Every phone needs a case

My Lovely New (Green!) Phone now has a case.

Some quilted fabric left over from making a bag was used for a nifty phone case.  The hook fastening was self-stick but the edges started to kick up a little, so they were stitched down.

You can see the green phone and the green case don't ~quite~ match. but what the heck.....green is green, right?  This was the bag from which the leftover piece came.

Those fabrics were brought some years ago from a store in Canberra which has now closed down.....as soon as I saw it on the shelf I knew some had to come home with me.  The not-quite-solid shot green is a great match too, yes?  Pattern is McCalls 4118, but I'm not sure if it's still current or if it's been discontinued.

That's pretty much been the sum total of my achievements this week, although a few rows were knitted on my jumper and stitches were taken on the flower basket quilt.  Early in the week I was asked to swap morning tea/BOM duties with another member of my quilt group who is unwell; not a problem said I, and I even found a block which was first decided on two years ago before the world fell apart, so now it has left my sewing room.  

The Cunning Plan for the coming week is to cut more diamonds, and to make a start cutting sashing for house blocks.  That is the Plan.  Whether it will actually happen.....ah, that we don't know.

On Wednesday night we took ourselves to the theatre to see an amateur production of 'The Full Monty'...oh my goodness.  It was very cheeky....very cheeky indeed; six blokes' worth of cheek!  The film was a hit several years ago, the stage show came later but kept very close to the film plot.  I shall never look at that young bloke who does the sports report on the nightly news the same way.

It has rained, welcome rain, as the garden had started to dry out.  At least we have been spared the floods which so many other places have had to cope with.  One of these days we may even pull up a few weeds, once the ground has had a chance to soften and make that task easier.  Every time we venture out we notice more signs that summer is ending and the rich colours of autumn are on the way.

Now that mask wearing is only compulsory in a few circumstances - mostly medical - it is so good to be able to interact once more with people we meet and indeed to be able to recognise people without most of their face covered, although staff in various businesses still wear them. I have ventured out more in the past couple of weeks than for several months; it's been easy to become a hermit and stay home rather than cope with the stress and panic of having to wear a mask.  

Now we have worked our way to the end of 'Duties of Guests', we have specific advice for gentlemen:

"Some suggestions for gentlemen.

A gentleman should never attempt to step across a lady's train.  He should walk around it.  If by any action he should tread upon any portion of her dress, he must instantly beg her pardon, and if by greater carelessness he should tear it, he must pause in his course and offer to escort her to the dressing-room so that she may have it repaired."

Wise words to keep in mind, gentlemen, although in this day and age not many women wear a long dress with a train apart from their wedding day - and sometimes not even then.

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer

Success!

Have you all had a good week?  We have, although it was busy busy busy....we were out nearly every day, now that activities are cranking up again.  Never mind; it's good to be among people again, and to catch up with folks we haven't seen for what seems like a very long time.

During the week the decision was made to trace around a few possible template sizes for tumbling blocks so some were chosen, traced around in threes to get an idea of size, and a choice made to go with size E as a finished size.  Best of all - the diamonds already cut fit inside this shape, so they can be recut rather than wasted.  

This will be a good size when more are made and joined; the lightest colour will be at the top of the box while the darker fabrics will form the 'sides'.  The fabrics were more or less sorted into lightest - darkest - everything else.  More or less.  These are fabrics used in my tumbler quilt and as with that there is no fussy cutting here either; the fabric designs just fall where they are cut.  I can do random.  Some people have trouble with random - I have no trouble with it at all.

Not sure what that says about my brain, you know......

This template pack has nine different sizes, the smallest is half inch finished.....it that fiddly-diddly, or what?  This one is marked "3 inch hex".

Yesterday, it seems, was International Quilting Day, always held on the third Saturday in March rather than a fixed date, so it's appropriate that my little block was made on that day.  Another block was also finished by machine.

It was also our anniversary.....yes indeedy folks, 46 years of wedded bliss and so far neither of us has yet committed murder!  We took ourselves out to lunch, and a very nice lunch it was too.  

All the house blocks are trimmed.  This is a cause for rejoicing.  Now the sashing strips will be cut; the directions in the book aren't very specific as to number of strips, but I can count the strips in the picture.  Then it will be sew-sew-sew.  And sew on.

Our long-awaited choir concert now has a fixed date after two on-again off-again years.  It will be on 30th April, so we have delayed our trip south until after that.  The ukulele group has been asked to be a 'guest artist' and I have also been asked to repeat my performance from last year's Eisteddfod, how nice is that.....fame at last, at my advanced age!

Tomorrow is the autumn equinox, the official start of autumn, as we were taught at school.  For some of you it will be spring with bunnies and blossoms, while for us it's cooler nights (this morning was a little chilly) and rich colours.

The last of our "Duties of guests":

"While the hostess is receiving, no person should remain beside her except members of her family who receive with her, or such friends as she has designated to assist her.  All persons entering should pass on to make room for others."

Yes.  Once you have greeted your hostess move into the room.  Don't stand in the doorway or block up the hall, as Bob Dylan said.

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer

Breezin' along with the breeze

Like the old song.  Over the past week we seem to have been chasing our tails with very little to show for it; waiting at appointments (don't you feel like sending a bill for wasting your time when your appointment is for a specific time and you still end up waiting?  I do), filling in time while the lenses on my reading glasses were changed for newer stronger ones - I can now thread a needle again, yay! - and other ways to use up time.

We even had a ukulele group gig, our first since mid-November last year.  Our token bloke Brian asked us to be the entertainment for the monthly meeting of his prostate cancer group.  The members and their support people said nice things to us and about us, and we (and hopefully they) had an enjoyable afternoon.  The yummy home-made treats for afternoon tea weren't bad either.....butterfly cakes, chocolate walnut brownie.....I would happily play for them again.....

Our world is getting busier; the coming week has a few 'firsts' again after so many activities were shut down for so long.  First day back volunteering at a gallery on Tuesday, first U3A meeting tomorrow, first U3A ukulele get-together on Thursday, sewing group on Wednesday.  I'm wondering if I should schedule a time just to sit and draw breath.

While waiting for Kevin to come out of his appointment I managed to get a few rows knitted on the jumper I haven't touched for *ahem* some months.  It's now only one centimetre (or half an inch in old money) from being long enough for the armhole decrease.

Yarn is 'Rustic' 8 ply from Bendigo Woollen Mills, colour Mustard.  That's about equivalent to DK for the non-Aussies.  I just lurve the colour.....haven't decided if it will be a jumper (sweater) or cardy, but am leaning towards a jumper.  The back and sleeves are the same in any case so they will be made first, and one of my knitting stitch dictionaries has come up trumps with an intricate cable design for the front.

The decision also hasn't been made about what size diamonds to cut for tumbling blocks.  The smaller of these makes a 3.5 inch hexagon while the larger is four inches; the previous template was in between the two of these.  I quite like the smaller....perhaps I should do what was done before, and make one of each to see which I prefer.

If a little fabric is wasted in the process....why then, it's only fabric, isn't it?  There's plenty more where that came from....

Trimming the house blocks continues, the pile of 'to be trimmmed' blocks is diminishing and the pile of 'done finished trimming' blocks is growing.  Had the week been less busy more would have been done, but never mind.  It will get done.   

The world seems to be in....not a good place lately, doesn't it?  Some days it makes you feel like staying in bed with the covers over your head wishing it would all go away and be magically transmogrified into lollipops and rainbows again, but we know that's not going to happen.  Sigh....

The reason for the medical stuff is because once we reach a Certain Age the state government has decreed that we have a medical assessment declaring us fit to drive a motor vehicle.  It includes an eye assessment (I have an annual eye check-up in any case, have done for a long time) and questions being ticked off by a doctor.  Sigh....at least it is now done for the year, so a 12 month respite before having to do it again.  And again.....I really don't like going to the doctor, I try to avoid medical Stuff wherever possible.  If only it would avoid me.

Recently my phone died and had to be replaced.  I am now the owner of a new phone, pastel green, a pretty thing indeed.  It needs a padded case and in my sewing stash is the Very Thing, a piece of quilted fabric left over from a bag made some years ago.  Green, of course....when the house blocks are all trimmed.

Continuing "Duties of guests":

"It is not binding upon any gentleman to remain one moment longer than he desires with any lady.  By constantly moving from one to another, when he feels so inclined, he gives an opportunity to others to circulate as freely; and this custom, generally introduced in our society, would go a long way toward conributing to the enjoyment of all.  The false notion generally entertained that a gentleman is expected to remain standing by the side of a lady, like a sentinel on duty, until relieved by some other person, is absurd, and deters many who would gladly give a few passing moments to lady acquaintances could they but know that they would be free to leave at any instant that conversation flagged, or that they desired to join another.  In a society where it is not considered a rudeness to leave after a few sentences with one, to exchange some words with another, there is a constant interchange of civilities, and the men circulate through the room with that charming freedom which ensures the enjoyment of all."

Indeed.  You are permitted to circulate - in fact, please do.

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer

Keeping out of mischief

That's about all has happened this week, actually.

Books have been read.....most not memorable, but enjoyable at the time. 

Stitches have been taken on the flower basket quilt and a name is percolating around in my brain - 'Flower baskets'  - but in French, 'Paniers de fleurs', which sounds more posh and less boring than English, n'est ce pas?  Many years ago a suitable label was bought for that quilt, and last year backing was bought. 

The soft lime green will compliment the flower prints on the front as many of them have green somewhere in the design, and the label will have the details hand-embroidered.  The label is not *quite* square, and not *quite* printed on the straight grain, but I'll make it work.

The diamond templates I ordered have arrived but nothing has been cut yet, as my back decided to be annoying every time I stood up.  Never mind.....it will get done.

Some house blocks have been trimmed, once again the rebellious back made that difficult.  Trim two blocks, sit down for an hour......trim another block.....give up.  Make coffee.  Sit down and read.  Fortunately it is slowly improving.

The big news in this part of the world of late has been floods.  Fortunately we don't live in a flooded area but having undergone two floods in 2017 I can feel for those who have been washed out of their homes - and our water was clean, straight from the town system, not muddy water carrying along trees, dead animals, parts of buildings and sewage in its wake.  Lives have been lost, homes have been irreparably damaged; farmers have lost stock, crops and buildings.  Our hearts go out to them.  I remember bad floods when I was growing up and a family we knew was regularly flooded out of their timber cottage; I remember Mrs Wilson saying to my mother "you can sweep out the mud when it dries but you never get rid of the smell, because it has seeped into the wood".

One of the saddest stories though - to me, anyway - is the damage done to a beautiful piece of furniture, the Hannah Cabinet.  On a visit to the Bungendore Woodworks Gallery several years ago we saw the Hannah Cabinet on display.....and I don't think I have ever seen such an exquisite man-made object; we walked around and ogled it, and watched the video, and walked around some more.....admired the marquetry made from many different woods and stones featuring Aussie birds and flora.  Those of us who make Stuff can appreciate things made by other makers, the hours of work it takes, the skills needed (even if we don't use the same skills), and to have it damaged so badly must be heartbreaking to its maker.  I hope it is able to be saved.

We have been lucky enough to see other pieces of Geoff Hannah's work, one being the cabinet held at 'Yarralumla', the official residence of the Australian Governor General.  Once a year (this was pre-covid, of course) the ground floor public rooms are opened to the public for charity, and we saw the Yarralumla Cabinet there.  I coveted it mightily then, and I still do today......and I love the "secret drawers", so watch it to the end.

We enjoyed a concert from a visiting choir last night, our first outing for a long time.  We even enjoyed a choc top ice cream at interval - our first for two years, how good is that!

More 'Duties of Guests':

"Another duty of guests is that each one should do all in his or her power to contribute to the enjoyment of the evening, and neither hesitate nor decline to be introduced to such guests as the hostess requests."

Sage advice.  The hostess, after all, is trying to keep her guests mingling, and a shy wallflower contributes very little to the occasion.

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer

Well, that's not going to work

The Great Plan for making tumbling blocks has come to a grinding halt.  Something about the way the diamonds came together didn't look right so I traced out a few on paper, and sure enough - where the points of the diamonds meet there is a hole.  So...that has been shelved for a while, new templates ordered (this time with seam allowances included) and a temporary halt called.

Never mind.  Onward and upward......

During the week the sashing was cut for my house quilt.  Cutting one inch strips is a slightly fiddly-diddly thing to do but it is all done, and the narrow sashing will provide paths between the houses.

They remind me of those old cloth tape measures with black markings - or road crossings.  Some of the strips may be slightly less than straight, there could be a bend caused by the fabric fold, but as many of the strips will be cut into nine inch lengths that bend won't be obvious in the finished quilt.  I hope.  The straightest strips will be used for the longest paths.

One corner was mocked-up to see how it looks......what do you think?

You can see why I wanted those pieced green setting triangles, and why I was so pleased to rediscover that yellow and black fabric in my stash!  The blocks are also being trimmed to finish at nine inches square; it would have been easier to do a couple at a time as they were made, but my brain wasn't thinking that far ahead.  It often doesn't.

My goodness, the world seems to be going to hell in a handbasket, doesn't it?  The powerful try to become more so, and the little people end up being trampled underfoot....sadly, it was ever thus.

Some of our restrictions are being eased, for which we are exceedingly thankful.  Masks are no longer necessary everywhere we go (except, of course, for places such as hospitals and aged care places and anywhere where distancing isn't possible) which will make daily life better for most of us.  Many will still choose to wear them - that's their choice.  It won't be mine.  It will be good to be able to go places without feeling as though there is a bag over our heads cutting off communication with the world around us; people with hearing problems have been feeling shut out, it has been very difficult for them.

After all these years - I don't remember how many - my signature (from a site which these days seems to charge for everything, as so many do) seems to have dropped off my blog!  Never mind, there is a new free one.   Green of course.  I am quite fond of green, you know....

We are still proceeding with plans to head south in April, even though we won't be at the folk festival this year.  The Cunning Plan is to leave here on Easter Tuesday and arrive in Canberra on Thursday afternoon, enjoy the beautiful autumn colours on the way, shop, catch up with family and see how The One And Only Grandkid has grown, shop a little more.....while Canberra isn't the Big Smoke it is getting bigger and smokier every time we visit.  At one stage, many years ago, it was on our list of places we could retire to once we shook the dust of the Big City from our heels, but it has grown so much since then we are glad we didn't choose it.  Then, blow me down, less than a year after we moved here our older son took a job transfer to where else but - Canberra!

Oh well.  It gives us an excuse to visit.

Kevin's family history research continues.  One interesting thing:  his great-grandfather, and his father, were both tailors.  Great-grandfather John Dolan is described on his death certificate as being a "master tailor", while his father - another John Dolan - is said to be a "tailor's cutter'.  One of them, we don't know which one, was declared bankrupt in 1884.  There were possibly more than two men called John Dolan who worked in the tailoring trade at the time, but surely there wouldn't have been too many; John Jnr would have been in his late twenties at the time, we don't know how old his father would have been.  It's interesting - and throws up many questions, some of which we can answer and some of which we may never be able to.

More 'Duties of Guests':

"It is the duty of every person to arrive as early as possible after the hour named, when it is mentioned in the invitation."

Not, however, too early.  You don't want to catch your hosts unawares with their hair still in curlers and their dancing shoes still needing to be polished.

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer

Up and running again

Recently I had to drop out of the human race for several days, but all is well now.  Like a good person I did as we are being told and had my booster for the covid plague, but while Kevin sailed through his with no after-effects I had a nasty reaction which totally wiped me out.  I'll spare you the gruesome details, suffice to say it's a long time since I have felt so unwell....but normal programming has now been resumed.

A couple of trial blocks have been made.

I really like the little one, it's so cute, but the larger one is easier to mark and cut......so, the larger one it is.  Seam allowances were pressed under so the finished size could be seen and measured; pieces for several of these blocks have been cut and more will be done in the odd moment or two, but not a stitch will be taken - not one! - until we go away in a couple of months.  It's not as though I lack for other things to do here at home, after all.

Fabric has been purchased for the back of the house quilt.

Last year I bought a wide backing from a store which specialises in wide fabrics so when the "annual sale" email came through early last month I thought to myself......"hhmm" I thought.....and checked out the fabrics.  This design came in different backgrounds, green, orange, blue, red, purple, but the yellow is bright and cheerful (although the pic is a little dark) so yellow it is.  The green was very tempting though.....

Last Sunday we went out to lunch a day early, to celebrate Kevin's birthday.  We hopped into our red rental car (ours is due home from car hospital on Tuesday), drove half an hour north to a village up in the hills, and had a very nice lunch at a local pub.  They have a pretty garden with flowers and trees....and the trees are changing!  We are also noticing down here in the valley that some trees are losing their summer brightness and beginning to look faded and tired, a sign that summer is on the way out.  A sports ground that we drive past on our way into town has a deciduous vine covering its fence -  and it, too, is changing.  We have had some hot days this summer, but on the whole it hasn't been as unpleasant as it sometimes is.

The dreaded mask has had to be worn of late for things such as the annual eye exam.  My eyes aren't as good as they were a year ago - threading a fine needle is more difficult, for example - so a new prescription is needed for my glasses.  Probably a good idea to have a task light too, they said.  Probably a good idea, said I....so now I am on the hunt for a light to sit beside my chair.  Hopped online, found one I like...gulped at the price...still gulping, but will talk to the helpful folk at a lighting shop.  The alternative is the Big Green and Red Shop which has a large stock including the light I like, but not always helpful advice.  That will be this week's conundrum, hopefully to be soon solved.

Also looming, when I get around to making an appointment, is the necessary medical check for people who reach A Certain Age (which I will in May).  This now becomes an annual thing, much as I dislike the thought.  The aim is to get this out of the way before we head down south, assuming the world is open enough that we can go, so I don't have to worry about dates expiring and stuff like that.

More 'Duties of Guests'.

"It is the duty of every lady who attends a ball, to make her toilet as fresh as possible.  It need not be expensive, but it should at least be clean; it may be simple, but it should be neither soiled nor tumbled.  The gentlemen should wear evening dress."

'Freshness' is easier for us now than it would have been in those far-off days, I think.

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer

A shocking thought......

.....has popped into my mind.

We are hoping to be able to go down south in April to catch up with family and to enjoy the autumn colours - and I will have no hand-pieced travel project!  Isn't that too terrible to contemplate?  My flower basket quilt is so big now it's at the stage where it's not portable any more; there is a jumper in progress which has stalled for the moment as not a stitch is knitted in summer's heat; it's a cooler weather project so it could be taken along.  Over the past several years I am quite enjoying the peace of hand-piecing, and miss it when there is none.

So......over the past little while my thoughts, as a song by Tom Paxton (one of my long-time favourite singers) says, are a-tumblin' round and round, and Tumbling Blocks fell out.  Late last year I was given a 60 deg diamond template which can be used for a one-patch project, so pieces have been cut in two different sizes.

The smaller pieces are cut around the template with seam allowances on the inside so it will be smaller again when joined, while the larger pieces have the seam allowances added to the outside.  Neither are yet joined - this is a trial to see which of the two sizes I prefer, but I suspect ease of marking and cutting will mean the larger one gets my vote.  Sides will be two inches when finished.  There is still a heap ton of reproduction fabrics, leftovers from my tumbler quilt, begging to be used; I think they will do nicely, don't you?

Finally Mother Nature has taken pity on us and cooled down our part of the earth, and it is very pleasant.  The past few nights have been downright cool; we are sleeping better, not feeling wrung-out, and are looking forward to autumn.  A couple of nights ago the news showed footage of a small town north-east of us where their trees are already changing; admittedly it has a colder climate, but it does mean that summer is heading in the right direction - away from us.  Days are shorter now too.

Great excitement in our street last weekend.  Over a few days Kevin had been noticing, in his comings and goings, several police vehicles set up outside a house further down our street - then we read in the local paper that a house was raided and a bloke arrested for manufacturing and dealing drugs, not something we want in our normally very quiet street.  Our house is number 68, this took place at number 11 so not very near us.......and now all is quiet again.

Some excitement we didn't want, though: earlier in the week someone ran into our car while it was parked, leaving the front damaged.  They did not hang around to exchange details, no one else saw anything, so we have no idea who did it - but we're the ones who have to negotiate with the insurance company, and we're the ones inconvenienced.  Cowards.  I hope their wheels fall off.

'Duties of Guests' is quite a long paragraph, so it is being broken up into smaller bites:

"It is the duty of every person who has at first accepted an invitation, and subsequently finds that it will be impossible to attend, to send a note of explanation, even at the last moment, and as it is rude to send an acceptance with no intention of going, those who so accept will do well to remember this duty."

It is very frustrating when one organises an event and people neither accept nor decline, something which I believe is becoming more prevalent in today's casual lifestyle - and something which is very discourteous to the hosts.  In fact, I would say it's downright rude.  Perhaps they are hanging out for a better offer?

Enjoy your days!