AQC 2024

 AQC or the Australasian Quilt Convention is over for another year. I am so lucky that it is held in Melbourne where I live because it means that I can go every year.

This year I was the guest artist on the BERNINA stand and it was a fabulous experience. The stand was 12 metres long so it was hard to get a photo of it all. It was a great honour to be asked.

Bernina Australia stand

I sat down at a Q16 sewing machine and demonstrated quilting and talked to visitors at the show for four days. People were so kind about my quilts and I received many compliments.

Demonstrating the Q16

I even managed to sell a couple of machines, which was a highlight. It was an easy sell though, I have the Q20 and I love it. The Bernina people were lovely to hang around with too.

I also had a quilt in the SAQA Red Display. It is the quilt that sold in Houston last year, so it will be the last time that I see it.

Autumn Song by Linda Steele

I took some more photos of quilts that I liked.

Two Ponies and a Dog by Jocelyn Trembath

Australian Flora by Bev Butler

Conundrum by Belinda Betts

I also escaped from the Bernina stand on the first day to have a catch up with some SAQA members from all over Australia.

SAQA Oceania catch up

I took some more quilt photos but I'll put them in the next post.

Linda Steele on Bernina Stand

Bye for now,

Linda

AQC Time

 The Australasian Quilt Convention (AQC) is on again this week. It starts on Thursday 11th April and finishes on the Sunday. I will be there on Wednesday with other Victorian Quilter members to set up the quilt show.

The exciting news is that I will be on the BERNINA stand everyday as their Guest Artist. I will be spending my time quilting on the Q20 and talking to visitors. I will also have a display of some of my quilts at the stand.

There will be lots of quilt exhibitions and one of them is the SAQA Red exhibition and my quilt, Autumn Song was used for the front cover of the catalogue.

This quilt sold at Houston last year, so I am very grateful that I will get to see the quilt one more time before it goes to its new owner.

Autumn Song

Autumn Song was the first Improv quilt that I made.

If you are coming to AQC please come and say hello to me at the BERNINA stand.

Bye for now,

Linda

Exhibition Closed

 My exhibition called Of Land and Sea that was on in Warburton closed a couple of weeks ago. I went up before it closed to catch up with a bus load of quilters from the Westernport group. They were a lovely group of women and I had the chance to answer all their questions and have a lovely catch up.

I took a photo of some of them, not all wanted to be in the photo in case I put it on Facebook.

Westernport Quilters

Then I asked someone to take another photo so I could be in it as well.

The curator Bronwyn, said it was the most successful exhibition that they have ever had! They had so many positive comments from visitors.

The good news was that I sold one of my quilts to Elenna.

I got a photo when she came to pick up the quilt after the exhibition closed. She was in her gardening clothes because she didn't expect a photo opportunity, but I didn't mind, I just wanted to be able to remember her.

Elenna and I

She bought Life on the Reef.

Life on the Reef

That was a positive experience and I thank all involved in the Yarra Ranges Gallery group, especially Warburton.

Bye for now,

Linda

Quiltcon and Ocean Dance 2

 Last week the Modern Quilt Guild Exhibition was on in America, it's called Quiltcon. I wasn't there but I made a quilt for the fabric challenge and it got accepted.

Challenge Fabrics

I loved the fabrics so I signed up to do the challenge. Unfortunately, I didn't get a prize but I saw the prize winners on Facebook and they were amazing. The winners were actually what I would call a Modern Quilt and mine was more of a contemporary quilt, so I was surprised when it was accepted.

Ocean Dance 2

I actually took some progress photos, it's good to see where I started and where it ended up.

beginning the quilt

Making progress

I sometimes wonder how I manage to sew it all together! Here I am doing the quilting.

Quilting Ocean Dance 2

Here is a detail photo.

Ocean Dance 2 detail

Here is a link to the Winners 2024

I have a lot of fabric left over, so I think I will make another smaller quilt for an Ozquilt Network exhibition that is coming up using the same theme. Time is the problem, I had better get sewing.

Bye for now,

Linda

Memories of France

 The Waverley Art Quilters were supposed to meet this month for the first time in 2024. Unfortunately, there was a big summer storm which took out a lot of people's power. I had to cancel the meeting at the last meeting because the venue had no power. I emailed everyone and messaged as many as I could but unfortunately four people turned up anyway. It seems that not everyone checks their emails regularly.

Our Christmas holiday challenge was called Memories of France. I had bought the challenge fabric at the European Patchwork Meeting in France last year. The fabric is called Eclectic Elements by Tim Holtz. We all had a different colour accent strip to use, mine was Olive Green.

Challenge Fabric

This year I have decided to work in a 12" x 12" square format for a change. I wasn't happy with my first attempt, it was too brown, busy and dark.

Memories of France 1

I had printed photos of a door and some windows and flowers from my photos of France, so there were plenty of memories but it didn't remind me of France.

I stared at it for a month or two until I finally decided to try again. This time I simplified the design and used pink instead of brown.

Memories of France 2

I like the second one much better. It is light and pretty and reminds me much more of my time in France last year.

A member of my sewing group has moved down to the beach and we decided that we would all drive down and spend the day with her during the holidays. They have Magpies, Kookaburras and Parrots visiting all the time, they seem so tame. I loved having the opportunity to take some close up photos.

I've always loved birds, maybe I will make some quilts inspired by these photos!

Bye for now,

Linda

Of Land and Sea Opening Event

 My favourite month is January, the busy festivities of Christmas are over and there are no commitments or meetings to go to. I feel so free to do what ever I want which is mainly sewing and catching up with family.

February started with a bang with the opening of my Of Land and Sea exhibition last Saturday. The exhibition is in conjunction with Michael Hammer, who does nature based art that ventures into the surreal.

Here we are before the visitors started arriving. You can see an example of Michael's work in the background.

Michael Hammer and I at the opening

I had my Coral Reef series on display.

Me at the opening

The afternoon went really well and we had between 35 and 40 people come to the event. I asked my son to take photos of the visitors but the photos were mainly action shots that weren't very flattering to people.

My friend Clare, who I met in Morocco in 2022 and went to Europe with last year came and we took a photo together.

Clare and I

I had made a new work for the exhibition and here is my grandson looking at it.

Jack liked the idea of an exhibition so much, he has decided to have an exhibition of his Lego at home later this year and he is planning an entrance fee! At first he thought $40 but I said that maybe $5 would be a better price.

My new work is called Snapshots of the Reef.

Snapshots of the Reef

It is double sided but I only took a photo of the front when I was planning the hanging arrangement.

Planning Snapshots of the Reef

When I get them back, I'll have to take a photo of the second side.

I love this photo of some visitors getting close and personal with my work.

Visitors

We served Sparkling wine and orange juice, sandwiches, cheese platters and scones. There was a lot of food left over as usual, but it's is hard to know how much to serve.

Here is a photo of us with some friends after everyone had gone home.

After the Event

The opening went really well, it was a lovely, warm afternoon and everyone made the effort to come. We had some short speeches that went well. I got a bit emotional when I thanked my husband for his continued support! Silly me.

The exhibition is being held at the Warburton Arts Centre, 3409 Warburton Hwy, Warburton. Victoria. Australia.

It is open Wednesday to Sunday from 12 midday until March 25th 2024. Entrance is free!

Merry Christmas 2023

 As I look back on the year, I realise that it has been busy. I have had lots of fun and successes as well as catching the flu and Covid.

I thought my concert going days were over but I went to see Ed Sheeran and Paul McCartney.

Ed Sheeran

Paul McCartney

My European Holiday was the major event as I went to Zurich, France, Germany and Denmark for the first time which included the wonderful European Patchwork Meeting and the Rhine River Cruise.

Morning Tea in France

I also stayed at Create in Harcourt for a friends 70th birthday in April.

I got 2 quilts accepted into the Australian Quilt Show and Life Goes On won Best Abstract Quilt and Best machine Quilting.

Life Goes On

My Sailing quilt won 2nd prize in the Innovative/Contemporary section at Victorian Quilters Showcase.

Sailing

I won the top prize in the Ozquilt Network's Art Quilt Australia 2023 with Moroccan Magic. That was completely unexpected, it was something that I never thought I could win.

Moroccan Magic

I was accepted into Golden Textures with Citrus Zing. I am smiling in this photo but I have just recovered from the flu and was lucky to have been well enough to go.

Citrus Zing

I sold two quilts, an Art Quilt when I was guest speaker at Mornington Peninsula and Autumn Song at Houston International Festival.

Autumn Song

I also Judged AQIPP (Australian Quilts in Public Places)

AQIPP judges 2023

I thought it was my last year as Convenor of Victorian Quilters Showcase but the person who came forward to take over my job resigned a couple of months later. So it looks as if I still have that job, I'll have to do a lot of delegating because I also became President of the Ozquilt Network.

 Ozquilt Network is Australia's premier Art Quilt group and we have members in New Zealand and overseas as well as Australians. 

I have an exhibition in February and March next year of my Coral Reef quilts, so I'll enjoy the break of the Christmas holidays before I am back into being busy again.

Merry Christmas everyone and thank you to those who read my blog and take the time to comment.

Bye for now,

See you next year!

Linda