Tinkers Cart

good luck for 2010!!!!

Hi, I know it has been a while since I last blogged but we have been snowed under with the Janome Christmas catalogue sale. This is our first Christmas as Townsvilles exclusive Janome dealer and it has been our pleasure to serve Janomes customers..new and old..in 2009. We have also been busy with our fabrics and are proud to announce that Homespun magazine are running a new Block of the Month in the magazine, called Life a Celebration, it will begin in the January edition and will use the French Hatbox collection of fabric. We have the full kits for sale for $275 plus p&h and will be ready to start sending them out in mid January.

This is a lovely range of fabrics and the kit is for the quilt top and bindings.
 Tinkers Cart is also proud to remind our customers that we will again be hosting our annual retreat on June 19th 2010. Our guests will be Rosalie Quinlan, Leanne Beasley and Bronwyn Hayes. Bookings are now open. The cost for the day is $130 and a non refundable deposit of $50 is payable on registration. The cost will include morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea and the customary champagne!! Each guest will also recieve a goody bag containing a starter kit and copies of each of the new designs from the three designers. We look forward to welcoming all of our guests to this fabulous occasion. Please email tinkerscart@yourhub.com.au or call 0747552336 after Jan 4th 2010 to make your booking. We will be closed till then for our Christmas break.

John and Emily, Elle and myself are on the Gold Coast till 02-01-10 and enjoying the rain and sometimes sunshine!!! We had a wet day at Movie world today, and are looking forward to this rest and will be back for a fantastic new year at Tinkers Cart. Again I thank our wonderful customers, and can't wait to see most of you next year. We bid a sad farewell to Carey at the end of our last Thursday morning class. Tinkers Cart is three years old in Feb and Carey was one of the first two students ever to sign up for classes and her progress was amazing, Carey made the most perfect quilts and also produced Tinkers Carts first baby..the handsome Archie, we wish Ken, Carey, Nya, Fletcher and Archie all the best in NSW and can't wait to see Carey at the retreat in June. All the best for now, Tracy

Emily

This is one of my beautiful daughters, Emily. I am proud of each of my children and today my thoughts are with Em. Emily has graduated from JCU with degrees in Biomedical Science and Secondary Education and has been awarded a Questacon Science Scholarship, which will see her go to Canberra next year to do a Science media degree. This week she flew to Africa with Ylead and will visit an orphanage and school and home stay with her sponsor childs family. She will also go on safari and climb Mt Kilamanjaro. Emily is still 20 years old and will celebrate her 21st birthday on Australia Day. There are so many wonderful young adults like Em in this country and we are indeed in good hands for the future, bless you Em.

Back again

Hi again, I have just found a home for Rosalies, Grans Flower Garden  range and rearranged the shop as well, boy my arms are sore!! The range is lovely, please take some time to have a look at the full range in the album in the left hand column, or better still, drop by and have a look at the real thing.

 This is a stichery from Rosalies book, Stitch in time, using the Cosmos threads we have in stock. 

I have also uploaded the pictures of the different blocks from Gingham Girls Bom, they are in the right hand column and will allow customers doing the bom to see where we have used our fabrics.

This is a quick quilt I made...note long lense shot..no close ups, please!! It is made from two panels from the Snow Flower range, and I have added two borders and the binding. The panels are not even cut apart, I added black ricrac to cover the join and then just stitched around each square. I did hand stitch some detail around the flowers and the birds. The cost for the whole quilt, single bed size, top, including binding is $73. I made it in two days, perfect for a quick gift and suitable for all ages, check out the range in the left hand column, it also comes in a blue/chocolate combination and ther are three different panels to choose from. Please email us tinkerscart@yourhub.com.au or simply call the shop 0747552336 to place your order.

Grans Flower Garden

Hi, just a quick one, will finish tomorrow, Grans Flower Garden has arrived at Tinkers Cart, it is the first range of fabric designed by Rosalie Quinlan and is featured in her new book A Stitch in Time. I have added an album in the left hand column, and will talk more tomorrow, I have a night class starting here, I need to pick up my daughter and its my turn to cook!!! all the best till tomorrow..Tracy P.S we also have the Cosmos threads featured in the book !!
  

New stuff !!!

    Hi, I know it has been a long time between blogs, but Tinkers Cart has been flat out, and are just drawing breath now!!! These Art to Heart hangers for I Believe, have just come in, the scalloped 6in stand and the 7in holder are both in linen and the I Believe hanger is grey. Please check out the range in the left hand column..I Believe..    
The scolloped stand is $30, the 7in holder is $30 and the I Believe hanger is $32. 

Tea towels have also come in for the I Believe  range and are $9.95 each.

 

The new range from Red Rooster, Hopscotch, is also now in store. This is a bright and fresh range is more gorgeous, now that I actually have it!! Its bright colours blend with many other ranges we have so the possibilities are endless for this range. Please do check out the full range in the left hand column. It is $23 per metre and $6 per fat quarter.

Also arriving today, boy have we had a big day!!! is the range from Lakehouse Direct, Teatime Floral 2, patterns for this range will be arriving soon. The letters on the fabric are actually metallic, as are the feature pictures. The fabric has a lovely sateen feel to it and the quality is fabulous. Teacups and cakes have never looked so good, again, this range is in the left hand column.

But wait, there is more!! We also recieved Eva, by Basic Grey for Moda, we have jelly rolls and fabric, look under Eva, in the left hand column.This range moves from the softest pinks and greens to the dramatic grape colours. It really is lovely.

 

Janome have a new catalogue for November, with some amazing specials on quilting and embroidery machines. I have posted a ctalogue here, just click on it to open and all will be revealed!! john and I both went to Melbourne for Janomes 40th anniversary celebration, we had a blast, I got two meet the two lovely ladies from head office, Dawn and Sonya..(boy can she move on the dance floor!!), these ladies have been my life line for the two years that Tinkers Cart have sold Janome. Tinkers Cart is now Townsvilles exclusive Janome dealer and that is something we are very proud of, Janome machines are a pleasure to use and a pleasure to sell.

Download 10801 Oct Mini Mailer_FINAL

Sonia and I did manage to get a photo with one of the guests of honour..Tonia Todman..photo coming soon. Tonia was and is again the face of Janome Australia. You see what Tonia is up to by visiting her site www.toniatodman.com.

On a personal note, I would like to take the oportunity to thank Tinkers Carts many loyal customers, those who attend our classes, purchase fabric and Janome machines from the shop and support us generally. We support artists by ensuring that no patterns are photocopied..a big no no..and keep the money in our town, circulating. A huge thank you to Carmel, Saturday girl and Wednesday night adjudicator, Dianne, machine embroider y, Saturday mornings, and the fabulous Sue, my longest serving employee, Thursday mornings and Tuesday nights, and soon to be Dressmaking on Tuesday mornings. These girls are the back bone of our shop, as are our classes, most of which are booked out, a testiment to the quality of our teachers and customers, I thank you all for making my dream of running a Patchwork shop, come true. All the best for now Tracy
 

   

 
 

 

block one and two..Gingham Girls BOM

This is block one of Gingham girls BOM..I will finish this tomorrow..I did promise Tania this pic yesterday..Sorry Tania!!!

and so to home..

Remember the tag that the girls made for me, I did have it with me in my handbag..but I kept forgetting to take it out..so these are som intimate moments of the tag on hols, taken by my husband John!

 

 

We are leaving Dublin tomorrow and will be home mid week. I really need to give my CEO Carmel a huge thanks for holding the fort while we have been away. We have a Janome catalogue out at the moment and it has been busy at Tinkers Cart, we also have some lovely new fabrics in and we will have the full Rosalie Quinlan range in as soon as it hits our shores. We will also be carrying the new range of embroidery threads by Lecien.

Carmel has handled everything beautifully and as far as I know Tinkers Cart is still standing..so thank you Carmel..sweetie..you are the best!!

See you soon, Tracy xoxox

Amsterdam

We tried just about everything Amstredam had to offer..and yes I did inhale!!! Then back to London for a night and back to Dublin.

 

These beautiful deer were at Roundwood, in Wicklow, close to where I grew up, and they were just by the roadside.

 

but wait..there is more..

 

Of course, we had to have a visit to Harrods, just devine!!! Then a quick flight to the beautiful city of Amsterdam, the weather was warm, the people were VERY mellow and the whole experience is one that I will never forget, and we will definitely be going back, we only stayed 5 nights and I could have stayed for a month!! We just walked and lost ourselves in the atmosphere, nothing was frowned upon, anything went!!

After our day on the island we spent the night with my cousin Susan and her hubby Tony, in their home in Galway, it was lovely to catch up after 28 yrs!!!

We then decided that the weather was pretty poor, so we jumped on to a car ferry in Dublin and sailed across to Holyhead, in Wales, that only took 2.5 hrs but then we had a 7hr bus trip to London. We arrived bleary eyed at 7.30 am and quickly found accomadation in Earls Court..we didn't know, but it is a popular place amongst Aussies and is sometimes called Kangaroo court!! Our youngest daughter Elle is obsessed with Dr Who, and we couln't belive our eyes when we found this treasure at the entrance to Earls Court subway.

This is gorgeous John on top of the lion at Trafalgar Square.