Had a WOW of a time.......

Tonight I went along to a demonstration by visiting English Cake Decorator and Author Maisie Parrish.

Maisie landed in Melbourne at 6:30 this morning and went straight into 2 workshops and a demonstration!!!
We laughed a lot while we learnt about making caricature faces for fondant figures.

This is Violet..the sweetheart of the 1940's armed forces

Beautiful day for gardening.....

....so the perfect time to plant those Cyclamen we bought on special after Mother's Day...

All 14 of them!!!

And of course the weeds that have taken over during Winter needed removing.....

But it's Look'n Good!
Now all I have to do is the other 4 garden beds out the back before I even contemplate doing something with the front garden.

(Which has been sadly neglected while we contemplate a new front fence - but hey! the Freesias have naturalised nicely!!! )

The next line on the Instructions said........

Stand Back and Admire your completed Quilt Top!

....and that was it! 

Time for a well deserved celebratory cuppa.

At 88" x 92"  'Under the Australian Sun' will be the largest Quilt I have made.

I am very pleased with the way it went together - It certainly was a quick quilt to make, and provided some very favourable exclamations as family walked by the room.

The large floral print is of Australian Native Flowers mainly the Waratah, with Bottle Brush, and white Flannel Flowers.  It is not a panel but an all over print with the main flower being a spectacular 7" !

If you are interested in the fabrics that I have used - Check them out at www.chandlerscottage.com you will find the entire range of this fabric in Leesa's shop, Fabric by Culture/Australian.

Now you may ask.... what do I spy under the coffee table? 

... Just the fabric I received in the post for Mahal Magic!  The first quilt in the Culture Club series - First stop INDIA!



(PS: If you 'click' on the photo twice you will get a really good look at the fabric)

Work In Progress - WOW Wednesday

This week, I have been working on my "Under the Australian Sun" Quilt.
I am pleased to say that given NO INTERRUPTIONS tomorrow -- I might Just be able to finish the top.

Ahead of me is matching the seams for 20 posts and their corresponding sashing.

Now THAT will tell if my 1/4" seams were accurate!

And it was VERY tasty.....

For all who are not sure what an Australian Fruit Cake looks like...

.....and for all my Friends, who by distance are not able to share in

 a piece with a 'cuppa' 

I was told it was truly delicious. 

Oh Yeah... and it smelt AWESOME.

What DO Cake Decorators Get up to on a Saturday afternoon?

Well, that would be............nothing sensible.

 Actually they decorate anything they want.....

These are "Chupa Chups" lollipops and they were a workshop on how to do a quick decorating demonstration to children.

This is supposed to be a goldfish...and yes I know it is pink and was told it looked more like a Siamese Fighting Fish.

This one was supposed to be a TIGER but seeing that the Fondant was such a beautiful shade of Orange .....
All I "saw" was Charlie Brown's Great Pumpkin....
So that is what I made instead.


I will fill you in on WHY we were learning to make these another time.






PS. In case you haven't noticed - I found the special effects in Picnik



[5 Nov. 2011 -  This workshop was to get ideas for demonstrating to the kids at the Whittlesea Show - Due to the unfortunate timing of my fractured ankle I was not able to attend.  Over 550 Chupa Chups were covered and given away over the weekend. ]

Oh WOW ...........

That was my first reaction when I saw Leesa Chandler's beautiful 'Under the Australian Sun' range of fabrics
Designed by our own Leesa (she's a Melbourne Girl too), made by Robert Kaufman Fabrics and launched at the Australian Quilt Convention 2010.

I thought I had plenty of time to make this Quilt - BUT NO....Leesa has just launched the first of her Culture Club Series and we will be treated to a new fabric and projects to match every SIX MONTHS as we go on a trip around the world.

First stop is India, the fabrics are also divine. And then I have it on good authority that Australian Sun #2 will be out around Christmas.......  Oh dear.......

Today sees me getting a 'move on' and cutting out this beautiful quilt.



[PS:  The fabric range in the photo has been retired - so if you are thinking about getting some - Pick them up while you can.]

The THEME of the 21st Birthday Party was......

STEAMPUNK../..MAD SCIENTIST
Steampunk is a sub-genre of Science Fiction, Fantasy, Speculative Fiction that came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s. Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used—usually the Victorian era Britain—that incorporates elements of either science fiction or fantasy.

It is needless to say that the night was filled with VERY interesting characters.......

.........and things that Glowed.

Then there was THE CAKE.

Steampunk artistry requires a back-story..........this is mine.

It is called a "WISH-ANARIUM"......

........ it is designed to be powered by the SMOKE that is generated by the BLOWING of BIRTHDAY CANDLES.
In theory the more candles the more smoke and the greater the  chances of the wish being granted - but we opted for just one large smoke stack each.

The smoke is blown towards the Fluted Smoke Collector and channelled into the contraption through a series of pipes, which in turn powers the gyroscope at the top, spinning it to such a degree that it throws off Wish Granting Energy.

Hmmm... Sounds impressive doesn't it?  If only it actually worked......




[There will be more pictures of the party and the cake posted on a separate page soon.  The Cake was designed and made by ME and is not for sale.]
Footnote: The Page showing extra photos has now been retired.

Well...Look at me now .

Yesterday I posted that I had "acquired"  my Grand father's tea service for the party.
It was certainly a sad sight when Mum pulled it out of a box - (I think it was headed for the Op-Shop).

Well 20 minutes is all it took to go from Glum to Glam.

I tried the hint that Esther made in the comments and IT WORKED. - In fact it worked so well that I kept the Tea Pot and Creamer until Mum came 'round. so I could show her how easy it was.
The tarnish just fell off before our eyes.

Only ONE drawback.........I now have MORE silver to clean.

This week WOW = "Worn Out Wendy"

Hello all WOW participants.....

I am taking a brief break in the hectic timetable that is preparing for a 21st Birthday Party to see what you all are doing.

Esther has posted a photo of her Daphne in flower - mine has been out for a few weeks now, and for me it is the first sign that the garden is waking up from winter.  It is SUCH a pity that we cannot share the glorious delicate  fragrance that these little flowers impart.


On MY list today, I have to finish THE CAKE.  It should have been done by now but my loving family ALL got the flu and have been home to share it with ME. (Thanks for that - just what I needed.)

The Boys had a quiet family dinner just us and their Grandparents on Monday to mark their birthday and Saturday is the time to "kick up their heels" with friends.

It is going to be a themed party and I have 'snaffled' my Grandfathers Silver Tea Service from  my Mum.  Now all I have to do is...........

Clean it.

What on Earth am I doing?

It is Wednesday again and I have a kitchen that is covered in .......stuff.

If you thought you could get into a mess when quilting - try cake decorating.

Throw into the mix Sugar paste Icing, (often called RTR or Pettinice).  Flower Glaze, Icing Hardener, Lustre Spray, Cornflour, Icing Colours, cake boards AND a bizarre assortment of tools......and you are almost there.

The Boy's cake is progressing SLOWLY as I have major design elements to work out.
And for this particular cake it all has to be done in situ, so I can't do a lot before the next piece goes on.

I did promise last week that I would give you a teaser if I could so ....

Hmmmmm.....Intrigued?







(BTW:- DS#2 has the Flu - the REAL one not just a cold- and has downloaded an app. for his new phone..... What every mother of a sick bloke needs...... A BELL)

Melbourne Craft and Quilt Fair 2011

Just as well that Sunday's show was open late.

DD and I arrived about 10:20am and they kicked us out at 7:00pm and we still missed an isle.......

It was a very large show, including Beads and Other crafts - yes....there ARE other crafts other than quilting ;-)

Usually, we start at Isle 1 and work our way to the Quilt Display and then have to charge around taking photos to admire in the sanity of home ----not this time. This time we started at the Quilts and worked back to Isle No 1.  

The quilts on display were inspiring....

But I must admit that I was only looking for one.

THAT one  ..... 

........... the one with the RED RIBBON.

The ORIGINAL   ......

MY HEART'S DESIRE

By  Esther Aliu

Here's a sneak look at the back

'cause I know some of us would like to see it.

Thank you Quilt Angel

(BTW - The Quilt Angel Lady thought I was quite mad when I told her I was making one too, especially when I revealed I had never done appliqué before.)

I still have no idea as to how I am going to quilt mine  ..  let's just get the top finished first ?

Even though the lighting this year was not good. It was awesome to be able to see it.    It will certainly inspire me to keep going ...albeit at a much slower pace.

We came home, footsore and weary yet light of heart - as we have had a wonderful day.

AND to cap it off nicely, I walked into the kitchen to find the table set and my boys (DH plus 2) making Dinner - Maybe watching MasterChef DOES pay off .......