BVAC Pop Up Shop

Last weekend I took part in the BVAC Pop Up Shop at the Mt Coot-tha Botanical Gardens, together with fellow Queensland Quilters Mel (in photo above), Jane R, Jane W and Chris. It was great fun - I sold quite a few things (mainly  pencil rolls and postcards), it was nice and cool in the airconditioned room, and I got a lot of my Christmas shopping done!



We are going home to the Netherlands for Christmas - I had planned to make presents for family and friends, but just didn't have the time, so buying handmade presents is the next best thing, right?

Quilting retreat!

A week ago I was packed and ready to go on a quilting retreat! My friend Rens picked me up and we drove via Gatton (where there was a Christmas craft market) to Edmund Park, near Thornton in the Lockyer Valley. This was the view we had over the Great Dividing Range:



It was the same place as three years ago, again organised by Julie. It did look a bit greener then...



The beautiful jacaranda was in bloom again...



And there were still lots of wallabies:



Here is Rens, working on a quilt for a friend:



Apart from the Dutch post bag that I showed in the previous posting, I worked on three projects:



The blue squares are scraps of my favourite fabrics. There weren't enough for a quilt, so I made a cushion. I love it! (and so do the boys)



Remember the pencil roll I made last year from a kilt I found at the op shop? I gave it to a friend after she told me loved it (yes, if friends or family tell me they love my stuff there is a good chance they end up getting it!). I still had most of the kilt and one more clasp, so I finally made another pencil roll - had been planning that for ages! Think I will keep this one myself :-)



The third project I worked on is a quilt I am making for a friend. I will show it here soon in a separate posting.

PTT Post Bag

I am very happy to be able to show you this bag! I finally found the courage to cut up the vintage Dutch post bag that my best friend gave me when we  were in Holland in 2012:



(The text above the Dutch tricolour says 'property ptt post' in Dutch, the text below 'post netherlands 84' in French. PTT used to be the postal service in the Netherlands)
I adjusted the Alice Book Bag pattern that I used to make my mail bag(see previous post) to include the Dutch text and the tricolour on the flap, and the French text on the back of the bag:



I made two large exterior pockets (for sunglasses and hand cream) using a piece of coloured fabric:



I lined the bag with... another polka dot fabric!



And created lots of interior pockets - for wallet, keys, mobile phone, business card case etc:



I made the strap from the remaining fabric and broke a few needles trying to attach it to the bag...



I showed it via Skype to my friend (who is living with her family in New Zealand at the moment, we are planning a visit for Easter 2015!). She loved it and asked if I could make one for her as well!
Umm yes... - maybe I can buy another bag when we are in Holland in December...

I made this bag last weekend at a quilting retreat  - did I tell you I was going to a retreat?  No, I don't think I did... I'll show some photos of the venue and the other projects I worked on in the next posting!

Mail bag

On the weekend I finished a new quilt. I can't show it here yet, as it is a present for our new niece or nephew who will be born in December, when we are in Holland! So exciting. As usual after finishing a quilt I felt like making a small item, so I made this bag.



It is the Alice Book Bag by Betz White - one of the patterns I won in her Sew-Long Summer Sew-along. I used this gorgeous fabric that a dear friend gave me the last time we were in the Netherlands, and lined it with a red polka dot fabric.



I changed the pattern a bit - I didn't use grommets for the strap and put the exterior pocket on the front instead of the back.



It was a quick and easy make - Betz' patterns are well written and easy to follow. Now I want to make a similar but larger bag with the Dutch post bag that my best friend gave me, so stay tuned!