NO SCRAPS TOO SMALL: August 2013

WENT AND HAD ME a good time.......

Yes, I actually managed a weekend away with the man of my dreams...after 14 years of family ups and downs, we finally reached the stage where we could leave the children and ESCAPE.

I desperately wanted to see the V & A exhibition of quilts, I mean who wouldnt? Sadly it was only travelling to Brisbane which is a couple of hours away by plane.

Well, serendipity worked in my favour for once, and my wonderful man agreed to run away with me for the weekend and I could pop off and see the quilts.

Of course you are not allowed to take photos in the exhibition so I bought the book and I am sure I will be OK if I show you a few of the memorable quilts that I liked in particular.

Actually this is one that my husband was fascinated with.

Made by a man.......a soldier in fact, couldnt get more manly!

I/2 inch hexagons, in military wool......serious commitment there.

Soldiers were encouraged to sew in their rehab time so they didnt indulge in drinking and gambling. Works for me!

Serious wanties..... sigh. Look at that needlecase, why she asks dont they make such things anymore?...........and realises that she couldnt afford them if they did.

This one did actually make me weep. A simple quilt with such a powerful story. This was made in Changi Prison by 8 to 12 year old girls, in secret as being caught by the guards would be dire, with snippets of clothing, for their girl guide leader for her birthday.

They had embroidered their names in the centre of each rosette.

Seriously I have never had such a reaction before but the love that shone in such a dark place .....

More love, this was donated to a family in London who had lost their home in the blitz. It was made by a group of Canadian quilters and sent over in parcels.

I thought the red wool ties almost made this look modern, I may try this myself one day.

This was made by a UK woman from her black out curtains and scraps of whatever fabric she could find. The caption read...

"This was the only quilt the maker ever made..."

Fair enough, Its a good one.

These were examples of the hand quilting that was done as a cottage industry in the 30's and 40's by woman in the UK.
World class hotels commissioned their work and they were placed in their rooms.........THE WORK!.....I wonder where they are now?

Again, a wonderful example of hand quilting....sigh.....

As I said just a snap shot of the quilts I thought were interesting, there were many older and historical ones there but I thought I would keep this post short....er.

Then my man of my dreams and I played tourist in Brisbane, (and if my sister is reading this I am sorry we didnt catch up with you, it was a flying visit)

Are these not intriguing?

They are telephone or electrical exchange boxes that are on most street corners, obviously the city has commissioned artists to decorate what would normally be boring and voila...I loved it.

This was the road outside our hotel.....this is ART...no you say!

This is definitely art......I was inspired...by artist Jeffrey Smart. Australian.

Natures Art.

International Art.

A Pagoda donated to Brisbane for An Expo in 1988 ish?

The carving is ornate , the skill amazing.

I love taking pictures of old dilapidated buildings, often in large cities these buildings are demolished ASAP. So I see these not as eyesores but like a very old person, something that is showing wear and tear but has a story to tell.

One day someone may come along and paint and mend this and a new story will be begin.

Australians are too quick to bulldoze and build new these days, its often cheaper but we loose our history in the process.