Quick and easy blocks!

The librarians have been very busy searching our new and exciting ideas to stimulate our creative juices and learn new skills.  We especially like things that are novel and easy to do!!  We have found two slim volumes that fit the bill. 

Check this you tube video to whet your appetite-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbTHlGGKMPM&noredirect=1

What's new in the library??

Quilt a Gift  by Barri Sue Gaudet


Tradition dictates that we purchase a book on each bus trip!  This year on our excursion to Bendigo we bought a book that should give you inspiration for making some small projects, especially since Christms is around the corner and we need good ideas!

It includes quilted gifts for every occasion, including birthdays, mother's day, weddings and Christmas.  Some projects are quick and east to complete whereas other may become heirlooms!   Many of the designs include embroidery embellishment!.

READY TO BORROW NOW!!!

Needleturn appliqué with ease with Robyn Falloon

I recently had a needleturn appliqué lesson with Di in our quilting hall kitchen (Thanks Di!) and I made my first needleturn block.

I was quite pleased with how it turned out but I could see every mistake and lump and bump! Glo suggested I borrow this DVD that was kindly donated to the library by Sue and I watched it with great interest.

Robyn Falloon does some beautiful work and the DVD showed some of her finished designs which were nice to see. One of the very first things she said was that she'd always been afraid of needleturn appliqué but with practice finds it a very easy and relaxing technique.

In parts the DVD was quite slow as she didn't have any of her work prepared in advance so we had to watch her cutting templates, then drawing the shapes and then we sat and watched as she glued each piece to her backing but you could fast forward much of this.

Robyn went into great detail about how to stitch inner and outer curves, circles and inner and outer points. I learned a great deal although I'm sure she made it look easier than in fact it is! It's the kind of DVD you'd want in front of you as you sew so you can see how she does it and try to repeat that and if it doesn't work you watch that part of the DVD again!

I recommend this DVD to anyone with any interest in learning to do needleturn appliqué or for anyone who feels competent but may wish to learn a different method perhaps of doing it. The DVD is a companion to a feature in a quilting magazine and you can download the pattern and instructions online at www.completecraft.com.au/dvd_reviews

Evelyn

Elephant show and tell...

In order to encourage all of you very talented stitchers and quilters to contribute and show off your work, I decided to share with you some show and tell that I'm very proud of! {I couldn't bring this one into sewing as it had to go to it's new owner the day after it was finished}.

These images are of the very first baby quilt I've ever made, which is also the first quilt I've finished from start to finish on my own {to clarify, I've done a few quilt tops, but nothing in it's entirety}. It's also the first time I've used my free-motion quilting skills to great effect! Workshops do come in handy!!

The elephants were raw-edged appliqued onto a 1m x 1.5m piece of white Moda solid fabric. The quilting was mostly squiggly, swirly, "e" shapes and curls and a few elephant shapes here and there to break things up a bit. I did find it quite challenging handling the quilt bulk with such a small sewing machine, but after a while I found I got into a bit of a rhythm. The stitches became more even and flowed really well and I became more confident with my "driving" of the machine. I'm sure Pauline {teacher of our SS&Q quilting workshop from last year} would've been proud of me!

One little Ellie... prior to applique magic!

free motion quilting...

Sewing that binding... probably my least fave part!

Label... and oh so cute spotty, dotty backing!

The label had a quote from Winnie the Pooh that I love...

"Sometimes," said Pooh, "the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."

And here in all it's finished glory is Amy's Elephant Walk... my first completed quilt {all on my very own}. The little feet sticking out of the bottom belong to my Mum... isn't she brilliant?

Here it is! Finished...

See ladies! It didn't hurt a bit to share. Hope you like my elephants.

Kylie x

The annual bus trip and other stuff...

Ladies don't forget we have our annual patchwork bus trip coming up on
October 22nd {only two weeks to go} and this year we are heading up to Bendigo!

wheels on the bus! source - John

We will visit various patchwork shops along the way, with lunch at The Basement Cafe in Bendigo. Lunch will be included in the price as it was last time so if you haven't put your name down with me please let me know either at group, by email or by phone 0421 110 977.

If you have a friend you would like to invite along for the fun (and goodies!) that's great! Just let me know, and get ready to shop till you drop. At present the cost is $45 {which includes lunch} but when we are able to finalise numbers, this may change slightly. Could you please finalise any outstanding payment for the trip this week and see me about your lunch order if you haven’t done so already.

Ladies, we also have a few spots available for the Quilting Work Shop on November 5th so if you haven't put your name down or you have a friend you would like to invite to join us then let me know. The cost is $25 for the workshop and $5 for the hall hire, this is a great price for such a valuable learning experience, and just imagine not having to pay to get someone else to quilt all those beautiful quilts you do anymore.

Again I can be contacted on the above email, phone or in person at group.

Cheers
Jan

President's Natter - September...

Well we are into spring now and haven’t we had some nice weather so far. We have started the year really well with over 40 members and having a lovely time on Tuesday evenings.

source - Annika

We had a lovely day celebrating Christmas in July at Riddells Creek Hotel, thanks to Judy and Marlene for all their work. Also thanks to Glo and Evelyn for lots of fun with the exhibiting of the Christmas Elves challenge items and games.  The ladies excelled themselves with the Leadlight projects.

The Chinese Whispers blocks are going well and we are now just over halfway through the challenge.  New members don’t hesitate to ask someone if you are having trouble with your blocks.

Our library is growing steadily with some new additions, thanks to Glo for her continuing work.

The Quilt Exhibition is coming up in June and the committee will have their first meeting in October, to get things underway.

The Charity Quilt for the raffle at the Exhibition has been donated by Rosie. It is a beautiful quilt and has already been started.  We will require members to participate by making blocks, appliquéing etc. These will be distributed soon.

The first Free Motion Quilting Class with Sherrie Jewson will be on Saturday 17^th September. There are a few spaces left, so if you are interested contact Jan, the cost is $30, bring your own lunch and a plate to share for a cuppa. There will be a second class on 7^th October for those who are unable to get to the first one.  There will be another more advanced class on November 5th. Keep tuned for the details or contact Jan.

Next Tuesday evening 20^th September we will be having a “Westalee” Rulers demonstration.  All welcome and feel free to bring a friend. Cost will be the usual $3 and starting at 6:30 pm.   Bring along a small plate for supper.

Jan is organizing the Bus Trip for Saturday the 22^nd October. Please let her know if you are interested and make your payment to Esmae.  The cost will be approximately $46 including lunch. Ask a friend to come along.

The Christmas breakup is booked for the 6^th December at the Gamekeepers Secret Inn on Melton Highway at 6:30pm.

We will be having some beginners classes starting in a couple of weeks the first will be “needle turn appliqué”.  Anyone wishing to take part in this, bring along a small project such as a flower or simple animal, so that we can get you started on Tuesday 27^th September.

We have decided to make an SS&Q wall hanging using quilt as you go hexagons or squares this can be displayed at the quilt exhibition and any other functions. Annie and Lyn are looking after this project and will advise when they have worked out the details.  All present members will be asked to make a small block of a size to be decided and embroider their name and date they joined the group and any other decoration the want to “pretty up” their piece.

I hope I haven’t forgotten anything, but you are probably sick of me by now, so until next time.

Diane Hutchinson
President.

Wyndham Patchworkers Quilt-In

I attended the Wyndham Patchworkers Quilt-In on Saturday and had a fabulous day. The members did a wonderful job with morning and afternoon tea and door prizes (everyone received one, yay).

Local business's donated prizes for the numerous raffles and the guest speaker was Esther Aliu a textile artist, who likes to stencil her quilts. Esther donated two books of her block of the month to be raffled and I am happy to report I was one of the lucky recipients (yay again).

One of Esther's beautiful quilts...

There were four shops in attendance (so lots to browse) as well as a "guess the weight of the buttons" and "how many many safety pins in the jar" competitions for a bit of fun.

Members were encouraged to dress up in black and white with a splash of colour, and of course there were plenty of beautiful quilts to look at.

All in all I had a great day,

Bronwyn

New and Wonderful Additions to Our Library

I am sure you will enjoy this amazing bright cheerful book Quilt a New Christmas  (Number 134) that puts a new slant on Christmas projects. I wanted to keep it myself but must share with everyone!


Read the review from the publisher's site -  http://www.ctpub.com/productdetails.cfm?sku=10767

Review By: Tara Batman, - August 12, 2011
Review Title: Quilt a New Christmas Book Review: An interesting concept in this book is capturing Christmas by using context instead of Green & Red colors. Why do all Christmas quilts have to be made in traditional colors; their approach is to use context with any colors. The quilts in the book show modern color schemes while still retaining the Christmas look. Piece O' Cake designs has wonderful techniques for needle turn applique that is easy to understand and helps make your work mistake proof, so all their books are very good for beginners wanting to do this type of applique. A great discuss of value, scale and contrast was done in this book which is very well illustrated. Also, they address picking fabrics for the backgrounds using unusually typed of prints, then how to combine it with applique fabrics while using a planning board. I really enjoyed this book and the quilts are very unusual but very Christmas. I have at least two projects picked out to do!! 

We have also purchased the first of the William Morris In Applique books (Number 135) .We already have the second book.  No artist ever captured the beauty of nature in such exquisite detail as William Morris. Now Michele Hill has transformed his graceful birds, flowers, vines, and woodland creatures into appliqué designs any quilter can master. (Reference: http://www.ctpub.com/productdetails.cfm?PC=1270). 

If interested you can see the video launch of this book.
http://vimeo.com/3376934









While browsing to find information about our new books I came across this free classic reference, defintely one to explore just for the fun of it! -  Encyclopedia of Needlework by Therese Dillmont.    There are lots of other needlecraft references there as well. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/20776/20776-h/20776-h.htm


That's all for now!   Enjoy!

President's Annual Report

SS&Q has had a busy year. We have sadly seen old members go and new members with renewed enthusiasm, take up membership.

We have been involved in many projects and fundraising activities since the last AGM. Last Christmas in July we raised $62.00 and the group made up the difference to donate $100.00 to the Biggest Morning Tea.

We increased our weekly entrance fee from $2.00 to $3.00 to cover hall hire. We made amendments to our constitution at a special meeting.

Jenny Bacon, President of Victorian Quilters, on the 16th November, gave an informative talk and slideshow and presented the group with show and tell.

We became involved in the Travelling Friendship Quilt Project, being Victorian State co-ordinator, took part with several members to design and make a block to be part of a quilt, which will represent our group in being part of history.

Our bi-annual quilt exhibition was held over two days for the first time and proved a huge success. Our amazing raffle quilt raised over $1500.00 for The McGrath Foundation. Our two wonderful raffle baskets enabled us to cover our costs. St Mary's Church catered and the money they raised went back to the Church.

On the 16th May, many members were able to attend Pauline Rogers' quilting workshop.

We had two full day workshops and several Tuesday nights working on charity quilts we donated to those affected by the flooding of Charlton and Kerang. As well as sewing, goods were donated by our group to the Charlton group. We also sponsored three Charlton Patchworkers affected by the floods at our annual retreat in April.

Several members made and donated trauma dolls.

Our Chinese Whispers' Block Swap commenced in February, involving 26 enthusiastic members, with a reveal in February 2012.

The group was involved in making two quilts which were donated to the Goonawarra Community House to be raffled at their art show, for a local children's autistic group.

Our first amazing SS&Q blog was commenced, with the president's report, rosters and SS&Q meeting business, still being produced in paper form.

We have supported the Koala Club in Africa via St Mary's Church, with donations materially and in cash.

Our group have set up two mini committees for both the Annual Quilt Exhibition in 2012 and our continued Charity Quilt making.

A back to basics class was offered by members and enthusiastically taken up by new members just recently.

I would like to finish by saying I have enjoyed my time as president and sincerely welcome our new President and committee members.

Many thanks,
Lyn Peucker

The Third and Final Photo Installment of Stained Glass Frolics

I hope I have not forgotten anyone  in this visual report.

More Stained Glass Projects To Inspire You!

Feast your eyes on another array of beautiful handwork!

There is still another lot to send your way in the next few days!

2011 Elf Challenge - What an inspiration!!

I have finally found a few moments to sit down and sort through some of the photos I took at our Christmas in July function.

We were thrilled with the entries into our stained glass challenge project and continue to admire the skill and ingenuity that our members always display. 

It was especially thrilling to see some of our newer members take up the challenge and 'have a go'!  Well done everyone!  The completed projects will make a great display at our Quilt Show next year.

Enjoy the feast for your eyes.

 

This is just the start!   Look for more later!   

 From one of the elves! 

Christmas Elf Challenge

This time last year a small group of quilters were discussing the Elf Challenge. None of us wanted to be chosen but we decided that the next victims, um, I mean Elves must have been notified already and so we were off the hook. Imagine the scene at my house a couple of days later when THE letter arrived! I yelled "Yikes!" Oh OK I confess, I yelled something too rude to publish on this blog! I phoned Glo, my fellow Elf, immediately and she was very happy about the whole thing so I decided it could be quite an adventure really.

For the first few months I "helped" a lot with the library on Tuesday nights and no one suspected we were really getting together in secret to discuss what we were going to do. Glo and I decided almost right away to do a stained glass challenge and it all went smoothly after that. We thought that stained glass would perhaps be something not many quilters had attempted to do but was nice enough that we'd still have friends at the end of the challenge!

Glo and I met up to make boxes and plans and we divided the shopping and workload up and really it wasn't very difficult to do so don't be scared if you get THAT letter soon! Yes you, I'm talking to you! The hardest part for me was keeping quiet about the whole thing especially when everyone around us was wondering who the Elves were and what challenge they might issue!

We obviously had to do our share so in preparation for the Christmas meal at Riddells Creek Hotel last year Glo and I made our own stained glass designs to show you. Luckily for me I was redecorating a bedroom and my stained glass project (pictured above) was just the thing to fill the space above the bed! Glo made a beautiful bag which I'm hoping Glo will be able to share a photo of with you. We were very happy when we revealed our Elf selves when no one had suspected a thing!

Throughout the following 6 months we heard a few moans and groans about the project which cheered us up ha ha but in general most people were happy to be playing along and I'm so glad they did because last weekend at our Christmas in July quilting day we had an amazing display of projects! I was astonished at the many different ideas everyone had. There were cushions, table runners, wall hangings and bags in all kinds of wonderful designs.

Glo and I had been busy sewing small gifts in appreciation of all your hard work and I hope you enjoyed them. We had lots of fun watching you "wiggling" on the dance floor! I particularly enjoyed Bronwyn's solo! All in all it was a lovely day and I'd like to thank Judy and Marlene for all their hard work organizing the day and of course thanks to my fellow Elf, Glo, for all her help and support. It was fun!

Glo will share pictures soon.

Evelyn

Tension Tension, Tension!

Let's face it: sometimes stitches go bad, and tension is usually the culprit. But not always. Sometimes there is a problem with the needle, the thread, or even (cough) lax machine maintenance.

Australian textile artist Dijanne Cevaal has some very helpful advice for solving these little stitch hiccups that can give us such a headache. As a quilting teacher and author of several books, she really knows her stuff.

source

Though Dijanne says you shouldn't worry about your stitching looking absolutely perfect, when stitch issues get in the way of your quilting enjoyment and artistry, you should consider the following in an article on Quilting Daily by Pokey Bolton.

Embroidery from Sketch to Stitch

The latest addition to our Library is a donation from Lyn - Embroidery from Sketch to Stitch (Number 133 in our collection).  It is an amazing feast for the eyes and a source of inspiration even if we can never achieve the level of skill that is characteristic of Pat's work. In researching for information about this particular book I found the following link which may be of interest to you. 

An eye for the artistic potential of needle and thread
Pat Langford, Artist and embroiderer, 1927-2003
Pat Langford, who has died aged 75, contributed to a flowering of the textile arts in Australia by drawing attention to the possibilities of embroidery as an expressive art form.

Her embroidery is characterised by an acute observation of the world around her, an inventive approach to technique and a marvellous use of colour. She explored the expressive possibilities of fabric and thread just as painters have explored those of brushstrokes and paint. By her own estimate she completed more than 300 major pieces, which were exhibited in many solo and group shows and innumerable small ones.

Most of these works were based on drawings from her sketchbooks, which accompanied Langford on her travels. Outback Australia, the gardens of people she visited and bustling scenes of life in England were among the subjects she translated into stitch, along with more humble motifs such as a breakfast of marmalade on toast or a bunch of flowers from her own garden. Her final large works are something of a departure, a wonderful series created from her imagination and based on the journeys of Marco Polo.

Born in Plymouth, England, in 1927, Langford started her career as a painter, spending seven years at art school in her home town. She also studied embroidery during her course, and while living in London in the early 1950s attended classes taught by the celebrated embroiderer Constance Howard. This was followed by further study and her work was subsequently included in a touring exhibition. By the time she migrated to Australia with her family in 1960, embroidery was an important focus of her own work and of her teaching.

Within a week of arriving in Australia, Langford had found the Embroiderers' Guild; a few months later she held her first exhibition of embroidery at Chattertons' Gallery, and shortly after that she was recruited to teach art and embroidery at Asquith Girls High School. In those early months she also undertook her first Australian commission, three embroidered panels of the Sydney Opera House for the Opera House Trust; taught her first classes for the Embroiderers' Guild; and appeared on ABC Television.

(Notes from http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/05/20/1053196581947.html)

Looking after our crafty selves!

I recently had a reminder from the lovely Pip Lincolne from Meet Me At Mikes of how important it is to look after yourself while still enjoying your craft, and I thought it might make for an interesting read. While we all know what ergonomics are {the science of fitting a task to suit the individual while improving a person's comfort, health, and productivity} we probably don't often associate it with crafting.

 If you think about it though, as stitchers, quilters, knitters or crafters in general, we may be particularly susceptible to eye strain or damage, repetitive motion conditions like tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome or migraine. I don't know how many times I've had a sore neck or shoulders {or even a numb bottom} from sitting too long at the sewing machine, or hunched over a stitchery in bad light!

Here are a few tips I've found around and about the web to help prevent or alleviate these symptoms related to these kinds of activities, most of which are pretty much plain common sense:

• Make sure you're comfortable. Get a chair with a seat height that is right for you and that provides comfort and support to your body. Your feet and the floor should be at a 90-degree angle. If you can’t adjust your chair, use a footrest. Anything can be used as a footrest, even a stack of old magazines or old box {I had a friend that used to use old stock image books - which are sort of like big coffee table books}. A chair that does not provide good posture can lead to back pain. If the chair that is too high can cause loss of circulation in legs and feet. The small of your back should press against the chair back. If it doesn’t, use a pillow or rolled up towel.
• Sit up straight. Do not slouch or hunch over. Try some neck or back stretches to relieve those crampy or tired muscles. Most of these can be done while still sitting in your chair.
• Use task lighting that is close to your work versus general overhead lighting. Try to avoid lighting that creates a glare.
• Make sure the area you're working in is at a comfortable temperature.
• Try to avoid hand and wrist strain. If your hands or wrists hurt, do wrist and hand exercises {like these} to relax and relieve the stress and strain.
• Avoid unnecessary reaching or stretching to reach supplies by assembling all your supplies in front of you on a desk or work surface.
• Take a break after long stretches of crafting. Get up and go for a walk or go and make yourself a cup of tea/coffee/water.
• Remember to stay hydrated!

President's Natter - July...

Well ladies it certainly has been so cold... yes our mild winter has definitely vanished and we are being faced with quite low temperatures especially in Gisborne/Macedon/Tylden... but I guess the one thing we have on our side is that it's great weather to sit by the fire and sew. I am still hand piecing my Tumbling Blocks and they are certainly multiplying.

Several members including myself went to the Melton Quilt-In last Saturday (9th July) and it was a wonderful day, with friendly sewers. There were several patch workers from Rochester, who were badly effected by the floods, who enjoyed a relaxing day getting away from it all.

The guest speaker was a well known textile artist Helen Godden, who has been awarded several placings in the Housten Quilt shows over recent years and she is one very talented lady. Her specialty is free motion machine quilting. She takes 30 hours to bleach and paint fabric and another 50 hours to quilt and sew her designs. She was extremely free with her show and tell and we were able to be hands-on while we inspected her amazing, award winning quilts.

One of Helen's gorgeous quilts - source

One quilt she made was themed "quilt things that come in pairs" and in doing so  related her connection with her mother (who is also a patchworker) who she sometimes works in conjunction with. She had magnificently quilted in the background with items that come in pairs, ie. salt & pepper, shoe & sock, bat & ball.

To give you an idea of the scale of the competitions she takes part in, one of her quilts sold for $10,000. When you win a prize at the Housten Show, you also win a flight over to the show. One year Helen won two prizes and upon asking for the two flights, Housten decided from now on you are only able to win one flight no matter how many prizes you win.

What sets Helen apart from other high profile quilters is that she is quite naive in regard to her ability. She was a textile artist before stumbling onto quilting, and she is simply, a natural. I am pleased to say I was lucky enough to win a prize in one of the raffle draws. I chose a free motion quilting book which I am happy to donate to our library.

On to other news, I'd like to let you all know that the new ladies who did the back to basics table runner did an amazing job and it was great to be part of helping them to work on their creativity. Basic cutting, using both mat and rotary cutter and piecing blocks were some of the techniques we covered. Di got a lot out of helping them use a light box, to applique and embroider the designs on their table runners as well as teaching them to cut and sew on the binding.

Any new member please feel free to see Esmae if you would like to purchase one of our club badges. I would like to thank all our committee members who continue to do an amazing job for our club, it takes a lot of work behind the scenes to make such a successful club run so smoothly.

I hope all our members who are enjoying their travels away from this cold winter are happy, safe and especially enjoying themselves.

Christmas in July will be here soon and 'unfortunately' I won't be able to attend as 'fortunately' we are heading north all the way up to the northern tip of Australia... to Cape York... may I say to the warmer weather... thongs will be the go. The scenery is just fabulous up there and there are four cars in our convoy which will be joined by a fifth when we hit outback Queensland. So, our Vice President, Andrea Sheddick will take over chairing the meetings while I am away. By the time I return at the beginning of September there will be a new President in the chair. I wish them all the best and would like to say I have enjoyed my Presidency and am pleased, especially with all the charity work we have done  over the past two years. I would also like to thank the committee for all their support and hard work... we have worked well as a team for the good of the group.

Take care everyone and keep stitching, as I must go and thread another needle or should I start packing ...well er my thongs!!!

Lyn

Quilting is good for you!

While doing some internet exploring I came across this wonderful information about how good quilting and other crafts are for us.  Another reason to add to our stash!  Follow the link and enjoy feeling good about your hobby!

Cheers Glo :-)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2002862/Why-quilting-uniquely-good-us.html#ixzz1RQSsZwl4

even when you're learning, quilting is good for your health!

Don't forget!

Hi Ladies,
Don't forget that Tuesday July 12th is a "stay at home and sew" night as we don't have access to the church hall that night. But the following week, Tuesday July 19th is business as usual.

Wish you were here! Postcard from Joy

Radient Rachael at Uluru

Hello Ladies!

Wednesday - We've just left Alice Springs having been there for a week of shopping, resting and sightseeing the West McDonnell Ranges. There are about 6-7 gorges that we had to walk to, climb up or go down to which are awesome and massive. Some are too steep or rough for me to attempt with my ankle which is healing well with all this exercise I am doing.

We are in a place called Wycliffe Wells 385Ks north of Alice (UFOs were sighted here a long time ago supposedly). It has a lot of character and weird space martians about the place but no phone or computer coverage and most of all no TV working! We are heading for Tenant Creek tomorrow. Unsure what coverage will be there.

Our trip is going really well. We have been doing all the touristy things. Rachael* has been doing her own thing and not listening to me at all! My sister-in-law, Bev, is encouraging her to do all these things like more planking, dancing, climbing rocks etc. She is uncontrollable! It was so cold, down to 1 degree at night before getting to the Rock so I knitted her a beanie, scarf and mittens. She lost a mitten so I had to make her another one, totally out of control she is believe me!

I miss you lot very much, especially on Tuesday nights. I have been busy, haven't done any sewing as yet, but I have knitted and made up a Teddy which Judy gave me the pattern for. She/he is sooo cute and gets along with Rachael. It's a bit hard to crochet cats while travelling in the car, so I am knitting easy dish cloths.

Friday - We are in a Roadhouse/bush caravan park, 300Ks this side of Katherine and would you believe there is once again no phone or computer and worst of all no TV coverage!

Beryl, there showers and loos here are all unisex ATCO sheds, clean but older than you and I put together. I have been lucky so far that I haven't had to follow a male (phew!) and there will be no showers either tonight or in the morning. I will wait until I get to a proper park, just as well I have heaps of deodorant!

Saturday - We are heading to a place called Daly Waters which, 14 years ago when we did this trip, they had a pub, oval to park vans on and a night meal of Barramundi and Beef and a singsong which was excellent. It also had a set of traffic lights which are always on red outside the pub. Nothing else, but it was great fun.

The weather is starting to warm up. I think it was 22 degrees here today but in the car travelling along it was a lot hotter. Tomorrow the 3/4 pants and singlet top and sandals are getting taken out of the box under the bed and hat, scarf and coat are being put in there even Rachael's. She will have to wear her dress once more.

Sunday - Here I am in Mataranka for 2 days where there is computer coverage. Brian is fiddling around with TV aerials to get TV and would you believe everyone else in the camp have reception except us! I am about to fly home just to get TV!Tomorrow I'm going swimming in the thermal pools here where the temp of the water is always 34 degrees. So sorry about the weather down there! Today was just 30 degrees, tomorrow 29 degrees, something I will find hard to take!!! (Ha!)

Bye for now!

Joy

* The brief history of Rachael. A while ago Sunbury quilters made trauma dolls and one Tuesday night we took them to a meeting to fill. Glo's trauma doll was stuffed so full she became deformed and we joked that she wouldn't even be accepted at the Reject Shop! Joy (of course!) was the biggest stirrer, winding poor Glo up and as revenge Glo stitched a new doll with all kinds of lumps and bumps and deformities and gave it to Nurse Joy to fix. And Rachael was born! Rachael is now enjoying her caravan trip with Joy and we look forward to seeing the pictures Joy sends us of her escapades.