Marg Low Designs

class 'work'

Here are just a few of the things girls have made or brought along to class. I do love seeing the projects finished or close too. I know myself how difficult it can be finding time to complete things at home.

The Red Treasures girls brought in their pieces from previous classes.

 
 One of The Bunny Sisters. Heather's made two now, the first was a gift.

 The Strawberry Yo-Yo table runner made by Julie. Aren't we lucky to have so many gorgeous red fabrics to choose from. Do you recognise one of them from the last post?

 

Miranda's Strawberry Yo-Yo table runner in the process of being hand quilted.

Tamara's quilt. I love her choice of colours. It might be called the Red Treasures club but this doesn't mean you have to use red. The girls are encouraged to work with their favourite colours and fabrics.

 
The lastest Red Treasures project - Treasures from the Past, a pincushion and scissor case. No red here, apart from Gabby's birds. They have the option of making the stitched pincushion or the quicker  - no stitching at all version. You can see which one some of the girls opted for last night.  Annette's pincushion is what I'd call gorgeous and funky and Tamara's is a perfect match for her table runner.

The Get Set for Christmas Club at The Material Girl, Yarrawonga was a great success.

A few of the Sweet Treats bags the girls made in the morning.  Somehow I missed taking pictures of their How Many Sleeps?   Oops!

red treasures & christmas

This winter seems very cold. Yes, it is winter so what do I expect, but it feels like the coldest one we've had in years. Days around 10 deg C. with no sunshine and very little rain. Somedays it's been so miserable I've chickened out of walking. And much too cold to take Azz the dog for his walk. He'd be happy to be out of the house, but I'd freeze between steps he is so slow now.

If I'm not tucked up at home then the next best thing is teaching.

Don't these fabrics look warm and cheery?

 These are the  fabrics the girls in the Red Treasures Club at Avonleigh are using for the current project Strawberry Yo-Yos. I love seeing the variety.

 
Miranda' finished bunny from the last class.  

Then it was to The Material Girl, Yarrawonga for the Christmas club.

 
This is one of my favourite projects to teach, Simple Pleasures. Everyone loves Barb's decorations and all go home with one finished or close too.  

red treasures - strawberry yo-yos

There was a choice in class night - machine piecing, making the yo-yos or doing a little of both. I was surprised they all opted to piece the top. Me, I would have jumped at the chance to sit and hand sew at the end of a long day.

Sue completed piecing her top and then pulled out all 28 finished yo-yos. No need to make yo-yos if they're already done! I'm sure the runner will be completely finished next time I see her.
 

tennis, sewing and fabrics

Remember those lovely fabrics sent to me last week from Lynn at Li'l Blokes. Here is what I made. It seems to have taken no time at all. I've worked on a bit here and there while watching the tennis; well a whole lot more listening than watching. I find the tennis the perfect backdrop for sewing to. Just by listening to the crowd cheer you can tell who's won or lost a point. And if the points been won by a spectacular shot, you can always catch it on the replay.  

I've already got plans for another bare spot, this time on a wall.  I have been eyeing off this bundle of fabrics for quite some time. It's the bundle I've picked up, fondled and mused about, whenever I've been in the shop. Why I just didn't buy it the first time........

Where did the year go?

Can anyone tell me where the year went? I'm sure they speed by faster and faster each year. I've been reflecting on the things I have managed to achieve this year and I guess the big one for me was to start my design business. I had been thinking about making it 'official' for quite some time and finally took the plunge. The other major item was starting this blog and what a fun journey it's been. I think the blog has been one of the reasons why I have been sooo good at finishing off a number of projects.  Thank you to all of you who have taken the time to leave a comment. Your words of encouragement are truly appreciated.

Here is the doll's quilt I started the other day. It turned out  exactly as I imagined it would - oh so pretty. And it didn't take me very long at all (was finished Saturday). I love small, quick and achievable projects. Things that can be made in a couple of days and then used to decorate our home.

Unfortunately, I'm still afflicted with the yo-yo making bug. Will I ever be over it!

I'm back working on the Spot the Yo-Yo quilt. I've nearly caught up to Bronwyn. I know it's not a race but it does spur you along, when you are both working on the same project at the same time.

So how do I plan to spend New Year's Eve? If I get the chance I'm going to finish the blocks. The thought of having the quilt top finished this time tomorrow is too exciting for words.

My 2008 wish to you all is to finish everything you start and finish those things previously started, even if it is something as simple as a single Yo-Yo.

Happy creating in 2008.

Marg

Boxing Day

My favourite day of the year came and went very quickly. No I'm not talking about Christmas Day, I mean Boxing Day. I love Boxing Day. This is the day I love to loll around reading a book (usually a Christmas present) and not do very much else. You know how you can feel a little guilty at the end of a day when you look back and think about the things you didn't do. Boxing Day is my guilt-free day. This is the one day of the year when I truly feel its OK to do as little as possible. No-one's going to go hungry - the fridge is full of leftovers  - and who feels like eating anyway! 

So there I was reading (way too fast) my new book (Goddess, the third in the Percheron series by Fiona McIntosh) . It was only mid-morning and I was nearly half way through it. How to make it last?

So I started a quilt. Jan's 'Spot the Yo-Yo' quilt. You remember, the fabric I wasn't going to buy. I ironed the fabric, cut a couple of strips, some triangles and went back to reading. The story had me in it's grip and I wasn't going to be able to focus on anything else until it was finished! And this is how far I've got. I've cut about half the triangles, and then as you do, had to sew some together, just to see how it worked. Then I stopped because I suddenly felt inpsired to make another small quilt with a few yo-yo's decorating it.

This little doll's quilt is the first project I made using the Clover Yo-Yo maker.  As I was making it new ideas kept popping into my head for little quilts decorated with yo-yos but deadlines for classes, magazines and workshops didn't allow me the chance to follow any of these ideas through. Then when I did get back to making yo-yos it was for my 'cat'. So yesterday, in the middle of making the new quilt, I was off fossicking through my scrap fabrics looking for just the right pieces. You know the saying about 'happy as a pig in mud',  yes, that was me with my fabric scraps.

And this is where I am upto. The yo-yos are made, the fabrics pieced, now I just have to bind, quilt and attach the yo-yos.

We had a lovely Christmas, lunch at the river - prawns and pavlova, then tea with friends. A very relaxing and pleasant day. Hope yours was too.

What a lucky cat!

Now is this cat spoilt or not? After ages of procrastination and deliberation I can't believe I've made not one but two mats for my old tattered but much loved paper mache cat.

 

And the really great thing is I made it almost entirely from Fabric club Fat 1/16's. I used two other fabrics - both Fat 1/16's and from my stash. I think it looks great. Am I over my Yo-Yo addiction. NO!

I love scrappy quilts - big or small, as you can probably see from the strippy quilt in the background.

More Yo-Yos

The weeks gone and I am no closer to starting my Christmas presents. In my mind I'm already prioritising which gifts need to be made first and those that can be finished Christmas Eve. The scariest part is I still haven't decided what to make for two dear friends!

Instead I've become totally hooked on yo-yos. Not content with making just one mat for the cat I've decided to make another one. This time using Fat 1/16's from Patchwork on Stonleigh's fabric club. Every 3 months fabric club members receive 10 Fat 1/16's. Mine often just sit in the cupboard with the occassional piece winding up in a project. I challenged myself to use only fabric club fabric but came unstuck when I didn't have the right darker shades of blues. So I've used a couple of scrap pieces. The yo-yos are almost finished and I hope to have them sewn on by the end of the weekend, as well as putting up the Christmas decorations, lunch with my daughters, finishing the penny rug, starting the Christmas presents and dead heading the roses........

Patches of Heaven

Yesterday I was in Temora for Patches of Heaven, 10th Birthday celebrations. There is a lovely courtyard area which has just had a roof put over it and this is where my display was. Now I'm not sure why, but it always takes me longer than expected to set up. So I was feeling rather pleased with myself that I was running ahead of schedule when the skies opened up and the rain bucketed down.

The gutters just couldn't cope with the downpour and the water found gaps where there shouldn't have been gaps. The rain stopped by the time the quilt exhibition opened.

Margaret Charlesworth author of 'Teapots and Tractors' opened the exhibition. Margaret spoke about the tradition of giving handmade gifts. Gifts regardless of their size or simplicity can become heirlooms. It's the fact they've been handmade, by you or someone dear to you that makes them so special.

So now with Margaret's words ringing in my head, I'm off to sort out a couple of Christmas presents.

PS. About 20 minutes into my trip home I could see the skies growing blacker and blacker and before I knew it the rain was pelting down. I could just make out the tail lights of the car in front and when I saw it pull off the road I did too. It eased a little and I cautiously got back on the road. Very unpleasant with visiblity still poor and ditches overflowing across the road in sections. Was ever so glad to see blue skies in the distance.

Yes, its finished

A slow day today, well it is Sunday, but I have finished my cat mat. My favourite projects are those that can be finished easily in a weekend. I made the Yo-Yos on and off yesterday as well as the centre piece and today simply attached the Yo-Yos. The Yo-Yos were made with the large Clover Yo-Yo maker.

 

The other day I was wandering through the store Provincial Home Living and found these gorgeous crab apples. I couldn't help but think they would look wonderful for Christmas. They look fabulous in my Nan's fruit bowl. So much nicer than the pot pourri now residing in the compost bin.

Tonight I really must do a little bit more on the penny rug. I've attached all the applique pieces to larger circles and now I just need to blanket stitch the edges. But I really want a bowl or glass jar filled with red yo-yos for Christmas. Decisions, decisions....

the cat sat on the mat

There are often many projects whizzing around in my head but none that I want to start immediately. So I often drag out an old unfinished project and before long I'm thinking 'Oh I could do this. And this is what happened when I woke up this morning.

Just starting on the penny rug somehow led me to this. Plus an overwhelming desire to make something in red and the fact I've been wanting for sometime now to make a mat for my cat.  So I've been making Yo-Yos today. How good do they look displayed in the bowl. Looks like I will need to make some spares.

  This is what I plan to do with them and this is my cat. There was a fabulous homeware shop just around the corner from work and I would often skip lunch for a little bit of retail therapy. The cat sat in the window for a long time before moving to a top shelf in the shop. The shop was closing, the shelves were emptying and still the cat sat there, looking a little sadder each time I visited. Now I guess some of you are thinking that I should have left the cat on the shelf, but I couldn't. For reasons I cannot explain I really like this cat. Yes it is starting to crack and the ears are a little tattered but I don't see any of this.  It crossed my mind, as I was working on this new design, that I might just be a little mad. I've sized it so the cat fits perfectly. But I've had fun and best of all I have some new ideas for quilt.