The Last Piece

Alabama Studio Style

Heads up everybody! Sewn is the latest stop on Natalie Chanin's blog tour. Head over there to read an interview with Natalie and a review of her new book, Alabama Studio Style. Have fun!

 

 

Sunshine on a Cloudy Day

Rain, rain, DON'T go away, I love it. After the most humid month of February ever on record in Sydney, today it is cold (well, 19C, which is realise for all those of you in snowy places is toasty warm!), rainy and a stay indoors and quilt day. I may even break open the DVD set of Love My Way that's been waiting for me for ages and ages. Turn on the kettle, couch here I come.

Before I settle into a potato though, I must tell you to run on over to Sewn to see our latest update... there's an interview with Rashida Coleman-Hale, author of I Heart Patchwork and of course her lovely blog, I Heart Linen. We review the book, plus there's new favourites and a competition to win some delicious fabrics!

I also have a copy of I Heart Linen to give away later in the week. 

This happy news is tempered by some sadness.... while Rashida and I were working on the interview, she was waiting for her third baby to be born. Little Matthew was born on Friday, but it seems he's not very well and has had to be put into intensive care and is having all sorts of tests. So while you're reading about her beautiful book, send a little prayer to Rashida and her hubby for her beautiful new bub to be OK. 

 

Sending a little rainy day sunshine your way Rashida xx

Auction Quilts

Deb, the editor of Down Under Quilts, has organised a Bid 4 a Cause quilt auction to raise money for breast cancer.

Artists include the likes of Nic Bridges, Lisa Walton, Dijanne Cevaal and Helen Godden, so run over and have a look! The bidding starts tomorrow morning via the blog. 

Sand Painting

Hello....I am very tired and on my way to bed, but first I just had to say:

1. The most amazing and beautiful uTube link was sent to me from Brandon, you really must go and have a look. It really is something to see. Depending on your browser, it may take a few moments to load, so please be patient, it's worth it.

2. And after that, if you happen to be lucky enough to be in NSW or the ACT, dont forget to get yourself along to the Handmade Market in Canberra this weekend. There are over 100 quality craft stalls at the Yarralumla Woolshed Friday 11th and Saturday 12th September. I have been invited to the VIP opening on Friday night, I can't wait to report back to all of you on what I found there!

3. While I'm away we will be going to Floriade and taking the kids around the general Canberra attractions...I love a weekend away. ROAD TRIP!! Goodnight and see you all on the other side of Sunday....hope you all get some stitching done. x

A, B, C

Sorry for the silence there girls, but I have some good excuses.

A. I have been madly piecing 528 flying geese, finishing, then deciding I need another 266.

B. I hurt my back pretty badly, and then, in an effort to not further hurt my back by stretching up to the top of the design wall, instead stood on a chair to reach and promptly fell off it, further hurting the aforementioned back and also my hip and knee. Sympathy please, amongst the smothered laughter.

C. We have been madly loading and loading and loading, all the exciting new things at SEWN this week.

There are really some exciting things. Not just new Favourites and a new article about binding by Linda Hungerford, or a link to the Down Under Quilts Pincushion Competition, but also:

A. Another great competition to win Moda Home goodies

B. A fantastic interview with Becky Goldsmith from Piece O' Cake Designs, and a review of their amazing new book (if you don't have this, get it now! You will not regret it)

And most exciting of all....

C. Sew n' Sell is up and working!!

What do you mean what's Sew n' Sell?? It's out brand spanking new online marketplace that is expecially for all things sewn, and all things you need to sew things with. How exciting is that? My little Last Piece shop has the honour of being the very first shop in the Market, but if you hop on over there you can be next! In fact, the tenth shop to be created is going to win a fantabulous yet-to-be-revealed package of goodies from our prize stash in the office. If you want to check my shop out, click on the Sew n' Sell icon in my sidebar. And I have already had my first sale! Thanks to Lenore who was first in. 

AND (can you believe there's an and?) I finally, FINALLY did the Dresden Plate tutorial! For instructions that I have been promising for over a month now, click HERE.

Sorry there's no pretty pictures, that would mean getting up off the couch with my gimpy knee and it just ain't happening. Tomorrow I promise prettiness and the lovely things I was sent from my Polka Dot Swap partner. See ya! Sarah Fielke, Material Obsession, Material Obsession 2

Pincushion Mania!!

Hey everyone just a quickie to say - Have you seen that you can get the digital issue of Down Under Quilts early this month? The print issue isn't even out yet and you can go get a sneaky at the magazine before anyone has had their hot little hands on it yet.

There's a delicious yellow and pink quilt by my lovely friend Erica on the cover which is PRETTY. Lots of great articles as per usual and other delicious patterns. And the BEST part is that there is a fantastic pincushion competition in there for all of you to play in!

Deb at DUQ and I are running the competition, where you can have a look at some of my pincushion collection, make a pincushion yourself and enter it into the competition, and then win some great prizes!! Go have a look at Deb's new blog, Once Aponce a Time for some sneaky piccies, and link through her site or through SEWN to see the mag. 

Now! Go now!! Have fun..... :)

Festival of Threads

Just a quick one to say - WOW!! Have you seen the pics from the For the Love of Thread show in France on Sewn?? Make sure and get a copy of Down Under Quilts (you can get it online from Sewn too don't forget) for the story about the show and some of the designers who attended. But the best part is - over 100 pics from the show are available online exclusively for Sewn, with thanks to Carol at Quiltmania and Deb at Down Under Quilts!! They are SO beautiful, make sure you go and have a look. 

Of course you know who made this.... :)

The most exciting thing for me is that next year in April, I will be exhibiting at this show in France!! Be still my beating everything, I am SO excited and thank you Carol for the opportunity!!

Dresdens tomorrow...... Sarah Fielke Material Obsession Material Obsession 2

Lovely Things

A day of lovely things. A visit to the Sydney Craft and Quilt Fair at Darling Harbour. The Show is on all this week and ends Sunday, so if you are in Sydney get on down and see what's happening. If you do go, make sure you take a couple of clean pairs of knickers with you - no, I'm not being creepy, they are collecting brand new knickers to send to a fistula charity in Africa, so hop into Kmart or somewhere, pick up a pack of undies and drop them in to the booth!

The undies aren't the lovely things though, thank goodness. First a little fat quarter shopping at BeBeBold - 

The owls! Look at the owls! And some much needed apples to finish off my apple orchard log cabin. See a few familiar faces, more of which I will show you as the week goes on! Here are Lisa Walton and Nic Bridges in the Dyed and Gone to Heaven stall.....

These two clever girls both had prize winning quilts in the show, and as well Nic had done the most beautiful machine quilting on some of the other entries. To see the winning quilts from this year's show, go to the Quilter's Guild website. Make sure you look at this quilt, it was made by my friend Kathy de Palo, the president of the Hunters Hill Quilters, and she won a prize!!! Yay Kath!!

Then I swung by the Quilter's Companion booth and said hello to my quilt which is hanging there - this is called Stars in Your Eyes, and will be in the next issue of QC. 

A quick coffee with a friend, and then home to find this waiting for me in the mailbox!

A box full of Laura Gunn fat quarters!!! Direct from Laura herself! How exciting.... Thank you Laura, thank you! 

I had to control myself not to chop them up right then and there, but I have two other projects to finish on a deadline first so I had to behave myself. That didn't stop me taking them out and rearranging them for a while though :)

Pat, pat, pat.

Knowing that I had a class tonight, I put the dinner on, got a glass of wine, and then found out the lovliest thing of all - Marvellous Damian has worked out how to get the podcasts up for SEWN (minor technichal difficulty!) so if you run over there right now and click on this lovely fella:

or this link, you will be able to hear the charming Mr Mably telling you all about his latest fabric line. Yay! It's like having him over for coffee :)

Lovely, lovely. Yay, woot and off to bed. More from the quilt show tomorrow. Night! Sarah Fielke Material Obsession 2 Material Obsession

SEWN IS UP

Yes, I know I'm yelling, but you have to hear me a long way away. I feel like the town crier...  

SEWN IS UP, AND ALL IS WELL.... 

OK, we HOPE all is well. You can't imagine the volume of what we have loaded in the past few days, and Damian is freaking out on the other side of the desk here, so if you are surfing around and find something that isn't working, PLEASE let us know and we will get right to fixing it. There are a few parts of the site that aren't live yet, so please be patient and they will come asap.

On the flip side, if you find something you LOVE and want to let us know, please do, because we are dying to know what you think! This site has been two years in the planning after all! Have fun everyone, and remember that there is more being loaded even as we speak. Yippee! Sarah Fielke Material Obsession 2 Material Obsession blog

PS. If you are a participating blogger and you have not received a thank you email from me tonight, please shoot me an email so I can send you one. There were quite a few of you who did not send me your email addresses when you signed up, and as the addresses are for emails and not blogs I'm not sure who is who. There is a little surprise attached to the email so let me know and I will send you one. Thanks!

PPS. We know that the SEWN buttons on some of your blogs have died - something the web guy said about codes and site movement.... here is the new code:

<a target='_blank' href="http://www.sewn.net.au" target="_blank"><img src="https://thelastpiece.typepad.com/sewnbutton.png" alt="SEWN" border="0" /></a>

We would really appreciate if you still link to SEWN and continue your great suppport!

SEWN Madness

Hey, like our new ad?

That's it chickens, I am all SEWN up and no place to go - except back to work loading all that juicy SEWiNg content for you for next week. Enjoy.....xx Sarah Fielke Material Obsession Material Obsession 2