ooh! good mail


On Friday I got two fab packages in the mail. One was a little post pack from Melissa containing these two purple cuties. If you get the opportunity or find the need to buy one of Melissa’s creations I highly recommend it. They are tiny and exquisite. The second pack was a little mysterious from an unrecognised source. I opened it up to find THREE bars of Green & Blacks Organic white chocolate, bought from an Australian online shop by one of my overseas clients! Lovely surprise.

I think I may have come up with my fabrics for the quilt. I only have fat quarters of most, and one yard of the munki-munki farmer’s market so as long as I can get most of them again this could be ok. I will definitely be making up a sample square to see how it looks but I am so please to be able to use the fish (and they pick up the oranges in the farmer’s market!) and some of my favourite munki-munki ones that I have been saving. Do any quilting experts have any pointers that I may have missed with my choices? I am going to take them next door to my neighbour Jill for her advice (so good to be so close to a fellow quilter) but otherwise I am going to try out my new rotary cutter tonight.

September’s gallery for A Month of Softies can be found here at Flickr. If you don’t see your image here is some tips. October’s theme has also been announced. You can find more about that here.

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17 Responses

  1. claire, the fabric looks beautiful, pinks and greens are so pretty together. i just bought my first rotary cutter and i just cannot believe it took me so long to get one. is the green for the main background?

  2. Those little toys are super cute!

  3. I couldn’t live without my rotary cutter! You will love it Kath and Claire! I also have a pinking shear zig zag cutter that I love but hardly every use. I bought several size rulers several years ago and it is really good to have a little one and a big one. Thank you Claire for posting pictures of the little bear and doll. I am so glad that you like them. When I worked at a fabric shop I was always told to include light, medium and dark fabrics and they have a special quilters tool like little red glass you look through to determine the values of the fabric. But you are an incredible artist and I feel quite ridiculous giving you any advice at all!! I just received some of that munki munki fabric from Jenny from http://www.sewdarncute.com Pink and Green always look fresh and beautiful. Can’t wait to see how your quilt goes. Thanks again!

  4. rainbowofdarkness@hotmail.com says:

    Theres no pointers nesscessary, if you like retro/modern style, you can use any type of shapes. Today, as per to HGTV (Home and Garding Television channel) using your electic style is making a big come back. So go wild with it!

  5. Hiya. I feel like a big dunce for not realizing that the September MOS is done and over. Hmmph. Just checked out your post on the MOS Flickr board and read about October’s new theme. I guess I’ll just try for that one! I love the farmer’s market fabric in that photo. Have fun with the rotary cutter. I got talked into buying one by sewing mentor and I haven’t looked back yet. Even though I am the owner of a pair of fancy-pants Gingher scissors, I really like the ease of use of the rotary for cutting out fabric for garments, too. Anyway, happy quilting!

  6. clairegee@optusnet.com.au says:

    The other rule of thumb when working out a selection of fabrics for a quilt, (apart from the one about dark, mid and light tones) is to vary the patten size for a pleasing composition, which you have already done! Rules are of course made to be broken, and breaking them on purpose can lead to exciting results as well. Have fun.BTW, I know a shop that had more of the pink tulip material last time I was in, but it is on the north side of Melbourne, near me – let me know if you need more info.

  7. Definitely do your test block. You might find that some of your pinks “bleed” into each other, and you won’t get definite stripes.
    Also do the squint test – that’s how I most easily work out the values of fabrics. If, when you are squinting at the group of fabrics, you see 2 that are too much alike, then take one of them out and try another fabric. Just make sure you don’t squint so much that you get dizzy and fall over!

  8. Quilt colours are lovely…and little toys are sweet, too.

  9. Melissa’s creations are super fun! Great choices for the quilt. I just love fresh new fabric. I often find it hard to leave the fabric store without spending too much.

  10. I bought some of that Green & Blacks chocolate after reading about it in your Splurging section. It’s so yummy. A definite indulgence.

  11. melg24@ihug.com.au says:

    If you can afford it – get all the fabric you’ll need in one hit. Its sometimes harder than you expect to chase it up later on. Dye lots can also be subtly different. None of which is necessarily bad, as it can lead you off in new directions, but may be frustrating if you’ve got your heart set on those fabrics. Happy stitching!
    Mel

  12. reidfamily@pacific.net.au says:

    The best piece of advice I was given with choosing your fabric was given with a gruff snarl by a “lady” in a shop when I was making my first quilit. It was based on reds and I was obsessing about getting the right shades of red, which I now realise was nigh impossible and would make for one boring quilt. Anyway, as I was umming and aahing about which shade of red was the right red, the aforementioned said to me “It doesnt have to match, it just has to go”. I think my indecisiveness was taking up her lunch break. And those snarled words ring true everytime. I often include fabric which on it’s own does nothing for me, but when you add it in, it makes your quilt sing. Just choosing your favourite fabrics and then putting them all together never seems to work for me. So my other rule of thumb, have at least one fabric that you hate, but works for your quilt. Am on a mission tomorrow to find some Greens chocolate too 🙂

  13. Definitely dont’ be afraid of your rotary cutter. There are also lots of little tricks and ways to cut the fabric that make the “cutting” process go a lot faster! Good luck! Can’t wait to see your final product. I’m sure it will be great.

  14. Your fabrics should work out perfectly, I think! The pink one with fishes is just gorgeous. Good luck with all your cutting and sewing!

  15. Oh I am so in love with these fabrics!! And missing my sewing machine. 🙂

  16. Mmm, yummy I’ve just prepared myself some Sweet potatoe and Brocolli soup from one of your recipes for my lunch. It has to be one of the easiest and tastiest soups to make in a hurry. Just the thing on a cold, foggy day. More recipes please 🙂

  17. Claire,
    I was walking past The Corner Hotel in Richmond this afternoon and saw that Emiliana Torrini is playing there November 24 & 25.

    I love munki-munki. Good luck with your quilt!