ozcountryquiltingmum

The 70's have called and they want their fabric back ...

or.....

being a "friend's mother" reaps it's own rewards-eventually.

Great news here, my longest serving friend, L is home from Switzerland for a week before starting her next stage of life with her husband's new job, in Kuala Lumpur. I am going down to see her at her Mum's on Friday.
This is exciting, but entails some work. L was home with her boys in April and when i visited her at her Mum's I came home with 2 garbage bags of fabric scraps....as you do! L, one of 5 daughters, was joining forces with her sisters to make her Mum do a clean out. I have a very sneaky suspicion that mine is the only stuff that would have left the building.
I offered to make her Mum a quilt with the scraps; there are 2 sorts, one bag of REALLY old, that were from my friend's grandma and great grandma dressmaking stashes and the 70's clothes-making efforts- though with 5 daughters 1-2 years apart don't ask me how she sewed!
I was more than willing to do this for my friend's mum because as soon as I was out of my teens I appreciated her SO much.
Well, I think I appreciated her in my teens, I always said my "thanks for having me " and offered to help and do dishes but I didn't realise then what all those extra friends bring to the workload-which is why I always send my kids with food for a play.
We lived a decent way from town so ours was not the hangout home, my Mum got it So easy in that department. It was either at L's home or my town friend's that we ended up.
They say that it is important for boys to have mentors to grow up on the straight and narrow, but I think friend's Mums are important as well. I was reading Dawn in Korea's blog about how her daughter's friend's mum let boys come for a sleepover at 11 pm and when the daughter rang Dawn to say she was coming home at once, the friend's Mum told the daughter to lie and say they weren't there.
That's not the friend's mum mentoring that gets a girl safely through her teens, but the guidance,advice and supervision I got was pretty darn good while letting us be teens.
Now my town friend was lost at sea a few years ago, but we tried to repay her Mum's teenage efforts with support and a photo journal when my friend died and cards and visits since.
I had never seen an opportunity with L's mum until the fabric thing. So here is how I went with some of the 70's fabric today.....with associated props of course!

I used a good quality bedspread as the foundation piece, that worked very well, you get a glimpse of it here in the wind, with Sigmund deciding whether he should eat it or not.

So it is essentially already quilted, i could add a backing and tie it and it would be done. This is just a 4 blocks, I have done 6 but thought I would show her before going further.

There are some great fabrics here.

This grown pet hereford, whose brother topped last Friday's sale , remembered about being fed and came for a visit...she seemed less than impressed with the sewing but hopefully L's mum will have a higher opinion!

Make my day awards tomorrow, as I am being called to bowl for cricket before it gets too dark, have a great day, Tracey.