Quilting Owl

Well its been a while but I have been inspired to post after seeing my quilt "In a Pretty Pickle" on the cover of the latest "Homespun" magazine https://www.facebook.com/frances.leate with the full project instructions featured inside with a brief profile about me.  This quilt was machine pieced and quilted on my Bernina domestic machine. "In a Pretty Pickle" by Frances Leate featured in Homespun, November 2017 Issue The Double Wedding Ring quilt with its melon shapes and curved centres has inspired me to design a series of quilts in this style.  One of these designs was "Ring of Roses" which featured solid arcs rather than pieced ones with applique on the centre pieces and melons.  This quilt was published as a project in Australian Patchwork & Quilting Vol 25 No 12.  I hand pieced and hand appliqued this quilt using the fusible applique method and then quilted it on my domestic Bernina. "Ring of Roses" by Frances Leat...

After a self enforced time of rest and relaxation not to mention lack of motivation, I thought it was time to get moving and start sorting out some of the accumulated piles of fabric, projects and magazines in the studio.  The really fun part was working with the piles of fabric although this did lead to lots of distraction. The magazines which were to be found everywhere throughout the studio and house were then put into order. Then it was time to tidy my hand stitching corner and while I was watching some cricket work on some more blocks for a long term project, the 1718 coverlet I have divided this project into sections and this is Section 1 and 2. Now the new addition will be blocks 44 and 48.   A little progress. In the sort out I also came across another long term wip, the Farmers Wife project - 72 blocks finished and only 39 to go.  This is a true scrap quilt and my personal challenge is not to use the same fabric in more than...

Hexagons make a wonderfully versatile block whether on their own or as a pieced shape and here are just some I have played with over recent years. "Licorice Allsorts" by Frances Leate AP&Q Vol 24 No 10 "Christmas Tree Skirt" by Frances Leate AP&Q Vol 25 No 5 "Marmalade & Jam" by Frances Leate AP&Q Vol 19 No 8 Hand pieced hexagon UFO blocks by Frances Leate To finish here is some of Lesleigh's work - one of her earliest quilts and a more recent table runner where she has added some beautiful embroidery. Till next time Frances

I have always enjoyed houses as a theme for stitching so here are a few from my cupboards, walls and friends. "Redlynch Village" by Frances Leate Machine pieced and quilted "Midsomer Madness" Hand pieced and hand quilted Jenni's house top Thora's little houses Before I became addicted to quilting and applique I enjoyed other forms of stitching such as blackwork and cross stitch and here a few from the walls. To finish I just love these Dutch houses. Till next time Frances

 I have definitely been missing from my blog of late and one of the distractions is that I spend too much time on Facebook.  So for those of you that I don't see there I thought I would let you know that I am still alive although not so productive on the quilting side at the moment as I seem to start things but have not finished too much. Another distraction is the fun I have with my collections particularly reorganising my thimbles which come under many categories and besides decorative and novelty everyday useful ones. I also just love pin cushions and can never have too many. The squares on this narrow runner at the end of a bookcase filled with quilting books are gradually filling up with badges from various location. Of course there is the ever increasing owl collection.  Owls lurk in every corner and available space in my studio and seem to breed when the lights are out! Next time I will get back to quilting. Frances

It was a close call and a joint effort yesterday but we finally managed to clear enough of the building work and debris away to add some Christmas cheer to the house. I always love decorating the tree with all the old and familiar ornaments and baubles most of which are hand made by me and friends.  I get very nostalgic as I unwrap all these treasures and really enjoy the memories of those that I received as gifts. The tree and nativity scene have a new home this year in the entrance foyer that Peter created earlier in the year from part of the old carport. We also managed to find a corner in the living room (the site of the latest renovation project) for all of our favourite santas - some large and some small. It has been an eventful year for us with the handover of the shop (now known as Cairns Create It) to Adrian and Jane and lots of building work to our home.  I think the house will always be Peter's WIP and he will always find lots to do t...