Challenge Reveal!

My guild hosts an annual challenge. This year I got to name it! I thought that Carnival/Amusement Park held much possibility. The results are in, and wow, it was an awesome and inspired reveal yesterday!
"Wonder Wheel" is my entry. Beginning with a Google search I found an old image of a Ferris wheel I liked. I stumbled upon a painted resist in a circular orientation and thought it would make the perfect base. I had to actually draft a pattern to the size of the circle. The tracing paper was then used as my thread sketching pattern. I found info online advising to use a short thread length, about 1.0. After many stitches all around, I cut the organza overlay to define the center star. The cars were fused down.

 Added the mitered stripe border and when the binding was sewn down, I spent over 2 hours gluing scrapbook crystals, or "lights" to the wheel.  The final addition was old wooden Bingo #'s.
I loved every step of this project, finishing up Friday night on the challenge we knew about since last February! Why do we do that? Everyone did it, (with a couple exceptions for very organized people).
My friend Karen had the entry with the biggest impact.
I saw this work in progress and the result is magazine worthy! Her original design. It is future award winner.

Elaine used the portrait technique MaryLee taught us last year to make this gorgeous quilt.

Martha's was a celebration of carnival color. The quilting and surface design on it needs to be seen up close.

Lori's love of photography and quilting marry wonderfully!

Beth, Lori's daughter, awed the crowd with her 3 dimensional Zoltar! She used clay to make the face and hands. It was the most exciting reveal for me. Beth is one of our youngest members, in her mid-twenties.

I have always loved the free, uninhibited aesthetic of my mail woman, Cynda. She works most Saturdays but Gloria had her two entries to show us. Art quilt....roller coaster! It is show worthy. I loved this piece.

Cynda made 2 pieces. I love the woven background of purple and green.

Gloria's exemplifies the theme. It is most playful and most amusement park!

Gloria also made 2. This one drew the most ahhhh's! Remember the wooden painted figures that have oval holes for your face? Celebrating the Royal wedding Gloria put oval mirrors where the faces go so you see yourself when you look at her quilt. Imagination indeed!

Mary Ellen's carousel horse under a tent, her own design, was magical! I wish the quilting showed on this piece. Excellent. Mary Ellen is also a new member of our art quilt group.

Kate was inspired by the colorful, twisted lollipop! She made a lollipop flower. The fringe she added at the last minute was just right.

Alex used a sentimental memory of her and her husband riding a double Ferris wheel. Her interpretation is just adorable. Making it with Halloween fabrics was especially charming. Alex has young children and this quilt will be great holiday decor.

Chris, a recent new member of our art quilt group, made this carousel horse piece. She used a Laura Wasilowski weaving/fused technique for the umbrella. Cool quilt!

Mary Lee also memorialized the carousel horse using her portrait technique. Her background fabric is her own snow dye. Love this quilt.

Dodie's art quilt perfectly emulates for me, the way I feel on all the round, swirling rides at an amusement park! Great job on this little piece.

Mary Lu used her memory of a trip to New Orleans post Katrina. I really love the 3-D jester hat...a lot. The saxophone is for the music, and in particular, hearing one of the Neville Brother's daughter performing. The key addition to her piece the the tag she sewed to the bottom right corner. It was the symbol they used on the properties during the hurricane to tell rescuers information regarding inhabitants.

Connie tried out some new techniques and made this colorful, festive quilt! I do believe she is one of the only ones who stared hers last summer! I love the rickrack she used.

Melanie is one of our procrastinators! She took Friday off to work on her carnival piece, even working on it on the drive to guild! She always pulls one out of the hat though. Her carnival quilt is great! I especially love her hand stitched fireworks.

Susan, also a new member to our art quilt group, does inspired work. She used her snow and ice dyed fabrics to make this truly gorgeous mask. Note the beading and the background.

Donna used photos from her childhood, printed on fabric, surrounded by beautiful batiks. Recalling the memory of family and fun, "Peachy's" sentimental entry was a treasure.

Diana's little quiltlet struck a chord with me. Using a picture of her granddaughter on a carousel, she recreated it in fabric. Never having taken a class for this, she nailed it! I love her use of lame for the poles. Wonderful piece that proves size does not matter!

Eileen's memory of fairs from her childhood always included fireworks. I absolutely love that she used this vintage symbol of a firework!

There you have it! I was awed by all the creativity. It will make a display to be proud of at our Richmond Library here in Batavia, the entire month of February!
I love a challenge. I love to have an assignment and a deadline. Wonder what Tracy will announce next month as our challenge for this year!

I had a good sew day. Worked on my HGTV UFO challenge today. I managed to sew an entire quilt top today. It won't win accolades, but it is growing on me. I need to quilt it and finish to post by Feb. 15th. I am on target.

My art quilt group started our embellishing RR. I have 3 idea's for Emmy's traditionally pieced, Amish inspired quilt. I love that it's all solid colors. The blocks are baskets. The first thing I thought to do was flowers of course. Then I thought I would like to work with the wide border. I will set the tone for this piece, so I am carefully pondering my options!

Michael leaves in 16 days for boot camp.

I have learned:

1. -4 lbs this week. It's a good start.
2. Melissa is a good caretaker for Sophia, Dave's 18 month old daughter. She sent me a pic of Sophia helping her make dinner. 
3. Feeling like a last man standing with friends retiring.
4. Project Runway All-Stars is missing something. May be the I-already-know-you factor instead of the anticipation of getting-to-know-you each week. Regardless, I do like to see what they all come up with. I did think Rami's dress was more Miss Piggy than Michael's. 
5. I just love my cats. Chester the old coot, Clifford the eater of all things cat food, in every dish, and Fiona the sweet round fur ball. Chester's hyper thyroid condition is advancing, in spite of his daily medication. It has been almost 2 years on the meds. 
6. I want to see the new Sandra Bullock/Tom Hanks movie about 9-11. Waiting to get it on Demand and view at home is probably a good idea. I suspect it will invoke intense emotion. 
7. Michael is addicted to "Lost". I have been encouraged to start season 1.

Letting Go...

I happened upon this post a few minutes ago. It seems there is a lot of letting go going around. I mentioned in a previous post that I was getting rid of SOMETHING every day. I have been doing that for almost three weeks. The Yellow Box has some of old clothes, the Paper Recycling Box has old books, Arnold's has pounds of old metal from the garage and an avid knitter has a slew of knitting mags and a big trash bag full of yarn! The trash has also been a destination daily for many things that needed to just go....now.

My work is cut out for me. I have accumulated so much in the 8 years I have lived in this house. I am trying to be a more careful consumer. I don't want to take two steps back with each step forward!

I have a stack of good arty & quilty books that I want to sell...maybe ebay. Not sure how all that goes. It has been on my list of things to do for years! Maybe I was waiting for NOW.

So every day I will continue to toss, donate and share something, until I feel I am sufficiently uncluttered.
In 1997 I had a liberating letting go when I moved with my son & daughter to a two bedroom apartment from a big farmhouse. All my bedroom furniture was forfeited, since for 6 years I had no bedroom to house it. The living room couch was my bed. I didn't mind.

A few years later all my stored belongings had to be trashed. Very sentimental, childhood memento's were covered in mold. I still remember the day I  threw away boxes of albums. Albums that were important to me for various reasons. Many things that I had dragged along with me for five moves. It pained me. But in the end it is only "things".
So I have had much experience letting go of things.

It is the letting go of  habits, people and high hopes, that are more difficult. They take more emotionally. Harder than the "thing" thing.
This is a year of changes. Some I see right in front of me, some I suspect are on the horizon.

Michael leaves in a few short weeks for boot camp in Oklahoma. When he goes, he is done with life in my care. He will be a soldier and in June, a husband.  His room will become part of the letting go. It is the end of an era for me, the mother. My main roll, my first roll...mother.  My kids are on their own now, no more in the wings! I have to let go of  what has defined me since I was 21 years old.

Work has been getting increasingly more trying both physically and mentally over the last year. I have questioned my stamina to carry on like this for 4 more years. I hope to have options. Of the 33 years with the same company I have been in this position for almost 16 of them, the longest time in one job in all that time.

I have rejoined, again, Weight Watchers. I will be letting go of  pounds this year! I so want to let go of the letting go of WW and stick it out to Lifetime.

Will be letting go of some tree lumber and some acres. High hopes.

So I have my 51st year on earth cut out for me. I suspect there are going to be a few things this year that are not unexpected, but will be the epitome of letting go. I wish to be wrong.

I have learned:

1. I so enjoy reading Stephen King. 11/22/63 is my current read. He is  so adept at nailing each characters essence. The storyline is secondary for me.
2. Ricky Gervais is funny. The accent doesn't hurt. 
3. Shock Wave Therapy done. I should see results within six months with the plantars fascitis.
4. The Decemberists. Good listen. 
5. My carnival challenge for guild is 90% finished. I do have 5 more days!

Last Finished Project 2011

She looks good as on a pillow! My oldest, best friend, Pam, claimed this CQ block from Nicki's summer challenge. I used a vintage trim and the backing is a piece of fabric from her MIL's stash. I will have to remember to get it back from her for the quilt show in October!

My charity raffle quilt has been the bane of my existence for a too many hours. I am ditching the replacement quilt. I am going to send my first one, the one I felt I just could not let go of. Karma. I want to tie it though. It suits the old wool penny design. Of course it is not a traditional penny quilt. Not sure if it will even be accepted by our host....I am late.

My Carnival challenge piece is coming along. I have decided to add to it. Can't show it yet! I have til the 21st to complete it for the reveal at quilt guild. Plenty of time.

And since I haven't enough projects to switch to and fro, I cut a large block of wool pieces for the first block in Susan Brubaker Knapp's pattern, Bohemian Bouquet. I bought this from her when she did a trunk show at our HGTV Retreat in North Carolina in April. What a trunk show it was too! She does great work and is very gracious.
I love to hand stitch wool and needed a night time project to pick up and work on, one ready to go with no decisions to be made.

The holiday's are over. Something was missing for me this year. My demeanor is not light and jolly. Maybe next year. 2012 will be a year of changes. Michael leaving in a month being the biggest one. I already cannot think about it. Tears every time. Melissa is in a new relationship that has, as it should, encompassed her fully. Dave has a little girl, Sophia. I get to meet her today! She is a little porcelain doll. I know this is how it goes in motherland. I expect I will embrace and combat the melancholy!

I read on a blog somewhere, about 30 day challenges. One of them was to get rid of something every day. I am doing that. I have way, way, way too much stuff. I have a bag of clothes ready for a yellow box. I have tossed some things from my sewing room that I will not use. I have bagged up some knitting mags and yarns for Dave's mom, an avid knitter. The garage is less consumed after a metal scrapping run that yielded $70. It is all metaphorical. Of course the energy required to complete these tasks are at a premium. Slow and steady has always been my motto. I am seeing a New Years resolution taking shape. Apply pressure.

I have learned:

1. Michael's graduation from boot camp land's on the day Bruce Springsteen is rumored to be in Buffalo.  
2. Found iPod. Charged it. Will learn to use it. Thanks to Sarah and Jim for loading it up for me!
3. I love Fibermania's blog. This is a technique, I will be trying out. Soon
4. Going to Bride's World bridal show in Buffalo Sunday. June 8th is the final answer! Sean Patricks. 
5. Radial Shock Wave Therapy on the foot. 1 down, 2 to go. Ouch.
6. Project Runway marathon! I could watch them all over and over.
7. Chester, the eldest of the three cats, loves this pet bed. The chair was my granmother's. She sat in it to knit. I covered it in this fabric many years ago. I need to cover it again. 

Tattoo Tale

A recent discussion on HGTV message boards about tattoo's and who has them and what we think about them inspired me to share pics of my son's tats. It is a creative expression both from the artist and the adorned, meant to be a statement of some sort, reflecting something of import. My 23 year old, college graduate son, is enlisted in the US Army. He is scheduled to leave for boot camp on February 7th. It didn't come as a surprise to me that he felt the need to serve. His large eagle tattoo is a nod to his patriotism.

"For family we live. Through family we live on..." Andrew Gramza, 21, his cousin (his dad's wife's nephew) died as a result of injuries from a car accident in November, 2010. Michael had this sentiment tattooed on his back to commemorate him.

"Urraim" was his first tat on the back of his right arm. He researched Gaelic words to find the one that would express how he felt about his family. Honor, respect and reverence. Choosing a Gaelic word for my father, Michael Joseph Darcy, who was from Ireland.
The one thing I advised to both Melissa (who has two tattoo's also...will get good pics of them soon) and Michael was to make sure the ink means something to you. A dancing Tigger on the forearm might seem like a cute idea at the time....avoid this!
I don't have any. I don't plan to get any at this point.

Christmas is over. I managed to keep most of the holiday stress and chaos free. Dinner at my sisters was as crazy as it got! Michael brought Jenn for a few hours and Melissa brought Dave for dinner. The tryptophan (turkey was the main food fare) kicked in and the 50 minute drive home was too long! Ian and Darcy were wonderful. I will be sharing shopping time with them this week as we continue the birthday tradition of buying exactly what they want with my gifted money! It is an event...we shop, we eat and we talk. Fun for all of us.

I have a big, huge, quilting job ahead of me. I keep putting it off. I can't put it off any longer! My black and white and red "penny" quilt must go under the needle. I am not a fan of machine quilting. Quilting to me is the least fun part of the entire process of making a quilt. Dread. Frustration. Aggravation. This all awaits me and my Bernina. Ugh.

I have learned:

1. Michael and Jenn are engaged! She is a sweetheart. She is on board with the military thing and where it will take her. They will make a good team. Hoping we can count on a date for his "leave" after boot camp and training. June is the target month!
2. Vacation this week. No work. No oppression. I can always bid out! With 4 years left, you would think I would not have to consider this. Since @*@ has been on the scene...his boss was fired, he has "fired" a long time female worker...twice fired another guy, two others have felt the need to bid out of our service center to avoid being fired. Complaints to human resources about discriminatory behaviors. Pending lawsuit. Every day is a challenge. Not a good one. 
3. Bruce Springsteen on tour in 2012...rumor has it Buffalo on the list! 

Live Well & Be Happy. My Wish for You.

That's all we can do, isn't it? These words resonate with me. So much that I have stitched them twice. I may stitch them again.

Will make a nice pillow. Silent auction at our quilt show in October maybe? I need to cut some more wool and have some satisfying handwork at night. Love stitching it.

Busy time of year. I have conscientiously made them less hectic. I don't like that it all gets soaked up with have-to-be-here and have-to-be-there's....making sure I have the obligatory gift in exchange for their obligatory gift.  I am sure the bleak state of the economy and daily reminders that all is not well in the entire world (and this is on my limited news updates, since I don't read the paper, nor watch news with any regularity), has everything to do with my realistic attitude. I truly don't want any gifts, unless it is something made for me, with what you have on hand. Make me a CD of music you know I like...an ornament that says me to you...a little treasure you may come across in your junk drawer, that you know I would see the beauty in. Play a game of Scrabble with me. Leave me alone to create! I will enjoy my holidays with this in mind. Therefore, I will enjoy the special-ness of the holidays. You say Scrooge, I stay sane!

Last week's guild meeting was so inspired. Not only was it our annual Holiday Party, with many yummy dishes and goodies, but was the Bag Challenge reveal and Secret Sister Santa Stocking exchange. I was absolutely thrilled with the solutions to the challenge Elaine and I gave these brave participants! See this post on our guild blog (scroll down a bit to get to the bag challenge!) I was just so excited by this reveal that I didn't get pics of the wonderful stockings 20 women exchanged! Believe me, they were wonderful. I wasn't sure if the stocking thing was a good call when I decided to do it, but my friend Melanie told me to go with it and if it didn't work out, change it next year! It did work out!

I love this winged mannequin with tulle skirt and ribbon accents. Jen made it for me. She is a very talented paper artist. Melissa and I have taken some classes from her, the latest one we made 15 Christmas cards and 3 ornaments. I love her style and am so happy that she is really getting her own thing going teaching more. She knows I like winged things!

I have all 16 of my F8 blocks back now. Everyone did such a great job on them. Thank you! Now to decide how it will all go together.

After Jenn, Michael's GF, and I made a run to Joann Fabrics and Michaels yesterday, we both worked on a project at the kitchen table. This is what she made! A 94 cent composition notebook was transformed with scrapbook paper, lace and old Scrabble tiles into a mother/daughter journal. She even made a bookmark we completed with silk ribbons and tucked it inside a pocket in front cover. Nice gift option.

I posted a pic of this postcard for Cloth Paper Scissors, a few weeks ago. I knew it needed some tweaking. I  added the silver letters and used some Tim Holtz black soot distressing ink on the game card to take up some of the white space. I need to mail it now. This is for a call they have right now.

My daughter Melissa turns 29 Tuesday. 29. years. old. I remember when my sister and i found out my mother was 29 by overhearing our grandmother expressing shock at a 29 year old nun playing football at recess. My mother's twin, Kathy, was the nun. Noni and I commiserated and announced we knew how old our mother was! Sneaky little children!

At 29 I had been working for 11 years and had 2 kids and a first house. 

Happy birthday Melissa!

Clifford, Melissa's cat, has come back home. Home is here. He was running away. I am sure JJ, the little dog, had everything to do with that. I am happy to have him though. There was a short adjustment  period for Chester and Fiona, but all seems to have settled already.What's a little more food and a bit more poop to scoop?!

I have learned:

1. I don't like working in the setting triangles for a quilt top set on point. Thearica's Ronald McDonald raffle quilt in the works! Ugh. Not having fun.
2. RoCo showing members only exhibit. Really cool stuff. Worth the time. 
3. Extreme Materials 2 at MAG in Rochester. I liked quite a few pieces, but some left even me thinking "what were they thinking?" Menstrual blood belongs....well, not on a canvas. 
4. I love the singer's voice in this commercial for j'ador by Dior. "Heavy Cross" by Gossip.
5. Watching "An American in Paris" with Gene Kelly. So far, so good!
6. My SSSS stocking gift package mailed to ------------- in --------. I have received mine and we will all open them together on the 23rd! 

Secret Santa Sister Stocking

I made my first lined Christmas stocking. Found a good tutorial on a blog that showed how to pull the inside out through a 3" opening in the lining seam. Easy. This will be for my Secret Santa Sister Stocking on HGTV message board. I used all red fabrics and thread, with silver beads, Scrabble tiles and a cool vintage edge from a chenille spread. I have made a few gifts for the stocking but cannot show them til my SS has opened her gift on December 23rd. Nicki plans it so we all try to open at the same time. I haven't done this swap before but everyone raves about it. Kind of excited actually!

Mary Lee gave me a bag of Kunin felt and I decided to find the pattern I knew I plucked out of a Fons & Porter magazine, December 2006. "itty bitty penny rug" by Bonnie Sullivan. Loved the pattern and presentation. It is 5" x 7" and they mounted on wool in a rustic wooden frame. Stitching wool is so satisfying. I love seeing the way the edges pull down with each tiny stitch.

I have such a great stash of wool from Salvation Army and friends! 

I have started another project from this book, Applique Outside the Lines. I love the words "love well and be happy".  I used this sentiment last year on a tablerunner for a benefit auction my sister ran for a dear friend. This one will be smaller. Not a linear presentation, it is configured on a square wool base. Not sure what it will be yet. A wallhanging? a bag? a center for a quilt? For now I will enjoy stitching it.

Back to work yesterday after a great vacation week. Went with my sister, Noni, and Ian and Darcy to Cincinnati to gather with my cousins Tracy and Jeff and their families. My aunt and uncle from Florida and aunt and uncle from Louisville also there. We made the trek last year. My sister and I are all that is left here, so it is nice to be a part of extended family for a couple of days. My cousins did not grow up in Buffalo but they were present  in our younger years and a visit with them was always highly anticipated! Laughing is the one common denominator in every interaction. There is an indisputable bond and I am glad to know it again.  I was on the fence about leaving my kids.I couldn't commit to going until the weekend before. My kids are 23 and 28. Not little children!  Of course they were fine and involved in their significant others' Thanksgivings. 

***************************************************************************

This is the 3rd time I have tried to finish this post! I have not felt well all week. Sore throat started Sunday and has progressed to a sinus infection. Waiting on call back from doc now. 

It is snowing.

Michael is in the air right now on his first flight ever, to Minnesota for his game tomorrow! He bought a couple CD's on iTunes last night....soothing music. Melissa told him to sit near a cuddle buddy and listen to Faith Hill!

I have learned:

1. Talia, a 31 year old HGTV quilt message board member, died last Wednesday. She had gastric bypass years ago and has had increasing health issues ever since. Sad news. 
2. Bruce Springsteen will be touring next year! Hope he comes near Buffalo.
3. Reading When God was a Rabbit. Good book. Laughed out loud already. 
4. Nicki and Thearica are featured in Pat Winter's newest issue of Crazy Quilt Gathering
5. the Ikea store in Cincinnati was a sensory overload experience! I loved it! I bought a yard of this fabric and am only sorry I didn't cut more! I paid $6.99 for the yard. I want an Ikea store in Batavia!

Improv Pieced Mini blocks

Some improvisational pieced mini blocks. No measuring, just sewing and satisfaction! These fabrics were what made up the pom-pom on the fabric prize I won at George Sciciliano's lecture last fall. Just couldn't throw them out.

That is Virginia, George's wife with me and the cool fabric pom pom.

St John Fisher beat an undefeated team Saturday to move on to the second round of playoffs! They will travel to Doylestown, PA next week. Michael is lovin' life!

Melissa is happy. She is dating a guy from back in the day..middle school days. I re-met him today and I like him. Things are good!

Guild was wonderful yesterday! Busy. Val Schultz was our speaker. Her work is as inspiring as she is gracious. Good day with good friends.

I have now received 12 of the 16 blocks in the F8 swap. This will be a pretty cool quilt. Thank you friends!

I am on track with all the upcoming due dates on various projects.
My stocking for SSSS is ready to be sewn together...gift bag using duct tape and t-shirt under way to go with the stocking. Want to make a make-do pincushion if I have time with some of the wool my friends have been supplying me with! Yummy wool.
Bag Challenge is put together, just need to add a couple of things and quilt it.
My Carnival Challenge took a turn today....came across some cool blocks in my UFO pile, pieced it up and yes, looks like carnival to me!
I do need to work on my charity quilt for Thearica's raffle. Have some circle blocks to make and trying to figure out the easiest, quickest way to do them.
Feel good about my progress. I will be taking some handwork with me to Cincinnati. My sister will be driving, so I can stitch!

I have learned:

1. Paging through a past issue of Cloth Paper Scissors, I found these wonderments! I want to find some wire and have at it. Love these. A lot. 
2. "Beautiful Boy". Good movie. 
3. "Hunger Games" is a good read. I am troubled by the subject matter. It is young adult. 
4. Annual mammogram tomorrow....ouch already.
5. Martha and her committee have completed the raffle quilt for our show next October. It is bright and beautiful! (I just can't get it to post below...so that is it above!)