Somewhere In Time

I Think You Will Like This

2012-01-20T19:46:00.000-08:00

If you have not seen this book it is time you check it out. As you can see at the bottom this is published by the wonderful French publisher "Quilt Mania." For me this was a Christmas gift from my dear friend Kathleen J. I am so blessed with friends like her. This book is written both in French and English. There are thirty two featured red and green quilts and five of them are profiled with templates and and instructions. With little time to sew these days, I am so glad for books like this one. I hope you go to the Quilt mania web sight to view this in all it's glory. You can turn the pages and see many of the wonderful quilts. Come back and tell me what you think.

Aunty Green January 2012

2012-01-11T19:16:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a long time but hope you like what you see so far. Don't forget I have to draft the patterns myself as we only received one corner of the medallion, the lower right. It is not easy for me to draw so I have to agonize for sometime before I get it right. In any case I was able to work things out and so here it is. I love working on this but have little time during the day and am often too tired in the evening.
I continue to rely on my fabrics for inspiration in this special class. I hope you have seen the original quilt. Full of flowers in every shape and size. I hope to have more time to work on this project as winter sets in here in the Ozarks. There is a little snow in the forecast tonight and perhaps that will mean time to stitch after therapy, laundry, cooking, well enough to give you an idea.

I do notice that a great many of you are also quilters. How about an online quilt show. I would so love to see what you are doing. There is something about a quilter, don't you think? I do appreciate all of your kindness and concern for my family and hope you continue to drop by. I will be watching for you.

Sometimes there is Joy

2012-01-11T18:01:00.000-08:00

As many of you already know this last year and a half has been difficult for our family. Having said that there have been moments of real joy. A daughter and son-in-law who have stepped up and stepped forward to help in every way possible. Joy! A son who when he was convinced his dad was not going to die stepped up to care for the hero in his life. Joy! A grandchild by family who rarely gives a hug who always hugs her papa coming and going. Joy! Grand daughters by marriage who visit by choice and have conversations with papa that make him laugh. Joy! And then there is LuLu at the top of this story. It would take all day to tell you about LuLu so I will share a few highlights. She is a precious, smart little girl. She is the fifteen month old who walked down the hallway of the skilled nursing facility calling "papa, papa, where are you papa?" Upon entering the room she would head for the electronics which in this case meant the panel of buttons that operated the hospital bed! She is the little girl, who, when she sees you will run across the room and throw herself into your arms. Often she will tell you how happy she is to see you, her words not mine. Did I mention she is only two? There is also a rumor that she sings gospel. Oh Joy! As it turns out she is also a world class Christmas package opener as the photo above attests. I think the Hello Kitty on that gift bag really had a ride!! Such Joy. I am so grateful for my family. Even in the midst of chaos one still needs the Joy. Thank you for mine.

Remember Him?

2012-01-11T05:21:00.000-08:00

You have seen this guy before. This is my youngest child, Daniel when in trouble, Dan when he is acting like a grown up and Danny when the sweetness of his nature comes to the surface. He is an adult with developmental disabilities and always struggling to be seen as an sdult with his act together. I have always worried about Dan and what would become of him as he grew older. I am the most fortunate of mom's as both my children have grown up to be good caring adults who often put others ahead of themselves. Danny will call to let me know there is an Amber alert for a lost child and continue to update me until the problem is resolved. When he was a little guy he began to look forward to the day when he would have a car of his own. Since I am always looking ahead I worried what might happen when the magical age of sixteen came around and he did not get that car he was dreaming about. That day came and went and he simply continued to speak of someday.......

His dad had several strokes over the last year and a half and it was quite awhile before Danny stopped asking me if his dad was going to die. Like his older sister he began to be one of the care givers in the family. He fetches for dad, wheels him in to dinner or to the bathroom, watches over him outside and endlessly uses dad's laptop to search out the web sight of his high school or any new news of his beloved "Dukes of Hazard"
I have not had as much time as I would have to attend to Danny's needs over the last year and counting, much to my sorrow. I often feel guilty about that. His sister and "brother" have been amazing. I don't know what I would have done without them. However, it seems that without even trying I have hit a home run with the boy in my dreams. The shoes above look a lot like the ones we bought for Dad to use during the months of therapy and beyond.

A friend of Dan's at the apartment complex shared with us a sweet little thing he had observed about Danny since the new shoes arrived. Danny does not walk on the grass because he doesn't want to get his new shoes dirty. Oh that makes me smile! Those of you in my situation will understand how I felt. As Danny grew up and older I remember hoping, perhaps praying that I could always see that little boy inside the man struggling to be a grown up. The little guy who could always make me smile. It has been a long year Danny but you did it.

Sometimes I cook

2012-01-10T17:59:00.000-08:00

I do cook although these days I am not sure just why. I suspect that with so much going on in our lives it has had a real impact on my concentration and therefore on my success in the kitchen. My pot roast is not as tender as I remember. These days everything also seems a little off. But a girl has to eat. So when I received a really pretty red pie pan with a ruffled edge from two of my favorite nephews, I knew I had to try again. There was a recipe inside!

This recipe has quickly become a favorite around here so I am going to share. I think this is a first for me as I usually write about quilting with family and friends scattered in as well. However this is an easy and tasty dish and I have decided you need to try this for a quick, popular dish.

Easy Taco Pie

Ingredients:

One can of crescent rolls.
One pound lean ground beef.
One eight ounce container of sour cream.
One eight ounce package of finely shredded mild cheddar cheese.
One package taco seasoning (dry).
1/2 pkg water. Use taco seasoning package.
1/2 bag crushed tortilla chips. ( I used really thin chips)

Spray a pie plate with cooking spray.Line the pie plate with the crescent Rolls, making sure to overlap. Fill any gaps and bring up to the edge.sprinkle with half of the tortilla chips. Brown and drain beef. Add taco seasoning and water. Simmer for ten minutes. Top crescent rolls with the meat mixture. Top with sour cream, shredded cheese and remaining tortilla chips. bake in a 350* oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Serve with extra sour cream, salsa, or salsa con queso or other toppings of your choice. It has a casual look and tasted really good.

Thanks for dropping by. I promise to get back to regular quilt related posts very soon. I will post progress on Aunty Green in a day or so.

I know it has been awhile

2011-12-25T16:20:00.000-08:00

This young lady has graced the Thompson tree tops for 49 years. For the the majority of those years our oldest child has been the one to set it in place atop the tree. Our very first Christmas we had a tree with blue balls that my husband wired up with tiny lights inside. We thought we were very cool! However the very next year we found this pretty little angel in a local florist shop and we never looked back. Early on she sat on daddy's shoulder, graduated to a step stool and finally for about nine years she placed the angel on top by climbing upstairs and reaching down to put her in place. We have a lot of sentiment for this piece. tattered though she is we can't bring ourselves to replace her. We tried for a few years to get another so we could preserve the original with no luck. So she will probably fall completely apart some day but she has had a good run.

It has been awhile what with life and now Christmas. I don't have much in the way of quilting to speak about but what I do have is awesome. My daughter gifted me with the book, "The Quilter's Hall of Fame" It is beautiful. The images take my breathe away. There are stories about some of our favorite quilters. Go look, you are going to want this book too.

The photo above is my Christmas tree this year. It is four feet tall, the smallest tree I ever remember having. I have taken a number of pictures during the day, morning and afternoon, even at night but no matter what it looks like a Charley Brown tree. Now I admit this is not my usual style. My trees are usually very sentimental, with ornaments I made myself perhaps, often ornaments made especially for me by dear friends and family. I usually begin decorating the day after Thanksgiving. But things have not been usual for awhile. My time to get ready for Christmas is not the same anymore. So I did most of my shopping online and haunted the mail box everyday because I was so worried someone would be slighted if their gift was late in coming.

That day after Thanksgiving when I decided to begin sprucing up for the holiday it hit me. There was no way I could put a tree on the floor. Never mind that two year old Lulu would be here but a big tree would get in the way of home therapy which we do every day seven days a week. Wheel chairs, hemi-canes, splints, towel slides, braces, OT, PT and ST rule the day in this house. So, move over Charley Brown, we are here.
I bought this tree last year. This tree is seven feet tall and decorated more in my style. Dale was not home yet. He had spent a month in the hospital and was transferred to Quail Creek, a skilled nursing facility to spend his 100 days. We celebrated Thanksgiving in the hospital and Christmas in the care center. He came home in late March and the tree and decorations were there for him to see.

Now this tree was our first tree in Missouri. Nine feet with a lot of room to spare. Loved it, but they last only so long. There were some wonderful as well as sad times. This is the only tree we had that actually was not decorated that first year. Bare. Fifty years together and one undecorated tree. Depression can be a very bad thing. However we weathered that storm and moved on. As I write this I realize it is probably boring to all of you. I have come to believe that boring can be a good thing. I hope that you have had a wonderful holiday and if not that you are able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Merry Christmas to you and yours. I hope you are surrounded by those you love and those who love you back,

Something to Think About

2011-11-24T20:37:00.000-08:00

If you look to the left you will see the book I recently added to my collection. The Help is one of those books you cannot put down. Today I saw the movie and have to say it was amazing. My stomach actually clinched in the same places it did while reading the book. I promise, I am not starting a book club here. I am after all a quilter!!! however, I would love to hear from those of you who also read this book, and what your feelings are. It took my breath away.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T20:00:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone. I hope you have had a great day filled with family and friends. I almost forgot to send best wishes early enough for you to know I am thinking of you on this special family day so here I am. Our family sometimes has a hard time gathering everyone together so this year we will sit down to turkey, dressing, Aunt Bee's yummy jello salad, Kelly's pumpkin pie and grandma's bread which Kelly converted from hand kneading to bread machine perfection, Carrie's sweet potato casserole, my own apple and chocolate pies and so much more to celebrate on Saturday. It is so worth it to have almost everyone we love and care for in one room. We learned a long time ago that is is not the day or the time of day but the people that counts. My children could tell you that it was really hard to wait for daddy to get home on Christmas morning. For many years he worked third shift and weekends. Poor guy, he managed to stay awake but when the festivities were over look out! So if you celebrated today I hope it was a good one. You deserve it.
I am doing very little quilting right now because home therapy rules the day for now. I promise, if I do add something I will share it instantly!!

Today I am Seventy

2011-11-02T05:25:00.000-07:00

Well, the days get away from us all at times but I must say this is a big one for me. When, how did I become seventy years old and have it turn out to be a surprise to me? I knew it was coming, as it is one of those inevitable things for all of us. So here it is and I find myself wondering where fifty went! I suppose we all had moms that told us year after year that they were only 29, again. I know mine did. Over time as I grew older I realized that perhaps my generation really was younger than the one that came before. I can certainly see that in my children's lives . They are younger seeming and also more attuned to technology. That doesn't even address the grandchildren. Our thirteen year old has been able to do a power point for years, me not so much. She keeps Mimi and papa in line for the most part.

This last year and a half has been difficult, and I do feel I have aged more than I might have under different circumstances but nevertheless I still wake up most mornings thinking initially once more that I am fifty. It could be denial I suppose but I don't think so. I am grateful to be as healthy as I am. Life could be so much more difficult.

Life does go on and so I share the flower above. I didn't plant it, I don't know where it came from, but it made me feel better that day. I passed the planter almost every day and saw the stem and leaves evolve and would often think that the next time I come out here I should pull that weed. Understand that in addition to losing a large number of my perenials last winter due to really cold weather, I have not had time to garden a whole lot so confined what I did do to the front garden. This pretty yellow bloom was the only color in the back yard this year. So happy I did not pull it in it's infancy.

Not Quilting for now

2011-10-15T19:39:00.000-07:00

Life once again gets in the way and that is the case for me right now. I am still learning the right way to do physical, occupational and speech therapy at home. It has been at times daunting and difficult. I think I am finally developing a routine, but it still takes a long time to get through everything expected. Even if we begin by nine o'clock, we do not finish until well past two. Then there are days like yesterday.

I will begin by introducing you to Danny, our adult son with developmental disabilities. Danny is a pretty good guy and he definitely loves the girl in his arms. "Samantha" hasn't been herself lately and so Dan has been pretty concerned. Over the last few weeks we have observed that she was hard of hearing and shortly thereafter that she was also losing her sight. She appeared not to be hurting because every time someone petted her she would purr and push against your hand. Yesterday was different. She stopped purring and simply went to sleep. Before long she was gone. I have to admit that she and I were not always compatible. Over the course of her life and mine, she bit me viciously , twice. Each time she was provoked by a strange cat walking across the patio. I had the audacity to move and she struck.

Now, having said that, I have over the years come to an understanding with Sammy because Danny loved her so much. Danny never a vet appointment, not one. He held her closely after she had her shots and reassured her that this was good thing, and babied her always. Sammy lived with my husband and myself because it cost a lot of money to keep a cat in an apartment. He visited her often. When he comes to visit he he always sought her out and they had some serious conversations. I found myself weeping yesterday while I buried her. Weeping for her and for Danny. Danny has taken a stance of no speaking about his loss, period. He is my son, I have known him for 45 years. I know we will speak of this but not until he processes his feelings.

Another thing you should know about Samantha. She was born 23 years ago on Halloween day. I had hoped she would still be here for her birthday but it was not to be. For now I will keep my eyes and ears open and Dan will talk about her again.

Still thinking about my trip to the International Study Center

2011-09-18T05:31:00.000-07:00

I am still going over in my mind the quick trip we made to the museum in Lincoln NE. First of all it is an incredibly beautiful facility. It was built entirely green and therefor a point of pride to those involved in it's creation. It is dedicated to the preservation and sharing of the richly diverse collection. What it means to someone like me is that there are many vintage quilts. I learned early on that was where my heart would always land. Our trip this year was pretty quick and I would have enjoyed a longer stay, but nevertheless enjoyable. The quilt seen above was a real favorite of mine. I wish you could see it first hand as it is exquisitely crafted. The maker was especially gifted. Of course it doesn't hurt that this is red and green, my favorite pallet. Those red flowers with the reverse applique slits add a new level of interest for me.

If I ever get the chance to make a quilt like this, I would definitely like to use a form of this border. On this side alone there is an eagle, a cornucopia filled with flowers from which the vine is escaping and stars . At the top of the quilt a vase containing more flowers and an extension of the beautiful vine. Take the opportunity to click on the image and catch your breath in the beauty of the quilting. No matter what the quilting is always my favorite. Okay. I admit it everything about a quilt such as this one is always my favorite. yes, I love it all. Thanks for coming. I hope you keep returning.

International Quilt Study Center & Museum

2011-09-12T20:07:00.000-07:00

This was my third time to go to Baltimore On The Prairie in Omaha NE. as an instructor of Baltimore applique. The whole experience for me is always enhanced by the people in my classes and the quilts they bring. This year was really wonderful as usual. Students dedicated to learning as much as possible, beginners realizing their potential, in short an amazing experience for me and I think, for them. The spots for next year already more than half full before we left the building on the last day. The applique block above is a part of the Major Ringold which is part of the International Quilt Study Center & Museum in Ashland NE. If you haven't been, you need to go. At the very least get online and enjoy! Checkout this block for the various techniques. There are both ruched and stuffed roses, rose hairs and more. There is also a bible or album, so prevalent in the Baltimore quilts.

I loved the block above. It was referred to as a star flower design. I am so going to use this somewhere. I don't remember whether there is quilting in the flowers but they are large and so I will have to address that very thing.

Now. tell me, can you accidentally miss those stuffed roses. This stitcher was intent on making a statement and she did! Once again there is a lot of ruching.

In this block all of the roses as well as the buds are stuffed. There is a lot of black in this design. I speculate that because this appears to be a memorial quilt. There are three monuments and the black seems appropriate.

More ruching and a good closeup of the black hairs on the leaves and stems. This is a type of ruching on the outside edge with the center manipulated so it is contained. The white flower appears to have a button in the center? The red one has two layers of the most typical ruching. I haven't used this in just this way before but you can be sure I plan to do so.

The blue flower in the vase appears to be gathered from the center out rather than the way ruching tracks in a circle. Interesting. In this block we can see rose hairs around virtually every motif including the vase.

My first response upon seeing this block was awe! I am sure I was influenced by the sweet colors and shapes including the whimsical shape of the wreath itself. Pink. yellow, and blue in fondue print. It doesn't get better. This is a sweet block.
I am loving this too. Three simple flowers and the equally simple wreath above. Nice!

Remember the monuments I spoke of? This is one and and is similar to the others. This quilt appears to have been made during the Civil War because these images were common at that time.

This one is the Ringold monument and is upside down because this was my vantage and when I tried to turn it with my photo program it was just weird. So here we are. You know this monument is war related particularly because of the arsenal on either side. Nice design and the monument fabric is used on three of these designs. The fabric may have faded as the color shades from the top lilac color to brown. Brown often does this so it may not be the original shade.

Another monument similar to the other two.

This is an over view of this special quilt. I do wish I could have taken a full view. However the web sight of the International Quilt study center. They have over 5000 quilts!! Many online and a really user friendly web sight.

Aunty Green September 2011

2011-09-04T21:54:00.000-07:00

Well, things are pretty slow in the quilting department so have decided to share as I go rather than waiting to finish a section. I am quilting on the fly these days so not sure I will always be happy with the result. For this section I have only the one corner pattern and will have to draft my own for the other corners. I guess I will have to see how that goes. I know I am better than my ninth grade teacher thought I was but it will still be a struggle for me. Mrs Anton took me aside at the end of the semester and told me I was a delight, the kind of student any teacher would love to have but this was an art class and I was simply not up to it. Well, Mrs Anton I think I did find my art and because of you I spent most of my life in pursuit of just that.

This is a fascinating, complex pattern and in some ways I think I may not be up to it. Oh, I can do the work, but my time is somewhat limited these days and while the stitching is not difficult, it is still a little hard to have all the starts and stops connected with the care of a loved one.

But enough about that. What I want to share is the reason for my fabric choices. I am using a background that is a subtle tone on tone print in a buttery yellow. It is a departure from the original quilt but okay I think. As I study my photo of the quilt I am taken with the variety both in design and color of the fabrics. It is almost as if she had decided to make a charm quilt and that charms me. So, I will continue to add as many different fabrics as I can.

I am headed for Baltimore on the Prairie on Tuesday and hope to see you there. I will take pictures and share when I return home. Thank you for dropping by.

Baltimore on the Prairie

2011-08-31T21:14:00.000-07:00

I am getting ready for the conference "Baltimore on the Prairie." I am excited and a little chagrined that I have not addressed this year's program sooner. As I wind down in this part of my life working less away from home, I have come to treasure the time I spend at Eugene T Mahoney state park with a group of mostly women who love applique as much as I do. I wish you all could be there next week. Beautiful setting with a view of the Platte river. More than that, there will be quilts, lots of quilts. The photo above represents my workshops. On the left, my four day workshop, An Eagle in my Garden. The wreath in the center is embroidery and silk ribbon. The wreath on the right is cut work applique and is a one day workshop. Only three techniques, needle turn, perfect (?) circles and embroidered stems.

Okay, of course I know this is a kitchen counter. I also remember that I have a 500 square foot studio upstairs. The thing is that I need to be near my husband. He has given up taking chances for the most part but things still happen. However things still happen. Day before yesterday I walked into the kitchen knowing he was asleep in the living room in his wheel chair with the remote still in his hand ( sometimes he changes the channel in his sleep. Have you got one of those?) I swear i was gone for about a minute, When I came back, he was on the floor! Sigh... Seems he leaned a little to far and slid to the floor. So now we agree, no sleeping in that chair.
he has dodged five such falls since he came home. Did not get hurt. Long story short, I don't leave him alone much. Getting back to business, what you see is the beginning process I employ when making kits for my classes.

I always try to include items that are usually not available in the local fabric or quilt store. For instance in the above picture you see a small scrap of a favorite fabric with two chenille needles. Where I live, I was unable to buy those needles so got on the internet and ordered them from Clover. When people travel a long distance it is nice to find what you need at the conference.
Now last but not least is this to die for silk ribbon. This is another item no longer available in Springfield MO. Again the internet is my friend. These beauties will find their way into the kits I am composing even if I am getting a late start.

I do wish you were coming. be sure to look up the BOTP web sight for next years offerings. That's what I said, you can see what is happening next September!! Do not miss out. You will be sorry you missed the quilts, the friends, the view. I hope some of you will be there this year. Find me and tell me you heard from me on blogger. I always travel with chocolate!

Still recovering

2011-08-27T05:19:00.000-07:00

Willie Nelson he is not but since this country singer is one of Dale's favorites I have decided to use his image as an icon for this weeks experiences. As many of you know, Dale has been through a lot this last year and a lot of ups and downs. As I write this I recall many proud moments, not the least of which is the progress he has made in speech therapy. While his short term memory often remains illusive, the long term is often right o the money. Recently, I cleaned out the little pond we have in the back garden as it had stopped running and we both enjoy the sound of the water running through the old water pump and splashing below. After cleaning it still would not work so off I went to the hardware store to get a new one. Installed, it did nothing. However, Dale sent me to the big workbench in the garage to reset the outlet and shazam, the pump is working again. Because he has lost a lot I love it that he can feel like he is contributing in a real way.

He has gone from a feeding tube to a peg in his abdomen, from there to eating almost anything. I gave him an Ipad to use for memory issues. I am not sure he will admit it but he does really like using it to access the news, check his calendar for appointments everyday. In addition, it seems he enjoys a game of Angry Birds and a little solitaire a slot machine now and then.

Over the months since he finally came home we have had a pretty quiet household. Well, I should qualify that by saying he was quiet and I found myself turning into a little bit of a chatterbox perhaps trying to fill the void of silence. of course there was the television. tell me why do men have to watch five minutes of a program and move on to something else and later perhaps back to the first program, move on to... well you know what I mean.

In any case Dale's voice has been there but really soft these last months. A couple of days ago he had a surgical procedure that involved an injection into his vocal cords to hep them close when speaking and really important when swallowing. So the house remains especially quiet for this next week as he is not supposed to speak at all! Then two weeks of speaking softly. This is a temporary fix but hopefully with continuing speech therapy the cords will regain some of their strength and he will have that voice back again.

I know I have not posted for awhile, but I am busier than I ever expected to be. I am still working on Aunty Green and hope to share a little more progress in the next week or so. Then heading for Baltimore on the Prairie. Take care.

So how are you doing this summer?

2011-08-01T17:02:00.000-07:00

Kind of cute don't you think? Well, for me not so much. While things were better than usual ( I have a service ) the Japanese beetles visited my yard yet again. Six weeks of picking these things off my roses and and killing them on an individual basis has not put me in a good place. You can probably imagine my state of mind when I began seeing little piles of soil and then trails of soil on the grass. I looked on the Internet and found some really strange and fun ideas for getting rid of these creatures. The strangest solution involves sitting very close to a mound or tunnel, put your ear to the ground and when you hear activity use a spade to pound very hard on the ground. Kills em every time, not!! Used cat litter has a lot of fans. How about moth balls? You can walk around with a pitch fork and stab through the tunnels until you get lucky and stab the creature. You can also buy a package of poison worms and hope you place them in a really good place.

My yard has become a sort of mine field. Don't want the children playing back there because sometimes these soil piles are hidden by the grass. Almost turned an ankle last week myself. So, I hope you can imagine that when I saw a sign last week in my neighborhood ( Got Moles? ) that I instantly wrote down the phone number. I'm getting old. I wouldn't have remembered. Mr Rosiere came right away, set several traps and promised to come back. I ran my errands and could not resist going into the back yard to have a look. I stood there for just a few minutes when the trap nearest me snapped shut and then directly to my right another also snapped shut! Now is there a mole in either of the traps? I am not going to look. I was told that I probably only have one or two moles and wouldn't that be cool to be done with these guys? I should be so lucky! Hope to get back to posting about quilts soon,

Did you know

2011-07-18T20:57:00.001-07:00

I very rarely take pictures of food, let alone blog about it and this is the second time in a week! However, this time I am going to offer a tip. I hope some of you will be surprised and pleased. However I know I could be putting myself out there and turn out to be the only one who did not know this great idea. So here goes. Even though we check in with one another, it very often turns out to be related to my husbands therapy, quick texts and the like. So because I was lonely for my family I invited them to dinner. Kept it simple with a menu including lasagna, salad and garlic bread. Brownies for dessert. However the whole time I was mentally whining about the brownies. You know what I mean, what's not to like about chocolate? The only thing I can think of is how difficult it is to make a pretty dessert with brownies because getting a clean cut is next to impossible. Or so I thought. The internet is a wonderful thing. it was there I found all kinds of advice about this. At the end of the day the star is that small white, plastic knife. Who knew? Just a tiny bit of chocolate on the knife and very little crumbs hanging around. Either this is a really good thing or I am easily entertained. Perhaps a little of both

Aunty Green, a little progress.

2011-07-15T16:21:00.000-07:00

Just checking in with you. I know you think I will never finish but I really like this quilt and will keep at it until done. Come back for another installment in a few weeks. I think I will be moving right along. I again hope you will share some of your work with me.

My thanks to you all

2011-07-15T15:15:00.000-07:00

Almost four months into outpatient therapy, frustration and more than a few tears it was time to say thank you. Thank you dear friends for being so kind and writing so many notes of encouragement. In addition my thanks as well to everyone who works so hard to help Dale get well. So I baked cookies and cupcakes. seems like food is universal among those who spend their days caring for others. For the most part we have been blessed with people who really care about those who come through their doors. Not to say that there are not still hard times. This whole thing has been filled with ups and downs, not the least of which came about a month ago. I was cruising along in my life. Times have been hard and stressful but I was managing. Then one day the OT told me that she wanted me to do a series of therapies at home everyday! She said she could only imagine how hard things were and how difficult it would be to add more. Hmmmm it was true. She could only imagine. I shed a lot of tears the next few weeks. I finally decided to be candid and had a conversation with the OT where I told her my concerns about this, I have no training and felt inadequate . I reminded her she was the one with the education. She then told me that she went to school to be able to train people like me to give therapy to their loved ones. I did get in line and now do several therapy's a day. It is only the last week that I decided this was not going away and shed my last tears for now. Well, maybe I do occasionally drop a tear or two. It seems I can manage almost anything as I do have help from family and friends.
The problem that remains is something I can do nothing to change. Over the years my role as the mother of a developmentally disabled child/adult has changed from being a mother to being a care giver. Now I find the same thing has happened in my marriage. I am no longer exactly a mother or a wife. Of all the changes over the last year, this is the most painful. I so miss being a mom and now being a wife. I believe this will change back to some degree but for now, it is what it is. In the meantime, I continue to be grateful for those who care so this week I made cookies. Wish I could do the same for all of you, but in the meantime love to you and yours. Hold them close.because you never know.

When you realize you are now a dinosaur

2011-06-21T15:44:00.000-07:00

Since I am not far enough along with Aunty Green and really do not have any other quilts to share right now I have decided to share a secret I had hoped never to admit to anyone. Quite some time ago I realized that I had become a "Dinosaur" "Traditional Quiltasaurus, species Tyranappliquerex, sub species Handquiltaraptor. I am not sure when this became my reality but I think I know how it began.

Perhaps the seeds were planted in the late seventies and early eighties, before I became a quilter but began to to attend quilt shows in order to find needlework patterns and books to add to my "stash" of of embroidery items.

Quilt making was becoming popular again when many people made patriotic quilts to celebrate America's birthday. I attended my first quilt show and knew instantly that I would moving beyond the small sweet quilts I made for my babies. Beyond the simple patchwork for my adolescent daughter in green, yellow and and orange gingham which she treasures today almost thirty years later. Beyond the "Make This quilt In a Weekend" pattern for a Log Cabin design published in a popular women's magazine. before rotary cutters this project took more that a weekend to cut out! Even using a quilt as you go method it was months before this quilt warmed the dreams of my active little boy.

As I walked that show in Santa Rosa California, I was drawn closer to the position I am in today, teacher, lecturer, hand appliquer, hand quilter.

Now please understand that a non-traditional quilt was a purple Ohio star. So , imagine my utter shock when I entered a large room, and encountered a group of animated women gathered in front of an unusual quilt hung high above their heads. It had to be a quilt, because it was a quilt show. But nothing in my experience prepared me for what I saw. On what I assumed to be a fabric foundation there were attached garter belts, girdles and bras of every conceivable color size and style! I was stunned! Listening to the conversation around me I heard disbelief to match my own and then two words, "Art Quilt!" In addition, "This Will Never Fly!", " Art Quilts are not going to work.

Well, they were wrong! Artists began looking at fabric and quilting as a way to express their passion and Art quilts were here to stay.

When I walk around quilt shows today I find myself counting the traditional entries. Turn the corner and "be still my heart" a hand applique quilt so beautiful it takes my breathe away and across the way another. No wait, on closer inspection I find it to be machine done. A traditional red and green design, machine appliqued and quilted Also takes my breathe away. It's that good! So, I am not threatened by the newer species on the block. I am always attracted to great work and there is a lot of that around.

Still a dinosaur, not very smart with technology but a whiz with a needle. Have you got a story? Come on share it with me and anyone else who happens to come by and read what we write about the passion we share.

Auntie Green quilt, Still a work in progress

2011-05-31T20:58:00.001-07:00

I just know that everyone of the other quilters involved in this project are way ahead. Perhaps even finished with the applique, and maybe the quilting is also finished! Okay. a little over the top I suppose. True, I do not have a lot of quilting time these days but I know the solution is to stay the course. many years ago I worked for a company named Sunset Designs. I was hired to stitch four color work, simply said the pieces I stitched were to photographed for pattern covers. best work required. Later I was moved to new product development where I worked with artists and designers. In this case perfection was not required, but good interpretation was required.
I met a lovely woman in that department and once when I asked her how she accomplished so much. Now is when I should tell you that she had only one arm. She told us she threaded at least one needle every day and stitched at least that much. And so that is what I will try to do with this quilt.

I am a fairly conservative quilter when it comes to fabric choices but I decided to move out of the box for this quilt. The original quilt artist used prints for virtually every motif. I like to use prints that read like a print but are not. However, I decided to honor the original artist and do the same. My choices may be a little more whimsical what with polka dot leaves, etc, but I am beginning like enjoy this step out of my very controlled box.

The little circles in the top photo are simply cut from fabric and appliqued in place. So far the stems are made from bias tubes though I quite like doing needle turn. I will continue to work and share and hope I hear from you.

Our wedding Day

2011-04-25T18:47:00.000-07:00

I found the picture of the chapel at Moffett Field in Mountain View California where we were married. There are a lot of photos of the base and of the blimps that used live in gigantic hangers in the Sunnyvale Library archives. One of the interesting things I found out there is that the area behind the alter is set up to revolve to reveal different alters representing as many religious beliefs as possible. Seems lovely to me. We attended many events at the base over the years including many air shows. Our day was sunny and breezy, a great day for beginning our lives together.

Standing with my father, waiting to walk down the aisle. We were both looking pretty young that day. I remember feeling pretty confident at this moment. My choice seemed so right.

Walking to my new life

I was pretty happy. Loved my dress. I had attended a wedding planning event at Emporium Capwells and knew I couldn't afford to buy a dress. That is where I saw the bell sleeve and decided to make my own dress. Scary, but I lucked out, I think. White bridal satin with a lace overlay, a small train and pretty white shoes. My bouquet was in the shape of a cross. I felt pretty.

This is the entire bridal party! Left to right, Rosada Koshak, my matron of honor and dear friend from high school. Next, the bride ( me ). Beside me the cute sailor I married and beside him my brother Robert, chosen to be best man

Saying our vows. Hmmm. I look ecstatic, he looks scared.

Too late to change our minds but no matter, fifty years later we both know the choice would always be each other. How lucky we are. Still in love after all this time.

This is one of my favorite pictures. I miss those hands. For the first couple of years we were married I did some hand modeling. Fun and good for the ego I think.

Remember, I am the oldest and this is my family, minus David who could not be there. So from left to right: Kenneth, Irene, Kathleen, Dad with Doreen in front, Me, Dale, my beautiful mother Dorothy, Robert, Ronald, Bill, and Mark standing in front of mom.

Oh, now he looks happy and not scared. Good move honey!

Dad, me,Dale and Mom

Me, Dale and his mother Marge Kelso. In the end it turns out she did not like me a whole lot but Dale told me from the beginning that I was his family and not to worry about being liked by anyone but him.

Nice couple, don't you think? We left that day in Dale's hunter green MG TF. We were cool in those days. Now, did we always agree? Of course not. Did we argue, even bicker at times.? Of course! We did however, always know that a marriage is work and a good deal of the time we were working. Right now is one of the working times. He is working so hard to get well and I am working hard to be sure he has all the room he needs to do just that. This is not easy for either of us, but worth it I think. The secret to a fifty year marriage if there is one, is that we never once gave up on each other, even at the low points. Thanks for coming by.

Fifty years and counting

2011-04-25T15:19:00.001-07:00

Dale and I were married May 7 1961 and this is where we spent our honeymoon. I was nineteen and he was twenty-two. Yes we were young but it was a different time. I am the oldest of ten and he was an only child. A match made in heaven as I didn't want ten children and he wanted two. Our wedding cost $129.00, my friend from high school was my matron of honor, we had thirty three guests and I made my own gown. Our honeymoon was three days long because we couldn't afford more, and I had to get back to my job as a hair dresser and he had to get back to Moffett Field Naval Air station. So we hiked, visited the waterfalls, witnessed one of the last fire falls and rubbed elbows with a black bear. We stayed in a two room cabin and loved every moment of our time in the park. If you have never visited this park, what are you waiting for. Yosemite was and remains a favorite destination. We had planned to revisit the park this year to celebrate our fiftieth wedding anniversary. Dale is not well enough so perhaps next year.

Aunty Green Quilt

2011-04-22T17:38:00.001-07:00

Just thought I would share my progress on the Aunty Green quilt. I was invited to join five Australian quilt artists and four American artists to reproduce our own version of this great quilt. I am sure that I am woefully behind my peers, but a promise is a promise. I have already written about the challenge of producing a decent oval. The vine is a bias stem and not especially difficult. The hardest thing about the leaves was their number. Ninety-six! Perseverance is the only way. Most of you would probably begin with the flowers within the oval and that would be my usual plan. However, I find that when some element is repeated as much as these
leaves are, I know myself. I would put it off for far too long. So I do them first. The small flowers inside the oval were made by cutting circles from a great print and gathering the fabric around a circle template. Pretty cute and easy to do. It does feel good to be quilting again. Happy Easter you all!!

Spring?

2011-04-22T15:13:00.000-07:00

Spring is a confusing season in the mid-west, at least for me. I am a dyed in the wool California girl. No apologies, none. As I sit here in late April I can hear the thunder that has been announcing yet another storm to worry about. The thunder has been continuous for the last twenty minutes. Spring? I don't know. This is another in a fairly long list of potentially dangerous weather patterns. However, the above picture is of a pretty little dwarf cherry tree visible from the back door of my home. Lovely, but doomed as the flowers are already fading and when the cherries appear so will the birds and I will be unable to stop the madness. Sorry, carried away because I also live in a part of town that is frequented by Japanese beetles!!! They like my Rose of Sharon, cherries, blackberries, hibiscus, and crab apple.

The Lilacs were pretty this year though, because I did not get to do fall clean-up last year, they were not as abundant as usual. The scent was lovely.

This of course is pink dogwood. The flowers you see represent about the number of blooms I have seen each year for the eitht years I have lived here. Two to three blooms seems about it.

But this year!! The whole tree was covered. Even the storms and winds could not diminish the abundance. Don't know what happened but going with the flow for now. This picture was taken a few days ago, but still beautiful.

This Japanese Maple has long been a favorite of mine. The beetles like this as well. Now I have a service to keep me from losing it every year. I get emotional about my flowers and trees. At the base of the maple is a large Knock Out rose which resists pests and in this case seems to come back overnight.

The last two pictures are Anemones or Wind Flowers if you will. I have taken great care to exclude the weeds that still predominate the beds though between Therapy for Dale, grocery shopping and rain drops, I am beginning to make some head way and hope to have my usual display, though somewhat reduced. I have always thought of gardening as a very personal therapy. From the birth of a disabled child forty-five years ago to this last year watching my husband navigate his way through his toughest health challenges ever, I have longed to get my hands back into the soil. I hope you all have something that helps bring balance back into your life.

Now, as to whether there is Spring in Missouri, the jury is still out. However, for what it is worth, my own eight year observation suggests that it does come, but hurry to enjoy it because it is definitely fleeting. Sometimes I think the natives here just trying to be optimistic.

Coming Home?

2011-03-09T14:15:00.000-08:00

It does look like, ready or not, Dale will be coming home pretty soon. When I say ready or not I don't mean I haven't waited for this since he walked into St John's hospital November. It just means that we are both a little afraid. he is worried that in caring for him I will be injured and of course I am worried that I will hurt him. I have been doing some transfers and today we worked on transfers in and out of the car.

Over the last couple of days the glass doors have been removed from our shower and a curved shower rod has replaced them. There is a new spiffy shower head with both a regular shower head and a hand held piece. A less than elegant shower bench is in place. I have been fortunate that I was able to hire one of dale's aides to help us twice a week with showers and safe companionship so I can grocery shop and not leave him alone.

Dale is coming home without the feeding tube! I feel as if there should be a drum roll and fireworks. This is the result of a lot of hard work both by the patient and the patient. he is walking some with a cane and a lift and swing of his left hip. There is reason to believe that he will continue to improve.

I would just like to say that finding your way through the medical system for a loved one should not be so hard. There are days when it is difficult to get up and do it again. We are going through a time when promises are made and not kept, phone calls are often not answered or returned even when a promise is made. I cannot emphasize enough the necessity to be an advocate for the person you love. They often cannot advocate for them selves. Very early on I realized that I could not care whether an aide or administrator, nurse, etc. liked me. A plus if they do but not worth pussy footing around when you see a loved one transferred from a wheel chair to bed without a gate belt and with a hand in the armpit of the side paralyzed by a stroke. Fortunately, when the smoke cleared we found ourselves surrounded by personnel who care and who follow the rules.

Last but not least we have a daughter, son-in-law, and son who care deeply and help as much as they can. Kelly has tapped Family Medical Leave option and will spend a week helping her father and I settle into a vastly new routine. John is very supportive and generous in this, making it easy for us all. Danny has helped by accepting less personal attention than he is used to and beginning to treat Dad the way he always has, teasing, loving and with a little pestering going on. Every bit of this is pure love.

Thank you for reading what I write about my family. Know that I know our story is not unique, except to us. My wish for all is that you do not have to go through this kind of thing, but if you do or have I wish you well. It's a journey but worth the effort.

A New Project

2011-02-22T19:21:00.001-08:00

I have not made a single quilting or applique stitch since early October 2010. goodness knows I have a few unfinished projects that would possibly benefit from my close attention. However, when Gail Chalker invited me to join a small group of women, both American and Australian who were planning to reproduce a lovely vintage quilt made by Aunty Green I simply could not say no. The plan is to gather next year at Baltimore on the Prairie in Omaha NE. with a finished quilt. It was probably a foolish decision considering my families current situation, but nevertheless I said yes. Why not? The first thing I did was to head for Kinkos as I am the American distributor of the pattern copies which arrive by mail. I make full size copies for the group here. For myself, I make a copy thirty percent smaller than the original. I am trying to wean myself off making large quilts. I have so many quilts I want to make. The above quilt is a reproduction of the original.

I have a feeling that you are wondering why there is a photo of a platter right in the middle of a discussion about quilt making. Well, I just wanted to share that if, like me, you sometimes have issues with drawing the perfect patterns,there is almost always a way. I spend a lot of time entering through the back door. I have to come up with ways to make something work. In this case I needed to have an oval, so I decided to draft my own. Well, that did not work. I tried several approaches to no avail. So..., I woke one morning thinking about the various platters I own. I should come clean here and share that there is a several generation gene related to the collecting of dishes, old and new. So when I could not make an oval I was proud of without help, I thought of the platters I own. Some were too big some too small. I chose this one, too tall but exactly right width wise. So traced around each end and joined the ends by extending the lines. The other problem was in drawing and placement of the leaves on that oval. I finally realized that if I divided the oval into four sections, it would be easier to space elements. I do want to point out that there are 96 leaves.

This is my drawing. As you can see in the photograph above this is only the beginning of the quilt. I am already worrying about the next inside border. I am not sure I will be able to draft that chain. Ideas? I would love it if you would share some of your own solutions to problems that you have encountered. In the meantime, I will begin my applique journey with this great quilt.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-18T14:55:00.000-08:00

First for Star. In answer to your question about the quilt I used as a back drop for my Houston purchases. If I understand what you are asking, the answer is that the applique shapes were achieved with needle turn applique. The quilt is vintage and the pattern is Lancaster Rose, though the name varies usually depending on the region of the quilter. If this does not answer your concerns, ask again.

The beautiful bouquet above was a Valentine from my husband. I carried a bouquet of white roses in on our wedding day. Now almost fifty years later, he still remembers. Always on our anniversary and often on other important days. I estimate having received more than one bouquet 100 flower gifts over the years. The candy is not a new thing either though the boxes have changed. Remember Whitman's samplers? Over the years many of those. We went on to See's candies, still on the list of very good chocolate. About fifteen years ago I had my first box of Godiva and have not looked back. He knows and always comes through. Of course I make sure he has his dark chocolate turtles as well. It's a balance that works.

So many of you have asked about Dale. I am so fortunate to have you in my life. Many times I have been at a loss because I simply don't know. However, things are better so decided to tell you what is going on. It is beginning to look like the peg will be gone when he returns home. He is eating three meals a day and some snacks. He gets weighed three times a week. yesterday was the first day to show a gain instead of a loss. He has gained a pound. A ways to go, to get to the 165 he weighed before the stroke that sent him down this long road, but for now I will take it. Two days of being awake most of the day, he went to to a country music social yesterday, even singing along! Make no mistake the road is still long, but things are brighter. Five minutes ago he accepted a cup of sherbet, the first evening snack since we arrived here.

Enter Carefully

2011-02-11T15:10:00.000-08:00

I say enter carefully because this is a rather long post. In early November I attended Quilt festival in Houston, Texas as I have for more than twenty years. I don't buy as much as I used to but never fear, I always find something. This year was no different. However this last time I was to accompany my daughter to Orlando shortly after my return from Texas. She would attend a writing conference and I would attend Disney world. On the very day of our trip our lives were to change forever. As I have shared before, my husband had a stroke and he is still not home. In December I decided to put up a tree and keep it until he comes home. Not yet. In any case, I did not unpack my bags until sometime after Christmas. That is when I found my Festival purchases. To keep everything together until I could deal with it, I looked around and found the above box. It is not much bigger than a legal size paper, but it holds everything I bought. Last year my sister "wrapped" my gifts in boxes like this one. Lucky me, I have three different such boxes. I will not share. Sorry.

Just a taste. I will get into the details as I go.

Sometimes, it seems I am easily satisfied and this may seem to be one of those times. I love, love these needles, or more precisely their presentation. It is not to say that I have no use for the needles themselves, because I work in wool and with silk ribbon often. I do like looking at this card with it photo of a wool penny rug and needles pinned into a nice square of wool.

This sampler pattern caught my eye because of the definite folk are design as well as the simplicity of the base. Three wooden plaques found easily at Hobby lobby or Michaels. Remember the rick-rack trim.

This is a sack of felted wool balls. My friend Karen and I each bought a different color way and split them between us. We both had a plan to make a Thanksgiving centerpiece with an oak branch using the acorn caps filled with these really cool balls. Karen has some trees she thought would be just right. Not to be. Though the balls are small, they are too big for he caps. I could not
find anything and anyway things changed before I could really pursue the project.

I just thought this was a really sweet holiday pattern. maybe next Christmas.

Of course I bought fabric, though every time I swear I won't. This packet has 76 five inch squares and the fabric line is Hot For Chocolate by Blue Hill. I bought it from Primitive Gatherings. Yummy.

This packet contains two each of thirty prints, all pink and wonderful to look at. Also offered by Primitive Gatherings.

Remember the cross stitch? Well of course I needed to find the rick rack for the trim. Three yards of both the gold and the brown. Never mind that I only need eight inches of one color. The blue ribbon with the chocolate dots was nearby and just a pretty bonus.

These two fat quarters simply called and I responded. They have a nice checkered background with fun ads and labels printed over. No plans yet.

The packet on the right was interesting. Seven metal rings, one-half inch to four inches and reported to be really useful in making wool penny rugs. Cut your circles with a rotary cutter. In retrospect, " NOT! " The width of these rings is only 1/4" The backs are non-skid, but I know myself very well. This is simply a recipe for cut fingers. However, the circles will be very useful, but the tool will be a pencil. The pattern? Just love the flowers and this I will actually get to it in the future.

I love these fabrics. I know they will show up in my work when I can feel creative once again.

The above flosses are hand dyed by The Gentle Art and Valdani. Remember the sweet little penny rug pattern above? These are the threads used in the applique.

This is the first of three border prints I fell in love with. This one is three and a half inches wide and seven yards long. Don't you love it? Borders precisely cut and ready to frame your work. This one is by Andover.Border Prints.

This one is from a collection called Williamsburg Explorations Border. It is also three and a half inches wide , five yards long. The next time I feel patriotic, this will be perfect.

This one is called 1800's Reproduction Border. It is the smallest of the three but I was really attracted to both the cable and little flowers. I have 87 inches and will use every inch. I hope. Well, if I need it, I will find it, I swear.

This packet is a collection of reproduction fabrics cut into ten inch squares, eleven pieces, all shades of brown. I confess that once again I was seduced by the presentation. The picture above shows all eleven in one by three inch strips. Nice.

So, if you are still here, you can see that all of this did indeed fit in my small beautiful box. It is all going back because I am not finished enjoying my treasures. At least I will remember where it is. If you are a quilter, a seamstress, or have a different view of creativity, please comment. I would love to know more about what you do to feed your soul.

The sun is shining today

2011-02-11T14:26:00.000-08:00

The sun is shining today so I think I will share some of my favorite things. This pillow for instance is one of my most recent favorites. My plans to refurbish some of the items in my living room came to a screeching halt last November. I am seldom home and almost never during the day. I began looking through the multitude of catalogs I always receive before Christmas. My first purchase was this great pillow. Looks like an applique design and makes me smile when I catch sight of it as I walk by the great black and tan chair it now lives in.There is a vintage quality I always admire.

This fellow now sits in the same chair for photography purposes. As you can probably see, I may be introducing too many textures, what with the pillows, the chair the rug. However, for now it works for me. I will perhaps rethink some of this, just not now. The rabbit reminds me that there are a couple of bunny families residing in the yard somewhere. If there is another such pillow in the collection, I will probably add that to the small collection I now have. I could use some inspiration, so perhaps you will share your current weakness? Dare you!

Finished!

2011-02-06T21:27:00.000-08:00

Finished, done, complete. You probably already know that I am a little fanatical about unfinished projects. I have no problem with going public. I know I am not alone in this. I have been teaching quilting, specifically applique for more than twenty years and as a teacher I found that keeping up with class loads required being really fast. Some of you are really fast. I am not so I would make tops or small samples of technique based projects, blocks, and more. It actually worked pretty well for teaching but not so much for that desire to have shelves of quilts, walls covered with cross stitch samplers.

I have shared with you all that my husband is very ill. I spend most days with him and decided a month or so ago that I needed something to do while at the same time keeping watch over him. Cross stitch seemed the best choice. I have to confess that I am not my usual self these days, hence the picking up of an unfinished project always meant for my daughter. Otherwise, I would have had second thoughts about 18 count aida cloth. What was I thinking? The light was not the best and my eyes are aging. Some days I picked out more stitches than I put in. How is that possible? I would find mistakes from the day before! Don't you hate that?

However, I did finish! Two days before I gifted it to the teacher I admire the most, my daughter. She is blessed with compassion, good judgement, a wonderful sense of humor for the young and a passion for learning. Happy Birthday Kelly. I love you more.

Things are changing

2011-01-21T20:34:00.000-08:00

This last week or so has been good as well as hard. The good first is to say that Dale continues to improve a little every day and that makes me happy. He doesn't seem to see it needs to be reminded every day. His swallow continues to improve. The appetite stimulant has not kicked in yet and he never feels hungry so it is sometimes difficult to get him to eat. He is now in the dining room everyday for lunch and dinner. He refuses to go to breakfast which is little different from life before the stroke. So for now he gets a bye on this one. I wish I had my camera with me the day he drank a small glass of Pepsi! The look on his face was blissful. He still needs to eat with supervision and is not eating a lot but we will take even the small steps.

One afternoon last week Dale turned to me in the early afternoon and said that he was experiencing double vision when he looked across the hall. This lasted two days and the facility Dr. ordered an MRI. I went with him on Tuesday and we got the results on Thursday. He has had another stroke. I found out yesterday that when the Dr saw him last week he also changed his medication which is why the Dr believes the stroke ran it's course in a little less than two days. I have read a lot about strokes in the last two months so I am not surprised. I am disappointed for him however. Of course I want this to be over and be able to bring him home. Unrealistic, but it is what I want.

Now I am jumping the gun a little but I found this sweet image and decided to begin the celebration a little early. On May 7, 1961 Dale and I were married in the chapel at Moffett Field Naval Air Station in Mountain View CA. Fifty years is worth a celebration don't you think? I am going to share some wedding pictures soon. You are not a captive audience, so quickly close your eyes when you visit over the next few weeks and then barely open one so that you can skip my old pictures. It was the sixties after all and so the clothing and hair styles may offend. However, the cute sailor is still mine. I'm not kidding.

Sometimes it is a Really good day

2011-01-10T12:44:00.000-08:00

Yes, it is indeed snowing here. I know I rarely speak of anything these days except the man in my life but to be honest that is almost all I think about. Sure, I am careful to leave no one out. I am now callimg my friends occasionally, my sister more often and check in with my children every day. I feed the cat, often feed the son, attend birthday parties for grandchildren and am more aware of those around me everyday.
I am not yet quilting, but have hope that part of my life will be reinstated sometime soon. The energetic fellows above, singing their hearts out are there because today was one of the good days. You all ask everytime you see me if dale is doing better. I have been reluctant to give details because I see tiny improvements and sometimes think I am seeing what I wish to see, not the truth.
However, today was an honestly good day. Last week his physical therapist ordered a splint for his left foot and leg. It came today and he had a final fitting and fine tuning. He wore it in therapy and he stood and walked all across the room using a hemi cane with the therapist holding only onto the gate belt. He also walked later between parallel bars from one end to the other! We are so proud of him. The therapist told me later that he asked her to let him do this by himself. Danny was there to see it and he is spreading the word. I know the path is a long one, but today spells hope.

Happy New year

2011-01-02T05:23:00.000-08:00

I wish a wonderful beginning to the new year to all of you. Just want to take a moment to dwell on a question all of my quilting friends are now asking. The answer is that I have not appliqued or quilted since November 11th. I think perhaps I would have gone back to it sooner rather than later, but as so often happens to me, I am in between whole projects or as it is this time, in between blocks. I often wake up the day of my TAS meeting and realize I finished the current block and have no plan or design for the next. Such is now the case. However a couple of days ago I finally realized I was missing something that has always kept me grounded. Something creative to help me keep my self together. I searched out a counted cross stitch project I have worked on from time to time for a few years. Yes, I admit it, I have UFO,s. There, I said it and while I am not proud of it, I have began working on it again. This time to finish I hope for the birthday this month of a dear family member. She reads these, so no more clues. I will share a photo when it is finished.

Margaret has complimented me on my collection of ephemera and lovely post cards. I could say thank you and move on but I have a very strong conscience and so i will give up my source here for everyone to see. In addition, I will call upon my daughter to add a button for this source to my blog so everyone can enjoy my favorite resource. graphicsfairy.com You are going to love this.

End of Week Two

2010-12-31T20:05:00.000-08:00

Well we are at the end of week two in the skilled nursing facility. It has been at times stressful, at times rewarding. I begin my days there between eight and nine and go home between nine and ten in the evening. Most days I stop and get Danny so he can spend a few hours with his dad. He remains remarkably kind and gentle with his dad. It comes as no surprise because he has the heart of a care taker. he once had a room mate with epilepsy who occasionally had seizures when the guys were on their own and Danny knew what to do and did it. Of course one of the reasons he likes coming is he has great affection for the therapy staff. They seem like a great group of kind, concerned people.

The first week was a little rocky for me. We came from the hospital with a boot for dale's left leg, a splint for his left arm to control the curling of his fingers, and a brace for his shoulder. It appeared that no one at the facility knew how to use these things. it took almost the whole first week for there to be continuity in that part of his care. The boot has what we are calling a kick stand and it is rarely used. Makes the boot kind of useless. Working on it. The most upsetting of all is that in the first few days no one used a belt to to transfer Dale from bed or back to bed. The majority of them actually put their hand under his left arm. I have to say I got more than testy the day that two aides told me they were not trained to use the belt. I spoke to anyone who would listen.

Not as stressful but annoying is that in that first week they lost more than two thirds of his clothing!

Things are improving, but I still need to be there and no apologies. We had both Christmas and Dale's Birthday this last week. Christmas was pretty nice though not our traditional party. Dale tires easily so he was in and out a couple of times, but he really loved having his family around. He keeps telling me I don't have to spend so much time there, but I know it helps him to feel safe and cared for. I gave him a lap top as a Christmas gift and he is a little excited but not ready and doesn't have the stamina to do anything with it yet, but soon perhaps. Our son-in-law was so helpful, setting it up and loading Dale's favorite flying game and researching the latest version of that game. John is a very caring and kind man.

This week for the first time we are hearing that there is real improvement in Dale's swallow. I did not think you would be too excited by an example of actual swallow therapy, hence the above picture. Swallow, get it? Of course you do! We are on the way to losing that peg! He still has a way to go but finally there is real hope for the loss of that tube. Being able to eat is crucial to his coming home and his well being.

I just want to thank all who have expressed support for my family. We are so grateful for each of you. I wish for you all even a fraction of the love coming our way.

This was a new day

2010-12-17T20:19:00.000-08:00

This was an odd day for me. For most of the day I felt like I was watching the day unfold from a distance. I think I have been in denial as my most fervent hope was that I would be bringing my husband home, but that was not to be. Kelly and I looked at a few SNF programs and Quail Creek Skilled Nursing Facility stood out for the atmosphere, personnel and it's therapy program. The problem I am having is that in the end, the decision was mine. He is fragile right now and has essentially turned his fate over to me. So I suppose this disconnect I have felt all day is about that but also about my own feelings about this kind of thing. How could I in good conscience put him in what is essentially a wing in a nursing home when in reality I have always known that I do not want to be in that position myself. it doesn't matter how wonderful the facility is, I hate it that he is there instead of at home.

The new therapists seem nice and competent and so he should improve. However, the first group, Dave, Nicole, Neale,etc are a hard act to follow and we will miss them. They cared!

If Dales name is on Santa's list it will come up under naughty as well as nice. He is a tease as well as a loving husband and father. All he wants for Christmas is to come home. So, our Christmas will not go back into the box until he does come home. Heck, I know people who's tree's are still up in March because every day life continues and life is too busy. So ours will see the spring for the love we share.

Merry Christmas to all of you.

A Christmas Wish

2010-12-12T21:29:00.001-08:00

I just thought I would say something about how Danny is adjusting to seeing his Dad in the hospital. In the beginning he avoided going to see him and frankly, Dale was so sick that first week, so unable to lie still that I was hesitant to push him to go. However once he made that first visit he has been asking to visit almost every day. Now I do have to say that part of the attraction is the therapists who are so kind and seem to enjoy his chatter. After all they are hearing his stories for the first time. But as the days go by I have witnessed another dynamic that touches me in a way that I had not expected. When Dad is restless, Danny is up immediately to rub his back, ask him if he is okay, gently lift that left arm and replace the pillow under it making sure it rests above the heart.

At one point today there was a lot of activity going on in Dad's room and we were kind of in the way, so we walked down to the waiting room for awhile. I had a book so was reading and Dan was playing with his DS. Things got so quiet that I looked up and saw him deep in thought. After a moment he looked up and said he had a Christmas wish for his dad. His wish was for dad to be able to eat, able to walk and able to drive his jeep. I couldn't say it better myself.

Yesterday was hard.

2010-12-09T09:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a little difficult. The difficulty actually began a few days earlier when Kelly and I met with Kim. This is the person who makes recommendations to the patient and or family of a stroke victim about such things as skilled nursing facilities (SNF), refitting our home to accommodate such things as wheel chairs or walkers, bars for bathing, the list is long. Dale is fairly adamant about not wanting to come home until he is more self-sufficient. I am getting trained in transfers from chair to bed, etc. I worry about caring for him with a "peg" but am game for almost everything. I want him home!

In any case Kelly and I looked at two SNF facilities yesterdays. Loved one the other not so much. We will see a couple more over the next couple of days and choose so we will be ready for whatever comes.

It is beginning to look like he will not be home for Christmas. It is difficult to write the words. We have always been together for the holidays. It is not to say we won't be together. We will bring Christmas to the hospital or SNF. It will not be home, but we will all be together. As I write this I remember other Christmases that were out of the ordinary. When our son was a little boy, he often ran a fever, you guessed it, on Christmas day. I remember one holiday when Santa brought him an electric car. He was so excited!!! He figured out the process and proceeded down the hallway and back a few times. It got quiet and when we checked, we saw he had laid his head down on the steering wheel and was sound asleep with very pink cheeks revealing he once again managed to be ill on Christmas. Over the years Dale worked weekends and such. There were several times when we began Christmas at the end of shift that day. This year with our extended family we will once again be celebrating not on Christmas eve or even Christmas morn. With an extended family our holiday will begin Christmas afternoon. So if you know what I am getting for Christmas, shhhhhh. I won't know until late in the day and I love surprises, both given and received!

This is harder. However I know well that we will make this work and there will be joy

The days are long

2010-12-08T16:35:00.000-08:00

Now, he rarely wears a necktie but would tell you that when he does, the best part of the day is when he can remove it. That is much like his relationship with the feeding tube he has sported for almost two weeks. One of the problems that came with having a stroke was that he simply could not eat enough food to sustain his health. He said he was never hungry, began refusing meals so the tube was certainly a life line. yesterday after a barium swallow test the doctor approached us with the suggestion that he remove the feeding tube and replace it with a "peg." We agreed and now he will get nourishment directly through his stomach. This is scary, feels a little like giving up. However, the truth is that the feeding tube was interfering with the swallow therapy as his throat is very narrow. Now the swallow therapy should be easier. Dale? he is more than ready to get rid of the tube that has kept his throat so sore for the last weeks. As I write this I can look up and see him sleeping soundly and looking more comfortable than I have seen in weeks.

We have had a somewhat friendly rivalry going for almost twenty years. I keep him in line by maintaining that men are high maintenance and therefore I am not doing this again. If I happen to live the longest I tell him, "I am not looking to have another man to pick up after, train, flatter, well you get the idea." He more than half believes I am telling the truth so he has a scenario of his very own. He has decided if for any reason we are no longer together, he will rent space at a large quilt show and display my quilting things. He says he has grown accustomed to the quirks and eccentricities of a quilter so he believes staying in the genre will be easiest to do. He will display "my featherweights, quilt frame, silk ribbon, embroidered samplers, fabric stash. vintage sewing collectibles, and most of all my quilts." It is at this point i give him the "look" and he backs down a little. That "look" appears to be genetic as my mom had it and so does the daughter and now the twelve year old granddaughter! Just yesterday he told me that he hopes I never believed any of that nonsense as he sees only my face in his future. We are among the lucky ones. Forty -nine years and counting.

A lot to be grateful for

2010-11-23T20:51:00.000-08:00

This last week has been very stressful and because of that it took awhile for me to see the love surrounding me. One week ago my daughter and I were about 100 miles away from home and headed for the airport. The plan was to fly to Orlando where Kelly was attending a national writing conference and me, well during the day I was going to Disney World! We were to join up in the evenings and see more of the park, but more than that these trips have turned into a way to solidify our wonderful friendship. However, things happen and about 1oo miles from home I received the phone call everyone with a spouse hopes never to hear. My husband called to say that he was having another "incident." Another stroke. He called our son-in-law, John, and John gathered up his granddaughter and drove Dale to the hospital.

Dale walked into the emergency room and was admitted to the hospital. Two and a half days later the stroke finally played itself out at around three o'clock Friday afternoon. He was left dazed and with no ability to to move his left arm or leg. He has been improving slowly and today was his first day in rehab. This is a program at St John's hospital in Springfield. Rehab on the second floor is beyond rigorous with at least three hours of therapy everyday. By the middle of the afternoon he was exhausted, but he was wheeled down to the dining room to have his first meal sitting at a table. This evening he asked to be helped into a wheel chair so he could go for a ride and be found sitting up and out of bed by granddaughters and a great granddaughter! he was a different man. I cannot say enough about this program or about my husband. He has been poked and prodded, he has been awakened dozens of times by nurses, aides, kitchen staff, lab people, and he always says thank you, every time.

My family here has really stepped up. I am not sure I could have survived without them. Visits of grandchildren, support from daughter and her husband, and more friends literally than I can count. A half dozen friends from CA, four from Indiana, my TAS group, neighbors and all the friends Dale has made on his morning coffee days at Starbucks or Paneras and a whole quilt guild, several hundred strong, amazing. For now, I am covered. So thank you all for caring enough to offer help. I may take you up on it sometime, but for now, I am okay. The days are incredibly full. I hope to see my husband recover. At one point I had to remind him that he is my life and my love. Almost fifty years and we know each other so well, he would say too well.

My thanks to all of you who worry about me. I am blessed. If, when I need help, I will ask.

It appears that "Anonymous Is a Woman" is live and Well

2010-11-15T19:00:00.000-08:00

I am back at least for today. Life is busy with Doctor appointments and trying to keep up with the dying garden. It is almost winter here in the mid-west. We have had a beautiful fall in terms of color and even temperatures though while I was in Houston for quilt festival there was a night when those temps went down to 22*. What's with that? I would share the pictures from my back porch, as well as pictures of some of my favorite festival quilts, however my camera and my computer are not speaking. So, I will have to get a card reader. I do have some beautiful pictures of incredibly beautiful quilts.

Okay, I have procrastinated enough. First of all I had a wonderful time at festival made possible by my daughter Kelly and her husband John, along with my husband who was adamant that I go. Some of you may be aware of a project promoted by Elly Sienkiewicz. A dozen groups from all over the United States and Canada each made beautiful applique quilts. Not just any applique quilts, but Baltimore quilts. It takes your breath away just to see them. The one made by my TAS group is wonderful creation, made-up entirely of original cut work designs honoring Elly and her family. I went back several times over the week and each time I found new elements in those small quilts.

Late in the week my husbands cousin Gladys from LA. met me to once again catch up and see the exhibits together. We headed over to the Baltimore exhibit to look at the quilts and exclaim over design and beautiful work. Gladys is a quilter as well and she was really interested in the details. We walked around and our discussion was noticed by several other viewers and pretty soon we were having a discussion that included about twenty. Over and over I was asked why the names of the quilt artists were not on the signs. I had been wondering that myself and simply did not have an answer. We even heard one person tell her friend that she did not know Elly was so prolific!

The next night many of the quilt makers attended a lovely meal at Massa's restaurant in Houston. It was fun catching up with old friends and hearing once again a program by Kathy Tennyson, a really prolific Baltimore applique quilt maker. She has made at least six album quilts, each one more beautiful than the last. Lovely. However once again while the project was talked about, the opportunity to introduce the women involved was lost. I had hoped that each groups members would be asked to stand so we could honor them. Not to be.

Beloved Baltimore Album Quilts is a book profiling these twelve quilts and C&T did name all the quilters. And at the risk of sounding like a whiner and trust me, even I think I am whining, the names are in the smallest font I have ever seen and while the rest of the book has super black type, these names are so light it is really difficult to read!

I am almost finished. I just want everyone to know that I really enjoyed my time on the quilts. My group really came together as friends and our skills as a group have grown expedentually. My only wish would be that " Anonymous is a Woman" would go back where she came from. Happy quilting my friends.

Halloween

2010-10-30T03:59:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would drop by and thank everyone for your kind concern. We are moving along slowly in getting our world in order. Dale has been fortunate in finding a primary care doctor he can relate to, thanks to the help of our daughter and a nursing friend of hers, we are beginning to think things will be alright. Thank you Elizabeth. We have a plan. Dale is feeling better about his health and I am breathing again!

I couldn't let Halloween pass without commenting on the holiday. When i was growing up, it was somewhat rare for anyone I knew to actually buy a costume. Sometimes costumes were home sewn but it was more likely that we would put together something from our own closets. I am the oldest of ten, four girls and six boys. There was a lot of trading going on, but basically since it was all about the candy we were not too concerned about what we wore. . I don't recall being anything but a gypsy and my brothers were cowboys or hobos. Did I tell you it all about candy and fun and being scared? There was a big old house in the town where I grew up and it had a great reputation of being haunted. Mrs Ferris, the little old lady who lived there, did nothing to dispel the rumors that she dabbled in witch craft. When we knocked, that is if we dared to knock, we were invited in for hot cider, candy apples, popcorn, etc. The house was dark with candles to light the room and all the furniture was covered with black. The rumors circulating among the young were that her husband simply vanished one night. It seemed he was a very mean person and so she finally had enough and turned him into a toad. it seemed credible at the time because especially on Halloween we could hear him croaking. Now be kind! Remember, it really was a more innocent time. Children could for the most part go out trick or treating safely. They could accept home made cookies and candies safely, etc. And we could pretend to be scared of the haunted house. we were pretending, weren't we? By the time I turned twelve, I knew she was simply a lonely widow with no money and a home that grew more dilapidated every year with giant weeping willow trees that partially shrouded the house in an eerie way on Halloween night.

I grew up sewing my own clothing so it wasn't a stretch for me to make costumes every year for my children. My son was a tiger, an astronaut, Evil Knievel,etc. Our daughter was a gypsy, a princess, a Gibson girl and both so much more. Together they were Minnie and Mickey mouse.

This year I will open my door to Twilight vampires, the Jonas brothers, Nemo, witches, princesses, spider man, pirates, super heroes, ghosts, batman, and the occasional wookie. I will not be handing out apples, oranges unwrapped candy or home made cookies. But I will be having fun with each opening of my door an adventure.

Happy Halloween to all of you

Life

2010-10-18T16:45:00.000-07:00

Well I sat down this evening to simply say that my posts would perhaps be far apart but that I have not forgotten you the friends I have made over this last year or so. However, I checked in on my daughter's blog and she has already spoken about what is going on in the family so I will also comment and then just do what I can when I can.

On the last day of a pretty wonderful vacation, Dale woke up to being disoriented and nauseous . he had a similar experience in the spring and left the hospital with a diagnosis of sinus infection. This time he spent four days in the hospital and went home knowing he had experienced a TIA also known as a mini-stroke. He has been very lucky as even though strokes in the cerebellum effect things like balance, his balance continues to improve. The physical therapist in the hospital was very pleased. We are currently trying to line up a primary care doctor and the therapies he will need. Also a cardiologist as it also turns out there is scarring on his heart and that makes it weaker. This has been stressful of course and of course he is a man. Enough said don't you think?

So the photo above shows Dale with a lady friend sitting on a bench in the hall of Wall Drug in the town of Wall. You should look it up. I have lots of pictures but no real time to share right now.

So, I will check in when I can. Heck I might even be able to sew. of course, I am terrified and so is he. For now we just have to wait and see. More later

Current project

2010-10-11T20:11:00.000-07:00

Oddly, this looks kind of pink. I suppose that may have something to do with the red sashing. It is actually a lovely pale cream color and looks great in person. These blocks have been made over time. The fruit block was completed in 1998. Over the years I have made many blocks for teaching and recently I realized that I could make a quilt or two from this collection and so because I haven't made an album quilt with sashing this seemed a good time to do so. My problems in the past have been with keeping such sashing straight. I think it looks a little off in this photo, but believe that has much to do with the way I pinned it up. In person it looks pretty good so I will be moving on. I am designing a border that will include elements from most of the designs. I am thinking perhaps of a very vine border, very dense. If you have a good idea I would love to hear from you. i believe the borders will also have either an appliqued scalloped border on either side or a sawtooth border. Hope you are in the middle of just such a lovely problem. I will share during the process.

Vacation and Waiting for Superman

2010-10-11T15:55:00.000-07:00

We returned today from a really nice vacation, which is good because it did not end as well as we would have liked. Dale woke this morning with his second case of vertigo this summer/fall. I was the designated driver today and we made it back from KC in good time. The vertigo, well he believes he can sleep it off so has gone to bed.

Getting back to the fun part, the handsome fellow you see above was in the process of sticking his head into the front passenger window for as it turns out, a handout. Seems they label these guys the "begging burros". Of course I did not know that going in. I read about them later. In any case there are sign everywhere not to feed the animals, to include everyone we saw. Mountain sheep, prong horn antelope, buffalo, prairie dogs, mountain goats, turkeys, beavers,well I think you get the idea.

We did everything we could on the whole trip. Saw the Corn Palace. the Badlands, Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore, Wall Drug store, ( Only ask if you really want to know. I have pictures!) a pony express station and fort. and devil's tower in Wyoming. We were excited to stay in Sundance the night before only to suddenly realize that it was not resort like because it wasn't Robert Redford's Sundance! Bummer! In any case I am excited to say that I walked all the way around the tower by myself. So beautiful and so spiritual.

Sounds like a wonderful vacation doesn't it. it was, really but there was this book. I had finished everything else and had been putting off Waiting For Superman. I really did want to read this but as bibliophile who reads fiction and escape style fiction most of the time, I was somewhat reluctant to begin. However the time was upon me and I began. I am so hooked on this book. It is about education in America and about the people who want to be part of the solution as well as the young people and their families who are living it. I was so excited that I wanted to share so began reading elements out loud to Dale. Did I mention we were usually in the car. While we share the same core beliefs about education, it turns out that we don't share a common approach. This resulted in some spirited discussion. Okay! we argued, sometimes loudly. Danny, in the back seat was not impressed. He tried to mediate what was essentially a loud discussion by siding with me, ( he does love me best) In any case we ultimately agreed to disagree on some things and come together on most. I suppose the moral if there is one is that this book sparked a solid dialogue between us about a crucial subject. By the way, not all of the book's contributors agreed on every level. What they do agree on is that something has to happen. We cannot throw away the next generation.I hope you read the book and plan to see the movie, maybe something will resonate for you too.

Time to step up

2010-10-01T13:33:00.001-07:00

I am reading two books right now. I don't want you to think that this an unusual circumstance for me because I have been a reader for more than 65 years. Our mom was also a reader who only had a tenth grade education and she was reading to us from birth. She passed away at the tender age of fifty-nine, but she made sure we grew up with library access as well as a few comic books. She told me that I began reading at age four. I never stopped.

"Quilts, Masterworks from the American Quilt Museum" is a breath taking book for a quilter like myself. Every page an adventure or a confection or both. A book like this feeds my heart.

"Looking For Superman" is something different all together. This is a book about the failure of our school system. This book may well break my heart. I am a California girl transplanted to the mid-west eight years ago so my husband and myself could watch our granddaughter grow up. granted it has been an adjustment that I am still making. However, before leaving California I had become worried about education there. When I was growing up I remember that when a new student came to school from another state they often had to catch up. We had a wonderful school system. Things are so different now for all our children.

I am not only referring to the curriculum. A few months ago I had a talk with that twelve year old that literally broke my heart. Miss L. is a wonderful artist. ( I know, I am her grandmother, but she really is pretty good) She goes to a school that has a National Baccalaureate program that she is a part of. Art is her favorite class and she is in an art class this semester. The problem is there are so many students who have behavior problems that art is taking a back seat in this chaotic class.

In the scheme of things a below average art class may seem unimportant. There is more. L. told me that she has to be careful and responsible for herself every day. She says that there are fights every day. She has to be careful who she makes eye contact with, sit with, speaks with. A little friend stood up for a younger child and angered the bully. This older child later cornered her in the girls room and she had great difficulty getting out to tell a teacher what happened. Now her mother is worried about possible reprisals from the girl who had received a ten day suspension. I wake in the middle of the night and wonder how there can be any education going on in a school where there is also so much fear. I was never given reason to be afraid in my school. When my children were growing up and they were involved in a school day , I had a reasonable expectation that for those six hours they would be safe. They spent a lot more time in school that children do today. Education was going on!

My husband has witnessed physical fight among parents where the police had to be called! My daughter went to pick up L. a few days ago and as she sat in her car across the street from the school she suddenly saw what she thought was a fight going on right outside the school doors. When she realized there were no other adults in the area, let alone a teacher or school administrator she jumped out of her car and ran across the street. She is a teacher herself and did not think twice. Almost there and a teacher came out and started to break up what turned out not to be a fight but a beating! A big kid was beating the hell out of a small child.

I am afraid for our children. Not just because of the bullies, but because American education is so far behind approximately twenty plus countries. ( Can't remember the number, I am old and that is what happens) Ask a college English teacher if incoming freshman are prepared for college. There answer will make you sick. I know because that teacher daughter I just mentioned is a college teacher teaching developmental English. She would give you a real earful. It breaks her heart and mine.

Read "Waiting For Superman" or see the movie, hang out at your child's school, listen closely when you child is in the back seat speaking about his or her day at school. They are trying to tell us what is really going on.

I promise that this kind of post will not happen to often, but on the occasion of such injustice I will be back. This most intelligent generation is being given a raw deal and I don't want us to look the other way and take for granted that someone else will fix it.

Another very Talented Friend

2010-09-18T21:10:00.000-07:00

This takes your breath away doesn't it? I have studied this quilt in person as well as in the photos and know that this the definition of perfection. Nancy Kern is both a technician and an artist. In addition she is fast!!! I envy the fast part of her work. Nancy says she has always hoped that she would win a big prize some time. Well, now she has done just that. She has received the coveted phone call from Quilt Festival in Houston! Yes!! She was informed that she is a winner of one of the top prizes there. She has won a trip to festival and at the least, five thousand dollars. I celebrate your success Nancy and know all your other friends do too. This honor is earned. It was such fun getting to know you better at BOTP. I suspect we should have got a little more sleep, but I would have missed out on something special. You are living the dream my friend and I hope you savor every moment.

Baltimore On The Prairie, a little more.

2010-09-16T11:47:00.000-07:00

One down side to teaching away from home is that a teacher like me seldom gets to see the results of a workshop. I am so excited to be able to show you what a student of mine did in my class last year. This lovely wall hanging was made by Pat Steele in the main conference class I taught last year at the first BOTP quilt conference in Omaha NE. It is a prime example of creative use of a single block. I think sometimes we forget that not every project has to be a bed quilt or even a nine block wall hanging. Sometimes one block is enough. Thank you Pat for sharing this with me and the class. See you next year!

This was our last day and so as many as there were of us decided to pose for a photograph. That is Tresa Jones, the woman behind all the good things that makes up BOTP. That's me in the red shirt. And behind us are a little more than three quarters of twenty students in my main conference workshop. For me my experiences teaching seems to get better and better! How lucky I am. before this workshop. two students emailed and asked if I would send the pattern so they could mark for back basting. Done! Others asked if I would object to their making the bias tubes for the basket. Done! I was beginning to feel that we were on a roll when class began. There I was asked by some if I would mind if they folded and basted strips for basket stays. By noon on the first full day we had a reputation for getting it done!! Yes!!!! Seriously, I have been so fortunate as a teacher to have motivated students. This conference was no exception and I thank each and every one of you for that. it simply does not get any better. In addition to that, there were some pretty funny people in that group. I had a wonderful time. I can't wait to do it again.

And so it begins. Please notice the attention to task here. One might think I was a task master. Hmmmnnn.

Another view and still working hard.

This last shot shows the smiles of a few and makes me smile to see them. I hope you have my experience the next time you are in class. It makes such a difference in the way I view the next time. This is my art, what's yours?

More about BOTP

2010-09-15T12:25:00.000-07:00

The International Quilt Study Center is within short driving distance from Mahoney State park, the home of Baltimore On The Prairie. Lucky for all the attendees. Tresa Jones arranged for the second year in a row for us to tour the facility. If you want to know more about their collections take yourself to www.quiltstudy.org. You will not be sorry as the collection adds up to more than three thousand quilts.

Above is a view of the entry way to the IQSC. I am not sure what to call the white structure to the left but there are several chairs inside and so my feeling is that it is a place to rest and reflect. It really is lovely. To the right is the entry to a wonderful day.

Run, don't walk to this collection before it has moved on. I have seen some of the dear quilts before and it was a pleasure to visit them again. And luck us, the collector, Mary Ghormley was there that day and I quietly followed her and others around the gallery to hear the stories. Her affection for these doll quilts is heart warming as she is also speaking of the children who once wrapped their baby dolls inside. Mary also collected the doll beds and there are some beautiful examples in this part of the collection.

This is an interesting example of some of the cool things you will see on your visit to IQSC. Be sure you click on the picture to enlarge this "quilt". You will find the names of many quilt guilds. I missed the chance to ask museum personal what was behind the creation of this interesting piece. I can only guess at this point that these organizations support the center. it is beautifully made and I hope you all make a visit someday soon.

Baltimore On The Prairie

2010-09-14T15:06:00.000-07:00

This was my view from the little deck of the room I shared with Nancy Kern at the conference, Baltimore on the Prairie this last week. Mahoney State Park is a lovely place for quilters to gather and hone their skills. While I seldom get outside for any length of time when working, this time I drove around before checking in. My granddaughter would be pretty excited by the pool. The hiking trails are applauded by many. The lodge is a nice place to stay. Not fancy but comfortable. And as a truly biased observer, I believe BOTP is a wonderful venue for making friends, studying with talented instructors and the sharing of our art with others who know what we are speaking about. This was an especially enjoyable few days for me personally. I am so honored to be asked back for next year. I have to say that if you are one of the people who decided to wait until 2011 and there are a lot of you, better get online and sign up. The spots are really going quickly!! I would love to see you there.

One of the pleasant things that struck me is that everyone was so productive. In the first place it is so nice to be hanging out with people who are obsessed with the same things you are. Check out the great fabric Lynn is cutting into to use in our one day class.

In the center we see Gail Chalker. Gail is here from Queensland,Australia. her arm is in a sling but she managed to get a lot done. This was my one day class and the picture on the table the project. Notice the sweet tin under the picture. It is candy tin that came with miniature milky way bars inside, but a Baltimore album quilt on the top and sides. I have mine, do you have yours? Seriously, they are collectors items these days! Okay, I was distracted so want to get back to Gail. You cannot see it, but the left side of her blond hair is pink!! Way to go Gail! But seriously, she owns a quilt shop, no gossiping allowed, or you will be encouraged to leave. In addition, she is getting a degree in theology, not to become a pastor, but because she wants to learn. She has been instrumental in challenging quilters to help make the biggest hexagon quilt in the world and it is believed that was achieved. There is not a quilt museum in Australia though the country has a rich history in quilt making. So, Gail took that task on as well. She managed to convince the powers that be to donate the land that already has historical buildings on sight. Now she also has a building and the last task is to bring all this together. I stand in awe of her dedication and energy. hats off to you, Gail.

Baltimore On The Prairie

2010-09-04T14:16:00.000-07:00

In few days I will be traveling to Omaha Nebraska for the second annual Baltimore on The Prairie conference. This is my second year also and I have been looking forward to this all year. Last year was new and I was a little worried about how I would do, how I would be received, but I needn't have been concerned. I had a great room mate in Kathy Delaney and a wonderful administrator in Tresa Jones. My students, well, I cannot begin to tell you how much I enjoyed my time in the class room! We had so much fun. There was a lot of learning going on. The learning was on both sides of the table. I have taught applique for more than twenty five years and learn something new every time. In the beginning, I was running to keep ahead of my students. Don't tell them, but sometimes I was perfecting my style just hours before entering the class room! These experiences have become part of the great love of my life.

Now you may be wondering about the pictures. I am excited to say that I have been invited back for a third year I did tell Tresa that next year I will be 70 years old in addition to celebrating my fiftieth wedding anniversary. She was not concerned and my friend Karen reminded that 70 is only a number. Thank you Karen. I wouldn't miss it and hope you don't either. So the top block is "An Eagle In My Garden" I designed this with both Baltimore and crazy quilts in mind. This will be my main conference class. It is a three day workshop taught over four days, bliss for the instructor and great for the student. My roots are definitely in Embroidery so you can count on at least a bit of hand stitching in my work. In this case and in addition to the floss embroidery I used 4mm silk ribbon to create the wreath in the claws of the eagle. There is so much more to share in this design so I hope you come along so i can share it with you.

The second block, " In The Heart Of a cherry" is a favorite of mine as much for technique as the image itself. The wreath is cut work applique featuring ins and outs, points, curves and more. The stems are embroidered and the cherries are perfect, I promise. This is my Plus One workshop which simply means that it is a one day class. The supply list for this design is very short. This is a project that you will carry around. I hope you take advantage of the conference. There is a warmth and friendship associated with being there.

Margaret, this is for you!

2010-09-04T13:04:00.000-07:00

I read every comment on my blog and am so grateful for those of you who take the time to comment. It is wonderful to see your work and hear about your lives. Recently when it came time to draw names for the winner of my give away I cam across a comment from Margaret. She loves cats and wanted to see my son Danny's cat since I mentioned that Samantha is 22 years old. So Margaret, this is for you, and for anyone else loves animals. Samantha came to Danny through his sister Kelly. She knew that Danny wanted a pet and she had a friend with new kittens. We could say that the rest is history, but we would be leaving out a lot of information. First of all it needs to be said that Sam or "My sweetie" as Danny calls her. Of course he calls a lot of the women in his life "sweetie." Samantha is half pure Siamese and half feral so we weren't sure how life would be. She did bite Danny's dad a fair amount over the years, he claimed it because he would play with and tease her. She bit me severely twice, both times when I had the audacity to check on her when she was freaking out because she saw a strange cat through the window to the back yard. I guess as an indoor cat she had little experience with strange felines. That second time she nearly lost her happy home. Danny was living on his own by that time and couldn't have pets so Sam continued to live with us. Danny goes to all vet appointments and never fails to find her the minute he walks in my door. When he calls each morning it is to ask about his "sweetie" Sam is pretty old now and sleeps almost all the time. The vet says there is not much wrong, nothing to treat, she is simply aging. She will be 23 on Halloween day. Dan's dad and I worry about Danny. He will miss her so much. As a developmentally disabled adult he has had much loss in his life and this will be a hard one. But in the meantime, she still loves her head scratched and he still loves to do it!

My First Quilt

2010-08-23T15:28:00.000-07:00

Well, all this discussion about tools for quilting has me thinking about my roots in this art. Like many of you I did not come to quilting early in my life. I am the oldest of ten children so there was much to do. Remember when variety stores, AKA dime stores, AKA five and dimes, carried soft flannel baby garments stamped with embroidery designs? I stitched a lot of those. Being the oldest, I was my mother's right hand girl. Together we made clothing for all, did the laundry, ironing, house cleaning and cooking.

I went on to embroidery, crewel, counted cross stitch, needlepoint and more. In 1961 I married a sailor who looked a lot like the famous young man who came home from the war to get his picture taken kissing a beautiful young woman. Made all the news. That was not us. Our first child was born in 1963. At the baby shower given by friends and family I received a snowy white Baby Pepperil blanket. Oh it was so soft and beautiful. I had no idea how to accomplish this but I decided to applique this blankie with sweet baby animals and embroidered flowers etc. My fabrics were pastel velours attached with blanket stitch. Sweet. I gave her the blanket a few years ago. Perhaps we should encourage her to share it with all of you? Our little boy also slept under that blanket/ quilt.

I continued to stitch, but but knew nothing really about quilts as there were none in my personal history. I attended many needlework shows, a pre-curser I think to quilt shows and once bought a quit magazine. I knew it was for me instantly and hounded a friend of mine to join me in making our first pieced quilts. We both decided to make the Postage stamp pattern above. It was constructed on the machine. Otherwise I am sure I would still be working on it. The year was 1976. I had been entering embroidery and pumpkin pies, etc in the county fair for a lot of years and that year I entered my quilt. I still do not know how it happened to this day, but I won the first Best of Fair award ever offered by the Alameda County Fair. A big ribbon and a silver tray.
It was a joyful time for me.

I had the quilt after that day for only five months. In the early morning hours of a fall night there was a fire in the house where my sister and her family were living. The fire took her baby girl and nearly took the rest of the family. I remember feeling so helpless. I could attend the services, look after her little boys, cook meals, but nothing seemed to make a difference. My husband tried so hard to help me help her, but it did seem meaningless. At one point he suggested I give her the quilt. Almost right away, I knew I was going to do just that. I hugged her and told her I loved her and while I couldn't change anything that I wanted her to have this quilt. I don't know if it made the slightest difference but I have no regret. I think sometimes you do something because your heart will break if you don't.

I believe I came to quilting because there is so much heart in the creation. I hope that while my story is sad at times that you share your first quilts too. warmly, Nadine

Your favorite tools and mine

2010-08-20T12:14:00.001-07:00

Well, after the giveaway was over. I found myself with information about your favorite Nancy Halvorson patterns the results of which I will post soon, but for now, lets talk about the tools you love. Be sure that the images you see may not be the brand or color, etc that you actually own, but simply a representation of your choices. The small picture above is of Australian Porcupine quills. It is a recent favorite of mine. The quills have microscopic barbs that do not create fabric runs but they do help with turning corners. Love it!
Now the image above is a favorite of one of you. it is a Diamond Sewing machine. I had to look it up and boy it looks amazing!! It is beautiful and I have a feeling it might even help me cook dinner. Seriously, nice choice.

While I own a wonderful Bernina sewing machine which I won 1994 as a prize for Best In Show at Pacific International Quilt festival for my album quilt. It is my favorite sewing machine, but I own two singer featherweight machines and they are my favorites also. I know, you supposedly can have only one favorite anything by definition, but I can live with my interpretation of favorite things.

The Easy Circle Cut is Marj's favorite tool. I may have to add this to my list as well. Looks like a need to have basic.
Above is representative of surgical scissors, which was Elaine's favorite tool. I know personally many friends who use this tool routinely and recommend them without a doubt. In addition, nine of you weighed in with the opinion that your Gingher scissors were the best tools you own. I cannot blame you as this is my choice as well. I haven't used the surgical scissors so am not choosing one over the other, just simply like what I have.

If you look closely at this ruler you will see a long slot which accommodates the blade of a rotary cutter. This is a Rotary Ruler by Fiskars. Unfortunately, it is no longer made. It looks really good to me and a safe option to using two separate tools.

The above is a Pom Pom Maker. One of you loves this tool.

Two of you mentioned your iron but not the brand. This is mine and I really like it. Dependable steam and I am fond of steam. It heats up so fast, love that. In addition, it is affordable. I have gone back to buying Black and Decker, because it is affordable and long lasting.
One of you mentioned that your favorite is your crochet hook. I love them too and use one very small hook to repair snags in clothing. I found this rainbow of hooks online and thought they were really pretty so am sharing them now. The more I look the more I am tempted. have to rein myself in as I do not need every thing I see. Hmmm, my daughter Kelly crochets and knits, maybe she...... Moving on.

There were several references to seam rippers. One of you called it a "stitch ripper outer" and I like that so much that I think I will add it to own description from now own. It is concise and and more descriptive don't you think? Seriously, though this is something we do not want to do, having a good tool when the dreaded seam ripping is need is I think crucial. Make sure you a seam ripper that is of good quality.

We all know that a variety of marking pencils is a must. Some of you like chalk, I do as well. In addition, I find that sometimes even a permanent marker such as a Pygma pen is the only way to go. There are wonderful mechanical pencils in black, white or colored leads. My advise if wanted is to experiment before committing to anything that will show when you are finished stitching. I will share a sad story. Many years ago, I was teaching an evening class at my local quilt shop. When the phone rang I usually answered because I had young children and would want to know of any emergency . In any case, the woman on the other end of the line was distraught and looking for an answer. She had marked and quilted her first quilt with a pencil labeled as a quilt marker. However, when the quilting was finished, she washed the quilt to remove the markings and nothing happened. Nothing worked and I had no answer for her. This was a time when office supplies were being re purposed and packaged for quilters. So don't be a patsy, it could happen to you as well.

More hooks and some knitting needles this time. You all have the most interesting favorite tools in the sewing rooms you frequent.

Needles are of course a very important part of quilting. Currently, my own favorite are John James brand golden glide needles. I like the Golden glide type in both 11 sharps as well as betweens. I know you all have your own favorite. makes things interesting, don't you think?

I include the porcupine quills again just to compare with the point turner above. I definitely need this one too. it is also a presser.

Rulers. bet you have almost everyone. I confess I do too, but i have my favorite.

When looking for a thimble image for Karen's favorite tool I found this beautiful thimble made in England. Seems to suit Karen, she's a dear friend, in theme and besides it is wonderful. Now, much as I love it, this would probably not work for me as I am a side quilter rather that a top quilter. So, I guess my next question is what kind of a quilter are you???

Freezer paper, my all time favorite medium for template making. I use it for applique images and I use it to make quilting templates so I do not have to mark my quilt tops.

One of you told me that you value your cutting table above all else. It is the right height, width and length. I am also fortunate to have an island style cutting table in my studio. I am sure it is the most used element in the room!

Circle templates. This is an amazing tool. If you like or love to applique circles, you will also love a tool like this.

One of you mentioned your favorite tool is your mothers sewing table. I know this is not the one, but I so love the idea that you have altered your moms table for your own use. I bet you think of her every time you sit down. You must have great memories.

Last but not least is the bias tape maker. This is a real work horse as can be used to simply make bias binding for a quilt, etc, or produce stems. I like a metal bias bar for stems but this method works as well.

I want to thank each and everyone of you for signing in and weighing in on the things in your sewing room, sewing basket, or perhaps you have experienced a sewing room in a Mayflower moving box as I did more than thirty years ago! I cannot say I miss that box, but I do think of it with love......... not!!!!!!!!! Until later.

And The Winner Is!!

2010-08-16T14:00:00.000-07:00

I was pretty excited when I woke up this morning. The first think I thought of was that this was the day I would learn who would win my very first give away. I know it will not be my last. I have so enjoyed meeting new friends and touching base again with several constant friends, especially those I "adore." I know that you know who I am speaking to "Pam" Thank you so much for the good laugh. For the rest of you, I will be following your blogs as well.

So, early on this morning, I began watching the comments to make sure that I would not miss a single person. I also spent some time looking for the perfect bowl, basket or any container to do this drawing in. In the end I went back to one of my old favorites. Green depression glass. Today this is the cameo pattern " Ballerina" These dishes are far more valuable than when I collected them, but I use them because I love them. So into the dish with your posts and now I am looking for someone to actually draw the lucky entry.

Well, we were the only ones at home. He wasn't sure he wanted to comb his hair, put on clean shirt, but since Danny's cat, 22 year old Samantha turned me down, he stepped up. The winner is Sherry of Country Wings in Phoenix! So, Sherry send me your address via E-mail (Bapplique@aol.com) and I will send the sewing basket with pleasure. Thank you so much for all your kind words and next time I hope you all win too.

And The winner Is

2010-08-16T12:19:00.000-07:00

Okay when I wrote this the first time I was sure I had it all together and this would appear at two o'clock today. apparently I was wrong and if it appears twice. I will remove one of the posts as soon as I find it. Computers!!! In any case I began the day excited and looking forward to this moment.
As you can see the entries are in the bowl and ready to be drawn. I looked around for something suitable and finally decided on my favorite green depression glass bowl. This one is Cameo and so pretty.
This pleasant looking guy is my husband of 49 years. he was a little unsure about his role as it involved combing his hair and donning a clean shirt. but he gave in when Dan's 22 year old cat Samantha simply gave me the stink eye when asked to participate. In any case the winner is Sherry of Country Wings in Phoenix!! Congratulations Sherry and and I do hope you enjoy the basket as much as I enjoyed making it. Thanks to all of you who came by and entered my first, but not last giveaway. It has been so much fun. I hope you continue to stop by.

Sherry, send me your address to bapplique@aol.com and I will mail the basket post haste.

Sew Wonderful Giveaway

2010-08-09T08:42:00.000-07:00

When I decided to do a give away the only problem was selecting a special project that would appeal to a lot of people. I have long been a fan of Art To Heart designs (More about that later) and have one of the newer books so decided I would use one of Nancy Halvorsens patterns for a sewing basket. I had great fabrics to choose from and took my time. The above picture shows a pretty cute pincushion as well as a tiny scissors holder. Please look closely at the small scissors inside as I am including them in the give-away! I am excited about that because not only are small and sweet but they are sharp! There is nothing worse than great looking scissors that are pretty but dull.

The inside of the basket is full of pockets for such things as thread. The thread holders are of varying sizes, so while there only a few, they will hold enough for your current project.

Beginning on the right side, the pink dotted pocket is for large scissors. The pink fabric printed with lovely script will hold a great rotary cutter. Next to that is a green dotted pencil pocket. The rest are for the miscellaneous items we are always looking for in the middle of a great project. Tape measure, needles, pins, seam ripper, etc. Of course I have never needed a seam ripper, but I have heard from reliable sources that they come in handy on occasion.

This was when my basket started to come together. Still a while to go, but starting to look like the end is in sight. It was at this point that I began rethink the give away thing. Just kidding! I have wanted to do this for quite awhile. I just want you to know how much I have enjoyed this journey and am grateful to those of you who join me.

This was my focus fabric. I absolutely fell in love with it and have long moved past the fear of cutting into a fabric. Goodness knows I have more than enough and so now operate on the premise that even if I use all of a favorite, they make more!!

See, look how cute this is. Now the scissors and rotary are mine, but I am sure you can fill these spaces with things of your own. You should know that my rotary cutter is pink. I have a pink cutting mat as well. I am betting that you can find both of those for yourself.

Just a little closer look inside.

This is the cover of Nancy's book "Sew Necessary" and this where I found my project. As you can see I went a different way with fabric but think we both came up with great combinations. One of the things I love with all my heart about being a quilter is the diversity in the choices we make. There is no wrong choice, just your choice or mine.

Okay, done. I love it and hope you do too. If you do, sign in, take advantage of all the ways you can earn a chance and please come back. I am already enjoying this give away thing and hope to do more. Thank you so much for ten thousand visits!!!

I will be drawing a name on Monday, August 16 at 2pm. There are three ways to earn a chance to win this sweet sewing basket.

1. Leave a comment here telling me about your favorite tool. Remember, these are tools, not toys, we need these goodies to do what we do so well.

2. Visit Art to Heart and come back here to leave another comment sharing your favorite Nancy Halvorsen design.

3. Become a follower of my blog then come back here to leave a comment telling me you are following.

A bench mark for my blog

2010-08-04T15:00:00.000-07:00

While working on the following post, my counter logged 10,005 hits on my blog! I am so excited. So, to celebrate, I have decided to have a give away. The rules are not in place yet so give me a week or so, but I am going to have a give away. Please note the fabrics above arranged on my window seat. Most are included in the project I plan to give away. I hope you win, but even if you don't, know how much I enjoy your comments or even the prospect that you will check in and read what I have to say. Who knew this would be so much fun for me. There is joy.

A long hot humid summer

2010-08-04T13:56:00.000-07:00

Just in case you haven't noticed, the front door is red!I have wanted a red door for some time and so early last month I made the leap and shopped the local home stores and bought primer and paint. The original color was the same as the shutters, a faded teal. Looks really pretty good from this distance don't you think?

This is closer of course and boy the red is really standing out! The color, by the way is Martha Stewart's Lady Bug Red. Hm mm, there is something really familiar about this shade of red.

Oh, my gosh! Of course, it totally matches my husbands car. The jeep!!! Oh well, it is really red and there is nothing I can do about it, or more to the point, there is nothing I am willing to do about it. After one coat of primer and three coats of paint, which is still not enough when viewed close-up, I am done. It was a hot humid day. Each coat taking twice the predicted time to dry. Do I have painter's remorse? Of course. The last time I trusted my own judgement, well I don't remember the last time. So the door is red. Want to make something of it? Just kidding!

I also thought I should share more of what is going on, on the porch, front and back. We moved into this house almost eight years ago and I knew immediately that wicker was going to be the material of choice for outdoor furniture. This swing is on the front porch and when the weather settles, I love to read and swing, drifting an hour or two away.

Lots of chairs needed so these two rest to the right of the front door. haven't decided on a table yet, but will soon. I love the idea of simple outdoor rooms.

Around the corner, a great comfortable rocking chair. This corner is special because in mid-afternoon the sun is blocked by a red-bud tree and a beautiful Japanese maple. It will soon have a light blue green table re purposed from an old rusty milk can. That is where you will find me reading and enjoying my flowers most afternoons. Well, when I am not swinging.

This is my back porch. The furniture represents the first piece purchase almost eight years ago. We arrived here in mid-November. In between days and weeks of unpacking and assimilating ourselves into the community, I would take breaks and place myself in the little rocking chair to read and regroup. One afternoon in particular stands out as pleasurable in a big way. It was November after all, but there was a warm, not hot, not cold summer like rain. The water came down gently and was so soothing. If it wasn't 101* with a heat index of 106*, I might be there even now.
Another angle on that same corner. We have beautiful trees. can you see the park bench we have placed under two of them?
Last is the wicker on the deck. My husband is trying to refinish that deck, but have to wait for cooler weather. The humidity has prevented us from using the deck much. The cushions have lived in storage much of the summer because until a couple of weeks ago, a sunny day would turn into a dark stormy afternoon soaking anything in it's path. I hope you have noticed the cushions as we go. Every two years or so, I have recovered them as that is about as long as the fabric lasts in terms of color. This was one of those replacement years and I hit the lottery when it comes to this year's choice. I love the polka dots. My best find for this ever. If the heat is bad where you are, please take care. Mowing the lawn is not worth heat stroke. You are important to me and I suspect many others. More soon.

Just Look at What I Found Today!

2010-07-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

Today I ran away for a day. I left a note and promised to be home by dinner time. I had lots of well loved company the last few weeks and all that goes with that, such as house cleaning, painting where necessary, meal and event planning. I should have been at home today washing the bed linens, towels and anything else I could find. However, I spent the morning walking two miles at the mall with Danny, returning a really cute blouse that was after all too young for me, and picking up books saved for me at the local library. Then I spent the rest of the day in some of my favorite antique stores. I bought two quilts today and am sharing my favorite with you now. I made a rather low bid and the owner split the difference with me so it was a win, win for both of us. For those who don't already know, I offer the name, New York Beauty for this quilt. I suspect that if you are here reading, you already know that.

Above you can see the right side and upper edge. So if you look at the right side of the picture you can see a chunk missing near the bottom edge of the corner block. Not unusual for a quilt this old.

This picture shows two patches of red apparently used to cover two holes. A quick examination of the fabric feels like there are two oval holes under the patches. There are identical ovals of white on the back. I can only guess that the holes were trimmed out to remove a stain? In any case I may try to find a better match of fabric and piece red and white together to better hide the repairs.

On the left edge of this photograph is what I believe to be the the bottom edge of the quilt. If you take a look at the first picture again you will see that there are two sides of the quilt with this border. Quilts from this time period were often used on beds that were place against the wall so no need for a four side border.

This view gives you a small sense of the quilting. I have to say that this is a really beautifully made quilt. The piecing is really crisp and the quilting dense and lovely. The edges are pretty worn, but over all the rest of the quilt is in good condition. There are some stains, but I am reluctant to try to wash them away. I suspect that I will hang it above the landing upstairs. If that works out, I will post a picture so you can once again see how beautiful it is. The following quilts with the exception of the last one are quilts in the International Quilt study Center's collection. I hope you enjoy them.

This would probably be my favorite. It employs stunning pieced sashing and my own favorite, applique.

I love the red, white and green color choices in this one. It is one of the few I have seen in this soft color palette.

This quilt is on the cover of the book "American Quilts in the Modern Age". This quilter had no problem with color.

This quilt is also red, white and green, however the artist also popped in some yellow and voila, this quilt sings!
I end, appropriately I think, with this wonderful red, white and blue version. When Americans are feeling patriotic, or nostalgic, it seems we come back to this.
I hope you don't have the need to run away. This was only my second time in forty-nine years so I am feeling okay with it. However, if you do, I hope it works for you as well as it worked for me today. Two quilts in one day. Zowie!!!

I do sometimes cook

2010-07-07T15:11:00.000-07:00

Last fall when I went to Philadelphia with my daughter, I certainly enjoyed the sights in the historic area. In walking distance, I spent my days absorbing our history while Kelly attended her writing conference. However, we did have almost a whole day at the end of the week before heading for the airport and home.

This was the day we had breakfast/lunch at Max Brenners Chocolate cafe. Yum! In addition we were in an area where a lot of high end boutiques and stores. What did we enjoy the most apart from lunch/ breakfast? William Sonoma! Sorry, we do not have one here. I cannot understand why but it is the sorry truth of our condition. That is where we found Kitchen Aids 90th anniversary limited edition, candy apple red mixer with a glass bowl! I really wanted that mixer. I think Kelly wanted it too. We both own a Kitchen Aid mixer, mine more than 35 years old, hers more than twenty. Three hundred and forty dollars. Both of our mixers are in great condition so no real excuse to buy one. Having said all that, I cannot express how thrilled I was to finally find the glass bowl in Branson at the The Tanger Mall! I am so excited to be able to see all of what is going on when I am mixing pastries, icings, etc.

Now if any of this sounds strange I will give a brief explanation. The women in my family play board games, do jig saw puzzles, collect cookie cutters and unusual baking pans and dishes, sew, love, love, love office supplies, and possess a gene for collecting vintage china and glassware. It could be worse I suppose. What if we had an affinity for trolls?

Friends

2010-07-01T14:23:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking of friends a lot lately. As some of you know, I lost a dear friend a short time ago. It was a great loss to everyone who loved her. This resulted in my thinking about friends and I decided to share a little with you today. We moved from CA to the mid-west in 2003. My husband was two years into retirement so free to go. I am a quilter and was still working at teaching applique and hand quilting and can do this work anywhere, so I was also free to go. The incentive, our daughter and a beautiful five year old granddaughter. One day my husband said " I would rather see our girls every week and visit friends once a year", instead of the other way around. So we began the journey that led us here. There are no regrets but am reminded of loss when I come across something made for me by a friend. I am then reminded of a quote I read a long time ago and do not remember the source. A man leaves the place where he lives and "a woman leaves her friends." So, in the arrangement above I have made a circle. The cross stitch is my work and contains images I am fond of, a bird, a bowl of fruit and a home. Moving down in a clockwise motion, there is a tiny white oak basket made for me by my friend Karen B. It is absolutely perfect in every detail. The small quilt below was made for me in 1990 by another friend, Bobbi A. She moved first back to the east coast. Something about the Loma Prieta earthquake. I was born in Ca so I was somewhat immune but understand her feelings. The little quilt is approximately eight by ten inches. Picture if you can a 12 block quilt with two inner borders and a one inch outside border, hand pieced and quilted. Lucky me, but it gets better. All of the pieced blocks are made from fabric inherited from her great grandmother's quilting scraps. I feel better just looking at this evidence of dear friends.

You Have seen This Before

2010-06-28T12:27:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know you have seen "In My Garden" before, but I am excited and want to share the moment. I have long admired the Vermont Quilt show and finally entered a quilt. While I have heard that more than ever this show features quilts that have been long-arm quilted, no problem there. There is room for all. However, this show has a reputation for traditional, hand appliqued and hand quilted work and I am thrilled to be a part of that. This show is not juried. They accept the first 200 or so quilts and the judging begins. There is no monetary reward, so the satisfaction is personal. The funny thing is that I have no idea for sure if that small blue ribbon is for first place or not. There are a few other things it could be. If you know or if you find out, I would love to hear from you. Please remember, all you traditional quilters, we haven't stopped making quilts, but we have stopped showing them in numbers to match the machine made work. I want to see your work. I dare you!

Just thought I would come back and bring you up to date on my quilt. I received an email from Janet this morning including a more recent picture of my quilt. I am so excited to see that there are now two ribbons on my quilt. According to Janet the second ribbon is for best Applique. it has been a great day. If I had not entered, I would not be feeling this way. Take a chance. The worst that can happen is that people like me will get to see your art. The best could be a day like I am having. Seems like a win win to me. Thanks Janet!

Danny and softball

2010-06-12T18:29:00.001-07:00

Whenever I hear the phrase " The Boys Of Summer" I almost always think of my youngest child, Danny. Now of course Danny is not a child any more, at least not physically. He has competed in
Special Olympics since he was eight years old. He had a best friend whose name was Bryan. I believe they would still be friends if Bryan were still here. He passed away when the boys were in their early twenties. They really loved each other. They were brothers despite having different sets of parents! I remember attending their first Special Olympics competition in Oakland California. They were in the same heat for the 50 yard dash. The gun sounded and they were off running. Danny was way out in front and we all cheering, when suddenly, Danny looked back and saw Bryan pretty far behind. He stopped and cheered his friend/brother on. They crossed the finish line together. We could all learn from those two eight year old little boys.

Danny went on for many years swimming, running, bowling, competing in gymnastics. In his mid-teens he began playing softball and over time he gradually gave up the other sports and now plays softball with a group called Sporting Chance. The six weeks of play are somewhat stressful for him as they are often rained out. He is a regular and yes sometimes annoying weather man during the short six week season. He doesn't always play as well as he used to but wouldn't miss it for the world!

Now this week was so different. I have spent some quality time with him trying to convince him that he needed to keep both hands on the bat and follow through. Finally he seemed to understand and when he got up the first time (yes!) both hands on the bat and followed through. Base hit! In one hour he had two base hits resulting in two runs, as infielder he defended second base for two outs and caught a fly ball. Did I mention that he was so excited that he caught it with his bare hand? He did have a glove but forgot to put that hand up. He was so excited, he forgot how much it hurt and walked off the field shaking that hand and began laughing and laughing. He has got a lot of mileage out of his special "Day of Summer" this week. May your own Days of Summer be as much fun with far less humidity than my own and I hope you catch the fly ball of your choice.

I have always loved the clouds in the mid-west

2010-06-08T17:52:00.000-07:00

I am completely without anything quilty to write about today so you will have to be content with my weather report. Whenever I have traveled in the mid-west to visit family or friends I have been overwhelmed by the beauty of the cloud formations. However this week we have been treated to some very unusual cloud formations. Undulatus Asperatus. I immediately had grave reservations as I live in an area of the country where tornadoes are pretty common. However, this is not the case with these clouds. Yay. The above picture was taken in Aurora MO.

I was intrigued with this phenomenon and so went online to see what I could and found this one in Scotland. It is rare and the last sighting before this week was in the fifties.

This one was in MO. Not my picture but similar to what I saw when I started down my drive way. As I turned south to go over the highway, I saw it again. I have to say that there is something ominous about these clouds. My husband said it reminded him of a scene in an old movie "Ghost Busters." I have to agree. I hope all of you get so see this wonderful product of Mother Natures art

I have been away, but now I am back

2010-05-30T17:53:00.002-07:00

I have been feeling low for several weeks now with no desire to blog. My dear friend passed away on Mother's day. I have been unable get myself together and find a subject anyone would be interested in. I began to think I had stopped caring about this. However yesterday I came across these pictures while looking for something else. The one above is not very good but if you look closely you will see that there is a quilt waiting to be born. The owner is my precious granddaughter, Elizabeth Evelyn, also known as Libby and more recently as Lizzi. She is twelve now and somewhere in her threes or fours we decided to create a quilt together. We spent an hour or so in the quilt shop where she chose these fabrics. Her mother, ( my daughter was pretty concerned about her choices and suggested that I influence those choices. No way, Libby's quilt, not mine and not her mother's. In any case, I cut those fat quarters into three and a half inch squares. Libby played with them for a couple of days and arranged and rearranged until her baby dolls approved and then we were good to go.

The next morning I stitched the squares together under her watchful eyes. Sometimes there were four or five of the same fabrics in a row, but she was liking it a lot so who was I to question her art?

Wrong order, but since I have not blogged for awhile, I will simply point out that we tied the quilt. Libby was such a good helper! I tied and she held the perle' cotton strands so they could be trimmed.
We did some basting under the eye of LC most of the morning. Libby told me that her dog was always around when humans were at the kitchen table. Apparently the puppy was simply being opportunistic. Libby was quick to warn me that if we dropped any fabric, LC would be right there to scoop it up!

More basting!

Finished. She was so proud. These were her fabric choices, her layout, her first sewing project and she was a pretty exacting fore woman.

Now, how sweet is that? Libby is twelve now and while this is the broody time, we still bake together, and sew together. Don't tell her that I told you that she still treasures the little pink crocheted blanket barely visible in the photo. She is way too hip for that now. We will soon be making sundresses for Miss Lucy. I hope that whether you are a mom or grand mom like me, that you can find the time to do creative things with the children in your life. This memory helps me to feel better and I hope you are pleased to share it with me

Mother's Day

2010-05-10T01:38:00.000-07:00

Of course I always think of my mother on Mother's day. She was only fifty-nine when she died and I think of her almost everyday, even after all this time. I am the oldest of ten children and therefore have memories of her that are perhaps very different from those of my younger brothers and sisters. I did not appreciate some of those experiences at the time but have come to know that those times shaped who I am today. There was never very much money but somehow she made sure we felt special. My first memories are of a time near the end of world war two and my Dad was serving in Europe during the occupation. I remember Oleo in clear plastic (?) bags with a button of red dye. It was a treat to be the one to squeeze the bag until the margarine was a pretty shade of yellow. There were air raid drills, blackout shades red paper pennies, liberty stamps and Mom baking cookies and turning the radio louder so my brother and I would not be afraid. Later, there was first grade. Our school did not have kindergarten so the principal would decide if you were mature enought. Of course I was but the following year my brother Bucky (Bob) spent the first week or so in the hall crying to go home. I occasionally remind him that I am still the most mature. Mom was always the one holding the family together. She and I were a team, caring for the house and the next baby born in to our family. I am not saying I was always happy with this arrangement, I did go through the teen years after all. But I do remember little things that are bigger in my minds eye today. When I entered high school, mother took me aside and told me that I would be getting two dollars a week allowance so I could get a burger and fries at the Buc's Cove just like the other students instead of the cafeteria every day. Boy, that was even enough money to buy a chocolate or cherry coke at the Blue bell cafe on the way home from school! I know now that was a financial sacrifice. Mom had only a ninth grade education and I knew she was proud of me. The weeks before graduation she and a friend took me shopping for a dress, the first store bought dressy dress and it was the most beautiful dress I had ever owned. She died just a few months after my own daughter graduated from high school and one of her gifts to Kelly was a beautiful coming of age letter. Who knew that this woman with limited education was so smart? I did! The card above is one I gave her when i was around eleven years old. It is rather large.

I hope that you notice that the dad is ironing his tie while Mom cooks, vacuum's and does laundry. It was the fifties after all.

Mom's life was hardly that of a queen, but she was royalty nonetheless.

I remember some of her Mother's days. The little Evening In Paris bottle above resembles and is in the right time frame for when I bought for the most beautiful mother in the world, the most beautiful perfume. And I bought it at the dime store No less!! I will always see her opening that bottle immediately and dabbing it behind her ears. Do I know today that she actually liked the scent? No, but she made me believe she did. My beautiful Mother with white rick rack earrings knew how to make a child feel special.

The last gift I remember giving in those young years was the McCoy pottery dutch shoe. Unfortunately this is not the shoe I purchased at that same five and dime. That one went missing after she passed. However, I knew she kept it close and when I found this one in an antique store for thirteen dollars, I bought it for old times sake. I paid perhaps three dollars for the original but worth the price to have something that reminds me of my Mother. I hope your Mother's day was full of good memories, good food, (cooked by someone else of course) and family you love with all your heart. I know mine was.

Because she requested this of me

2010-05-04T21:56:00.000-07:00

A friend has requested that some of her friends finish a quilt she herself will be unable to complete. I was asked to make the label. This quilt is The Bird of Paradise" quilt, though some call it "The Civil War Bride" quilt. I reduced some of the elements in the design, culled the things I could use and this is the result. it is a fairly large label, but still manageable. The nest of eggs represents, at least for me, Jody's family including herself, standing by her family. The bird is another layer of care and the female figure a strong, caring and dear reminder to appreciate and tell those you love that you love them on a regular basis. Jody wants her quilt to be called "Bird of Paradise, Interrupted." This was perhaps the most difficult part of the label for me. I fight against her life being interrupted. Jody is one of the nicest people I have ever known with a sweetness to her that is unusual today. She is a remarkable quilter, and an even more remarkable friend. I love her and I know she loves me as well. I am so honored to have a place in finishing this wonderful quilt for her and her family.

Paducah and a few of my favorite things

2010-05-04T20:38:00.001-07:00

I know it has been too long since I last posted and I hope you are still watching. It has been a long month and I have not felt that I have much to say on the positive end of things. Going to the Paducah quilt show did lift my spirits for awhile, but still I wrote nothing. But here I am again and hope to be posting and a regular basis once again. This is Valeta Hensley, a friend of mine and member of the same TAS group and her major prize winning quilt, "Fashionable Ladies of the Twenties". Valeta's work is always original and impeccable. This really is one of my favorite quilts at paducah. Way to go Valeta! I believe she is going to show our group how she makes these beautiful faces and I will be in line for that.
This is "Tea With Miss D" by Sandra Leichner. This quilt caught my eye when I realized that in addition to the tea pot in the center there are cupcakes in the corners and borders of pretty little spoons with bows. sweet. Now if I weren't so tired tonight i would correct the little issue of the detail pictures of the above information is below the following two quilts. have a look and be kind, I am tired!
This is "Mountain Holly and the Rare Red-Berried Mistletoe" by Jan Cunningham. I was taken in by the scalloped edge and am always a sucker for berries and mistletoe.
"Indiana Starburst" By Judy Morton, Lydia stoll and Miriam Graber is a lovely jewel. The applique is flawless and this interpretation of a much loved vintage design, perfect.
Remember "Tea With D" shown above. here are the close ups I promised. In addition to those really cute spoons, if you look closely, you will see strawberry tarts. There also buttons, a personal favorite of mine.

Another view of the same quilt reveals the addition of tea bags and those adorable cupcakes. I love this quilt!

"Animal Book" bu Magumi Mizuno of Japan is a really charming quilt that adults and children alike were drawn to linger. Every square inch has something charming to say.

"The sweet memories are Forever in my Heart" is a beautiful interpretation of a vintage American quilt. perfectly done.

"Always a bloom In My Garden" caught my eye because of the great workmanship and the energy caused by the diagonal sashing. It is also a happy quilt. Made by Hazel Ashworth.
The Paducah show was memorable and really fun. It was so interesting to wander through the Expo and a little scary to walk through the enormous pavilion. It was kind of like a blow up tent on steroids! Seriously through, it solved a big problem for the venue and provided the extra room needed for smaller exhibits as well as space for more vendors. Nothing wrong with that!

Finally Spring.

2010-04-20T18:54:00.000-07:00

I just thought I would share a MO spring with you. Our weather is a little unpredictable here this time of year as I am sure some of you already know. Above is a bouquet of lilac with a few blooms left from an Easter bouquet gifted to me by my beautiful daughter. Amazing that the Easter flowers are fresh and beautiful.
I have two Red Bud trees in my yard. I think I will research the origin of the name as they are actually kind of pink or perhaps purple.
One of the things I like best about my trees is that not only do they bloom on the usual branches, but also anywhere else they want. The above flowere are actually on the trunk. Cool, don't you think?
The lilacs are a little pale already but still beautiful. The few stems in my vase fill the house with their fragrance and remind me of my mother. My memories of her when I was a child always involve her garden. Lilacs, four-0-clocks, roses, holly hocks, marigolds and sweet peas. I remember when her father, Grandpa Bates would come to visit in the spring. Mom knew he was not going to be able to leave her garden untouched. He was a farmer in MO and Oklahoma when she was a girl. When they walked away from their farm during the Dust Bowl and traveled to southern CA he was a master irrigation specialist and quickly got work with the movie studios as a gardener. So, he always pruned her roses, hard! She was always convinced that he had killed them at last. But as always, they came back and were more beautiful that ever, covering the fences with red, yellow and pink flowers. I remember cars and pedestrians stopping to admire her garden. I have a feeling that mom always knew that he would never hurt her flowers. It was just a way to get him to stay longer.
This is the best flowering of the dwarf cherry tree since we moved to this house. Of course the birds and squirrels have never allowed us a single ripe cherry and this year will probably be no different.
This the second year for the azalea. Looks really good.
Anemone. Don't you just love a touch of blue in the garden? I know I do. I always try to place a little blue in every bed. I hope your garden blooms sweetly and unlike my garden is free from Japanese Beetles.

Newest Patterns

2010-04-19T18:46:00.000-07:00

These are my newest patterns and differ a little from anything I have published in the past. These are my own designs based on the wonderful Baltimore album quilts of the past. Complex but not difficult.

My drawing at Round Bobbin Expo

2010-04-18T18:07:00.000-07:00

Above is a photo of a drawing I had at The Round Bobbin. A small black box filled with eighteen wooden spools of vintage silk twist thread. This thread is wonderful for embroidery. I have used it for crazy quilt projects as well as blanket stitch on wool applique. If you haven't tried this, you are missing out. The winner is Diane Wilhim. She was really glad to get this beautiful thread.

Speaking of the Round Bobbin, I would like to say something. While I have decided that the venue was not exactly the right fit for me and what I did learn a lot about such things as booth set up, appropriate merchandise and be sure you have chocolate! Seriously, though this was the Round Bobbin Sewing and Quilting Expo, this was still not the right place for me. I was perhaps the only teacher/vendor whose roots are in hand applique, hand quilting. The first day was a little slow, but that was what made what happened more noticeable. The majority of people who came through invariably made such comments as "I don"t like that." "Who would take the time?" There were variations on this theme all day. The next two days were a little better, still a little troubling. I love it that there are so many ways to define quilting. It makes what we do available to anyone because there is something for everyone. However, it would be a good thing to remember some of the quilting etiquette. Even my children knew better than to speak out when viewing some else's quilt, "Mom your quilt is better that this one!" or Mom, what is that?" I was startled, maybe even a little hurt and then I got over it. There is room for everyone. Join the party. I did and haven't looked back, not once.

Round Bobbin Expo

2010-04-07T20:16:00.000-07:00

I spent the better part of this day working on my booth at the Expo. I was gifted a larger booth from management as someone was unable to come do to illness. So, I set up with the plan I had made for the smaller booth. I have to say, it looked like I was having a garage sale rather than offering my wool applique, redwork and applique patterns for sale. But all was not lost as I texted ( yes even a sixty eight year old woman can use technology! ) my daughter, she came over and made suggestions and I spent the rest of the day doing it all over. It could still be better, but is so much nicer. The folk art quilt on the left is a Jan Patek I made a long time ago. I fooled with the borders to get a different look. To the right of that is a display of my felted wool pattern samples. The next quilt is my version of vintage red work. I love red work. All I need is a piece of fabric with the design marked, a needle, hoop, thread and scissors. what could be better?
This view is to the right. A little hard to see, but starting on the left side of the table there is a bowl waiting for tomorrows flowers, a tin with business cards, and oh a big bowl of candy. All kinds of chocolate. the rest of the table is taken up with patterns and containers of patterns. I am debuting the first three of six Baltimore style patterns. I am excited to be doing this as it is a long process for me. Above the table I have hung "Return to Baltimore" a quilt that took me a whole year to finish. I am somewhat slow. To the left of that is a nice vintage quilt with embroidered blocks. It was a real find and rare for me because, I finally found and purchased that $30.00 dollar quilt so many of my friends seem to find on a regular basis. To the right oo that is one of my favorite designs. It is based on thirties and forties days of the week dis towels. Of course because I wanted a square quilt, I needed to design two extra blocks. When I was growing up, my mother and I worked together and did follow that church on Sunday, wash on Monday and iron on Tuesday and so on. It was a system that worked but for the most part gradually went away. Now I am pretty proud of myself if I simply get all those things finished at some time during my work week. So, it is not so surprising that I called it "The way We Were" The table below with the quilts will hold my portfolio during the show. A good way to share my work and keep it safe as well. Best wishes to you all.

I have the most talented friends

2010-03-26T20:18:00.000-07:00

I really do have talented friends and Vilma is one of the special ones. We met sometime ago when we were both employees at a shop in Pleasanton CA called Going to Pieces. Great name for a quilt shop, don't you think? We hit it off almost right away and often worked the same shift so our friendship grew. We have laughed and cried together. That's what friends do. Support is key to this kind of relationship. When the original shop owners decided to move on, Vilma and two others decided to go into business together. They each brought their own ideas and made it work. Vilma was a really good boss and at the same time a friend. I have always been attracted to creative people as I like to think I am creative as well. Vilma's work is meticulous and lovely. If I can talk her into some close-ups, I will share again. The quilt design is called Little Brown Bird and the original quilt was designed and made by Margaret Docherty, another amazingly talented artist. I hope all of you are as fortunate as I have been.

Mother's and Sons

2010-03-23T16:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Danny's forty-fourth birthday, which begs the question of how much longer I can keep my credibility while maintaining my assertion that I am thirty- nine. It worked for a long time but he is not so gullible these days. Danny is an adult with developmental disabilities, but in the picture he is a two year old sitting beside his big sister and the smiles are all for her. This is a black and white picture and not in good condition, but I decided to use it here because while it is black and white, I can assure you he has the bluest eyes you will ever see. The brighter the eyes the more mischief, and the more excitement we could expect. Things don't change much. Incredibly blue eyes can be good or bad when they are Dan's.

This is Danny today. This is his cool look! He doesn't like shirts that button, but that day he wore it because I asked him to. Never mind it was a typical mid-west day with temps in the triple digits with a heat index to be afraid of, and I wanted him to make it through the day. He does look cool and perhaps a little hip don't you think. Any involved parent with a disabled child knows the challenges facing both parent and and child. Danny has been in supported-living for almost twenty years. The people who have helped him grocery shop, taught him to clean and do laundry have been legion, or so it seems. They come and they go, but mostly go. He develops friendships and so misses them when they are gone. Now, he is excited to be 44. While the rest of us try not to think of another year, he rejoices in each and every one. From his 21st birthday to his 44th he has always wanted to go to a casino and put a few dollars in a machine. Yesterday was no different and he won five dollars. Pretty exciting! This year he also wanted to have lunch at Red Lobster and receive as a gift, Monster Truck Jam for his DS. We made all of that happen. This year he is looking forward to a late birthday party so his very special niece can attend. For the last few years he has maintained that he does not like chocolate so his cake will be cheesecake, a current favorite. He does eat chocolate but refuses to elaborate or even talk about it. The truth is like most of us he tries to find his place in the world and not liking chocolate so his cake is different from anyone else's' is how he is managing this for now. That's okay. He is aging as we all do and so there are good and bad days. What we all as a family know for sure is the following: Dan is as grown up as he knows how to be, he is compassionate, he cares about the well being of children, if your car is broken, he will find a mechanic just for you, he loves his family, he calls his brother-in-law, brother, his sister, sweetie and takes his responsibilities as an uncle to the now 12 year old very seriously. Happy Birthday Danny. We all love you so much.

Amador Valley Quilters Guild Opportunity Quilt

2010-03-16T20:25:00.000-07:00

This beautiful quilt has some of it's roots in a vintage log cabin quilt made of silk. It is the opportunity quilt for AVQ, a guild I have been a member of almost from the beginning. My first, though not my last guild membership. It is peopled by talented women and men. We have long had the unwritten policy that if no one volunteers for a particular project, then perhaps it was not something the group really wants. But this is a wonderful group of women and someone almost always comes forward. The retreats always happen and the opportunity quilt has always been ready to market right on time. This time is no exception. Kathy Jardine and Gretchen Crozier have collaborated to make this exquisite quilt. The quilting was done by Cindy Young, another artist. "Something To Crow About" makes me wish I still lived close enough to be a part of the process.

Don't you wish you could win this one? I know I do. Maybe. After all some one has to win. Could be me, could be you. Wishes do come true. I hope yours do.

Paducah

2010-03-06T17:53:00.000-08:00

I am sharing this quilt "In My Garden" once again because I found out today that it has been accepted in the Paducah quilt show. I have not had a quilt I felt was good enough to exhibit for some time so I am excited to have it in this particular show. I live close enough to go so the pleasure will be double, just being able to see it hang in the show. "In My Garden" also was entered in PIQF in CA last fall. I am happy to say it won best Hand Workmanship. When this year is over, it will go to my daughter Kelly. I hope she loves it as much as I do. This post is another call for hand work quilts. Please quilters, remember that if you don't enter your quilts in shows and competitions, the category "Applique, Hand" will go away. Frankly, as a hand applique lover, it could not be a better time to enter. The entries are so small, your chances to win are great. If that sounds insulting, I do not mean it that way. Sounds like I may be saying that we can only win if there is no competition. That couldn't be further from the truth. I am here, you are out there, the artists and quilts exist! Please share, if you win, wonderful, if not remember your quilt will touch someone! I have literally thousands of pictures of quilts and most did not win anything, but each and every one of them called out to me. let your quilts do the same.

Please sign the pledge

2010-03-06T10:43:00.000-08:00

I know, I have promised to share my studio and I am truly beginning to organize for just that. Winter days do not allow for good pictures and so I have delayed having fun with my very special space. In the mean time, I just want to push an agenda that means a lot to me. My husband would say that I have a lot of those and he indeed right about that. This week on the Oprah Winfrey show, Oprah has spoken a lot about her own agenda regarding being on the phone while driving and especially about texting while driving. She is asking all of us to sign a pledge to not text or even to hold a phone to our ear while driving. I am hoping that you will go to oprah.com and sign up to be safe and save our own as well as our loved one's lives. I am asking my family and hope you will ask yours as well. Where I live the powers that be have made it illegal for young people to text while driving. On the other hand, someone my age (68), no problem. How crazy is that? I will say that there are mumblings in the state capitol of a law to ban everyone from speaking on a hand held phone or texting while driving. Duhhhhh!!!!. Please think about the dangers involved and save a life, maybe your own.

The Applique Academy 2010

2010-02-22T17:19:00.000-08:00

I have been home for a little more than a week now. I have finished unpacking, the laundry is finished and I have moved on to the more mundane details of life. I caught up with the bills, had an interview with the Housing Authority representing our disabled son, justified his expenses with Social Security. Now I have time to think about my week at the Applique Academy. My sixth year, it was a time bittersweet in its implications for me. But first, my classes. I taught hand quilting for the first time in perhaps ten years. I was nervous, but unnecessarily. The day was a great success from my perspective. Everyone of the twelve students was devoted to learning to quilt or polishing what they already knew. As the day progressed so did they. My main conference class was so much fun. Twenty one students minus one who could not get to the conference due to bad weather. I missed her though we have yet to meet. The dedication of the remaining students was amazing. Many of them were already at work when I arrived each morning. They came early and stayed late. The name badge above contains a pin with 6 bars attached representing the six years I have taught in Williamsburg. I will not be back next year as the faculty has been chosen and I am not on the list. This is in a sense my choice. The new contract contains a clause I cannot sign off on. Was I angry? Absolutely! Hurt feelings? Oh yes. However, for all of that, this was the right decision for me personally, based on my own sense of what is the right thing for me to do. For all the support and all the hugs and expressions of disbelief, I say thank you from the bottom of my heart! This whole thing made me feel lonely and I was so honored to find out I was far from alone. If minds are changed and I am asked back will I go? You bet! This is a wonderful venue for applique.
.

I thought you would enjoy seeing the above pin. "Friends stitching the past to the future" Each person who made a block for the following project has or will receive one. I think they are for sale as well. Some of the attendees felt this was wrong, that we should be the only ones to have one as they represent our work on these quilts. I am undecided. There is going to be a wonderful exhibit at Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas this fall. I hope to see you there. Stitchers from all over the US and Canada came together in small groups and made album quilts. My TAS group made a special quilt dedicated to Elly Sienkievicz and her history. I made the four applique setting triangles on the left side of that one. I also made a pretty cool 8 inch block for the Williamsburg quilt. I believe there are 12 of these quilts. I hope you trust me on this when I say that each and every one of these quilts is unique and wonderfully created. In addition, there will be many other albums. How can you even consider not going?

The honored quilter at the Academy this year is Kathryn Tennyson. The above quilt is the first of six, yes six album quilts she has created!! It reflects in the color scheme the years in which she made it. Mauve and green. I believe all the blocks are designs from Elly's books, but think she may have designed her own border. Lovely don't you think. The following pictures speak for themselves, though I will comment when I have something to say, which will be most of the time.

This one is so pretty. Subtle colors, but beginning to look more traditional in the color scheme. I love the change in the border with that great small container at the top and oh so many flowers and vines spilling out. So typical of the ladies of Baltimore.

Okay, so which ones of you are going to applique a feathered vine border next? I want to, but am a little afraid. Those background fabrics tend to fray a lot and if I decided to do this reverse applique? Hmmmmmm.

There were so many bodies around this quilt all evening I thought I would never, ever get a picture, let alone a good picture. So from the side and still a shoulder on the right. This is absolutely gorgeous. Once again I am a little obsessed with the border. Almost every inch covered with leaves and flowers. I have seen this border in at least two vintage quilts and think I will have to try this for sure. You definitely want to check out the loops that edge this wonderful quilt. The blocks, wow. I love every one of them form the Goose girl to the eagle to the basket, well you get the idea.

This one is simply a confection. great traditional blocks, beautiful fabric choices.

This a special personal quilt with family silouettes in the heart centers.great borders too. The vine and flowers provide space for initials and chronicle the year of completion. That is a very traditional addition to album quilts.

This is just a closer look at the bottom border and the pretty amazing applique numbers. They definitely look flawless.

And finally a close up of the center and a reminder that even when we are re-creating images of the past, it is important to tie our designs to the now as well. Just in case you want to use sillouettes in your work but think you do not have the expertise to draw them, let me just say. Go to Disney World/ Disney Land! Seriously, my own attempt at this in my album quilt has it's roots in just such sillouette. Kathryn also shared with us that her first quilt took over three years to complete. She wanted to make one and was intimidated about the possibility of not being able to finish. her husband suggested that she not put a time limit on the quilt, that she simply enjoy the journey. Great advice. My own quilt took three years, nine months and eleven days, yikes! So I am hoping this will encourage all of you to enjoy your journey, no matter the destination.

Happy Birthday Lizzy

2010-02-19T11:17:00.000-08:00

Well, I know this is not your birthday cake, but it does seem appropriate to show you this way. You are twelve today and while I can count most of your many talents, I will confine myself to these few. Pastry chef, artist, cheerleader, seamstress and so much more. One of the things I like the best about you sweet girl is the way you notice when a bunch of small children have trouble catching fire flies on a hot summer night. I watch you catching them and tucking them into the tiny hands so gently. I love the way you hold and play with your new baby niece. Lucy trusts you and that says a lot for your character. Uncle Dan thinks you walk on water. As for Papa and I, well our hearts were gone when we saw that first ultra-sound picture and we have never looked back. We are so proud of you darling girl. My gift to you this last year was to allow you to grow taller than me! Now stop! Sorry about the shoe thing. No more hand me downs from me. Happy Birthday. I wish you chocolate (Godiva of course ) sour gummies and lots of goldfish! Love always, Mimi.

Baltimore Applique and Williamsburg

2010-02-10T06:30:00.000-08:00

As I prepared for my trip to The Applique Academy in Williamsburg VA, I began to think once again of the book by Dena Katzenburg, more a catalog really for an exhibit of beautiful quilts in the early 1980's. I have not seen any pictures of what's inside and do not for a moment think I have not tried. However if the block we have here is any indication of what is to come, I really want to own this book. It is called Baltimore Album Quilts by Dena Katzenburg. Soooo... if you don't care much for yours? Just kidding, I think I will eventually pony up the money it will take to be a proud owner of this wonderful publication. I would like to say that the reason I love my work for the Academy is that every student is there for the same reason. That is to share the love of the craft, see what others are doing, and seriously, every student listens to the teacher, does what she tells them to do when she tells them to do it and still likes the teacher. You laugh, but things can totally go in the opposite direction. You will have to trust me on this one. because the Academy is only a few blocks from Colonial Williamsburg, I also take the time every year to visit the Abby Aldridge Rockefeller Folk Art Museum which is in the Dewitt Wallace, a museum which is for the most part underground. There is almost always at least one album quilt on display and oh so much more. year before last, there was a beautiful display of eloborately quilted petticoats. Yum!
The quilt above is part of the collection of album quilts at the Maryland Historical Society. if you are reading this post with interest, I would suggest that you investigate their link. They have a wonderful collection of album quilts. In 1994, I entered my album quilt in The Baltimore Album Revival contest at The Quilter's Heritage Celebration in Lancaster PA. One of the activities was a trip to the Maryland Historical Society. They had on display 16 exquisite Baltimore Album quilts and when the exhibit was due to change a couple of months later, they displayed 16 more! I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how I might get myself back there in the fall of that year. Just did not happen. However the web sight has a great representation of their quilt collections in a kind of interactive slide show. I am happy to be able to tell you that my quilt won Best In Class and went on the win Best In Show at Pacific International Quilt Festival. www.mdhs.org

This is the best picture I could find of this monumental quilt. My own quilt a 25 block quilt with a border. As a top it was 102 inches square, and quilted down to ninety eight and one half inches. I haven't found information on how large this one but think it is safe to say that it is more than a bit larger than my own. There is an awesome 42 blocks in addition to a complex vine border. You might want to visit quiltersmuse.com for another look at great quilts and articles.

This another Maryland Historical Society quilt which I selected for you to see because of the border. Many album quilts had no border at all, or perhaps several inches of a gorgeous chintz. This quilt indeed has an applique border. It is totally amazing to see this border where almost every square inch is occupied by flowers, stems and or leaves. I have seen this border on a couple of other quilts of the period and so am guessing the designer shared her patterns, or perhaps the design was perhaps the work of a professional quilt designer and maker. I especially like it that the block arrangement is definitely planned with corner placement consisting of similar designs, corner blocks in the row around the center eagle block are wreaths and the blocks in between are all baskets. This artist had a plan and followed it. It has an air of elegance, with a hint of folk art whimsey. I hope you enjoy this post and I will be thinking of you all while I am slogging through the snow in Williamsburg, given I even get to Williamsburg! Think of me.

Back to applique

2010-02-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

I first need to explain the color of the background fabric. I am auditioning a sashing fabric called Rich Red, a Kona cotton. Kona is really great quality solid fabric. However, you have probably already noticed that the block background fabric looks kind of pink. Sorry about that, the red shows through. The background is actually a lovely soft ivory. These blocks have been made over the course of several years, the oldest being on the far right and dates back to 1990. Yikes, time flies when you are having a good time!

This is one of the newer blocks. I love the elegance combined with the whimsy of the star flower. The rose buds are made of french wire edge ribbon.

This block is a design of mine. I do like it but feel it lacks the grace of the vintage designs. Nevertheless, there are some really fun and challenging elements. The blue blower at the bottom is composed of individual petals that are reverse applique with touches of embroidery.The center wreath feathers a base of embroidery floss with details of silk ribbon embroidery. The pink rose on the left is made of silk char-meuse filled with batting.

I made this compote filled with fruit in a workshop with Elly Sienkiewicz. This was probably one of the first times I got my courage up enough to ink tendrils and write my name on a finished block. It was a time when using oil paste sticks was foreign to me/ but I gave it a try to shade the pears and watermelon. Don't you love that this vintage design includes a design element which involves a glass tray floating above the base.

Another design with fruit, but also a couple of serious birds. I love these birds because they are proof of the sharing these artists were involved in. I have seen several versions of these haughty
avians over the years. I would guess the focal point of this design would be the woven basket. I often correct mistakes made by the earlier designer in my own work. This time it somehow didn't seem the right way to go, so if you look closely, you might be able to see clues to her influence on my own work. I used the oil sticks again, mostly on the fruit.

Don't you love this block? I know I do. I always welcome the opportunity to recreate great work and this block is a wonderful design. Just look at how many circles I was able to make. Yes! My favorite. For sometime now I have been fascinated with designers not content with even a complex wreath such as this. but compelled to fill the center with almost as much work as the outside. The birds are so animated and appear to be having a lovely conversation. I made the bow parts from the last bit of a fabric I had, which has a hand dyed look, but that is not the case. When finished, it didn't stand out the way I wanted so I used a darker blue floss to outline all the elements and the look I was after was there. More inking and just so you know, the birds eyes are needle turn applique.

This time we have not only fruit but flowers, a bird, a butterfly, and a gorgeous basket! Seriously, despite the naive tone of this design, there are some complex ideas going on. A small ruched rose on the left, the solid quality to the base of the basket contrasted with the graceful almost delicate look of the rest of the basket tells me she was talented and aware of what was going on in the quilt world around her. Even a knife to cut the fruit nestled in the arrangement suggests a desire to have a well rounded design.

This block to me, well represents much of the Baltimore style I have come to know and love. Upon examination, I am struck with the elements that are representative of so much that was going on in these designs. Looking closely, one sees first the openness of the layout. The wreath is not spare but at the same time reveals background spaces. There are flowers with no apparent stems to connect them to the whole, but we know somehow the stems are there. The rose buds are ready to open and exhibit a pretty good attempt at shading to represent a realism
we try for in today's work. The bird in the center is great. This whole block offers opportunities for reverse applique, layered in the hand applique, and embroidery. Lovely

This last block is a slightly new take on a design interpretation of a vintage block by Elly Sienkiewicz. I, in turn made a few changes for my take on this beautiful, airy confection. Don't you just love the vase? This older Ginny Beyer fabric was perfect for this use. I especially like the base and the fluted look to the main part of the vase. The red roses are silk scraps from a dress made by husband's mother thirty years ago. I hope you noticed the shading done with oil pastel sticks on the rose nearest the center. The buds are folded silk ribbon. The pink flowers on the left are my own hand dyed rick-rack. The half-ruched roses in the center are accomplished by half-ruching a ribbon on one side, joining the ends and then gathering the other side and drawing it up to form the center. Add a few French knots, a little ink, a little embroidery, well, you get the idea. I will be assembling this quilt over the next few months, designing a border and dreaming of the quilting designs. I will share again when there is something to share. I hope some of you will show me what you are doing.

Congratulations Karen

2010-02-02T14:45:00.000-08:00

It is my great pleasure to encourage you to have a look at this magazine. I have loved every issue, but this time I have a personal interest. My friend Karen Burns has submitted and had published an apron she created. She also wrote the article accompanying the pictures.

This is Karen's work apron. This is what she wears when she is soldering something like the wonderful jewelry she makes. Now I have to ask, does this look like a work apron? Beautiful. If you like this and I am sure you do, check out Karen' s blog at vintage findings in the column to your left. Many congratulations Karen. See you at quilt festival!

A Snow Day Birthday

2010-02-02T13:13:00.000-08:00

Friday began with a decision to delay Kelly's birthday for at least one day because serious snow was predicted. We still had snow on the ground from the last storm and having filled the bird feeders, I was prepared to enjoy the day's visitors.

By Saturday morning, our world looked like this, but the snow had stopped. We had at least five inches and it was lovely. So we made a plan to celebrate the next day. I ramped up the preparation for dinner on Sunday. I baked cupcakes and a giant cup cake. Dinner menu was to include pot roast, (her favorite ), roast potatoes and carrots, broccoli, Aunt Bee's salad, a salad with romaine, blueberries, candied almonds, mandarin oranges and a tangy dressing. I was good to go.

An emergency trip to the grocery store by my husband turned out to be a boon for me. In addition to the unsalted butter, I was the recipient of beautiful roses in the middle of winter. Dale has always been generous with flowers, particularly white roses. My wedding bouquet was white roses and so it means a great deal.

So, in the afternoon was filled with adults and children having a great time! Snow was flying everywhere and laughter filled the air. I spent time taking pictures from the porch and checking on the progress in the kitchen. The above picture is of Libby who had been sledding in the ditch. The rest of the crowd discovered her and began lobbing snow balls. So, off the sled and position it to repel and protect. Pretty funny and pretty resourceful, I think!

Danny, John, Aubrey, and kelly, the birthday girl. John is in the middle of throwing a snowball at Miss Libby. Danny, where is your coat??

Kelly, Danny, and Dale, AKA known as Honey, Dad, and Papa. Okay Danny, when you left the house you had a coat, hat and gloves!

Libby and Danny. Is he acting as a shield? Maybe he just threw a snowball at John? I don't know, but it is a nice picture.

The yard looks a lot different her don't you think? I did tell the girls they would have to return the yard to it's pristine condition. I don't think that was too much to ask! A day of fun, good food, and a loving Mimi? Just kidding. The end of the snow day part of the celebration turned out to be the creation of this lovely lady. She has hair, a cupcake in her hand, a waist, yay, and glasses. I love it that Libby, Grace and Aubrey created a Snow Mimi! Now she does have a big nose and a small pointy chin and is also short. Since Libby recently grew taller than me and has mentioned that I am kind of short........ What do you think?

So, after dinner, it was time to sing, light candles and give hugs. I know the cake looks odd. I don't always take the best pictures. What you are seeing is the top of the cup-cake, cake. The circles on top were made from fondant. It started out white. It took me over and hour to knead enough red food color into the fondant to make it red. it was worth it because kelly really loved her cup cake.

I include this picture because it was kind of a surprise to see the smoke from the candles lingering in the air. Family, it does not get any better.

Sewing in Springfield

2010-01-22T13:49:00.000-08:00

This is just a note to anyone in the Springfield, MO area. I have added a link for The Round Bobbin Expo in the Creative Places section to the left of this page. I was approached about teaching at this event a few months ago. I am looking forward to this as I have spent the majority of my career teaching in quilt shops, for quilt guilds and quilt conferences. This will be new for me and I am looking forward to to the experience. Look and let me know what you think. I hope to see you there.

Crazy Quilt Embroidery

2010-01-19T19:39:00.000-08:00

This is a detail of a small quilt I made about fifteen years ago For a long time , I thought I would make a large Crazy quilt , but this little quilt convinced me otherwise. It took more am month to complete. So I decided to be satisfied with confining my self to small when it comes to Crazy quilts.
This little quilt did win a best in Class for miniatures in the Marin Quilt and Needlework Show in San Raphael CA. I was pretty happy but there was more to come. I was contacted by a representative of Hallmark cards and they commissioned to make an even smaller quilt. About 12 inches square. It was to be part of a group of Victorian collectibles. Yay! On the upside, I was paid very well, on the downside, well, this was a time when our country was in a recession and the whole project was scrapped. Nevertheless, I was excited almost be a part of a fun project!

I went on a few years later to make a larger, but still small Crazy quilt. I challenged myself to use only silk for the embroidery.

I used silk ribbon.

Silk twist.

Silk embroidery floss.

The stitches were lazy daisy, bullion knots, Palestrina knots, herringbone, french and colonial knots, stem stitch, feather stitch and more.
There are also quite a few beads tacking down ribbon streamers, etc. I love this quilt despite the fact that it does not hang well due to a miscalculation on my part. Apparently I made the borders a little too long and did not pick up on this until all the edge feather stitching was complete and I had layered an bound the edges. Bummer! I agonized over this for awhile and decided to let well enough alone.

American Quilts In The Modern Age

2010-01-17T19:03:00.000-08:00

Every year in December, my husband and son always want a Christmas list and I often fill it in with my new book choices. A couple of years ago my husband bought every book on the list. I felt I was receiving my own library! This year, my list was shorter, but I still received them all! But the difference is that I have decided I am so fortunate to have a husband who knows my love of reading and wants me to have what I want. So in addition to the new Dean Koontz, Stephen King, and Diana Gabaldon, American Quilts In The Modern Age, and Massachussets Quilts. Last September, during the time I was teaching at Baltimore on the Prairie in Omaha, Nebraska, I had the opportunity to tour The International Quilt Study Center in Lincoln. I saw some of the quilts in the collection there, including a wonderful Baltimore Album, up close and personal. The work being done at the center is important to the world of quilts and this book is ground breaking. Even if you simply want to look at the pictures, it is worth looking into. I hope you will share your favorite books with me, Nadine

My friend is a wonderful artist

2010-01-17T18:35:00.000-08:00

When I received an email from Karen this afternoon, this image was in the letter. She recently encouraged me to take an online photo shop elements class that she was also interested in taking We both thought it would be fun to do together. She in CA, me in MO. Long story short, my operating system was not up to it and frankly, I am not sure I would have been either. In any case when I wrote to compliment her on this great design, she wrote back and gave me permission to share with all of you. The quilter is her grandmother. How cool is that? if you want to see more, click on Vintage Findings in the left column. You will not be sorry.

Just Sharing A few of My Quilts

2010-01-13T13:24:00.001-08:00

When I promised to share some of my quilts on this blog, I was not sure just where to begin. I decided to start with this red work quilt because it reflects my early beginnings , before I knew about quilting, let alone applique. I grew up the oldest of ten children and in the days when i could go to the dime store and buy a kit for making baby clothes, aprons, and needlework, all of which required some or a lot of embroidery. I was my mother's right hand girl. From standing on an orange crate to do dishes to cradling a small baby brother or sister, I was schooled in home arts and everyday responsibility. I miss her sitting beside me, teaching me to do lazy daisy stitches, feather stitches and so much more. I remember as if it were yesterday, the day her new Kenmore sewing machine was delivered. it was in a beautiful cabinet, and it had cams! Cams meant we could embellish Easter dresses for myself and my three sisters, quickly patch the knees in all the pants we were constantly sliding on to make second base. We made countless dresses, shirts and aprons on that machine, but early days were always with me and I am still embellishing with the embroidery I learned from my mother, her sister and anyone who would sit down for five minutes and show me how to do a Palestrina knot.

This image of a handful of pansies was a pretty common image during the red work faze in embroidery history. from the 1860's through the depression, a person, often a little girl could go to a store and purchase a small square of muslin with a printed design for a penny. So.... these became known as penny squares. There was a lot of interest in this because it was pretty affordable as well as manageable. It was also a learning project with simple stitches.

This young girl shows up over and over in vintage red work patterns. So, of course I needed to have my own curly haired young lady in my quilt.

I suspect that the vast numbers of sunflower's showed up, not only in the red work quilts, but in crazy quilts because of the huge popularity of Oscar Wilde who often lectured on the the effects of art and culture in a families surroundings. Did I mention that he was very handsome and often wore one of these sun flowers in his lapel. Some things never change, do they?

I love my redwork quilt for many reasons. The embroidery, of course. The slam dunk ease of making these blocks. Your supplies being design transferred to a square, an embroidery needle, thread, scissors, and a hoop. I could not be easier. Most of all, however, I love this quilt for the memories it evokes for me. This month, twelve years ago i flew from CA to spend a few weeks with my daughter who was in the last weeks of her pregnancy. We had so much fun. The baby shower, shopping for baby clothes, ( we knew it was a girl with a tiny turned up nose). The check-up where I finally got to hear that heart-beat! CA was a long way away. Then the day we found out the baby was going to be induced the next day, my daughter drove through the McDonald's on the way home. When the bag of fries came through the window, the baby began kicking like crazy. Kelly was convinced that he little girl was responding to the smell of french fries. Miss Libby does not like potatoes, let alone french fies. Go figure. In any case, back to business, almost all of these blocks were made during that special time. Ahhhh....

Moving on to "The Way We Were" I chose this name because I grew up in the time when women had particular days set aside for doing chores. Mom and I actually washed on Monday, sprinkled the starched clothing and stored in the fridge, ironed on Tuesday, etc. With our large family it was necessary to have order. So this quilt was designed with the thirties and forties days of the week dishtowels. of course there are only seven days in the week so I had to design two extra squares and even these have roots in the same time period.

It was so much fun to combine my love of embroidery and applique in this quilt. I started this in a retreat in Asilomar CA. Great place. A run on the beach, early in the morning and after breakfast a full day and into the evening working on any project you wanted. Mostly quilters.

The embroidery on this quilt is all done with one strand of DMC floss. I love one-strand embroidery.

Remember that baby girl I referred to earlier in this post? Well, this is the quilt I carried onto the plane to gift to my daughter at her baby shower. I would like to point out that the squares are each three inches in size. This detail is pretty sweet.

This is another detail. I saw the original quilt in the Shelburne museum in Vermont. You could not take pictures and my drawing skills, well let's not even go there. What I did know was that the quilt was made by Florence Peto, a great patron of the museum.

A few years later, Celia Oliver, one of the museum curators came to The San Jose Quilt Museum in CA to give a lecture about the Shelburne's quilt collection.. It was so interesting and she introduced a new book called Enduring Grace. I bought my copy and thumbed through right away to see if my favorite quilt was there. yes!!! In addition it was one of a few that was patterned. Never mind that I still had to enlarge those very small squares. Then I waited. When I was told I would be a grandmother, I was ready. The original was appliqued with fabrics that were vintage in the fifties by Florence. Since I was making a baby quilt, I decided to use those sweet thirties fabrics. Florence' quilt is called Calico garden.

My version is called "For love of Libby" her given name is Elizabeth Evelyn. (Libby) Elizabeth is a name that goes back four generations in my family and my middle name. Evelyn was her other grandma's name.

I believe this quilt, perhaps more than others I have made makes a point I have subscribed to for as long as I have been a quilter. Quilts are personal. I often say with conviction that I always feel the connection with the quilters who came before me. I hope you do too.

This is what I learned today

2010-01-06T21:17:00.000-08:00

I did resolve to learn how to post a clip art image on my blog and here it is. No class, just a directive from my daughter to ctrl, click, save page as, and it was ready to transfer to this message. Most of you are probably thinking, " What's the big deal? That's okay. I am excited and think the possibilities are endless.

My New Years Resolutions

2010-01-03T15:07:00.000-08:00

When I woke up this morning I looked through the living room window to find snow on the ground. Not unexpected, though the forecast was for one to three inches and frankly there was already an accumulation of three inches and still falling. It did not stop until three o'clock. beautiful! I had a fair amount of quiet time today though Libby and Grace and Aubrey did come in the afternoon to sled in the ditch beside our house. They had fun and I had fun watching them. Time to speculate over the New Years Resolutions I made a few days ago. I blithely made some comment about getting back into my studio and also said to myself that I would add to that a promise to blog more and to share my studio as well as many quilts I could photograph and post. I am getting fairly competent with posting pictures and commentary, but the truth is not much more. I rely on my daughter to help me with the stat counter, which I love, teach me to add links etc. Thank you Kelly.

This is a picture of my home. I love the snow falling as well as the touches of red shining out in a black and white world. However, this picture is on my blog because I cannot figure out how to
post a great piece of vintage New Years Eve clip art. So, another resolution will be to take a couple of computer classes. So, Happy New Year to you. I hope your resolutions are attainable and that you come back to check on mine.

The Applique Academy

2009-12-27T13:49:00.001-08:00

This close up of my hand quilting should give you an idea of how I approach my own work and the way I will approach my instruction of the hand quilting class. I have sandwiched the main conference class sample in between the two quilting views so my students learn that making a quilt is a package. From beginning to end, design concept, fabric selection, construction of the top, choosing a quilting design, marking, basting and quilting, adding the binding, and lastly the label. leave out even one step, no quilt.

I am pretty excited to be going to the Applique Academy for my sixth year as an instructor and for the fifteenth anniversary of the Academy. It is always fun but this should be a special year. For me this will likely be my last year so I am hoping it will be my best. My main conference class is "Pretty in Pink, Yellow and Red" It is a full class and should be great fun as we will be working a three day workshop taught over four days. I am definitely at an advantage as a teacher. It is a wonderful way to present all your information so everyone goes home prepared to complete there version of my design.

In addition, I was asked to teach a hand quilting workshop. I have done that before but not for a long time. When I got my mind around the idea that anyone who signed up would be looking for me to share my ideas and techniques, everything came together and I am so looking forward to this two day class. While Pretty in Pink is full there are still eight places in the hand quilting class. I would love to share this experience with you. The Academy in Williamsburg is held in a hotel across the street from the college of William and Mary and two blocks from Colonial Williamsburg. It doesn't get any better.

Happy New Year to you and those you love and love you back---- Nadine