Ready to quilt

I love quilting!

In earlier posts I described how I prepared a quilt top for quilting, as well as basting together the top, the batting and the backing fabric. And now I'm ready to quilt.
Have I ever mentioned I love quilting? 

Quilting gives me the chance to tell the story of the quilt top. 

By changing the quilting design, my deer friend can be a Christmas deer ...

Join me in a cuppa

I've been busy whipping up some pretty crockery         

 ... unfortunately it's not dishwasher safe. 

September already?

That means it's only 16 weeks till Christmas! 

August is Winter here in the southern hemisphere, not a very cold Winter I grant you, but it's still Winter and the wrong weather entirely for Christmas.
So with the change of season, a waft of balmy breeze blows through the window, and my thoughts turn to Christmas.
Actually, any time of year turns my thoughts to Christmas.
I confess I adore, love, and shiver with excitement whenever I think of Christmas.

Backing and batting

to quilt vb. to stitch numerous layers together as one 

In my last post I mentioned that snail mail had delivered a very special quilt top to my house.

I've spent some quality time with it, checking and pressing seams, and now we're both ready to move onto the next phase of our relationship. 

Preparing a quilt top for quilting

Let's talk quilt tops 

 A parcel in the post is always a thrill, even when one knows the "surprise" is coming. It's especially exciting when it's a crafty parcel.

This particular especially exciting parcel contained a quilt top... but no ordinary quilt top.

This quilt top has united the talents of twelve patchworkers from all over Australia. How exciting is that! 

This beautiful quilt top took me three hours to prepare for quilting ... yes, that's  three whole hours before it went anywhere near the quilting machine. Where did all that time go?

Dishcloths and diamonds

Dishcloth fever has well and truly hit. 

When they first appeared in the kitchen, they were hardly cast a second glance. 
Their presence was accepted without question. In dark corners they began to multiply.

Dishcloths are a girl's best friend

Warning ... making dishcloths may become addictive

I have recently become a convert to using me-made dishcloths in the pursuit of a sparkling home. 
The benefits of making my own dishcloths are many. For one, they are a perfect opportunity to use up yarn left-overs.

what this really means = buy more yarn