Friday report

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Several (fabric) postcards arrived in the mailbox this week: Catherine in Swan Hill;Anieta in Canberra; Becky Fischer in California.
The themes were Cats(Catherine knows me very well)
Seasons.......Autumn in Canberra (my favourite season)
and Abstract

I am involved with the swapping of fabric/fibre postcards on several sites;all with similar themes.
My main gripe is that the senders do not specify WHICH group they are sending from(bad grammar I know,but you get my drift!)
Surely,somewhere on the card can be included the legend: "Postmark'dArt Seasons swap" or whatever is relevent to the swap.;or Fabrications Fabrications
or fiberart postcards
You would not believe the sleuthing involved to work out who "regards,XXXX" and a postmark actually IS, not to mention the time involved in sleuthing.

You see, my problem is that I like to acknowledge receipt of a card,and let the sender KNOW that their card arrived at its destination...........bit difficult when you have no idea WHO sent it!

Maybe I'm weird for such a mindset,but,that's ME!

The good news is.....tomorrow my new camera should be here,and up and running!

kurliskottage: Mark your diary..........QUILTMANIA

kurliskottage: Mark your diary..........QUILTMANIA

Fractured seasons.......Postcards

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As I mentioned yesterday My latest Postcard swap involved the theme "Seasons";I felt that my stitch enhanced photo PCs were a bit blah,so I decided to employ a CQ method and use colours/fabrics indicative of the seasons as I see them where I live.

Nothing startling........I'm getting used to machine work after many years of hand work.(So my edges aren't the best........sorry)
I also find that it is not a good idea to make cards too thick with embellishing,or be too lavish withthreads,laces,braids that run the danger of snagging and being wrecked by postal machinery,or a surcharge for being over width.
Because of this factor I tend to frequently place the stamped and hand cancelled PC in a cellophane envelope before handing the PC back to postal officials for the card to begin its travels!

Fractured seasons

 
And this is a fractured (read crazy piecing) of the previous posting:
Low tide,Summer,Moreton Island. 

Still no camera.............

 

Hopefully,by Saturday I'll be acquainting myself with a new camera......
HOPEFULLY! (and fingers crossed.)
In the meantime,it's scanned pics or nada!
The last two days I've been working on yet more fabric & fibre postcards:the theme being "Seasons"
Initially I did a "cheat" and printed out photos of favourite ocean based sites....Inskip Point and Moreton Island.
When I made a couple of booboos with my new printer,and printed "too small" I went back to my original plan of (slightly) Crazy piecing;
This pic was a 6x4 inch (nearly) 

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Still no camera.......I had hoped it would turn up gift wrapped today,but my chief camera buyer has not had the time to pursue it this week due to work committments.
Talk about withdrawal symptoms!!
I may have to see if I still know how to use the 35mm film camera YUK!
No instant gratification there.
The Mother Goose quilt is sandwiched and pinned ready for quilting and binding;
Last night's attempts at hand quilting reminded me how long it was since I'd wielded a quilt needle.......will unpick last night's effort as it's ****!
Of course the fact that I was celebrating with a few white wines with friends was not conducive to even stitching.

Said friends certainly surprised me with their generousity.....their gifts and rendition of Happy Birthday was heart warming.Where would we be without our stitchin bitchin friends!
Thanks Shaz,Kerrie,Pete and Sue!

V.Q.P. tonight

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Very Quick Post tonight,as I'm still in "camera withdrawal"
Today I finally completed my "Mother Goose" bluework top,and have it 'half sandwiched'...I found my recently acquired craft table much handier than the old table tennis table,so 2/3 of quilt is pinned for quilting;

I completed two "Abstract" fabric/fibre PCs for swapping;

I sun-printed another 8x11 inch piece of fabric,for use in either art journal quilts,or postcards;

Last night I completed a seam embellishment on a block(for Jo in NZ) in a "Crazy Quilt Round Robin"
and blogged same to CQCrazy
So tonight, I guess I better go tackle some of those PCs that need addressing ;
and write up Roz and Jo's journals explaining what I stitched on their blocks for the RR,and get them packaged for their journey to Becky in California.

I'm outa here!!

July , and all that jazz.......

"Things have been less than "tres jolie" around here the last few days....
My trusty digital camera DIED on Saturday,and I've been in severe withdrawal!
My original guesstimate was that I use the camera at least five out of every seven days,now I'm not so sure:
I've become so used to having a camera hot to trot,whether it's for----
our local (bird) wildlife;
the antics of our three cats;
my CQ committments,
or my art quilts,
or the fabric & fibre Postcards
or...........
you get my drift:
SEVERE WITHDRAWAL SYMPTONS!

Yesterday I did visit an actual camera shop,as well as Ebay and several other online businesses.
I'm still camera deprived!
My birthday shortly,so a good excuse to splurge....
BUT
I want "bang for my bucks"!!

So today,I went back to trying to close off a Postcard swap...all 20 of them.

Guess who's lost the packet of International stamps she bought last week!
Guess,who,in a fever of organisational mode fused the post card fronts to the stabiliser before embellishing the said cards?
GUESSwho's totally p**** off with her brilliance??

(No prizeswill be awarded, as I don't have a camera to record it all.

Heliographic printing

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Okay...........does "sun printing" sound better?
Nearly got my act together today,and here is the fruit of the last two day's experimentation.
This is all new to me.....I never played with tie dyeing or batik,or......... in my salad days,
and now I'm doing a frantic catch-up
on all the fun things I missed out on in earlier years

The top (yellowy)piece is my first attempt,when I followed instructions and diluted my transparent paints to a 1 in 3; This first one,I also used three different paints.

The lower fabric was undiluted Setacolour Soleil(Turquoise) and "from go to Whoa",it took about two hours max.
(Nearly instant gratification :-)

It was a clear sunny winter afternoon that we enjoy as standard winter weather in SEQld,so maybe that helped!

Okay.. I moved the frame a couple of times around the yard to capture maximum sun exposure,but I'm rapt in how simple a procedure it is;
I think that the diluted paints will be used up on some of my silk ribbons.........surely a dunk in a tie dye situation,
a sun dry and then heat set with iron should provide some interesting results.
Why not......if I never try,I'll never know.

Last day of June

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Today has been another busy day with no photos to prove my words!

I "thought" that I'd finished the Top of the blue work quilt,until "Mr Block-head"
(his term NOT mine) queried WHY I didn't have "a black strip down there".

Yes,in my frantic haste to finish,I neglected one of the strips that emphasize that attic windows!
Could have been worse.....I could have already mitred my corners and basted the sandwich for quilting!!

Also tried (a bit late in the day, and the sun was not at it's best) some heliographic printing.
So those pics will be "tomorrow",hopefully.
My interest in this sun printing was aroused after receiving a gorgeous leaf print Postcard from Sue Reno recently,so I just HADto have a play.......... somehow,I don't think Sue is in any danger of my competition!
I guess my comment for June would be that it's been a month of experimentation and further learning as I drift away a little from being CQ driven into fabric postcards and art journal quilts.

I have also been keeping a journal on the various techniques I've tried,so that when I need them again I hopefully avoid repeating mistakes.
I may not have journalled in the way that SharonB outlined at the Canberra Retreat in 2004,but between blogs and my handwritten journals,but I am trying

Experimenting

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Today was a day of experimenting;playing....with like minded friends.
I had a new heat gun and a heat tool to 'christen':
I got all organised.........even to the extent of including my digital camera!
And when I returned home very late this afternoon,realised that I hadn't used it at all! ***
Hopefully I'll get my act together tomorrow and take pics of my samples,to be included in/with my journal notes for future reference.
From today's little efforts,I think the heat gun will be my favourite weapon: we used it on Tyvek film and Tex;
Lutradur,
Vilene stabiliser;
onion bags;
Florist's mesh (wonderful beads,but if overheated a bit brittle)
Florist's tissue;
foil bags from potato chips;
Old Christmas decorations.............
It gave a whole new meaning to Recycling and bag-ladies!
My daughter will HATE me for finding even more excuses to hoard:

It's GOOD for the Environment

Today's effort

 
I'm so glad that I frog-stitched all of the previous sashing and opted for an Attic Window treatment.
I had hoped that today I would get not only the window shapes, but the entire top finished ready to sandwich and quilt tomorrow.

Alas,other considerations slowed down the process,but I must admit I'm happy to have got this amount done despite the interruptions.

The next photos taken will be against a plain background,and not the distraction of my "Starry,starry nights" underneath! 

Waiting.............

 
 
 

To be sashed into attic windows 

Mother Goose in Blue-work

 
This proposed quilt has been a WiP for over twelve months!
It started life as a swap on an online group I've been involved with for some years.
I had hoped to have it completed back in April/May,but the fates were against me.
Finally,I got round to sashing the blocks.........and found that the fabric I'd "kept" for the project was insufficient----I'd 'liberated "some to another project!
Needless to say,nothing was available to save the situation,so I frog-stitched half the sashing of each block.
Once again I learned how difficult it is to compromise....to the degree that today I settled for another concept:
instead of a log cabin type sashing,I've removed the original concept completely and with new fabrics,I am settling down to an "Attic Window" approach.
Two shades of blue for the framing,and narrow black to separate the frames.
Two blocks look greatIMHO :-) but I'm determined to have it sashed,quilted and bound by July 6.
That's as well as other committments....watch this space. 

Quiltmania

  

Fibre fusion and Tyvek film

 
 

These two Postcards are the result of combining two techniques for an Abstract effect.
The base of both cards is 'silk paper' which I made last weekend;the shapes are Lumiere painted Tyvek film which has been heat treated.......I commenced with my heat gun,got frightened at how quickly the Tyvek shrunk at low heat,and finished by placing baking parchment over the film and passing a linen heat iron over the back of the previously cut out shapes.
Then using ribbon floss in the bobbin,and working on the wrong side of the card I stitched an abstract pattern.
The first card then had sari embroidery fibres teased out and held down by the Tyvek shape,which was stitched down at strategic points.
Because the second card had zig-zag shapes,which I felt would lose their effect with stitching,I laid tulle over all,and then stitched around the shapes to anchor it all.

Later in the day,because I had new stocks of both F2F and Timtex,I cut,pressed and started stitching my "My backyard" and "cats" themed cards...........20 in all.
Still quite a bit of work to be done there.

And as for CQ .... I finished what I was doing on two rectangular blocks for an ongoing RoundRobin,and the results can be seen over at my other Blog CQCrazy Blog 

kurliskottage: Elephant apples,anyone?

kurliskottage: Elephant apples,anyone?

Fabric & Fibre Postcards

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As a follow up on the previous postings on Fabric Postcards,I thought it may be worthwhile pointing out that if you're going to make these for swapping,it adds to the intrinsic value if the cards have actually gone through the mail system i.e... Adressed to the recipient ,stamped,and the stamp cancelled!
What I do,is take the card to the Post office and have them hand cancelthe stamp.
Then,before handing it back to the postal clerk,I slip the card into a cellophane(glassine?) envelope,seal it and hand it back for inclusion in the mail that it NOT
machine sorted.
I must admit I tend to use the clear envelope only when the embellishments may be damaged or snagged in normal postal handling.
It works for both local(Australian) and International mailings and it is still acceptable to go through at Postcard rates rather than the normal letter rates,
(and Customs can see what is in the envelope too!)

Rocky Mountain High

 
 

These are two of the Fabric Postcards I received today from The RockyMountainCrazy Quilters.
The theme was "my home":One card resembles a tanned cow hide..beautiful soft suede like feel.It has 36 eyelets punched around it and chenille thread laced through.Simple and effective!

The other is a machine embroidered fox(?) coyote(?) against a background of conifer forest,with the words Conifer,Colorado embroidered as its location.
Beautiful tonings in the animal's coat.!
My thanks to C Hruby and "unknown" 

A Fabric postcard swap

 
 
 
 

Today's mail disclosed a fat envelope with my share of a recent fabric Postcard swap between the RockyMountain Crazy Quilters and the SouthernCrossCrazies,and above are four of the six I received.
I wasa little disappointed that none had been stamped and cancelled,but when this swap was first mooted we were novices and not aware of how the fact of sending them through the mail added to their interest value.

Since sending my cards away last April,I've swapped with people in the USA;Canada;the Netherlands;U.K; N.Z and Australia and am about to start stitching on some 20 cards for two swaps: Cats,and My Backyard.
I'm finding my Printer is a very handy tool these days