A View Of My Cutting Table ---

It’s been a pretty non-eventful day! And I’m completely and utterly happy with that!

I had a massage at 10:30 am ---which left me pretty noodley from head to toe.

I headed to Sam’s Club after that to pick up more mailing envelopes – I’m starting to backstock for when the books come in, one must NOT run out of bubble mailers, you know?! And ----

THEY.HAD.NONE!

Now I wouldn’t think that a box of bubble envelopes is something that Sams would run out of on a Memorial Day weekend --- but they did. So I parked my cart, and headed over to the snack bar thinking I could at least get an ice cream for my efforts ---there was ONE person in line in front of me…and ONE person behind the counter. You wouldn’t think that would cause a problem, but when I asked for an ice cream sundae, he said there were 3 waiting in line for ice creams to be made in front of me and he wasn’t able to get them done at this moment as he was the only one working the counter.

Okay.

Someone tell me WHY on a big three day holiday weekend there is ONE person working the snack bar at Sams when the place is a ZOO with people?! And why was he serving the other people hotdogs and pizza and not making the other people who were waiting for their ice cream their orders?

I didn’t wait around to find out why….I left, did a bank run, and stopped for non-big-box fish tacos at a little hole in the wall Mexican place that was more than happy to treat me like I wasn’t an escapee from the zoo.

Remind me not to venture into big box land on a major holiday --- big mistake!

After that, still very relaxed and now full-bellied --- I came home and napped.

And that has been the extent of my day – except for the fact that I’ve been cleaning and sorting. Remember that I finished the last of my Nearly Insane blocks on the NY trip? I still had a bag of fabrics used in that quilt, and I sorted everything, putting all the FQ sized pieces away and sorting out the strips for ironing and re-filing, and putting the crumbs in the tubs where crumbs go ----

And the top of the table was a MESS.

It was at that point that I realized that I could do two things at once ---- cut the strips from the Nearly Insane down into bow-tie sets and clear away the strip debris at the same time. So that’s what I’ve been doing.

I’m just getting started. It will take me a while to cut these down this evening, but it’s brainless and I can put a movie on netflix and have at it!

What’s up for your evening?

Knitnoid’s Ocean Waves!

It’s funny how we get to know people through blogging and via email. Some people will introduce themselves to me by name and state when we meet as in “Suzie from Poughkeepsie” But often times, if we have corresponded, or they have commented frequently, I’ll recognize them much easier by the first part of their email address!

Such is the case with the quilter who’s login on Blogger is simply “Knitnoid” ---there was no first name/last name attached to her email, but that’s okay – I’d recognize her better as simply “Knitnoid” anyhow!

She sent along some beautiful photos of an Ocean Waves quilt she just finished, and I wanted to share it along with you:

Bonnie,

Last weekend I gave my niece her high school graduation present -- this Ocean Waves quilt I made using your instructions and of course bonus HSTs!

My niece told me her favorite color was "turquoise". My pictures don't show the fabric in true colors. I used a "hot pink" backing and rented time on a long arm to quilt it -- flowers all over the place, although the pictures don't show it too well.

I love the fact that it has scraps of fabric of all sorts of things in it. It was definitely a trip down memory lane. I started it last October and finished it a month before graduation -- a first for me to have a quilt finished BEFORE the gift giving occasion.

Thanks for all that you do for quilters world wide. I'm looking forward to your next book.

Full quilt! Love that turquoise!

Close up of quilt detail! Just beautiful!

Image of the backing fabric…love the hot pink..and I can see the camera shadow! LOL! We do what we have to do to get the job done, right?

Here’s the matching pillow case – what a great graduation gift for a special neice!

Thanks for sharing the quilt with me Knitnoid, now if I only knew your REAL name!

**Addition** Knitnoid has emailed me back, and I know know she is Pam A in KC, MO! She blogs HERE!

Rose of Sharon, Circa 1850

I left town and got busy, leaving one more quilt to share from my visit to New Paltz, NY for when I returned home ---it was just too many blog posts to try to write ahead before leaving.

I wanted to post things “in the now” while in Illinois and Ohio --- and I knew this spectacular quilt would be waiting for me when I got back home and could post about it.

When I arrived in New Paltz, this was the first building I visited ----it was the WRONG building, I needed to find the building where Susan worked, but I needed to ask someone so I could get my bearings on where I was --- and also find a restroom!

It was a bit of a jaunt from my hotel in Connecticut to New Paltz in the rain.

I love this time of the year because there are always school field trips going on ---- and when I entered the building, they had a school field trip doing activities inside the big meeting room. FUN! I found the facilities, and found where I needed to go and headed over to meet Susan.

After our tour, and before I headed out of town she said there was ONE MORE QUILT that I needed to see, and it was in that room where the field trip had been congregating, so we had to wait until they were done ---- they were just finishing up by the time we got back to this building.

The quilt? A magnificent Rose of Sharon!

The quilt was made by Rebecca LeFevre and given as a gift to her son Peter.

The border was the first thing to catch my eye…and then I was drawn to the 12 lovely blocks. I adore asymmetrical applique blocks. In these, the applique fully filled each block, but it’s not a wreath or an even 4 or 8 armed spray, it starts with that one chunky stem in the bottom left corner of each block and just goes! I love the little sprigs on the buds in the upper right hand of each block. And do you see the top row only is “upside down”?

Not only is the applique very fine, but the attention to detail in the hand quilting is so precice, you’d think it was machine unless you get really close to check it out. Luckily this quilt was hung full out on a wall so I COULD get close. I love that the red of the buds resemble “heart tops” SO folksy!

Can you see the miniscule hand quilting stitches? Double rows of most everything ---Triple, if you count the quilting IN the applique shapes, and then the double rows of echoing around them in the background area.

This brings me to a funny that happened to me this past trip. A lady asked during my lecture if I worried that the “muslin” in some of my quilts was not as good as quilt shop quality fabric, and didn’t I worry that they would fall apart over time?

First off – Right off – I thought of these quilts made with every day ordinary muslin that I had documented and shared with you just the few days before leaving for Illinois. And second ---I just love the look of hand quilting on muslin. Why do we think we are any better now, or know better – than what these expert quilters did in their day?

I would love my work to be this fine ---and yes, with a good quality “plain” muslin just as they did. I am so not a fabric snob. My response to her was that we “praise” quilts made with feed sacks from the depression years of the 1930s. Feed sacks were not high quality quilting fabric. Any good quality muslin that is made now is far better than any muslin that was made in the 1800s through the 1930s and beyond…I don’t buy the cheap stuff, but that she should use whatever makes her happy in her quilts, and I would use what makes me happy.

I have to chuckle as I realize the quilt police are still out there, doing their brain-washing on unsuspecting quilters!

Close up of adorable blossom and the cute circular flowers in the background area!

I love the beautiful leafy vine that acts as sashing between the blocks --- there is no sashing, the vine is just quilted over the seams to give a sashing kind of look.

I LOVE the very thick center vine! It has that “Jack in the bean stalk” feel to it! And can you see the double circle quilted at the top right?

Center blossom --- so pretty!

close up of those “commas” at the top of the top bud….and more quilting detail.

More hand quilting detail..I just love those circle flowers, I wonder what she traced?

A section of bottom border ----

I wish I could have seen Rebecca LeFevre working on her quilt --- sitting at her applique, and then watching her hand quilt. Wouldn’t that be something? Show me how they got such fine stitches in the “early” days without ott lights and special needles and all of the other goodies we have now. Did she quilt on a full sized floor frame? Did she quilt it herself or have help? What did she think about when she stitched?

Happy Memorial Day weekend to those of us in the states! I hope you have some special times planned with your loved ones and family members. I hope you make some memories, and maybe get a bit of time to stitch in between. As for me, I’m staying home – nothing big planned, but just being home and enjoying time with family in my own surroundings is just what I need. There will be grilling! And napping! And some stitching --- I’d like to get the binding on Floribunda if at all possible, it hasn’t even been trimmed yet – there has just been too much else going on.

But I am starting this morning off right --- with a massage appointment! LOL! I’m using my Mother’s Day gift card -----just what this girl needs!

Evening Edition: Free Kindle Book!

And I didn’t have to go searching for this one --- because there has been no time to search!

Valerie sent it on.

She writes:

Hi, Bonnie,

Since you're home, you may have more time to peruse amazon's free Kindle books, but just in case you have not yet, here is another one I just have to have after reading the first few pages in the "look inside" feature.

It is "Doughnuts for Amy" and is set near your neck of the woods in South Carolina. It has 4 1/2 stars with 39 customer reviews.

Seems a lighthearted change from my usual choice of suspense, mystery, and drama. The synopsis is below the link. Enjoy some downtime at home the next couple weeks!

I popped on over to read the description and reviews, and she’s right. It sounds like a fun one!

Book Description:

Nick St. Germaine, Woodmont Retirement Community's Executive Chef, is emotionally distraught as the second anniversary of his wife's death looms on the horizon. Troubled by nightmares and challenged by his son to move forward one day at a time, Nick is doing that, but just barely. He takes solace in early morning workouts at his gym, long runs and longer hours in Woodmont’s kitchen.

An unexpected change in management brings a new Director, Amy Sommers, a beautiful, divorced nurse with little knowledge of the Food and Beverage business. Nick is quick to show his disdain for her, so much so that she comes close to showing him the door her first day on the job. Yet Amy is convinced to give him a chance to prove his worth and she soon finds out he's an effective manager as well as a great cook with a tighly-knit, though overly protective kitchen staff.

As Amy takes charge of the many facets of Woodmont, she soon realizes her greatest challenge lies in the broken heart of Nick St. Germaine.

With a supporting cast of quirky cooks, cranky widows, World War 2 vets and endearing octogenarians, Doughnuts for Amy is a six-course tasting menu of fork-tender romance and unexpected comedy that will have you asking “what’s for dessert?”

Be sure to check that it’s still free before clicking to purchase. Prices change without advance warning!

I’m still working on the To-Do list --- but the DONE list is growing!

I’m still ignoring the piles of Strash that are color-sorted on my studio floor. I don’t know if I want to slice them all down ((How to determine what size as the drawers of pre-cut strips are still pretty full!)) Or just store them by color until I decide WHAT to do with them.

The piles of purple, green and gold are sitting next to each other and look pretty enticing!

Time Out at Salem Lake!

One thing I’ve learned is that it is always important to keep your gas tank full.

And not just the car tank – but your own personal soul tank too. If you are running on empty, you don’t have anything to give anyone else.

Sometimes that means fitting in just an hour for yourself even if a gazillion other things are on your plate.

Or --- something I’ve heard a lot lately on every plane flight – so much so that I can repeat it word for word with the flight attendant: “If you are traveling with someone who needs assistance, apply your own mask first, and then offer assistance ---“ Hard to help someone with their oxygen if you don’t have enough for yourself.

This morning securing my own oxygen mask came in the form of a bit of time out in between running errands. Book orders to the post office at 8:30! Bank deposit to the bank shortly thereafter --- and before returning home to dig deep into more book edits, I drove to near by Salem Lake --- I hadn’t been there in almost a year. How’s that for crazy?

I just needed some time for the dappled sunlight of morning through the trees, the hum of bugs and the chirp of birds, and I wanted to see how things were going on the reconstruction of the dam.

They’ve got the construction going now so that you can’t take the walking trails all the way around the lake --- you can only go so far and have to turn around ---so I walk-jogged 2.5 miles out and 2.5 miles back for a total of 5 miles. The green dot on the map is where I started and ended. Total time taken as “time out” for me? One hour and twenty minutes. Worth every second!

Humidity has returned to the south!

The water levels are still way down because the reconstruction of the dam is still going on. Can you see that cloudless sky? It’s going to be a hot one today, and I should have been out there before 7am, not 9am like I was!

Water levels WAY LOW!

It was wonderful to see the trees so lush with green ----and though it looks like an empty path, there were lots of mountain bikers, walkers and joggers about. And plenty of pooches leading their masters too! This lake is probably my favorite spot in all of Winston Salem.

There is a bench just before where a bridge crosses this little creek – SUCH a scenic spot, and I always love to sit for just a few minutes and ponder and reflect. Just the sound of the trickling water brings peace to an otherwise hectic day.

I hope my sharing of my “time out” amidst all of the things on the To-Do list brought a bit of beauty and peace to your day too!

Early Morning Happy Dance!

Don't you love this saying? My niece posted it yesterday ----and you know, sometimes it's an ugly struggle too, but it's worth the effort!

It was after 10pm by the time DH and I got home last night…he had a massage scheduled for 8:30 --- and after picking me up at the airport, we were running late, so there was no time to drop me off at home before he headed in….and at this place, if you are late, they charge you anyway. ((Hey, I’ve HAD that massage therapist job, and I completely understand why!)) so I had no choice but to go with him.

Sadie was in the car with us…and she loves to go go go wherever we go. We dropped DH off at the massage place, and then I headed to Target to run a couple of errands and pick up some things Dave had mentioned we were out of. And I was powerfully hungry by this time because the last place I had really eaten was breakfast in Columbus, OH --- the rest was snack crackers and fruit or trail mix through the travel day ----

"Welcome to MOE’S!!"

That’s all I wanted. I made a bee-line to Moe’s southwest grill and ordered up a chicken quesadilla and ate it on the patio in the beautifully warm North Carolina evening as darkness descended. I heard all of those sounds that I love the south so much for --- peepers, birds and frogs, and noticed for the first time that the fire flies are out! Fire flies are one of the “Welcome Summer!” things that really make me smile.

Yep, I'm home!

Sadie and I walked after dinner waiting for Dave to finish his 90 minute massage, which meant he wasn’t out until 10pm, and I was SO TOAST by the time we got home that I just crawled into bed.

Which brings me to now.

I’ve got SO MUCH STUFF on my plate!

I honestly don’t know where to start.

When I walked into the studio to type this quickie post this morning ((Which is turning out to be not-so-quicky, but you know how I write!)) I came face to face with the piles of STRASH that I had left on the floor the day before leaving for Illionois. Something will have to be done with them today. Mail has stacked up, book orders need filling, there are more edits to look over this morning as well.

I’m sure I’ll get back into the swing of things, but THIS is what I had to see this morning:

Yes, this is an artistic shot…on my DRIVEWAY because this quilt is so big there is nowhere to lay it out! And the morning light gives the BEST photos. The bottom right corner is the one I just finished – it’s just laying there, testing for fit…and YES – I did not screw up the configuration!

Here is the section just laid into place..I left a bit of daylight around it so you can see how it will fit….

And this red border is the start of the LAST fill in section to be done on this quilt. What I will do after the piecing of this is completed, remains to be seen….I honestly don’t know if I’ll start another one, but I’ve sure loved the process of having this ready to go with me wherever I travel. I haven’t had to think about a “take-along” project. This is SO PORTABLE. And because it is just grab-and-go, and I don’t work on it at home --- I’ve never been bored with it. It’s been a travel thing ONLY.

Except maybe for tonight….because I am dying to get that 3rd corner section on there!

So that’s it from here –I need to get a move on and get this day going – you’ll hear from me again soon I’m sure…hard to shut me up for long!

iPhone-o-Gram! Section 3 Complete!

We are sitting on the plane waiting for maintenance to do whatever it is that maintenance does.

While waiting I just sewed the last hexagon onto the third border fill in section! Yeah!!!

I'm starting fill in section #4--- the final journey on the piecing of this very long term project.

I'd do a happy dance but I am belted into my exit row seat next to a very big burly guy. Lol!

Can't wait to get home and start adding this section on to the "mother ship" tonight!

Whoowhooo!

iPhone-O-Gram! Roadside Daisies!

It's been a great relaxing morning in Columbus!

I was out the door at 6:50am for a walk---just following the sidewalk to see where it led me.

What's a girl to do when the sidewalk ends?? Follow the road to see where it leads!

At the end of a street in a subdivision--suburbia met countryside and I was blessed to wish the daisies and the woods a very pleasant "Good Morning!"

I just love daisies---and green grass. And old fences! And woods! And when they are present together while the world is awakening, I realize what a beautiful morning it is indeed---and what a lucky girl I am to stop amidst the daisies!

I'm at the airport---waiting for my flight to Chicago to catch my connecting flight home to Greensboro.

Time to get some hexies on!

Common Threads & Sisters Choice!

26 quilters gathered with their totes full of 2.5” strips and squares --- ready to SEW SEW SEW!

There are some workshops that are so intense that only a handful of units go home with the students.

And then there are Quilt Day Camp days where we really throw ourselves into a project designed to help us use up that fabric that has been lingering way too long in the stash!

This is a great one to get you started on developing your own Scrap Users System…..cut for this quilt, and then the left overs from cutting can simply be sliced down into useable strip widths for OTHER future projects ---several of our ladies are talking about doing Queen to King quilts just to move the fabric OUT and get the scraps under control!

Someone brought a design wall that was SO handy --- I’ve got several shots of the blocks that were placed on the design wall – a whole community’s worth. They moved around and were auditioned next to other blocks…it was so interesting to see the different effects of the color and value placement. The blocks can look so different depending on where you put the fabric!

		Sister's Choice, Columbus OH 2012 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I’m traveling home today! And it’s a good thing since I ran out of 2” cheddar squares that I’ve been using for my leader/ender bow-ties. I planned this just about right, and only ran out of them late last evening ---time to cut some more when I get home!

I’ll be home for almost 2 weeks ---oh, is that ever going to be nice. At this moment, I think I’d be perfectly happy to not leave the house for at least a week ---being a hermit sounds right up my alley right now, no matter how fun this trip has been…my batteries are on empty and I need a relax and recharge.

Thank you, Columbus Ohio for such a wonderful time! We’ll be seeing you again in 2016!