Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Fairholme Quilters Colour Challenge 2014

The 2014 Colour Challenge, set by Roslyn Pullen, was to select a photo of a natural environment, and to make a quilt using some or all of the colours from the photo. The quilt size was to be no greater than 50 cm on any side. The ten quilts were hung with the photos that inspired them.


Aftermath of the Springwood Bushfires (2013) - Val Nadin

Milchweg - Elaine Walton

Shades of Floriade - Georgie Patrickson

Shade - Jill O'Connor

Bungle Bungles - Margaret Weir

Colourburst - Miriam Jones

Autumn Bloom - Pat Nerlich

Last of the Clivias - Robin Stutchury

Melanesian Sunrise - Roslyn Pullen

Gardener's Star - Virginia Coote
Photos - Elaine Walton

Other quilts from the Fairholme Quilters 2014 Quilt Show are posted here.

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Tracy Chevalier curates quilt exhibition

If you have read Tracy Chevalier's novels (The Girl with the Pearl Earring, Remarkable Creatures, for example), you will know that she does meticulous research. For her latest book, The Last Runaway, she learned about quilts, including how to make one.

She has followed up by curating Things we do in bed, a quilt exhibition open from 1st April to 31st October, in a Georgian house just outside of London.  If you are in the UK during this time, it looks intriguing.



Thanks to Noelle for the link to this exhibition.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Springwood-Winmalee Bushfire Quilt Appeal: The Wrap Up Report

Tracey Greenaway has written a moving blog post about the distribution of more than 1000 quilts and knitted/crocheted blankets donated to families affected by the Springwood-Winmalee bushfires in October 2013.

She describes the operation of the distribution, and the deeper social and psychological impact on families and volunteers in working for their communities and knowing that the community is working for them.

Many photos of the enormous quilt collection illustrate the post.  Well worth a read

Friday, April 18, 2014

Community quilts ... the sorting hat has spoken

After keeping aside some of the quilts we have made at our monthly sewing days for a display at our recent quilt show we have a good supply to distribute.  So the metaphorical quilt 'sorting hat'* came out at our April sewing day on Thursday, and we decided where they all belonged.  

Here are some of the latest additions to the current collection of 13 that will go to foster children, via the Quilters Guild of NSW:

Elaine added some eye-catching borders to this graphic cat panel
These two quilts are much larger than they look in this photo, 
 where they are each folded in half, because we were not tall 
 enough to hold them up at full length! They are the first two 
quilts made from our 2013 Christmas challenge blocks, 
based on Cheryl Arkison's colour 'slabs' from 
Sunday Morning Quilts. They are simply quilted with a 
serpentine stitch, making them quite quick to complete. There is 
one more waiting to be quilted (you can probably guess what 
colour it is!), and a further block collection is being built up 
slowly for at least one more.
This vibrant graphic quilt is another donation from one of our 
members, the talented and generous Robin W, who loves to 
make quilts for children. She has an amazing flair for colour 
and line. This one is beautifully hand-quilted. Every fabric 
here is patterned with dots, spots or circular graphics, 
and the design has a distinct 3 dimensional feel.

This bundle will go to the renal dialysis unit at a local hospital ...


And this bundle is for a local nursing home ...



* A Harry Potter reference ... if you haven't read the books or seen the movies, you probably don;t want to know more!

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Quilt Show raffle winner

Denise Knowles was the winner of our raffle quilt, Kensington Square.  She is delighted with her win, and grateful to her friend Helen who bought the ticket for her!  Denise visited the Tuesday Evening group to accept the quilt and see it for the first time, and has kindly agreed that we can deliver into her her keeping after it is exhibited at the Sydney Quilt Show in July.

Denise (left), with Noelle and Elaine W,
and Kensington Square.
Congratulations Denise, and thank you for allowing us to exhibit your quilt.

Canberra, 2 - 4 May 2014


All information is here.


Living Colour ExhibitionYou can see Living Colour! an art quilt exhibition, 'comprised of 32 vibrant works celebrating life across the spectrum', curated by Brenda Gael Smith at this event in Canberra. It debuted at AQC in Melbourne last week, and will be  at the Sydney Quilt and Craft Show in July. Or if you can't wait to see it,  have a look at the online gallery now.  Visit the blog for more detailed photos.

The full national and international tour schedule is on the Living Colour! website.

Sunday, April 13, 2014

Bernina awards announced at AQC, Melbourne

The annual Bernina awards have been announced at the Australasian Quilt Convention dinner in Melbourne this weekend:

Best of Australia 2013: Janet Treen (NSW) for Rings and Roses
The Bernina National Quilt Award is presented to the maker of the quilt that is judged the best from the Best of Show quilts from the annual state guild shows around the country.

Shining Light Award: Clare Marshall
The Shining Light Award goes to a quilter under 18 years of age and is an encouragement award for junior quilters.

Lut-da Award: Faye Packham
The Lut-Da Award goes to a quilter who has made an outstanding contribution to their local or quilting community via the medium of quilting.

Rajah Award: Michelle Hill
The Rajah Award acknowledges the outstanding contribution by an individual to quilting in Australia.

The winner of the AQC Challenge ('Ten) is 10 Together Equals Teamwork, by Alison Withers.  All of the challenge finalists can be seen online here.

The Bernina Australia Facebook page has several photos from AQC 2014.

4 day pre-Easter fabric sale

Kim Bradley Creations is having a 4 day sale of fabric from the bolt ... Kim says she knows that there is a lot of sewing coming up, with cooler weather and two long weekends in a row, so she's happy to help out!

Monday 14th - Thursday 17th April, (staying open until 8.00 pm on Tuesday 15th)
30% off, minimum cut 30 cm, fabric cut from bolts only (not pre-cuts)

Kim Bradley Creations,  Unit 7/9 Packard Ave, Castle Hill 2154  Ph: 02 9659 2912


Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Viewers' choice awards

Congratulations to the winners of the three Fairholme Quilters Viewer's Choice awards 2014:

Viewers' Choice:  Shades of the Orient, Noelle Sona



Made in classes with Chris Jurd at Cottage Quiltworks using the foundation piecing method. I enjoyed making the blocks but found selecting the colours difficult. Even so, I am happy with the result. It was fun collecting the different fabrics although I originally started making the quilt to use up my stash of Japanese fabric, some of which my daughter sent to me from Japan – I now have more than I started with. Designed by Chris Jurd.










Runner-up:  The Wedding Quilt, Janice Freelander




This quilt was commenced in Margaret Sampson George’s “Anna Levens” quilt workshop. I wanted to create a different border – inspiration for this came from the quilt “Ann’s legacy” by Di Ford. This quilt design appealed to me as I love “Toile de Jouy” fabrics. The challenge was to find the right one. The next challenge was the complementary fabrics. Once this quilt evolved I knew it would be the perfect wedding quilt for my daughter. Beautifully machine quilted by Jo-Anne Phillips (Quiltwise).





Colour challenge 2014:  Aftermath of the Springwood Bushfires, October 2014, Val Nadin


The challenge, set by Roslyn Pullen, was to select a photo of a natural environment, and make a quilt using some or all of the colours from the photo. The quilt size was to be no greater than 50 cm on any side.

Around the show (3) ...

The vendor's market is a vital part of any quilt show - imagine not being able to take anything home! We had an excellent range of stands, selling a variety of very high quality quilting and needlework stock - and they really looked happy to be part of it. Thank you all for adding value to our show.

Carol, from Cherry Pie Designs
- the quilts behind her are available as patterns
Grandma's Treasures had a wonderful selection of
embroidered and crocheted linen pieces, that many of us
recall fondly from our own mothers and grandmothers.

Kim Bradley Creations was all serious work, as you can see!

Patchwork on Pittwater brought their beautiful fabrics, and
some Prints Charming embroidery panels that walked out
the door

Karen from The Stitching Post came all the way
down from Katoomba, both days.
The hand-made owls were very popular on the Fairholme members' craft stall

Monday, April 7, 2014

Around the show (2) ...

In addition to the main display of member's quilts, we exhibited smaller collections, linked by a purpose or theme:

Some community quilts made during 2012 - 2014 ...

... finished quilts will be distributed over the next few weeks,
making space for the next round.

Some quilts made, or in progress following,
workshops with visiting teachers, in 2012 - 2014

The sewing table set up in one corner provided
a welcome meeting place for those who had
questions about the quilts and the exhibition. 

The raffle quilts were hung behind the front desk.

Around the show (1) ...

We celebrated our 30th anniversary at our quilt show last weekend:

Elaine B made this fun garland for the occasion

Some of our history was on display - you could trace a timeline
through our hairstyles and glasses frames!
The quilts here are two 'first quilts' made by members.

Some early quilts made by members
Only a few members still had their very first quilt ...
and some first quilts were not finished, even after many years,
so some are early quilts, rather than first quilts ...

... some more early quilts, and a happy visitor.

Elaine Walton, the Convenor of Fairholme Quilters (centre)
congratulated and thanked Lynette Harvey, the 2014 Show
Convenor (left) and Sue Crowe, who designed the displays and
supervised the hanging and taking down of the quilts
- both are enormous, time-consuming commitments.

Sunday, April 6, 2014

For quilting Jane Austen fans

For Margaret, and all the other Jane Austen fans who are quilters ...

An interest in Jane Austen and in quilts are not strangers, and Barbara Brackman brings them together in her 2014 block-of-the-week blog, Austen Family Album.  The first block pattern will be published today (perhaps in a few hours since she is in the US) ... while you wait there are some introductory posts to whet your appetite, and many links to related material.

Katrina Hajimichael's blog posts on her Jane Austen Quilt Collection - a series of quilts she has designed and teaches, based on locations in Jane Austen's novels. If you are interested in them, you might want to follow up on Katrina's show and tell day at Kim Bradley Creations (Castle Hill), on Sunday 4th May 2014.

Jane Austen Quilts Inspired by Her Novels
, by Karen Gloeggler was published by the American Quilt Society in September 2013.

A Pinterest board of quilts associated with the works of Jane Austen.

Friday, April 4, 2014

Hanging the quilts ... a little preview

If you have ever set up a quilt show, you will know that hanging the quilts takes a small army, a lot of physical effort, planning, coordination and time ... thank you to everyone entered quilts, and everyone who helped late into last night, especially our partners and sons, who keep coming back, even though they know what they are in for!

Going up ...
... and up ...
... nearly done.
Congratulations to Lynette Harvey (Exhibition Convenor) and Sue Crowe (Manager of Quilt Hanging) ... it's looking very good.

Within the exhibition of members' quilts, there are several small 'galleries' of quilts with a specific theme: the 2014 Colour Challenge; a display of quilts from various workshops; a display of community quilts; a little Fairholme history to celebrate our 30th Anniversary; and some examples of the first quilts we ever made.

This morning the vendors are bumping in and setting up, the kitchen is abuzz with food preparation and the doors will be open at 11.00 am. Welcome!

Thanks for the photos, Miriam Jones

Thursday, April 3, 2014

Counting down to tomorrow ...

The plans are in place, the preparation is done the quilts are finished, the kitchen and craft stall are stocked, the vendors are on their way ...

We are hanging hung our exhibition at the Thornleigh Communty Centre this evening, and we'll be open for business 11.00 am - 5.00 pm tomorrow (Friday) and 10.00 am - 4.00 pm on Saturday.

We look forward to seeing you there - come and enjoy our quilts, do a little shopping, have something to eat and drink, buy a raffle tickets or two, and vote for your favourite quilt.


Wednesday, April 2, 2014

A little light reading ...

We're on the count-down to our Quilt Show, with last minute preparations settling into place - we hope to see you there on Friday or Saturday. While we're busy, here are some nice reads: