October 3, 2010

Garden Dreams

When we built our home eleven years ago, I dreamed of having Wisteria totally covering our pergola area, looking magnificent in Spring with those gorgeous pendulous lavender blooms, followed by shivery green leaves to give shade in Summer, then losing everything in Winter to let the warm sunshine in.  And that is how it has been happening for all the time we have lived in our beautiful home in Goolwa.

This is one of the things I am going to miss when we move in just 11 days time:


Loads of lavender loveliness:


Each little part gorgeously perfect:


And to complement this magnificent show, we have a wall of Jasmine as the backdrop:



The perfume is all-pervading.  Can you smell it?  Can you hear the bees humming?


 This is one of my Garden Dreams that came true!

 
I called one of my favourite patterns "Garden Dreams" and it soon become my most popular pattern. It is a perpetual calendar with seven mini quilts for the days of the week, twelve for the numbers and a heart month indicator, with a fabric-covered box to store all the spare bits and pieces. I gave it a workover this year in totally different fabric and it is appearing in this month's and next month's issues of Country Threads magazine.


I still love the original version too.  If you don't have access to our wonderful Australian magazine, then you can purchase the pattern here (either version).


We held our Garage Giveaway yesterday with lots of people coming to relieve us of our 'excess baggage'.  We were able to send $230 off for the Pakistan Flood Relief, so we were quite thrilled about that.

All the packing is complete, apart from the hundred and one 'last minute things' that can't be packed yet.  I'm ticking off all the jobs on the list one by one, and plan to start tackling the cleaning this week.  With so many built-ins in our house, there are plenty of shelves to be wiped over apart from the dust behind all the furniture!

I had planned to do a little bit of hand stitching at night, but it's the same story every night at the moment - fall asleep as soon as I stop!  Hope you're doing better than that!

Regards
Val

19 comments:

By Hoki Quilts said...

Oh my, how your heartstrings must be pulling. The perfume from your garden wow!, shame you can't bottle it and take it with you.
Good luck with the move Val
hugs
Miche'le

By Hoki Quilts said...

Oh my, how your heartstrings must be pulling. The perfume from your garden wow!, shame you can't bottle it and take it with you.
Good luck with the move Val
hugs
Miche'le

Janelle said...

Hi Mum
The wisteria and jasmine look amazing! Love both versions of your Garden Dreams Calendar, and I'm still eagerly and patiently waiting for the one you will make us... one day!!

Penny said...

OMG!!! Such lovely flowers.

BubzRugz said...

Beautiful garden - you will miss it but I hope you will also be able to develop another one you love up here in Qld where it is beautiful one day and perfect the next!
Lovely calender - I must look out for the magazine...
Hugz

Bluebell said...

I can definitely smell the wisteria and the jasmine that must be wonderful in the warm evenings, you will miss it but you will have so many more things to look forward to and you can grow new flowers.
Love Jillx

Susan said...

Your wisteria IS gorgeous - I have often yearned for something similar - but you will be able to reproduce the jasmine in Qld and a lot of other lovely things - if you have space you can try a jacaranda! at least you will get the same colour! I can imagine how exhausted you would be at the end of each day - I can easily collapse at the end of a normal day!

Ruth said...

I love the wisteria! So gorgeous. Moving is a horrible chore and wears one out with all the packing, carrying boxes, etc. The calendar is precious!

Sharon said...

Your wisteria is absolutely beautiful! Every Spring, here in north Georgia, USA, I love seeing the wisteria growing wild among the trees. I should really start some growing on our property!
Val, I just have to tell you that your patterns are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen and I plan to purchase the Garden Dreams pattern. I hope that one day, with lots of practice, that my stitching will be as beautiful as yours!

Christine M said...

Your garden looks lovely Val. I'm sure you've taken lots and lots of photos as memories. Hugs, Christine

Stitched With Prayer said...

Val, My gosh, your garden is truly amazing. Purple being my very favorite color, I just sat staring at the photos, taking it all in. I could almost get a whiff of the wonderful fragrances on the breeze! Just breath taking. This is really going to be a bittersweet experience for you. Just start planning what your garden will be at your new home and the dream will soon be a reality. What a whirlwind these last couple of weeks have been for you!!! I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers for a smooth transition into your new home. Your perpetual calendar pattern is wonderful. I hope you will be seeing my name on an order for it very soon. I really do love it. Hugs and God Bless...

Shannon said...

Your garden is wonderful. I am sure you will miss it. But think of the clean pallet that you will have at your new home. The pattern for the calendar is so cute.

Vicki ♥ said...

All the best with your move Val and it would be hard to leave that beautiful whisteria and jasmin behind...I bet they smell absolutely delightful :) Love them both. Congrats on having your gorgeous design in CT too :) its fabulous :)

Allie said...

That garden is absolutely breath-taking. It looks like heaven on earth!
Love your calender design, that looks very fun to make as well as being beautiful! Congrats on your garage sale success, and I wish you well with the packing - you SHOULD be sleeping instead of stitching, you're in overdrive right now!

Melody said...

I'm so glad you got to see your beautiful wisteria in bloom one last time before you move. Congratulations on the publication of another gorgeous pattern. I'll look out for the magazines as I always buy them when you are featured.
Hope all goes well with the move.

Stitches said...

Your pictures are breath-taking. I love flowers and yours are wonderful. I think the flowers in AU are among the most beautiful anywhere. Thanks so much for the free patterns "Gifts of Grace". I just found them last week and I hope to make them in the near future. They are really beautiful. Sandy, Iowa, USA

Stitched With Prayer said...

Val, was just thinking of you today and hoping everything is 'moving' along smoothly. Keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. Hugs...

Gloria J W said...

Welcome home to Queensland, Val. Those beautiful flowers in your garden were so delightful... ah well, there will be different ones up here!! I too may have to shift soon and boy I'm not looking forward to that. I'm a hoarder...well no... a gatherer probably sounds kinder. Rainbow smiles, from sunny North Queensland.

Mariasun said...

Precioso!!!!