5.3.13

 My little Blue Bird of Happiness has not found the seed feeders we put up.

But Mr. and Mrs. have! They spent the better part of  yesterday morning busily stock up. Are they orioles? I will look them up and tell you. No, they are GOLD finches! Look right here.

Isn't he a funny fellow? He knows I am taking pictures.

Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal have been by, also. He stands guard and she forages on the ground beneath the feeders with the sparrows. She is very hard to spot until she turns and you can see her light orange beak.

5.2.13

This one goes right along with "Now, why did I come into this room?" Read and enjoy and then visit this page again at the end of the day and say to yourself, "Where have I seen this before?"

5.1.13

ONE of my daffodils

Happy May Day! When I lived with my grandmother, we celebrated May Day. We made paper baskets and went to her friends' houses and put them on the doorknobs. The first time I was kindergarten age.

Wild Johnny Jump Ups in the rocks bordering our path.

It was great fun to run away while her friends pretended to chase me to give me a kiss. 
 

Mom tells me this is Blue Flag

What I remember about May when I was in sixth grade was a visit to the family cemetery plots. When I remember this trip, I really only remember Auntie and Grammie Minnie.. 

I believe this is a white pansy that escaped the

 basket from last year

Perhaps Auntie drove and Grammie stayed back with my brothers or maybe we were all there but I just have a little fractal picture of that day.

Whatever the case, the WORLD seems to celebrate May with flowers so here are some for you to enjoy.

4.30.13

TEA TIME TUESDAY
That's my "friend" (on FaceBook), George Takei. He is TRIPLE A. 

Actor

Author

Activist

Go read his blog. Go see his Broadway play, Allegience. Go buy his book. Oh, MY!

4.29.13

Monday Thought for the Week

Me? I will grow flowers.

4.28.13

If I am not sewing, and I SHOULD be if I feel up to it, I am probably thinking about these two patterns and which I will chose to make for a new lunch box. I have loved my lunch boxes, but I found a weird little piece of fabric and I need a bigger space INSIDE the carriers I have, so that was all the excuse I needed to go shopping.
These are from FUNNY RABBIT on ETSY.

Called a Cosmetic Bag, it comes in two sizes. Looks like it has potential.

Called the Boston Satchel. I will make changes to handles and zipper, I think.

4.27.13

I have been lying low and just making plans rather than actually doing much sewing. It is much easier on the back. Here is a book I won at a recent guild meeting. It has a lot of interesting ideas.

But I have to admit, my favorite recent book acquisition is this one by Eleanor Burns.

She is the master of technique. Her sister, Patty Knoechel, came to the guild and spoke and before I knew what I was doing, I owned one of these books. It has already given me a lot of pleasure.

4.26.13

Finished up the Audrey class, yesterday, with a great foundation paper-pieced bonus lesson from Debbie Lachmiller. We gave Audrey a pretty pendant in the shape of a sampler quilt and I made her a wristlet-wallet and sewing angel.

I put a carabiner on the wristlet so she could have hands-free shopping. She said she has the angel hanging in her sewing room. It was a pleasure making dolls again. This one is based heavily on an elinor peace bailey pattern.

4.25.13

I was asked not long ago, if I had any pink dogwood in my yard. No, just the one, lonely, confused, white blossoming one I showed last year. But I DID happen across one at the fabric store in Blairsville. I did not have my regular camera, so these are shot with the iPad.

If you have seen dogwood in the woods while driving around here in the Southern Appalachians, did you think the blossoms were this dark? I know I was very surprised.  Look at these pictures I took at the library last year.

I believe I better hunt up those pictures I took of the daffodils. They DID actually bloom though they look like rebloom is not going to happen.

4.24.13

Jedi Dog Art Magnet by Brian Rubenacker

Yes, I believe OUR little dog would make a GREAT Jedi Master. The artwork is by Brian Rubenacker. Click HERE to see some of his work. He does interesting dog-centric, poster style statements. Brian uses a color palette that appeals to me and reminds me of lithographic work of the early 20th century, though the subject matter decidedly shows his quirky sense of humor.

Many of you know about our wonderful dachshund, Lily. Sunday marks her seventh birthday. She has always been an unusually smart (manipulative?) dog. When she was very young, she learned to ring a bell when she wanted to "go outside". From then on, she would  ring the bell every time she wanted to be out whether to play OR do her business. She would ring the bell at the front door and then dash for the back door which led to her play yard. We had to put in a second bell just for the play yard. That did NOT keep her from ringing the bell for attention and then once outside, making a "fake pee" in order to receive a treat. She still does that.

She  knew her treats were behind a particularly heavy, spring-latched cabinet door in the kitchen. If we were all busy, sometimes we would hear (nudge) BAM BAm-bam-bam. If anyone came out to the kitchen to see what the noise was about, there she sat, waiting for a treat.

I taught her to "whisper" bark one tiny little bark to gently wake up her Grand-dad (my husband). She learned that trick so quickly I was amazed

We had a Family Thanksgiving Dinner one year. She whined all through the meal so HomeSon trained her to go to her bed whenever anyone had food. MOST of the time now, when someone fixes food, after she "vacuums" the kitchen floor, she dashes for her bed. If she doesn't, HomeSon reminds her and she GRUMBLES like back talk!

After her Grand-dad and I retired,  she settled into a routine quite nicely. She rings the bell at 6:00 every night and will bark if ignored because she expects someone to be making dinner and nothing else will please her. At 9:45 in the evening, she makes one quiet little RAF to remind me that it is time for her dental health treat. If I don't respond, she will ring the bell.

On second thought, maybe Lily should NOT be permitted Jedi training. She seems to be doing pretty well without it. I worry to think what changes would come over our household.  To paraphrase the Obi Wan character, "These are the treats you are looking for."
 

4.23.13

Well, I THINK I am finished whining about my back. It still has issues but I am trying not to make them everyone's issues.
TEA TIME TUESDAY
Frosty weather Friday, Saturday and early Sunday had me wishing for

Sagaform Retro-inspired teapot. It was carried by Zulily.com but is no longer for sale. That's okay, I put one in my collection, JUST LIKE THAT (snaps fingers)

4.3.13

Sorry, my back is hurting AND I have been doing a little studio disaster control. The two phenomena are  unrelated but PAINFUL. Blog will resume when I am finished whining.

4.2.13

TEA TIME TUESDAY
I think this is an enamel kettle. I like the shape and the robin's egg blue color. Or is that Tiffany Blue? Anyway, it is now in my collection. I will have a cup of licorice tea and think about this little kettle.

4.1.13

EVERYone could use a little Chinese (Chinese-American) philosophy. Make a definite move. Hmm. Okay. If you are reading this, put your computer on sleep and make your move!

3.31.13

You know how I like weird architecture and giant whimsy. This was spotted on our recent Macon trip outside a flooring store. Why not.

3.30.13

Getting my TREK on. Wish I had a Featherweight even withOUT an Enterprise attachment.

3.29.13

This is a block I designed called Best Friends Block. It is a 12" finished square and has two friendship stars in it. What you do is select two fabrics for the stars--one is to be YOUR favorite color, the other the favorite color of one of your friends. When you assemble them, switch out the hearts so she has yours and you have hers. The above is the second one I made. At first, I thought scrappy creams would be great for the background fabrics. But look. My neutral/creams are kind of spotty. I even used some backside-front and coffee dyed the white ones. No go, so I settled with the above.

3.28.13

Mauvelous Day For Sailing, Dahling!

This little quilt fulfills requirements for TWO challenges. The crayon I drew for the Pieceful Mountain Quilt Guild's Crayon Challenge is called Mauvelous. The color has to be MOST of the quilt and the name of the crayon has to be in the quilt title. Since I hate MAUVE, this little quilt fit right in with the SmallTalk Yahoo Group March Challenge of HST (Half-Square Triangles) using "ugly fabrics". So, there you have it.

3.27.13

Did I tell you that I am making TWO quilts for my Audrey class? I am almost finished with the blocks for my kindergarten quilt and I am a little behind with the ones for my more advanced schematic. Kindergarten blocks are all red, yellow, and orange. I will sash them together using white strips and royal blue cornerstones.  The other quilt is ALSO red, yellow, and orange but each block uses black and all blocks relate to farm fowl. The one above is called Birds in Flight. I imagine the little triangles as the younger birds following the bigger birds.

3.28.13

Isn't this a great idea? It is by designer Mark Huang. Happy Tea Time Tuesday!

3.25.13

Hindsight is healthy when it is followed by progress.

I don't know who ELSE said that, but one of my beautiful nieces did. Thanks, Chicklet, that is a good one.

So what is the chant for the week?

I am getting better and better. 

3.24.13

 

It  rained a lot on the way down to Macon but we were able to go to the Arts and Crafts Exhibit. Then we went to the Allman Brothers Band Museum. On the way out of town, we stopped in a parking lot and I got some close-ups of a few of the blossoms. Aren't they pretty? After they bloom they look very white but while in bud, dark pink.

3.23.13

We are gone today, to Macon to see the Cherry Festival. It is raining like crazy right now but supposed to clear up. Hope so. The drive is a 6 hour round trip on a good day. I would hate to get there and than have to turn around.

3.22.13

Southern Appalachian Modern Quilt Guild March Challenge. I enjoyed making this little thing. It is a little longer and narrower than a standard sheet of printer paper. I hand appliqued, did some hand embroidery in a variegated green perle cotton, then machine stitched the rest of the "channels". The batting is what makes it look a little formal. I used a hunk of leftover fusible fleece so the filler is denser and more consistent than the standard batt.

I am a little disappointed with the way this guild seems to be forming up. I had hoped to find  new, exciting things but at the last meeting, it seems they want to find a charity to support and everyone agreed to do an online block of the month tutorial. It looks like it is just going to be the same old same old. I will hang in there and see if it takes a new direction. Of course, I could use the block-month as my own personal challenge to go modern and quit whining. 

They have scheduled a trip to a long-arm machine business that two of our members run and I am sorry to miss it but it will be on the night of one of my other guild meetings. If every field trip lines up that way, I am going to be further disappointed.

3.21.13

So. I am in class. But you get to see what I won from Kit Lang Fiber Arts. Go check out her website and then marvel at what I am about to receive:

 Yes. A book, some fabric, and some AURIFIL. I am LUCKY.

3.20.13

KD's Flower Basket

This is the last of KD's blocks that I photographed. I think she may have some vintage feedsacks in her stash. Each one is lovely. I could imagine them framed and on the wall in a little cottage like the one I showed you a few days back.

Yesterday, I got a lap sized quilt "sammached", and I also had time to "sammach" the little ugly one. Sammaching means stretching out the backing and taping it to a table, spray basting the batt to it and then spray basting the top to the batt. Smoothe everything out, then pin it with special curved safety pins. I have another which is ready but I don't have any more pins. In the mean time, I am trying to keep up with my Audrey assignments. I have almost caught up to where I wanted to be for Kindergarten, but I have so many more blocks to make for the quilt I drafted for the grade 1/2 levels.

She keeps having us do complicated blocks which I did not include in my draft so my plan is having to wait a little. Right HERE is where I would insert a picture of my kaleidoscope block but I haven't photographed it yet. Maybe I will get somewhere on my feathered star tomorrow and have a photo session. If not, when you return here tomorrow, there won't be anything new to see, probably.

I haven't yet had time to work on my Blue and White BOM (block of the month), this month's Scrappy, (I usually get those done the first two days after they are handed out),or my Barn of the month. Plus, I will be in class all day Thursday, busy all day Friday, out of town on Saturday, and packing for a doll and bear display on Sunday. And the next week, our class got moved to the same day I have to set up the doll and bear display. I am feeling a little jammed up.

3.19.13

TEA TIME TUESDAY
Come see what I just added to my virtual tea collection! Isn't the pattern pretty? It reminds me of the seeds we planted this weekend.

 
Want one? Get it here.

3.18.13

 Monday Mantra

A goal without a plan is just a dream.

~Herm Edwards

My mantra this week is, "Follow through." 

3.17.13

MARDI GRAS Quilt Pattern from Butterfly Threads

Look! I won another contest! This came from Butterfly Threads. No, Not the quilt. I won the pattern and a copy of QUILT magazine and maybe another surprise.

And here is some more quilty happiness from KD, my Audrey classmate.






KD says she gets some of her ideas from kids' coloring books. Good idea!

3.16.13

Happy International Quilt Day! 
I am going to help you celebrate by showing you more of KD's applique. The watering can is sweet, 




 but I especially like the little cottage and tree. I have a few things going with this type of 30s feedsack style fabric but nothing as ambitious as this.

I won another contest. This is a package of charm squares--5"--and these are all Kona solid darks. They were part of a blog hop giveaway from Fabric Engineer.

I am not sure what I am going to do with them. Whatever it is, it will be filled with pretty colors!

 Maybe I will do THIS. Made from charm packs.  I am working on making a back for this quilt today. I will piece it from Kona Snow yardage and a couple blue and green charms left over from the top. I had a package of Kona Snow charms and I just bought more of the yardage to finish it off. Good think I did. You can't have enough white if you are doing modern quilting.

and then on to work on THIS one. More charm packs, beautiful oranges, reds, violets, fuschia, yellow with milk chocolate brown. I plan to hand quilt but we will see.