Evening Edition….Yup, a Free Kindle Book!

I’m having a wonderful day with Jason here! Having him around is forcing ME to relax a bit too.

We have plans for tonight….a visit to the local Chinese feed trough Buffet sounds just as good to me as it does to him, and I love the Mongolian wok part where you can take your own veggies and meats and have them stir fry it up for you. YUMM!

There may be a movie at the theater in our future, or we might just come back and veg in front of netflix. I’m hoping for the later, as I’ve got quilts to bind!

In the mean time….here’s one freebie that came through my searches today!

Nordic Nights is free in the Kindle store as I type this….grab it while you can! What’s free now may not be later!

Book Description:

Set in wintry Jackson Hole, Wyoming, this crisp, straight-forward mystery plunges gallery owner Alix Thorssen into the local Nordic Nights festival, which features ice carving, a parade, ski races and a startling murder.

Famous Norwegian painter Glasius Dokken, who had come to town for his show at Alix's gallery, is found stabbed with an ice pick in the hotel room of an itinerant and provocative fortune-teller.

Arrested for the killing is Alix's glumly stoic stepfather (his fingerprints were all over the crime scene), who reveres his Scandinavian heritage and has painstakingly crafted a replica of a Viking ship to be displayed in the parade.

Alix, persistent and unflappable, begins to investigate, but accidents plague her and her family: the Viking ship nearly crushes her; her mother barely escapes a hit-and-run; and Bjarne, a seductive ski-racer who has beguiled Alix, is also implicated in the murder.

McClendon works a good deal of Nordic folklore into her story. The fortune-teller is a specialist in runes, and her silver-and-wood tools quickly become a central point in the case: Are the runes museum quality? Have they been stolen?

The third entry in the McClendon's series (after The Bluejay Shaman) conjures up the icy beauty of Jackson Hole, and though the dialogue can be stilted, her agreeably feisty heroine and a hair-raising finale will keep readers entertained throughout the night, Nordic or otherwise.

Leaving Santa Fe!

Hello from me, back here in NC!

Gosh, it’s good to be home. I was up early to catch the 7:30am shuttle that took me, my copious amounts of luggage ((Oh, you should have seen the look on the shuttle driver’s face!)) and several other passengers the hour or so drive back to the Albuquerque airport. So many of us going so many different directions.

It had rained during the night, and the air was fresh. If you’ve never smelled sage brush after a drenching rain, you are seriously missing one of nature’s gifts! It brought to mind so closely the smell of the sage brush from when we lived in Idaho, which is also high desert. I wish I could bottle that!

As we were driving along, I glanced to the west and saw this deluge happening in the distance. Rain comes quickly, and goes away just as fast, but when it dumps, it dumps!

Of course, taking a shuttle sometimes means that you get to your destination about 3 hours too early and find yourself with some time to kill---

Let me just say that some airports are better than others when it comes to shops and things to look at. I could spend a LOT of time in the shops at the Albuquerque airport! And if there is something that you regretted not picking up in Santa Fe, you could possibly find it here!

Besides the obligatory t-shirt purchase, I had a great time looking at the displays that are all ready for the Día de los Muertos, Day of the Dead.

I was disappointed that this pic turned out so blurry, because the displays were wonderful! I loved the happy skeleton ladies in all their painted finery! Look at this one:

She looks like she’s all gussied up for an afternoon tea! I just LOVED the colors…the oranges, reds, golds, greens, purple-y blue periwinkles….FUN!

In Albuquerque, Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) celebrations take place over several weeks, although the holiday is traditionally celebrated between October 31st and November 2nd. Families remember deceased loved ones and honor them by building offering altars (ofrendas) where sugar skulls are placed, along with offerings of pan de muertos. The holiday is festive although the content may not be, as spirits are welcomed back into peoples' lives for another year.

Here in the USA we forget that our customs within this country are so vast! There is such a melding of traditions from different cultures who have settled here from across the world. It was really a treat to be in New Mexico and to feel the build up of not just Halloween, but the important day after it, and how it evolved from the Christian holiday of “All Saints Day” to the customs it has acquired over time through the people of Mexican descent.

Look at that pic above…see that bell shaped thing to the left of the skulls? That was a SKIRT for one of the really large “painted lady” skeletons…isn’t it awesome?

I loved this display of sun faces in the window….and another glimpse of the painted lady’s skirt to the right of the pic. I wish I had room to bring home a happy CHEDDAR face! But my luggage had already been checked, and my carry on was full!

More tiles! I really like the basket one at the top left…but that lizard is awfully cute!

Would your “Quilters Eyes” pick up on these baskets right away? There were so many patterns and colors! I just about had my heart set on one to bring home…..((It was flat, I bet it would fit in the carry on!)) But on closer inspection --- uhoh! What’s this I see???

Hmmmmmmm…..MADE IN……PAKISTAN!???

Well, that’s the way it goes I guess! For heaven’s sake --- most of the big quilt book publishers have their books all printed in CHINA, so why should this be any different?

I’m happy to be a Kansas City Star Author, all of our books are printed right here in the good ol’ USA!

I boarded my flight….and found myself with another 3 hour layover in Chicago! I’d have to say that the Chicago airport probably has some of the best food places as far as airports go. ((Can’t beat the cheese popcorn either! Only it should come with wet wipes to clean the orange off of your fingers so you don’t have to resort to wiping them on your jeans--))

All through the day I’d been in touch with Jason, who is still struggling with the changes in his life. I encouraged him to come home for a long weekend, and after school, he drove up from Columbia, about a 3 hour drive. He met me here last night shortly after I arrived home. We talked and talked until the wee small hours, and then I drug myself off to bed.

It’s just the two of us until Sunday --- DH is off on a business trip. I’m looking forward to a few days of relaxing and spending time with my son.

When I went to unpack my suitcase to gift him with his New Mexico t-shirt souvenir….look what I found!

Oh, my! It’s ANOTHER note from TSA telling me how much they thank me for my business, and to tell me how much they enjoy going through my luggage! LOL!

I’m thinking of having these laminated, and just place them at the top of my luggage myself when I GO somewhere…might save on some paper costs for them, don’t you think?

Tiles of Santa Fe!

I love tile patterns, but I think you know that! The first thing I did when landing at the airport in Albuquerque was to take pics of the southwestern designs of the tiles in the ladies rest room.

Last night, after being dropped off at my hotel in Santa Fe, and discovering that the hotel had a complimentary shuttle at my service, I hitched a ride back down to the Plaza area so that I could walk around and capture more images! I had tiles on the brain, and I found a lot more to whet my appetite!

Tiles are not just on walls….they are in entrance ways on the floor…and you have to be sure to open your eyes and look around you or you just might miss some interesting ones along the way!

That amost happened with this one --- it was tucked behind a closed door to a shop!

Don't you think that it almost has a Frank Lloyd Wright feel to it?

Isn’t this cool? I love the positive/negative almost 3-D look! And those square in a square units in each arrow? VERY nice!

Look at these gorgeous tiles on this staircase! Isn’t it beautiful? I loved the weathered woods of the banisters and other details mixed with the tiles as well.

A couple of stairwells had a flying geese look to them……from this one…to this one:

It’s just a quilter’s delight to walk around and see these details! Come on, admit it --- they’d have you plotting and planning and smiling too! I also loved the colors of the painted accents here and there….this bright blue is wonderful! I also loved the turquoise, and the periwinkle against the color of the adobe buildings.

Lots of blue and yellow! HAPPY COLORS!

I loved the border at the top of this one….I’m imagining a kitchen wall all tiled with these….what a happy place that would make!

This wall had some renegade orphan tiles down in the bottom corner! Of course, I love that cheddar-y gold….and cobalt blue? Bring it on!

These solid blue tiles were accented with a vine-y curly-que border! Pretty!

These crisp white tiles are just accented here and there with floral and bird tiles. Do you see how the border is the same flower motif, only smaller? Think how this could work in planning quilt borders too! Changing the scale of the design can add interest!

How about some chile peppers around a round entrance? CUTE!

This door really caught my eye with the tile pictures on either side……I wonder what these old tiles could say if they could talk? How many people have they seen come and go…and that shade of the blue door? LOVE IT! Here’s some close ups of the side panels:

Love the star looking block medallions, and the dotted circles that frame them!

Do you see the little spacer tiles that are added to the top and bottom of the center tile image? Don't we sometimes do that when trying to make pieced blocks fit around a printed panel?

These tiles are such works of art, and they really inspire me in so many ways!

First off..how many of you stopped to think that they are all hand painted? And though they somewhat look identical to each other, in fact, each one has its own imperfections making it unique amongst all the others? For instance, look at the starry ones above. Even the dots surrounding the center motifs are not exactly spaced. Some centers might be a bit OFF center….but yet when displayed together they create a beautiful whole that is far better than the sum of its individual parts.

Can we apply this to our quilting? Absolutely! STOP worrying that this seam or that one is a thread width '”OFF!” It’s not about the imperfections in ONE block by itself that a quilt should be judged or even viewed by. The quilt top needs to be viewed as a whole, from about 6 feet away in order to fully appreciate what each individual block does in playing its part in this symphony of fabric, color, contrast and design.

Hand crafted does not, will not ever mean PERFECTION. The pursuit of excellence is worthy, the pursuit of perfection is INSANE. IMPOSSIBLE…..

I prefer hand crafted over ANYTHING that is computer driven perfect, dye cut identical in every way.

And to me it’s the individual differences that I see block to block to block that remind me of how we as individuals make up such a beautiful whole. Why should a quilt be so perfect that it resembles an army of robots marching in formation, but with no soul?

Relax! Do the best you can, but allow yourself the little differences that make our creations as individual as we are.

Find beauty and creativity everywhere you can, and by all means, if you can get to Santa Fe, DO IT! You will be INSPIRED!

Halloween Cuteness! Free Witch Pattern!

How perfect is this?

I was sent a free paper pieced witch pattern by a friend, and I’m here to pass it on to you!

I can see this witch made with a slightly pea green face, with some cute eyes and other facial details embroidered on!

It wouldn’t take hardly any bit of fabric at all,

It makes a 4” block! I’m going to have to make me some of these when I get home from New Mexico!

Click HERE for the free pdf file and enjoy!

There are some times in life when I’m just feeling a bit, well---- witchy! Yesterday was one of them….how would YOU react if you got a condescending email like this:

Bonnie, dear, In the second paragraph of "About Bonnie" you use the possessive pronoun "its". Please take the apostrophe out of it because 'it's' means "it is".

V J, founder and director of The Association for the Encouragement of Correct Punctuation, Spelling and Usage in Public Communications.

First off…..typos happen, right? And I do my best to correct them. But the fact that someone would send such a high fallootin’ email over ONE apostrophe just really stuck in my craw.

I spend hours a day writing and re writing….but sometimes even spell check won’t catch things. An apostrophe. REALLY!?

And because I’m feeling a bit witchy…..I think I’ll leave the apostrophe there just on principle a while longer!

I plan on leaving it there to keep me humble, to remind me that I am not perfect, that no one is perfect, and I quite like myself that way.

A Day in Santa Fe!

Yesterday was my “busy” day.

Susan picked me up at my hotel in Albuquerque, and we drove North to Santa Fe, about an hours' drive for a morning guild meeting that started at 9:30am.

We were there in plenty of time…and I’d rather be early than late as a general rule, mostly because I’d rather get all of the setting up done and out of the way and look cool as a cucumber when people start showing up and milling around. It sure beats the alternative of them coming in, and me arriving LATE, and looking like a frazzled chicken rushing around trying to get things sorted, set up, laid out and hung…..all while they are standing in line waiting for books to be signed, etc. I live by the “earlier is better” rule much of the time in life because I hate falling short!

The meeting was a lot of fun, and after everything was packed back up and re-loaded into the back of Susan’s car, we headed off down to the Plaza area of Santa Fe for a bit of touristy time and some lunch!

I can’t POSSIBLY post ALL of the pictures from my day in this blog post…it’s already past 10pm at night as I write this, and I have to be up at 6am to head BACK to Santa Fe for another workshop…in fact, if you are reading this past 7am Mountain time on Tuesday morning…..we are already in the car on our way!

((Yes, I’m writing this ahead of time after the Monday NIGHT guild meeting back in Albuquerque to set it to post live in the morning! Are you confused yet?))

Things I loved!

The view of St Francis Cathedral at the end of the street! I love this southwestern architecture!!

Awesome tile designs are EVERYWHERE!! This one is of a water fountain inside La Fonda ---yes, there are more pictures of cool tiles to come!

Chiles and MORE Chiles!

The color and pattern of hand woven textiles!

The whimsical faces of hand painted pottery suns!

The shiny climbing motion of hand painted lizards and frogs!

The rustic feel of skulls bleached by sun, sand and wind--

((No, I am not bringing one of these home!!))

Vibrant jewel tones of scarves, blankets, skirts and bags to catch the eye of passers by --

The call of wonderful aromas from the Blue Corn Café & Brewery where we stopped for lunch!

The chile corn soup is to DIE FOR – Thick and creamy and hot enough to make your nose run and break you out a full facial sweat --- BLISS!

The blue corn chips and fire roasted salsa can’t be beat and MUST be enjoyed!

And where Enchiladas come “Christmas Style” meaning both red AND green chile ---LOVE IT!

Seriously, the food here is nearly a sacred experience!

Santa Fe, where the sun shines more than 330 days a year…..where squinting into the sun is a natural unavoidable reflex, and pictures just go squinty! I loved this bronze burro…..fun, huh?

Definitely need to spend more time here…I’m thinking….LOTS would be nice!

Monday Evening Edition! Free Kindle Cook Book!

Holidays ’round the corner!

Do you do cookie swaps with your family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, etc?

I get tired of the same ole same ole. Chocolate chip. Oatmeal Raisin – let’s shake it up a bit!

I just came across another Gooseberry Patch freebie and downloaded it..Cookie Swap!

Product Description:

Everything you need to know to host a cookie exchange!

You'll find easy-to-follow how-to's with a handy checklist to make swapping a cinch, clever invitations and a recipe card to copy and color, tried & true recipes plus nifty ideas for packaging and presenting cookies.

Try nutty butterscotch squares, chocolate-vanilla swirl cookies, magical creme wafers, chocolate peanut butter secrets and more, including recipes for fudge, caramels and hard tack candy too!

Besides, the cover image just looks darn appealing, doesn’t it!?

As always, check before clicking to order as what was free earlier may not be now.

No affiliation, just a happy kindle reader sharing the bliss!

Workshop Day in Albuquerque!

Of course I had to spell out Albuquerque just because I love spelling that word!'

Yesterday was our Oklahoma Backroads workshop with the New Mexico Quilting Association ---and we had a full class!

It was a full day of digging in the scraps, playing with value and color placement and trying new things. Push the color boundaries, go for the clash, enlarge the comfort zone, and dare to admit what the ugliest piece in your scraps is…..hold it up….and tell us what it is from, and why it is still IN your stash! And then SEW it into something!

It was amazing to see how one person’s ugly was NOT deemed ugly by the person sitting next to them, and the stories of the fabrics were so varied.

One quilter was gifted a scrap bag of mostly tropical/island type fabrics and batiks by a friend and was being challenged to use them.

Another quilter was making a commissioned quilt for a friend who had lost her husband….the quilt was being made from his clothes and included everything from denim to plaid to stripes, and even solids. A true memory maker!

Some quilters found that what they THOUGHT they liked as their palette just paled in comparison when they left the more “clashy” fabrics out, and they were bound and determined to go back to the stash when they got home and throw some more wild things back IN to their quilts to give them more life!

There was something to learn for everyone….even me! It was great to get to know these ladies, who they are, how long they’ve lived here, how long they’ve been quilting, what they do for a living, and how they have made New Mexico their home.

Our room was great, though we were close quarters, everyone had ample space and we had terrific daylight from the bank of windows in the back. I kinda liked the semi-circle set up, it made me feel like I could get around to everyone as needed!

I took pictures from both ends of the room hoping to get everyone in here at some point!

Take a stroll through the pictures in the slide show below. You can’t really see the color and detail just by the thumbnail photos alone!

		OK Backroads, Albuquerque, NM 2011 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I’m off to spend the day in Santa Fe, but I”ll be back in Albuquerque by evening for an evening lecture/trunkshow here…..I hope to get LOTS Of pics!!