Happy Birthday Sister!

It's my little sister's birthday today. Happy Birthday! I love birthdays. Special days to make special people feel special all day.

I like to make things for people, so when she kept joking with me and asking me whether I was making her a large pleated bag of posts gone by - I had great pleasure in saying no. But little did she know that I was making the above bag. In my favourite fabric of the moment - some of Anna Maria Horner's Garden Party. I am absolutely loving this range of fabric - every singe bit of it! So Happy Birthday again little sister - hope you had a great day. xx

Rather looks a little like a fig, doesn't it!

Thrifted Find

Last Friday, I went op shopping. I picked up a few sewing treasures but this was the find of the week. It's a recipe file and it's extra special because my Mum has one just like. Mum's is well used, but this is in pristine condition. It cracks me up really - it's quite, well, uglyish, sort of. I mean, was there a food stylist involved? I don't think so! After all there is a fruit loaf, fruit on a silver platter, a lone lemon, an egg and eggcup, a boat ??, and a small ornamental boat in the photo. Very interesting. We've come a long way in Australia - think of the beautiful styling in a Donna Hay magazine.

You may notice my colour change. I'm going pink for a week. I was so saddened by the news of Jane McGrath yesterday. Being a Mummy of three children, my heart goes out to her children who will be without their Mummy and of course to her husband who has lost his best friend. And sadness for her, 42 is such a young age. You can donate to her worthy cause here. The foundation raises money to provide breast care nurses in the homes of women in rural and regional Australia, when diagnosed with breast cancer.

Stacks

The stack of basted quilts grew today. It's been a long time coming, but the house was empty for a few hours and I just had to get this quilt basted. It will be sent to Sydney this week for the Mummy of the owner to lovingly quilt it. There's still a few more to baste though. I quite like just looking at the stack.....one day they will be hand quilted.

Strawberries

Ripe, Ripe Strawberries

easy mornings, when the sunshine's just feeling its way into the sky. early morning smiles, open eyes wide and welcome the day. ah sweet sunshine, on my back as i learn to sew, warming my face as i hang out the washing - a candy coloured array, sunshine. like john denver sang - it makes me happy. as do ripe strawberries that burst with flavour, oozing, staining your best top - but who cares when life tastes like this?

©Alexandra Kentmann 2008


I love the use of words, a little bit of poetry each week. It puts the spring into my step - a little bit of quirk in my day. My sister wrote the above piece, she's clever. She writes for a living. Most weeks she posts on her blog Random Poetics. Little pieces of her life that she puts into words. This week was her 100th post so she's having a give away on her other blog - check it out - she has cool stuff ! Oh, yeah, you need to leave a comment - easy!

Speaking of strawberries, these are my favourite strawberry fabrics, some old, some new. I love them all.

A Few Of My Favourire Things

A small bark cloth tablecloth with big blowsy red roses and a big aqua coloured border. Treasured.

Granny Catherine's (Pete's Granny) old glass butter dish filled with many different vintage buttons. I love old buttons - glass ones, Bakelite one and even plain old plastic ones.





Some vintage belt buckles collected over the years. Just collecting for that one day that I have a special project in mind.




These David Austen roses are for my special friend Lindy (and Mark, her hubby). Today is the anniversary of the loss of their precious baby girl - Isabella Jane - who died 13 weeks after being born full term, 4 years ago today.

Hearts

Some vintage hearts from a cutter quilt. They came from Sheena. They are fresh and happy. And small reminders of good things. I love them.

Book

The Quiltmaker's Gift is a book that was given to my son Oliver a couple of years ago by Kate, his aunty. He loves it. It's a story of a greedy king with many belongings, who learns, with the help of a generous and kind hearted quilter, to give away his belonging and find true happiness in the gift of giving. The story and it's prequel "The Quiltmaker's Journey" are written by Jeff Brumbeau and superbly illustrated by Gail de Marcken.


Oliver loves the connections between these books and what I do, what I create. He loves nothing more than poring over the elaborate illustrations discussing the quilts he would love me to make him. I love that he loves these books and that he takes such an interest in what I do - everything is quilting in his tender 7 year old eyes - crocheting, sewing, embroidery - he wraps it all under the one tag. Sweet.