Treasures from the beach

Yesterday we went to the beach in Caloundra. I am not really a beach person but I do love looking for shells. Here are the treasures we found yesterday.


(Does anyone know the name of these shells?)

These are my favourites. Look at the wonderful designs!





PS I just discovered the shells in the second photo are called Patellogastropoda or limpets in plain English (Schaalhoren in het Nederlands).

Historical quilts and kaleidoscope fun

Today we went to the Ipswich Art Gallery. I really wanted to see The Fabric of Society, an exhibition of historical Australian quilts. Although antique quilts are not really my cup of tea, I do admire the creativity and craft of the women who made these quilts, some literally from scraps of clothes, uniforms, blankets etc. Unfortunately (but understandably) making photos was not allowed.

For the kids there was a delightful exhibition as well: The Real Thing: interactive kaleidoscope fun. With a life-size kaleidoscope (do click on the pics to enlarge them!):



and some computers with amazing graphic software that I wouldn't mind having on my own computer, to create gorgeous mandalas and other masterpieces:



Highly recommended if you are near Ipswich (40 km west of Brisbane), with or without kids!

Postcards and ATCs

In the last few days I have made postcards for the winners of my giveaway and a few more. I used selvedges and lino printed fabric, and also finally cut up this quilt (scroll down to the end of the posting) to make it into postcards and ATCs.



The postcards are all spoken for, but if you would like to swap an ATC, please let me know (click on the photo to enlarge it).
The ones with the words (Names and Colo(u)rs) were made because, inspired by the calligrams, I cut up a lot of selvedge strips to get the words. I am planning a small quilt with them... but couldn't resist making a few ATCs.

Happy Easter!

A rose is a rose...

I showed you my four lino prints here - they were all just over 12" square, so I had to choose one of them to make into a quilt. I decided on this one; white paint on black fabric. I only quilted the lines (using free motion stitching and zigzagging) to make the petals 'bloom'. I finished the quilt with a facing technique.

I liked the effect of the four photos in that posting about the lino prints so much that I decided to make four quilts and integrate them into one large quilt. So far I have finished the second one:



When I have acquired thread in the right colour I will make the other two as well. I don't know yet how I will join them but I will let you know when I have done it!



PS With a medical background, I did think of using pics of intestinal, oral or vaginal flora for this quilt, but decided I'd much rather work with flowers! ;-)

Cross-posted to Art Quilts Around the World

Calligram

Yesterday when I was surfing the internet (there's about 200 blogs that I follow using Bloglines) I stumbled upon this site where you can find some brilliant Text Art.
Following up some of the links I discovered the calligram: a poem, phrase, or word in which the typeface, calligraphy or handwriting is arranged in a way that creates a visual image (source: Wikipedia)



I couldn't resist having a go at making a calligram (love that word!), so here is my first one: the gecko!
Making it was so much fun that today I made three more:




(click on a picture to enlarge it)

I see lots of possibilities here: having one of these (or another one) made into a thermofax screen, or use Spoonflower to print some calligram fabric... What about using selvedges!!!

Oh, I love the internet. Here is a blog dedicated to calligrams.



PS Stay tuned for the unveiling of the Flora quilts tomorrow at Art Quilts Around the World!

And the winner is...

I can't believe I had 119 comments on the giveaway! Amazing. Thanks everyone who commented on the new look of the blog. It was intersting to read the descriptions; clean, crisp, fresh, tidy, uncluttered, contemporary and professional were words that repeatedly came up. I guess those terms could also be applied to my quilts (well, maybe not professional - yet?) - I like to think that my personal style is emerging as quite 'clean' and 'uncluttered'. (remember my word for 2010 is identity!)

But anyway - I'm sure you can't wait to hear who the winner of the giveaway is! (Some of you seemed to think there were two bags... Good reading isn't easy! ;-) There is only one, with 2 different sides. Okay, and an older one, but I'm keeping that one - as I said in the posting!)
There were 119 comments, two persons left two comments and one was left by my darling husband (who couldn't resist leaving comment nr. 100!), so 116 went in the draw. The random number generator came up with number.....

drumroll...

8!!!!

A3jana, please send me an email with your address and the Selvedge Shopping Sack will come to you!

Since there were so many comments, I have decided to throw in another prize: as many selvedge strips as will fit in a large envelope. And that prize goes to number 103, trudys_person. Please send me an email too!

And finally, 3 persons told me they would be happy to win a postcard - so Sandra, Patty and Janet, please email me and I will send you a postcard!

Thanks again everyone for leaving a comment. I hope you will come back to this blog!



PS The flower in the photo is an African Tulip Tree in a park near our house, which I think is very beautiful but unfortunately is considered a pest here in Queensland...

Screen printing again

It's been a while, but I finally got around to doing some screen printing again - my favourite technique. I have an idea for a new quilt and here are some test prints. As you may have guessed, they are based on pics of my boys on their bikes.



Of course you can still leave a comment on the previous posting to go in the draw for the selvedge bag. One hundred and seven comments already - WOW!!!
You may have noticed that I have some more changes to the blog in the meantime - well, the long-time readers may have, not all the newbies who were sent by Karen at the Selvage Blog!
I have chosen a new template and Brenda Smith has very kindly helped me in making the beautiful header. Thanks Brenda!

I'll leave you with this pic of my 3-year old playing with a sewing machine at his Kindy. Hmmm... some potential there, I think!

Blog facelift and giveaway

As you may have noticed, I have given this blog a facelift in the last few days. I have changed the header, cleaned up the sidebar and, most importantly, added three pages (many thanks to Brenda Smith who mentioned this new feature of Blogger on her blog). If you click on the tabs under the header you can find out more about me and view my contemporary and traditional quilts.



To celebrate the new look I am having a giveaway! For a chance to win this Selvedge Shopping Sack (36x45cm/14x18in), featured in Down Under Quilts issue 139, just leave a comment on this posting and tell me what you think of the new look of this blog. Does it look good? Do you have any suggestions for further improvement? Let me know!



Here are two close-ups of the bag (click to see a bigger picture). It has never been used - not that I don't like it, but I still have my original selvedge bag and I don't need two!

I will draw a winner one week from today, on Tuesday March 23rd. If selvedge bags aren't your thing I would still love to hear from you, and would be happy to make a fiber postcard (15x15cm/6x6in) for you.

Flora

Finally started on my Flora quilt for AQATW. One of these lino prints might make it into the quilt - not sure yet which one!

Balance

Yesterday I finished this small quilt: Balance.
After quilting it I stenciled the reverse image with discharge paste.
Here's a pic of the back:



I recently became a member of SAQA and am thinking of sending it in for their 2010 Benefit Action.

Polka dotted backpack

It must be at least two years ago, when I was in the middle of my bag-making phase, that I asked my best friend Hylkia (she of the famous Dutch Apple Cake) if she would like me to make a bag for her. She would, and could it be a backpack in polka dot fabrics please.



It has taken me those two years to make that backpack, but yesterday, on her 40th birthday, it arrived at her address in the Netherlands. She told me she loved it and so did her three daughters (who are roughly the same age as my three sons). I'm glad, because this is the first and last backpack I will ever make! (I started out with a pattern in this book, but gave it my own twist) No, seriously, it was a pleasure to make something for her - she once knitted a beautiful jumper for me, with cables! Backpacks are just not my thing... And I am really glad she likes it - just in case she didn't I also sent her another present; The Household Guide to Dying, one of my all-time favourite books, by Australian author Debra Adelaide.

Meanwhile I have almost finished one of the gymnast quilts; will show you some pics in the next posting. I really need to get started on the Flora quilt for Art Quilts Around the World, but seem to be stuck... The initial idea I had for a lino cutting didn't work out and I am not too sure about the second... Maybe I need to try something else - only 3 weeks to go!

More gymnasts

I felt like making some more gymnasts quilts, so used some of the screenprints I made for the MAGnificence quilt (which is in the Student Gallery now at the QuiltUniversity site!).
They will only be small quilts, 12 by 12 inches or so. I started quilting the first one yesterday:



Gymnasts continue to inspire me! Hugo (7) has been invited to the Junior Competition Squad at his club and he is now training twice a week, 5 hours in total! He will compete for the first time on April 17th, at the Gold Coast. Very exciting!

Last Sunday we went to Ikea (I love Ikea, it's like being back in the Netherlands!) and bought this bunk bed for Hugo and Ernst:



Of course it came in a large cardboard box and we had a lot of fun when I traced the boys' shapes:



Hugo went on to colour in his shape (Ernst and Robbie didn't want to):



Here's Hugo and his scary (and skinny) friend!

Postcard and a sneak peek

In the last few days I have worked very hard on something that is now on its way to the Netherlands... I will show some pics when it has arrived! In the meantime I can show you this beautiful postcard that I got from Nadia - she made it using a technique that she learned in a workshop with Cherilyn Martin.



And here is a sneak peek of my Ernst quilt - this is a part of the backside. I'm so happy with how this little quilt turned out, I wish I could show it to you!

Now I'm off to my sewing room to start on a new project - the Flora quilt for Art Quilts Around the World, or...?