Resting the Voice in Melbourne

A week has passed us by once again so it must be time to catch up. Tonight I was going to meet with friends to share dinner but I am a little weary and losing my voice, so the feet are up while I chat to you instead…..and this way the voice can rest too! And why the loss of voice? Well possibly way too much talking as the guest on the Bernina Australia stand at the Australasian Quilt Convention in Melbourne….more of that soon. When I left home on Wednesday morning we noticed the new life in the nest was preparing to fly…….he/she has grown so fast…..

 After a smooth flight from Adelaide I arrived to bustling Melbourne for four and half days of all things quilting. I have the most wonderful apartment courtesy of Bernina and it has oodles of room and a big bath (how I love my nightly bath!!)…….

 The view from my balcony……...

 It is probably a short 5-10 minute walk through Carlton Gardens to reach the World Heritage listed venue of the Royal Exhibition Building, but I turn it into a longer amble of 20 minutes taking in the sights (and pacing myself as the incline plays havoc with my b…..angina!!)……… 

 I spied a familiar section of a quilt of mine on the screens of the outside ticket office……….

 Kerrie from Bernina looks after us all and I was given a mandatory dose of vitamin jubes when I arrived……

 Last night I was thrilled to be asked to join the team in their annual dinner challenge where they split into pairs and in MasterChef style are given a recipe to prepare one of the courses in our rooms….and in a personally labelled apron! This year the theme was Swiss as the main guest was all the way from Switzerland! It was indeed a thrill to be a part of it all and to meet the special guest Roger Buhler,  Vice President of Bernina……..

 Our dish was the cheese fondue and Roger gave us a pass with a few hints for improvement! We enjoyed veal, chicken and swiss salads followed by an amazing toblerone chocolate mousse topped with peanut praline……..

 So this morning it was very hard to get out of bed but onwards and upwards only this time the morning walk was through the rain that the ducks were loving……..

 Tomorrow I will try to photograph the quilts that I can, so for now just a little……….

 Lessa Siegle's magnificent version of the historic Rajah Quilt greets everyone as they enter…...

 with a tribute to the previous Rajah winners…..and I still can't believe that I am one of them up there on that wall!!

 This is my seat for four days where there is far more talking than sewing happening……..

So finally I would like to say an ENORMOUS THANKYOU to each and every one of you who have come to the stand to say Hi! It is thrilling to see students and friends from the past and especially to those of you who told me how much you love this blog……I keep doing it for you!! And finally a huge thankyou to Bernina Australia for the kind invitation to be guest this year. I am truly humbled and honoured to be a small part of it all (and thanks for looking after me so well too…..and by the way….I LOVE my Bernina!!)….more convention news soon…..