That Blogger Iphone App!

When I went to upload a post from my phone today --- it said I had exceeded my limit. BOO HOO!

Has anyone ever had this happen before? I am wondering if it is because the photos that come directly from the iphone are very large in scale, and the ones I edit down on the computer and upload are fairly small in size comparatively.

At any rate, it looks like I might have to buy some storage.

But until then…this is the post that wouldn’t post with picture, and made no sense with out them!

This is me, standing in a line!

A long long long line of quilters and other vacationing guests who are here to stay at the Hershey Lodge this weekend!

I should have gotten here earlier, but I was busy ----busy hitting very unique antiquey spots all along my route from Wellsboro to here!

So what’s a girl supposed to do to occupy her time while standing in a very very long line?

Have her picture taken with the KitKat guy, that’s what!!

Things are gearing up here, and staff is arriving from far and wide. My down-the-hall neighbor, Pepper Cory, and I just made plans to escape via Shamu for dinner tonight --- so I better get a move on!

Staff meeting at 8pm, them quickly set up the class room so it is ready for tomorrow morning. Whooowhooo!!

Which reminds me. I was going to go to Staples and get copies made for the foundation base of the Crab Apple Trees that was tomorrow’s class ----better add that to the to do list too!

Have a great evening, everyone!

A Little Blue Heaven in Wellsboro!

Have you ever had one of those days where weird unexpected events become hysterical?

Our workshop was in a building that the guild had never used before for workshops --- and all started out great – plenty of tables, the heavy duty kind that don’t bounce when you sew fast on them.

**Side note** When at retreat I always choose the ugly heavy duty brown wooden HEAVY tables for my own sewing instead of the nice clean pristine lightweight white ones just for that reason. Machines BOUNCE on lightweight tables! **End side note**

We had 29 students sewing away in a large room with lots of windows and all was going fine until…

THE FIRE ALARM STARTS BLARING and we are all ushered outside.

Turns out the irons were right beneath some heat sensors and we set them off. They had to call off the fire department.

We moved irons around, spread things farther apart, tried to keep irons away from heat sensors ---- and about an hour later ----off go the alarms again!

We are cracking up by this time, and no one wants to GO OUTSIDE because we KNOW it is the irons, there is no fire --- and yet, the guys who are in charge of the building are getting mad because they keep having to call the fire department and tell them it’s a false alarm, it’s the irons setting off the heat sensors.

Well the head guy must NOT be related to a quilter, because he told us we had to turn ALL irons OFF. That we could not have ANY irons plugged in in this room.

WHAT?!?

Now imagine a classroom full of “deep in the throes of quilt construction” quilters --- with NO IRONS?!

In an effort to just get through this day -----it was suggested that we run the extension cords out the back door, and that we set up our ironing stations OUTSIDE.

Actually, though not ideal --- it was beautiful out there on the back patio area!

Somehow---I can’t see the guild renting this place come winter – can you imagine all the ironing stations out there in the snow?! LOL! Nope!

I do think a search for a new location is underway --- too bad too, because this place was great. Except for the ultra-sensitive heat sensors!

The pic above is of Me and Ava – Ava is the hostess with the mostest for the Mountain Laurel Quilters --- she’s handled all of my arrangements and we’ve had a great time together! In fact – it was her Singer 404 that I was fawning over:

Yeah baby, she’s a cool 1950’s two toned girl!

Another guild member brought her Singer 301 to class….and classed up the place in the process:

I just love seeing these old girls still in circulation and doing what they were intended to do…STRAIGHT STITCH! We also had several featherweights in class….made me wish I had time to sew yesterday, but as it was --- there wasn’t time!

We were SEW BUSY!! Take a look at the progress these ladies made:

		My Blue Heaven Wellsboro PA 2012 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

This morning I am on the road to Hershey for Quilt Odyssey! My time in PA is flying by and I’m looking forward to the 3 hour or so drive. I have plenty of time to wander and still get me there on time. I’m excited to be reconnecting with quilting friends and other teaching friends. It’s been a couple years since the last time I taught in Hershey, and they put on such a good show!

Of course, that “complimentary” Hershey Bar they give you when you check in has nothing to do with my excitement --- or does it? :cD

Happy Wednesday!

A little Needlin’ at Needles!

If you happen to pass through Wellsboro, PA – chances are that you will pass by on Main Street.

If you find yourself on Main Street --- you can’t miss seeing Needles Quilt Shop right there sandwiched between other historic buildings on the beautifully groomed avenue.

After setting up for last night’s trunk show ---three of us took a 5 block walk down the main street from the Cultural Center where the meeting was being held, toward the restaurant where we were having dinner.

We had about 15 minutes to spare – so we thought we’d drop into Needles and say hello!

These two lovely ladies were so very welcoming! Mary is on the right --- and on the left, Tracy!

No, this is not fabric – this is the wonderful tiled ceiling!

Needles is in a lovely old building…with tall, wonderful brick walls. My eyes did go immediately to the ceiling, I just can’t help myself.

Yes there are lots of hanging samples! Yes there are batiks!

There are beautiful samples hanging everywhere, and reproductions to whet your appetite!

There was even a nice selection of 50% off fabrics…..and yes, I did indulge! Remember, Neutrals are ALWAYS a legal purchase! They are my staple, my mainstay!

I go through more neutrals than anything else. They are the bread to my peanut butter ---the tortilla to my taco. Something like that! Whatever it is, they hold everything else together for me!

My time in Wellsboro is nearly over. Today’s class is done. Tonight I’ve got dinner out with the guild ladies, and my last evening at Falling Stars Farm. Will I sew? Maybe. Will I sit on the veranda and watch the sun go down and just enjoy the quiet and read? Maybe.

Wednesday finds me on the road to HERSHEY which will be a whole nuther kind of chaos ----the biggest question on my mind? How to teach an all day workshop on Friday –along with a lecture/trunkshow luncheon on the same day ---HOW will I get the trunk show set up and all the books where they need to be so it’s ready for the 12:15pm show….and will I get packed up and be done and back where I need to be when class resumes?

If there was ever a time I wished for a clone --- this is it!

iPhone-o-Gram! Wild in Wellsboro!!

My Blue Heaven is under way in Wellsboro, PA!

We are deep into working with the Easy Angle and Companion Angle rulers!

If course I had to pet the vintage machines---

We send a cheery hello from all of us to all of you!

Hello from Falling Stars Farm!

Pennsylvania is a very big state! It’s big side to side. It’s big top to bottom. It’s really big if you are going diagonally from Bedford to Wellsboro!

But how often does one get a chance to admire the beautiful scenery of the Allegheny mountains? Not very often, and let me tell you, it’s breathtaking countryside…

So beautiful that you won’t even mind it when your phone goes from connection to --- searching-----to ----- NO SERVICE for miles and miles and miles of mountain roads.

"UNPLUGGED AND LOVING IT!!" is my new motto!

Oh, and now I would like someone to explain to me why the big expensive built in GPS in Shamu can NOT find remote places and tells me that “turn by turn guidance” will not be provided --- but the $99 TomTom I used to have, and the maps program on my PHONE can get me ANYWHERE.

What’s up with that? So here I am in the middle of nowhere, using the car GPS as far as it will go, and then switching to phone maps to get me the rest of the way. I just don’t get it.

So it’s a good thing that the place is so dang beautiful, or I’d be more flustered about it than I am!

((Yeah, and how stupid to have to have a SPARE GPS just in case the one built in won’t get you where you are going?!))

This is one of the other things I love about Pennsylvania --- BARNS! Round Barns, Red Barns, White Barns, Stone Barns --- love them all! I passed this one on the not-very-well-paved road where the GPS navigation ended, and had to pause for a picture. See those two birds on the wire? They are “On Line”. HA!

This is Falling Stars Farm B&B! I’m here for 2 nights----and it is so beautiful here! When I first arrived, the owners were in town getting supplies – I was early --- and so I got to wait on those lovely white chairs on the front porch, and wander a bit around the yard.

What do you think of when you see a tire swing?

I remembered all those long summer days swinging and singing and having childhood friends twist the rope until it was so tight --- and letting it go so it spun around and around and around!

And yes, this is me, at 50 years old – trying out the swing again for old time’s sake. Good thing I didn’t break my leg, and why did I ever think this thing was comfortable to sit on? LOL

The view from the house is spectacular…..and oh how I love Queen Anne’s Lace! It’s my favorite road-side wild flower….and I remember as a young girl going through the patches of Queen Anne’s Lace and trying to find the biggest one…..who could find the biggest one?

This one, I think! Isn’t it so pretty?

Back at the house and all checked in, I wandered out to the top deck with my laptop and phone to get a bit of work done before heading out to my lecture. Would you choose the porch swing at the far end, or the glider bench part way down? I wanted my feet on the ground ---especially after that visit with the tire swing….it was the glider bench for me!

My room is perfectly rustic and cozy!

The perfect place to dream of quilts, scheme of quilts ----plot and plan!

Today is a My Blue Heaven workshop with the Mountain Laurel Quilters. From what I’ve been told we’ll have 27 students raring to go and learn some new skills with the Easy Angle and Companion Angle rulers! I’m so excited ----

Happy Tuesday, Everyone!