Laura Lippman sure knows how to write a slow-burning thriller. Prom Mom is the story of Amber Glass, who allegedly gives birth and kills her baby on the night of her school prom. Joe Simpson, her date, abandons her on the night so he can pursue the girl he likes more. After spending most of […]
Newsletter: June 2023
Hello and thanks for reading. I’m still hanging in there with Substack for these newsletters but it’s getting too noisy in that place for me. I guess that’s a sign of a popular site but I’ll be investigating alternative ways of sending newsletters by email. Does anyone have a recommendation for newsletter software? Quilts It’s […]
Looking towards the light
Welcome to the winter solstice, an annual turning point of the natural world. If you’re unsure about what a solstice is, I recommend this article by Jonti Horner. I’m always encouraged when we reach the winter solstice – the shortest period of daylight of the calendar year – because I like to look towards the […]
Protecting my headspace
Stories are my thing. They can be constructed from my memories or recounted by other people. Stories can be spoken or written; based on facts or totally imaginary. It doesn’t matter how they come to me. Words, of course, are the basic building blocks of stories. I’m immersed in words every day, whether I’m reading, […]
Striking Streptocarpus
Now the cold weather has arrived, my attention has turned to my flowering indoor plants. Their blooms can be admired without having to venture out in the chilly winds. What a bonus! I have a collection of African violets that bloom all year round if I remember to feed them regularly. The plants are easily […]
Book review: Echo Lake
After recently divorced Rose McHugh leaves Sydney to start a new life in the Southern Highlands area, she finds a roll of film buried in her backyard. She has the film developed (I’m not sure many people would do that but she’s an historian and also nosy, which helps make her actions more believable), and […]
Newsletter: frost and cosiness
Hello! It’s early afternoon here and I’m gazing out my window at the cloudy sky and the trees moving in the wind. The weather app tells me it feels like 0.9 degrees outside so I won’t be venturing there. Yes, I’m a wuss. I like to stay cosy. We’ve had three frosts this month. Yesterday’s […]
The power of stories
For four years, I was Editor of an Australian quilt magazine. A few years after I left, the business was sold and the magazine subsequently shutdown. Until then, the magazine showcased a wide range of stories about the Australian patchwork and quilting community. I was proud of the hard work I put into nearly 50 […]
Smashed windflowers
Isn’t it frustrating when you look forward to particular plants flowering and then the weather spoils the occasion? That’s what happened with my Japanese windflowers. I love to see the blooms of my windflowers sway in the breeze. I have several patches of them throughout the garden and, when they are out of season, the […]
When a quilt is a challenge
The challenge was to make a quilt that measured 50 inches square. Sounds straightforward, right? No such luck – my quilt had other ideas. It simply did not want to be that size and fought me all the way. The quilt won. It has always been difficult for me to make a quilt to a […]