If it's the first Saturday of the month it must be quilting

February is supposed to be the hottest month of the year, yet here we are in Sydney shivering away in waaaay below average temperatures   Still it's perfect weather for quilting and being the first Saturday of the month, that means the Sydney branch of SCQuilters' monthly gathering.

I left my camera at home and had to rely on my phone, so the quality of the images is not the best. 

Have you noticed that most of the quilters have sensibly opted for warmer clothing?  Not this quilter.  There I sat in a sunny summer outfit and paid dearly by nearly freezing to death.

I was mighty tempted to grab this beautiful vintage hexagon quilt and make a bolt for the door.  A girl can get mighty desperate when she's cold.

Here is another beautiful quilt which I fantasized would go beautifully with my flimsy summer orange outfit.

I met Brenda Gael Smith of Twelve by Twelve fame.  I have been a fan of this talented group ever since I saw their exhibition in Brisbane a couple of years ago, so it was a pleasure to finally meet one of the artists.  

My day was complete when I arrived home to find that one of my dresses was chosen for an Etsy treasury.  It almost made me feel warm.

Almost. 

New seams

After the frenzy of sales in the lead-up to Christmas, I cheerfully and thankfully walked away from my sewing machine for the next few weeks to recover my sanity.

 
But now I'm back refreshed and ready for a new year.  This fabric I fell in love with as soon as it arrived on my doorstep just before Christmas and although we were away for a short break interstate, my mind kept turning over ways to use it.

It's now finished and on its way to the States to be worn by my favourite little model, and snapped by her very talented photographer mother.  It will be available in both my Etsy and MadeIt stores in the next few weeks, so keep an eye out for it.  There's another dress hot off the machine and on its way to the States, but I'll leave that for another day.

Look at this beautiful Etsy Treasury created by the delightful Chrisy of Art Decadence.  How happy was I to be included in this lovely collection, because yesterday it made it to the Etsy Treasury Front Page.  Pardon me while I secretly hug myself.