Isn't every one talking about gluten these days? Or dairy?

Nothing like tempting fate by proclaiming your newly found energy and clear mindedness, of course I was hit with the flu not two days later. I spent most of the weekend in bed, which wasn't so bad really... aside from the nausea on Friday night, it really was one of those wipes-the-energy-from-you flues, so a bit achey but otherwise quite content to sleep the day and night away. A few days later and I am feeling almost back to normal, that is the 'new' normal, high energy level normal. And since a few of you have asked and I know my friends and family are keen on the back story, yep, I cut out gluten for the two weeks my husband was away (I figured it would be easier just making meals for myself, the kids are usually catered to anyway as much as I hate to admit it). For no specific reason, just a lot of little ones - the scary wheat articles I have been reading lately, the fact that bread has always made me bloated and I always know when I've had too much, the annoyance at being tired all the time despite my kids sleeping through the night solidly since before Christmas. Yes, it has been a very busy couple of years and yes, parents of small children are tired but it just felt like more than that, like something not quite right, especially when I knew I was getting 8 hours of good sleep every night. Plus I have some pretty annoying eczema so, although I am pretty sure it is dairy related (and even, possibly, red wine related - god forbid), I thought I'd forgo gluten first in the off chance that I'd be lucky enough to find the cause of that too.

So about a week and a half in, I woke up feeling GREAT. Like, 'let's meet the day head on and get shit done' great. And it continued for day after day after day. And then I got sick. And after three weeks gluten-free, I've had some gluten over the past couple of days - a half a piece of bread here, some soy sauce there - and have had no ill effects (although I'm still not 100% after the flu so a bit hard to judge). I don't know if I truly have a gluten intolerance (as, apparently, 70% of the population do) or if my body just needed a good break and is enjoying the more beneficial foods I've been eating instead. What I do know is that I will be continuing to eat this way in every day life. 'Cause I like this feeling, that every little thing isn't too hard and can actually be dealt with in a timely manner (note: it may seem like I get heaps done and really, I do. But I pretty much do the things I want to and the things I HAVE to and all the other bits get pushed aside to a later date or forgotten about and then weight on me). I mean, look at this - I'm writing a blog post. An actual, fully fledged blog post at 8pm in the evening. I can actually string words together! This, I would like to continue.

Oh and no improvement on the eczema. Trying to cut out dairy but finding it oh so challenging in a way that gluten wasn't. I've even given up coffee for the past week and made my own almond milk (after not digging the store bought kind) but it just isn't for me. I miss yogurt. And cheese. Sigh.

slacker

Wow, my posts per week ratio has fallen off the scales and we're now into posts per MONTH. I've just finished up two weeks of solo parenting while my husband has been off in Africa doing building works at a mission/orphanage (seriously. What a guy! It was through work though so he did get paid for it but still a pretty cool experience in all respects.) so my attention has ben solely focussed on the kids and being patient and making homemade playdough, taking them to the aquarium and to see Peter Pan on the big screen, reading books, making banana pancakes, watching Dora, playing lego and celebrating my littlest one's third birthday. You'll forgive me for being a bit absentee. I've also been doing a gluten fast (more about that later) and have been reaping the benefits of all sorts of new energy and clear mindedness which I'm hoping will aid in the reincarnation of this blog, back into a place where I actually write about things. More often.

And.... breathe.

I feel like life has been a bit of a whirlwind for the past 6 or 8 months. Don't get me wrong, I'm not in the least complaining, just that it has been one thing after another (and sometimes over top of another) since last October or so. I just finished up a fairly exciting project which could lead into a larger, even more exciting project and am looking forward to a bit of time to catch my breathe for the next few weeks. Time for lots of printing and some highly anticipated sewing, I have piles of fabric set aside for quilts-to-be that are calling out to me. So, although it is usually my least favourite, I'll enjoy this season of chilly temperatures, shorter days and no deadlines in immediate sight. We're off to Canada in August (with a pitstop in Disneyland for the kiddies) and then it's straight back into the frenzy of making for the Christmas markets, the end of this year already looks like it's going to be crazy in the best kind of way.

Going sustainable and big time shop news

I am super happy to introduce my new hemp/organic cotton basecloth! I have been searching for a few months now for a sustainable replacement for my quilting weight cotton and jumped at the chance to purchase this creamy white and soft, mid-weight gorgeousness. I am picky about my fabric. I want it to feel right and this feels fabulous. It is a bit thicker than my quilting cotton but will still work perfectly for quilts, with the added bonus that hemp creates one of the most durable fabrics on the planet so your quilts will really be heirloom ready. The slightly heavier weight also makes it perfect for cushion covers and light upholstery, even clothing (would make a great skirt). I've added the first of my new panels to the shop today, in new colours of Mint and Camellia Pink, and in even bigger news, I've also decided to offer DOUBLE PANELS of the new basecloth and my existing flax linen/cotton. That's right, all you folk who have been desperate for fat quarters, double panels are your answer! There are only a few available at the moment with more to come in the next few weeks.

So what does this mean for my quilting cotton? It means that what is in the shop now is pretty much all I have and I won't be ordering more (I will be able to offer the bone and grey cotton for a while longer as I have some left on the bolt). I really want to feel good about what I'm selling and creating and while the quilting cotton felt beautiful to the touch, it bothered me to know that the way it is being grown is damaging the earth and potentially the communities that are producing it. I will also be replacing my current linen/cotton basecloth with an equally gorgeous organic linen/organic cotton later this year.



Oh! And I've added two new special edition cotton panel sets to the shop today, as well! Anyone who missed out on the Sorbet panel sets will be happy to see there is now Sorbet II with all new prints. And a lovely selection of blue shades called Evening Song. I'll probably have a few more special edition sets coming as I clear out the random quilting cotton remnants I have hanging around my studio but I think that's it for the Sorbet colours, might have a few meters of the purple.

I think that's all my official news for tonight?

Fat quarter (and smaller pieces) project ideas

Don't you love it when things just work out so perfectly? My giveaway winner turned out to be Gaby, which was a bit weird in itself because she was the last commenter on my giveaway post, just 10 minutes before I drew a name. She was comment number 94 and when I asked the random number generator to choose a number between 1 and 94 it gave me... 94. I have to admit, I was pretty pleased that I didn't have to count through the comments to find the winner but really, how bizarre is that? I guess the Random Number Generator really is quite random. Anyway, it got even more crazy because as I clicked over to Gaby's (awesome) blog to find her contact details, I discovered that she is also a Canadian expat married to an Aussie AND she had a recent post that showed these amazing patchwork stars (that she so kindly allowed me to share here) made from some of my fabric! I'd been planning to do a post suggesting ways to use your handprinted fat quarters from the swap (or panels from my shop ; ) and this pic (plus the one of the AMAZING baby sleep sack that Gaby directed me to, also using some of my fabric patchworked for the front) gave me a perfect seque to share both the winner and some ideas! And so here we are...

I was going to trawl through the internet and list a bunch of projects here but as I started to search, I found many people had already done the hard work for me! So instead, here is a list of places where you can find fantastic posts dedicated to tutorials using fat quarters of fabric - there are so many to choose from, you'll be itching to sign up for the next swap (probably around October) just to get your hands on more amazing fabric to use:

25 things to do with fat quarters by Crazy Little Projects
30 fat quarter ideas from Owen's Olivia
Fat quarter projects from Sew, Mama, Sew!
Fabric Scrap Projects by Tipnut
Fat Quarter Gang by Art Gallery Fabrics
Fat Quarter February on Spoonflower's blog

Who's making what?

the long lost GIVEAWAY : )

Whew, in the madness of wrapping up sale orders, I completely forgot I was going to do a giveaway for all you lovely folk! (Thanks for all the sale love, by the way!! xx) I have a good one for you today to make up for it...



Simply leave me a comment here and you have a chance to win this lovely little prize pack consisting of one A4 size dropcloth artwork (no. 1/24 from dropcloth #7), five 100% cotton handprinted fabric panels and one genuine leather card wallet. Easy as that! Open to anyone worldwide, one comment per person please, winner drawn Sunday, April 21st. If you'd like another chance to win another great set, head over to my Facebook page and leave me comment there too (and Like my page while you're at it. It's only polite ; )

Comments are now closed, thanks so much, everyone, for entering!! I'll draw a winner shortly and notify the lucky person directly

SALE!

Head over to my Etsy shop now for a SALE happening all week:
Sample packs $10
Cotton panels 3 for $20
Linen/cotton panels 3 for $25

Dropcloth artwork $20 and $32

Oobees $40

I'll be back here later today with a giveaway too!

Handprinted: a fabric swap III : fabric!

Aw, poor swap folks, I feel like I've totally abandoned you since the mailout deadline! Not to fear, I'm back to show some of the goodies I have received from my two swap groups (we had 98 people sign up so I joined two groups to have full numbers) and will put together a post later this week with some ideas of how to use these amazing fat quarters.

First up, a gloriously stunning FOUR colour, stencil cut print by screen printer extraordinaire, Sarah Waterhouse. This design is just amazing and the colours are so striking. My kids both love this one and had a little tussle over it until I said I'd make them a cushion cover for their playroom with it - crisis averted!

Some beautifully stamped fabric by Adrienne, made with hand carved stamps of her own design. What makes this one truly special to me is the way she has overprinted the different shaped feathers and accent designs in the multi-colour piece. It is so wonderfully and spontaneously done and the colours are just perfect. (I had the pleasure of meeting Adrienne in person last week at Finders Keepers - Hi, Adrienne! It was great chatting to you {and your pal, her name escapes me, apologies!!}) 

Some more gorgeously subtle stamping by Katja in Germany! She explored a variety of different materials to create these: an old wooden block stamp for the bird/flower bud design, her own linocut for the flamingos and a cork lid for the circles, which in turn form a flower. So clever!

Awesome, simple but super effective wave design, screen printed by Anna. I'm not sure if this one was stencil cut or emulsion but I truly love it, I think it will be great as a cushion cover for my couch, along with the next fabulous piece...

By the hugely talented, Amy of Umbrella Prints! Amy screen printed four sections of this circle for each of the swap participants so that, when put together, they would form a whole. Awesome concept, beautiful (as always) design. So pleased to have this!

Another super talented print maker, Kylie, created this gorgeous design with a hand carved stamp. It's so clever, take a look and see if you can make out the actual shape of the stamp apart from the shapes it creates as a pattern. The lady is a genius, I tell you. Also destined for couch cushion fame, I think it will be perfect with the two above.

And last but most certainly not least is a collection of screen and block prints by Krista, who has been doing all sorts of experimenting with drawing fluid and photo emulsion! I don't want to play favourites but these designs are up there, the geometric block print is so great and the circles made up of tiny lines gives me serious design envy. I'm excited to see where she goes with these 'cause the girl's got huge talent (which we already knew from her quilting prowess).

Thank you so much to each and every one of my swap groups, it has been such a delight to recieve these in the mail and so exciting to see people explore new ground. I've got one more print on it's way from the UK so hopefully that will turn up in time for my post of fabric usage ideas. I'm eager to sew with these and actually use a few from the first swap as well - off to see what projects I can find and share!

Melbourne Finders Keepers:: lots of new goodies!

And here's the reason I have been so absent around here of late, too busy preparing lots of stock and dreaming up new items to sell at the fabulous Finders Keepers market here in Melbourne this weekend! I was hoping to get some proper pics of the new goodies I'll be debuting but with school holidays and last minute prep, it just ain't happenin' - here are some Instagram shots instead:



New polka dotty 100% linen teatowels in three fun colour combinations...


Brand spanking, limited edition, dropcloth foldover totes...


Snappy new little printed leather card wallets...


and little printed leather bags, perfect for toting your wallet and phone.

Plus my usual bucket totes, cushion covers, dropcloth artwork, oobee and diy oobee kits, fabric panels, fabric sample packs AND for the first time ever, a big basket of misprinted panels at $5 a pop!! Hope to see you there! Out of town folk, I have been working my buns off to make LOTS of stock so that I will have some left for my Etsy shop so look out for an update late next week : )

Mailout deadline for Handprinted: a fabric swap III

Screen printed by Amy.

Various hand printing techniques by Suz of SewPony, all with great results!

Awesome triangles and overprinting from Bec.

The deadline for mailing out your handprinted fabric is fast approaching - Monday, in fact!! If you're running behind, please send your group an email to let them know when they might expect it. I have to admit that I haven't sent mine yet either but they are ready to be wrapped up tomorrow night and popped in the post first thing Monday morning. Again, so much amazing work is popping up in the Flickr group and I've also seen some great stuff from Instagram pals. Can't wait to see what shows up in my post box, so exciting!

New in the shop...

I seem to be perpetually a week or two behind in my blog posts and don't really see that changing any time soon - I thought life would slow down a tad once we got into the routine of Mae going to kinder four days a week (half days) but nope, it's actually more hectic than ever. But everything gets done eventually and, while it took me a couple of weeks from the time they arrived to get them into the shop and another week and a bit to actually mention them here, I am happy to introduce a small range of limited edition, two colour, digitally printed fabrics available as yardage.

While I am all about printing by hand, I really need some way to address the numerous emails I receive each and every week from people requesting fat quarters and meters or yards of my designs. The screens I currently use are only as large as my panels, which is why the panels are the size they are. To print yardage using my screens requires me to print between 9 and 12 (depending on which direction the design goes) impressions per meter and to line up the design for each repeat. It can be done but I find it pretty arduous and my misprint rate on yardage is high (have one smudged or light print and you've got to start all over again, especially frustrating when it's one of the last repeats!) which is why my pricing on the custom printing I offer is quite high. I'd like to be able to offer yardage as a more reasonable price and so, for the short term, I've turned to digital printing.

The three prints above are printed in a gorgeous pale grey with minty, turquoise accents on 100% cotton basecloth. The quality of both the basecloth and the printing itself is EXCELLENT, much better than when I looked into digital printing a couple of years ago. I struggled with what designs to offer and in what colours, I've probably been too reserved and should have made better use of the lack of colour limitations but decided I just had to make a decision and stick to it. I love grey, you guys love grey, I didn't have these prints in grey - there you go. They go excellently with my handprinted fabrics and I've mixed up a minty turquoise ink so I can print some accent designs as well (coming soon). I have 3 meters available of each and then will decide if they get reprinted or if I try some other designs, I have so many brewing in my head now...

You can find these new prints here, available by the fat quarter or half meter (full meters available by ordering 2 of the half meter listing.)



And as a little surprise, I have also listed 12 sample packs and a shwack of new prints, head to the shop to see them all on the front page. Updated to add:: sorry about that folks, those sample packs sold out in record time!! I will have some more next month after Finders Keepers, I promise!

custom king single quilt:: finished!

This week I sent off the completed king single (160cm x 220cm) quilt that I mentioned last month. It turned out so beautifully, with amazing organic lined quilting by Karen of Quilts on Bastings. It's the first time I have sent a quilt out for quilting rather than struggling through it on my wee Janome and it certainly will not be the last. I don't actually mind the quilting as much but the basting I really, really despise, especially with a large quilt like this. It was LOVELY to have someone else take care of that for me and do such a beautiful job of it.

All the fabric in this quilt is either 100% cotton or 55% linen/45% cotton with a mix of handprinted and plain solds for the plus signs. I handprinted a diagonal half of the light grey backing with my Quill design in white and printed the dark charcoal border with my Verses design in black. I'm really so very happy with how this project came together, the client was lovely to work with and we came together to create something that we both truly love. Win and win : )