Di Mill

Remembering

This weekend was one of those weekends that take you back to your childhood and jog your memory of incidents both joyous and not so joyous. My primary school had it's 100 year celebration and Luke and I flew to Mackay in Nth Queensland and traveled out to my hometown of Pinnacle so that we could join with hundreds of other past and present students and celebrate our small but wonderful school. Pinnacle is about 52 klms north west of Mackay and is a small township of about 50 people. It is mainly a sugar cane farming community and my parents still live in our family home which is situated very close to the school. We couldn't fly up until Saturday night as Luke could not miss his rugby game:

He's in there somewhere in a black and red jersey. Luke scored 2 trys and then was asked to play in the next game. By the time we hopped on the plane, he was sporting a very sore shoulder and a skinned knee! My family home was right next to our primary school so each day I would just walk down the road, and climb through the barb wire fence and walk across the cricket oval to the school. The barb wire fence is now smooth wire and much easier to climb through (yes - I did a walk down memory lane and climbed through the fence). The day was spend catching up with friends from years ago, looking at old school photos and mementos, chatting about things we could remember and laughing about things we had forgotten! My school was only small - about 70 kids when I was there - but we had beautiful large spacious grounds and plenty of room to run and play games like "red rover" and "brandy" which all involved grabbing someone or hitting them with a tennis ball. I remember we only played Red Rover when it rained and we would all end up wet with our clothes covered in mud from slipping as we tried to race from one side to the other without getting caught by the people in the middle. Being a country school we hardly every wore shoes - not even for photo day!

I'm in the front row - 4th from the right - curls galore and a headband. I was in grade 4.

I caught up with my 3rd grade teacher Mrs Clews. She may be older now but she is still as sharp as a tack! I couldn't believe after all these years she still knew who I was.

This brick wall was built to celebrate 100 years of Pinnacle School. My grandfather, my father, my brother, my niece and myself all attended this small but gorgeous school.

My walk home across the school grounds. Behind all the trees is my family home.

We ended our weekend by visiting one of my dearest friends whose baby was due that day. We were not lucky enough to be able to hold it in our arms ours yet....but this precious baby will arrive in it's own time.

No sewing done this weekend but I'll post again in the next couple of days on progress on projects.

take care.....Di

All in a Day

I had a huge day yesterday. My day started at 3.30am as I had to be at the airport by 5am. I had to catch a 6am flight to Melbourne. Yesterday was a conference day with Ascot Lane who I am an agent for. Ascot Lane are distributors in Australia for a range of craft books, Clover products, patterns, Quilting DVD's and fabric. All the reps (well most of them) flew in from around Australia and we spent the day learning about new products, giving feedback, ideas and suggestions to various issues and projections. I always enjoy these type of events as there is so much to learn. I have a yearning for learning and I don't think you can ever know too much or think you know too much! We also managed to squeeze in a trip to the warehouse and meet some staff.

L to R - Lloyd (NSW Rep), me, Rosalind (Owner), Tyrone (VIC rep), Marg & Ron (SA reps), Ronny (Owner), Shinichi (Clover rep from Japan).

The first of many rows of Books!

Lindy...packing some orders.

After a great day it was back to the airport and back on the plane home. I finally arrived back in Brisbane at about 9.30pm. I was hoping to get some more work done on the Baby Quilt (my friend thinks she's going to go into labour early!) but alas I was just too tired. It is coming along though:

I'm hand blanket stitching around the edge of each dresden plate. 6 down and 6 to go. I did get a lovely surprise though when I arrived home as a parcel had arrived in the afternoon with the actual fabric samples of Shiki by Kumiko Sudo. I just adore them:

oh...I just love this one!

So that was my day....full of wonderful experiences that took me down to the other end of Australia and finished at home with some gorgeous fabric to stroke, and goo and gaa over.

Drensden and Flannel

I know it's been a little while since I last posted but I have been a busy little beaver. My Open Day is coming up in June and I have been madly preparing for that. I'm off to the International Quilt Market in Portland in 4 weeks, so there is a lot of work to be done before I leave. My Open Day is for my clients - shops - who gather to spend a day together learning and being inspired. Owning a patchwork & quilting shop is one of the hardest retail jobs and they all need a bit of support and encouragement every so often. I always attempt to make each open day better than the last, so this time I'm preparing a book that will be full of ideas for quilts, BOM's, classes and groups. I think I'm up to about page 20 and there's a lot more to go yet. Usually I'm pretty tidy but this is what my desk looks like today:

It's full of books, notes, patterns, photos etc. I've got a headache from all the ideas bouncing around in my head. On the sewing side I'm working on 2 projects at the moment. The first is a quilt for one of my dearest friend's baby which is due to arrive next month. I'm using the Cherry Baby range by Lakehouse. It's so fresh and cheery...I adore it. I've decided on a dresden plate design. I'm not sure why exactly - I've just always liked them.

I'm not quite sure how to finish it yet but I'll work it out. The 2nd quilt I'm working on is a flannel quilt. I'm using a fat quarter pack of Maywood's Woolies Light / Bunny Love. They are the most beautiful flannels. We only have one flannel quilt in our house and with the nights and mornings starting to get a bit cooler...it's a race for the quilt. I was inspired by this quilt of Autum's. Both Lakehouse and Maywood are distributed in Australia through Lloyd Curzon.

I just made a heap of half square triangles matching a light square with a dark square. The blocks are 6.5 inches. I'm looking forward to sewing this week as this quilt will only fit on my family room floor while setting it out. The kids will put up with it for a day or two but that's about it and the dog doesn't seem to notice that there is a heap of fabric on the floor! Hope you are having a great week.   Di

Cherry Baby Quilt

I always get so excited when I see a quilt designed out of fabrics that I have sold to a shop. Today was one of those days. I walked into the shop and saw this quilt:

Ruffles & Rows by Natalie of The Birdhouse.

The quilt uses the Cherry Baby range from Lakehouse designed by Holly . It's so fresh and inviting and I adore the 3D effect by using yo-yo's and ruffles and pleated triangles. This quilt would look lovely on any little girls bed.

Kits are available from The Birdhouse. I don't think it's up on the website yet - just email if you are interested. (The fabric is distributed in Aust. through Lloyd Curzon)

Back at last!

Where have I been? Thank you for all of your emails asking if I was o.k. I really appreciated them. I'm fine but just really busy. My boy is a rower and the rowing season has only just finished. It has meant 4.30am starts for me for weeks. I'm also in training for a family mountain climb at the end of June. We are climbing Mt Dalrymple with in one of the highest mountains in Queenland. It's very close to my family home and my Great Grandfather used to explore the mountain frequently and 25 years ago family members climbed the mountain in memory of him. So it's on again and this time Luke and myself are going. It will take about 5-6 hours to climb to the summit and it's a strenous climb. SO....a certain level of fitness is required. Hence.....I've been jogging each morning for about 45 minutes and walking the dog or attending yogo classes in the afternoons. I've never been to a yoga class in my life but I love it! So about 2 hours of my day has dissappeared which has really cut into my Blogging time. As you can imagine...I'm pretty exhausted at the end of the day and sitting in front of the computer sends me straight to sleep. With the Head of the River (the very last rowing regatta of the season - the big one!) last weekend, I can now sleep in until 5.30am!!

Luke rowing in the Head of the River - he's on the left

His crew heading up to the start line - Luke is in the 5th seat from the left.

Luke gave everything he had in his race to the point where this happened:

This is after about 20 minutes when he was finally able to sit up. As a mother it's very difficult to see your child in distress and remain calm. He's fine - he just didn't have time to get his breathing back under control after the race as his crew raced to get their boat out of the water so that they could watch the most important race of the day....the open 1st eight. Our school won this year so it was very exciting!

About 12000 people arrived and lined the banks of the lake to watch the regatta.

Emma has also turned 18! My baby girl is now an adult and we celebrated with a family lunch.

Emma and our dog Boo.

As for sewing...I'm yet to do any but hopefully that will change over Easter. I have the most delicious flannels to play with. They are Bunny Love & Woolies Light ranges by Maywood Studio. As you can see, many of the flannels have a "wool" appearance.....just too yummy. They come all packaged up in a pack - 58 fat quarters and they will be available next week from here and here.

So by the end of the Easter Break...hopefully we will have a new flannel quilt! Take care - it's great to be back...Di xxoo

Back from a break

Yes I'm still here. I've just been enjoying a break from the computer while I got both kids back to school and college etc. Luke has just returned to school in year 10 while Emma has started studying Justice/Criminology. Emma will be 18 in a few weeks and it's lovely watching her grow into an adult. As a parent you are always worrying that you have given them all the tools they need to survive when they spread their wings, hoping that they don't fall even though you know that it's the falls that build character and strength. I just want her to fly!

I just received a box full of new products that will be hitting the Australian stores shortly. One of my favourite clover products - the desk top needle threader - will now be available in pink, purple and green colours. This is the best little tool that will thread your clover needles every time, no matter how small the eye is.

I use mine all the time - take it everywhere with me. Whenever I'm doing a demo, I don't have time to muck around with threading the needle, so these little gadgets are my best friend. Also hitting the stores shortly are the latest designs of Laurel Burch bags. If you are a Laurel Burch fan, you are going to love these. My favourite is the Mariposas Pleated Hobo bag.

The bags are distributed by Lloyd Curzon in Aust. & the Clover needle threaders are dist. by Ascot Lane. And finally some long promised photos of our Sydney holiday. Taronga Zoo is always a "must see" as far as the kids are concerned. I hope the giraffes know just how lucky they are with the gorgeous harbour views that they get from their enclosure?

I hope you are enjoying the summer. Take care...Di   

Back from Sydney

The kids and I have just returned from over a week in Sydney. I must say that I just love this city. I think Sydney Harbour is one of the most beautiful harbours in the world! Both Emma and Luke were very young the last time we spent time there so they don't really remember it. We did all of the traditional tourist things like: Taronga Zoo, the ferry to Manly (which included catching up with Brisbane friends for lunch), walked around the Rocks area, the Botanical Gardens, Circular Quay, Hyde Park, visited the Art Gallery and the Australian Museum, and shopped! I also was able to spend time with a friends who I love catching up with. We had a ball and can't wait to return again one day. It's a great city to visit - easy to get around, and so much to see and do. I much prefer the old ferries to the faster "cats" - it's so relaxing to just sit and watch the Harbour Bridge, Sydney Opera House and all the beaches and coves pass by. I don't think I could ever get tired of looking at the Opera House. I am in awe of it every time I see it...and at night it's spectacular!

Sydney Harbour Views:

We drove up into the Blue Mountains to see the famous "Three Sisters". The weather came in and we were surrounded by thick cloud. Although we couldn't see a thing, this is not an environment that we often see, so to me it was magical! We had the most delicious lunch at the Solitary Restaurant which I would highly recommend if you are visiting the area.

This is what we saw at the viewing platform for the Three Sisters! If you go to this link you can see what the view is like on a good day.

I'll post more photos over the next few days. I received a delivery while I was away, so I've got some reading time ahead of me:

I'll leave you with this funny photo taken on New Year's Eve of myself and 2 close friends. The novelty cups are called "pick your nose" party cups and they are fun! They are great for a laugh if you are having a party!

take care....Di

Happy New Year

I've spent the last few days just cleaning up around the house. I always have a great urge to clean out all the cupboards in the house from the kitchen to the bedrooms...nothing is safe! I am always stunned at how much "rubbish" we accumulate in just 12 months. It's almost embarrassing, as it seems so wasteful. I think that will be one of my New Year resolutions....to try to restrict the unnecessary material things that enter into our home. As I go through the kids clothes, culling items that no longer fit or haven't been worn for a couple of years, I find myself reflecting on the year....how much Luke has grown in just 12 months, and how Emma has now finished school (as I fold away her high school uniform for the last time). It's also a time to think ahead and imagine what wonderful moments are ahead of us throughout 2008. I feel like everything is ready now to begin the new year and with that in mind, we are all off on a family holiday and I will be having a blog break for about a week. Have a wonderful day and I hope you take some time to reflect on the year just past, and what your dreams and visions are for 2008. I let you in on my "list" of goals once I've returned. 

take care....Di 

Birthday & Christmas all in one

We had a wonderful Christmas. Christmas celebrations always begin a few days before the actual date as I caught up with a group of my closest friends. We meet once a week throughout the year for coffee and share what's happening in our lives. We've been gathering each week for years, ever since our children were just babes, so it's been lovely watching them all grow and blossom into adults. Our Christmas get together is always a must and our husbands and partners join with us to celebrate another year of togetherness. The group is not without it's ups and downs and this year we were missing one member. It was her choice not to attend but her absence was felt. I did make peace with this friend just before Christmas. The spirit of the season to me, is about forgiveness - and sometimes that means not being stubborn and trying to prove that we are right. I did find this difficult as this friend really hurt me but I had to weigh up whether a 16 year friendship is worth salvaging or not and sometimes it takes one person to make the first move.

We all flew to Mackay on Christmas Eve to spend Christmas on the farm with my parents. My Dad's birthday is on Christmas Eve so we arrived in time to share a beautiful sponge birthday cake filled with fresh strawberries and cream. Mass was at 8pm and it is always sentimental to return to the church that I attended each week as a child. I love catching up with childhood friends that are now married with their own families, and seeing how their children have grown. Mackay in is North Queensland, so the weather was hot and humid. Christmas Day brought rain and a much cooler temperature which was a relief. It also brought an abundance of gifts, too much yummy food, and another year added to my age! Yep - it was my birthday! I've always loved having my birthday on Christmas Day. My parents were always careful to try to separate the two events. I would not get to open my Birthday presents until after lunch. There were never any "joint" presents. I always received separate Christmas and Birthday gifts.This year was extra special as both kids went and bought gifts for myself, their grandparents and each other from their own money that they had worked for. I gave no present lists this year...instead I asked them to really think about the person they were buying for and to purchase a gift that they thought the recipient would enjoy. I was thrilled with their decisions. They had really thought about it and had chosen well. Luke gave me two Kath & Kim DVD's but bundled them up in a t-shirt before wrapping them to disguise their shape. Emma shopped at this store as she knows that I love their products and for my birthday, she gave me a digital photography magazine!

Some of my favourite Christmas cards. 

My Christmas Day lunch consisted of mouthwatering seafood, avocado and mango.

My birthday cake.....plum pudding! My Mum makes the best plum pudding I've ever tasted. I love the fact that I get to have it as my birthday cake.

It's so full of rich moist fruit. Mum uses the traditional cloth method and it's always a surprise to see how the pudding looks when the cloth is removed.

After a day full of fun, family, love and laughter it was sadly time to jump on the plane and fly back home. Both Emma and Luke had to work on Boxing day (for teenagers, the chance to get paid double time and a half due to the public holiday rates was too good to pass up). During the flight we were able to just see the sun set through the clouds...beautiful! 

I hope you enjoyed your Christmas as much as I did and that you relished in the chance to celebrate with the people you care about and love the most.

take care....Di

Christmas Wishes

Wishing you all a Magical Christmas and a New Year that's full of love, hope and joy!

I'll be back in a few days.....Believe!  ....Di