Altered Book Bit

One page I have been working on for Melissa's altered book. It represents home. Our home. The three of us...her, me and Michael. She included a bunch of scrap booking items to use, which included the vellum quotes. I liked this one from Ralph Waldo Emerson..."The ornament of a house are the friends who frequent it"...but changed the "friends" to "family". Her theme is the small things in life. From where you come is more than small, but shapes the way you see all the small things. This page will be treated as a tag, and will be tucked in to pockets made from torn book pages. Pic when it is finished.
I am happy to see Melissa take an active interest in this medium. The possibilities are endless.Her and I will be joining Jody and her mom in a round robin exchange this fall.

This old game card, awash with super fine copper glitter, will become another tag in a pocket. The mystery game is from 70's, picked up at Salvation Army. The images are really cool. I know she will love the old crown as it closely resembles a tattoo on her wrist to commemorate her friend Mo O'Grady. Mo was her close friend that died in the motorcycle accident a couple months ago.

I finally finished the two ornaments Thearica is collecting for two people on our HGTV board that have lost homes to natural disasters. I have a Sue Spargo book that shows how to make them. The yellow is from a vintage velvet bedspread. Fun project.

Today was a very lazy, rainy day. Nice to hunker down and stitch! No outdoor work required. A couple hours on the altered book and a few hours stitching on the CQ Challenge block. I can fill every minute of every day with all the things I love to do!

Quilt guild meeting yesterday. Always a good day. Busy, a usual. Anne Fischer was our guest. She is a a quilter, dyer, thread painter and felter. Of all the quilts she showed us, this is my favorite.

I love the colors and the design. Anne does very intricate thread painting too. I posted one of her pieces back in the spring....it was a number 4 on the side of a weathered barn. She showed us this one today.

This entire piece is thread.  Beautiful.

Show and Tell is always a highlight for me. I love to see what people are doing. I love it all. Big, small, finished and unfinished! I just like to see creations. I also love when I see a quilt by someone that I don't know very well and it makes me say, wow. I recognize something in them at that moment. Yesterday, Susan Rathbun showed this pieces..

It isn't her design she said, but it certainly is her interpretation of it. I love this quilt. A lot. She did all the hand stitching. She made this for her daughter who has been having a hard time after a breakup. What a loving, caring thing to do. I have always said, it isn't what you say, it's what you do that matters. I think she is wonderful.

As I mentioned today was a rainy day. I did stitch while watching a couple chick flicks. Made of Honor with Patrick Dempsey and 27 Dresses with Katherine Hiegl. Never saw either and they were perfect fare for the time. Fluffy and feel good!

I have learned:

1. Michael lifted 225lbs 23 times today. 
2. Flummoxed. Good word. 
3. Bedraggled. Apparently not a word in Pennsylvania. 
4. FX has a new show this fall....American Horror Story. I won't watch it since I don't like scary shows, but the preview is so cool. 
5. Melissa is an official part time employee of Michaels Craft Store! Great 2nd job. 
6. Refinanced car loan to get 3.55%. Worth it. 
7. My feather block has been received. Jude posted it tonight.

The Magic Feather Project

Feathers for the Magic Feather Project. Jude Hill is embarking on a quest to collect  1000 feather blocks. It is fun to stitch. Check it out and make a block. 5" block. I may even make another one...
As Jude likes to reuse fabrics, she asks that you do the same. The blue linen type fabric is an old tablecloth. The white behind it is from an old curtain. Even the darker blue circle is from an old chiffon headscarf. If you scroll down on her page, you will see she has a short tutorial showing how he goes about making a feather to stitch. You know you want to make one! ( I must figure out how to get her great badge for this endeavor onto my sidebar.)

Yesterday was spent on a long overdue cleaning of my Trailblazer. Two hours vacuuming, window cleaning and clearing out. But it is done and I can cross it off my list...it has been on the list since May! After sweeping the grassy residue off the driveway, I met Melissa and Cam for dinner at Sporto's.
Today has been a rainy, thundery day. A good day to make chili (really? but it was in the crockpot and really delicious). The rest of the lazy day was spent stitching and reading. Perfect way to use the day.

Melissa and I took a class at out library Wednesday. We made cool books using manila folders. Jen showed us how to cut a cover, complete with pockets inside, and some pages. We were supplied with these great papers from 7Gypsies. Love them. Very collage-y. I haven't added the bits and pics to it yet, but here is what I made. Fun!

We used ink pads to distress the papers.

Inside right is the pocket. I cut the "GO" from the BINGO paper.

The pages, or signatures, are tied to the cover through two holes punched into each layer. I love this book just the way it is! Can't wait to see what Jen comes up with for her next class.

My Summer CQ Challenge block is due to be finished by September 1st. I am still steadily adding thread and beads to it. I will not call it done until just before I take the pictures to post for judging. I am pleased with it so far.

Well, pending the physical results this week in Syracuse, Michael has enlisted in the Army. Not Reserves. Active duty. While I support his decision, I am full of well deserved worry and concern. While he is feeling excited about the things that will challenge him, I am wondering how he will face them all without me. While he is sure it is his Patriotic duty, I am wondering how each day will feel to me as he becomes a soldier in a world out of control.
I am also immeasurably proud of him. I have raised my kids to be strong and decisive. I will have my say, but ultimately I want them to make their own decisions. He has.

One last football season at SJFC, then Fort Sill, Oklahoma for boot camp.

I have learned:

1. Melanie Moore won So You Think You can Dance. I wrote her name in my phone at her audition, that she would be this years winner!
2. Nike has a" reuse a shoe" program that takes old athletic shoes and makes running tracks, basketball courts and tennis courts from the ground up parts of the sneaker. The closest one to my town is almost 40 miles away. They need to use those drop-off boxes to make it easier from people to actually do this. 
3. Remember the mimeograph machine? I can picture the slightly blurred ink, feel the damp page and recall the unmistakable aroma of the mimeograph copy from my youth!
4. Skin tags. Why?

     5. AAQI. My quilt # 7683. May be next round. Slipping Away.

Woven & Quilted & Inspired by Spirit Cloth

I spent a few hours hand quilting this small woven piece inspired by Jude Hill, better known as Spirit Cloth. I signed up for one of her online classes because I just love and admire, actually, how she reuses cloth and takes the time to heavily hand quilt and stitch her pieces. I love that she doesn't have to finish everything....how she pulls out an old project and adds her current signature.
This class focus's on weaving fabrics. It appeals! After watching her first few videos/audio blog-type class posts, I grabbed the thin strips left over from another day and wove them into a small composition. Today I added all the pink quilting and loved every minute of the process...loved how after stitching each row, the piece looked better and more interesting. Alive. Thinking this would look good mounted in an old wooden frame.
I have 3 other woven pieces made waiting for their next step. 2 are strips of an old sheer organza curtain, woven without a base and the other is white muslin on muslin base, waiting for me to add silk scraps in a mosaic grid pattern. Love this.

This morning, early, I sat at the machine and pieced small and tiny pinwheel blocks using the black and cream dot fabric from my jacket and the scraps from the binding on a quilt. Looks great. May be the beginning to my Carnival challenge entry for my guild's annual contest. Of course I have til January, so no rush!

Also cut and sewed a pair of nice black linen Capri's. Easy.

It is pouring rain right now. Pouring. Rain. Thunder. Lightening. Fiona is hiding.

I signed up to take a 2 day class in October to learn and make mud cloth. How cool to make a design on cloth with mud! I do hope she gets the required students to make this class a go. Will wait patiently...

I have learned:

1. 92% humidity right now. So 8% of breathable air is not wet. 
2. Love Bites...funny. Like the way the characters all connect...or how the writers/director make them all connect. Primetime on Demand. 
3. I won't even say what size Capri pants I had to cut out of the pattern today. Are patterns on a different sizing scale altogether? 
4. Melissa got the job!...at St Joseph's Elementary School in town! No more 32 mile commute a day! 1 mile from her house! She will be teaching 6-8 English/Literature. Her interview was at 9:30 AM Wednesday and had the call to confirm hiring by 1:00 PM. Proud of her!

Jacket in Progress, etc.

I have spent some time this week composing and sewing my jacket together. I posted in May, I believe it was, that I was taking a class from Martha through my quilt guild. We were making "fabrics", such as Seminole piecing and wonky cut-it-up and resew with strips between it bits....I had fun playing with all those combinations of fabrics and patterns. I chose this Marcy Tilton pattern, which is meant for felted wool fabric, but I liked the style. I will make it work! It's not finished yet, but felt compelled to share it at this stage.

My last day of vacation is today. I extended my week by a day to avoid that sinking return-to-work feeling on Sunday! It worked. Each day was spent with a little hand stitching, sewing at machine, time with Melissa and Michael. My 13 year old nephew, Ian, spent the weekend enjoying the quieter surroundings of my 6 acres. I loved that I had nothing planned so every day was filled with whatever I wanted to do at the moment. Rejuvenating.

Pics of some of the stitching on my CQ petal pieces...that will one day actually be finished! Right now I am happy adding more and more work to them!

I found this image of wings online, played with the color and printed on fabric. Appliqued to velvet and hand stitched for more detail. Love the fun button face girl.

I made a yo-yo from an old headscarf and tacked down. Beads.

A nest...obviously!

Some silk ribbon and bugle bead bits.
Much stitching has been done on the Nicki Summer Challenge block. I can't show it yet though. After September 1st.

Do we send out "Don't Save the Date" cards?! After some reality checks and soul searching, Melissa has decided that cancelling her October 15th wedding is the best plan for her future. We all agree. Sometimes relationships become bad habits. Living with Cory for the last year and a half has been a revelation of bad habits. I give her credit for knowing and for taking action. All cancellations have been completed and notifications made. She is relieved. She is a strong young woman. I am proud of her.

I have learned:

1. Project Runway started! The first week kind of sucked though. I didn't like how they eliminated 4 designers before the first challenge.....and that first challenge was a bust. It can only get better now.
2. Haley Reinhart, my favorite American Idol last season, has signed a record contract. 
3. I found this funny English sitcom on BBC onDemand. The inbetweeners. It would be so much funnier without the bleeps though!
4. I am working out, for the first time in my 50 years. I do have bruises on my legs from one of the leg lift machines. Let's see how it goes. Just can't face another round of WW. 
5. The River House, by Sarahlee Lawrence. Very good read. Good writing, good subject matter and unexpected turn of events. Recommend.
6. AAQI   Ami Simms Alzheimers Quilt initiative. I found my little quilt, "Slipping Away" on the waiting to be listed page. #7683. Not sure when it will be on the sale page. Will keep watching!

Altered Book

The same group, plus a couple new talents, that created the fabric book pages, have embarked on our next endeavor! Thanks to Jody's suggestion, we are all excited about our altered books RR. I have always been intrigued by this, but needed this nudge. I actually took a class, a too short 2 hour class, at the library a few years ago.

This is what I started then. I covered the outside with black velvet and some images. I need to get it out and work on it!
Anyway, the name of my book is "vintage finds". I love all things aged and old. My page has a tarnished silver spoon, vintage tab off old index file, I sewed old crepe paper and gathered to pleat, Dean's license tag, punched picket fence edger from Martha Stewart collection (love this) from old book paper, scrapbook paper and paper from an issue of Somerset Studio. The pattern paper on back of cover is vintage as well.

I love the idea of a niche. Love shadowboxes. Something about a cozy cubby for treasures. After gluing about 40 pages together on the edges with Golden Soft Gel Medium. I cut the niche with an exacto knife.
Stamped "I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth" with those $1 alphabet stamps from Michaels.
I will be mailing this off to Jody near Chicago now. Fun begins!

Sunday, Melissa, Cory and I went on an urban adventure to Buffalo's east side. The old New York Central Train Terminal to be exact. I haven't been in that area in over 30 years. It is not a nice neighborhood. The Buffalo Police corroborated that with us after they drove the RR tracks looking for the occupants of the gray Trailblazer (mine) with the purse and phones inside.
I was taking pics of the two of them in the interesting, crumbled remains of once grand grounds. I remember being there as a young child with my grandmother and it was spectacular. Urban decay reality.
I did get some good shots though.

Cory and Melissa.

I love this shot.
After wandering too far, I did start to get nervous. There was evidence of a campfire on one of the old station pads, empty liquor bottles, lovers resembling destitution or prostitution.....I got that queasy, alarming sensation. Just after that the BPD showed up.

One former entrance. Such attention to detail. Pride in workmanship.

Pigeon's own this property.

Curious.

While I sweat and chafe my way through this week, it is with the knowledge I have next week and a day off! I need time off. I have much to do. The wedding projects beckon me. The Podiatrist beckons also. Appointment to see how she can make my left heal feel better. Walking to compensate for the pain for the last 6 months has affected the knee and hip.

I have learned:

1. Apparently the Buffalo Bills football team is the 10th toughest professional team to root for. It's not just football teams....it is every pro sport team. My son will agree with this. Hope reigns eternal. 
2. French Onion Dip. Kind of retro taste sensation for me. As kids, chips and dip was a treat. Its been a recent craving.
3. Facebook status update makes is official. Michael is "in a relationship" with Jen.
4. Buffalo's Waterfront. When I worked downtown in the 80's, all that was there was a big old ship. Now there's a boardwalk and museum with cobblestone way and small bridge. Impressed.

Little Flower Quilt

Here is a pic of my little Flower challenge piece. After a week of deliberating judges the results were posted on HGTV message board last night. I was so anxious to see the interpretation of each participant of this picture....

Well, I was excited to see awesome-ness!
Thearica posted all the participants quilts on her blog. You have to check these out!
My friend Colleen made my favorite. I covet it! I know she won't mind me posting her quilt. I just LOVE it. If I were a judge, this would have been my 1st place choice.

I used the Susan Carlson, Serendipity Quilts book method I talked about a few times. Using watered down glue and scraps, in my case I used squares and rectangles, to make my green and purple background. I decided those garage doors had to go, but kept the iron fence element by stitching black lines. The limb is cut from a batik...the flowers are vintage chiffon scarves....the green silk leaves are from silk blouse...and a little thread painting.

Tulle lays over the background to soften it and make the limb appear in the foreground. I had fun being challenged by this. I was actually wondering why I signed on when the original picture didn't spark an idea. I am thinking it is Thearica's southern persuasion....and the prizes she so deftly procured! One of which I won. I   was honorable mention...which is like 4th place. I won a laser cut John Flynn quilt kit! I am pretty excited about this. I don't know if I will get a choice or if they will just mail one to me, but I will find out!

I have made my CQ block with the bits of fabrics included in Nicki's challenge packet. That spiral fabric was a bear to figure out how to use! That IS the challenge! I have begun stitching, so will see where it goes by the due date, 9-1-11.

The last week and a half has been one thing going wrong after another! My Trailblazer's manifold cracked to the tune of $409. My hot water tank needed a $169 repair. Yesterday after work my car was turned off, keys out of ignition but the blower inside for air was still blowing. Hmm. Can't be good, this. On down the road to my trusty mechanic....he pulls out some resistor behind the glove box...melted and wires exposed. Not good. I have no air and no blower until the part comes in. To the tune of ???

I have learned:

1. How to relight my hot water tank. I was scared, but I wanted hot water, if only for a little while, more.
2. Silver Lake is a hidden gem! I want to be there. 
3. Rescue Me...final season, starts tonight. I know, but I like Denis Leary. 
4. Independent Health made an automated call to me to remind me I am overdue for my colonoscopy. Oh joy.
5. Melissa's wedding is 3 months from Friday! I have much much work to do!
6. Apparently the new shovels we are stocking at work are "women's" shovels. So said old Jack-the-drain-tile installer today. Ha!
7. Thearica will be loading my Nancy Crow quilt onto her longarm tomorrow! She is a spectacular machine quilter. I asked her to use retro atomic symbols and just let go! I can't wait to see what she does. 

July 4th and some Cool Piecing Up

Picnic in the Park in Batavia at Centennial Park. I love the small town-ness of this celebration. Melissa, Cory, Michael, and Cory's parents, Karen and Bob all walked the grounds, followed by a cookout at Karen and Bob's new house. Hot dogs wrapped with bacon, burgers, pasta salad, deviled eggs and pineapple upside down cake. Still full!

In between deviling eggs and cake making, I grabbed the pile of leftover hand dyed fabric from the Iron Quilter day. A woman from guild, Cheryl Doodie, showed me how to do this cool technique that gets you a 1/4" or even 1/8" strip of fabric in your piecing. I had my sample from a few years ago to remind me how to go about it. I started piecing strips and bits and a couple hours later had this...

Very improvisational. Very satisfying. I love it.
And because I just can't waste a shred of this fabric (I still have some left, and I will use it!) I did this....

A mini weaving inspired by my online "class" with Jude Hill on Spirit Cloth. The weave is done on a backing fabric and tacked in place. I have an idea for some stitching. Also very satisfying. It's all about the process for me!

If I were to choose a work of art at the Art Gallery in Rochester to interpret, I would choose this painting. A few years ago, RAFA, did a challenge just like that. I went to the exhibit and it was excellent. Pictures were allowed....sooo when 

I took last Friday off so Melissa and I could go there to  check out the Fiberworks exhibit, I was disheartened to find out no pictures allowed of this very interesting show. How else so you look back for inspiration? To me the exhibit is like a traveling magazine. Out of respect for the rules, I won't post the one pic I did take...but it was really inventive. This woman had taken discarded lottery tickets, but them in star shapes and with dental floss, sewed them to a man's suit. What you didn't see readily with my eye, my camera showed she had incorporated color/value and made an American flag image. 

Lunch at the Gate House Cafe in Village Gate. Nice day indeed.

I mentioned the Summertime CQ Challenge Nicki on HGTV message board is hosting. We got the bag of bits and have to use some of each fabric and lace in a block. I spent hours yesterday piecing it! Blue is not my favorite color. The blue fabric we got is a dense , 3-D, tricky bit. Using a third of this is THE challenge here! I managed. I actually counted how many swirls were in the piece, divided it by 3 and determined I had to use 15-17 of them in my block! Since this is a competition, I can't show pic of it til voting is over in September sometime. I have alot of stitching to do, but this is the fun, dress up stage. Many idea's brewing!

I have learned:

1. My Trailblazer sounds like a race car. Muffler? Catalytic Converter? I won't find out til Wednesday. Meanwhile.....music....loud.
2. Tomorrow is my 32nd anniversary of my start date at National Fuel. I was 18, two weeks out of high school when I took the bus to downtown Buffalo, in a borrowed flannel dress. to work summer help on the 8th floor in Materials Management. (yes, a flannel dress, in July. No one told me not to!) I am once again in Materials Management, but in the Operations end....different union, like a new job 15 years ago. 
3. The Voice. Javier was my least favorite all along. 
4. The Bernina Bernette 82e that I won at Iron Quilter is in the shop. After Melanie had a look-see and verified I wasn't inept, I called The Bobbin Case and dropped it off for a timing belt repair. Linda, the owner is a lovely woman in her 70's that opened the Bernina Machine shop almost 20 years ago! Since I am giving this machine to Melissa, in hopes that she learns to sew and stops asking me to do everything for her, she will pick it up and receive free lessons! What a great prize.
5. Why have I never seen these fabrics before? Thanks to an article in a magazine, I found her website. Marcia Derse. Her third line of fabrics with Troy Fabrics. Wow. I want every one from all three lines!