I'm In...

...TIME OUT!

(not the because I was naughty kind, but rather the blogger-break kind)

No worries, it's all good. I won't be posting for awhile; life has intervened, and there's nowhere I'd rather be...

Life is GOOD!

...but you already knew that...
It really, really is!

One Word Wednesday

Practice~

Life is Good!

From My House To Yours...

Enjoy the beauty that surrounds you...

Life is Good!

Energized!

I woke up early on Saturday morning, I was both excited and intimidated at the same time. I had made up my mind a few weeks ago, after drooling over all of the gorgeous quilting at our Guild show, that I was going to get more serious about the relationship I have with Sundance, it was time to take it to the next level. At the encouragement of a friend, and member, I decided to check into visiting a quarterly meeting of the Carolina Longarm Association. There was a meeting on Saturday, I talked to Quiltkeemosabe about riding along and she agreed; she was standing in her driveway at 7 AM  when I pulled up in front of her house, and off we went! We discussed what we thought the meeting might be like, and who we expected to meet (famous quilters!), as we drove the one hundred plus miles to the meeting place. We arrived early, I had allowed more than plenty of time to get there by 10 AM. As it turned out the meeting was a working meeting, there was business protocol before a delcious pot-luck lunch and we helped to make show ribbons for an upcoming longarm show in the afternoon. Before I knew it it was time to go, but not before show and tell; always my favorite part of any meeting! This lovely couple showed two of their quilts; she pieces, he does the quilting!

This wonderful Giant Dahlia quilt was quilted using arc rulers, it was just beautiful! 

The drive back home was a happy one, the two of us discussed what we'd seen and who we'd talked to. There had been lively conversation with new friends throughout the meeting; quilting ideas and plans for scheduling smaller, local, get-togethers flowed like water. My excitement and intimidation from earlier in the day had been completely replaced by pure energy; the next meeting is scheduled closer, geographically, it will be a hands-on program on background fillers. Quiltkeemosabe and I will definitely be in attendance for that one, we're official card-carrying CLA members now, we pulled out our checkbooks and joined before we left the meeting; we're serious... and we're energized! 

Life is Good!

What Was That Beep?

I was sewing on Tuesday afternoon when my husband stuck his head in the door to my sewing room and asked "did you hear that?" "What?", I asked. "That beep, what was that beep?" Then I heard it, it was a cross between a beep and a squeak. It went off every so often; but we could NOT locate it. Gregory was here, napping at the time, I pressed my ear up against the door to the bedroom where he was sleeping to make sure that it wasn't coming from inside, it wasn't. We checked smoke detectors, we listened intently from every corner of our house. Another beep would having us off and running/searching all over again. Finally, peacefully, it stopped altogether. Later on, I loaded Gregory into his carseat to take him back home. I picked up my cell phone, from my purse, to let my daughter-in-law know that we were on the way; but I couldn't call her, my phone was dead. I didn't make the connection between the dead phone and the mysterious beep-squeak right away, it was a gradual dawning process... "Ohhhhh, yeah." I plugged in my phone when I returned back home. Now I know what a dying phone battery's warning signal sounds like, let's hope I remember!

( I know my children are shaking their heads at this disclosure;

take heart, dear ones, your future is closer than you think!) 

Life is Good!

Appli-Keeper

I wanted to keep those recently completed machine applique blocks flat; it was time to make a portfolio! Using the pattern straight out of Kristin Steiner's Southern Album book along with some upholstery fabric, foam core (inside the cover, front and back) and batting scraps (for the "pages") I whipped up this appli-keeper on Thursday morning before breakfast (it's that easy; no more than an hour start-to-finish)! This portfolio measures 18" square, I added the ribbon ties as opposed to the button loop closure that the pattern calls for. If I were going to make another one I would add handles for easier transport and a hook and loop tab for securing it closed. But, for now, this is just about perfect!

Lightweight, sturdy, and very cute... 

my new class companion is ready to go~

Life is Good!

Christmas Cactus

In preparation for block # 2 of Bless this House, Christmas Cactus,  I traced the shapes onto fusible web and cut them out, roughly. I used flat, smooth stones to hold down my paper-backed fusible, they're souvenirs from a visit to the rocky coast of Maine last fall, they work perfectly for this! After that, I spread out the pattern placement sheet on my ironing board; where I attached one shape after another... working from the back of the design to the foreground. I pressed the fusible to the reverse side of each chosen fabric,  after removing the center portion of the paper and the fusible web, leaving only a quarter inch of the product inside each shape, then I carefully cut them out exactly on the pencil line. I crisply pressed the background fabric in preparation for machine appliqué, using several applications of heavy starch to give it stiff body.

Using the placement lines from the pattern sheet (underneath the background fabric) I pressed the pieces in place. Notice the leaf on the left;  it has just a small outline of fusible web around the edge, the paper is still attached. It will be peeled, flipped over and pressed into position.

Here is the block with all of the pieces in place, ready to be stitched down. I used a very small blanket stitch and stitched around each and every  appliqué  shape with a matching thread color.

Voilà! The completed Christmas Cactus block; my homework's done, what a good feeling.

Life is Good!

No Lambs Allowed

Mary had a little lamb,
His fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went,
The Lamb was sure to go.
He followed her to school one day,
'Twasn't even in the rule.
He made the children laugh and play,
To have a lamb at school.
And then the rules all changed one day,
Illegal it became,
To bring the Lamb of God to school,
Or even speak His name.
Everyday got worse and worse,
And days turned into years.
Instead of hearing children laugh,
We heard gunshots and tears.
What must we do to stop the crime,

That's in our schools today?

Let's let THE LAMB come back to school,

And teach our kids to pray!*

On a personal note: when I began the 1st grade in 1959 we prayed, pledged allegiance to our national flag and sang "Our Country 'Tis Of Thee" every morning, at our desks. It was our right to do so, protected by the Constitution; it still is. Although children in public schools cannot pray together as a body anymore, they may pray individually; and we must remember why separation of church and state became part of the First Amendment in the first place; to keep government (and politics) out of the churches... not the other way around!

Life is Good!

*Borrowed from: Amazing Grace, the newsletter of Grace Lutheran Church ~ San Juan, Puerto Rico

One Word Wednesday

Graceful~

Life is Good!

The Quilt Closet

Stars and Scraps Forever ~  68" X 86"

I know you've seen this quilt before; I haven't posted a photo, though, since it was completely and totally done! Looking at this image of the finished design I realize now that it could be improved if it were an odd number of blocks across and down, that way I could place star blocks in each of the four corners and anchor the layout better that way.  This quilt is the first one to go directly into The Quilt Closet; since it's an otherwise unassigned quilt, my plan has been to stockpile finished quilts such as this one in a dedicated space for gifting when unexpected, quilt-needing, occasions arise. I have scrounged, in the past, to find finished quilts to give to neighbors and friends dealing with serious situations; now I'll have a  go-to supply ready and waiting.  I had help with the finishing on this one, Salem Stitcher's Shelby cuddled up on one side as I whipped down the binding at a recent Bee meeting... maybe she has her own ideas about this particular quilt being otherwise unassigned, she didn't even seem to notice (or care about) the design oversight!

Life is Good!

Post-Easter Post

Happy Easter Monday, everyone! Our weekend was fun-filled and hectic. I was too busy yesterday to even get my camera out of the case, I am thankful to Fifi for this photograph of little Miss Lucy Ann  taken after our worship service. It was a chilly morning, the cardigan was necessary to keep those arms warm. I will get some pictures taken of her in her Easter dress, with all of the chicks visible, before too long. She was positively adorable and so well-behaved in church! The boys were handsome too, of course; in their Easter finery! So, why was I so busy and why don't I have pictures of them?  I was in the kitchen cooking, cleaning, hostessing... it was all good; I love doing just that, a houseful of family and friends is joyful celebration! My daughter brought the recipe for this Lemon Meringue pie, it was absolutely terrific and very easy to make; I'll be putting this one together again soon, very soon. I was skeptical when I poured the filling into the crust that it wouldn't set up; not to worry, it turned out exactly as pictured.

Southern Plate ~ Lemon Meringue Pie
Yum!

Life is Good!
...and oh, so sweet...

 

Luke 24:6

He is not here; he has risen! ~Luke 24:6

Life is Good!

Crucifixion

 I meant to post this earlier during this Holy Week, but time got away from me. Back last October when visiting Nova Scotia I had the opportunity to spend time visiting Les Trois Pignons rug hooking museum in Cheticamp. There were magnificent rugs and tapestries on display, including this one by the late Elizabeth LeFort, made in 1964. This piece measures 3 meters by 1.7 meters and took eleven months to complete, it boasts 510 different colors of 2 ply wool. This masterpiece is simply entitled: Crucifixion; and is housed in a separate, chapel-like room.

Amazing in its workmanship and breathtaking in its detail...

Life is Good!

Memory Making

A curious little boy, a rainy morning and a
children's science museum...
a winning combination.

Life is Good!

One Word Wednesday

Confused~
Life is Good!

With Feverish Determination

String Fever ~ 60" X 76.5"

I was focused and determined to get String Fever to the completed flimsy stage before I slept last night. The outer pieced borders presented much more of a time commitment than I had bargained for; I originally thought that I could use leftover string sets from the inner HST blocks to construct the borders, but as it turned out I needed more than that... many more. Cutting, joining, more cutting, and more joining used up an entire afternoon. I also trimmed down the neutral inner border from what I had originally planned, I believe that adjustment gives the entire piece more visual impact. Once the string borders were together I stay-stitched all the long raw edges before attaching them to the inner quilt, that did help to keep the top stable during the construction process and I am pleased with the results; everything remained true and square, something  I was worried about because of the sheer volume of skinny strips contained in each border. This quilt is made with fabric entirely from the stash closet, nothing was purchased; I believe I'll piece a scrappy back from the leftover larger chunks too. I found a wonderful Celtic design with interlocking triangles that I am eager to try my hand at quilting in those large background triangle areas. I'm thankful to Ami Simms for teaching an inspirational workshop, this definitely won't be my last string creation.

Life is Good!

Bitten

Ouch! I was bitten again, yesterday, by that nasty cleaning/organizing bug. It all started so innocently, I didn't even see the bug approaching. My husband asked if I had a compass, (the type for drawing circles, not the directional kind) and after at least a half hour of digging through this cabinet I emerged with a compass in my hand (YAY!) and a small mountain of debris at my feet. I vowed then and there that nothing was going back in before it was scrutinized and deemed worthy of  being retained. By the time we returned home from church the fever from that bug's bite was raging. I didn't post a before photo... I'm too ashamed to do that; seriously, you would NOT believe what was crammed in there! But, after some dedicated hard work and much aggressive sorting and pitching I am pleased to post this after snapshot. Top shelf: Pillow forms and a random partial bag of polyester fiberfill. Second shelf: Batting and large, usable, batting pieces. Third shelf: notebooks, notions, gadgets and tools. Bottom two shelves: Long arm supplies and tools.

As always, the treatment for bites such as this one usually reveal some interesting side effects on the path toward recovery. I uncovered (yet another UFO... groan.) sixteen four inch blocks, the result of a block exchange in 1995. If I recall correctly, we chose blocks from this book: BH&G 501 Quilt Blocks.  Looks like I only have 485 more to go!

I'm happy to report that the bite was successfully treated and no marks remain today... 

that is, unless you count the three bags of "goodies" 

destined to make a trip to Goodwill later on this morning.

I also unearthed this piece of fabric. Nice!

...it really, really is!

Easter Preview

She'll be the grandest lady in the Easter parade! 

All that's left is the final hemming and this one can be moved into the "done" column. 

Life is Good!