New Library Books

Our librarians (Carolyn and Ailsa) have been busy sourcing some new books to inspire us and encourage some creative endeavours.  Make sure you have a browse through these and others that I will post information about at another time.   Enjoy!   Glo :-) x

180   Elegant Quilts Country Charms by Leonie Batman 

The beauty of wool appliqué is that you can add depth and texture to your quilts and other projects. Yet, wool is relatively easy to work with as there are no edges to turn under and felted wool doesn't fray. Their instructions cover everything you need to know to get off to a good start on one of the 11 projects included in the book.

181 Wild Blooms and Colourful Creatures by Wendy Williams

Pick up your needle and create landscapes filled with fanciful flowers and creatures from field, forest, and ocean. Designer Wendy Williams shows you how to make 15 appliqué projects in a style that’s part folk, part contemporary, and entirely delightful.








182 Adding Layers Color Design & Imaginations by Kathy Doughty

You’ll be inspired to experiment with textiles, tools, and techniques to create vibrant quilts. As you add these new “layers” of complexity into your designs, you’ll discover added interest and depth in your quilting experience.









183   Orphan Quilt Blocks by Tricia Lynn Maloney

Donated by Annie Couzens. Annie bought this on her recent adventure to America. Thanks Annie.

Orphaned blocks can find their way into any quilter’s life. Whether they are leftover from an unfinished project, collectible blocks found at a garage sale, or even antique blocks discovered in your great-aunt’s attic, Tricia Lynn Maloney will teach you how to care for your orphan blocks, and make a home for them.

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

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.

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!

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)

Our new book has arrived and we have a new pattern as well!

Kaffe Fassett's book, Simple Shapes Spectacular Quilts,  is now part of our library and is a wondeful book to browse and become inspired by the way he views his world.  It is number 132 in our collection.

If you visit this site you can find more information about this amazing designer.  http://www.kaffefassett.com/Biography.html.

Andrea has donated a beautiful pattern called My Blue Heaven ,which should inspire those of us who enjoy playing with all shades of blue.   It is number 66 in the pattern box.   Follow this link to find more information about this project.  http://www.patchworkpumpkin.com.au/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=31

Thanks Andrea!!

New Book Coming

Keep your eyes and ears open for the arrival of our newest addition to the library. I have ordered Kaffe Fassatt's beautiful book Simple Shapes Spectacular Quilts, published in 2010. It is not only a book of patterns for both beginner and expert but encourages us to also explore the geometric shapes and patterns we can observe in the natural environment. I will let you know when it arrives.

Follow http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Z4Pj5aLZjw to hear Kaffe talk about his book and developing our powers of observation to see our world in new and wonderful ways.

On my recent trip to Vietnam I used up a lot of space on my camera card with pictures of tiles and other patterns in the old buildings and temples. I just might use them after listening to Kaffe.

Enjoy! Glo :-)

What's new in the library?

The library team try to make sure we purchase the resources you want!

We have been very fortunate this year in being able to update our library with a number of new books including these most beautiful recent acquisitions.

The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt (130)

Ricky Tim's Convergence Quilts (131)

More William Morris Applique

All three books will provide us with very different challenges. I only wish I had the time to attempt all the ideas that are generated from browsing through our resources. Even if you don't have time to start a new project it is great fun just looking!

Glo and Beryl