Hi! My name is Amber. I live in an old house in Melbourne, Australia. Since my beautiful baby boy, Bunny, was born in late 2012, I have been been rediscovering my love of fabrics and sewing.
I got my first sewing machine when I was about five or six. It had a tiny little shuttle bobbin and no pedal - I had to flip a switch to start and stop, so my first and last stitches were always especially wobbly. My Mum taught me to sew on that tiny machine and later on her Elna. Sewing was part of Home Economics at school, but I confess I was not inspired by the shorts and duffel bag we made in that class! When I was studying at university, I worked at a fabric shop in the bridal and formal fabrics department, helping brides choose their fabrics, calculating yardage, cutting fabrics and helping to choose notions. I loved working in the fabric shop - going to work was a chance to play with the beautiful silks, laces and trims. I even made some of my own dresses for university balls!
Then I finished university and my career took over. Sadly, I barely picked up needle and thread for ten years.
Now, for the first time in years, since I finished my degrees, I feel like I have space to be creative and to appreciate the slow process of making beautiful things. This time around, I find myself passionate about quilting, crafting and projects for the home and, above all, my precious baby boy.
Part of my journey involves photography which is, for me, a way of expressing my appreciation of beautiful fabrics, notions and projects. I enrolled in a short photography course in 2010 and I feel like I have found, in fabrics and sewing, a subject that I am passionate about photographing.
I am so excited to have the chance to keep this journal as a record of my creative life and to be part of the online sewing and quilting community.
Amber x
Dapple & Grey
The name "Dapple & Grey" came about after my baby boy, Bunny, was born. I was teaching myself some lullabies to try to help Bunny sleep (he was crying for hours every night between 8pm and midnight). At the same time, I was thinking about starting a blog. I was learning "All the Pretty Little Horses", when I came across these lines-
Hush-a-bye, don't you cry Go to sleepy, little baby
When you wake, you shall have
All the pretty little horses
Black and bay, and dapple and grey
All the pretty little horses
And so I called my blog, "Dapple and Grey - All the Pretty Little Projects". And Bunny is now a wonderful sleeper! Sometimes Bunny even sleeps long enough during the day that I finish my chores and treat myself to a cup of English Breakfast Tea and some sewing!
I got my first sewing machine when I was about five or six. It had a tiny little shuttle bobbin and no pedal - I had to flip a switch to start and stop, so my first and last stitches were always especially wobbly. My Mum taught me to sew on that tiny machine and later on her Elna. Sewing was part of Home Economics at school, but I confess I was not inspired by the shorts and duffel bag we made in that class! When I was studying at university, I worked at a fabric shop in the bridal and formal fabrics department, helping brides choose their fabrics, calculating yardage, cutting fabrics and helping to choose notions. I loved working in the fabric shop - going to work was a chance to play with the beautiful silks, laces and trims. I even made some of my own dresses for university balls!
Then I finished university and my career took over. Sadly, I barely picked up needle and thread for ten years.
Now, for the first time in years, since I finished my degrees, I feel like I have space to be creative and to appreciate the slow process of making beautiful things. This time around, I find myself passionate about quilting, crafting and projects for the home and, above all, my precious baby boy.
Part of my journey involves photography which is, for me, a way of expressing my appreciation of beautiful fabrics, notions and projects. I enrolled in a short photography course in 2010 and I feel like I have found, in fabrics and sewing, a subject that I am passionate about photographing.
I am so excited to have the chance to keep this journal as a record of my creative life and to be part of the online sewing and quilting community.
Amber x
Dapple & Grey
The name "Dapple & Grey" came about after my baby boy, Bunny, was born. I was teaching myself some lullabies to try to help Bunny sleep (he was crying for hours every night between 8pm and midnight). At the same time, I was thinking about starting a blog. I was learning "All the Pretty Little Horses", when I came across these lines-
Hush-a-bye, don't you cry Go to sleepy, little baby
When you wake, you shall have
All the pretty little horses
Black and bay, and dapple and grey
All the pretty little horses
And so I called my blog, "Dapple and Grey - All the Pretty Little Projects". And Bunny is now a wonderful sleeper! Sometimes Bunny even sleeps long enough during the day that I finish my chores and treat myself to a cup of English Breakfast Tea and some sewing!
