Orphan Afternoon!

Yes, there were a gazillion other things I could be doing….I still have two quilts for the next book to finish, I was cutting for them like crazy last night…..but today when I was typing up itineraries and stuff for this Kansas Trip that begins tomorrow, I thought of a handful of “Scrappy Trips” blocks that were in the orphan box….Poor lil things! All gifted to me at various times by quilters who either had one too many, or didn’t like the colors, or they weren’t quite the same size as the others.

I'm teaching this class on Tuesday...and don't you know it, if I just sew these together I'll have a second sample! Makes sense to me, does it to you?

Why is it when I have a bunch of other deadlines and things looming…I am so EASILY side tracked into playing with something else? Is it just ME?

I laid all the blocks out on the floor. OH MY. Could this work? Some were very…well…dull and brown! Some were bright and wild, and some were just "sweet"…uhhhh…Let’s just say there is a reason they were tossed out gifted as orphans! LOL!

And then as I was laying these out, I was thinking how each one was just like an individual person. Some made with newer fabrics ((Newbies on the block, the young ones)) Some made with tried and true old calicoes that had been hanging around a long time ((old pros!)) Some happy, some sad, some with REALLY SCANT seams..some with…well, lets say GENEROUS ones.

A little pushing, a little pulling, a little easing, a little stretching…..and you know what? It’s not perfect, but they are better together than they ever were apart. Not all seams match. There may be a few "crows feet" ((ie: puckers!)) Isn’t there a life lesson in there somewhere?

I added a purple inner border and a red outer border. I tried a gazillion things, but anywhere in the quilt there was purple, there was also red, and it seemed to tie it together. My kitchen floor is NOT that yellow…but cameras do funny things. SO I took it out to the front porch to see how it would photograph out there:

Well not so great, I can’t get away from shadows…so how about we try the quilting machine?

Ah, that’s the ticket, but you can’t see the top border! Funny thing is, once it’s this close to being done..there is no stopping now. Time to get it quilted before dinner? You bet!

I think you can see some of the wild fabrics going on in here….

Close up of the stitching detail! Oh, those purple pin dots bring back so many memories of 1983!! I had YARDS of this stuff!

I’ll likely work on the binding for this tonight. I’ve still got some packing to do. I’m off to Wichita in the morning!

Sail and Sew!

29 Quilters with sewing machines humming and fabric flying..how fun is that?!

I was definitely having a “pinch me” moment when Jim gave us a tour of where we would be…there was an official “SIGN” and everything!

The room was large, and Sue of Citrussewandvac.com was here with beautiful Janome Horizon machines all set up for our use!

After seeing how our luggage was handled, piled into huge crates and lifted with fork lifts to be placed on the ship, I was sure glad that we didn’t have to BRING machines. Can you imagine? This was wonderful. In fact two of our quilters were extra thrilled because this was the machine they had at home. They love theirs, and were able to help us with questions when Sue was busy helping someone else.

((IN fact, she gave us a cruise special, if anyone wanted to purchase the machine on ship, it was $1,000 off retail, free shipping, didn’t have to claim it in customs, and no sales tax. What a steal! I bet if you contacted her, she’d offer you the same deal, there were some unclaimed machines when we were done….going fast I’m sure! The direct phone number is (352) 726-9743 No affiliation, just a very pleased cruiser passing on the info!))

This was our room! There was more light in here than it looks, it’s just that we were inside and I was taking pics without flash.

		Caribbean Cruise, Aug 2011 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Those coming on the November cruise? Sue is providing machines for us too! However, that is a smaller ship, so I’m not guaranteeing this much space--And! We are not sharing the whole project at this time because we want to keep it exclusive for those traveling in November.

My favorite afternoon? THE LAST DAY! We stopped class at 3pm so Sue could start packing up the machines. We went for TEA in the dining room. A full fancified English Tea!

Do you see these yummies? Could YOU choose just one? It was a delightful way to sit and share and visit with all these women that I now consider close friends! ((Yes, I know, more gratuitous food pics, but…isn’t it gorgeous?!))

After tea we found a place on deck to squeeze into and spent the rest of our time before our last dinner just doing handwork and enjoying each other’s company, totally UNPLUGGED. We talked, we laughed, we reminisced about our favorite aspects of our week together and plotted and planned to do it again as soon as we can!

Sarah and Kathy sharing a cozy lounge! I met Sarah while teaching in Texas this past February. I was with Kathy’s guild in Alabama in May? Or June? And here they are, now knowing each other! This is another thing that just filled my heart….those I knew from all over the country are now friends with each other too. It’s WONDERFUL!

Emily or “Auntie Em” as I started calling her, and Lu…just chillaxing on the deck!

Emily, Lu, Sherry, Ada, and Suzy!

Bare feet, busy fingers, and a full service bar…LOL!

This was the most relaxing afternoon!

Some questions from excited November Cruisers have come my way, and I thought this would be a good place to post some answers to your questions!

• Will we be able to use the sewing studio and sewing machines after class hours?

There will be designated sit and stitch times, but some of our locations will not be available 24/7 as they are used for other ship’s activities. We encourage you to participate in the ship’s shows, highlights and activities as well as sew. There is time for both! On the August Cruise we had sit n stitch each night after dinner from 8pm to 10:30pm. You could choose to participate or not, you could go see a show, go to the comedy club, go dancing, enjoy some quiet time on deck, it’s YOUR CRUISE you don’t have to be chained to your machine 24/7.

• How much space will the sewing studio have? For cutting, layout, squaring up? Design wall?

A small cutting mat that fits in the bottom of your suitcase is sufficient. 12” X 12” or 12” X 17” or so is fine. As I’ve not taught on this next ship before I am unsure of the answers to how much space we will have or if there is room for a design wall. If you wish, you can pack a small flannel backed table cloth to lay pieces out on.

• Will there be a quilter's shop on board, for fabric, thread, notions purchases, or must we bring all that from home?

There is no “store” on board. Please bring what you need for your projects with you. I will have some books with me. Pat Sloan will also have “some” items with her, but come prepared.

• Will we be using office type adjustable chairs, or banquet chairs? Should I bring lumbar support, and a seat cushion?

We will be using the chairs the ship provides. I assume they will be similar to what you see in pics above. If you need a lumbar support bring it. You can also use the pillow from your cabin.

• Can we safely store our quilting supplies in the sewing studio, or must they be kept in our stateroom?

Because these rooms are available for other ship activities you must keep your things with you when you leave the room. Keep it all in a small rolling tote and it is easy to transport!

• How much cool/cold weather should we expect to pack for?

Weather should be warm by the time we reach Florida. But it is going to be November in Baltimore when we leave. I’ll pack a bit for both….but I’ve cruised the Caribbean in December the week before Christmas in the past, and it is still summer down there in December!

• Are any special side trips planned on our stops to visit with quilters,
  quilts and or quilt shops?

I am unaware of special side trips. There is so much to do in the Caribbean! Do a google search for shops before you leave from home. A Taxi can always take you, but from what I just learned on my last cruise, when we hit port, everyone seems to pair off with who they are traveling with and choose different shore excursions. You are free to do what you want, snorkel, sight see, shop, eat, and if you wish to track down a fabric store as some did, you are welcome to. At this time I am unaware of where fabric shops might be at these ports of call as I’ve never taught on this route before.

Are you getting excited? We’ve got twice as many quilters going on the November cruise as there were on the August one since Pat & I are team teaching! You will have two days of class with me, and two days of class with Pat! And we are going to have a BALL!

Start the count down! I’m ready!

Red Strings In the Sunset!

Who knew that a salt water gargle was the one thing that would get me feeling better?

This morning I woke up and my throat hurt So bad…I couldn’t swallow. My friend said SALT WATER GARGLE and to tell you the truth it makes me queasy just to say those words, but I did it several times today and you know what? It cut the gunk, it stung a bit, but my throat feels on the mend now. Remind me this next time, okay? First twinge of a throat thing is getting a round of salt water gargle! Old home remedies. Gotta love em!

And repeat after me: Never Never EVER trust a rented snorkel!

Since I was feeling pretty bleh still, I didn’t leave the house today. But I did have enough energy to want to do SOMETHING at the machine…..

Today is brought to you by the color RED!

Say hello to my big bin of red strings! There is everything in here from pinky red to orange-y red to burgundy and everything reddish in between.

I put on some terrible made-for-tv movies ((The kind you don’t get drawn into or have to pay attention to)) and sat at my machine and just covered paper and pages with random strings.

If some strips were too short to cover the paper, I just butted them end to end until the length was long enough.

How many pieces of paper can be covered by red strings in the course of a day? OH, About 20 8.5” X 11” sheets.

There is some really weird fabric in here, from Christmas stuff, to stained glass crabs I picked up on a trip to Maryland, to the lucky cow fabric that I showed WAY too much of on the backs of quilts in the first Scraps & Shirttails book….and old 1970’s calicoes on forward. Some batiks, some tone on tones, some recycled plaids ((Including the scraps from one of my Grandpa’s shirts)) some reproductions….lots of dots, some Japanese and some artsy stuff with metallic gold on it.

Did it make a dent in my bin? Heavens no! But never fear, you will see these red string blocks showing up in something in the future. Not sure just what, really….but I have some ideas floating around. It was a great day to do something so brainless.

So tonight…I have ZERO voice. Barely a whisper, and if I try real hard, it’s between a bark and a honk. Attractive, no?!

I’m thinking if I keep playing Monk with my self-inflicted vow of silence, I may have my voice back by the time I teach in Kansas on Sunday! Or the students will just have to listen really carefully as I whisper.

Do you think charades might be a fun way to teach?!

The Colors of Nassau

I had too many pictures I wanted to post of Nassau yesterday which made the post too long and probably boring, so I saved some for today. We were traveling with our “Quilter’s Eyes” wide open, remember?

After we finished walking the area of the Queen’s Staircase, we headed over to the fort.

The pic to the left is Fort Fincastle, Nassau Bahamas, overlooking the town from Bennet's Hill. It was built by Lord Dunmore, about 1793 who named it after his second title, Viscount Fincastle.

In a letter to the Secretary of State of February 17, 1794, he describes it as "a battery upon a hill in this island to the Eastwards of the Government House mounting two 24 pounders, two 32 pounder Carronades, two 12 pounders, and one Howitzer, which not only covers the Battery in Hog Island (Paradise Island) but all the Town and Road to the Eastward where the enemy might probably have effected a landing."

In other words, when it comes to men and guns ((and cannons!)) Size Matters! LOL!

On our walk to the fort, we passed interesting island graffiti such as this:

Isn’t this eye catching? Thinking in terms of Quilters Colors here….I loved seeing this!

Stall after stall of “Bahamian” merchandise…all probably made in China! LOL! But again, look at those colors! Pink and blue and yellow and orange and green and turquoise….

I had to laugh at the displays of hats that come with “dred locks” attached! I thought about getting one for Jeff ((For all of about 5 seconds!)) and decided against it. No sense in giving him any ideas on what to do with his hair!

Looking over the wall of the fort, we could see our ships in the distance. This fort was key in watching over the port in the early days!

Love this pic of Lori posing with a cardboard cut out soldier! It was a bit cooler inside the fort than it was on the outside. Those limestone walls are THICK!

One thing that nearly cracked me up also was……there are “tour guides” who will try to rope you into joining their tours….give you a bit of history on the place, and then charge you $1.00. They are not employed by anyone, just self-appointed tour guides! At one point as this gentleman was trying to round up a bunch of tourists and was waving at us to join him I said “It’s okay, I’ve been here before” and we kept walking.

If you go….and you haven’t had the tour before, prepare to take lots of $1.00 bills. And it’s worth it. But I had had the tour before, and I was out of $1.00 bills!

Other colorful buildings. This one looks SO tropical to me, and it was fun to see how they made the most out of the hill it was built on. It was a restaurant I believe. Love the shutters on the upper level.

I loved the mustard yellow of this one against the red roof…and look at that blue blue sky!

This one caught my eye! It’s a Masonic Lodge! My dad is a Mason, and the history goes way back. I took this pic because I knew my dad would get a big kick out of it…and yes, look at that mustard yellow next to the pepto bismol pink building next door!

I love buildings! I thought these just looked SO different from anywhere I’ve ever been. Some look almost old world European, and some? A style all their own! The pepto building next to a paler shell pink with balconies and those interesting arches and columns at the bottom.

By this time we were starving, needed a bathroom, a cool place to sit indoors with a/c and something to eat…and drink!

And yes, I have a penchant for photographing my food--Especially when it is this yummy! Conch Fritters--mmmm~ Crab Cakes! Onion Rings…and the cole slaw was differently spiced than I’ve had elsewhere too. None of that mayonaisse-y sauce like you get here in the states. It was YUM!!

We didn’t go in, we were about out of time, needing to be back on the ship at 1:30….but I would have liked to go into this museum. Maybe next time?

Just look at this beautiful aqua blue water! How is it possible that I was lucky enough to be in this place? I kept having pinch me moments all day long. I kept saying to Lori: “Hey! We are on a cruise!” And “Hey! We are in NASSAU!” Pinch me Pinch me!

In the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, there were still 5 large ships in port the day we were there. Can you find ours? Look for the blue/red whale tail on the top! It’s the second from the right of the pic…..the FARTHEST to the left? That’s that Gigantic Oasis of the Seas. Nassau COUNTS on tourism for its economy. I’m sure by now, a week later…that all the debris is just about gone and things are back in full swing, bringing island flavor to all who visit!

Cheers!