenn and Sarah that was more contemporary. As they had a black christmas tree and blue/silver decorations, so it took a bit of thought but hopefully they liked the result.
             
             Hopefully I will be more productive and have something to show you, Thank you for reading my blog and ramblings.......

            Have a lovely Day and Enjoy it all    :-)


Alison

Well well its been a while

Well thats an understatement isnt it. Last year was a very long year......

My grandson FELIX was born on the 24th August 2011 sadly he did not take his first breathe and so became my beautiful little ANGEL.. and I  am so very proud of Nick (my son) and Tegan for their love and strength given to each other........