Fractured Pillow and Winter colour

I'd like to say it's spring here and that summer is booming around the corner, but sadly we are just about to head into the cooler winter months. Walking the hill face last weekend felt like a spring day, even the butterflies were flitting about as if to agree with me. Lovely spring colours from the eucalyptus trees also set about to fool me.Our seasons always feel so mixed up here in Australia. Often we will get unseasonalably hot weather in spring and new plantings will suffer in the heat, wilting in duress to the torturous beating of the suns rays. I often wonder and admire in amazement at how my green thumbed friends can maintain their gardens....but we all know that their success is often due to mulching and regular watering (both of which I am not predisposed to doing) So I fail miserably in the garden. If it cant stand on its own legs with minimal support, then it is just going to die in my garden.

My splashes of colour come from sewing . I may not sew seeds but I can certainly string piece bits of material to produce cushions by the dozens (or as many as my back will allow me to sit at my sewing machine)

My latest effort is entirely from my off cut bag, left overs from a quilt. Just enough for two cushions  in similar colourways but opposing directions.

 A here are the beautiful eucalyptus in all their finery. Such a dazzling display.
Check out the ants filling up on nectar in the flowers
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  I love the burnt orange colours as the flowers  begin to dry and wilt

Chasing butterflies!

 And a well camouflaged native

 That is my weekend past in a nut shell....1 more day of work and then I get to play all over again.Cant wait.

My Crafty Lot

 Looking back over my spartan offerings of the last few months I realize that I haven't included any real coverage of all my crafty activities . I have entered a few swaps in this time and they have generated spin  off projects.
Cushions abound in my makings. The swap process is a great stimulus to create new projects and to be inspired by other peoples work
I had always admired the pattern for the feathered star but hadn't had the impetus to actually try it. Now having completed one I am keen to complete a few more of these cushions in other colourways. This cushion took a while to complete as I decided to hand stitch the quilting.

                                               

Another project that I have always considered doing is English paper piecing EPP. This one is made almost entirely from my scrap bag. Hand stitched entirely whilst I was home for 2 weeks with a back injury it filled in the moments when I was able to sit up. The cushion was influenced by all the colourful activities of my fellow swappers on IG in the #PCSWAPAS where a myriad of colour and shapes  formed beautiful cushions which are highly covetable.

 A second pillow that I sent in the swap  is the radiant beauty/. It is an angel cushion to someone who's cushion went AWOL in the post.

 Another project for a Amy Bulter low volume swap is also based on EPP. I love how the pattern evolves as the next layer is added and my thought process is altered with each layer. It is certainly a lot different to how I originally envisaged

 This is the cushion I sent to my swap partner for the #PCSWAPAS . It was difficult to part with. The embroidery took just as long to add as to make the  cushion.

A  new lino print honoring our Australian eucalyptus

A selfie of me with a crochet cowl. Cant wait for the cooler weather so I can really rug up in this. Im making a second one in blue.

 A lastly a series of stitcheries - angels I am gradually making for a quilt of my own design

that's enough I think. Sorry if you've seen this all  before on IG  but I thought I should get back into the habit of having a chat here again. Although IG is instantaneous it lacks the flow of conversation and thought but it does make an easy method of cataloging activities with little effort.

Thanks for stopping by and hoping your days are truly inspired.

Middleton and Hindmarsh Island

Hello~I feel I need an echo. Hello!

Yes it has been awhile. I lost my voice, or at least penmanship. Generally a lack of motivation to hit the keys and in particular to take the time to up load photos. By the time I actually get around to having a chit chat about events it feels so old and stale that its  just ho hum. Do you  feel this way?

The birds apparently couldn't care less what I did. Totally absorbed in soaking up the rays whilst lounging around on deck. I drove my daughter to Middleton yesterday for a surf (school holidays  here) and did not want to sit on the beach due to the fact that my back has been out of alignment this past week. So I headed to the next town ,Goolwa, in search of fabric for an Amy Butler mini quilt swap. Of course I headed in the wrong direction and ended up across the Murray River on Hindmarsh Island. Well I was there so I might as well stop and take a few photos. Such a tourist. There is plenty to see if you head to the Coorong but I was limited in time so restricted myself to accessing the waterways near the bridge which had a few reed beds and a lookout area in close proximity.

The stumps are part of the old crossing by ferry/barge, which was the only means to access the island until the bridge was built. I remember crossing the river with the family and car on holidays, in some ways it was the highlight of the trip being pulled across the Murray by cable.

The local water hens strutt across the top of the reed beds, a fine balancing act of nature.

What would the Murray River be without pelicans. On the way down to Middleton we saw a formation of pelicans in flight, truly magnificent to see. Pity I was unable to pull over to snap a few pics.

Yes I can see you, but really why should I be bothered. I'm too busy soaking up the sun.

Back a Middleton beach and waiting for my daughter I snapped some of the see grasses  and soft corals.

This seagull was playing with his food. I caught it mid flight. How clever is that ?

No real surf to speak of , but a play in the waves with the board was satisfactory.
Oh a I did find the material shop.