Wave Rock.

Hello,

Yesterday we were tourists for a day. Ian Lucy and I drove just over two and a half hours away to Wave Rock which is just out of Hyden. Wave Rock is over 100 metres long,and taller than a 3 storey building (15 metres.) It is believed to have begun forming underground as much as 60 million years ago. Wave rock.a granite cliff is 15 metres high and 110metres long.Its rounded shape has been caused by weathering and water erosion which has undercut the base and left a rounded overhang. Water from the springs running down the rock during wetter months dissolve minerals adding to the colouring of the wave. In 1960,crystals from Hyden Rock were dated as being 2700 million years old,amongst the oldest in Australia. Aren't the colours in the granite amazing?

This is Hippos Yawn,which is not far from Wave Rock. Wave Rock and Hippo's Yawn form part of Hyden Rock. The photo below shows some big slabs of rock which have slipped down.

Rock Pools on the top of the rock. The views were amazing.

In this photo above you can see that a small wall has been built to catch water. Slabs of the rock were used to build the wall. The Hyden Dam which is up on the rock outcrop was a major component of the town's water supply right through until 2000. Wave Rock only became a national attraction when a photograph of it won the 1963/64 Kodak International Colour Picture Competition at the New York International Fair.We had a wonderful day and one thing I noticed was that the small country towns we went through were amazingly neat and tidy. There were a fair few tourists at the rock but as the place is so big it felt you had the rock to yourself at times.It is one of the cleanest tourist attractions I have been to no graffiti or rubbish to be seen.After a walk around and across the rock we enjoyed a lovely picnic then went for another walk. Then the long drive home stopping to do a tour of the towns along the way. It was at least 20 years ago that I went to Wave Rock Lucy hadn't been as was impressed with it. I hope you enjoyed looking at the photo's.

Happy days.

Bev C

"Midsummer Garden"

Hello,

Last night I was able to sew the binding on my latest quilt. It is a design by Gail Pan
I was lucky enough to win this pattern from Gail called "Midsummer Garden". The pattern involved a fair amount of hand sewing. I used a variegated thread to machine quilt the quilt which suited the pattern. The size of the finished quilt is 46 inches by 46 inches.With the temperature falling to minus 1 here last night there is nothing quite like a quilt to snuggle up to.Tomorrow I will post some interesting photo's of where we went to today. Thank you to everyone who left such lovely comments regarding the veggie garden. It is much appreciated.

Happy sewing.

Bev C

Veggie Gardening at Kainga.

Hello,

One of our favourite things to do here at Kainga is getting into the garden. With the recent rain and sunshine afterwards our veggie garden is thriving. We plant mainly from small plants grown in punnets purchased from a local nursery. Although I am trying to get some of the old fashioned seeds going. Then I can save them and grow them the following growing season. We ate some of this cauliflower last night. We even put a small spoonful on Lucy's plate. She doesn't eat many veggies and it was left on the plate. Oh well more for Ian and I.

Chinese cabbage is a favourite. You can pick a few pieces each day and it regrows.

A few months back Ian and I built this raised veggie bed. We had looked at purchasing one but as we had some sheets of iron left over from when we built the shed we used them up. I took off the netting for the purpose of taking the photo. This helps keep those dreaded white butterflies away from them. In this bed we had some onions,lettuce,broccoli,cauliflower and the Chinese cabbage and yesterday I planted a few broad beans. Having the bed raised makes gardening so much easier. When filling up this bed we used up soil we had taken out when we put in the pool then a load of veggie mix which is full of manure etc was put on top then I layered some lupin mulch on top to help things along.

I have planted a couple of different varieties of potatoes this year. I use different containers including this part of a 44 gallon drum and the plastic barrel. We do have some growing in the ground as well.

These leeks have come up after I left the seed heads on the ground over summer. I usually just chop off what I need and the leeks regrow. In the background is some peas that I have just recently sown. I had saved the seeds from last year. Presently we are going to look at getting another rainwater tank for the side of the house. It looks like June will be fairly wet so we want to catch as much rain as possible.

Happy gardening.

Bev C

Sweet sixteen.

Hello,

Lately I have been doing some hand stitching. Working on the blocks from "Midsummer Garden" which is a delightful pattern from Gail. I made the yellow centres just a little bit bigger to use up the yellow material I had.
I have completed the nine squares and have cut out the joining strips etc. I got my sewing machine back from its service on Saturday and can't wait until I have a reasonable amount of time to get back into sewing. I had to wait so long because the part had to come from Japan.

Today is Lucy's 16th Birthday. Have an extra special day Lucy and enjoy your day at the Footy this coming Sunday. Lucy is a keen St Kilda supporter and she had an exciting time yesterday watching them win again.

Happy days.

Bev C

Bag ladies...

Hello,

Today I wanted to share with you what I made in last months challenge. I chose this pattern of the two ladies ready to go shopping for our challenge pattern. It was in a newsletter given out by Darlene I added some beads that I had for the lady's hat and they both got beads for the necklaces.

I added the stitchery panel to a bag. I made up the bag pattern myself . I used stripes because the lady on the left has a striped bag with the panel in the middle.

The other side of the bag with a floral panel. I enjoyed doing the scallops and button holing them on. I did think about doing a little fastener at the top and using a button,but I didn't really have any that matched in well. As this is supposed to be a project that only uses things we had on hand this decision was made. I haven't heard back yet from Anita and Heather if they got there project done but will let you know if they have. This months challenge is something completely different. We are going to be making Robyn's

"Hoot." This pattern is now available in Robyn's new store. I received a phone call yesterday that I have been waiting for. My embroidery machine is all fixed and ready to be picked up so will make a trip to the city soon to pick it up. Yay!!! I have really missed her.

Happy sewing.

Bev C

Wonderful Garden Sculptures.

Hello,

I had sewing on Friday and spent the day cutting out paper petal shapes then covering them with my chosen material for a project I am working on. After sewing Mum Lucy and I went to a cafe/bookshop which has recently opened in town. Most of the books are 2nd hand although there were a few new ones including one by a local author who has just been published,who is Lucy's English teacher. The bookshop has a lovely atmosphere about it. Lucy wants to go again. I enjoyed a lovely cappuccino,they have 5 Senses Coffee which is Yum. Pistachio and Lime Cheesecake was also enjoyed. Upstairs there are two lounges where you can sit and read the books or paper and there are boardgames to use. Today I will be putting together my monthly stitchery challenge,I have been putting this off which is not a good thing. A short while ago I went to this garden centre which has a tea house and the most amazing sculptures. Around every corner there is something different. From the road you wouldn't even know it was there. A real pleasant surprise. They hold functions there including weddings,it certainly would be a wonderful place to have your photo's taken. I took plenty of photo's,it was hard to choose only five. Enjoy...

I hope you have a great day. Stay warm. It is wet windy and cold here today but the rain is welcomed our tanks will actually get some water into them and the garden loves a drink.

Happy days.

Bev C

144 Buttons and a House.

Hello,

I hope everyone is having a great day. Today I finished sewing on the binding and hanging loop for "My Button Quilt". I bought this pattern back in January while on Holiday from this great shop There are 144 buttons sewn onto this quilt. So for the last couple of days that is what I have been doing.

The mini quilt has a button on each square.

There are three jars of buttons

Of course there is a pin cushion and a teacup full of steaming hot tea. I got to try out my Yo-Yo maker which I bought from my local craft store last year. They certainly make great flowers. I am really pleased with how this quilt has turned out. It is slightly heavier than your normal quilt,with the added weight of the buttons.

When I finished the quilt I made up the "Bless this House" pattern that I got from Dzintra
This was a quick and easy pattern to make up using bits and pieces. It looks lovely in the frame.
I can see this design being used maybe for an address book cover or enlarged and used on a cushion.

Happy sewing.

Bev C