August 2012

for Nell
pieced and ready to quilt

for Ellen

pieced and ready to quilt

ROUND AND ROUND I GO

Since it is so stinking hot and humid, I thought that it must be time to get around to dyeing some fabric.  And since my nice husband has helped me set up a perfect space in our basement, I must put it into use, lest he think that I am not appreciative of his efforts.   Double laundry sink, pull-down faucet, lots of work tables and space and a balmy 72 degrees year round.  Irena and I just finished ironing 23 plus yards of fabric.

And I have more than 23 half yards drying in the sun.  I must admit what brought me round to this burst of exploration was caused by my friend Karen.  She told me about this great online video Craftsy class by Jane Dunnewold and I naturally had to sign up.  Loads of good tips and ideas that I couldn't wait to try.  And may I say, this is so much more fun than dyeing yard after yard of solid fabric.  Got some great mottles and fun designs.

I have been busy in the sewing studio as well.  I finished piecing the Nancy Crow workshop piece.  It is so different from anything I have ever done and I am still trying to like it.  The odd thing about this piece is I already know how I want to quilt it, what color thread, what color backing and facing too.  I have never made a quilt that spoke up that quickly about the quilting part.   Most of them linger for months or years before they have enough nerve to tell me what to do!   Between you and me, I think this thing is trying to take over my life.  Every name I try to assign to it is voted down.  It is as if I am compelled to actually finish this quickly,  it will name itself and I will move on.  Oh, and just so you know, it is laying flat on the wall.  The wavy edges are intentional.  When I tried to square it up, it screamed at me to stop.  Wavy it will be. I tell ya, this critter has a mind of it's own.  Round we go.

approximately 58" x 72" 

Rounding out this post, is my completed Pink Dogwood quilt.  

All quilted up and bound. Ready to hang on the wall. That brings round another issue, I have run out of wall space.  Guess I need to rotate a few.

Which brings me round to another subject.  Selling my quilts. Although I do have some of them for sale at the local museum shop, it is high time I get busy and add a link to my blog  with photos, descriptions and prices. (pricing - the most difficult part.) Another item for the To-Do list. And my world keeps going 'round.

a foto-less friday

Even after all the encouragement from everyone on my neutral state of mind, I just kept spinning my wheels today.  I made a couple more blocks, then began another peacock block,  then couldn't even muster up the courage to quilt some more on my log cabin posy quilt.  So I decided it was time to clean up my studio.  That always helps clear the cobwebs.  Then I also decided it was time to rearrange my studio.  Sorry, no studio pictures of the before.  I started dragging things around before I thought to take a quick snapshot.  I am still not completely happy with the new arrangement, but as my Mother was quick to point out, I have too much stuff in this room.  I bit my tongue and did not mention to her that I had been planning to move my studio to our spacious basement apartment where she now resides.  Ah, well, it is all for the best.. Anyone want to buy a gently used sewing machine?  Or actually three?  Or a nice little featherweight, which has only been out of it's travel case  a very few times in the last, er, perhaps, uh, 30 years?  Indeed, I do have too much stuff.  

And I am so happy to have Mother close by.  She will be celebrating her 91st birthday next Tuesday.  Can you just imagine?  She is 91 years young, still driving her own car, doing her own thing, but yet complaining that she just can't understand why she isn't able to do as much as she used to be able to do.   We should all be so lucky.  We will celebrate her birthday with her favorite meal.  Meatloaf, macaroni & cheese, green beans, sweet corn, fried okra, mashed potatoes, cornbread, ~ all done southern style of course.   Many of  the items which were frozen and canned from the summer garden.   Oh, and apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream and cheddar cheese for dessert.  This is a sample of the meals that I ate almost every day of my life for 18 + years.  All from our dairy  farm and vegetable gardens. 

On to other  things.  Baby Evie arrived today, a bit early, but healthy and beautiful.  So I really should get back to work on her peacock quilt. Her momma will be much to busy to collaborate on any quilts for a few months.  At any rate, she was happy to see what I had started and gave me the go ahead on having my way with it. 

Tomorrow I will be meeting a small group of ladies who want to organize a Modern Quilt Guild in the Chattanooga, TN area.  This is so exciting, let me repeat, so exciting, for me to be able to meet others in my area who have similar interests.  

And last but not the least.  I received delivery of a wonderful gift.  Snow falling on Cedars.  From Sujata.  It is on my design wall.  Awaiting my  inspirations.  But radiating such emotion.  I feel from our communications that we have so much in common.  Receiving this piece from her connects us in even more ways.  It is a gift from her heart and I will treasure it.  Isn't it a wonderful world?  Just like Louis Armstrong sang:

I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself what a wonderful world.

I see skies of blue and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself what a wonderful world.

The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do
They're really saying I love you.

I hear babies cry, I watch them grow
They'll learn much more than I'll never know
And I think to myself what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself what a wonderful world.

Songwriters: Thiele, Robert;Weiss, George David

Progress

It makes the world go 'round.  I think?  If one does not progress then one will surely die a lingering death. Progress always makes me think of a Joni Mitchell song;  Big Yellow Taxi.  "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot."  She is one of my heroes.  An artist.  A true artist to my way of thinking. Anyone who can write such exquisite lyrics and music, as well as paint incredible images is just brilliant in my book. Which brings me 'round to this.  In my somewhat smallish hometown, we are progressing.  In a couple more years, or less, we shall have a new airport.  Not a large, commercial airport, just one to accommodate private jets.  It will accommodate the captains of industry who must travel from far away places to our small city.  New industries that will make solar panels, cars, appliances, even shipping all those "cannot live without items" from Amazon, to name a few.  It will assist in providing new jobs for our depressed economy.  All those things that we need to progress. So, why am I spouting about all this?  The airport will encompass the land where I grew up. 

I took a walk over the property a few days ago.  The huge equipment has already uprooted the trees where I used to play as a child.  A huge, old oak tree, with roots extending on all sides had been cut down and hauled away for prime lumber.  As well as all the other oak, hickory, walnut, cedar and poplar trees.   These roots had provided the "house" for my acorn family when I was 8 or 9 years old.  I would "dust" out all the leaves and debris and have a glorious, multi-level dwelling for my entire acorn family amongst those huge oak roots.  This walk caused quite a few tears.

The farm where I grew up, where my brothers and sister grew up, where my mother grew up, where my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, great grand-parents lived is no longer a family farm.  This is one of the few structures standing and will soon be gone as well.   This project will assist in the progress of our county and region.  It is progress. Ann and Lucius moved from Clay County, NC to Bradley County, TN.  Many of their descendants are still here.  Including me.  

And progress we must?   Reproducing my great grandmother's quilt. And in doing so, I am progressing in my own way.  I can only hope that it is the right thing that we are all doing. 

"Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone."

Binding those ties couldn't wait

 

No matter that  I had resolved that December be the month to finish all those projects that I have hanging around in my studio.  I could reduce the tension in my shoulders and neck if I would just get out those pieces that are languishing around and complete them.  I have  placed them in pretty boxes on top of the cabinets that hold my fabric stash.  My thought here:  let's make them look nice even if I can't finish them up.   I am making a bit of progress, though. And if I am not able to empty those pretty boxes, I will be able to enjoy seeing the pretty boxes.  (Is there a song in that somewhere?) So these two small ones are fini.

Look out!  Here comes a fiberliscious package of recycled shirtings fabrics from a new friend, Lee Ann.  All the way from Seattle. She was so gracious to share her wonderful fabrics.  And it seems as if she used a microscope, or maybe even ESP, and sent exactly the fabrics that I would need to make great grandma's repro quilt work.  As she says, the older, used pieces add so much.  Of course I was compelled to jump right into the this. UFO's,  get back!  Me gots a new project to begin. 

The fun part:  trying to reproduce a similar look in this new quilt.  The not so fun part:  doing all that precise piecing. The string piecing seems to be a no brainer.  However, it has been so long since I have done actual, traditional type quilt blocks, I had forgotten why I lost interest in piecing/quilting in the first place.  I just cannot seem/seam to sew a straight line.  No matter that each part of my puzzle/block appears to be precise, when I begin to sew it all together ~ %&*@*!!!%^#&##. .  Well, then, this will be the challenge for the new year.  I have committed myself to do this thing and do this thing, I will.  Isn't that the reason for steam irons? Press and stretch that sucker into shape!  Jeeze, Louise!  What would Great Grandma and Grandma say about this? And please, do not mention anything about this to Ma.  Once it is all together and quilted and washed, who will know the difference ~ right?  It is gonna be okay.  And I can still make it fun.

 great grandma's original star

TA-DA!

my repro star