Good Lookers

My Pete is a good looker. He looked and looked, and finally looked in just the right place to find me a unit in Brisbane. I shall not be homeless! I could draw a triangle on the map between my workplace, the supermarket and the newly found unit which has a perimeter of less than a kilometre. It is all very convenient and an enormous relief.

Pip is a good looker. His photo was in the paper on Friday. I hope my mother will read this on her Vietnam holiday and see this article. I’ve tried to make it a larger size so you should be able to click on it and read the story. He looks so tall, but I think the reality is that all the rest of the people are not so tall.

My new book is a good looker.

Last night I attended the book launch and ate camembert cheese with fresh figs on crackers with two of the authors.

The good lookers Kirsty and Brenda even signed my copy.

Found

Someone found my blog by doing a search for “Eiffel Tower made of ricrac”.

I’ve made an Eiffel tower out of wafers.

I’ve made an Eiffel Tower applique on a quilt.

But I’ve never made an Eiffel Tower out of ricrac. Now I really want to make one. I think it would be lovely.

Not Quite Found.

I thought I’d found a place to live…

but the owner rejected my offer.

The search continues.

Consumed

Sometimes my thoughts and worries consume me.

I have taken a short term job in Brisbane. I have done this for purely selfish reasons. I don’t mean the sort of selfish which is negative and ignores all others. I mean the sort of selfish which allows priority to my own ambition and hopes. It is a rare thing for me to be in this position. My time and energy have so frequently directed towards the needs of others over a very long time. My others are now so grown up that I have the luxury of appeasing my selfish hopes.

Now reality bites hard. I need to lease a unit for three months while I’m there. It seems that the market is not favouring the renter right now. I’ve made lots of phone calls. I’m waiting for lots of people to “get back” to me.

Any ideas or inside knowledge, clever readers? I could use all the help I can get…

Changes Afoot

In December last year I made some decisions about professional ambitions that I held. I set my sights on a job in a particular place, thinking that I would work towards that goal over the next twelve months.

In February I was surprised to see a temporary position offered. I knew that it was earlier than I had wanted, but I made the decision to apply. I held no expectations. I just felt it was important to step into the unknown, move out of my comfort zone and just see what happened. This is a remarkable attitude for one who minimises risk as much as I do.

I submitted an application. I was short-listed. My referees were contacted. Then, earlier this week,  I was offered and accepted the temporary position.

Here’s where it starts to get tricky…

The job is 1600km away from home. A two hour flight, a sixteen hour drive.

The position is for eleven weeks.

I am currently looking for a place to live for that time.

Exciting…

Scary…

Really happening!

Morning Tea

Imogen called in to visit me this morning, bringing a selection of goodies for morning tea.

A new bakery has opened not far away and Imogen wanted me to taste a selection of Macarons so that we could have a vote and find out the family favourite.

From the top – chocolate, raspberry, lemon.

I told Imogen that I would like to visit the bakery and see what else was available. She became very serious and offered me a cautionary tale…

Imogen: Well! Do not look at the cupcakes and think to yourself how delicious the pink icing will be when you taste it. I bought one and all that was on top was cream. Cream that was coloured PINK! And, I thought there was a yummy flower made of icing on the top of the cream. It turned out to be nothing but a marshmallow. I hate marshmallows.

You have now all been warned.

PS. For the record Lemon has been voted in as the favourite macaron of the family members present.

Out and About

Millie Molly seems to be stepping out in recent days.

Melody placed the winning on a Millie Molly Dolly bag made just for her girls in the auction held to raise money after the Brisbane floods. She sent me this beautiful photo of her girls enjoying a game with their very own bag.

Even more lovely is this photo of her younger daughter showing concentration and determination as she tries to put the little clothes on all by herself.

Nayjay from Journey Back to Sewing made her own gorgeous version of the Millie Molly Dolly bag. I just love how bright and cheery this is, and the hair. I love the hair!

The very crafty, although blogless, Kathleen made a very pink and girly version for her daughter. She posted this photo on the PPQ facebook page.

It delights me to see these photos. I love the thought of little people all around the place telling stories and whispering secrets to Millie Molly.

Meanwhile I find myself working on a very small production line.

There can’t be too many Millie Mollys in the world.

I Planned, I Failed

Dear Fairlie,

The advice you offered on my last post was sound. I nodded my head in agreement to your wise words. I felt virtuous for planning my quilt in order to avoid failure.

Then,…

in my smugness, I managed to stitch the pink fabric back to front and failed anyway.

Yours humbly,

Tracey

Planning

Using directional fabrics requires some careful planning…

to get the desired result.

Ashy’s Quilt

Mid-January Ashy announced that she was going to make a quilt for her gentleman caller’s 21st birthday in late Febraury. Fabric was selected and ordered. My only contributions to the project were the provision of  funds and the quilting. She cut, stitched and worked diligently by herself for three whole days until an ENORMOUS 2.5m by 2.2m quilt was made.

I have been waiting for days to photograph this beauty.

I wanted to lay it out on our green lucious lawn…

but it has been raining here for almost three months. That beautiful grass looks appealing, but you can’t walk on it without squelching through water.

So instead I had to take a photo of it scrunched up on some chairs…

It looks lovely like that, can you imagine how beautiful it is unscrunched?

Bossy Gene

Ashy: Can you quilt my quilt for me please?

Me: sure. Would you like me to do anything in particular?

Ashy: Just do whatever you like.

Me: OK.

Ashy: But nothing too flowery.

Me: Right.

Ashy: And nothing on the coloured parts. I want them to pop, so only quilt on the white.

Me: So I can quilt whatever I want that’s not flowery and is only stitched onto the white?

Ashy: Yes. That’s it.

The bossy gene has not skipped a generation.

I love a girl who knows her own mind.