Balance 3

Here is Balance 3! Do you like it? I think I will send this quilt in for the SAQA Benefit Auction 2011.



Yesterday I was going through some stuff in my sewing room (oops, sorry - my studio! ;-) ) and I found the scraps of the zebra fabric I used for pants for Hugo and Ernst. I also found some chalk cloth scraps... so a new set of gift tags was born! For sale now in my MadeIt store, Blue Jacaranda. Of course I made a few extra to keep for myself!

And finally... thanks everyone who has signed up as a follower of this blog here or on Facebook. I really appreciate it! This morning I drew the winner of the Dutch Houses fabric:
drumroll...
linda!

Congratulations! please let me know your address (my email is on my profile page) and I will send the fabric to you.

The winners of the fiber postcards are Aart and diohej. Congratulations to you two as well and please send me your address too!



PS Thanks for all the kind comments on my Netherlands quilt. Just for the record - I am not homesick. I love living here in Brisbane. But I do have fond memories of my home country!

More chalk cloth projects - and an idea...

After making the chalk cloth placemats last week I ordered some more chalk cloth and oil cloth and made some more things.

A gift tag:



A placemat for a little girl:



And one for a little boy:



These placemats can be rolled up and tied, so you can take them to a restaurant, waiting room or wherever else you would want to have them to keep a little one occupied. They have a small pocket for a wipe cloth and a piece of chalk.

(I didn't invent these projects myself but found them on the internet - I have mentioned Jackie's blog before and also found a lot of stuff on this wonderful blog; Oilcloth Addict)

I am thinking of opening a Made It shop to try and sell these items - Made It is the Australian version of Etsy. Etsy is so big that I am afraid of 'drowning' there and postage costs to Europe and the US would make most of my stuff too expensive anyway...

I would be glad to receive some feedback on this plan! Do you like these items? Would you consider buying them? Or point them out to someone who is looking for a present?

(I know, it isn't as if I don't have anything else to do... But I like making these small things every now and then, and it might be fun to have an online shop...!)

Silk paper and chalk placemats

After finishing a quilt (or as in this case, several quilts) I usually feel like doing some small, fun projects. So yesterday I made silk paper (there's a good tutorial in the first Down Under Textiles) and today some chalk pacemats:



I got the idea at Jackie's blog - I did have a small piece of chalk fabric and of course I will have to make three placemats, which is why they have this size... I used the Dutch oilcloth for the back.

Robbie loves his mat and demonstrates how to use it!
First you work very hard to make a beautiful drawing:



Then you wipe it off:



And finally you turn the mat to have your dinner!



It was just him and me at dinner, for hubby is in Athens (Greece), Hugo has a sleepover at a friend's house and poor Ernst is sick and spent most of the day in bed. I should have been at work, but stayed home with him while the nanny took his brothers to the park (we had been at home all day yesterday because Ernst was sick, so they did need some fresh air and exercise), and made the placemats while he was sleeping.

And to end on a happier note: remember the video I showed here a while ago? Here's another one in that series! I found it on Sandy's blog.



We could really use one of those stairs here in Brissy...