With the new world we find ourselves in, I have been spending a little more time on social media. I have broadened my viewing to dressmaking and cross stitching, two passions I have in deep remission. I learnt to cross stitch as a graduate nurse on night duty. I worked with a lady named Robyn, who was passionate about cross stitching and I loved when we were rostered on together. We would work quickly to get the patients settled, and the ward tidied, and with a bit of luck we would have some time in the wee hours of the morning to work on our stitching. Robyn taught me how to read the charts ..read more

The shop is back open again, and with restrictions now lifting in rural Victoria I have a sense that we are returning to a new normal. It is really heart warming to have people back in the shop and to hear the laughter and chatter of ladies again. I have really missed that. I have been enjoying some great show and tell. Barb has made 'Museum Medallion', a pattern by Judy Newman and finished with edge to edge quilting. Maree has completed this gorgeous small quilt for her granddaughter which will be gifted soon.  It has been Maree's challenge for our Appliqué Group.     Als ..read more

Just a quick visit to show some new arrivals. These vibrant blues are perfect for spring time stitching. They are from a collection called Royal Blue designed by Edyta Sitar. And this little treasure from Edyta's Superbloom range.  You will find them listed on the website here, in the ungrouped section under Fabric. Do you know about the ungrouped section? The ungrouped section....I really don't like the name and I spend way too much time thinking of an alternative; odds and ends, bits and pieces, hidden treasures.....but nothing describe with justice the fabric that lives within this ..read more

After an unplanned break it is so lovely to be back stitching again. I've well and truly settled on my new project, another hexagon creation, this time using half inch papers. I have surprised myself, as I was convinced I could never work with lower than 5/8th inch size, but I am really enjoying this smaller challenge. I've been inspired by an antique quilt dating back to 1830, which was also made of half inch hexagons. It features hexagons, sewn into star formations. In contemplating this new quilt, I decided it was not going to be about fussy cutting, more about colour and pattern. I want a ..read more

Oh how I love sitting in a nice comfortable chair, sipping on a hot cup of tea and reading a delightful quilt book. It is one of life's great pleasures. Yesterday with the delivery of three new books, I had the dilemma of choosing which one I would look at first. First I flipped open Tried and True, a new book by Jo Morton. I love Jo Morton's books. Always lovely, scrappy quilts with lots of little hints and short cuts for piecing. I also love looking at how the quilts have been quilted. Here are some of the projects inside. Second was Red and White Quilts. Printed in 2018 this is not a ..read more

I've been a little off the game of late, hope you haven't noticed, but you probably have with my lack of sewing and lack of posting of new arrivals in the shop. I have been living with a little dark cloud hanging over me.  Over the summer months I noticed a small mole growing on the back of my arm. I couldn't see it unless I looked in the mirror, but I could feel it as it would sometimes get itchy. I kept my eye on it. It wasn't growing, it hadn't changed colour, it was just there. I was sure it was nothing to worry about. In early July, I was seeking some medical treatment, and just as a ..read more

Wow, what a week. I never had a chance to drop in here and advertise the Friendship Frolic, I do hope you are following my Facebook and Instagram pages. With a second wave of Covid19 here in Victoria, and Melbourne areas placed into shut down, Linda and I made a quick decision to extend the Friendship Frolic on-line as well as instore for our local customers. We had amazing support, and are so grateful to all our wonderful customers for making it such a great week. Linda has been an amazing friend since we first met, and we have shared many great events together. It is uncanny how often these ..read more

These are certainly unprecedented times that we are currently navigating our way through, and the logistics of coordinating our Friendship Frolic event with the safety and well-being of all of our customers, as well as our own families, is paramount to us. In normal times we love to welcome all customers into our shops, but with  Covid-19, these are not normal times. With this in mind, we have made some important decisions about this year’s event.  The annual Friendship Frolic will proceed.  However, we are strongly encouraging those who reside outside o ..read more

It has been a bitter sweet week with the arrival of Di Ford-Hall's beautiful new range of fabric, Anne's English Scrapbox. There have been lots of emotions with this range. Joy with the beauty of it, yet sadness because it is the end of Di's stunning fabric designs. Di has been taken from us far too early but through her fabric designs and her patterns she has left a legacy that will live on in many amazing quilts for years to come. With some hectic days in the shop, I have sold out of some prints but more have been ordered. They will be arriving early October. If you missed out this time, I a ..read more

Are you familiar with the coverlet made by the beloved author Jane Austen, her sister Casandra and their mother? Photo courtesy of Riley Blake Designs   And have you heard the great news? Riley Blake Designs have been working with Jane Austen House and have reproduced the beautiful floral prints in the original coverlet. The range includes two panels, one with the large centre diamond, and other florals used in the middle diamonds and the other panel is the printed border diamonds. I know, it sounds too good to be true. Photo courtesy of Riley Blake Designs.   Click here &n ..read more