Tag: Australia

  • Our trip to Kuranda village

    Our trip to Kuranda village

    On our second day in Cairns, Cecile and I took the skyrail up the mountain over the rainforest to the village of Kuranda. The skyrail makes several stops on the way for short walks through the rainforest where I saw magnificent trees with roots growing above ground with multicolored bark and stunning vistas. A bird…

  • 50 Shades of Blue & Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef

    50 Shades of Blue & Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef

      I have to say this had to be one of those peak moments in life where I felt like I needed to pinch myself to be sure I was wasn’t dreaming.           Cecile and I boarded this boat with about 200 tourists, the majority from China, for a two hour…

  • Our two day holiday in Cairns

    After my classes in Sydney were over, Cecile and I boarded a plane to Cairns for two days of R and R before driving to Townsville to set up for the Stitches and Craft Show. Cairns, as you can see on the map, is on the northeast coast of Australia and was one of the…

  • Fantastic 3 day Unique Stitching retreat in Canberra

    Fantastic 3 day Unique Stitching retreat in Canberra

    3 tired but happy teachers: Sue Dennis, Cecile Whatman and Me What a great retreat Cecile organized, and on very short notice too, I think she pulled off organizing and booking it in 3 months and it was a huge success! I was still transitioning to a time zone 7 hours different from my own…

  • Beautiful Australia

    Beautiful Australia

    Cecile Whatman from Unique Stitching picked me up at the Sydney airport early Wednesday morning on Sept 18, (I left monday night). What a beautiful sight to behold after sitting on a plane for 12 hours. This is Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia. This first thing I had to do was go wiggle my toes…

  • Hey Aussies, I’ll be coming to a city near you soon!

    Hey Aussies, I’ll be coming to a city near you soon!

    I want to tell you about a big trip that’s in the works down under, and I’ll be leaving in just a few weeks. This has all come together in a very short amount of time, organized by my friend Cecile of Unique Stitching. Cecile hosted my trip to Melbourne to teach at the Australasian…

  • Two fantastic retreats coming up in Wisconsin and Australia!

    Two fantastic retreats coming up in Wisconsin and Australia!

    Hey midwest peeps! Next month, I’m teaching two classes at Shake Rag Ally School of Arts and Crafts in beautiful Mineral Point, Wisconsin.         August 24th- Painting Imagery on Fabric While working with textile paints, students learn techniques for creating smooth gradations of color, glazing paint to create more visual depth, covering…

  • A Wine Tasting Tour in the Yarra Valley

    A Wine Tasting Tour in the Yarra Valley

    What a finale to my amazing trip. I had never gone wine tasting before and it was so fun to go with Cecile who was very knowledgable about wine and was able to fill me in on extra info about the history of wine making in this Pinot region of Australia. Our day started at…

  • A trip to McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park

    A trip to McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park

    The day before setting up for AQC, Cecile and I took a trip out to the McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park. It’s about a 45 minute drive from Melbourne and has a wonderful indoor gallery space, great restaurant and lovely  grounds. The grounds for the sculpture garden were beautiful from a formal park like setting…

  • A glimpse of Australia’s Fauna

    A glimpse of Australia’s Fauna

    After the convention, Cecile and her husband Glen took me, Susan Brubaker Knapp and Susan’s Kiwi friend Allison Greene for a day out at the Healesville Animal Sanctuary , about an hours drive from Melbourne in the Yarra valley to see some of Australia’s native species. The day started out quite chilly and drizzly, I was…

  • A bit of Australian Flora

    A bit of Australian Flora

    I was fascinated by many of the plants I saw in SoutheasternAustralia, from interestingly shaped seed pods and husks, to vibrantly colored and textured tree barks. This is Golden Wattle, Australia’s floral emblem. I think these little purple flowers were so interesting, they looked like half flowers, missing the other side. I love how these…

  • Back from my Aussie Adventure

    Back from my Aussie Adventure

    What an amazing trip I’ve had down under! I truly loved every minute, from the wonderful people I met, to the fun places I went and the incredible food I ate. On my return, my suitcase was 10 pounds lighter from class supplies but my body is now 10 pounds heavier! I feel so inspired…

  • I’m so excited!!!

    I’m so excited!!!

       VISIT AUSTRALIA’S BIGGEST & BEST QUILT EVENT!   COME TO THE AUSTRALASIAN QUILT CONVENTION AND SEE QUILTS from Botswana, Belgium, Korea, New Zealand, UK, USA, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and from every state in Australia – the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria & Western Australia. Australasian Quilt…