Oh my goodness StitchyMites I nearly forgot you this week!! Things have been a little bananas - well a whole bunch of bananas actually! I will get there in the end but at the moment I feel like every time I pick up one thing there’s something else demanding to be done immediately. Its tricky because its still the time of year that all I really want to do is read a book and swim, and say goodbye to the last dregs of summer before winter starts. As we discussed last week I have very little mojo for The Things That Need to Be Done, however I am pushing through and its getting there. Onwards!
There was no time for sewing owls this week, despite that fact that we had another Tawny sighting from our balcony. These little guys are usually very difficult to spot and also not seen usually during the day. We have lived here over four years and I’ve never seen one (although I hear them all the time at night), and then we’ve had two in two weeks! I know this was a different bird because he’s much, much smaller than the Big Boy feasting on half the turkey last week. The owls are certainly out and about at the moment… I wonder if its a change of season thing?
One of The Things on the Long List is the retreat I’m organising in August.
I want to open the bookings asap so that people can plan, but theres a few things I needed to get in place first. One was the speaker for the Friday night event - there will be classes on Friday, then a Friday night drink and speaker, then classes on Saturday. I’m thinking of putting a welcome thing on Thursday night too, but I need to find out how many people would want that first. I don’t know how many people are coming from Sydney, and how many from away… having never done this on my own before (I planned and organised the Material Obsession retreats for years, and I’ve obviously taught at a slew of different events all over the place) I need a little more info.
Anyway, I have finally locked in the speaker, and I really excited about it - you can all have the scoop because I haven’t told anyone yet. Annette Gero is going to come and talk to us about her antique quilt collection, and bring some quilts to show.
If you don’t know about Annette, she is not a quilter but rather a quilt historian. She has the most incredible collection of old quilts, ranging from early Australian quilts to military quilts made by men from their wool uniforms during the war. She has written three excellent books, one about Australian quilts and two about wartime quilts, that are some of the favourite books in my collection. They can be hard to find but if you google around a bit they’re available, although the Australian quilts ones you will probably only find second hand.
Historic Australian Quilts
The Fabric of Society - Australia’s Quilt Heritage
Quilts: The Fabric of War - https://www.candobooks.com.au/product/14693-quilts-the-fabric-of-war-1760-1900
She actually has a large exhibition in Adelaide at the moment of her military quilts and the associated research, that I’m hoping to get down to - they have never been shown before. You can find the info here, and also a great audio clip to hear Annette talking about some of the quilts in the exhibition. https://www.rochefoundation.com.au/exhibitions/war-and-pieced-the-annette-gero-collection-of-quilts-and-military-fabrics/
She is an incredibly knowledgable and interesting speaker, and also just a really nice person.
I’m so excited she is coming to speak for us! A ticket for the lecture will be included in the class price of the retreat, but tickets will also be available to anyone who wants to come and hear Annette, and not do classes.
I’m also getting the projects finished up so that I can reveal what we will be making each day. I can’t show you too much, but here’s a little sneak peek of the Day 2 project….
It’s a hand pieced sewing caddy, to sit next to where you like to stitch at home. The coffee table, or your special chair. It’s called Tidy Town, which is a play on my Tiny Town quilt as it uses the same shaped pieced (but not the same template set as the card etc is way too flimsy). The set will include this little felt birdie pincushion friend (he has a weighted bottom so that he stands nice and straight and doesn’t topple over) and something to pop your scissors into (still planning that bit!) and a tiny little rose that holds your thimble which is in pieces at present. What do you think? I’m pretty happy with it so far.
The other project is a drawstring rice bag thats for carrying your hand project around. It will fit your sewing bits and bobs - it actually fits the Liberty cubes right in the bottom, with pockets for your scissors and things around the sides - but would also easily hold knitting etc if that was your game. Each side is appliquéd and embroidered, and theres a needle book and scissor keep in the set as well. I can’t show you those yet, stay tuned.
OK peeps I hope you have a fab week and I promise not to forget about you next Wednesday! I’m off to teach for the Southern Highland Quilters next Tuesday so I will give you class news too, which is always fun. Happy sewing!
Sarah x
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