Embroidered WOW

Aren't people lovely? Recently after I posted something to my online quilt group one of the members contacted me and offered to embroider me a wombat on her whoop-de-doo embroidery machine. When it arrived there were two wombats, as she had embroidered a towel too. When I offered something tangible as a thank you, she said I had already thanked her by passing on details of quilt shops and places of interest for her Alaskan cruise not long after we did the same cruise ourselves. That was very sweet of her. The wombat on the cream background will become the centre of a crazy-pieced cushion in Aussie fabrics.

Since I posted a few days ago I have been knitting up a storm on the revised cardy and should have a new left front finished soon for size comparison. I have even shouted* myself a lovely new circular needle to make it easier. There were a couple of things I wasn't happy with anyway, so knitting it again will give me the chance to rectify these. (trying to be positive here)
*For those not fortunate enough to live in Aussieland, to 'shout' is to 'treat' - it's an expression that has been noted since the mid-1800s, as in 'he shouted me lunch', i.e. "he took me to a restaurant and treated me to lunch, for which he paid'.

Piecing my flower basket blocks is on the back burner at present. I am working on a Secret Project that I can't talk about, so I won't. And of course knitting is the priority at present

Five weeks tomorrow until we go to Canada........woo hoo.......while I don't particularly like flying I am prepared to get in a plane to go to the other side of the world, as the alternative is a very long swim. I'm not one of those folk who has a flying phobia, I just feel uneasy when I'm in a metal shell way way up there (points to sky), it's not my natural habitat. I'm Taurus, I like my feet firmly on the ground.

"Keeping Engagements.
Nothing is more rude than to make an engagement, be it of business or pleasure, and break it. If your memory is not sufficiently retentive to keep all the engagements you make, carry a little memorandum book and enter them there."

Have a lovely week.

Jennifer

Long sigh.........

Last night I finished knitting my blue cardigan which has been on the needles for quite a long time......had a few health issues last year, and a sprained wrist which kept me from knitting for quite a while. But last night I finally cast off the last piece. One back, two fronts, two sleeves, and a deep sailor-style collar.

It's not going to be big enough. Bugger. Double bugger and triple bugger.

So this morning I heaved a big sigh, picked up a needle in the next size, and cast on for a new left front. I will knit that and see how much difference in size it makes. The pattern is from England for English yarn, and I am knitting it in Aussie yarn. When I measured a 10cm square and counted the stitches there was a slight difference, I didn't think it would be enough to matter......but it does. I will hold off un-knitting the whole thing again until I see how much size difference there is between a left front knitted on 4mm needles and one knitted on 4.5mm. But somehow I suspect the whole thing will have to be un-knitted and re-knitted.

Oh well, it keeps me off the streets I suppose.

"Display of Emotions.
Avoid all exhibitions of temper before others, if you find it impossible to suppress them entirely. All emotions, whether of grief or joy, should be subdued in public, and only allow full play in the privacy of your own apartments."

So I shall go now, and say naughty words and throw pillows in private.

Jennifer

Household help WOW

The wombat collection includes some household linen, I bought this tea towel in Canberra a few years ago (should have ironed it shouldn't I, now you can all see what a slack housewife I am) and the oven mitt was bought in Tamworth, several hundred kilometres away....but they match.

Many thanks for the concern after my mammogram test last week, the bewbies have recovered from their pummeling. When the next test is due I shall practice first by slamming them in the fridge door a few times, then getting Kevin to drive over them on the cold hard garage floor.

On Friday night our folk club theme is Woodstock.....songs sung there, or other songs sung by the performers. Appropriate clothing is optional. Now I didn't get to Woodstock as I was on the other side of the world but I have seen pics, and it seems to me that a lot of long-haired young hippy folk were prancing round nekkid. Somehow I can't see myself doing that, the world isn't ready. But I have long hair, do you reckon that will do?

Today it's raining lightly, it is very welcome, gardens are looking a bit dry and would welcome a drink. Sydney had water restrictions for several years until recently, so hosing gardens was pretty much a no-no except for a few hours a week. We never water our garden (only plants in pots get watered here) but despite that it seems to thrive, probably because most of our plants are Aussie natives which can cope with dry conditions.

Today's etiquette quote:
"Jewellery for Gentlemen.
It is not considered in good taste for men to wear much jewellery. They may with propriety wear one gold ring, studs and cuff-buttons, and a watch-chain, not too massive, with a modest pendant, or none at all. Anything more looks like a superabundance of ornament."

Have a lovely week.

Jennifer

Ouch ouch ouch..........

The three quilt tops I have been working on for the bushfire victims are being handed over tomorrow to be quilted and distributed, so here are a few pics. These star blocks were made by Sherry, who did a terrific job with them! I used a Robyn Pandolph blue fabric (it's more smokey turquoise if we are to be precise) with an inner border of deep burnt orange to pick up the colours in Sherry's blocks.
Eight of these blocks were made by Ariane and were set with blue sashing strips and border. The blue sashing fabric shades from a deep cobalt to a paler sky blue and the border fabric has dragonflies with gold highlights on a blue background. The centre block was made by Kiera Oona.
Kiera also made these blocks - as you can see she used lovely vibrant greens in some of her stars (I just lurve green!) so this one has green sashing with a slightly funky print for the border.

The ouch in the title of this post is because today was mammogram day, I know it's a necessary procedure but it is ever so slightly undignified, isn't it? Having one's girl bits laid one at a time (by a complete stranger) on a cold slab with a heavy weight pressing down on them is not my idea of fun. The machine was probably invented by someone with a deep-seated hatred of women. At least that's over for another two years.

Here's another quote from my etiquette book of 1885 -

"Vulgar Exclamations: No lady should make use of any feminine substitute for profanity. The woman who exclaims "The Dickens!" or "Mercy!" or "Goodness!" when she is annoyed or astonished, is as vulgar in spirit, though perhaps not quite so regarded by society, as though she had used expressions which it would require but little stretch of the imagination to be regarded as profane."

Jennifer

WOW after a busy few days

My little ceramic wombat, impressed on his base is the name of the ceramic artist Tim Loder. He (it has to be a he) has a slightly wry look, don't you think? He's only a few inches tall and is quite chunky.

Have you all had a good weekend?

It's been a busy few days, I have hardly had time to turn around and scratch myself. Choir gig on Thursday evening - folk club on Friday night - quilt guild on Saturday - folk club gig on Sunday - spent today at a friend's place which was lovely and relaxing - and choir practice tonight. Tomorrow afternoon I am meeting a friend for coffee, and on Wednesday I will relax. Somehow I have even managed to spend a little time in the sewing room making slight progress on a Secret Project, which will be revealed when the time is right.

The brochure for the Toronto Creativ Festival is downloaded onto my computer (all 42 pages of it!) and is making interesting reading. I will buy my ticket online in the next day or so.

And now it is late, and I am tired, so I am going to bed. Have a lovely week.

Jennifer

Wooden WOW

This is a little wooden wombat made of Rosewood, you can see how small it is by the pear and fruit in the bowl behind.

The last week I have been working on putting together blocks sent from Canada for quilts for the bushfire victims in Victoria, I am down to the last one and it coming along well. But there was sad news a few days ago - do you remember Sam, the little koala who was rescued by a firefighter and given a drink? The picture was everywhere as a symbol of hope after the fires had gone through. Unfortunately Sam (who, it turned out, was a girl) was found to have inoperable cysts due to clamydia and died last week. She was a little fighter and lived for six months after her ordeal by fire, but nature was too strong for her.

The quote from my old etiquette book has sparked replies saying "why is it always the woman who is responsible for manners and morals?" I agree, it seems that is the way of the world and always has been. In times gone by women seem to have been regarded as more civilised than men - whether this is really true or not, who knows! I have found another very different quote for this post, can you imagine the reaction of a young chicky-babe today if she was told she had to wear the following at the beach instead of her brief bikini?

"Flannel is the best material for a bathing costume, and gray is regarded as the most suitable colour. It may be trimmed with light worsted braid. The best form is the loose sacque, or the yoke waist, both of them to be belted in, and falling about mid-way between the knee and the ankle; an oilskin cap to protect the hair from the water, and merino socks to match the dress, complete the costume."

Now I don't know about you, but I'm not a great swimmer and would probably drown if I had to wear all this weight in the water.

Have a lovely week.

Jennifer

A few holiday views

This church at Stroud, N.S.W., was built by convicts in the 1830s and, like churches of the time, sits surrounded by graves of former parishioners. Stroud is a lovely little town, with many buildings from the same era as the church, in a beautiful valley. My family has tenuous connections with Stroud; in the 1800s it was a company town for the Australian Agricultural Company, and my grandfather (and I think his father also) worked for them near Tamworth. I don't know if they - my ancestors - ever visited Stroud, so I did it for them on a beautiful clear winter day.
The interior of the church - the woodwork is Australian cedar, the pews have carved backs. The gallery upstairs is where convicts sat for church services....they didn't sit downstairs and mix with the hoi polloi, they knew their place.
Ten days earlier we drove from Nundle to visit Arc-en-Ciel trout farm - it was really really cold, as you can see! We would normally have been able to see much further into the distance but the clouds were very low, snow had fallen the previous evening and the locals were expecting more. This snowy yard was a short distance from the farm. We had coffee, and sat by the fire, and I bought some smoked trout pate.....yummo.......the trout farm dog is My New Best Friend and I had the muddy paw marks on my jeans to prove it. Fishing at the farm would be fun on a lovely day, their website has interesting pictures and recipes too.

Only two months until we go to Canada, 60 days to be precise but who's counting? The locals are even putting on a craft show for me! Creativ Festival will be held while we are in Toronto. How much fun would that be.......speaking of being creative, Kiera-Oona has a video on her blog showing how she makes rag rugs from tee shirts that aren't fit to be worn in public any more. I have never used a crochet hook that size but I'm sure I could learn. If you couldn't crochet, you could probably knit rugs.

Elaine has a giveaway on her blog, a "Quilter's Stimulus Package" - wonder what that could be? There are times when I could do with being stimulated. She lives in coastal California and has lovely pics on her blog.

I shall leave you with a quote from "Australian Etiquette, or the Rules and Usages of the Best Society in the Australasian Colonies, together with Their Sports, Pastimes, Games and Amusements. Revised, Illustrated, and Compiled expressly as a Household Treasure for Australian Homes. 1885":

"It is the duty of Australian women to exercise their influence to form so high a standard of morals and manners that the tendency of society will be continually upwards, seeking to make it the best society of any country."

Jennifer

First WOW for August

This rather scary looking one-eared wombat was given to me by a friend, thanks Sandra......she bought it in an op shop in Bendigo, Victoria. In our little caravan we keep a stash of $1 coins, as we need them for coin-operated machines in caravan park laundries when we want to wash clothes. The little plastic box holds the money - looks as though the wombat is counting his hoard doesn't it! - he lives in the van to mind the cash. Kevin had great fun carefully posing the wombat and his dollars.

A couple of days ago I went to a quilt show held annually about 40 minutes from here. It's always a good show, the hall is small but it's surprising how many quilts fit in. My usual method of looking at shows is to walk around slowly once, stop for refreshment, then walk around again spending longer in front of particular quilts that speak to me. I can spend quite a long time just browsing and admiring.

But not this time.

One walk around, then I went outside.......not to return.

What ever possessed the organisers to play rock music with a thumping base through a sound system? It's not music I listen to voluntarily, let alone have forced down my throat when I am hoping for a pleasant day. I know not everyone in the world shares my taste in music, and I certainly don't share everyone else's, the world would be a dull place indeed if there was only one kind of music no matter what it was - but rock music at a quilt show?

Several years ago (seems like a previous existence now) I spent six months working as a receptionist in the city. One of the computer boffins in the company for whom I worked told me one day, when I commented on how pleasant their 'on hold' music was, that studies have shown the one style of music that keeps people in the best mood after spending time on hold is Baroque music; Johann Sebastian Bach (and probably some of his many composing children), Telemann, Vivaldi, Corelli etc. I can attest to that. I don't know about the rest of you, but I thoroughly dislike having loud music (probably the 17 year old apprentice's choice) forced upon me when I am waiting on the phone. It's even worse when it's a talkback radio station with loud music.

And how about the music played in many shops? A few years ago a radio interviewee said that if you don't like the music played in certain shops, then you are not the customer they are looking for; it's all part of that shop's marketing image. Geez......there obviously aren't many shops that want me as a customer!

What music is played where you shop?

Have a lovely week.

Jennifer