I've just spent the most wonderful few days teaching at Nesting Needles quilt shop.
 


It worked out well that my visit was just a couple of weeks after Lisa had relocated the shop to Coramba, a picturesque 10 minute drive from Coffs Harbour. 

Let me take you on a tour, starting from the balcony...

with it's welcoming bunting. 

There's rustic garden at the side of the shop. 

Inside the walls are lined with shelves and shelves of fabulous fabrics.

and sweet touches in little nooks.



Lots of natural light and high ceilings create a spacious feeling throughout the different rooms. 

Beautiful polished wooden floorboards add a warm sound to footsteps. 


Lisa stocks a great variety of brights, dreamy, modern, traditional, batiks, Japanese, classic spots and dots,  really there's everything or anything you could ever need. 

Gorgeous rainbow yarns! I feel so strong for resisting knitting and crochet. I know if I started I would end up with a room full of all the gorgeous yarns available these days. 

Towers of bias binding!! 

And here is Lisa with Frankie the puppy. 
 

Look at that sweet face!


Here is the classroom. It's amazing how quickly we can spread out and settle in with our sewing bits and pieces. 






But wait, there's more!! Just off the workroom is a huge deck, perfect for sitting with hand sewing, having lunch, stopping to admire the view...

 and hanging quilts.

Here is another angle of the view. Over the fields to the hills, there's usually some cows wandering around too.

Now for some show and tell - lots of blocks in different colours and styles.

Wonderful cushions that are the result from last years workshop. 


Great fabric choices by Barabara!

On the other side of the table Vivienne was working with these wonderful colours.

And how delightful is this bee block made by another Vivienne who teaches garment making at Nesting Needles. 

It happens to be the same colours as the purple house across the road from the shop. 

A couple more snaps taken when strolling around Coramba. 

I didn't get photo of the excellent cafe next door to Nesting Needles. The pub is also a popular destination for meals which makes Coramba a wonderful place for a day out. 

After the classes each day Mr Daisy would pick me up and we'd zoom off down the road in the Daisymobile to see the sights of the area. 

 One evening we visited the Bowerbirds Quilters Quilt Show. They kindly stayed open a little later so the Nesting Needles class wouldn't miss out. 

I loved how this wall of mini quilts came together to look like a big quilt. They fit perfectly together.

I didn't take many photos of individual quilts but here are some overall room photos to give you a sense of being there, 


On other evenings we headed for the beaches that the area is famous for. 
We came across a field of kangaroos at the oddly named "Look At Me Now Headland". The lighting looks a bit strange because it was just before sunset. The kangaroos didn't mind us at all as we walked through to get to the beach. 

Love these two standing in the same pose. 

As I mentioned our visit was right on sunset so the lighting is quite subdued but you can see the how beautiful and wild the beaches are.  

I really enjoyed the spectacular cloud shows that filled the skies. 

Emerald beach was such a gem. 


It might have been the time of day but we mostly had the beaches to ourselves! This was Sapphire Beach. 


It's always special to see hearts in the wild. 

This was our happy home during our stay. A cabin up in the hills over looking Sapphire Beach. It was idyllic being nestled amongst tall trees. So quiet and peaceful.

Even though it just looks like a plain shed inside was beautiful, aged timber beams, stylish decor, a fully appointed kitchen and everything we could have needed. 

I love being surrounded by trees!! 

My view as I ate breakfast. 

Finally, it wouldn't be a visit to the area without a photo of the Big Banana!! It's like a big, fruity smile! The happy smile of everyone in Coffs Harbour!

A huge thank you to Lisa and all the lovely ladies at Nesting Needles for inviting me to teach and spending the days sewing with me. I'm already looking forward to returning next year in early April. 
Plus I'll be in the area later this year at the Misty Mountains Retreat in Dorrigo from the 6-11th October. I'll have more details about that soon. 


Meanwhile in another part of Australia,  the With You, With Me, With Them Quilt Exhibition is in full swing.  I'm so honoured to have many of my favourite quilts hanging in the show alongside quilts made by Margaret Mew, the Quilts of Valour quilters and other talented quilters. Also Caroline McGregor a renowned artist.  






I'm always thankful when my quilts go out into the world to help in some way. The exhibition is being held as a way of raising awareness for the difficulties faced by our returned service personnel. Maybe with more conversation about these issues more support for veterans will result. A quilt show is a great way to pay tribute as quilts are blankets stitched with love, they wrap, comfort and keep people warm. As quilters we know that favourite colours and fabric designs can lift the spirits and make people smile. 

Here are a few of my quilts on show.  
I've chosen quite a mix of different styles. There'll be a quilt there for everyone. 


Ros and Jim, the organisers, have done a wonderful job of hanging the exhibition. You can see they have really taken their time to display the quilts to their fullest. I cant wait to see it all in person on the weekend! I'll be at the show this coming Sunday the 29th April to meet and greet and talk about my quilts. I'm thinking I'll bring a few extra quilts too for anyone who's interested, because surely you can never have too many quilts. :)


I've saved the cutest photo for last. Awwww!! Never to young to start quilting...