Yay! For Sunshine

It seems as if we have had weeks of wind and rain - and looking at the debris and fallen trees, we probably have! This afternoon turned out lovely, so Nolan and I got the lambs drenched, shifted them and shifted the ewes - well actually 'Meg', Nolan's dog did most of the work! We also managed to get 2 other ewes back home (they had been visiting for mating).
Here is another visitor in the orchard under the pear tree:

Visiting Pheasant

I don't know where he comes from, and perhaps he likes the range of fruit I have?

A Cinderella Story

Today Rose City Quilters celebrated it's 26th annual Tote & Gloat. Every year we have a quilt challenge for members as well as a block challenge for those who attend. This year I put together the quilt challenge which was a page from a children's ecological (non-fiction) book - we had some books being deleted at work, so I pulled them apart, stamped each page, and put them into envelopes. Members were invited to choose an envelope which was to be their inspiration to making a quilt or something quilt related. We had a new category called Anything Goes so it could be a quilt that was stretched onto canvas, a book, bag - whatever! I think we had 26 entries and boy, did they look lovely (I'll  have the photos on the RCQ blog site in a few days).
My page was about keeping a bird-spotting journal. I decided to have a magpie stitched onto brocade (I thought it did resemble thick sketch pad paper) with some hand stitched notes. After returning from Queenstown all I had to do was the quilting and finishing. Last Sunday it was all ready for blocking, and look I had 4 days to spare before entries closed!
So I blocked and sprayed with water to make sure it was square and flat - BUT oh no! I had forgotten that I used water soluble pen to mark out the words, and the ink ran!
Here you can see the result:

This is a close-up of the detail:

Horrible grey smudges behind my stitching. So last week I tried a mixture of white vinegar, dish-washing liquid and water - well it did get lighter but was still very obvious. Next was a paste of lemon juice and salt, dried and then brushed off. Nope, still not 'clean' enough. By now I have 24 hours left and I'm starting to think of not entering the challenge.
Last, and totally risky thing I could do, was to 'paint' the background. Out with the fabric paints, mixing, mixing and diluting. I used a cotton ball to 'dab' paint in 3 different tones of green.
Here is the final result (passable - just!):

Now, why is this a Cinderella story?
Because I was awarded 1st= in my category!
I was sooo close to throwing in the towel (so to speak). But I always tell people that you NEVER know what the opposition is going to be like and what will appeal to the judge. Take the chance in entering challenges!
I have to admit that I think he is a magnificent Magpie (even if he does still smell faintly of vinegar!)

I also showed my 4 ANZAC quilts from the Remarkable Symposium Challenge. They were all hung together and looked pretty good. I had a lot of people come up to talk to me about them and I have been really touched. Thank you for all the support. Making art quilts is very personal but I am honoured if my work means something or touches a cord, for you.

Doing the Visitor Thing in Queenstown

I think I last visited Queenstown about 27 years ago. We didn't do any of the tourist stuff then, mainly because we didn't have much money with just one of us working. This time around I figured I wasn't going to wait another 27 years. So I sucked up the fear and RODE up the GONDOLA! Yep! Didn't want to think about the height - just DID IT!

Lake Wakatipu

On another day we took a trip on the TSS Earnslaw to Walter Peak Station at the head of Lake Wakatipu. Did the farm tour (we didn't think that it would be any good, but we got a kick out of seeing children and tourists feeding the sheep, cuddling them and chasing them), and then of course was the afternoon tea! - well worth the time and money (ah! brings me back to my teenage years working in the high country).

TSS Earnslaw coming in to dock at Walter Peak Station

 

 

We also spent a few hours in Arrowtown snapping photos of the autumn colours of the trees. The weekend after Easter was to be their autumn festival, but I think that we saw it in the best colours. Here's an early morning shot - they had had a reasonable early frost!

Early morning - road to Arrowtown

Autumn colours - Arrowtown

We stayed 3 nights in Wanaka and took part in the ANZAC Day service - it was such a delight with a huge community involvement. It culminated with a march uphill to the Cenotaph and a fly-pass with a Tiger Moth - the weather just beautiful - the rest of the country mostly had rain.
Here is a panoramic view from the lake shore taken early morning:

Lake Wanaka

What I Did at Remarkable Symposium - Queenstown

Derrick and I flew to Christchurch on the Saturday before Symposium started and stayed 2 nights at Lake Tekapo. They had their first snowfall of the season (very light) while we were there so I got some great light in the photos. This one is a favourite, and is the monument to the hardworking sheep dogs of the MacKenzie Basin:

My first day at Symposium was as an angel for Noeline Johnson - her class was doing Tumbling Boxes. Now this is not something I would choose to do, but it was interesting watching everyone else - I think I would enjoy just 're-shaping' the square and colouring it in on paper. Too hard for my brain to figure it out. Nevertheless most participants left after 2 days with a block finished.
Wednesday I had a class with Larkin Van Horn doing beaded buttons and edges. Now my button isn't beautifully designed as some people did, but I had fun and learned how to read the beading patterns, and decided it wasn't as hard as I thought!
Here are some of the class finished buttons:

On the Thursday I was an angel for Gail Lawther's Celtic Knot class - I did learn 2 little tips, but as I have already made a couple of bed cushions with self-made bias into celtic knots there wasn't a lot to do. Friday I 'helped' at Barbara Weeks' Mosaic on Fabric class - helped in that I bought coffees and needles for some of the ladies. This was an interesting technique class which I was allowed to participate in, in a small way. I'd like to try this, perhaps with a photo taken over this holiday.
On the last day, I was back with Gail Lawther, this time she was teaching a Rose Window class. Almost every participant in this class went home with a completed wall hanging - well some had quilted and had only the binding to do. Gail is a good tutor, visiting everyone many times during the day, and giving lots of advice.
Next Symposium, I think I'll just 'angel' for a couple of days, because it is very tiring being on your feet, or just sitting waiting for someone to ask for assistance - even unpicking is better than nothing!

Symposium Challenges Revealed

We are back in the wintery north after 10 days in Central Otago - where the weather was divine, most days having beautiful blue skies and only a little rain during one lunchtime break.
I can now post photos of my competition entries - these were for the ANZAC challenge - I didn't win anything and being totally unbiased, reckon that they were just as good as the 2 winners! They all just fit within the 1m x 600mm size restrictions.
The first one is In Flanders' Fields, the poppies are made from fabric inked cotton batting which are hand stitched onto the quilted background. The centres are buttons and beads with stitched stamens. This is a very vibrant quilt!

In Flanders' Fields

This quilt is called The Nation's Most Gallant Sons and has printed onto handitowels each of New Zealand's Victoria Cross winners. Willy Apiata, who is our only surviving winner, has been worked in fabric and the quilting lines of his face are like a Maori tattoo.

The Nation's Most Gallant Sons

Last Post

Last Post I made really quickly - it is thin strips of fabric stitched on top of a piece that varies in colour from dark through to light - I wanted it to look like the dawn - the threads of fabric were to convey how cold it can be, and eerie with the Last Post being played as the flag is lowered. The bugler is intentionally small in comparison - he is not the focal point because often you just hear the music not see the player.
Finally, there is Lest We Forget. This one took me ages to complete and I almost didn't have it finished enough in time for photographing. It represents the war memorials you will find in every city and town throughout New Zealand - in some places the Roll of Honour list most of the men from the district - how incredibly sad that brothers and cousins were placed in the same unit and as a consequence whole lines of families were destroyed.

Lest We Forget

Anzac Day - We Will Remember Them

This year Anzac Day falls on Easter Monday - this is a once in 88 year's occurrence. We will be in Queenstown for the Remarkable Symposium and have decided to attend the Dawn Service in Wanaka. I will wear my Grandpop's medals for the first time (he received them for service in World War 1) - actually I don't think they have been worn for over 40 years! Derrick has got new ribbon for me and I had quite a job in getting the oxidation off the Victory Medal (it is brass). The other medal is silver and lemon juice worked very well for that.
The Victory Medal is the one with the rainbow ribbon and the British War Medal has the gold center with outer blue stripes. Mostly people show it with the reverse view, but we have checked and the King's head is the obverse view.
So I have made some Anzac biscuits - these are for Judy in Chicago. Judy, they are very nice, with a slight chewy center. You need to enjoy these with a good cuppa.

Weekly Catch-up

Last weekend New Zealanders put their clocks back an hour, and can you believe it? Winter has started already! Well, OK, we've had a few days with cooler temperatures, lots of rain and grey cloudy skies, so it is probably just autumn.
On Monday evening I had the lambs shorn. The poor little dears, firstly they were rounded up with a dog, onto a trailer with a crate and then left in a strange place. Then a man with a noisy machine grabs them and takes all their wool off! It was such a cold evening, they spent the night 'inside' the shearing shed.
Here's my lil' Beauty five days after shearing (she's so little compared to the others):

Here are some photos I've taken this week while out on my walks:

Underside of toadstool and bug

New family

Chestnuts

Enjoy the textures and colours!