Dogwoods Still Bloom!

I got home last night...and found that while the Bradford Pears had all gone to leaf, and the blossoms on all the bright yellow forsythia are gone, I have DOGWOODS in bloom!

We have put a picnic table down by the creek in the grove of trees there. I think it's going to be a great spot for gathering, when I get it done. I envision a wooden swing with an arbor over it in the trees there somewhere too..maybe a hammock...and some adirondack chairs. With the leaves already emerging, I already can't see neighbors. Is this a good thing? I think so!

That table looks awful "plastic" sitting there, I want a bright oilcloth table cloth, a big pot of geraniums or something to anchor it down...but it's a start.


Spring is just one of those things that can come and go so quickly, we really need to take time out and notice. I think there is a life lesson in this for me. Somewhere.

I want to introduce you to the newest member of my family! My sister Joy gave birth to her fourth child, a daughter, last night!


Taylor Noel was born at 7:30 pm on Monday evening, April 14th. She was born at an even 9 lbs. and 19 inches long. She has a ton of dark hair and is beautifully chubby! Joy and Taylor are doing great. Except that Auntie Bonnie has NOT finished the baby quilt! The top is done. And guess what...it's scrappy trips! It's been done for quite a while, but hasn't been quilted yet. Soon Joy, I promise SOON! I suppose the baby won't worry if I can't get to it for 6 weeks, but I do!

This is what I've learned since yesterday:

Basically, through my talks with Billie and Easy Made I have reinforced my discoveries on the following:

If someone uses your same block pattern, same size, same method,same number of strips per block but makes their quilt bigger...it is theirs.

My instructions were for the BLOCK, not the finished quilt. Ie...my instructions don't go all the way to the borders, they let you "border as desired" so that alone makes it "different enough."

If someone makes their own illustrations instead of using pics to show the steps....it's theirs.

If someone takes your directions and puts them in their own words, it's theirs.

If someone alters anything in the border, the whole quilt is theirs.

If someone gives the quilt a different title than yours, it's theirs.

If a designer says they never ever heard of you or your website, that makes the design theirs.

The ONLY thing you can protect yourself from as a designer is someone publishing your EXACT words. Basically when it comes to quilting....that's about it folks.

Maybe this will free me up in my own worries in the future.

Oh...I was also told that it is my own fault, and basically I shot myself in the foot for putting my ideas out there in the quilting world for "free" to begin with, because they ARE great ideas. (No Kidding.) In my heart of hearts....this is what quilting has always BEEN for me. Something shouldn't be more protected simply because it was sold for profit.

I have fretted left and right worrying if I was stepping on anyone's toes over a design. I think this is going to loosen me up a lot as far as what is protect-able or not. But then, there is this thing called ethics.

I have 90 pics from my trip to MD!! I had the best time, great hostesses and wonderful guilds for lectures and trunkshows and workshops. Thursday...this is crazy...just to give you an idea of how it goes, I left my hostess's house at 8am to go to Glen Burnie for a morning guild meeting and luncheon. I got lost even with Tom Tom because the address I was given didn't say 1st Ave SW..just 1st Ave. AUUGHH! So I learned to always double check addresses before going anywhere.

I got to the guild meeting in time, but everyone was already there while I was setting up....in comes these 5 "body bags" of quilts....but after my program, we had a fabulous luncheon! We got out of there after 1:30pm, and I was taken quilt shop hopping, and even better...an antique mall (BINGO! I found a lovely book on Indiana Amish quilts!) and a couple thrift stores where I hit the jackpot in the clothing department!

From there I was dropped straight off at ANOTHER restaurant to meet up with another guild....at 5pm!! I still wasn't hungry from lunch, and there I was being fed again. Then we went to the guild meeting from there....I did my evening presentation (yes, unload the car and the 5 body bags, and set up, take down, etc) and got to bed LATE LATE only to have to get up early to do the first Friday workshop.



Friday's worskhop: My blue Heaven!

Happy Scrappy Houses was held on Sunday at Patches, a wonderful quilt shop in an old house in Mt Airy, MD:



I think the most fun class of all was the Happy Scrappy Houses. A couple of CULPRITS, after hearing my lecture and trunk show, stopped at a yard sale on the way to the class, and picked up a bunch of shirts! They were WEARING THEM!! and as I said...ooooohhh...nice COTTON! They took them off and gave them to me. I was floored, little did I know it was PLANNED. So...I took a sleeve off of each of the shirts, and cut it into house units and gave everyone part. I then went and took some not-so-desireable fabrics and cut those up and spread them around telling everyone they HAD to use it in their houses. What a riot. We had so much fun. I have to thank Janie and Susie for the whole yardsale shirt hilarity. Talk about giving me the shirts off their backs! *LOL*

I'm feeling like half of a zombie at this point. The car is not unloaded...I have so much to write about, but first things first.....the directions for step 2 of Orange Crush have to be written and uploaded!