Decisions.

Sally Holmes Rose.

Life continues to be very busy - one should never complain about that as it means I am alive, fit and well and able to work and be useful.

Today is Election day in New Zealand. That means decisions. Our elections have certainly paled in significance in the shadow of USA elections. I will say I was quite delighted with the out come there and hope it changes some of the evils in the world. It is a start. That doesn't necessarily give you a clue to my political leanings - cause I don't really have any. I sit in the middle; a swinging voter ( I like that term ) because it means I am not set in my views; I am prepared to listen, read, think and consider and hence I get to polling day still undecided. (This has happened before ) I didn't sleep well last night.

2 things I dislike very much are people trying to push their political views or religious views down my throat. ( those are very personal things ) ( DH doesn't even know for sure who I vote for )

Things I have learnt about Elections.

* People think They know how you vote because of who you are or what you are or where you live or what you do.

* Spending election night when the results come out with friends can be a disturbing and risky things to do - ( hence we are staying in alone having our own wee special picnic in the lounge in front of the TV )

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I don't usually eat pastry these days but have made an exception today. I heard this idea on the radio for making food suitable for watching election results by, so I am making Picnic Pie ( or Meat Loaf Pie ). ( never made it before ! ) I will tell you how it turns out next post; but basically if you have a nice meatloaf recipe use it as the filling in a pie with savoury pastry. We will eat it with salad and new potatoes and tasty extra nibbles and a few drinks. Our picnic will not be on a rug on the floor - more our usual positions for watching TV. DH slouched in his chair; me on the couch with cushions at my back my feet up under a quilt hand sewing...... ( I will be awake; he will be snoring and missing vital parts of the commentary! )

A couple of elections ago we were invited out to friends' place for dinner and the evening watching the election results. They had friends staying from another part of the country so there were 6 of us. Dinner was yummy and fun as it always is at this home BUT later as those not driving had a few, things got interesting. ( basically I was the only driver, so possibly saw the funny side ). The 2 out of town visitors, had voted very to the left; the 2 home owners voted to the right, DH voted slightly to the right and I was in the middle - no one knew how I had voted. As the evening wore on the home owners discovered results were not going their way. Eventually they got the huff and said " We are going to bed. Good night." And off they went. (Their house guest had to meet them over breakfast. )We stayed on, then let our selves out later. Strangely we are all still friends and the evening has never been mentioned but we decided to learn from it and stay home. If we want to disagree, we will do it just the 2 of us.

Lunch time now , then we must drive down to our nearest polling booth and cast our votes! I might walk the 4 kms back.

I have continued to hand quilt fish on J's quilt most evenings. Nothing else at all.

Appearances.

Appearances can be deceptive. How can anything that looks as appealing as those red radishes taste so dull - just a pungent peppery nothing much in my opinion. Still I grow them happily cause they give colour and variety to a salad. Aubergine are another veg that for me disappoint. DH would not agree they are one of his favourites.

We have had a week of windy fine days filled with hard work and many garden jobs. Things are growing like mad so that is good but it means meals take longer to prepare when beans have first to be picked then podded before cooking. The taste is superb so I guess it is worth it. I tickled a new potato and they are big enough to steal. Broad beans which many people don't like are so doing so well we are eating them as babies( that's by far the nicest way ) every second day. Silver beet and lettuces are getting ahead of me but any waste goes to compost to come around again!

The flower gardens are getting buffeted by wind but things are bright and pick able and the bees are in Heaven. Photos are of Irises, Roses and Red Rover Alstroemeria and the small purple flowers are on a Sandpaper vine ( it leaves are that coarse ).

The only sewing time I have had this week is after dinner at night when I am tired, but can manage a bit of hand quilting on J's quilt. I am using a seahorse motif in variegated thread to further the seaside theme.The purple binding went on better than I hoped and the whole little quilt ( 45"

by 45 " )actually lies flat - so I am well pleased with my efforts there. Enjoy your weekend everyone.

It Makes Me Stop and Think.

Before I start on the subject of today's post I want to say Thanks for the interesting comments about the mail boxes.Those were very normal ones - I will start a collection of strange inventive and unusual ones! Sharon, microwaves probably make very weather proof mailboxes - a good use for a clapped out one.Unfortunately boxes sometimes get trashed here, too, Deb. Julie - so glad you like Avos - I'll try and remember that if I am coming your way, as we grow them.

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I'm so glad it is the Weekend - a long one here ( Labour weekend NZ ) as we have been working SO hard. My neck and arms get over worked and my finger tips look like I smoke 50 a day.( which of course I don't )( We are crush tipping and bud thining the Kiwifruit )I have been neglecting my blog friends this last busy week - sorry.

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It Makes Me Stop and Think.

Until recently a lady who I will call J here, was a member of the P and Q group I belong to. She became less and less with us ( in every sense of those words ) She has 2 things wrong with her and one was interfering with her ability to speak ( and possibly think ).For a while she was still driving and that concerned us, but then that too stopped. For some months she still liked to come and sit and be with us; but then quite rapidly she became worse.

The out come has been that her husband and family have moved both of them to a very nice residential care / home ( at Tamihere near Hamilton ) where she can have on going help. In the course of moving and cleaning out their home for the shift the husband boxed up ALL her fabric and unfinished quilts and batting. There were just so many flimsies and unfinished projects. ( maybe she really had started them and forgotten and started something else? )ALL her stuff was delivered to our group. SO as a group we decided it would be best for us to buy any fabric we wanted from her stash ( What I got is in the 3rd photo ) for a sensible donation and we would all select quilt tops we thought we could finish for her - then we will delivered them and the donations to Tamihere to the home so she and her family and fellow residents can use and get pleasure from them.

J's favourite colour was GREEN! Almost every quilt has green in it.

I selected to finish for her a top with green and purple, as I was most likely to have fabrics suitable in those colours. It has a seaside theme. It has been a challenge! Never before have I tried to work with so many problems. The middle 14 inch square - isn't ( square ) and things got worse as I continued out. Some stitching has popped undone, so I have tried to use the machine quilting I have done to hold those wee patches firm. As I sew I am humbled and troubled by J. It is a very salient lesson. What if my family had to clear out my sewing cupboard? What if someone else had to finish what I have started? I am going to write a note for the inside of the sewing cupboard door with my current wishes for my gear ( it can be changed over time ). I will make time this weekend to put the binding I have selected ( see top photo )( left from my Purple Splendour quilt ) on to the quilt and continue doing some hand quilting to liven it up. The machine quilting - mainly in the ditch is not perfect because of the shape but I have learnt about fudging and stretching parts to help the problems.

Personally I am a finisher, but I too have a few works in progress in my cupboard. I have also got some very special fabrics that I would not want wasted , so I must not be afraid to cut into them....I can always get more ( if I get to be very old .LOL )

In our group we have several ladies with health problems, so I am very lucky to be fit and healthy - able to work and sew and garden - for now anyway.

Have a lovely weekend everyone. ( it is pouring down here now so I will get to sew.Yippee! )

Mailboxes.

If you walk where I walk, along country roads in BOP, New Zealand you will come across MAILBOXES.

Many stand in friendly groups.

Do you prefer red or green?

Yellow or blue?

Grey or silver perhaps? Or black? Some stand beside fruit stalls.

Our mail box stands in a group of 4. Do you have a mail box or letterbox ? Have you ever taken it's photograph?

Then There Was 3.

A flowery "Good Morning to You! "

There are many very lovely Rhododendrons flowering at the moment. This one ( called Unique ) I spied had been attacked by thrips which makes the leaves all silver. I picked this bunch and removed all the leaves and put them in a large vase to admire their delicate beauty.

Then there were 3!............ 3 fabric baskets of slightly different sizes.( did they morph or was there some reproducing going on in the sewing cupboard ? )

Even more strange ( not really ) they then progressed and grew in the mind of the maker at 3 am, into this purple bag. It has short handles ( half padded - new trick ) and 2 pockets in the lining and will be most useful. I just have to find the right beautiful button for the closure tab and it's mine to use. ( do click to enlarge the photo so you can see the fabulous fabric. )

The sun is shining so now I must go and do crush tipping on the Kiwifruit ( ugh! ) ( I will probably think up my next project while working cause it's a repetitive mindless job. )

* It's about a year since we first tried to sell our property and were still here! Considering the World Economy maybe it's just as well??? Who knows ?

Sometimes It's in the Detail.

Although there are more quilt photos I could show, I will finish Our Exhibition by showing some closeups.
Sometimes it's in the detail and finishing or extra touches that makes a quilt distinctive.For example in the border around a quilt that didn't really appeal to me it's border detail did.Tiny flowers and leaves made by folding bias tapes joined the quilted stems and twigs together.( click to enlarge )
Pat Heslop made the whole cloth quilt by hand - she wanted to always have some handwork to do and this is the finished result.Hard to photograph - but it was amazing.
Anna used special buttons on her wall hanging of blue and white teapots( see previous post for photo ). They each had a word like love, hope etc.


If there is something about the quilt in the final photo that you think you have seen before - you would be right. Shame it's a bit dark in the pic. I was very proud of it, and it was a large splash of yummy colour right as you walked into the room.
Answers.
* Yes, Paula they are french knots.The rest was stitched in the ditch - quite lightly quilted.
*Yes Anne B we do know who Kenny Everit was we saw him on TV frequently many years ago.

Yet More Quilts.

More Quilts from Our Exhibition.

The top photo is a scrap buster quilt by Jill Mc Coy.

The blue and white triangles had a fabulous clean crisp appearance . I love it's simplicity.

Jenni Scott made both these fabulous bags. She won The Challenge - where the star block she has used in the bag had to be incorporated into what ever you made.The other bag she made at a class - it has covers for a drink bottle, phone, coin purse etc all part of the Mother bag. It is sensational. ( I think loosely based on a Japanese pattern )She loves browns and fawns.

Helen O' Connor's frog wall hanging appealed to lots of the young viewers we had enjoying our show.

This lovely red Dresden plate quilt by Barbara Clarke, can be found in Issue # 28 of The Australian Quilters Companion - where she gives instructions on how she made this quilt. ( lucky us to now have her in our group! )

(photos enlarge with clicking ) More tomorrow!

Our Quilt Exhibition.

So far our ( Tauranga Patchwork & Quilters ) Exhibition is going well. It was very busy yesterday morning. I am not there today but am back all day tomorrow. I will over the next few posts show a selection of the quilts. ( too many to show all )

The double wedding ring quilt was made by one of our ladies, who has recently found out she has lung cancer ( not a smoker ) so we are hoping she might win Viewers' Choice. It is made using all NZ fabrics which is lovely.

The (dolls ) ladies were made at a Jill Maas class. What attitude - they are adorable.

I happened to over hear 2 small girls, about 7 and 8 I'm guessing, trying to decide which quilt to vote for. One understandably liked the very bright ( pink, purple and lime green ) quilt with the Gerbra flowers - She said, "I'm going to pick this one." The other girl so" No! Can't you see that is boring. It is just the same thing repeated again and again.' This one over here that I'm going to vote for is much more interesting." ( it was a pictorial quilt. ) Discerning viewers!

All photos enlarge with clicking - More on Monday!

Baskets and Bags.

Here's the 2nd wee fabric basket I made. Not so wee this time. It probably has nearly twice the capacity of the first wee one. The lining measures 17 by 12 inches so that will give an idea of the final size. Finished it sits 6.5 " high and 11 inches from end seam to end seam. I used some of the Laurel Burch Christmas fabric from the jelly roll I purchased last week. I found when I sewed the box ends I got some little tucks in the fabric which bugged me. So I reopened the lining and went in for a repair operation - now no tucks nice and neat. With the end already cut off I was able to put my finger in the end to flatten it; then I tacked it and checked before resewing it. Now I'm happy with it.

As my group ( Tauranga Patchwork and Quilters ) is holding it's Exhibition next Friday, Saturday and Sunday I have been getting my 2 entries ready. I made this big sack for Purple Splendour and the other smaller quilt also has it's own purple satin Pillow case. I am part way through making the label for the big quilt and tried out 2 of the wee die cut hearts on it. They adhered very easily and look cute. It still has to be completed and sewn on so I'm nearly ready. Last year's velcro hanging strips will fit joined together. SO we all have a busy few days ahead. We hang the quilts on Thursday at a different venue this year..... much smaller and right in the city. ( it was all a venue price thing )Room for less traders stalls but that can't be helped.For anyone local reading this it is being held at Baycourt in Tauranga.

What is your favourite non expensive sewing aid? ( I take it we all love our machines; rotary cutters, cutting boards and rulers. ) Mine might be a wee chalk marker. You may all have them BUT if you don't I would recommend one. The screw top end removes so refill chalk can be added and if you look very closely at the pointy end you may see the wee teeth of the wheel that leave the fine chalk line. I find it excellent and the chalk line brushes away later if still visible. ( it's a Clover product )What is your favourite?

Fabulous Quilts.

4 more fabulous quilts I enjoyed at the Show in Hamilton. 3 from the NANZQ Quilts Aotearoa Exhibition and 1 from the Japanese Textile display.

Best use of Colour was won by Natalie Murdoch. I saw Natalie at the show and told her I loved her wall hanging. She was the lady who took our class on Hearts Quilts at Retreat in May last year.Some of the leaves in her piece were reinforced and only lightly attached so they curled like Autumn leaves.

The 2nd quilt here , with the circles is called Mandala by Sachiko Gunji. On close inspection I think it was made using a combination of reverse and ordinary applique, which gave it texture as some shapes bulged and others receded.

The quilt in aqua and brown is by Donna Ward who lives in Hamilton.

The next one I can't remember who made it and now I can't read the ticket but the detail was amazing and the gold made it look very precious.

* Helen -Yes, I did see Mariya Walters quilt.( Best in Show ) It was breathtakingly beautiful. ( the detail was so fine it was almost off putting and I can understand why it took so long to make. The photo on the front of the NZ Quilter mag is the one to get a look at it .The gold around each shape was about 1/4' in or less.)

* - Janice I saw your 2 lovely entries. Your Delphiniums 111 was lovely. My photo of it doesn't do it justice as it was below a large window. Please look at Janice's entries on her blog.

***( all photos are clickable to enlarge and none are my work )

Quilts and Shopping.

This has been a week of variety. I've done orchard work, gardening, been to a funeral and also to the Quilt and Craft Fair in Hamilton.

The photos are a few I took at the Exhibition of quilts and the purchases I made. Huge windows above the quilts made it difficult to get good photos, so I only took about a dozen.The standard of work was amazingly high.( please note quilts shown here are by unknown people)Next post I will tell you about the quilts on display that were by ladies I do know.

I purchased a 5" wide Jelly Roll of Laurel Burch Christmas fabrics, cause I love her designs and have some gift ideas in mind. I started collecting some bright plainish fabrics and those with gold on for a quilt I am to start making for DH ( his idea ), and of course a few fat quarters I loved (just because I loved them.) I also got a couple of packets of the dye cut shapes which are ready to iron on - I've not used them before - so will see if I like them. I went with 4 other ladies - one of the younger ones drove us all , and I bought the least - some of them have an amazing insatiable appetite for spending and obviously the where with all to do it! We had a lovely day out but I was exhausted after the 11 hours it took.Having fun can be tiring.Back to the garden now while the sun is shining.

* Molly, we don't want to move - it's cause it may get too much for us to cope with.We are in no hurry to go, so are prepared to wait and see what turns up.( people are not rushing to buy the property you'll notice )