Caught my eye

The Gold Coast Quilters also had their show at Craft Fest & these are some of the things which caught my eye in their Challenge. Above- Margret Tregilgas's bright & quirky Little Houses on the Hill, L- Joan Hubbard detail, with beautiful symmetry.

Anne Archer's clever portrayal of a sophisticated lady.



Glad Howard's delightful, speak no evil frog achieved through stitch & fabric paint.

I'm flying North to Townsville tomorrow to set up & man SotAq09 with Mel. It will be interesting returning to the city as we lived there for 3 years in the 1980's but I haven't been back since.

I was a member of the Fibre & Fabrics group but not into quilting then. Hope to post my discoveries for you.

Glorious colour

I'm attracted to bright colours & bold patterns so loved the look of these WonderFil threads displayed so beautifully at the Gold Coast Craft Fest. Kerry from Tulis batik fabrics had a full display at her booth http://www.wonderfil.net

Gold Coast fun

What a great time we had at the STATE of the ART quilt 09 exhibition on the Gold Coast! Sorry, I can't share all our secrets from our time away together- but great work team.

Lots of visitors to the exhibition & Alison George from iquilt http://iquilt.com.au popped in for a close look as they have featured the exhibition in their free online magazine.

My Bernina Challenge entry, Captiv8ting was on display in the Bernina booth along with other interesting uses of the red 8. The colour palette was restricted to black, white, silver & red.

SotAq09 on the Gold Coast

I've been on the Gold Coast for the last 2 days with the 2QAQ committee, first for the opening of the STATE of the ART quilt 09 exhibition & then to talk to visitors at the exhibition. Alison Muir, above L flew in from Sydney to open the exhibition & give us her insights into the jury process. We were very grateful that she could join us for the occasion. Kate Oszko, above R Qld Quilters president presents Alison with a token of our appreciation. Most of the 2QAQ committee were on hand for the opening. L-R Mel, Kate, Suzanne, Alison in centre, Jane, me & Ros. Sorry you couldn't be with us Lexie & Kathryn!

SotAq09 is hung!

There was a definite air of excitement as the SotAq09 hanging team of Kate, Suzanne, Mel [above L-R] & I assembled at the entry to our gallery space at Craft Fest. I had THE PLAN & we had hung, adjusted, put up signs & had coffee in the space of 2 1/2 hours. Thanks team!

This is the after shot before artist statements went up. See you there tomorrow for the opening. Oh, did I mention we're excited?

STATE of the ART quilt 09- Townsville & Boonah

Have folded the 19 quilts into their large travelling suitcase. A cotton sheet encases them all for protection & they are in sequence ready for hanging. This preplanning should ensure a smooth hanging tomorrow. I fold quilts face out to help prevent wrinkling the all important front, seen by the viewer.
After the Gold Coast the exhibition will fly to Townsville with me for the Craft Fest there. You can also see them at the Boonah Regional Art Gallery from August 21- October 4, 2009.
View the exhibition online at the 2QAQ blog http://www.queenslandquiltersartquilters.blogspot.com Each day a few more are being added. Thanks Bob for photographing them all.

STATE of the ART quilt 09

I'm getting very excited! As curator of the STATE of the ART quilt 09 exhibition, the planning, organising & hard work of the 2QAQ committee will be rewarded when we hang the show at Craft Fest http://www.craftfest.com.au/GoldCoast2009 on the Gold Coast on Thursday.The exhibition can be seen from Friday March 27- Sunday March 29.

19 art quilts made by members of Qld. Quilters were selected by the jurors- Alison Muir, Sydney textile artist & Christine Ballinger, Director of the Noosa Regional Gallery. Above is a detail of Anthills- Silent Cities one of my 2 quilts selected. The anthills of northern & central Australia have been a great source of inspiration for this series which continues to grow & develop.

Synaptic Sequence is from the Brain Language series & this quilt toured in the USA with the Fiber Force exhibition in 2007/08. Lisa Chipetine http://www.threadplay.com currently Vice President of SAQA was the exhibition curator.

Old quilt

Can you call a quilt you made in 1995 an "old" quilt? I made "Sam's Pumpkin Patch" for my father-in-law's 80th birthday with pieced hearts from a Mary Ellen Hopkins pattern & printed fabric in panels. It was machine quilted & the names of his children & their spouses, their children & grandchildren were machine written in the heart blocks.

Today I had to add some names so the quilt can go to Sam at his nursing home.

When I spread it out on the bed I was surprised at how little I seemed to know about quilting then, compared to now!

Obviously I've been practising over the years, have picked up tips & have changed the style of quilt I now make. The overall composition of the quilt was fine & I enjoyed seeing the back & the left over blocks being used. I wondered what I'd think of my current quilts in another 14 years?

Mexettes farewell lunch

Before we said our farewells we met for morning tea & lunch on Friday. What a wonderful week of catching up, laughter & shopping we've had. Adieu until 2011.

Quilts & cakes at Burnie Brae

Had a lovely time at the Burnie Brae Fair which reminded us of school fetes with the cake & sweet stall, crafts, sausage sizzle & entertainment, although Bollywood dancing wasn't around when I was at school! The repetition & variation of the cakes reinforced design principles too!

Quilt display at Burnie Brae

Burnie Brae Community Centre are having a Fair to mark the launch of Burnie Brae Park Community Garden tomorrow from 9am to 12midday. I'll have a small display of quilts in the community hall & would love you to come & say G'day! You'll find it at 60 Kuran St Chermside.

Mexette playday

We've had great fun stitching & decorating journal covers made with fabric we have been collecting from the Loralie range http://www.loraliedesigns.com/FabricShow/ Lots of embellishment added by hand stitching or the hot glue gun had us busy for hours. But it wasn't all hard work as we enjoyed our favourite bubbles, Vixen from Fox Creek Winery http://www.foxcreekwines.com/ for lunch.

Medusa

These photos are of sections of the circular mosaic which is a feature in the foyer of Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast.

Patterning our world

When you have coffee at the Palazzo Versace http://www.palazzoversace.com/ you can't help but notice the wonderful patterns you're surrounded by. The distinctive Medusa head logo is on the upholstery fabric, cushions & forms the large mosaic in the foyer. The sparkling chandelier hanging down above Medusa forms another pattern when photographed from floor level. Thanks Annette for discovering this great angle.

Mexettes at the movies

Confessions of a Shopaholic, no, not me!! the movie was our destination today. As 1 of our number remarked, " a training video" for us, not that we need any encouragement! Lots of laughs, but don't take him, he won't understand!
From a textile point of view the combinations of colors, visual & actual textures in the outfits was outstanding. Shopping must be a science after all!

Mexettes at QAG

Artist Spencer Finch's installation at the Queensland Art Gallery http://www.qag.qld.gov.au was fabulous in the morning light. More of his work can be seen at the Gallery of Modern Art [GOMA] along with 2 gallery spaces filled with colourful, thought provoking, contemporary Aboriginal artists work.

Goodie bags revealed

Well, what can I say! Mexette goodie bags contain many surprises!! & are better than Christmas. From feathered fans, pashminas, glam pearls & everything glittery to fancy aprons, capes & gloves to nice smelly stuff & new dolly & chicken friends!

Mexette surprise

All together at last! It has been a few years since all 7 Mexettes have been able to gather together, so imagine our surprise & delight when we could all be photographed together. L-R Di, Annette, Lorraine, Marilyn, Sue, Marcia & Marg. Our partners were also there & we went on to eat lots of pizza & drink a little wine & talk & talk & talk!

Mexette reunion

I'm very excited as I pack the Glam Goodie Bags for the Mexette reunion which starts tonight with 12 [this includes husbands] of us out to dinner. I can't tell you what's in the bags...shhhhhhh, it's a surprise! But the Mexettes, formerly known as the Stackettes, are a group of quilters who originally met in Mt Isa in the 1990's.
While we have all gone our separate ways since & numbers have varied, we keep in touch & are faithful to our biennial reunion held in a different location each time. Isn't it great to have friends you've known for ages who take you as you are, wrinkles & all? We'll be out & about in Brisbane this coming week for some retail therapy, coffee & lots of laughter.

Garden inspiration

Sometimes I don't travel far physically- just out to my semi-tropical garden, with Ixora's flowering at this time of year, heliconias & the Bird of Paradise about to reveal itself, I have inspiration all around.

Balinese gardens have been an inspiration for us in developing our small garden & we have a Balinese Gate Keeper statue to see off evil spirits. He's hand carved out of soft volcanic rock & would be a lovely mossiness if we had as much rain as they get in Bali. Inspiration from my garden & other tropical gardens have resulted in the Gone Troppo series of appliqued & printed quilts.

Rosalie Dace & the 2Q meeting

Yesterday we had a packed 2Q [Queensland Quilters] meeting & it was lovely to chat to many members, browse the library books & indulge in the morning tea goodies on offer! You can see how packed it was in the room while we listen as Gail & Kim of the show committee take us through the flow chart of entering the quilt show.

Rowena, top L, showed her first quilt- not finished yet & not likely to be she says! But the highlight of the meeting was the talk given by visiting South African quilt artist Rosalie Dace, top R http://www.rosaliedace.co.za who gave us a wonderful insight into early influences on her artistic development & what she is up to these days. Her quilts are visually rich with many types of fabric making up the pieced, appliqued & embellished surfaces. They each tell a unique story of place.

Above R is Everywoman & depicts the back of the head of an African woman, but more universally relates to us all as women.