found...

i have been searching for these blocks for a while now and as i stopped looking for them i found them!

so i have three liberty works in progress but that is the norm for me ..

and i have been crocheting the flounce on my baby cashmerino blanket for so long now i needed
another something to alternate it with...so....i started to ripple....

rippling ...flouncing....wonky squares...stackandwack...kaleidoscope stars...socks...cardi...and a secret project...ooh ahhh .... i blame where i work at calicoandivy because i am surrounded by fabrics and wool of all types so it has set me on fire ... oh and pat of course ...

i love being fortunate enough to have people in my life that are sooo like minded..

foodlovers guide...

fantastic fremantle or as the locals call it ,freo.

i have a great foodie friend who likes nothing more than a great tootle out to seek out little shops that have wonderful hidden treasures ..

so we went to freo as the temp is starting to cool down now [25 ]and our first stop was the little street in freo called george street ..which is made up of all those lovely shops that one must go and spend a little time browsing ..

we had a lovely coffee and shared a raspberry teacake and it was a lovely start to the day ..

i then bought a shop [only kidding] a beautiful building built in 1880 for a cool million..

then we discovered a shop that sold all things organic ,french ,homemade ,and chocs from new york...

we gathered our treasures from the 4 corners of the world and put them in an esky [i told you my friend was an avid foodie] they included wild olives,goats cheese from france, buffalo mozzarella and figs stuffed with marscapone ...

then of to kailis for their famous chowder which obviously has some cream in it and it is slightly pinkish in color and is sooo delicious ..

after that we went to a famous meat wholesalers and loaded up with french cutlets and beef cutlets ...

these days are a great destresser as pleasant company and pleasant foodie treats are really hard to beat..

wip ...

work in progress ..
this is the border that is taking all my time at the moment and i do so enjoy it ..
but i figure that i have crocheted my way to paris by now .
i will finish it soon and then on to another project that is whizzing around in my head..
that is one thing that blogging does do and that is it makes you finish things and that is not a bad thing....

kookaburra...

the kookaburra has long been associated with australia .

it is similar to the kingfisher but a lot larger and these birds have a sinister streak..

although they are native to australia they are not native to western australia and the rogue is the culprit in sending our little wren population into serious decline .

they are meat eaters and swoop on their prey from a tree where they are cleverly camouflaged .

when talking to a local ranger he had autopsied one which had 10 blue wrens in its belly!..

so you see the only kookas i like are the little camping stove that i had to use for breakfast on sunday as we had an ill timed power cut and i even had to use a camping kettle with a little whistle to make a morning cuppa..

then there is the lovely little ko0kaburra cinema [outdoor] that runs in a little community in the perth hills..

imagine sitting under the milky way[we are directly under it]and watching the movie AUSTRALIA in the evening air and being served refreshments from the local volunteer fire brigades ahh bliss...

a note at the bottom of the program "please generously support these tireless guardians of our hills lifestyle"..

i say hear hear and aren't these little communities wonderful?

a friday tootle...

well after the week i have had i needed a well earned tootle..

so i called up a friend [an aunt who is only 6yrs older than me] and off we went..

the day was a little hot [anything over 25 is hot for me] so i had the aircon on in the car most of the time and we drove for a leisurely lunch ..

i drove away from the coast and we stopped at a place called settlers hills and we sat and had a vegetarian wood fired pizza ane some perrier water ..

then we opted for coffee with a view and back to the coast we went..

everybody wants to live near the water in the summer as it's always a few degrees cooler and there is usually a nice sea breeze ..and there was , coming in from the beautiful indian ocean .

there were plenty of kite surfers around and the photo i have take is of a little island just a few hundred metres offshore called ' penguin island '.

this little island has the most fantastic views and is home to a the fairy penguins [remember pingu?].

here they are studied and protected with round the clock supervision under the watchful eye of the rangers.

in the top photo you may be able to see two litte white shapes -these are the little ferries that take you to and from the island.
on this and the surrounding islands you can always see large sea lions basking in the sun and some are really large.
also in the summer when the water is calm you can actually wade across the sandbar 'which we have done only once.
after coffee we went home and i was totally invigorated .. tired but in an ivigorated sort of way..

sorry...

sorry for not blogging for a few days ..
portia, who is the owner of the exqusite silky crossed paws ,had to go the vets..
i do now know that when i have a vet run i spiral downwards into a really dark place..
i know i am being silly really but it is still early days and the sadness comes back and bites me on the backside..
i'll be ok when she lets out her first meow because at the moment she is not having a barr of me..
if only she understood that if she didn't go to the vet to get her teeth seen to she would be a very sick little cat indeed...
and i would be $500 better off !!!
so apologies all round and welcome to my 10th follower ,nadene..
the week can only get better...

dear friends...

i called in to see my friend pat on the way home from working with another lovely friend ,debbie who owns the shop where i work called calico and ivy [check it out on the web at www.calicoandivy.com ] i needed some advice on the sizing of my liberty squares quilt and of course pat guided me to what i should do.
i didn't stay long and when saying goodbye she turned around and picked me these beautiful miniature clusters of bright pink roses called china doll..
the scent in the car home was so nice .
i put them in a favorite thrift vase that i paid 50 cents for and placed them near my antique postage stamp quilt..
the quilt is from america around the 1930's and is called around the world and every stitch is sewn by hand and it is also quilted by hand ..
i love this quilt , i love this vase ,i love the roses and i love having dear pat as my good friend ...

bloomin" border...

i was crocheting my border on my granny square blanket and after crocheting 4 balls of yarn about 700 mtrs ,i looked and thought nah i don't like it ...

at all....

so out it came as you can see by the cream yarn ...

so i have started another border and this one has a good feel to it ...

so i thought i would sew a little as i have now got 3 liberty fabric quilts that i am on with

one is the wonky log cabins of which i now have made the 20 blocks ..

the other is a mosaic pattern [above] of which i love the scrappiness of this..

and the 3rd is a strippy star one but i have put it somewhere safe and i cannot seem to locate it ..

hmnn is it in the wardrobe ,cupboards ,this box ,that box oh dear it will emerge when it is ready ..

now where did i put that fabric????

loving liberty..

more liberty wonky log cabins ..

12 down and 8 to go ..

loving this ...

a great aussie icon

bill grainger is one of those cooks ,chefs call him what you may that makes you want to cook what he has just cooked..

you know ,when you are watching him that his food is simply going to taste wonderful and it does .

at the moment he is on foxtel tv on a thursday night and he is not to missed..

here is the cake i have to make today for tea ...

d

figs and olive oil..

these are the figs we picked at cherith grove ..

both these black and yellow ones came from the same tree but were growing on different sides.

the yellow ones are sweeter and i have found a cake recipe for these little beauties..

also we brought home a lovely light olive oil ..

this one is called leccino ...

olive oil is the good oil ..

do you need an oil change?

am i in spain ?....

am i in spain i ask myself?

donkeys , olive groves , and fresh figs[ more on that subject tomorrow]....

no i am lucky enough to have been invited to alex's organic olive grove nestled in the perth hills called cherith grove in gidgeganup...

pat and i drove to alex's for the day and what a wonderful day it was too..

we had the perfect lunch in her cafe[it wasn't open that day] and sat and chatted to the lovely sue from talleringa bed and breakfast .there was just the four of us enjoying girlie talk and eating a platter of new norcia bread ,homemade olive tapenade ,hummus and babaganouche[i think i have spelled them right].

these are days that are godsent and only happen when all the universe is working together and they are to be treasured ..

this is why i came to australia -to have all these wonderful experiences with wonderful people and i know how lucky i am to have all this at my fingertips...

in the uk my best friend jude and i would be out tootling all over in the little english villages in north yorkshire...

we would have a pub lunch [no alcohol mind] and then stop later for an english high tea and then home to our families with little treats we had bought from our jaunt..

well pat and i had a tootle and what a tootle it was too...

thank you alex for a lovely lovely day and we hope to have many more...