Life after the Big moved

We moved exactly a week after I retired at the end of May. It was a big move at this stage of our lives, but we have moved many times since we married. Most of those moves were in different countries! 

Anyway, it has been over 4 months since we moved to Canberra. We arrived in the middle of Canberra's winter which was very cold and some nights the temperature was below zero and icy in the mornings. Luckily the house is warm and comfortable. 

We bought some new furniture, but most of the furniture we already had. Some of it is our treasured furniture we brought back from the Middle East. It's important to be surrounded with familiar things. Apart from setting up our new home, I joined the gym, the ACT Basketry and the Canberra Quilters.

We have visited some local music events, galleries and drove down to the South Coast a couple of times as well. 

I'm keeping up the online workshops with India Flint. I'm trying to get back to finishing many quilt projects I have started over the years. Already I've started a couple of new projects too!

It is now late Spring in Canberra. We went through lovely Spring blooms right here on our street and throughout Canberra. Yes, we are settled in well here in our new home and city. We get to help with our grandchildren on a daily basis and some weekends too. 

Icy flakes from car window

Family room in the early days

Old bar stools in new kitchen

Music event at the German Club

First basket made at ACT Basketry

Dyeing as part of online workshop

Finishing one of the quilts I started in Melbourne

Twenty-Five squares bag

Playing in my new Treehouse studio

Altered and dyed jacket for online workshop

Nearby walking track 

Our beautiful street in Spring

We have also started building on a block of land we bought 7 years ago on the South Coast of NSW. It could not have happened at a better time. We are now only 2 hours drive from Canberra. We won't get much done before Christmas though. Patience is the name of the game. 

I have many more photos to share with you on the next post. So don't give up on me!

Until next time

Nat

Last Working Friday

This post winds back by 3 months. I had drafted this post just before we moved, but as anyone who has been moving knows, moving is crazy. So below is what I was telling you at that time, but didn't get around to posting it....

I have had the urge to blog and to say that today the last Friday of my working life! Three months ago I handed in my retirement notice. Actually, I only needed to give one month's notice, but I gave them  them plenty of time to find my replacement. They have found me a replacement, but not just one. They have found seven others to replace me! It is good to know that I have put in more than a hard yard into the job. It's one of the best jobs I have had in my career. I will miss this place and the people I have been working with for the last 14 years. 

Apart from today being a significant Friday for my working life, I have few things that I made recently to share with you. I spent the Easter holiday with DS and his family. While I was there DDIL asked for my help making up 2 quilts using work from her students from year 7 and year 8. The work consists of Sashiko stitched panels. I set the blocks using thin white sashings with blue and red corners and the opposite colour for the borders of each quilt. 

I knew that I only have less than 3 months before our big move, but still have to work within that 3 months. The idea didn't stop me from signing up for an online workshop "Alchemist's apron" with India Flint. This was India Flint's first online workshop. I'm glad I signed up because I really enjoyed it and learned a lot from India and the class mates in the class Facebook group. 

One of the student's quilts I put together

Some natural dye experiments using plants and flowers from the garden of the rental house. It was part of online workshop with India Flint I was taking in May.

Soaking plants and flowers in jars

Pieces of silk added and steamed for 45 mins.

Purple carrots dyed with household mordants

The results of silk threads after dyeing with
purple carrots and household mordants.

Journal pages made from splashed papers

And here is the apron made from a shirt.

By the time you read this we would have moved. I will be updating you with our news soon. I do hope to keep blogging more regularly now that I am retired.

Until next time

Nat