Christmas is Coming

Yesterday I finally got a day off, with all this de cluttering, Mag Square and Sale, I haven't had any time out. So yesterday I had a day out.
I love the vibe in Fitzroy so had lunch at Arcadia with a friend Simone and walked up and down Gertrude Street.
Shops there are really diverse, sadly one of my favourite ones, Three Quarters is leaving and will only have their Brunswick W store. They have unique mid Century furniture.
The Vintage stores in Fitzroy have lovely quality clothing, especially Circa. I could not resist a fifties blouse that had my name on it, which was new old stock.
I didn't get a chance to go to Meet Me At Mikes, Pip has just put out a new book and I especially loved the Skirt and Bean bag. I will get there next time.
After Fitzroy I went to Pinoak Cresent in Flemington to check out Simone's shop Wild Jam.
Simone has great taste and her shop is full of fabulous things.
Anyway to cut a long story short (not really) Simone showed me some cute as Christmas birds.
After trying madly to get some, the wholesaler said there is no more.
So being an old crafter I decided to make my own. Cute huh! There will be many more to come.

Random Things

Random is a funny word. To me it is things that you love but don't necessarily go together.
I think this is what is interesting about other people's interiors. Today's photo's are of a few of my random things.
p.s. The prints are by the talented Christina Gordon (Jam Fancy)

What I am doing at the moment

At the moment I have gone back to a quilt I made quite some time ago. It is a Brick pattern two colour quilt.
I had it ditch quilted and am starting to hand quilt 1/4" around the red.

Lily of the Valley and Sale at Scarlet

This morning at Camberwell Market my flower man had bunches of Lily of the Valley.
The smell took me back as it was my mum's favourite perfume.
I am now off to prepare Scarlet for the Sale. among other things on Sale Place des Lices cosmetics will be at clearance prices up to 70% off, great to get in early for Christmas, which is only about 8 weeks away. Scary really!

Magnolia Square and Scarlet Sale

I am at Magnolia Square at the moment with Scarlet stock. For anyone that does not know, it is a Boutique Market at Malvern Town Hall. Lots of very nice things there including Scarlet Jones clothing.
I am having a big clear out at Scarlet next week for anyone interested.
I want my lounge room back as excess stock from the warehouse ended up there!

What I Have been doing

New Solids

We have just got a new range of solids, from an Australian company, the colours are really subtle and lend an authentic vintage look to a quilt. They are very Amish like.
These are two of the quilts that Rowan had made, using them to showcase the fabric.
The other photo's are of a scarf made from the lovely voile in the shop and washed then twisted and tied when nearly dry. Gives a great effect doesn't it.

UFO

The term UFO has always been part of my vocabulary, anyone who doesn't know this term is usually a finisher.
I am a much better starter than a finisher, hence the many unfinished objects (UFO) in my cupboards.
I came across this cute project today while sorting though boxes, is a great example of how you can get inspiration from a fabric design. I started making it to sell the fabric, and intended bordering it in the fabric. Sadly it will probably stay unfinished as we no longer have this Liberty Seasonal fabric anymore, it obviously did it's job at the time.

Cat Bookends

My cats Sid and Nancy have finally settled in, they were on shaky ground there for a while. I was very close to sending them back. It took three months before they would let us near them or touch them, sadly they had been mistreated in a previous home so were very scared.
Now is a different story and they think we are the pets and they are the owners of the house. They are very sweet though and really good cats.
I was hoping they may scare away the Possums, but I think they have just made friends with them and are quite fascinated, watching them eat my Roses.
The images I have put on with this post are from an old Marie Claire Maison, and Elle decoration. I just love this eclectic decorating style and I am hoping to eventually recreate the feel in my home, in a fashion.
I am pretty bored with just the white with wooden floors and bland decor. I love seeing a bit of individual personality in rooms that reflect who lives there.

Liberty Club

With the help of Adrienne Murray we decided it is about time we started a Liberty Club.
There is a groundswell happening out there with Liberty appearing everywhere. Everyone who has been to London or Paris lately come back with stories of where they have seen it.
It is appearing in everything including homewares and fashion, including jewelery using bias binding and even sneakers.
As anyone who has been into the store knows we have a huge range of Liberty so Adrienne formulated a club format that includes a project. Her first one is a small stars quilt. The project sheet includes hand or machine instructions. This is a wonderful way to build a collection of classics and seasonals.
I am still ironing out the finer details but if you are interested just email me at patchpark@bigpond.com and I will send you all the details. Or check back here later in the week.

Around the Store

This week I have been in the shop quite a bit as Kathy is away, having a well earned break.
So I have been changing everything around, as usual creating a bit of chaos.
Yesterday I received my gorgeous vintage carpet patchwork rug, these rugs appear in the European interior magazines quite a bit.
I first saw them in the flesh when my friend Deb from Calico and Ivy showed me them at ABC Carpet and Home in NY. She bought the loveliest one there.
I have been in love with them since and had to have one, this one is a gorgeous addition to the shop and like always when you get something new it makes you want to refresh everything.

The quilt in the photo is Sonya's, she came in today and showed us her Baby Birdsong she made over the weekend. Starting with a square of vintage Noddy sheet in the centre she matched other fabrics beautifully last week. It turned out so nice I thought it needed to be shown.

Adrienne Armstrong's Class

Adrienne has a class every second Wednesday and the women in her class make the most beautiful traditional quilts! with Adrienne's guidance.
The New York Beauty quilt is by Glenis and the quilting is divine.
The Pineapple Log Cabin is Adrienne's latest project and was inspired by Arabella Ramsey's antique quilt that was on the cover of the Age Mag a few months back.

Liberty Silk Scarf

I love to give a personal gift to good friends and these scarves are perfect for just $24.
You only need 30cm of the beautiful Liberty silk, that we have in the shop, fold it in half wrong sides together and then stitch around the edge. Leave an opening about 15cm then turn right side out. Stitch up opening and press. Voila!

Liberty Garland

This is a quick easy project to make a garland for your little ones room or just for fun.
I used a ripped strip as my ribbon but you can use a coloured ribbon instead.Rip Liberty onto 1 and 1/2" pieces then cut into length ranging from 1" to 3".
Sitting at the machine sew pieces onto your base ribbon overlapping as per the photo.
The little necklace is made by cutting circles with pinking shears and then sewing two together onto a ribbon.
Have fun!

Great Design

At the moment I am finding myself drawn to Art Deco design, the colour they used in this era is very subtle yet not dull. I particularly like the way black is used in many designs.
These are some cups that were picked up at the market quite a while back but are still allowed to live at my house.

Spring flowers

How nice is Spring this year in Melbourne. With all that lovely rain over winter everything is back to it's old self, the gardens are looking wonderful. I definitely need to make time to go to a few open gardens this year.
Mine is not quite what it was before the drought but I can see a light at the end of the tunnel.
In my de cuttering process I am finding it really hard to part with old magazines, it has always been a bit of a problem for me, but they must go! including the old Victoria magazines. I am taking them to the shop for anyone who wants them. Can't get my head around just throwing them out.
The photo is from an old Marie Claire Idea's mag, such a pretty use of Liberty.