New Year, New Quilt........

Welcome 2014, the year of happy I've named it......I think with 2013 having the number 13 in it, made that year a bit ho hum.  I think this year more than any other that I've seen, many people are saying good riddance to 2013 and looking forward to 2014.   It seems last year has not been a great year for many of us.....well in my circle anyway!

Quilt has been made....it's very bright, and with time, like my one I made last year here , it will mellow down, squish and soften up......I was looking at last years quilt this morning when I took it off the bed, it really is like an old vintage find now.  It is so unbelievably soft and mellow, and very well used and loved.

I have a few more quilts to make and or finish off....ran out of fabric for one, a bit of tidying up on another and one that doesn't have to be ready to mid year or so.....but one of my NY resolutions is to not leave things to the last minute.

I'm not normally a resolution maker, but this year I did decide to make a couple....well a few more than a couple, I just wanted to look back at the end of the year and see how far I got.  Not major things, but achievable I guess would be a good way to look at them.

1. No more Not so many yarn purchases.
2. Pilates twice a week.
3. Buy that damn bicycle I've been wanting to buy before Summer finishes.
4. Lose that last 10 or so kilos.....I managed to get 6.5 off before Christmas, so I'd like to have the remaining 10 off by December....slow and steady.
5. Finally learn to run and enjoy it.....Couch to 5K, here I come.
6. Finish all the woolly works in progress before I start any more.
7. Have at least 4 more knitted patterns completed before end of year.
8. Save more money.
9. Don't waste so much food.
10. Comment more on other peoples blogs, facebook pages and the like....I know it makes me so happy when someone leaves me a comment, so I'm going to make sure I do it more to others this year.
11. Smile randomly at someone in the street everyday.
12. Be HAPPY!

What do you think.....Achievable?


Anyway it's time to go, dinner to make, warmest wishes to all of you for 2014.  See you soon.


Vicki x


ps.  Softie comes from here. 

Quilting Time is Near......

It's coming to that time of year where I spend days upon days making quilts.....I have at least 2 quilts to complete over the Christmas break....I need to finish Niece No 2's quilt....being bogged down at work, hasn't been helping me to keep up with time lines.

I've managed to get most of my knitting orders done....and thank you to so many understanding customers who have told me they don't want their hats till the New Year, it then only leaves me 5 more to do before Christmas.  The pressure has been lifted

I've also been making some little pixie hats....Trouble & Striped I call these little hats, just because of the cheeky, bright and colourful nature of them.....nothing sweeter than little bubs all wrapped up in organic merino.  It's far from hat season here in Australia, but I figure, the more I do now, the more 'ready to ship' stock I have available once hat season comes along in 2014

I've also worked out my next "knit your own" pattern for end of January, start of Feb...I'll keep you updated on the pattern progress.  I won't be revealing which pattern I'm going with just yet.  Like to keep some things a surprise!

Also thanks so much, for all the new fans that have joined my blog here....It's so very lovely to see.  When I started this blog, I really didn't think anyone would read it, but I'm humbled by its members and its readership.....it warms my heart.

Well that's it for today....short but sweet.  I'm actually home from work today.  I slipped down the back stairs in my apartment block last night....the stairs where wet, it was dark.....suffice to say I've had to make a trip to the Osteopath this morning....no major damage done, just feeling a little sore and sorry for myself.....sitting for long periods of time is not making things easier either. Anyway.......



Hope all is well in your part of the world.

Time.....

I never had the intention of being away for so long, but time has just gotten away.  So to condense down what could be a long post, here's a little of what I've been up to since I've been away.....Knitting orders (nothing new there!!), lost 4.7 kilos in weight, celebrated my 46th birthday, got a small promotion at work, successfully grown chives, mint and parsley whilst still avoiding those pesky possums.  Purchased all the goodies to start a balcony vegetable garden.  Saw a few movies, About time...worst movie I've ever seen, Diana, second worst movie I've ever seen, Captain Phillips and Prisoner, two of the better movies I've seen. Also went to Gold Class cinema for the first time. Internet shopping from The Fat Quarter Shop, buying pre-cut squares for Christmas break quilting time.   Planning another blanket even though I haven't finished the one I'm crocheting now and just spending some time reacquainting myself with the outdoors and embracing the beautiful Melbourne sunshine.

Hope you're all well,

Have You Seen The Poppets?

My dear friend Jen, sells Poppets.....Mermaids, mermans, pirates, leggy girls, geeks, cowboys, geishas, bunnies, santas, reindeers.....Poppets, the affectionate name given to the array of hand made softies that this talented lady produces from her little home studio in Toronto Canada.

Every little softie poppet is unique in fabric selection, no one poppet will ever be the same....that's the beauty of these little guys.

Jen happily also does custom work when she's able and those who join her newsletter get priority, so if you're looking for something special, Jen can design you a poppet to suit your child.

Take a look at some of the beautiful work that Jen has completed.

What do you think?  Aren't they the cutest little poppets that you ever did see.  All triple stitched, with all ribbon adornments hand sewn, so little fingers can't remove them, eco filled, 100% cotton bodies, and wool felt faces and accessories and hand stitched embroided sweet little signature smiles.  At the moment, Jen has some "Ready to Ship" stock available which is really unheard of, so I'm letting you in on the poppet secret.  There are some little sea themed items in her Etsy store as we speak, as well as some cute little long legged girls with bows in their hair.

For more information about Pikelet Workshop you can find them on Facebook, or pop over to Jen's blog and read all about Jen's adventures of an Aussie family living in Toronto, Canada......Oh I forgot to mention that, Jen is from Perth, West Australia, where all the talented crafters come from in Oz!!

Just to let you know this is not a sponsored post....I truly love Jen's work and it is too beautiful not to share, so stop by and say hi to Jen, and tell her that Vicki @ dover & madden sent you, and when you're thinking of gifts think hand made first.


cheerio,

I Wish Someone Had Told Me........

I think I was always a bit addicted to buying yarn....running a knitting business it does come with the territory.  Although with yarn I wasn't very experimental.  I never really liked fancy yarns.  Plain simple colours have always worked for me.....apart from the little booties I made in variegated yarn....I never even ventured that far into fancy yarn.

But.....I wish someone hat told me that buying fabric was addictive......It's referred to now as "Crafting Crack" around these parts....not particularly a nice term....but I just can't stop looking and buying fabric......Someone around here mentioned that making quilts was addictive, but the process of buying the fabric has become equally as addictive if not more fun than the making of the quilts themselves.

My thing at the moment is to sit in front of the computer scrolling through the online fabric swatches at Fabric.com .  I then make up mood boards on the design wall.....if I like the colours I've come up with then I just take a screen shot and file it away.....last night I stumbled across fabrics from Riley Blake...a red, orange and blue story......thus I've made a purchase and have another quilt lined up.

I don't think I'm ready to move on from squares just yet when it comes to my quilt making....maybe when the knitting dies down a little I'll experiment with other patterns, but my priority is still to get Niece No 2's pink quilt completed....Quilt No. 1 is sitting here all completed and waiting for the other one to be made.

I've also got another stash of fabric here to make what I referred to as the Easter Quilt , although that stash got raided and a few of the fabrics made their way into Niece No 2's stash.....so I'll be doing a top up when I get around to making that quilt.

So there you have it......My name is Vicki and I am an addict.....and addict of textiles and woolly things.

Am I the only one that stashes and stores craft materials, or is it quite normal for most crafty people to secretly stash?.......Or are you one of those sane people that just buys what you need?  I wish I was the latter!!



Vic x

Hope....& the travelling suitcase!!

The anchor remains firm and steady amidst the stormy waters, symbolizing the stable part of a human being.  That quality, which enables us to keep a clear mind amid the confusion of sensation, emotion and the general “storms” of life.

My nieces.....I haven't seen them since this post.  I finished the blue and green quilt late last night.  Picked it up from the laundrette today, all clean, squishy and soft....Can you guess which niece will get this quilt?

Vicki x

Quilt it Quilt it Real Good Continued.......

Still quilting I am......I managed to get all the top of the single bed quilt put together over Easter....520 squares to be exact.  I had forgotten how long it took.  I had to do 26 squares for the length and 20 across for the width, so it was easy to break it down to 5 rows of 26 squares each day over Easter!!  Made the task more manageable.

This weekend I'm going to start the quilting.  The process of sewing all the layers together.  Again I'm going with cotton wadding in the middle and also this time I'm going with a coloured back to this quilt.  The quilt I made for myself had a calico back, that you can see here.   As this quilt is for a child., I just thought it should be a bit more fun and bright, so I've gone with a lime green and white polka dot print.....and the polka dots are huge and don't appear in the quilt at all, so it's a real contrast.  Looking forward to seeing it finished, although I plan to do the quilting over the course of a week, not all in one day like I did last time!!

Once that's done I guess I'll have to commence the second one.....the pink one....might just start on the cutting process for this one over the weekend.....my least favourite job of all!

Hope you're all well.


Vic x

Quilt it, Quilt it real good!

It's Easter, but my Easter quilts won't be ready.....I've made a start on one though.  I'm loving the happiness of this quilt.  The bright cheery colours, some patterned, some plain.

I only plan to do a little of this quilt each day. It's certainly not going to be a mammoth project like the last one.

Anyway....it's back to the knitting, and hope the Easter bunny spoils you all rotten.

vic x

Too Hot To Handle......

Autumn.....who would have thought Melbourne would have created history with the hottest Autumn on record....9 consecutive days above 30 celsius, with 5 of them being over 35 celsius.

I've just come back from the beach.....these were taken at around 7.40pm and it's still 33c.....The cool change should arrive tomorrow morning at around 10am, and I for one can't wait.  We've also had  one of the hottest Summers on record I believe......maybe bringing out the Winter clothes 2 weeks ago was a little premature.....I do hear it's going to be a hot Easter also...I'll remember the long hot Summer of 2013 well.


**Added 13th March after the cool change has arrived.

Melbourne's record March heatwave has broken one final record just as a cool change finally brought some relief after almost 10 days of sweltering weather.  Overnight temperatures fell to a minimum of just 26.5 degrees, making it the warmest March night since records began, edging out the previous high of 26.3 degrees set back in 1927.

Monday.....

I've started to attempt to take Mondays off from work.....at the moment it is really the only day of the week I have free so I do make the most of it.

Today was spent sorting seasonal wardrobe, sneaky bit of online shopping, cleaning, receiving parcels from the postman, selecting seasonal wool colours, a walk through Middle Park and South Melbourne....the changing architecture of the new and the familiar of the old, topped off with dinner and a movie in Yarraville with some friends......"I give it a Year", you're in for a right laugh.

Hope your Monday was just as enjoyable, and if it's yet to come......Happy Monday!

vicki x