Showing posts with label Cats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cats. Show all posts

30 April 2024

APRIL

The AQC (Australian Quilt Convention) is on at the Beautiful Royal Exhibition Buildings in Melbourne

And Once again I am on deck for White Glove/Quilt Angel Duty.  This Year we had Quilts designed by the Incredible Kate Ceberano.  


- And on the Home Front ...



Spike has a Heart Murmur.  

Whereas he is not phased by it, the Vet said his NT-Pro-BNP levels were Way too high and required an ECG. 

(He wasn't quite so relaxed when he realised that meant GOING to to the Vet!)



AND - We went Up The Wall with Tiling Our Bathroom.

Finally placing the last tile on April 24. 






2 August 2023

Coffee With the Giraffes

Today we decided it was a nice day so we went and had our Morning Coffee with The Giraffes.  

After all - The Zoo is not that far away and we should go more often.

So Coffee with the Giraffes it was.

But then - There was more than Lattes and Coffee Scrolls on the Menu.

We were fortunate enough to arrive right on Feeding Time and All the Big Cats were out.


AND I had brought my Canon 760D with the 18-135 mm Lens just to see what it could do.

As far as Cameras go - It is getting a bit on the "Old Tech" side but still...

I wasn't disappointed with these shots of Our Beautiful Snow Leopards. 

It breaks my heart to know that these Magnificent Creatures are still being Hunted Today and are under Threat of Extinction.

Check this Post from the Zoological Society of Auckland for a great write up on Our Snow Leopards and their Habitat.


Continuing on through the Carnivores Trail I caught a glimpse of our elusive Sumatran Tiger.

I have other Photos of this Beauty from previous trips to the Zoo but today Indrah was on the hunt as she was very aware that her Keepers were just meters away

 - On the OTHER side of the fence!


I was very pleased with todays 'Photo Shoot' and look forward to spending time with the Other Residents of Melbourne Zoo.







29 April 2021

Technical Difficulties

I enjoy Blogging
I enjoy the Creative writing side of making a Post

What I do not enjoy is --- Fighting with my Laptop!

When it takes 10 minutes for the machine to decide to Boot up I start thinking of giving IT the Boot and begin researching new ones.  
On my phone.....


Then I start looking for THAT photo, the one I took for a specific post only to find that it is missing, lost or misfiled. 
So I start searching.

I have discovered that I have way too many photos of my Cat.

So my Friends, I am not Missing In Action and April really DID happen.  
I will catch up  - Tomorrow!



24 June 2020

Cat Tower Rescue

We have a Cat, His name is Spike. 
He is a Siberian Forest/Chinchilla mix.
   
We adopted him as a very frightened 13 month old from the RSPCA so he is Indoors Only and Loved to bits by all who meet him.

He has a scratch tower that he has also Loved to bits.  And needed to be re-upholstered.

Sadly I didn't get a photo of it before I dismantled it - but the photo  shows the state of the Carpet cover.
It was a bit of a mess to say the least.

Removing the cover was easy for the round section as it was cardboard.

The flat section (and favourite scratching post) was timber and the Industrial Strength Hot Glue that was used was a bit harder to remove.

A remnant of Carpet that had been laying around for a while was just the right size.

The board was shaped and I also discovered that the carpet (a loop pile) also has a Nap so I had to make sure it was facing the right way down.


Six sticks of Hot Glue later and the Pieces were ready to screw back into place.

(I think I may need a bigger Hot Glue Gun if I am going to do this again.)


The restoration was fairly easy to do, took a couple of hours (including a Coffee Break) and cost nothing as I already had everything I needed.

We saved $$$ by not having to buy a new one AND kept what was actually a perfectly good Cat Scratcher out of Landfill!

Job well done!







30 September 2018

Wish upon a Star ...

My DD was doing some Furniture re-arranging the other day and apparently Artemis was very pleased that the Telescope had been moved closer to the window and within reach of her scratch post.
So maybe, she can finally answer the Question that she has been pondering....


Is the Moon REALLY made of Green Cheese
and if so Where are the Mice?


29 November 2017

On Ringo Lake - Part One

This year I have decided to (try and) keep up with Bonny Hunter's latest Mystery.



There has been a lot of sidetracks,
distractions and....
unmovable obstacles
which have kept me from getting started on this new project.

And when I finally sat down to sew,
I found I had to blow the Dust Bunnies out of my 'old faithful' Pfaff Synchrotronic 1229, and give her a much needed Service.

When I need "Little Miss Reliable" this is the one I go to.


NO fancy Computer programming, I can turn her off - go have a cuppa
and when I come back - She is ready to roll!


So today, with the temperature outside hitting 37C (That's 98F), the errands done and Spike hiding in the coolest part of the house,  I buckled down and got the first clues completed.

All the Nine Patch Blocks - DONE!

Looking forward to Part 2.

* * *
Click HERE to Go to Bonny's Monday Mystery Link up
 to see what others are doing
On Ringo Lake!




16 January 2017

... silly me

The housework is done,
No one wants me
I will do some sewing

... apparently not!

We are Cat sitting our DD's beautiful (yet somewhat adventurous) Artemis Belle
who has found the purfect 'sweet spot' combination of air-conditioning and a View.


looks like she hasn't taken long to feel at home!

Unfortunately, if I am going to get this hanging sleeve made - 
someone is going to have to move

(now where is my spare cutting mat?)


13 January 2017

Taking the kids out for coffee . . .

"Mum" may be dining on Croissants in Paris at the moment
But I've been for a manicure and 
now am having Coffee with Uncle Spike at Northland
and everyone is adoring me!





12 November 2015

You know you're in trouble when ....

The Quilt Police says "Take a Break" ....



... and if you don't
I'll just sit here and look cute until you do!


The odd thing about this is - Spike just doesn't jump up on the benches or tables - so sitting on my ironing board/work bench is VERY unusual!
Maybe I should take that break!

* * *

Before I was interrupted I was about to place the 4th applique spray onto my Istanbul Quilt centre.

It looks good sitting on the applique mat




But transferring all those  pieces which are so delicately held together isn't easy

And I have decided not to mark the quilt fabric with anything but some tacked in registration lines (see previous post).


A simple way around this is, with the template underneath, mark some key points through the fabric with pins ..


Then just position the flowers up against the corresponding pins and press!


And now I am ready to keep stitching...
(Interruptions permitting!)


20 October 2014

Mopping up a UFO

To ease myself back into quilting I thought I would pull out a UFO and see if I can just get it finished.
I don't like having UFOs yet from time to time I get one that no matter what I do,  I spend more time reverse sewing than going forward -
THIS quilt is ONE of THOSE!


It was started as a 21st Birthday gift for a very special young lady almost 3 years ago and I should have realised from the very start it was going to be a challenge.

Apparently, Spike decided that the fabric (with Oriental Goldfish design) was too good to use and did everything in his power to stop me making the quilt-
including trying to eat the pattern!

But despite many protestations from him - I persevered and the quilt finally was ready for quilting -
and unpicking -
and quilting
and ..
it just didn't want to get quilted.


It probably didn't help when I decided to quilt a Japanese Screen design over each feature block - which involved a lot of "sew, stop, pivot, sew".
(I really must learn to FMQ).



My Sashiko stitching leaves a lot to be desired yet the last one was definitely better than the first -


So, it is now on to doing the binding and a label.

Then, this very belated Birthday gift, can finally be wrapped up and given to the one it was always intended for.


(Sorry Spike - that is not you!)




Update:
Shortly after this post was written, The Young Lady this Quilt was intended for landed her Dream Job at Microsoft in Seattle and unfortunately never received her gift.  It is now being enjoyed by someone else!

5 August 2014

Happy Homeowners

After 4 months and just one delay
the keys are finally in their hands

which just left one thing to do ...



and just so their family would be complete
enter 500 grams of  Pure Trouble!


of course this is the PURFECT place to take a nap 
while 'Mum & Dad' are trying to move furniture!


9 May 2013

Quilting with a CAT

The moment you say "This Quilt is a Gift" is the moment that things start going wrong. - 

Problem No 1.
I like this fabric, It has Fish
- I like fish, 
therefore it is mine.



Problem No 2.
What do you mean it's for someone else?
I know... I'll eat the pattern then she can't make it!

Problem No 3.
I REALLY need a design wall....

Problem No 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8
These I have no photos for as it was too traumatic... sufficient to say it involved a LOT of Spray Basting, Pin Basting, Quilting, Un -Quilting, repinning and ... you get the idea.

I have lost count of how many times it has been picked up smoothed out stared at only to be quickly shoved back into the bag (I DID mention it was a gift).

I am happy to say it is FINALLY on the machine and I am happy with the way the quilting is going.  It is going to take some time especially with the addition of the Sashiko feature in the small diamonds, and as long as I can keep Spike away from it ... 

She may get it for her NEXT birthday!



8 April 2013

Princess and the Pea?

Now there is nothing unusual about a Cat making himself comfortable anywhere it takes his fancy...

But the question we all had was...
Exactly How Many Air Mattresses
Does it take to be truly Comfy?


That would be at least Three with associated bedding and pillows.....

9 January 2013

Bobbin Wind FAIL .....

I am STILL trying to work out how I managed this.....

I think that, as I was holding the leading tail of thread out of the way (so it didn't get caught up in the wind and make a mess...) I lifted the almost full bobbin just enough for the winding thread to slip underneath and continue winding a 'second bobbin' onto the spindle.

That is a LOT of thread to loose - so I wondered how much I could salvage. If I was VERY careful I may be able to get a few meters to use in hand sewing.

Now at this point in time I should mention that Spike was "Dead to the World" asleep on his tower beside me.

I am not sure how Cat Radar works but he didn't STAY asleep for, out of the corner of my eye I saw the cat coming stealthily down each step of the platform ... his eyes fixed on the dangling nest of thread.



If it had not been for Spikes help,

I think I may have salvaged ALL of the thread

 - but then ...

 really ...



He was just trying to help... And

Who wants to use thread that a cat has flossed his teeth with anyway?




23 August 2012

WOW.. it seems like I've had a busy week

A lot certainly has happened since my last WOW post.

- I put the borders on the I Spy yesterday.... as it is a gift, I'll post photos of the finished quilt after it has been given.
- I have made a new quilt top....

...... this one is Leesa Chandler's 'Southern Jewels' pattern. However, I have used some fantastic 'Stained Glass Dragonfly' fabric that I found at my LQS - Patchworks Unlimited in Pascoe Vale.
Hopefully the quilt will look like a stained glass window when it is finished,  I think it needs a border of rectangular colour 'chips' to set it into a window and then it will need a frame to finish it off.
Time to start thinking of an appropriate border.

- The Cat has continued to shred my sketch book....

And I spent 2 days making cupcakes that disappeared in 2 minutes (see Monday's post).
Spike, aka Quilters Cat in Training came from the RSPCA so it was worth it to support their work.

I wonder what next week will be like?







23 July 2012

I think I may need a design wall.....

I have an Eye Spy Quilt in the design process at the moment
and not having much room to sew, my placements 
have to be done on the floor.
Which was perfectly fine.....
Until .....
Spike decided to help.