Out and about

Last week started with a visit to Carlton - Little Italy. The weather was spectacular, warm and sunny. The perfect day for visiting a cafe in Lygon Street and sampling some yummy Italian food. Afterwards, a browse in the French food store, and no visit to Carlton would be complete without spending time at Brunetti's, for coffee and ice cream. People watching is fun here, too, and there were some interesting characters to be seen, such as the two ladies decked out in vintage fashion, right down to the hair style and hand bag.
Of course, I couldn't go past the Amarena and limone flavours for

 my gelato, yum! And a few Italian biscotti just had to come home with me too....
Spent some time in the Owlery, and put together the little quilt the Friday ladies and I are working on, to be raffled at a later date. Needed three more hexies, which were quickly added, and now we'e sewing the rows together. I think it will work well as a table topper or a lap quilt.
Meanwhile, I'm on panel No. 6 of my Kim McLean quilt, and it's getting to be quite an addictive process. My current panel is more complex, with lots of stems and leaves. I'll see if I can incorporate some of the advice given by Hany, the Tentmaker of Cairo.
I also finished a gift, a small tabletopper for

 Halloween, with Casper the ghost motifs. Gifted to a friend in NZ.

Really enjoyed this cuppa the other day, it came out all frothy, the way I like it. In fact, I might just go and make myself another one!

This and that

 Don't know where last week got to! I'm sure I didn't do much, but it seemed to have filled my time. Still, a couple of highlights feature, such as the amazing Tentmakers of Cairo exhibition a friend and I visited on Saturday.
This was a one-man show, featuring Hany Mahmoud and his works. There were also pieces by other tentmakers, and other artworks of Egyptian artists. The 'quilts' were the highlight, however. I say 'quilts' with reservations, because the pieces the tentmakers craft are not quilted, only backed. Traditionally, the needleturn applique is sewn onto (tent) canvas, but these days, different background

fabrics are also used. There are about 40 shops in the Tentmakers' street in Cairo, and boy! would I like to see that! Hany said he usually sits on a cushion with his legs tucked underneath him, and he can sew for hours in this position. A typical quilt will take approx. 6 weeks to make, and at the speed these guys work, I can believe it! The applique fabric is usually a cotton homespun in solid colours, although some people also work with silk and organza. The traditional Islamic patterns do not contain flowers or creatures, and are made up with geometric shapes and Arabic writing, e.g. sayings from the Koran.
Others use floral or animal motifs, such as the lotus flower, and birds are also a favourite.
The design is drawn unto the background with a white pencil, and the top fabric is held on top of the design and then fastened with needle and thread to the background. I asked Hany how he works his points, which is something I find tricky. He showed me a way to make points, which I will try in my next applique quilt. We were certainly deeply impressed with the exhibition, and I wish I had the ready to buy one of the quilts. Instead, I came home with an Egyptian cookbook, which has some yummy recipes.

And it will soon be Halloween! I made a few Halloween cards, only one of which loaded here for whatever reason. And I'm making a small Halloween quilt for a friend. Will post a photo when it's gifted.

I look forward to having the Wednesday night group here this evening. Always nice to catch up with the ladies.

And we've booked all our flights and accommodation for our Canada trip next year, yay! quilt Canada, here we come!

More cards

 I'm having the Friday ladies around a few times at the moment, so I thought I'd expand the working space in the Owlery a little. Added a new fold-out table and folded down the cutting table. Thirteen of us fitted around the table - cosy!
Spent a few mornings making cards, using the new Kaisercraft range in delicate silver and lilac/purple.
Then I discovered a goodie bag with Tim Holtz embellishments and played with those too.
My friend Mary put me on to these glitter foam pages, which are wonderful to use in the Sizzix. They work really well with dies, because the foam squishes down and is easily cut by the die. The only problem is sticking the cut outs down on paper, because sometimes

 they are very delicate. Haven't yet found a good adhesive for these.
Have started a Christmas table runner and the fourth block of my Kim McLean quilt. Photos next time.
Had a lonesome Ibis in the paddock the other day; usually they arrive in large flocks, but this one was all alone. Hope he'll find a flock again.