Prairie Hawks

 I have put my Hovering Hawks blocks together and finished them with Prairie Points. My supply of fabric in browns was limited, so the completed small quilt will be used as a table runner. This time I photographed the process of using Prairie Points and finishing the quilt by the Bagging Out method.

The Completed Top

Piecing the Prairie Points

The Prairie Points attached and the backing ready to sew on.

Sewing on the backing

Turning the quilt right side out

Turnout gap ready to be hand sewn

Some in the ditch quilting to secure the backing

On the table with a Tree Peony in the centre.

A Feast

I came home from the library this morning with a nice little stack of Lillian Beckwith novels. It would have been lovely to make a cup of tea and have a read, but there was shopping to put away and other chores to be done. The weather is just right for books about the "Wilds of Scotland" because it has turned wet and cold again. Tonight, after my lambkins are fed and snuggled up in their woodbox, I will make that cup of tea and have a reading feast.
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Ice Follies

It has been quite warm today but it won't last. I tidied up my Birthday flowers and put a big bunch of Ice Follies in with the Gum and Trick Grass. I certainly don't have Vicki's flair or skill but at least Daffodils always look cheerful.



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Lamb Tales

Unfortunately we weren't able to get the ewe to feed the foster lambs, so they are being bottle fed again. They are still pretty fit and the weather is reasonable, which makes it easier to go out at 10pm to feed them. One of the foster lambs is a little poorly, so the Farmer gave her an injection for me and she is wearing a coat.





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Calf Tales

This year the Farmer decided we would again rear some calves as breeders for the future. Usually we get black Angus Friesians, but this time we have a really mixed lot. They should produce some interesting calves themselves in a couple of years.

Anaesthetic Brain Block

Over a week ago I had a general anaesthetic for a routine test and have been doing some strange things ever since (even for me!) I keep putting the oven mitts on to wash up, calling the lambs, calves and getting lost in the middle of sentences. But the most frustrating thing has been when working on one of my Hovering Hawks blocks, I just couldn't get it right and unpicked it at least ten times. I am still not happy with it, but the pieces of fabric are starting to fray a little so I am going to leave it as it is now. The blocks are going to be made into a little quilt and I know I will notice that particular block every time I look at it. But that will be part of the Quilt's story and history.

When I first started patchwork I had some guidance from a friend at a local craft group. One of the things I remember her telling me was every quilt has a story and a history behind it. I know the quilts I have made have their own stories and one day I should record them in a journal or perhaps with a Quilt Gallery on the blog. I definitely will need some help to set that up.



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Here we go again, Lamb Tales, 2012.

Lambing is well and truly underway again and I went from no pets to four in one day. They are from the new mob of inexperienced maiden ewes and are all pretty fit. Sometimes the young ewes just wander off and forget about their lambs or even how many they have, so we gather them up and feed them. We are going to try to foster two of them on to an older ewe whose lambs have died.









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Miss Beckwith

I rarely go off to sleep without reading for a while and unless I have to be somewhere, I also read while I have my morning coffee. Since childhood, books and reading have always been an integral part of my daily life. Fortnightly visits to the library were routine and that little stack of books I brought home were a promise of enjoyment. For many years on my birthday, I received a book from my Aunt Helen, a talented teacher who had a long and distinguished career. That book was always a highlight and I still get that feeling when I come across one I think I may enjoy.
I mostly buy books at Thrift Shops, keeping them if they are enjoyable or sending them straight back if not. During a recent rummage in one of our locals I found a set of books in their own box by Lillian Beckwith. She was not an author I was familiar with and the books were in very poor condition. I was about to put them back when I noticed the illustration of a lady in a red coat glaring at a seagull that had just splattered her painting with it's droppings.

The set came home with me and I am enjoying her stories of life on a Hebridean Croft during the 1950's and on the lookout for more of her work. The illustrations by Douglas Hall charmingly called "Decorations" are delightful. Miss Beckwith is proving great company.
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I just turned around and ....

It was my Birthday, Again! Thank you family, I had a lovely day.







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Hovering Hawks

According to my Field Guide to the Birds of Australia, we have the Brown Goshawk and the Grey Goshawk in our area and I certainly see them quite often hovering over the roadsides. They manage to stay suspended for long periods of time watching for their prey. One of my favourite Quilt blocks is called Hovering Hawks but I have never attempted it because I find it difficult to get triangles accurate. Now, I have a very clever machine that die cuts fabric and I have been experimenting with great success.



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August

July was quite a benign month here with fine days and wintery sunshine warmth for a short time during the afternoons. But now August has swooped in with a rage just as lambing has started. Winter has returned.



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Fabric tape

Ever since I saw Pink Penguin's fabric tape tutorial I have wanted to make some using the many little scraps saved from other projects. The wider double sided tape from England arrived yesterday. The backing paper is a bit difficult to remove so I am scoring it with the point of a quick unpick. A craft blade tends to cut right through the tape.





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