2020 - Changes, changes........

Well, here we are in 2020 - ten years ago my world as I knew it was changed when I suddenly became single again and I started again in a different town in a different house - it seems (in so many ways) like yesterday but so much has changed since then - including me!  I rediscovered my independence, worked hard in a job I enjoyed and at the end of 2019 I was able to retire!  

So, more changes afoot as we enter 2020 - I am excited!

After working full time for many years - 17 in the most recent position - I wasn't sure how I would feel to retire. It does feel a little strange not to be part of an organisation I have spent so much time with, but I am getting there!  The days are filling up with other things and I am enjoying being able to accept invitations for week day stitching catch ups and lunches here and there - not to mention the ability to spend more time with family.

Rhiannon and Wade gifted me a calendar for Christmas and I fully intend to head into 2020 with the exuberance of Ezra pictured on the front cover....

Since I last wrote in I think August last year Rhiannon and Wade have welcomed little Eli into their family - Ezra is enjoying his big brother status I think!

Christmas was a fun, busy time with family ....I didn't take many photos on the day - but here is the annual Santa visit pic.......

the boys are very much into playing Hide 'n Seek and Lenny and Ezra found a mattress and a couple of Granny's vintage quilts made for the perfect scenario.....gosh it was hard to work out where they were! Such fun....... 

I think that will about do it for now - have to ease myself into this blogging a little more often!

'Til next time.......Lorraine 

Not sure I even remember how......

It's been so long since I posted!  So a bit of a recap....since June 2018 ....Spring, summer, Christmas, New Year and in the blink of an eye we are here at the tail end of Winter 2019.
So to recap the year and a bit that was........30 September Mark and Terri welcomed Lenny's little brother Jude into the family...... 

then before we knew it, it was Christmas - Wade reading a Christmas story to Lenny, Ezra and Jude.....

After Christmas we headed off for a family holiday at Tumby Bay...and surrounds....

 We visited a Christmas display at Cummins.....complete with authentic sleigh...the pony wasn't quite as authentic.....(but still cute)..Lenny wasn't keen to be on board....

....But Ezra was happy to drive...

Australia Day came and went - the Mayor presented me with flowers at the end of our Council's event.....I have been organising this function for quite a number of years, but I will be retiring at the end of this year, so will be a casual onlooker for the 2020 event.

Lenny turned three - looking very pensive about the cake in this pic...

 Ezra turned two and had fun with friends at the beach.....

Jude was there to help celebrate.....

Winter was footy season again and Mark decided to hang up the boots after the last game which was just last week....Lenny enjoyed going to the games .....photo credit to Terri for these pics......

Retreats....there were a few ....at Burra - Sew Delighful Quilting Retreat x 2 .....

.....and Aldinga where I started and finished this Elizabeth Hartman quilt for Jude.....oh apart from  the quilting which was added after the retreat.....and Rose had to give her seal of approval.....

You may remember the Christine Vlasic, Marrakesh quilt started a couple of years ago.....after a marathon effort it is finally finished and quilted - the hand quilting was done over about a year I think....with long breaks in between stints....

and.....done......

Pretty happy with this one.

I also finished two Penguin quilts one each for Ezra and Lenny...

  a couple of pics from a recent weekend away with Rhi, Wade and Ezra.....

I don't think anyone will be going far in this boat on the banks of the river.....

....and that's about it I think......off to Burra again later in the year so have to get some projects organised to take with me....I have a few :) 

'Til next time (hopefully it's not such a long break.....) - Lorraine

I'm back......

It's been an age! Last October since I posted to this forum....I have thought about it during that time, but until today I haven't put those thoughts into action.  Ah procrastination abounds in all facets of my life I think :) 

So...to recap a little ....I celebrated another birthday and then Christmas  with these legends.....

Love the out-take as well......Lenny had had enough and was making a break for it.....

Last time I posted I had just attended a class with Christine Vlasic at Millrose Cottage in Victoria ......and hand pieced the first block of Marrakesh......

A month or so ago the I finished piecing the top and got it on to my floor frame for hand quilting.....and I have been slowly working on it as time permits.....no hurry :)

 As you can see, Rose is ever so thrilled about it.....

So Spring and Summer came and went oh and so has Autumn......

 ...and we are now into Winter......with it's cold mornings and grey skies.....I am waiting on a garden guru to come and tidy up the trees out the front, they have sort of exploded and need a bit of a prune but they are always spectacular no matter what time of year I think....

Time in the sewing room has been limited...the weekends are busy and go fast and work takes up the rest of the week.....this time last year I visited my sister and bought these 10" squares from Ruby and Kate in Port Lincoln....

Which I made up into this the next day.......

As soon as I got home I put it together with wadding and backing and set about machine quilting it.....well, that didn't do so well, couldn't decide on thread colour or stitch or even how to quilt it.....I started a couple of times and unpicked each effort then left it hanging over the chair in the sewing room.....looked at it a few times.....and left it again.....until yesterday, I walked in, grabbed the nearest pinkish colour thread, marked some lines with the trusty Hera marker and a couple of hours later it was done!  Why I procrastinated so long on something that in the end was so simple I have no clue!  Binding on last night and a wash and dry this morning and it's done....ok....it's not perfect, a bit puffy in places but it's soft and light and I love it!

My other "go-to" projects have been mostly quick finishes.....some zippered pouches and cushions after going to a class at Hetties Patch for a crash course in attaching piping and inserting zippers.....

So whilst that doesn't cover all of the months I have been absent from blogland it does give a bit of a recap/catch up - time does fly by and the first months of this year have been a bit of a blur. 

'Til next time...............Lorraine

Road trip - Part 3 - Ballan and Beyond......

When I received confirmation of my attendance at Stitch in Spring with Linda I thought to make good use of my visit I would look around to see if there were any classes on I could attend on the way home.....and voila!  I saw that Christine Vlasic was teaching at Millrose Cottage Quilting and Gallery at Ballan on the Sunday - perfect, and only a 2.5 hour drive, so doable.  I have long been a fan of Christine's work - details can be found on Instagram @clvlasic (and you may remember my Primavera quilt which was one of Christine's patterns......)

So we said goodbye to Port Campbell and another very enjoyable Stitch in Spring on what turned out to be the best day weather wise we had for the entire trip. 

Probably the three red doors have been photographed many, many times!

My sister wasn't coming to the class so after a coffee in the  cafe which is part of the Cottage she headed back to Melbourne to spend the day with her son and grandies......my good friend Kristin who I haven't seen in ages was enrolled in the class, so we settled in for a fun day! and I wasn't disappointed!  I had chosen the Marrakesh pattern to start and Christine was fabulous in giving her time to help me choose fabrics for the first few blocks.....

Mind you, you are spoiled for choice at Millrose....there are rooms of fabric and believe me, I explored every one of them :) it wasn't a great hardship! 

(I did stay out of the Liberty room - can't say I wasn't tempted....)

 A couple of Christine's quilts for us to savour.....Come in Spinner on the right and Celeste on the left....

we were also lucky to have Christine's latest quilt, Tussie Mussie in the house - just gorgeous!

The view from the classroom window was a little different to the sea view of the previous day, but lovely just the same.  Morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea all came from the Millrose Cafe which was brilliant!

What a great day I had!!  and with Christine's help with some cutting I even managed to get a block together....not fully stitched but cut out and ready to finish!

It was back to Melbourne for the night before heading towards home on Monday......I say towards because we planned to stay another night somewhere along the Silo Art trail......but first was Gisborne and Mary's gorgeous shop, Patch n Quilt....too busy talking to take many photos (and I may have done some shopping.....)

Loved this display of some vintage sewing aids and patterns....I loved the bee hive tea cosy complete with bee! 

Had a wonderful visit with Mary and had I not had a local football grand final to attend on the weekend I would have been more than keen to stay around for a few more days for Irene Blanck's class on Saturday! Another time!

The next stops were planned to see the silo art which has fascinated me for a while...

First stop was Rupanyup silos....

A few spots of rain as we left for the Sheep Hills silos had become quite steady by the time we got there.....the art work and colours are just brilliant....

Given the now heavy rain we decided to find accommodation in nearby Warracknabeal and head up to Brim, Lascelles, and Patchewollock the next day......unfortunately there was no accommodation to be had in Warracknabeal so we started phoning places along the route home.....by the time we got to towns a couple of hours from home we decided to just keep driving and were home a couple of days earlier than anticipated!  Disappointed to miss the last few silos, but worth a trip back another time for sure!  There are more being added I believe, and here in South Australia the towns of Coonalpyn and Kimba have had their silos painted.

Unpacking from the trip doesn't take long - although most of these bags are still intact in the sewing room.....it was a great trip and I hope to get over to Victoria again soon - although I think this weekend probably wouldn't be a good time to go with half of Adelaide trying to get tickets for the AFL Grand Final. The roads will be busy! 

Speaking of grand finals, the boys played in the local GF here on Saturday - they called in for lunch on their way to the ground - Unfortunately they didn't have a win but it's not all about winning....is it?!? Lenny was absent from this pic.....he was having a nap before the excitement of the game :) Ezra's little outfit was on the table (along with a s**t load of other stuff) ready for him to change into...

That's a wrap for the road trip.  We packed a fair bit into a few days!  back to work for me tomorrow - a four day week to ease myself back into it...then a long weekend.  Can't be bad!

'Til next time..................Lorraine