Happy birthday to me......

.....happy birthday to me,

happy birthday to meeeeeeee,

happy birthday to me!

One year ago today........

.......we moved into this house.......that's four seasons........autumn, winter, spring, summer and now it's autumn again. Neither of us now can imagine living anywhere else, certainly not going back to the Big Smoke.

Today we went for a Nice Weekend Drive to a smaller town an hour or so north from here, and after having lunch drove out to this lovely little chapel in the bush. The pictures have uploaded in reverse order but never mind, we can cope with that can't we.

The board outside the chapel gives the information that it was built as a memorial after World War I to a male member of the family who own the land hereabouts, and in fact have done so since 1834.....a long time in Australian history for one family to stay in the same place.

The full board - because it was in dappled sunlight the dedication on the bottom is difficult to read, hence the close-up.
An avenue of 200 elm trees planted in the early 1920s, by a man specially brought out from England for the job. Does this mean there was no one living in Australia at the time who could dig a hole and plant a tree, even 200 times? I find that difficult to believe.
The little chapel built in 1921 with Boston Ivy clinging to its walls, a lovely autumn sight.
We followed that up with coffee and cake at a small village called Kentucky - why it is called that, no one knows. The cafe at the local general store serves excellent coffee and very yummy cakes; we can recommend it if you are ever up that way.

Tomorrow is Mother's Day, so best wishes to all the mums - I hope you are all spoiled rotten by your families! Is it only in Australia that families are urged to give their mother a new electrical appliance or household gadget? I don't know about you, but if I were to be given something as prosaic as - say - an iron or toaster for Mother's Day, Christmas or birthday (unless I had specifically asked for it) I would wonder if my family thought of me as just another household gadget.

"Mere costliness does not constitute the soul of a present; it is the kind feeling that it manifests which gives it its value. People who possess noble natures do not make gifts where they feel neither affection nor respect, but their gifts are bestowed out of the fulness of kind hearts."

Surely if one's family had a noble nature, they would not consider a household appliance a suitable gift for the mother they love and esteem.

Enjoy your days!

We're home again!

Just to show that we get some fall colours in Australia! The large green trees are Aussie natives, the smaller coloured ones are I know not what. But they were very pretty. Taken in a park in Bathurst, New South Wales, last Friday.

We had a good visit to Canberra, spent some time with our son and caught up with many friends both at the folk festival and out of it. For some reason though this year my festival experience wasn't as enjoyable as in past years.....I wonder why? It's difficult to say. Perhaps the fact that I spent more time volunteering than in previous years had a lot to do with it; I did my compulsory 20 hours but due to a misunderstanding was rostered on to work for an additional 13.5 hours. I won't do that again. The music I caught up with was good, but because of working so many hours I was unable to see as much as I would have liked - I seemed to be continually looking at my watch to see if it was time to report for duty. Never mind, there's always next year.

We took the long way home, and had a leisurely three day drive with many stops in towns along the way.....some we had visited before, some were new to us and every town we drove through was glorious in their autumn colours. We drove through hills in an area which was teeming in the mid 1800s with gold miners, up and over mountains, and could see for a very very long way - I didn't know it was possible to see that far! We didn't take any pics of the view because neither of us has a camera which would do it justice, but it is imprinted on my brain just the same.

We arrived home to a lovely surprise, a package from our son and his lovely girl in Canada, which we collected this morning from the post office. All sorts of goodies! Pretty Canadian fabrics with blue jays, and totem poles, and lovely hand-made yarn and stitch markers, and books, a CD, and a DVD of 'Corner Gas' - a show I really enjoy, it's a hoot. We are very lucky.

And to make our homecoming even more fun I received a call the other day to say the craft table I ordered several weeks ago had arrived in the shop, so we also picked it up this morning and had the fun of unpacking three large boxes and a smaller package. Kevin is putting it together as we speak. I am keeping out of the way.

Did you all watch The Wedding last Friday night? We didn't, because our small caravan isn't blessed (or cursed, depending on one's point of view) with TV but we caught up with some of the footage after arriving home on Saturday. What a lovely elegant gown, and such pretty sparkly diamond earrings and tiara, and that wow of a bridesmaid dress worn by the bride's sister, all topped off with gorgeous happy smiles. It's good to see something happy and cheerful on TV instead of the murder and mayhem which usually fills the news. And it is very good to see a bride and her attendant wearing gowns which aren't strapless. Let's hope it starts a trend.........

Now we are home I don't know where to start. Before we went away I had started making myself a new tee shirt to try out a pattern, so that will be finished first. Then there is a quilt block to be made for next Monday. And I am thinking I could do with some new winter jammies, the fabric is already in my (obscenely large) stash. And many many weeks ago before I came down with the lurgy I pinned a quilt, and am tracing the quilting design on paper ready for quilting; it is still no further ahead. And I need to practice a few songs.

So many things, so little time..........

"Keep yourself quiet and composed under all circumstances. Do not get fidgety. If you feel that time drags heavily, do not let this be apparent to others by any visible sign of uneasiness."

So there you have it. Stay calm at all times. Even if your ship is sinking and you cannot swim.

Enjoy your days!

See you next month!

Tomorrow morning we are hitching up our caravan and heading off to Canberra, to spend time with our son and to take in the National Folk Festival. Volunteers help this festival run and have done so for many years, and I am proud to be one of them. This year Kevin will be joining me in their ranks - but we will be working in different areas.

We will see friends whom we haven't seen for a year, and taking in some great music, and eating and drinking (in moderation) and being merry. We will be enjoying the autumn colours and doing our best to keep warm, because the nights may be rather cold; hopefully the days will be glorious.

"Foreigners are given to embracing. In France and Germany the parent kisses his grown-up son on the forehead, men throw their arms around the necks of their friends, and brothers embrace like lovers. It is a curious sight to Australians, with their natural prejudices against publicity in kissing."

We will be do our best to be restrained when greeting family and friends.......but it will be good to see them!

So you all be good, and best wishes for Easter.

Enjoy your days!

The ultimate half-square triangle block tutorial

As promised, here is a tutorial for a very easy block which I did not invent but was shown how to make many years ago. It is very easy to chain piece, surprisingly quick to make, and you don't cut any triangles. If you divide your fabrics into light-medium-dark you can get interesting effects when the blocks are sewn together, and the layout possibilities are almost endless. Any half-square triangle layout looks good, and log cabin layouts will also work.

The fabric quantities given will make two 4in blocks at one time. Take note of pressing directions. If the blocks are pressed as shown, they will go together very easily.

From the fabric you wish to feature, cut two, 2-1/2in squares. I used bright colours and prints for mine.

From secondary fabric, cut two 2-1/2in by 3-1/2in rectangle. For this I used different bright green fabrics.

From background fabric cut one, 5-1/2in by 4-1/2in rectangle. I have used white fabric.

You will also need to make a template. Cut one, 4-1/2in square from template plastic or cardboard. Cut in half diagonally to make two triangles. If using cardboard it will need to be renewed from time to time, as the edges will wear away.

Sew each 2-1/2in square to the 2-1/2in side of the small rectangle. Press seams towards square. With squares at opposite ends, join two of these units to make the pieced rectangle unit shown.
On wrong side clip the seam allowance in the centre, being careful not to clip into the stitching.
Press seam allowance away from the square, as shown.
Place triangle template on wrong side of pieced rectangle, making sure it goes over the square in the corner. Using your preferred marker, draw a line along the long triangle edge. Repeat on the opposite corner. I used blue washout marker, but you can use a fine pencil or other marker.
With right sides together, place the pieced rectangle on top of the background 4-1/2in by 5-1/2in rectangle. Stitch along both drawn lines, as shown above and below.
You can see the sewn lines clearly from the back.
Using ruler and rotary cutter, cut 1/4in from each drawn line. Press seam toward large rectangle. This is what your blocks will look like when trimmed and pressed! You can also see the small strip of fabric that was trimmed, and is not needed.
This is a quilt I made several years ago, using this block. The background fabrics are different grey prints, secondary fabric is black solid, and I used several different bright tone-on-tone fabrics for the feature squares. The outer border is also pieced triangles using the background fabrics.

When I made my quilt pre-cut strips and squares had not been invented, but they could easily be used to make this block as many are 2-1/2in wide.

Enjoy making your blocks, and I would love to see pictures of the quilts when they are made!

Edited to add: My quilt was made (and dated) in 1998, and I learnt the technique before that. My quilt was also published as a project in 'Down Under Quilts" magazine in 2004. No doubt it has appeared in other sources....you can't keep a good idea down!

No fame and glory this week

Aren't these glorious fall colours? Today is quite autumnal, with a stiff breeze blowing from the south across the valley and up onto our hill. Much nicer than summer's heat. The photo was taken in Dawes Road, Toronto, Canada; if you know Dawes Road you may recognise it, and you don't - why then, it doesn't matter. Just enjoy the colours.

Last weekend when the state quilt guild visited, a photographer from a local paper was wandering around taking pictures.....I was duly lined up with a few other ladies and posed in front of a quilt. When we received a copy of the paper today there is the photo.......but no me.......

I have been cropped!

While I didn't particularly wish to appear in one of the local rags I can't help feeling slighted.......makes me wonder about the conversation back at the newspaper office when the photos were being selected for publication. "We'll use that one, but oh dear - better get rid of that woman on the end" I can hear them saying. One picture is of the whole room with people sitting, standing and milling around and there I am way over at the back, if you didn't know it was me you probably would never recognise me. And that's OK. At least I wasn't cropped out of that picture, it would have left an odd hole.

There are no pictures of me on my blog. I doubt now there ever will be, because obviously I am something to be shunned and feared. Something with which to frighten small children and give honest people nightmares. I shall never feel the same about the image in the mirror again - that is, if I can bear to even look into a mirror.

On a more cheerful note, I have decided to put up a tutorial on the technique I taught my quilt group recently. I made sample pieces showing the different stages of making the block but the fabrics I used were a bit dull and didn't photograph very well (a bit like me, obviously) so I am cutting out some brighter fabrics. Look for it over the next few days.

Recently I ordered myself a cutting table like this one, I hope it arrives soon. There is a backlog of cutting and pinning, the kitchen bench is a good height but a bit narrow. Still, we use what we have, don't we - even if it is less than ideal.

Last week I had a most unnerving experience. We were on our way out when I decided to visit the bathroom first. Shut the door, lifted the lid on the toilet prior to doing what it is one does in these situations, and noticed a large green tree frog sitting in half in, half out of the water looking up at me with beady eyes. Erk. I very quickly shut the lid and left the room. Kevin, who is braver than I am, lifted it out and put it in the garden. I always check for frogs now before using the toilet. If one was sitting in one's usual position and a cold clammy little hand reached up and touched one on one's bare nether regions.........can you imagine the shock?

Showy dress.

The glaring colors and "loud" costumes, once so common, have given place to sober grays, and browns and olives; black predominating over all. The light, showily-trimmed dresses, which were once displayed in the streets and fashionable promenades, are now only worn in carriages. This display of showy dress and glaring colors is generally confined to those who love ostentation more than comfort."

I was wearing bright colours with an orange top when photographed - perhaps it was considered too loud and glaring to be seen by readers with delicate sensibilities?

Enjoy your days!

A very peculiar seed pod

It's rather strange, isn't it? We think it is a Banksia, the picture was taken late last year when we spent a few days at the coast. The walk along the top of the breakwater ran beside a park, and this tree was just inside the fence.

Had a lovely day yesterday, our town was visited by members of the state quilting guild who came all the way from the Big Smoke. We all - the locals, some visitors from other towns round about, and the women from the city - had a very enjoyable afternoon chatting, and showing and telling our quilts and other masterpieces, then some of us met again later at a local gallery for a reception. We were even taken behind the scenes to see some of the textile works held by the gallery, which has a focus on contemporary textiles.

Daylight saving finished last night, woo hoo! Now the days feel normal again. This week our new bedroom curtains arrived and they do a wonderful job of keeping the room dark; instead of pink curtains which let in quite a lot of light and turn the room red on hot summer afternoons we now have teal, which keeps the room much darker and (I think) suits better. When the pelmet is installed it will be even darker still because at present light seeps over the top of the curtains. Don't know about you folks but I like to sleep in a dark cave, I don't sleep so well if the room is light, and we have a streetlight at the end of our driveway which shines into our bedroom if the curtains aren't dark enough. So yay for the new curtains! Scientists say we need darkness to sleep, and who am I to disagree with science.

Last weekend I made a new recipe, Butter Tart Squares. We tried butter tarts on our first visit to Toronto, Canada, in 2007 and quite enjoyed them.......had them on our subsequent visit and enjoyed them again. We don't have them in Australia, more's the pity. I have been meaning to make them for ages, so was pleased to find this recipe. Although the writer said she left out the nuts and added more raisins, I used both - 1 cup of raisins, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts although I reckon pecans would be good too. We like it. Other people who have tried it here also like it. I shall definitely make it again.

Have been thinking of making up another blog tutorial for the block I taught at quilt group recently. It's very easy, and I am sure you would have fun trying it. Yesterday a few of the group members told me how much they enjoyed learning a new block and how much fun they have had making blocks since then. I am looking forward to seeing the finished quilts........I will feel like a proud parent when I see them!

On Friday I plucked up my courage in both hands, loaded it into a bag, and took it and myself off to the medical centre for my flu shot. There was music playing and even though it wasn't wonderful it wasn't as bad as the previous week's had been. The staff was fine too. I was very brave when the nurse stuck that huge needle into my arm. I haven't had an adverse reaction to the shot in past years but this time I did, my upper arm swelled up and the injection spot was quite red and sore. At least it is settling down now and shouldn't hurt if I lie on it in bed tonight. Nothing worse than trying to get comfortable in bed and rolling onto a sore spot, is there? It makes dropping off to sleep difficult, and I need my beauty sleep.

"Discretion in forming acquaintances.

While an acquaintance formed in a railway carriage or on a steamboat continues only during the trip, discretion should be used in making acquaintances. Ladies may, as has been stated, accept small courtesies and favors from strangers, but must check at once any attempt at unfamiliarity. On the other hand, no man who pretends to be a gentleman will attempt any familiarity. The practice of some young girls just entering into womanhood, of flirting with any young man they may chance to meet, either in a railway carriage or on a steamboat, indicates low breeding in the extreme. If, however, the journey is long, and especially if it be on a steamboat, a certain sociability may be allowed, and a married lady or a lady of middle age may use her privileges to make the journey an enjoyable one, for fellow passengers should always be sociable to each other."

Don't forget that advice, next time you should travel on a steamboat.

Enjoy your days!