The prompt for this row of our do it yourself round robin quilts this week is shoo fly blocks. I don't want to do that so I took the block as inspiration and fussy cut fabric "post cards" to do on glamingo
still figuring out a layout and making it all fit...
in a return to my Sunday Stories... this prompt is from the Sunday Whirl, my story follows...
she stopped weaving for a moment, rubbing her temples to ward off the
headache she felt building. Luckily there was a ghost of a breeze
coming through the open window. Her loose hair fluttered around her
eyes, and she pulled it back to look at the growing yardage she had made
so far.
Spring was coming, she felt it in the slight warmth, the scent of the air and a faint sound of birdsong.
suddenly she remembered a story her great aunt used to tell her about
the bluebird who flew right in through her open door one spring. She
heard a scuffling and stepped to the door, opening it to see who was
there.
What a surprise and excitement that caused ! Her relationship with
Great aunt Leela was precious to her and she smiled just thinking of all
that they had shared over the years.
boom! the sky was blue but a thunder bolt woke her from a reverie and she returned to her weaving.
This is my "Table Scraps Challenge" piece for February. Thank you to Joy for issuing the challenge to keep us sewing from the treasure that a scrap box provides! She suggested "improv" and that's how I usually work...
Using my box of turquoise scraps and squares left from making this really improv piece...
in series with last month's red challlenge improv piece
not joined together... at the moment I'm not sure if I want to make a larger art piece from three colors or have all these finished alone. So to leave my options open, I am not finishing the turquoise one as table scraps. I had some leftover squares from digging through the scrap bin though and so I made this, spur of the moment, and for Valentines day added in a heart from fusible scraps
quilted it and used gold bugle beads around the appliqued heart. It counts as improvisational as I didn't plan it, just sewed pretty squares, then used batik strips to finish it off, and impulsively fused on a heart
and because it's meant to cover a bedside table, I did a machine binding (sew to the wrong side, then top stitch to the front of the quilt by machine.
this one will have to wait a bit to be finished, but it's becoming a favorite as I look at it on the design wall. My series of improv works will all have off the cuff geese, scrap blocks, some kind of squares. This one got applique flowers from the fusible scrap box. The red repeats across the quilt and is complimentary to turquoise or green blue.
I worked very hard on my stay at home Round Robin but don't feel comfortable sharing too much on it yet.
The current prompt is to include a row of shoofly blocks. I googled them and looked at lots and decided the elements I would include would be a center square, with my tropical prints, and little black triangles and if it all works out they will be like postcards around glamingo
for today's music of love, in February...one of the most romantic songs... where or when...
welcome to this week's list of things to like... starting with a doodle I made using a small watercolor paper, a staedtler pen, and tombow watercolor markers... along with my imagination
I love the last quilt I finished, and the post is here describing my love of Lake Placid NY
so good, characters are interesting and I want it not to end...
reading via audio books
just finished a book of short stories. Usually very unsatisfying but these were interesting. I love the cover art
now hearing a fictionalized story of a real person and event. If you can listen to it being read please do
watching on tv
Glad to see my shows return, like This is Us, A million little things, New Amsterdam. Glad Amazing Race and Big Brother are still on but the two PBS shows had finale's this week. Enjoying the show about rich adult kids of celebrities working on a ranch... as a recovering social worker it's fun to watch people learning and growing.
now that the temps are around 0 degrees F, I love my cuddle duds fleece leggings with big sweaters
as always I love my friends and talking to them on the phone lifts me up
Fine dining
we had cottage cheese unopened but just past it's date, so I wanted to use it and found this recipe...
and I tried a third recipe for cinnamon buns... what a tremendous amount of work, and I'd say she calls for too much butter in three stages of these, and way too much icing for us. She says this is just like cinnabun at the mall...here is the recipe
made some new flavored dog treats, unlike this recipe I used a mix of oat flour, rice flour and oats. I used slightly less cheese, egg whites since that's what we use, and a tbsp of almond butter.
Milo is not adventurous with new food, for instance it took a long time to accept fish (!!!) so he sniffed, then tasted, then sniffed, took it and dropped it in the "chewing place" where he takes bones and treats, picked it up, rolled it around his mouth, spit it out, then walked away, then sneaked back and ate it.
he liked these cookies right away
the frosting is poodle approved!!!
Milo's Moment
Milo: just when I get into chasing off an offender by barking, mama interrupts me with unintelligible words, and calling to me to come and whatnot... sheesh! It's hard for a poodle to remember why they were barking!
Mama: I looked out and don't see why you were barking either
now please visit these lovelies to read their lists of likes, and join us if you want... it's healthy to remember the small things that make us smile through the week
The prompt at Project Quilting this week was "diamonds" and this is my finished work, which was to be started and finished within the week.
I call this "Morning on Mirror Lake" it's 16.5" X 25"
I put the green edge treatment on to "face" this one, and when I
folded and clipped it all back we tested it on DH's office wall. The piece melted into the wall color and
looked unfinished so, that's why I left a tiny bit of binding showing.
It was made from the blue and blue-green scrap bins... strip piecing then cutting diamonds, diamonds pieced together in diagonal rows.
during quilting with cotton and metallic threads
blocking and trimming before binding
We used to visit Lake Placid NY every late summer, spending 10 days
in peace and clean air... looking out our balcony at the yellow sunlight
burning off fog over the lake, hearing loons, watching ducks on our
grass below us, seeing employees setting up chairs for the day, drinking
cups of strong coffee before taking the 3.5 mile walk around Mirror
lake to start the day.
detail of quilting
We'd shop, have meals, go to the Olympic skating
rink to watch adults take classes, sit by the water and sun, walk down
to the boat landing area to read or bead( me) and never get back in the
car the whole week. We usually had a novel that we took turns reading aloud to each other, as we sat on the balcony drinking a glass of wine before dinner.
morning light is so gentle
A winery and a brewery were within walking distance too... ahhhhh we are missing it so
I am grateful for the prompt, and my box of scraps, my love of improvisational sewing of tiny strips together to see what happens. This happened...
We wistfully remember our times at Lake Placid. This song is called Summer me, winter me...
for today's love music in honor of February... one of my favorite romantic songs.
welcome to this week's (short) list of likes. The pic above is from the post on Valentine's day of this year's Valentine quilt with dangling beads.
I've been sewing a lot this week, forming a landscape with diamonds for project quilting... story and pics to come
I've been reading the best ebook, from amazon, Red Mountain... first in a trilogy, which the library does not have so I now have to purchase the next two on amazon, dang it!
Listening to on audio:
with some good ones waiting in the wings
I've been playing wordle unlimited as I can't seem to get enough 5 letter words
I wanted to use some unopened apple cider and try this recipe for cider muffins, they sure looked pretty! but... didn't taste like apple and called for wayaaaaaaayyyyyy too much nutmeg
Joy suggested I use our fresh spinach in a quiche... so I did
and it was perfect!!! I made the easiest recipe for crust, and it was perfect, so we had delish breakfasts for three days! recipe here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHUwGaJD2pw with only 3 ingredients plus a dab of salt. Easy peasy
on the Entertainment front...
I'm watching what's available on tv but frustrated with some shows. Even around the world in 80 days made me flinch and cry this week from prejudice and violence, on PBS ! We tried to watch olympics but then the skating scandal made me sick.... why even have a law if it isn't enforced (and the question goes also to congress) a lot of shows were not on because the Olympics were.
I took a 5 day workshop on breath work which opened my awareness to all the different approaches to healing with breath.
I liked talking to friends on the phone this week, and one of them suggested I bead my two valentine quilts So I did!
I want a donkey....
This couple was the highlight of the week for both of us. When DH hears them he comes and watches too. I laughed and laughed at this couple, (now on the Amazing Race) that does the funniest videos
Milo is doing well, but quiet this week except for excessive barking. He's a good watch poodle but has no sense when taking a bite of snow then urping up his breakfast.... never learns...
Milo: Mama! Tell them I'm really cute, and funny and smart and cuddly with my naturally curly hair!
And I like eating snow, and do not know why I keep urping afterwards...
please visit these people to read their lists of likes... I always find things to try and watch, read and cook from them!
