Memories of Stitches and Craft Melbourne 2017

The Stitches and Craft show is over for another year. I enjoyed my days there minding the SAQA - My Corner of the World exhibition. The quilts were such a high standard and we were lucky to have such a prestigious international exhibition here.

I took photos of all the quilts and some I didn't like at first butI got to like after a while especially after reading the artist statement.

The quilt that received many comments was Main and 3rd by Jill Kerttula. 
The photos don't do the quilts justice, as usual with quilts

Main and 3rd by Jill Kerttula

Another favourite was Birding on a Quiet Hill by Sara Sharp.

Birding on a Quiet Hill by Sara Sharp

Cradle 3 by Erika Carter was made with hand painted organza and it really looked like branches blowing in the breeze.

Cradle 3 by Erika Carter

A quilt that was made of wool fibres represented shadows on the ground; it was very cleverly done by Mita Giacomini.

August by Mita Giacomini

The Stitches and Craft show was more of a craft show than a quilting show with many different shops to what we are used to but I still managed to buy a few things; some fat quarters that will be perfect for rocks in my coral reef quilts, some sparkly felt that I use for a base when embroidering coral and a book on felting.

I am not a felt maker and never will be but I can use some of the techniques for my coral reef quilts and the book has wonderful step by step photos.

Bye for now,
Linda

Stitches and Craft Show 2017

There is a new Stitches and Craft Show in Melbourne and it starts tomorrow Thursday 23rd November. I was in there today hanging the SAQA travelling quilt exhibition called My Corner of the World.

It is a large exhibition of art quilts from around the world. It is a fabulous display and I loved seeing all the different quilts up close. I had a friend help me and it took us four hours to hang the quilts.

Here are a couple of photos.

Lake Vistas 2 by Joan Reive of Canada

Blue Heron by Molly Samuels of USA

I will be there on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I hope people will come to the show, I got a chance to see some of the stalls and it looks fun, fresh and exciting with stalls that I haven't seen before. There seems to be a Christmas and celebration look to the show and it looks great.

The show is on at the beautiful old Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne Australia, Thursday 23rd Nov to Sunday 26th Nov. Opening hours are 10am to 4pm.

Hope to see you there.
Bye for now,
Linda

AQIPP Opening Night 2017

Last week I attended the AQIPP (Australian Quilts in Public Places) opening night. It is a biennial event and this year the theme was Reflection.

I decided to stay with my coral reef theme and made a quilt about the dangers of plastic and litter entering into the reef. My quilt is called 6 Pack Shame and I was surprised and thrilled to win a prize for Creativity in Colour.

Here I am standing with Fiona Horne who donated my beautiful prize.

Fiona is also passionate about the reef and the danger that it is currently facing. Fiona Horne makes glass ware and many of her pieces are inspired by coral reefs. She did not choose my quilt to win the prize that was done by the judges; it was just a coincidence that we have the same interests.

Here is the photo of the beautiful glass necklace that I won.

Necklace made by Fiona Horne of Rhino beads

I love the colour and I am sure that I will get a lot of wear out of it.
Fiona's business is called Rhino Glassbeads.

I also won some beautiful hand dyed threads by Marina Holland, I think it amazing that they are threads that are the perfect colour for embroidering corals.

Hand Dyed threads by Marina Holland

I also received two template sets from Victorian Textiles.

Templates from Victorian Textiles

There were lots of quilters that I knew there and was able to get some photos of them with their quilts.

On Reflection-Cape Town Harbour by Sue de Vanny

Place of Reflection by Linden Lancaster

Both Sue and Linden won Honourable Mentions for their beautiful quilts.

Reflection by Fran Batrouney

Reflection by Jacie Malseed

Super Moon by Rebecca Wolske

Upside Downside by Judy Robinson Whitty

The evening went by very quickly especially as I felt quite overwhelmed at winning a prize. I will have to go back to see the exhibition again and take some more photos when it is not so crowded.

Here is the photo of my quilt 6 Pack Shame.

6 Pack Shame © 2017 Linda Steele

As I was leaving the exhibition I caught sight of the AQIPP banner and my quilt from the last exhibition was featured.

The picture at the bottom is from my bushfire quilt that was in the competition two years ago.

It was a lovely finish to the evening.

AQIPP is on at the Box Hill Town Hall in Melbourne Australia.

It is open Tuesday to Friday 10am to 4pm and Saturdays from 12pm to 4pm. It is on until December 21st, so there is still plenty of time to see the exhibition.

Bye for now,

Linda

The Embroiderer's Guild of Vic Exhibition

A couple of weeks ago I went to the EGV's (Embroiderer's Guild of Victoria) annual exhibition. The theme was Ebb and Flow although you could exhibit work that did not pertain to the theme.

My favourite work was by Lesley Uren and it was a Leafy Sea Dragon done in gold work. It was positioned behind a table so I couldn't get too close to see the details.

Leafy Sea Dragon on Gold by Lesley Uren

Lesley Uren also had a  Weedy Sea Dragon on display.

Weedy Sea dragon by Lesley Uren

Another of my favourites was a box with a beautifully appliqued and embroidered top by Sylvia Reeves.

Water Lily by Sylvia Reeves

I also took a detail shot to see the wonderful embroidery.

Water Lily detail

I also liked Perception by Mary McArdle, it was a combination of painting and embroidery.

Perception by Mary McArdle

There was a lot of gold work on display and here is one called She is in Love by Sue White

She is in Love by Sue White

There were a few quilts on display and there was one that caught my eye because of the embroidery and the dear little quotes on it. It was displayed on a hoop and unfortunately the name card was placed right in the middle of it.

Best Friends Forever by Glenda Walker

Hexagons are so popular at the moment; they are good projects to take along to sewing days. Here are some close-ups of the quilt blocks.

There was a stand of little works by the South Western Branch who were celebrating their 40th birthday. The embroidery was exquisite.

South Western Branch 40th Birthday display

Here are some close ups of some of the pieces.

Blue Wren by Gillian King

Butterfly by Gwenda Armitstead

Robin by Beverley Speirs

Thistle by Robin Southey

The Ebb and Flow Challenge was won by Linda Bateman with her incredible piece called Who Broke the Golden Egg.

Who Broke the Golden Egg by Linda Bateman

It's hard to appreciate the wonderful and intricate beading from the photo.

The Embroiderer's Guild in Wattletree Road, Malvern, Victoria, Australia put on a wonderful exhibition every year and if you get a chance next year I highly recommend a visit.

Bye for now,
Linda

Houston Quilt Show 2017

The Houston quilt show is over for another year and from all the photos I have seen on social media it was a huge success.
I had a couple of friends who went this year and to our excitement one of them, Linda Crouch won first prize in the miniature section. Here she is at the prize winning ceremony.

Linda Crouch receiving her prize

I was away on holiday with her when she was finishing up tying off all the threads but I forgot to take a photo of it, I'll have to wait until it arrives back home. Meanwhile I only have the photos from the show.

I can assure you that it is absolutely beautiful.

Linda Crouch with Whirlygig

Another Victorian won a Honourable mention, Karen McGregor with her beautiful turtle quilt that was in our latest Vic Quilters show.

Green Sea Turtle by Karen McGregor

Two other Australians won a prize, Helen Godden won a 3rd and Gillian Shearer won an Honourable Mention.

I had a quilt in the show but I missed out on a prize. My Quilt, The Bleaching was in the Embellished section.

The Bleaching

I also had another quilt in the A Matter of Time Exhibition, at one stage my quilt was used to advertise the floor talks, which was a thrill.

I also had a quilt in the silent auction, I know someone has bought it but I don't know how much money it raised yet.

The Coral Reef by Linda Steele

I have been to the Houston Quilt Show twice before and it is huge and so exciting and hard to believe that there are so many beautiful quilts in one place.

Meanwhile I am here at home after a few busy couple of months, things should be settling down now and I can get on with some sewing at last.

Something that always puts a smile on my face is my beautiful granddaughter Savannah who turned 3 over the weekend. She loves all the Disney movies but we decided to have Simba on her Ice-cream cake.

Bye for now,
Linda