'Tis the season

Christmas always seems to have a way of sneaking up on us; even in mid-November it's easy to feel we really need to get going and start putting some ticks against the names on the present list. 

Once again, My Place Bowral has an assortment of baubles sure to get you in the Christmas mood including these shiny vintage style characters - the sweet beaming faces of Mr & Mrs Claus and their helpful elves are hard to ignore. 

Well-known Danish designer, Jette Frolich has released a new collection of lovelies for 2009, including hearts for the tree, paper flowers to adorn a wreath (or anything else needing a little embellishment) and a wreath itself, albeit a very modern version crafted from metal.

The soft glow of lights is an essential ingredient for creating a special feel and these strands from Delightful are both beautiful and unique.  They're made from the leaves of rubber trees and are hand crafted by a women's co-operative in Thailand.  The leaves are soaked for more than month until only the skeleton remains; they are then layered and shaped into flowers which take a number of forms, including roses.  Once removed from their box, all they need is a light misting of water to enable them to unfurl.  A very favourable light indeed.

And speaking of things horticultural, My Place is well stocked with glittery sprigs and berried branches which add a distinctly European feel to Christmas, but promise not to wilt in our searing summer!  Tick! 

Tuesdays with Brigitte

When most of us think back to our school days there's usually at least one teacher who stands out as a person of real influence and so often it was the teacher who helped us to acheive our best in a particular field. 

It's great to know that just as we never stop learning influential teachers still come into our lives and continue to give encouragement.  This was certainly a sentiment echoed in Brigitte Giblin's class last week.  Every third Tuesday of the month at My Place is reserved for the exciting tutorials of this remarkable quilter and last Tuesday was no exception.  Her pupils were eager to speak of how she showed them ways with pattern and design they didn't think possible, at least not according to "rules" learned in the past. 

Judy, pictured here with her brand new Brigitte project, Aunty Green's Coverlet, was keen to share her enthusiasm and tell us about her new-found confidence.  She spoke about becoming so "brave" with her use of fabrics and colour choice which, at first glance, might seem very different "stories".  Aunty Green's Coverlet is a great example of the way Brigitte makes her mark - a Victorian style toile works beautifully with a psychedelic print to create movement and real punch in the quilt.  Who'd have thought?

Brigitte's group recently finished their Tessellations quilts (which is the project our own Chris was photographed with recently) and here's a couple of pupils who've gone to the top of the class!

      

 Extra-curricular activities never looked so good.

To Market, to Market

 
It's that time of year again - no, not Christmas (not just yet anyway) but the Houston Quilt Market.  Our intrepid traveller, Lynne, has plenty to report but before she does we figure it's probably time for some introductions.  We've been blogging for a few weeks now and realise we haven't made ourselves known; so here we give you the Who's Who of My Place.  

Lynne is the owner of My Place Bowral and a quilter with serious experience. She was bitten by the sewing bug at a young age and her first major purchase was a sewing machine - bought with her hard-earned pocket money!  Read more....
 

As a young child, Chris eagerly gathered the scraps of fabric cast off by her grandmother and turned them into an extensive wardrobe for her Barbies.  Read more.....

Nanda's first foray into quilting saw matching quilts adorn her young sons' bunk beds, but sewing was a constant in her life from a very early age.  Read more....
 

Lastly, there's me, Sarah, the "keeper" of the My Place Blog.   I'm a novice by comparison but I've come along way since contemplating using a stapler to fasten fabrics together (and I'm not kidding!).  Read more....

And now, here's Lynne with the latest from the US: 

Hi Everyone

I am back from Houston Quilt Market, a trade event for shop owners, with lot’s of exciting new goodies to introduce to the shop over the next few months. Whenever I return from market the first question I get is "what did you see that’s new" and sometimes I have to stop and think because quilt market is an overload of the senses and there is always something new.

Of course the new fabric lines just keep coming – how do they keep coming up with amazing designs? Heather Bailey has a new line coming out early next year along with patterns for cute pincushions and bags, and her booth, which looked fantastic won first prize for creativity. As you can see it was well deserved.

I loved Anna Maria’s ‘Little Folks’. It was probably my favourite at market. The Square Dance panel print (featured in the quilt), which is printed on a lightweight dobby fabric, will make adorable pillows and quick blocks in quilts.  Of course every woman that visited her booth got to "ooh" and "aah" at her baby which she managed to feed in between attending to her booth. What a super Mum!

Amy Butler’s booth looked fantastic, as usual, and it was great to catch up with her again. It was eye catching and colourful and I came away with lot’s of cool ideas to use in the store.

Children’s clothing patterns still seem to be very popular with lots of designers using bright and colourful fabrics for these cute designs. Overall, some are a bit too ‘fru fru ‘ for us but I managed to find a few new patterns I think Aussies will like. Bags are still everywhere in all shapes and sizes; it seems we can’t get enough of them. I guess you can never have enough bags or the right one for the occasion.

Of course there were some wonderful quilts but on the whole I love the way Australian quilt makers and teachers such as Brigitte Giblin, Kathy Doughty and Sue Cody interpret traditional designs in today’s fabrics. I really believe we have the edge on creativity.

On the whole, it was a great market and I came home bursting with new ideas and not enough hours in the day to make them all happen. I need to delegate more!!! 

Here I am (centre) with my good friends from Norway, Katherine and Heidi at Moda’s photo shoot corner. Moda don’t just make great fabrics, they also make shopping at market fun too. 

'Til next time

Lynne 

Falling in Love - all over again!

There are few things that excite us at My Place Bowral like the delivery of boxes of brand new fabrics and we're thrilled that the Love Collection from Amy Butler has hit our shores and our store!  Immediately it's clear this sumptuous new line is everything (and more) that we've come to expect from one of our favourite designers.  The ability to bring together a seemingly disparate collection is one of Amy's great talents and this grouping is no exception.  

There's so much amazing colour and movement in this lot it's hard to know where to start.  The roses are fresh, paisleys are full of vigour, irregular spots dance around and there's even a hint of ethnicity with some Indonesian-inspired designs.  Each of the inspiring prints in the "Love" range is bursting with a mouth-watering vibrancy and richness of colour. 

Romantic notions aside, the name of this new line has a lot to do with the word consistently uttered upon seeing this great range - "love that one, love that one"!  All this makes for an experience very reminiscent of being a kid in a lolly shop and the excitement that goes along with it (not to mention a sense that one of everything is the only way to go!)  The entire range of fabrics is available in store, and don't forget we're only a click away if you can't make it in person. 

Ahh, yes, it feels great to be smitten - all over again!

In Bloom

Kei Fabric's "Happy Sweet" collection has just arrived at My Place and is delighting us with its cute spots and fun stripes, and a few playful florals thrown in for good measure.  This line is, of course, a great addition to patchwork projects but there was something about the prints that just cried out to be made into baby's bloomers.  We could think of nothing more delicious than chubby legs in these little pants as we cruise into summer days! 

The pattern for these bloomers (with the addition of a couple of frilly bits) comes from Amy Butler's book of patterns, "Little Stitches for Little Ones".  This book also features a matching empire-waist tunic top - another perfect summer staple.   

These lovely vintage-inspired prints have us thinking of some simple sewing for the grown ups - maybe a Lucy and June apron for the sassy hostess?        

Roll on summer sun - we're well and truly ready!