Why not much sewing

It's gone very quiet here at home.

My eldest and her family have returned to Wales.

Oh, so quiet!

Being mid-summer, swimming in the late afternoons was on the agenda.

T getting her first go on the quilting frame. She pieced both quilts whilst here.

 Amazingly, not one thread break, I think she has a gentler touch than me!

 And, the second one, all ready to quilt.

 

 

We did manage a trip to the Aquarium, and this is E inspecting the clownfish.

 On Thursday, my weekly quilt group had its "end of year" 'dinner.

We hold it over to January so there is less rush!

My younger daughter was commissioned to do the catering, and this is the amazing dessert - a chocolate ganache tart on a ground almond base, served with cream - not one piece left!

Life as it is...

Well, this is a surprise!  I have been wanting to restart writing here for some time, but actually finding a quiet time to co-incide with some inspiration has been challenging.

After reading what I wrote last March, I want to share some updates. 

I am pleased to say that I successfully completed the South African Quilters' Guild's Quilt Teachers' Accreditation Course, and I am now an Accredited Quilt Teacher.  I attended the National Quilt Festival at Heronbridge in Gauteng in August, and was presented with my badge and certificate.  I was pleasantly surprised to discover what confidence has emanated from this, especially when presenting information at my Quilt Groups.

I continued to participate and make blocks each month for the Block Lotto, and which sadly to say, December was the last month this will be run.  This was an inspirational site, and was great fun to participate.  These are some of the blocks I made for various months in 2019.  As there had been grumblings about postage costs to here (South Africa), these were all donation blocks, with no chance of winning, and I limited my blocks to three so I only had to send to one winner!

 

Very happy that I kept up the whole year with Angela at SoScrappy's block a week project.  These blocks are waiting to be assembled into a top.  Angela's challenge each year is to use up one's scraps, one colour at a time.  I have a number of projects building up from this, not quite enough units to make a completed quilt top, so will continue this, the colour for January is bight and light green.

We did start building the house at the bottom quarter of our garden in April 2019, with the vague thought that we would be moving in by November.  I remind myself that every time we have had any building work done on our current house (we've been here 39 years) it has always taken us twce as long as promised/expected, so why should this new house be any different!  The bulk of the work is done, but still need flooring, cupboards, kitchen, municipal connections for electricity, water and sewage!  Maybe by March it will be done, or perhaps I should double THAT estimate!   Constant decisions to be made, with many compromises when either desired finish is too expensive, or plain just not available!  Not recommended for the faint-hearted!  And yet, we plan a second house in the other bottom quarter of the garden!  This time we have hopefully learnt all we need about having a perfect house built, that includes one space that is big enough space for my quilt frame! 

Since this was taken, all windows and doors in.

 The latest news is that on New Years' Eve my eldest and her family arrived for three weeks from Wales.  Such a joy to have them here, and am dreading the quiet when they leave.  My grandson is twenty-two months, and is in busy constant motion, and has taken to the swimming pool with aplomb.  (They've gone to meet up with friends today, so hence the chance to write.)   T has sewn up two quilt tops for friends' babies whilst here, and is just hoping to get them on the frame and quilted before she leaves.  (Frame is buried under some of my project boxes!)

 I hope that I will be able to share more this year, as I know how inspired I am reading blogs of other quilters.