Tag Archives: beading

The smallest piece… v3.0

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So I’ve been trying to write this blog post for over a week now. It’s one of those posts that drives me nuts because I have the idea and I can see where it’s going but I just can’t get the words onto the screen in a way that doesn’t make me sound like a whiny, self-centred lunatic.

Life shouldn’t be easy. But sometimes things happen that make it seem like you are copping every bad thing that’s ever happened to everyone in the history of the world (slight exaggeration there but you get what I mean) and you start to wallow… deeply… because it’s easier than trying to fight it.

If life was easy it wouldn’t be life. It wouldn’t be interesting, it wouldn’t be challenging and sure as eggs it wouldn’t be fun.

Lately I’ve felt like the aforementioned ^^^ wallower in self-pity, procrastinating and quite simply over it and anything that was coming my way. I was tired after a month of being ill and then trying to catch up with everything that I’d signed up for (can’t say no….) and I was just not happy within myself.

I am the first to admit that I’m not the perkiest of people. If you know me or have met me you will know that I take things very seriously. I like control and I like things to be just so but even though I’m not perky (or any of the things that go with that) I am happy. I have my family, my cat, my health and my work. Things aren’t always peachy but I have it a damn sight better than lots of people out there and I am immensely grateful for that.

I am not depressed.

I go through stages of what I like to think of as distance. I remove myself from my life in an emotional sense because I either cannot deal with something or I am just tired of feeling things.

My quilting helps me with that distancing because there is nothing quite like setting up the machine and just working on a quilt, no distractions, no thoughts or feelings other than what I am putting into that quilt. All I do is stitch. I listen to the hum of the machine, and watch by the glow of the light as the stitches appear from under the needle, working their way across the fabric.

And this is why I do what I do.

The past few months have been difficult for me. I know there’s nothing wrong but I had serious trouble mustering much enthusiasm for anything I was doing except work related things. I think that’s why I ended up sick with bronchitis for a month… I was just exhausted.

But something strange happened the other day that turned months of misery around.

It was as I was rummaging around in my craft room (cleaning actually because it was a dump) and I found two things – a packet of beads that I’d forgotten I had and a small scrap of fabric.

The colour of the beads captured my eye and made me feel something I hadn’t felt in a while. Itchy fingers wanting to pick up my jewellery tools again but it was the fabric that really got me…

Now as I held this scrap of fabric in my hand it reached out and grabbed me, threw me back into myself and inspired me again. I basically got slapped upside the head by a scrap of fabric no bigger than my palm.

Now I’m not going to show you these beads or fabric because there’s no point. These two things were meant for my eyes only. I was meant to re-discover them at that time, just for me to receive the inspiration from. If I show you they lose that kick that they had because you won’t see the same thing I did and then that makes this story the ravings of a nutter.

But that’s not the point either.

When you feel your worst, look around you because it literally is the smallest piece that can change your life.

Marni x

 

 

 

Surrounded by Sparklies

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Okay, okay… I know I’ve been reaaaallllly quiet the past 2 weeks.

My bad. 🙁

I’ve actually been very busy and have had very little time to sit and write a decent post for you all.

I managed to claim some time back tonight as I’ve gotten some of the work out of the way. I have tomorrow off (gasp!) and everything is ready for the Handmade Craft Market on Sunday.

So, I’ve made a cup of tea, popped my slippers on and put my lap quilt over my knees and am sitting here typing this riveting post for you. 🙂

Catch up of what’s been happening…

The 5th and 6th of May was the Wyong Quilt Show – Janette runs an excellent show, running around organising EVERYTHING including jam and scones for brekky for the stallholders each morning. We had a fabulous 2 days at the show. On one side Hans was demonstrating the Nolting and selling haberdashery and other goodies and on the other side was Down Under Quilts magazine. Deb was there selling back issues and sewing a very pretty quilt for a special little girl. There was a definite thrum of activity in that room at the show – we had demos and machines going, lots of chatter and excitement.

The following weekend (12th and 13th) I was at Hornsby Westfield for the Handmade Craft Market’s pop up market. I had a fun couple of days in the centre – I spent quite a bit of time doing quick demos of the Flip la K templates and madly stitching blocks for a display for Darling Harbour. Which at that stage was 4 weeks away…..

And so to this week – it has been cold and a bit quiet in the shop but you’ve all kept me busy with mail orders (no-one wants to go outside to shop hey? :))

But…

This week I have been busy with the sparkly goodness that is beading.

Next week we go into design for our August issue and I have been editing projects, counting beads, measuring and writing. I love doing a beading mag as it is completely different to my shop stuff. I get to sit down and plan the mag from cover to cover, adjusting things as needed, write articles about things that I find interesting, educational or important, learning more about my contributors and seeing what new and exciting products are available. It all works at a slower pace than the shop and is my mental time away from fabric….as much as I <3 fabric.

I’ve also been busy with a bit of freelance writing – click here to read the online article. The other article will be out in print later on.

We are now 24 days away from set-up for Darling Harbour. I can tell you I am a tad FREAKED out that I’m not ready with my display stuff and that I have 4 quilts to cut, sew, quilt and bind before then… but I’m cool, it’ll get done.

{cue hysterical laughter}

If anyone would like a custom made quilt – please come and see me after the 25th of June – I will be back to normal by then and have some time to give your quilt the attention it deserves. 🙂

New classes will be listed at the end of June – these will be for the second half of the year and include night classes.

This coming week after the market this Sunday I’ll be finishing off a couple of projects for the magazines – I was asked to participate in Australian Patchwork & Quilting‘s birthday challenge. Some gorgeous fabric and I’m going out on a massive limb with my project but I hope you all love it. The other project is for APQ as well but it’s using their new range of fabrics. Not my usual cup of tea but my quilt is a bit modern using this more traditional colours… you’ll see 😉

I’m catching up with the girls next week for our most favourite of foods – YUM CHA!!

 

Then I’ll be sewing madly for a week until my sister and I go to Quarantine Station for a ghost tour… my sister bought me tickets for my birthday 🙂

and then…

{drum rollllllllllll}

DARLING HARBOUR!

 

So – I’m off to make some jewellery tonight.

I’ll try to post a bit more regularly but … no promises 🙂

Night,

Marni

 

 

 

 

April Catchup…

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So we’re into April and I’ve got just a bit of housekeeping.

After a chocolate overloaded long weekend we are back at the shop and there’s a new look around HQ. Make sure you pop in and have a look.

Custom orders are still open – I’m making quilts, jewellery and will take on any quilting jobs you may need doing before the cold weather sets in.

Upcoming events –

May 5 & 6 – Wyong Quilt Show

May 12 & 13 – HCM Pop Up Market at Hornsby Westfield

May 19 – HCM Terrigal

I’m working on a competition quilt. Not going to reveal anything just yet but it is my very first attempt at entering a competition so I’m a little nervous. 🙁

May and June are going to be very busy with markets and shows – make sure you mark the dates down for everything thats coming up.

 

Night,

Marni

Inspiration

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A lot of people ask me where I get my inspiration from.

Most of the time something will just pop into my head as if sucked out of the ether. Sometimes I have to work for it, and sometimes I will spot something that will trigger off a thought and the inspiration surfaces somewhere along the way.

This afternoon as dad and I were driving home from the shop (in the most circuitous manner) I spotted a cluster of trees. Now even though it was lovely and sunny and clear blue skies, these trees felt a bit spooky. I think mainly because they had leaves higher up and so the more exposed gnarly trunks were spooky because of their lack of foliage.

So I whipped out my poor battered camera (which lives eternally in my handbag) and snapped a couple of shots.

 

I’ve been looking for a good set of spooky trees for an art quilt for a while. I think that these guys could be what I want but I will have to test them out with my sketches and see if they fit.

Over the last few days I have been slowly going through the things in my craft room at home. It has been a real eye opener to all the things I had  forgotten. Its good though because there are lots of UFOs that I can finish and put up for sale. I have also discovered many of my beading projects from the last few years – I will get them all sorted and loaded onto my jewellery FB page. Some of these will be for sale too if any one is interested. I’ll reveal the page details when I have it all sorted. 🙂 Plenty of things suitable for gifts and perfect timing as Mother’s Day isn’t far off.

A customer brought her quilt in today for me to quilt. So I am busy with another on the machine at the moment. I like seeing what people are making. That’s inspiring in its way too. I especially love other people’s take on colours and patterns. I’ll put some photos up soon of these customer quilts. I’ll make a new page in the tabs for them.

Oh… just some housekeeping – we will be closed for the Easter long weekend. And Anzac Day as well.

It’s funny but I’ve been really looking forward to winter this year. I have ordered some hand-dyed yarn to knit myself a scarf. The lovely Belinda at Fairythread is doing a custom dye on some cotton for me in my favourite halloween colours. I’m still in the process of making my vintage halloween lap quilt for this chilly season.

I’m off now to do some more writing for my beading magazine.

Marni

Wearing two hats…an auction and a custom order…

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I know, I know most women wear half a dozen hats at any given time. But in my life my hats are only my work hats – I don’t count my ‘home’ hats. And there’s a heap of hats that I won’t be wearing for many years and some I don’t think I will ever wear. 🙂

So back to the hats – I wear a shop hat and a magazine editor hat. Today is the last day that I am ‘in design’ for the issue that will be on sale in May. We run about 3 months ahead with magazines. On my days off and at night I work on the magazine. So by day I am Marni, shop owner at Frankenstein’s Fabrics and by night I am Marni, Editor for EMG’s beading series. It could almost be a double life except for the fact that my lives overlap so much that it really is just one.

For those of you out there in Blogland who do a bit of jewellery making on the side, this is what I do –

 

I do all the paperwork ‘behind the scenes’ and a graphic designer does all the fancy computer stuff. We have stylists and photographers who do all the images. I work with a talented group of people. Each issue has a different title in the series.

So after today it’s back to the shop and more sewing.

Then in about a week’s time I’ll have to check the colour proofs, make sure everything is correct and then it gets sent off to be printed.

Last night the auction hosted by the Handmade Craft Market closed. The bidders were generous, the items were gorgeous and now all have new homes. We raised $600 towards Walk for Zoe, so that Brodie can complete her aim of participating in the London Marathon.

Bec picked up her custom order on Saturday.

This is how it started.

One cartoon character and some fabric….

Then …

Didn’t take any step shots of piecing so we then skip to ….

Close up of the stippling…

 

And finally the front…

and the back…

Am now down to the last order for a baby quilt. So that’s on the cutting mat this week.

If anyone would like to order a custom quilt please email me frankensteinsfabrics@hotmail.com, come and see me in store or ring (02) 4325 2638.

Marni