Category Archives: Uncategorized

Quilt show and Trudy’s quilt

Posted on by
3

We are having fun at the Boonah Quilt Show today and tomorrow. Hope you get a chance to visit because there are some beautiful quilts on display.

The nicest is of course ours shown here-
image

We have finally received permission from the Blue Nurses to hold a raffle for this quilt, the whole proceeds of which will be donated to them.

For those who don’t know – Trudy, a good friend of ours passed away last year and we decided to make a group quilt in her memory and raffle it for her favourite charity (Blue Nurses). She loved flowers and her favourite colours were red and orange so that was the basis of the colour scheme.

Thirty two Apatchy Quilting girls worked on this quilt and thirty blocks make up the front with another used for the label on the back. The quilt is called “Flowers for Trudy”

The raffle will be drawn at our Christmas party on 6th December 2014. Tickets are $2 each or 3 for $5. Good luck!

Here are some more pictures from Boonah

image
imageimageimageimageimage

In case you’re wondering the last two photos were taken just now just before closing time. There’s no way I could have taken a photo this morning because it was packed!

We were rushed off our feet with a lot of quilt groups making a day of it here. We said hello to some girls from the Beenleigh Quilters, some from Stanthorpe and many more.

Jan was busy doing demos with the Kanzashi flower tools. It was standing room only.

image

Come and say hello tomorrow if you’re in the area.

Ta-da! Block of the Month Revealed!

Posted on by
Reply

Finally I am able to reveal to you the new Apatchy Block of the Month – and it’s a Fiesta!

Fiesta-Mexico-001-blog

This award-winning quilt took out “Best in Show’ in 2013 Quilt Show in Paducah, USA. Designed by Karen Kay Buckley it features vibrant applique blocks that are reminiscent of our tropical lifestyle here in Brisbane, Australia. In fact this quilt was inspired by the designer’s travels in Mexico. Nevertheless it is at home anywhere you love bright, happy designs.

Some designs are very simple – some are more complex – all are a joy to work. You can use machine applique, buttonhole stitch or needleturn applique – whatever you choose this quilt will be amazing. The quilt measures 100″ x 80” when it is completed so it is quite a statement.

During the 12-month programme you will also receive fabrics and instructions to complete the quilt. A 20-page colour booklet also accompanies this project.
Here’s a sneak preview of that:
karenkaybuckleyfiestapattern1cindysthreadworks_t_w600_h600
And here’s a sneak preview of the patterns you receive:

karenkaybuckleyfiestapattern3cindysthreadworks_jpg_500x500_q85

You can register at the website here – note the price shown is the monthly fee for 12 months.

We are going to be starting in the top right corner with this block
image
Have you ever seen anything so sunshiny and happy before? Now you may say that it is different to the picture in the quilt above – that’s because I took the photo with the block upside down! It’s hard to get good help isn’t it?

Hope you like this quilt – we may well be the only ones in Australia releasing it so get with it and be in front of everyone else!

More news – the classes continue to roll along expertly presided over by Jan. She asked me to mention that the first Wednesday morning class of each month will be actually be held on a Thursday – now isn’t that interesting! Don’t say things are ho-hum at Apatchy Quilting – we even re-arrange the calendar. This means that the first Wednesday of March – that would be the 5th – well the morning class will be held on Thursday 6th March. Please note it in your calendars – also note that it is only the morning class that is affected. The evening class will still be held on Wednesday night.

Paradise Found

Posted on by
2

ParadiseIsland

Welcome to Paradise Island. This beautiful range from Michael Miller includes exotic flowers printed on the cotton couture combed cotton basecloth. Team it with solids of olive, mermaid and azure for a stunning project.

paradise_island_quilt_2

kona1009 azureCotton couture sc5333_olivecotton couture sc5333_mermaid_3

There is a free pattern for this fabric range and you can find it here. Maybe you don’t want another quilt (is that possible) but still love this fabric – how about a beautiful skirt?

paradiseisland_skirt_1

Speaking of paradise, here in Brisbane it has been wonderful weather – not too hot not too cold – great quilting weather (isn’t it always). Our classes started off the year last week and Jan hit the ground running. She asked me to remind you about our class times. As last year, classes are on Tuesday and Wednesdays – the morning class is 9.30am to 12.30 and the evening class is 6.00pm to 9.00pm. If you are new to quilting we recommend all but the Tuesday morning class as it is so popular it is difficult to fit a machine on the worktables! You will have better chance at tuition at one of the other classes. Make sure you phone if you are planning on starting beginner classes this year so we have everything ready for you.

Thanks for making Jan feel right at home and stay tuned to next week’s blog – we will be announcing our block of the month for the year and may even give you a sneak peek. It’s related to paradise too and quite tropical – no more hints. Until next week……

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

Posted on by
6

Welcome to 2014 at Apatchy Quilting! I guess everyone has taken Christmas down and the lights have been packed away for another year and those of us who have school-age children are organised for this week’s back-to-school. The weather everywhere has been quite erratic. The nice thing about it is – it’s a great time to turn on the air con (or heater if you’re in the northern hemisphere) and stay inside and sew.

I have a few projects on the go although I do have valid excuses for not producing much in the last month – firstly there was a wonderful month’s holiday including a tour of the Christmas markets in Germany, a week including Christmas in Paris, New Year’s Eve in New York (yes actually in Times Square – I was the one in the blue hat!) and a short trip to Vancouver and San Francisco. Quite a time. We travelled to the other side of the world for a white Christmas but everywhere we went was either experiencing an unusually warm winter or else it had snowed just last week (and again two days after we left). Did this mean we didn’t enjoy our holiday? No way! What you want isn’t always what you need. The break was wonderful and the places we visited strange and beautiful. It was an excellent opportunity to spend time with Luvvy and the resident teenager and we had a ball. As well as enjoying the time together we had an opportunity to reflect on our work life.

As a result of significant expansion in his company Luvvy has been in need of some management help for some time. Since (it seems in a former life) I am a qualified chartered accountant with an MBA the choice of who to help was not difficult. So for the next six months or so I have committed myself to helping him fulltime in the business. To quote Dumbledore from ‘Harry Potter’ “sometimes you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy”.

What does this mean for Apatchy I hear you ask? Fear not I have not forsaken the world of patchwork and quilting nor you my loyal customers. While I was away in December the lovely Jan looked after the shop – and very capable she was too. She has very kindly agreed to retain the reins for a little longer and while I am toiling at the office, she will continue to run the classes as usual on Tuesday and Wednesday morning and evenings starting from Tuesday 4th February.

I will continue to oversee the computer side with email communication, the website and internet orders as well as the ordering and administration side and of course I will pop in to see you now and then to get my quilting ‘fix’ so I won’t be totally invisible. I would like to thank you in advance for giving Jan your support (and me too of course). We are looking forward to making 2014 a year of creativity and fun! There are new fabrics (of course) and other goodies to see so pop in next week and you can catch up with everyone you haven’t see over the holidays as well as seeing all that’s new.

I’m Back!

Posted on by
Reply

Ok so it’s been a while since my last post. For the past week I have been working furiously on my challenge quilt. I hope to find a way to finish it by the due date although at this stage it will be a push. Do you always leave things to the last minute like me?

Apart from running around trying to do a three month job in three weeks we enjoyed a lovely morning last week for the Melbourne Cup. We had a wonderful spectacle with the annual parade of hats as we have the ‘Best Hat Competition’ judged, as usual, by the patriarch of the family. Luvvy made the pool area look very nice and placed my miniature roses along the path so it all looked very much like a famous racecourse – well done Luvvy!

Here’s some photos from the enclosure:

imageimageimage

image

And here’s Lesa – winner of the best hat – complete with the sewing embellishments (sorry about the picture quality – it must have been the excitement).

image

Stolen!

Posted on by
4

The Queensland Quilt Show is currently on and there are lovely things to see there. Unfortunately security cameras did not see a clear picture of the person who stole this quilt on Wednesday during the prize ceremony.

Would you please sound the war drums and let everyone know about this. As the president of Qld Quilters said “maybe our collective eyes and the bush telegraph will get it returned to its rightful owner.” Here’s hoping.

Brenda Wood's quilt stolen from the Quilt Show

Brenda Wood’s quilt stolen from the Quilt Show

More Opulence

Posted on by
3

Sadly we’ve come to the end of the Opulence Overlays workshop. Lisa Walton is teaching this class at Houston so those travelling to the show there should sign up before the places are all gone! Here’s the beautiful results our clever ladies achieved with Lisa’s help:

image

Opulent Overlays

Posted on by
1

Here’s a sneak peek of the Opulent Overlays workshop happening here as we speak. The incomparable Lisa Walton is here today showing us how to incorporate the shapes and curves of intricate ironwork into our textile artwork. This is our progress so far:

imageimageimage

Spring into Laidley

Posted on by
3

We’re AWOL this weekend enjoying the sunshine and country hospitality at the Laidley Spring Festival. The town has been re-energised this weekend after a disastrous two years of floodIng. Many places have only just re-opened after being inundated with floodwater for the second time in January. You won’t see anyone downcast though. The streets are filled with craft stalls, the garden show is in full swing and flower baskets are hanging on poles all the way through the main street.

So if you’re at a loss tomorrow and want to help a little community with a big heart then come to the final day of the Spring Festival. You can see the shows and enjoy the street parade at noon. Don’t forget to come to the Quilt Show at the Uniting Church. We’ll be waiting for you – and we’ll try not to eat all the homemade cakes or the ice creams with strawberries!

We had to take photos of our stand before the show opened because the crowds meant we couldn’t get in for a photo after that. Here’s some things you’ll see at our stand:

imageimageimageimage

imageimage

Oh yes did I mention that Laidley has the best peach blossoms in all the land? No not on the trees – they’re the delicious little cakes above. Actually I think it must be cup-of-tea time now………

Home away from home

Posted on by
3

If you have an opportunity to attend a retreat, especially if it’s at Twilight2Twilight at Esk, make sure you make the effort. Sometimes it seems  difficult because you have lots to do at home and people depend on you or maybe you’re not sure you want to live with strangers for a long weekend. Forget all that and just go. Your family will survive without you for a couple of days and you’ll get so much done because you don’t have to worry about anything apart from the project you’re working on. Those of us who attended last weekend’s retreat found this out the easy way – we got so much done and had a great time as well. And why is Twilight2Twilight so good? I could talk about the comfortable beds, the massive verandah, the beautiful countryside or the great food but really it was just the whole package rolled into one. Tamara who runs the retreat is always cheerful and makes you feel welcome and her mum and dad in the engine room work so efficiently everything just runs smoothly. Here’s some photos of our experience but why don’t you start planning yours? Imagine not having to pack your sewing away for three days…….

PicMonkey Collage retreat