Tissue Box Quilt - Adventure!

This quilt is actually inspired by a tissue box..hence the name. if you follow me on instagram (moniquesmith64) then you would have followed me on the journey of this quilt from conception through to almost completion. You guys get to see the finished product first (only because I dont know how to transfer photos from my camera to instagram when it is not on my phone camera!)

So today , early this morning i finished off the binding of the quilt and tidied all the loose threads. I headed around to my friends Julianne's

 place to see if she wanted to join me on an adventure. Well that  is what we call them because generally I only have a vague idea of what we are going to do and where we are going to head.

Wouldnt it be nice to take off for an adventure in this old Chevie? Unfortunately we only stumbled across this on the way up through the hills, parked in someone's driveway. So we snuck in for a couple of pictures, the old truck lending itself nicely to a few photos. Mind the mud!

From there we navigated our way round to Cherry Gardens. Juli remembers attending the dances at the local halls where they provided the best suppers she can remember..nothing like country hospitality!

The front of the property in Cherry Gardens has been topiaried in the hedge as long as Julianne can remember, she did mention that the letter used to be very uniform and even...times change and so do the hands that carve the letters in time.

A few kilometers down the road and around the bend... On the Old Mount Barker Road is a lovely property with a field full of spring bulbs in bloom. I started to photograph the quilt on the fence/ gate but couldnt content myself without getting a full photo of the quilt in the paddock.... and the owners (whose house was just up the hill) saw and came down to question me.    Apologies .. for an invasion of privacy was in order.. and feeling a little guilty for jumping the falling down gate ..but what is one to do with so much beauty before me?....Apparently I am not the only one....

Photo obtained (a very breathless and apologetic me) jumps back in the car , further down the road to Stirling. The blossoms on the side of the road provided the best photo opportunity of all, I think.

The back of the quilt, the stripes looking like tall timbers (even thought orientated the opposite way)
Amongst the birch and blossoms.

The next photos are my favorites, spectacular crisp clean whites of the blossoms and blurred colours in the background...absolutely delicious.

 On to Bridgewater and the Bridgewater Mill. Mossy and wet wheel , sludgy wet grass and  a cold windy day.

 The hellebores at the back in the woodland path

An in my back yard to get a photograph of the entire quilt hanging on the line with the wind blowing up the skirts to get the full picture!

Cheers and thanks for visiting. Monique x

The Great Ocean Road, Victoria

 David, my husband, had work in Warrnambool, Victoria and inquired whether Jordy and I would like to tag along. Tagging along meant a full days driving, some 934 kilometers in one day and the return journey after two days in Warrnambool. Some would consider it idiocy to travel such distances for such a short period of time, but the inducement of visiting monolithic rock features of the Great Ocean Road was enough to inspire us to make the journey.

Our first day was spent touring just beyond Warrnambool. The Bay of  Islands is the first pit stop and the sight was enough to make the girls feel glad they came. Even with blustery winds, dark clouds and freezing temperatures, it still is a  sight to behold. You get the feeling of the full magnitude of the ocean's power as the waves pound against the limestone cliff faces and you feel as if you are witnessing the wave erosion of these monolithic structures, which really have taken hundreds of years to wear away.

Great beauty in front of the rocks? Jordy and friend Korina

And an old crag (still standing in the wind) getting her mug in the one and only shot of the holiday

I love the tonal value of colours and the subtle changes you can see in the rock layers, a true declaration of the years passing by.

Wave action on the base of the cliff face and colour drenching the limestone from the surface soils.

A panoramic shot so you might appreciate the view

From the Bay of Islands we moved onto a rock formation known as the Grotto
This time the erosion was formed two fold from the coast and inland waters. I've cheated and photographed the explanation for you

On to London Bridge. This rocky feature was connected to the mainland and I remember visiting it some thirty years ago and walking across the structure. When it collapsed in 1990 two tourists were stranded on the island and had to be rescued . Fortunately no one was injured with the collapse.

 A small trickle from  a creek onto the beach at the London bridge site is a perfect example of erosion from the land

This bird attracted my attention in the car park with its beautiful call and stayed still just long enough to snap it and then disappeared

The Arch  and waves in action. Imagine this at sunset on a hot summers eve with all the colours in the sky glowing red.

Of course I cant go anywhere without capturing the bird life. This bird found along the Hopkin River..I went to see the whales on Logan's Beach but saw birds instead. Dave was lucky enough to spy a whale the same day in the evening.

Within meters of where we stayed in the heart of Warrnambool is Middle Island, Merri River and Thunder point. Middle Island is now a safe haven for breeding penguins and during the summer months it is possible to walk across the sands at low tides. This also means that foxes have been able to do the same thing and breeding pairs were at an all time low, nearing extinction, until they introduced a shepherding dog to protect the penguins. The penguin colonies are now beginning to breed again and are protected from marauding foxes, human foot traffic is also no longer allowed.

Footbridge near the breakwater where the Merri river meets the sea. Local inhabitants of the Merri river.

Merri River viewed from Thunder Point and a very exciting inhabitant was stumbled upon. My first meeting with an Echidna. I must say my heart was pounding from excitement but I daren't move as they are extremely shy creatures. This little fella was less than a meter away from me and I think the wind blowing towards me saved me from detection. The slightest noise and he headed for cover.

 What I saw whale watching - wind waves and rainbows.

Victoria and south Australia share the same bird.(I think)  I have photographed this bird in the Mount Lofty Ranges

And these three seagulls show what determination can do. The wind was strong and fierce when I grabbed these three braving the elements. I could barely hold my camera still even though I rested it on the breakwater. Lean to the left boys, now to the right. get those feet positioned right!

Thanks for hanging around so long!