Long days, short years

Look at that saturated colour! I’m sure there’s an art quilt in there somewhere. Quilting is such a great pastime don’t you think – it allows you to be creative even if you’re not that artistic and it gives you a sense of accomplishment when you finish a project (which is what the UFO if the month is trying to help you achieve). Perhaps you view it as ‘therapy’ or you enjoy the sense of community from being with other quilters and sharing their stories. Maybe it connects you with history and memories of your childhood or maybe it is a practical way to keep your family warm or an artistic way to keep their memories alive. It seems to me that quilting can be a lot of things – artistic, creative, practical and even controversial. It can be frustrating and wonderful in equal measure. What does it mean to you? I’d love to know.

Sometimes it might make you feel a little inadequate – sometimes that what the Apatcheez achieve – here’s why – 

Elaine’s mum Carol finished this delightful Smee Designs project with lots of whimsical characters.

 

Joananne finished her world map quilt – a gift for a very lucky family member;

Susan finished another hexie masterpiece and this one really took off on the Apatchy Facebook site. Her choice of spots was unusual for the background but the vibrant colours of Kaffe Fassett et al really came to life on it;

 

June and Sue have become travelling companions and have gone off on an English adventure. Naturally they made gifts to take to special people along the way. The tablerunner is one of June’s creations;

as are her Japanese pouches. The Australian wildflower fabric looks spectacular.

Sue made these wonderful placemats in Aboriginal fabrics which will surely please the recipients.

and closer to home Elaine did a lovely job of this Tilda Club project.

To add some excitement to the class we had Bev McClune come to teach us about machine quilting. Bev certainly proved to be inspirational and many of those pictured have been practising as they were instructed! Wait until you see the quilting that’s coming out of their projects!

Julia often makes garments instead of quilts and this skirt is an example of her precise and stylish workmanship.

Margaret went a little bit arty for this project ( my bad influence must be rubbing off)- a gift for a friend that perfectly captured an actual scene from her window. 

Lesa’s stunning quilt won’t even fit in this photo. It is a wedding present for her beautiful daughter Laura and her husband and we know they were both thrilled. Here she is pointing out the best bit!

Margaret continues to surprise us with her output and here is another large quilt to cross off the list. 

A couple of the Apatcheez have embroidery machines and Elaine shows us all how to use one and how to be a good grandmother all in one go.

Mum and Dad were up for a very short visit and naturally there was more upholstery work for Dad to do. I really think he should set up a workshop here – maybe this could be their winter home???

Before Easter was even finished Elaine had finished another project – this time her sashiko table-runner;

Of course you can’t mention prolific without mentioning Faith and the unbelievable workshop that is her sewing room. Here is her version of the Rajah quilt – quite an achievement.

June was really on a roll making the Japanese pouches and ended up with a commission (sorry about the glare from the lights).

Chris is no slouch at the finished projects game either – here’s one of her projects crossed off the list;

And here’s another. Makes you feel ashamed doesn’t it?

As well as having a long holiday Jane finished this lovely Jacobean wool embroidered cushion.

Elaine finished another Tilda project. Her work is always so precise and when I asked her how she said “I just follow the instructions”. If only life were that simple.

Faith came back with a bang with this fabulous ABC quilt. Her family are so lucky. Can you work out who’s who in the zoo? (Great photo Faith!)

Lynette has been working away but doesn’t let distance stop her from creating – here is her latest project – all hand-embroidered. 

And the train that is Margaret keeps on rolling with this;

and this;

and this;

and finally, these. Do some of these women never sleep you ask? We are looking into that.

Jan and I also managed to take a trip to Boonah for the Girl Guides Quilt and Craft Show. There were some amazing creations but unfortunately I’ve run out of space to share this time. Let me just say that I was asked to bring two quilts to display and they ended up on stage so that was quite a thrill.

I hope all of this inspires you to create more quilts and cross more off your to-do list. We are working through our year crossing off projets as we go and the UFO to work on for May is number…….

Better get cracking and until next time happy quilting

Kaye