Quote of the Week:

"A quilt must make your heart sing and your eyes dance . . . If it doesn't, then it's not meant for you" . . .

I cannot believe how long it has been since our last post - apologies to all who diligently check in once a week to catch up with what's happening here at The Quilted Crow!

There is a lot of catching up to do!

Firstly, Deirdre and I would like to welcome Sue to The Quilted Crow. Sue will be working here on Fridays and Saturdays which will allow us to take the odd day off here and there. She has been my 'lifesaver' over the past three weeks with Deirdre being on holidays. It has allowed me the time to continue quilting on Big Mal as well as all the other jobs that need doing when running a business. Be sure to introduce yourselves to her next time you're in the shop.

Yes, so Deirdre has spent the last three weeks catching up on all of those chores that mount up throughout the year at home; gardening, painting and general tidying. She has managed to fit in an odd day trip here and there. Actually, her and I spent the weekend together in Launceston. We both went to see Elton John which was absolutely fantastic - just him and his piano under the stars - truly magnificent. We also found a bit of time to scour some antique shops along the way of course.

We have lots of new things in the shop. Firstly from Hugs 'n' Kisses, Helen Stubbings has designed a double sided quilt titled "Nice People, Nice Things".

The gorgeous gift box contains 54 cards with 54 stitchery designs and 54 feelgood sayings. Also included in the gift box are quilt-as-you-go instructions. Iron-on transfer packs are available as well.

Also from Hugs 'n' Kisses are Helen's new Boy Tempters of which there are ten iron-on transfer designs to choose from.

From "Melly and Me" come a range of quirky creatures such as Lottie & Little Lady, Busby and Baby Bee and Mrs Perkins that look great made up in our fabric range titled "Katie Jump Rope" which is a retro range or "A Day in the Country", a bright and crisp range that is proving popular.

We also have Natalie Bird's new book titled "From the Heart" which is brimming with lots of nice projects to get started on.

Valentine's Vintage Quilts . . .

We have had a lot of positive feedback about our vintage quilts here in the shop. They are all just beautiful and and some of the work in them is just amazing. A lot of them have already gone off to good homes locally and interstate, the last couple to a lovely lady from New South Wales.

Here are some new quilts just arrived to tempt you!!

Gorgeous aren't they?

I really must be going; I still have a load of Christmas shopping to do with not many hours left to do it!!

We hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas, catching up with family and friends. Thank you all for your support over the past months.

Stay well,

Until next time,

Leonie & Deirdre

The Quilted Crow

Quote of the Week:

"A day patched with quilting seldom unravels . . ."

If ever you have dreamt of owning a vintage quilt, here is your chance to do so . . . just feast your eyes on these beautiful vintage quilts that have arrived in the shop. They are all just so gorgeous - we want to take each and every one of them home but we know we can't!!

Four of them have already sold; a Double Wedding Ring which went to live in a good home in New South Wales; a Postage Stamp which was signed and dated, a Butterfly Quilt and a Dresden Plate, both to local ladies.

We are very excited as some of the fabrics that are in the quilts, in particular, a Grandmothers Fan that just arrived, the same reproductions are here in the shop - shows you how spot on the fabric designers are . . .

The lady from NSW who bought the Double Wedding Ring (who apparently has a house full of quilts) said, "I never wanted to own one until I actually saw one; I can't believe how beautiful they are".

. . . .Now ladies, have a little word in your husband's ear and tell him what you'd like for Christmas . . . we'll even throw in the postage to keep him happy (registered too!) . . .

Next February will see us both heading off to Melbourne with the shop in tow, to the Australian Quilting Expo which is held annually. We have been on a long waiting list for a very long time and finally got word that we 'were in'. Very excitied we are . . . it will be nice to have the opportunity to show people what we have and what we are about. This expo is dedicated entirely to quilting and will be held on February 21st - 24th 2008. We hope to see you there!

Until next time,

Leonie & Deirdre
The Quilted Crow

Quote of the Week:



"I love quilting and have plenty of material witnesses . . ."

It has already been one week since our "Christmas Gathering" which was held in Campania, five minutes out of historical Richmond. It was a huge success with everyone enjoying themselves immensely. This was our second Gathering that we have held in the Campania hall, the first one being our "Autumn Gathering" that was in April. Above is a photo of the hall the morning of the "Gathering" before anyone arrived; goody bags laden with patterns and each bag also containing a beautiful stitchery book by Cathy Penton.

Each person also received a gift box, complete with a delightful charm pendant featuring a traditional Christmas image with the words on the back reading "Joyeux Noel", a large rusty bell with a fabric tie and of course, a bag of sweets!!

People started rolling in at about 9.15am ready for a day of stitching and friendship - not much stitching done, but lots of friendships made!!

Below are some more photos for you to enjoy . . .

1. - Everyone has arrived . . 2. - Part of our shop display . ..3. - More of our shop display




4. . . shop display . . . . . . . . . . . .5. . . shop display . . . . . . . . . . 6. . . samples of some projects




7. . . Phil overseeing the catering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8. Aye Aye Captain, whatever you say dear.



9. . . All's OK mum, says Ellen. . . . .. . . . . . .10. Ten year old Jess asleep at the end of a big day. .



"Valentine's Vintage Quilts" - exclusive to The Quilted Crow

As a shop, the focus of which are fabrics from the 1800's and 1930's we have always wanted to have some of the genuine article in here for people to enjoy. We are very excitied to have met up with a lady from "Valentine's Vintage Quilts" who is now buying vintage and antique quilts on our behalf for us to sell in the shop. They have started arriving are just truly beautiful . . . they will range in price from $375 upwards, depending on the quality, the amount of quilting, fabrics used and the era they are from. At the moment we have three made from genuine feed sack fabrics of the 1930's, a Double Wedding Ring with scalloped border, Lady of the Lake and a Star of Texas Quilt. Also, two quilts from the 1800's, one a Double Irish Chain from 1870 and the other, King Davids Crown from 1880; all of them are in excellent condition.

Below are some photos to enjoy . . .

Lone Star - made from vintage feed sacks $375







Lady of the Lake - mint condition - made from feed sacks from the 1930's - $990

When you purchase one of these beautiful quilts, they will come gift wrapped, complete with a vintage valentine card attached and full care instructions.

People will be able to take advantage of our three month layby term if they wish.

We have more arriving next week, so as soon as they come in, we'll post some more pics!!


Until next time,




Leonie & Deirdre
The Quilted Crow

Pleated Friendship Bags
by Leonie Bateman


Freshly Cut Flowers Cushion
by Helen Stubbings


Colours of Christmas Quilt
by Michelle Vince



Storytime Quilt
by Deirdre Bond-Abel



Perpetual Calendar Quilt
by Deirdre Bond-Abel



Sprit of the Season Tree Skirt
by Helen Stubbings



Deirdre, Leonie, Lynette, Helen and Matilda

Here is a photo to share with you of Lynette Anderson's visit to The Quilted Crow, kindly taken by her lovely husband Vince on Wednesday. Helen Stubbings from Hugs n Kisses is holding Tilly, Helen's youngest daughter, who loves coming into the shop 'for a play'. Off go the shoes as soon as Helen puts her down and up onto the bed she hops for her regular bounce!

Everyone has been coming into the shop to look at all of the projects that are on display, eagerly awaiting the 6th October for our Christmas Gathering. Pictured above are photo's of some of the projects for those of you who can't make it to the shop for a sneak preview. The Seasonal Table Runner and Traditional in Wool Wallhanging are on our last post . . . now because I'm not too good at the 'blog thing' the photos are a little over the place - sorry !!! I'm still learning . . . a couple of them are even sideways - clever aren't I !!??

Until next time,

Leonie & Deirdre

The Quilted Crow

Quote of the Week:

May all of your ups and downs in life be with a needle and thread . . .

Well today we had the pleasure of a visit by Lynette Anderson-O'Rourke and her husband Vince who were on holiday here in beautiful Tasmania. As you know, Lynette is going to be part of our 'Autumn Gathering' next year in April, so it was nice for her to see what we at The Quilted Crow are all about.

We were thrilled to have her here and look forward to catching up again with her, as no doubt, all of you will be. At the same time as Lynette was here, Helen Stubbings from Hugs n Kisses also popped in for a visit so it was a good chance for everyone to catch up and say hi.

For those of you who are attending our 'Christmas Gathering' in Campania on the 6th October, you'll be happy to know that all of the projects are now in the shop for you to view. I've taken some photos of them, two of which are at the top of the page above and I will post the rest on Friday. You will receive patterns for each of the projects (11 in total) in your goody bag on the day along with some other little treasures!! If anyone is interested in ordering a kit, give us a call at the shop or complete the form that we have mailed today and return back to us.

Until next time,

Leonie & Deirdre

The Quilted Crow

Quote of the Week:

"Asking a quilter to mend is like asking Picasso to paint your garage"

Goodness, it has nearly been two weeks since we last wrote - where does the time go?

We have been working madly here, preparing for our 'Christmas Gathering' which is now only four weeks away!! All of the projects are now complete and we will have them in the shop next Monday (17th Sept) for everyone to have a sneek peek. There is an enormous assortment to choose from and we are sure that there will be something for everyone. Bookings are just about full with only a few spaces left remaining so if you are thinking about coming along, you'd better be quick!! We would hate for you to be disappointed . . .

The couple who commissioned us to make them a King Size quilt came in on Friday to collect it - they absolutely loved it (phew!!). It was made from Judie Rothermel's 'Regency' collection and it looked stunning - really beautiful - (. . .it would have looked nice on my bed . . . oh well . . . .) The only day I forgot to bring my camera but they have promised to send us a photo to post on our blog so you can also enjoy it.

At the moment Deirdre is out on the longarm, 'Big Mal', quilting another beauty for a customer - it is just so satisfying when you finish quilting a quilt and see the end result. The quilt really does seem to come alive and then when you see the look of excitement on the customers face, it gives you goosebumps!! We feel very privileged to be given the task of taking someones quilt to the final stage . . .

The weekend saw me here at the shop on Saturday then off to the airport to collect my in-laws who are here for the school holidays. I truly am blessed to have such lovely people as my in-laws. The weather for their arrival was just awesome and yesterday even better. We spent the day outside enjoying the sun and catching up on months gone by since we last saw one another.

Deirdre had a class here on Saturday then headed home to help shear the sheep on their property on Sunday - she even got some time afterwards to do a bit of sewing!! She finished her last project for our Gathering - it's a 'Storytime' Quilt for that special little someone to snuggle under whilst reading their favourtie book - I saw it this morning and it is just so cute!!

There should be some new fabric arriving here shortly - it's like Christmas opening up all of those boxes - you don't know which one to open first . . and then the squeals of delight as you pull each one out . . . we have so much fun here !!

Well time has come for me to start getting ready for our Prairie Children Quilt class on Saturday - I have 14 kits to pre-cut so that it going to keep me busy for the next day . . . or two.

Until next time.

Leonie and Deirdre

The Quilted Crow

Quote of the Week:

Blankets wrap you in warmth, quilts wrap you in love . . .

How nice it was this morning to see the reaction of a husband whose wife had commissioned us to make them a quilt in reproduction fabrics . . . "It's so beautiful, it makes me want to cry" . . . It made the hours and hours of work worthwhile to hear such a statement. Once it is quilted on our dear 'Big Mal', we'll post a photo.

We have a gorgeous new range of fabric just arrived into the shop titled "Emperor's Garden" by A Day in the Country. It is a great crossover for those of you who enjoy working with 30's thru to 70's. This is an Australian company and we are glad to be supporting them.

We are madly getting ready for our Christmas Gathering which is only five weeks away now (Sat 6th October). The projects should all be ready within three to four weeks and you'll be able to come into the shop to have a peek. There is a lot of variety to choose from with each one able to be started by hand on the day

We are starting to fill all of the goody bags for the occasion - it's exciting making them all up and seeing what's going into them - we hope all the ladies will love them as much as we do!

We have a few quilts here ready to go on 'Big Mal', our longarm quilting machine. Customers have been very happy with our work thus far which is very satisfying and we are enjoying it immensely.

Don't forget to look out for Deirdre's project in Homespun - a gorgeous Halloween quilt done using machine piecing and invisible machine applique - a must to make!!

That just about ties it up for today . . . a quilt is beckoning on the machine.

Until next time,

Leonie & Deirdre

The Quilted Crow

Quote of the Week

I only think about quilts on days that end in "Y".

We thought today that we would post a couple of photos of Belinda Merrit's work, one of our tutors who will be present at our "Christmas Gathering". The items that are photographed are some of her 'older projects' she says, but all the same, we think they are gorgeous. Belinda will be designing two projects for our Gathering, one a Christmas project and the other a general 'gift' item for those of you who aren't into the Christmas decorating thing.

We have taken quite a few bookings (lots last week) and are two thirds full so if you are thinking about coming along, you'd better be quick! It sure is a good day and everybody enjoys themselves immensely. Give us a call at the shop if you wish to know more (03) 62 348 338.

Well I finally got around to tidying up my sewing cupboard yesterday and I'm nearly embarassed at the amount of fabric that I have stashed away - if only I had more time to put it to use - mind you, it does look pretty all stacked up in their little bundles (or should that be big bundles??). That kept me busy for a few hours then I spent the rest of the afternoon working on my project for our Christmas Gathering which is coming along nicely.

Deirdre had the whole weekend off and spent time sewing and cooking and I was the lucky recipient of one of her "pear cake" specialities for morning tea this morning, topped off with a dob or two of cream ... yum.

Big Mal (our longarm quilting machine) has been chuffing along nicely. We're pretty happy with what we have been able to manage thus far and will be accepting quilts within the fortnight which is really exciting!!

Speaking of which, I need to go and load one of my own quilts on now and get to quilting it - this is a top that I pieced over 10 years ago and it has finally made it to the quilting stage !! Woo hoo!!

Until next time,

Leonie & Deirdre

Quote of the week: Quilters know all the angles..........

Here we are again, another week has flown by . . . so much to do and so little time. We must start off by thanking Bev Miller from The Chocolate Crow Trader who looks after our website for us. She has been working tirelessly for days on end to get it all up to date and it looks fantastic!

All of the fabrics that we have in the shop are now able to be viewed and ordered online or by giving us a call here on (03) 6234 8338.

I was fortunate enough to have Saturday off from the shop to spend extra time with the family. I was able to watch my youngest play one of her best games of soccer this season then spend the rest of the afternoon doing what girls like to do best . . . shop . . . although shoppng with two girls aged 10 and 12 sometimes isn't a good thing.

Sunday saw me tending to my poor garden which was crying out for attention and Monday saw me recovering from it!!

Deirdre also spent a nice day with family on Sunday - lunch at her place, walking down along the creek on their property and relaxing in the afternoon in the Tasmanian sunshine.

Thanks to Lisa and Jane, two very good customers of ours, we now have some new samples in the shop. They were thrilled when asked if they'd mind, as we find it difficult to find time to keep up with new samples that are required. They both did a beautiful job - thanks girls!!

Another customer of ours, Jenny came into the shop yesterday to show off her latest project. She had recently purchased a selection of "Apron Strings", a fabric range by Chloe's Closet for Moda (can view on our website) and had completed the quilt top in the same design that we have in the shop and it looked beautiful. We love seeing all the 'show and tell' that our customers bring in - it doesn't matter what they're working on, we still like to them to share it with us!!

Time has come for me to head off and start cutting some more kits for our next 'Prairie Children' class - we meet once a month and boy, does time come around quickly!

Until next time, keep well.
Leonie & Deirdre

Quote of the Week:

A bed without a quilt is like a sky without stars . . .

We have had a very busy week here at The Quilted Crow. Our new A1 Longarm Quilting Machine (who by the way we have named "Mal") is settling in nicely. We haven't had as much time with him as we would like, but we are getting along well. We are currently in the process of purchasing patterns, books, threads and all the other bits needed in order to run a longarm quilting business. It is all very exciting!

We have had a big movearound again in the shop - something we like to do often. One must have a good poke and look around to find all of our treasures that we have here. It makes for an interesting visit when you come in.

Bev has been working very hard on our website adding all of our new fabric ranges that have arrived, so make sure you take a look - I just need to get some new photos to her and it should all be done!

Our Christmas Gathering that we are holding on the 6th October is filling fast. For those of you who aren't familiar with our "Gatherings", we hold them twice a year - one in April which is called "An Autumn Gathering" and the other in October - "A Christmas Gathering".

This year at our "Christmas Gathering", our tutors will be Helen Stubbings from Hugs'n'Kisses (Tasmania), Belinda Merritt from Phoebe Rose (Victoria) and Michelle Vince (Tasmania). Each of the tutors will be designing two projects each, one with a Christmas theme, the other a general theme. Deirdre and myself will also be designing a couple of projects as well, so you will get all of these patterns in your 'goody' bag on the day, as well as a few other surprises too . . the cost for the day is $90 which includes your goody bag (with at least 10 patterns), morning & afternoon tea and lunch. There will be lots of giveaways on the day. We will have The Quilted Crow shop set up for anyone who is tempted to make some purchases! Give us a call at the shop if you are interested in joining us for a day of stitching and friendships, laughter and creativity.

Woops, there's the doorbell - we're off for now.

Until next time,

Leonie & Deirdre

The Quilted Crow

Quote of the week:

What I make with my hands, I give with my heart . . .

What a busy couple of days we have had here at The Quilted Crow since our last posting. Lots of new fabric has arrived including Rocky Mountain II, Spirit of the Season II and Sturbridge Village Blues II, all by our much loved Judie Rothermel for Marcus Brothers. She outdoes herself each and every time. We've popped in a couple of photo's of her new ranges just to give you an idea of what they look like. At the moment our website is being updated and once completed you will be able to view them all and place orders if you wish.

Also new in is the range by Denyse Schmidt "Katie Jump Rope", a fantastic retro 50's range that is all the go now. Lots of geometrics and florals in blues, greens, browns, oranges and yellows - very groovy!! Look for our project made up in these fabrics on http://www.iquilt.com/. an online quilting magazine which is a new adventure for Karen Fail and business partner, Nora Buckley.

Classes are now back in full swing after having a bit of a break - if you are interested in receiving a class list email us at thequiltedcrow@dodo.com.au and we'll get one to you.

Our big news is that we have just purchased an A1 Quilting Machine direct from the States - Tracy Browning from Constantine Quilts is here installing it as we speak, along with her ever patient husband Paul and son Nicholas! We plan to spend a late night here getting it up and running and Tracy will run us through all the troubleshooting stuff that we have to know on Saturday, then off we go!!

We'll be spending a lot of time getting everything down pat until we can start taking quilts on consignment but will advise you when this happens.

WELCOME TO THE QUILTED CROW

Quote of the week:

Good friends are like Quilts. They age with you, yet never lose their warmth.

The Quilted Crow warmly welcomes you to our very first blog!! This is a new venture for both of us and we hope that it will enable you to keep up to date with what is going on in the shop on a regular basis

For those of you who aren't familiar with The Quilted Crow (233-235 Liverpool Street, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia), we have been in this current building for twelve months now. We just love our shop and the way we have decorated it - we are lucky enough to have three different rooms, which gives us the opportunity to go with a theme in each. Our first love is reproduction and upon entering the shop we hope that you will be overwhelmed by the vast array of the latest fabrics on offer. We have lots of samples made up to showcase them and each one is available in kit form as well as being available to make in a class.

Our next room houses our 1930's and vintage style fabrics (Freshcut & Katie Jump Rope) as well as our soft and pretties - again, lots of samples to see.

Our third room has warm country coloured cotton fabrics, as well as our next great love, 100% felted wool in the most luscious of colours and also in the Aunt Grace range which is a mix of 70% wool/30% poly. We love to work with the wool - applique can be done with a raw edge and the results are great. Also in this room is our range of punchneedle patterns and supplies - a must see!! Throughout all three rooms we have books, patterns and other notions to compliment the theme of each room.

For this week only, ending on Saturday 30th June we are offering a 10% discount on everything in the shop, with some fabrics marked down to $5, $10 or $15 ! If you spend over $100, you'll not only receive one of our personalised Quilted Crow calico bags to take home your goodies, but you will go into the draw to win a bundle of fabric to the value of $100 - not bad hey! And . . . if you like a bit of party food, make sure you drop in on the Saturday for cake and chocoate crackles!!

We like people to feel welcome when they come into the shop - treat it a bit like home and help themselves to a cuppa, catch up on some news as well as mingle with others . . . we hope that you will check back often to see what we are up to, or if you're in town, drop by and see us!!

So until next time, keep well,

Leonie & Deirdre