What did I do in Melbourne?

-------Well to start with I went to visit Dot whom you all know as the creator of the original Dotee doll.

We went and had lunch at a little eating place on the foreshore at Mornington.

And I have to admit I had the best fish and chips with salad that I have ever eaten.

Later we went back to Dot's place and I got to meet her famous kitties that she mentions regularly on her blog and I swear they are humans from another life.

I got to see all the lovely things that Dot has received from all her blogger friends and also some of the wonderful art that she produces.

But the best thing of all was that I was able to purchase one of these beautiful pieces for myself.

You really have to hold one of these treasures in your hands to appreciate all the work that goes into the making of them.

So many tiny stitches and beautiful Swarovsky beads --I just had to have one of them (pictured above)

The other thing that I did was visit a new friend that I have made over the last 2 years.

Kate owns Buttonmania which is a wonderful shop that sells buttons.

But not only does she sell buttons she has also has a business that covers buttons and belt buckles.

Most of the top designers in Australia use her services to cover buttons etc for their fashion garments.

Well-- I spent 3 afternoons in her workroom watching as she went about the business of filling all the orders that she had.

Here is Kate and George who works for her.

The machines in the front of the photo are used to cover the buttons.

Kate is making a belt for a client.

I offered to make up some Crazy Patchwork packs of silk fabrics for her to sell and was I in fabric heaven?---you betcha.

There were pieces of fabrics that would be at least $150. a metre and I just fondled them.

Before Kate purchased the button business she was a wonderful dressmaker and so she had boxes and boxes of pieces of fabrics-nearly all silks--drool-drool :-)

I wish you could have all seen me playing with these fabrics--like a kid in a lolly shop.

I am sorry that the photo of Dot's collage is in the wrong place but somehow it got deleted and I had to reload it onto the blog again-and if I tried to move it to where it should be-then you wouldn't be able to click on it to enlarge it.