We had a great day on Saturday with Laura Macpherson showing us how to do altered books. We had such a good time that it was difficult to leave and that wasn’t because we’d glued our fingers together! The class was supposed to finish at 2.00pm but we didn’t finish until 3.00pm and even then….. There were books with teacups, birds, elephants, Paris, bats and the sea. Laura showed us how to make them our own and showed us lots of different techniques from watercolours to carving to make a unique piece. Thanks Laura for giving us a new addiction!

It was great fun playing with paper, paint, pencils,glue and fabric and we all found inspiration from a range of places although it was quite a challenge for some of us. Just look around you and see how things can ‘speak to you’ whether it’s for an altered book or a quilt or some other challenge! I found these tulips were quite inspiring – they were a gift from Di for Apatchy’s 5th birthday. You can see a wall hanging that June made for the same event on ‘Your Gallery’.

Many of us are looking forward to a retreat at Esk this weekend. Hopefully there will be many pieces completed during our sojourn (well started anyway). It will be like having a holiday…………

Now this leads us nicely into another subject. It’s about time that we have another challenge. This annual event has become something of a tradition at Apatchy and this year is no exception. So…. Announcing the 2013 Apatchy Challenge – here’s the rules:

– the quilt can be any shape but the combined total of all sides should be between 72″ and 160″ (so if you’re making a square item it will be between18″ and 40″ square.)

– any shape is allowable but it must be able to hang from a rod at the challenge prize event (so generally this means a sleeve on the back please)

– the quilt must be hand or machine quilted and bound

– the quilt can be any style and incorporate any technique (appliquéd, pieced, beaded, art quilt or traditional) as long as it fits the theme.

– your entry must be received at Apatchy no later than 22nd November, 2013.

– winners of the Challenge and Viewer’s Choice will be chosen at the Christmas party in early December (actual date to be advised but either 30th November or 7th December) when quilts will be returned to their creators.

and the theme for this year is …………………….

HOLIDAY

………so off we go!