Snow Happens...

How does that saying go: "life is what happens when you're busy making other plans"? Well, sometimes SNOW happens too! The best laid plans, one for a retreat weekend with my quilting friends at a not-too-far-from-here state park, was preempted this past weekend for this forecasted snow event. Since the retreat was supposed to commence on Friday I jumped right in at home. Disappointed, but resolute, I pushed forward with determination to  make the weekend count!

Working solely from precut Tumbler scraps I was able to get this lap quilt (58" X 70") pieced by the end of the day on Friday, the snow began falling in the early afternoon. This is one of many that I've made this way (Leader-Ender style). I will quilt it up later this year and pass it along wherever it can be best used. The scene at the top was taken outside the sewing room window on Saturday morning. We had about 4" of the white stuff and it was done snowing by dawn. 

Our son and his family drove out to our house for some outdoor fun: rural-road sledding and snowman construction. Gregory had already called it quits by the time Frosty was complete and was indoors with Nana making hot chocolate!

Staying snug and warm inside, the remainder of Saturday and Sunday (church was canceled) were spent getting "No Scrap Too Small" joined into a 60"X 80" flimsy. Another lingering UFO comprised of 4-patches that had gone together L-E style for the past year, at least, were finally set together; I'm calling this one done. ✔

Here's the 10" block. Each one has 43 pieces, the bitty 4-patch sub-units finish to 2". I loved using them up and combining them with Low Volumes that I have squirreled away. All in all, it was a productive weekend.

Naturally I missed my friends, but it's not like I was alone in the sewing room, not at all! Our group has already rescheduled and have our collective fingers crossed that the snow won't return again, at least not this season. 

And sew, the decks are cleared and could that be an entirely new project already in the works? You betcha! This weekend was a perfect illustration of the fact that we are not in control, He is. So, it is up to us to turn an unexpected event into something else, something positive; to learn and to be thankful for whatever comes our way. Sometimes the unexpected might just be white flakes falling from the sky, and that's okay. What a great lesson! 

Life is Good!

A Lifelong Love...

It was my mother who instilled in me a lifelong love of sewing. I have a very early memory of being sick in bed when my mother assembled a little embroidery kit for me to occupy my mind and hands while I was recovering. She showed me how to hoop the fabric and a few basic stitches; I was off and running. On this particular occasion I managed to stitch straight through the project and the bed sheet. I learned how to un-sew that day too! I also remember her cutting out doll clothes for me to sew on her machine. When I was in Jr. High I came one day home raving about the Singer Golden Touch & Sew that we used in the Home Ec. lab. A machine like that was an extravagance back in 1965; but, after getting the "go-ahead" from Dad, Mom and I drove to the Singer store in Bradford, MA and she bought one! I was able to sit and teach her all that I'd learned about that machine in school. I don't remember what we had for a machine before that day, but I do believe whatever it was she traded it in for that Golden Touch & Sew! She made a LOT of clothes, for both me and my sister, back in those days. She was also a whiz at re-making clothes! (Something I've never been interested in doing!) Mom would buy a dress and change the collar, add pockets, alter the sleeves; she always had great vision that way. When I started quilting, in 1983, I introduced Mom to all that the quilting world could offer! As a young bride in the early 50's making quilts wasn't nearly as exciting as buying a new bedspread or blankets. The rest is history. She was hooked on quilting from that time on and for the rest of her life! We had SEW many adventures together visiting quilt shops, taking classes, buying fabric, planning projects, the list goes on and on...

I began teaching a beginner quiltmaking class back in the late 1980's at a local quilt shop. This was that projectꜛ, the "Milky Way Star".  For an interested beginner just starting out, it covered everything that a new quiltmaker would need to know: constructing blocks from squares, half square triangles, applique with both inside and outside points, setting, mitering pieced borders, quilting, binding you name it. This piece finishes 40" square and is large enough to be useful but small enough to actually complete. Mom was my guinea pig. She made numerous quilts from this one design. In fact, my Mom lost a dear friend earlier last year. She and Dad went to visit her in the hospital in her final days. Mom placed one of her Milky Way quilts over her friend, Bonnie, in a final gesture of love. Back in December, Bonnie's daughter brought that very same quilt back to the same hospital and laid it over my mother, it was on Mom's bed when we arrived at her bedside for our final good-byes. Full circle. We folded that quilt up and brought it home with us. I told Dad to ask Bonnie's daughter if she'd like it back, that was Mom's wish, after all. He will do that, it's on the back of  Mom's chair at home right now. Thanks for indulging me in this lengthy post as I pull together these memories that Mom and I had together. We shared so many things, but this lifelong love of sewing and quilting is paramount, and all the more precious to me today. 

Thanks, Mom!

   Life is Good!   

A Memory Quilt, Scrapbook-Style

Back in August of 2002 I set out to make my mother a special surprise for her 70th birthday, which was in June of the following year. I sent out letters to everyone in my Mom's address book asking for photos that I could borrow, short-term, the idea being that I would copy their pictures onto fabric transfer sheets and assemble them into a memory quilt for her; one that told the story of her life. It was to be a surprise. The response was phenomenal! 

Armed with these two items: a copy of Ami Simms' Creating Scrapbook Quilts, and a generous supply of Photos-to-Fabric sheets, I assembled collage style photo sheets and made numerous trips to Office Depot for the transfer process on their huge, stand-alone, copy machines. At that time, this product was the go-to for photo transferring. The results speak for themselves.

In these detail shots: my Mom, at age 5, at a Christmas party with friends in the late '90's, and Mom and me in 1954. Somewhere I have photos of her on her birthday, opening this big surprise (they're eluding me at present) but, needless to say, she was completely surprised and treasured this quilt for the last twenty-one and a half years. I brought it home; it will have a special place with me here now. The processes may have changed in the last two+ decades. Those transfer sheets are no longer available, I now find a similar product on line and print them at home on my own printer. The technique book, an excellent resource, is no longer being printed but you can purchase one here today. Also, all things considered, I would likely quilt this differently if I were making it again today. But, I'm not; and it's all good!

Their engagement photo, 1951; 

my Mom and Dad were married over 72 years. 

💗

Life is Good!

Remembering the Good Times

I finished up this memory quilt for my SIL in time for Christmas. It's made up entirely of her husband's shirts, Dick passed away a year ago in September. I entitled it "Remembering the Good Times" and hope that she'll gain much comfort from wrapping up in it. 

Here it is loaded on the longarm; a solid combination of wool and flannel shirts, dress shirts, sport shirts, T-shirts and sweatshirts, this quilt has a certain heft to it; she'll stay nice and warm. 💗

Back in the fall, after I had deconstructed all of the shirts, someone found this bin to be a cozy place! (I can't remember if I had posted this pic before, Augie is a funny little pup! ) Anyway, I had already mailed the completed quilt off to her before we unexpectedly traveled north last week and, stopping by to visit her one afternoon, found the quilt occupying a place of honor on the back of her late husband's TV chair. She assured me that there are many good times contained in that quilt to remember! 💗 

Speaking of remembering good times: this was a spring afternoon at our home nine years ago when my parents were visiting. Mom and I had spent the day making pillowcases- eleven in all! She made sets and I made seasonal singles for each of the grandchildren plus one to donate. We loved spending time in the sewing room, stitching up a storm together. Back in those days we'd hop in the car and drive to Mary Jo's in Gastonia, NC to search for fabrics that we couldn't live without. Customarily, we'd stop and eat lunch at a Cracker Barrel restaurant on the way back home. We certainly had plenty of good times~ ones that I'll always remember, especially more precious today. 

Life is Good!

My Mom

This is my Mom. Through the years, not only did she occasionally appear in my blog posts, but she always enjoyed reading whatever struck my fancy to post about. If I hadn't posted in a while I'd hear about it. She was my most loyal reader until her diminishing eyesight prohibited her from reading entirely, several years ago. This year saw Mom facing one health crisis after the next. It seemed like she was always able to rally and fight her way back. In April she was given a choice of major surgery or only two weeks to live. She and my Dad discussed it and mutually decided on the latter, knowing that the surgery would be too much for her. Once again, she defied the prognosis and lived on; for eight more months. My Mom passed away ten days ago, she was 91. Knowing that the end was near, Mr. G and I jumped in the car and drove north. We arrived at her bedside where we were able to tell her that we loved her. She squeezed my hand. She knew. 💗 Christmas has come and gone. I felt like a robot yesterday, going through the motions. It's all settling in now; the new normal.

Here we are on a quilt shop excursion in Maine back in the fall of 2015. My Mom was also a quilter; she was always up for a shopping adventure and we went on many together! Over the next few days I'll share more happy memories, thanks for reading and coming along as I reminisce and begin to try putting the pieces of my heart back together. 

Life is Good!

Stitch By Stitch...

My last post was entitled "A Day at a Time", certainly days are rocketing by as the year end approaches but I struggle with a way to measure the passage of time in any concrete fashion; it's a seemingly elusive thing. Certainly I can look back at work that's been accomplished and recognize where time has been spent; perhaps quantifying it in stitches helps. I kind of like that! In the evenings over the last few months, stitch by stitch, I've completed "Strawberry Manor" by Theresa Kogut. I suppose I'll frame it eventually; but, for now, finished is good enough.  

Moving on, I've nearly completed this "Moonlit Garden" sampler from Blackbird Design's booklet "When Leaves Fall". I had a moment of panic the other day when I got this far and realized that I had used up all of the hand-dyed floss called for to complete the lettering on this one... with only two words to go! My panic was relieved at the discovery of not one, but TWO(!) skeins of this very color in and among my stored floss. Oh, happy day!! All my slow stitching happens in the evenings in front of the television. Stitching on 32 count linen in the dim light of our TV space had become increasingly challenging.  

That was, until I found the best solution! Along with my OTT floor lamp I found an LED magnifying light to place on the table beside my chair. It is absolutely and totally fantastic. 

This is the lamp from Amazon, I purchased it with some birthday money that my parents had sent to me. I called to thank them shortly after putting it into service and assured them that their gift is being used and appreciated more than they'll EVER know! I can't recommend this lamp highly enough. The base is heavy and substantial, it stays put even when the gooseneck is being flexed, pulled and contorted to the best viewing angle for me. It's also convertible to a floor lamp, if needed. All I can say is that this product is worth every penny! I could be a spokesperson for the company!! Ha! That's all for today, I've got two more words to stitch this evening; betcha can't guess what they are!😉

One day at a time, 

stitch by stitch,

and sew it goes...

(Hey, maybe those words should be stitched into a sampler!)

Life is Good!

One Day At A Time

Its been a while, I know that. Time marches on, one day at a time, and before you know it a month (or more) has passed! Suffice it to say that the days have been busy ones, and it's all good. I'm going to hit the highlights with loads of photos here, simply as a way to catch up. It's good to be back! Augie is now two years old! That hardly seems possible. He was proud to receive a blessing from Pastor at an outdoor service honoring St. Francis last month. 

The birthday boy with his new toys.

Augie isn't the only one celebrating; both Lucy Ann and Gregory have each recently observed their 14th birthdays!  Those of you who've been longtime readers will remember (seemingly not that long ago!) them as babies, see what I mean about time flying by and losing track as the days evaporate one into the next?

In the studio: a memory quilt for my SIL is s-l-o-w-l-y taking shape on the design wall, it's going to be made up entirely from her husband's shirts. I hope to have this one pieced, quilted and ready for Christmas.

My side-kick thinks that the bin of deconstructed shirt pieces is a comfy spot especially for him. 😬

Nope, I don't think so.

🎂

 I'd like to wish a special friend a very happy birthday today! 

She shared with me yesterday that she was born on the very day that 

Herbert Hoover was elected; here's hoping your day is a great one, Mary! 

Life is Good!