Current Project

Besides moving, or maybe because I need a break from boxes, this is my current project. I took all my scraps of green fabric big enough to make strips of different widths and sewed them together. Some have 90 degree seems, others are 45 degrees. The strips on the floor are sewn, those on the bed are waiting for the needle! Since the moving truck is coming next Thursday, I need to mark and pin them in order and put everything in another UFO box, so it might be a long wait. Sigh. 

Also, it will be cut into three pieces and sewn together with the stripes going three directions. I'll likely call it, "It's Easy Being Green."

The photos below were taken last week after a thunderstorm/downpour. The sunset produced the rainbow. What caught me was the color, which my camera could not catch very well, and the size. It shot almost straight up and began its arch nearly overhead. Gasp, it was unreal!

 Back to my boxes...

You must go to Charlotte this month!

Yesterday was a highlight of our trip to South Carolina. My daughter drove me a little way across the border into Charlotte, NC where we went to the Ciel Gallery and were privileged to meet Wanda, from Exuberant Color. How delightful to be able to hug this lady who gives me and other quilters so much encouragement and inspiration from her daily blog. We chatted for almost an hour, looked at her incredible quilts, and enjoyed the mosaic work in the studio. Much of it was created by her daughter, Vicki who is also an artist and part of this studio that is featuring these brilliant quilts until the end of the month. Sorry, no pictures because I left my camera at home, but pop over to Wanda's blog and you will see a little of what we enjoyed.

Oh for a long rest...

My past few months have been filled with weddings, illnesses, accidents, and a host of other "not on my agenda" events. However, I am sneaking into my studio now and then, lest I lose my sanity. 

All the green (or close to green) scraps of any size are getting cut into strips, depending on what I can get out of them. Some are 1.5" and up to 3.5" with square or 45 degree angled ends. I'm sewing them into longer strips that will go together to about 60" square... I hope. It is mindless in some ways, and suitable for my present situation. I hope to quilt it sometime soon but...

We are also downsizing to move. Notice the box of books in the bottom photo? (If you thought I was a bit daft before, now you know for sure!) The new place is only 7 minutes away but eliminates yard work and snow shoveling. Also, I will have a bigger space for my studio. Exciting, but our calendar is full (daughter married last Friday and son marries on the 23 of June). We are going for a nine-day holiday soon and I get to meet Wanda (Exuberant Color)! 

Oh, these emotional ups and downs are a real test!

An emotional weekend

This past weekend was a memory maker! We drove four hours south for my sister's 50th wedding celebration with family and friends. They had an open house at her church for a few hours in the afternoon, then family and a few close friends went to a place called the Pheasant Farm for dinner and more visiting and laughter. If you check the link, you can see that this is an incredible place out in the middle of nowhere. 

On Sunday, Mother's Day, our youngest son wanted to take me for dinner. We were still in the town where my sister lives, not too far from the farm where we grew up. My father farmed there for many years, but after the four children left home, he got tired of the dust blowing from the neighbor's fields. At the age of 50, he sold the farm and moved north, taking some "homestead" land in the trees, clearing it, and starting all over. My dad was an awesome man.

The farm where we grew up was purchased by the same sort of enterprising, hard-working person. He turned it into a camp ground, greenhouse, nursery, with a restaurant in a train car. This place has become famous, with 4 1/2 star ratings in the restaurant guides. I had not been back to that farm since my father sold it more than 50 years ago.

When I suggested we go there, our son called them. They were 100% booked for Mother's Day but have a patio that is 'first come, first served' so we set off, about a 30 minute drive, again, out in the middle of nowhere, to Aspen Crossing. (The website is currently under reconstruction, but if you search, it will pop up and show other links.)

We ate our delicious lunch with me fighting to control my emotions. As soon as the owners found out who I was, we were given freedom to explore. The memories were like a flood. The buildings my dad built are still in use. The house was remodeled but still there. The trees my dad planted also still growing. 

The best places were the pump house that is exactly as I remembered it, and my father's old shop where he taught me how to make boats and repair broken bridle reins. The smell of it was still the same, his distinctive hardware holders still on the walls. The grainery I helped shingle as a child stood nearby. Dad's barn also stands, still used. The woman who waited on us asked about a board in the barn wall with a brand on it. I said, "Is it a 'lazy H L?" She was surprised and said yes. That was my father's brand.

My mother had created a tennis court in the yard, and a bigger, more complete court had been created, almost in the same place. She would have been so delighted, as would my dad to see how his farm had become what it is today.


I am so thankful. My Mother's Day was about as perfect as a day could be.

 

I've been working on a challenge quilt and finished it a couple days ago. Since it is not yet judged, I cannot post it. In the meantime, we are downsizing and preparing to move (about 10 minutes from here). It is a bungalow condo with a loft and a larger lower level. My studio loses some daylight but gains area!

Thanks to Julie for her "no pin" notice. I'm using a similar one. 

Also reading your posts, and soon hope to put something up about my projects that I can show you! 

Mariner's Sunset is finished

Some quilts are like a monkey on my back, keeping me from doing new projects, but also scary enough that progress is very sloooow. This one is large, finishing at 72" x 96" and putting on the facing and sleeve by hand took several sports shows and a few editions of NCIS. 

But it is up on a wall, and FOR SALE. I'm hoping for a hotel or some other business with a large space will be interested in it. In the meantime, I'm enjoying the thing, even if it overwhelmed me, particularly the colors and the waves.

And I've started another quilt... more later!

Help...?!!

I'm hand sewing the facing to the back of Mariner's Sunset. It is about 28 feet around so will take a few days. I'll post a picture when it is finished, but I'm very happy with how it looks (as long as no one looks too closely). Getting this one finished will set me free from the nagging so I can move on...

And in that department, I have a question...

The quilt to the right, Kali's Cherry Tree, needs to be quilted. I've been procrastinating on this one too. I have decided how to mount it (it will be framed) but am not sure about the quilting. I don't want it to take over the design, but also don't want to do an all-over panto-type either. 

Any ideas? Email me, or put them in the comments for this post. All suggestions welcome!