A little visitor in the garden

Last night before bed I noticed the green frog outside, it has been years since we have had green frogs in the garden, this drought has been going on for about 6 years and in all that time I don't think I have heard or seen a frog. Welcome Back.

Thanks Leanne for your Thread Holder

After seeing the tuitorial Leanne has on her blog, www.thestitchingroom.blogspot.com I decided to make one of these little thread holders, after showing it to my Tuesday ladies they decided they would also like to have a go, the photo is of some that were made today by my group. By altering the cutting measurements, we came up with a large and small size, the small is the measurement that Leanne has in her tuitorial.
Thanks so much Leanne for sharing your thread holder with us, it certainly is a great little item that will very handy.

The countdown is on

Well just finished another 2 day retreat with a lovely group of ladies that have been visiting me for a few years now from Sydney, it was great to have them with me again. Apart from no electricity for a couple of hours this morning the retreat went really well, with them all working very hard on their choosen quilts. I look forward to seeing some photos once completed.
For some un known reason the power went out here at 7.10am and didn't come back on for over 4 hour, we cut and pinned, picked out borders etc to fill in the time, I am sure you can all understand how difficult it is to run a retreat without power, no lights, no sewing machines no irons, no music and no tea or coffee. I am sure there could be worst things to go wrong.
I have only 3 more retreats for the year, then my Christmas gathering on the 8th December, anyone is welcome to come along to this. We always have a great day with lots of yummy food, Christmas swap gifts, small projects to work on as well as a wonderful display of quilts around my garden.
Also a quick mention for anyone who was thinking of joining our instore Pin cushion swap, they need to be to me by the end of the month (or at least your name), at present there are about 45 pincushions that have been sent in from all over Australia, I will post a photo soon of them all.
Also just a quick mention to say that over the past 2 days we have had some absolutely lovely rain, not sure how much but, everything just looks so fresh and alive with the rain.
Until next time, happy sewing
Kerry

Photo but no quilts

I had a great group of ladies here for a retreat last weekend, they all had a terrific time and achieved heaps, we did manage to get a group photo before they all headed off for their 7 hour drive home,but it is just group shot with no quilts. Believe me they did all make one.
I have another retreat mid week this week so hopefully I take some good photos of there quilts.
I haven't personally had time to sew but with only 2 months left before Christmas I really better get cracking as I have heaps of gifts to make...(I do work very well to a dead line) .....so if anyone out there in blog land is waiting for a gift from me, Christmas is my dead line.
Anyway back to the kitchen to cook up some yummy treats for my retreat tomorrow, happy sewing
Kerry

1/2 Way there - 365 Challenge

6 Months Down 6 months to go
Just thought I would share my 365 Challenge Quilt with you all, I very pleased with myself for keeping it up to date and I'am very happy with the way it is coming together. After 6 months it already measures 55" across by 74" down, so at this rate it is going to be a large quilt. I do hope someone in the future appreciates all my journaling.
I am loving the whole process, looking forward to seeing everyone elses.
Have a good weekend
Kerry

Hectic Weekend.................................

After loading my Jeep up with as many kits, fat 1/4's and pattern as it would hold, Vicki and I headed off to Dubbo Friday afternoon, hoping to make it in time to up pack the car and set up the stall, before heading out for dinner with some blogland friends. We made it.

We met, Donna, Gillian and Fiona for a wonderful evening of non stop chatter, this is a photo of us all including Vicki in the red and my SIL Leanne with her arm around me.

Back to the show first thing Saturday to set the stall up probably before the crowds arrived at 10am, it was great to catch up with so many familiar faces, to many to name. Lots of ladies from that area have visited my shop so it was terrific to see them all again.

The committee that organised the show did a wonderful job, everyone was so happy all weekend, nothing was too big a problem, the food was great, the display of new and old quilts was outstanding.
Experiences like this leave me and I am sure everyone else, who visited the show, inspired and eager to squeeze in some time to sew, there are just so many ideas and patterns out there, who knows when I will get time to make them all.

A huge thanks to all those wonderful ladies that helped make the weekend such a success,

I was thrilled to be part of it.

Off to my sewing room for a little of me time.

Until next time happy sewing

Kerry

An Angel for my very best angel friend

Just a very quick post to share with you the Angel doll I made for my very best friend, Tanya, for her birthday, her special day was last month but I am going to spend the weekend with her in Dubbo so I decided I would share her with you all before I head off in the morning. "Lucinda" the angel is out of Annie Downs book "An Angel Story". I was pleased with the way she turned out, do hope Tanya likes her.

The past few days have been extremely busy in shop, with lots of holiday makers visiting me as well as heaps of preparation getting ready for this weekends show in Dubbo. I am looking forward to the weeknd, hope to see lots of friendly faces there.

I am catching up with some blog friends tomorrow evening for dinner to share some fun and laughter.

I will post some photos of the show next week, until then, take care

Kerry

Sheep Shearing here in Australia

This long post is especially for all those living in other countries to show you a little bit of what else goes on around our property apart from my Patchwork business. Geoffrey, my DH, works over 4000 arces of land, running Merino sheep for wool and cattle. Last week he finished shearing for the year and these are a few photos I took in the shed.

First up is "Noel" Geoffrey's very faithfulworking dog, enjoying a rest in the comfort of the soft wool under the classing table.

We grow fine merino wool and most of the wool that is grown on our property is sold at Auction and usually goes to Italy to be processed there and made into fabric for mens suits and other garments.

I will run the photos in order to show you the process of shearing a sheep.

This is a photo of the sheep in the yards waiting for their turn to have there coats removed, these are younger sheep called Hoggets, about 12 months old, don't mind there red markings on their noses, that is just paint.

Next they are put into a pen in the shearing shed, then the shearer drags them out and starts shearing, they shear the belly first then the face. This wool goes into a seperate bale. Apart from these two sections, the fleece comes off the sheep in a whole piece.

Once the sheep is shorn ,the shed hand picks up the fleece and throws it carefully onto the classing table, were the fleece is skirted and classed, it then goes into a wool press and is pressed into very large bales that are marked with the property brands and trucked to the wool stores, where it is then sold at auction..Each year Geoffrey ( or should I say the shearers ) shear about 3,500 sheep on our property, each shearer usually shears about 120 sheep per day so the process takes a a few weeks in total to complete.

I am so glad I have my own business to run, a patchwork shop is a much better place for a women then the shearing shed, it is pretty hard work out there and the talk in the shed is not fit for a womens ear alot of the time.

Anyway hope you have enjoyed learning a little more about life on my hill.

Take care

Kerry

Calling anyone in the Dubbo area....................
Well Friday week, 12th October I will be in Dubbo to set up for the Central West Patchwork & Needlecraft Expo, to be held on Saturday 13th & Sunday 14th at the Dubbo Christian school on Sheraton Rd. I will be taking along lots of fat 1/4's, patterns, kits, gift ware etc, I am looking forward to catching up with old friends and making new ones over the two days.
If you would like to join me for dinner on the Friday evening in Dubbo please contact me and we will arrange a time and a place, it would be great to catch up with any blog watchers out there in central west New South Wales.
Also if anyone would like to receive a 10% discount voucher to be spent at the Expo then leave a message between now and the 10th October and I will have your voucher ready and waiting for you on my stall in Dubbo.
There will be new fabrics and quilts so come along and visit me in Dubbo on the 13th & 14th October. Looking forward to seeing you all there,
Kerry
PS Dubbo holds a special place in my heart as it was my home for the first 21 years of my life, give or take some time spent in New Zealand and Sydney.