I ponder this definition this morning after a visit from my friend Kate. By one definition... a familiar or helpful thing... she lived up to the written standard helping me get through the end of a really manic busy week. Another listing states • a person who is not an enemy or who is on the same side. As I think back to the weekend I think there are lots of things that spelled friend to me... companion, chat master, laugh stimulator, and generally someone that makes us appreciate the little things in life.
Kate moved from Sydney to Singapore about 3 years ago much to our dismay at Material Obsession. She was a fun co-worker while living here and now an occassional one. Anyway, family brought Kate to Australia for a visit and when that was done she stayed with me for a couple of nights tucked under quilts in our living room. That brings another part of friendship to mind...one willing to settle for what is on offer be it of a great standard or not.
Kate came to the shop with me on Friday and for 10 straight hours she helped sort out the shelves, move furniture and generally get the place in a bit of order while we hung quilts from the book around the place.
While we were at it, Kate discovered a range of fabrics she would like to use for Pheasantville..
Pheasantville is a quilt that was based on that gorgeous bird fabric which is no longer available. This is a common dilemma What to do? Find another inspirational fabric to create a new and most interesting story for the quilt! That is what Kate did with this new Tradewinds range plus a few sweet complimentary items from the shelves. Book in hand and the promise of joy stack of fabrics Kate was ready to go forth.
Kate also has three boys at home so I think she gets a bit of a kick out of hanging around with my boys who are older (not wiser!) as a view to what is to come in her life. The boys in response try to come up with answers to her many questions about their likes and dislikes in life. It is truthfully hard not to chuckle when knowing her attempts at lengthy conversations are futile! So we move on to things we do know will be conversational like going over the quilt she is making in our Marg George Fly Away with Me BOM program...
Here is Kate's Fly Away with me quilt as a work in progress. She chose to do this program on a black with grey spot which creates a completely different looking quilt. As we wrap up this program it would be interesting to note how many people have kept up with the blocks. While away on my whirlwind trip I did lots of hexagons. I have often looked over the shoulder of quilters in classes here with lovely tins full of hexagons. While their tins may be colour coded or stacked neatly, mine looks like this...
The song lyrics in my head at this instant are "whatever gets you through the night...it's alright, its alright!" I'll get there in the end in my own chaotic way. Here is my progress on the bom to date:
A bit of applique and many, many, many more hexagons to go but I'll get there, I'll get there in the end...oh yeah.
Another friend that has recently occupied my life space is Brigitte Giblin. We spent the week together in Nantes as mentioned and had a riot. I am forever grateful to her for menu translations which in some cases were meal savers! Her new book is arriving in shop today...
Feathering the Nest, Vintage inspired quilts is a composite story of years of quilts made in Brigitte's unique and wonderful colour story. Brigitte has been a mainstay of the Australian quilting landscape for decades. No one can deny her fabulous taste steadfastly sitting in traditional applique and hexagons. This book is a collection of 20 of her quilts.
This book is printed in French as well as English and sets forth a path to peaceful piecing of masterpieces. If you haven't ever done a class with Brigitte and you would like her to help you with the choices necessary to bring the pages of the book to life in a class we have a few seats in the first Thursday of the month that you can join. Pop us an email if you are interested in finishing something started long ago or starting your own new quilt to feather your own nest!
So my friends,...• (often as a polite form of address or in ironic reference) an acquaintance or a stranger one comes across : my friends, let me introduce myself) that brings me to the end of the sitting time and to the start of my day. Enjoy your friends and the promise of joy they bring you in life...k

