Sewing House

Are these the cutest buttons you've ever seen? This image is from SnapDragon's blog. Can you see this idea translated to selvage buttons? With real buttons stitched on? Bliss~

A friend wrote something this week that made me smile. Someone was regretting not having a sewing room and Linda said "we have a sewing house". I am extremely fortunate to have a big well lighted room in my house to call my quilt-room, and here in the 5th at the farm I dedicated a quarter of the space to sewing. On the go I carry a busybag or busybox and can instantly have a sewing room anywhere. Life is good with a needle in hand.

Friday Thankies
Rob will be home this afternoon!
Oxygen and Lincare
Summer berries

Fishy Story, Or the 160 Who Came To Dinner

What in the world??

Ah...something to do with the new dock.

Ah, the plot thickens...

Hokey Smokes Bullwinkle...They forked over 20 Samollions for 160 gold fish.

The question is WHY?

Because they were there!

Three weeks later. They've doubled in size and only three have gone to the big pond in the sky. I'm training them to come to the surface when I ring the previously mentioned cow bell. We watch the fish, the bullfrogs watch the pen, the cat watches the bullfrogs. Stay tuned.

Saturday Thankies
Freckles
Googleing
Dust that makes dirt that makes gardens that make round zucchini, Yum!

Goofball Tally

Updating this golf ball tally post with what I picked last week.

116 balls including 4 brights, 3 sliced open and 3 interesting ones;

A Pinnacle Ribbon 3 carrying the Susan B Komen cure logo
A Nike Swoop one with a pretty green Karma imprint
A Lucky Eagle Casino.
If I weren't trying to downsize by half, I could build a pretty interesting oddball collection.

On the dementia home front this week's interesting factoid; FIL had Rob build an extension for the hayrack on the hay wagon. Last weekend he insisted it was too high and had Rob saw off 18". Today he wants Rob to raise the rack because it is too short. Rob has been working out of town all week and I haven't had the heart or nerve to bring him up to date :) It would be a moot point if the lady who cuts and bales the hay would just get here and get the job done.

Friday Thankies
Vacuum cleaners
Cell phones
Generous and loving clients

More Repurposing

Back when AOL sent CD's out by the kabillions there were any number of websites that offered crafty ideas for CD reuse. My FIL was cutting the bottoms out of food tins and hanging them up as flighty scarecrows. I gave him a hand full of old CD's and he was in love. He has them everywhere and you know what? I think they work. We had deer in the orchard eating our three new apple trees so that night he hung them all the way around and the deer haven't been in since. He also closed the gates...not that I think that had anything to do with his success.

We've had some mental gymnastic successes this week. Rob needed a ball hitch for the hay wagon, FIL couldn't remember where they were, and wasn't even too clear on what they were. Then his brain gave a little burp after two days of thinking and he knew what they were and that he could see them in his mind hanging somewhere, and he'd make a shape the size of a loaf of bread. Well that did narrow it down and about 2 hours later I had a string of 'em in hand.

Last year when he was still brightly lit he told me the story of his cow and goat bells and horse shoes. The other day I asked him if I could borrow a cow bell to train my fish (yes...) and he really had to think on that one. About 4 hours later he said "they are behind your head". Yes they were, even though I'd looked over the wall stuff 3 or 4 times.

That is two wins for our side and that leaves a really big cow bell which I told him I was going to ring every time we remembered something...because I live in a fog too. The search is now on for the plumb bob and string that he has used for 19 years to measure the well water. Yes, we could make another one...but we want That one.

Obviously I'm not getting any quilting done, but that's ok, my fabric isn't going anywhere without me.

Tuesday Thankies
A new flag
good doggies
clean dishes

Traditional or Avant Garde?

I don't have any of my sidebar sewing images on this new laptop so this morning I was surfing for some new ones.

On the left we have the traditional sewist; hand stitching a practical project.

On the right we have Audrey Penven using night goggles to sew photo negatives together for an art project.

There is plenty of room for all of us, where ever we are on either side of the fence.

Monday Thankies
People who think outside the box, pushing our thoughts and perspectives
People who keep the old traditions nurtured, we will need them in the nuclear winter
The right to choose one or the other or both

Farmer's Friend

In my old persona as a lady in a dress and pantyhose, if someone had asked what a farmer's most often called upon tool was I might have said barn, or tractor, but in my persona as Deva Farmer I've ferreted out the truth. The farmers best friend is baler or baling twine. Sometimes 3 to the bale but more often 2, in a winter of feeding stock a farmer ends up with hundreds or thousands of these strands.

In feeding the cattle and horsing around these bales last winter I learned fairly quickly that the knots are on one side and you cut the bale open at a knot. Then on a snowy day you sit around the wood stove in the workshop and make long ropes of this twine. Out of curiosity the other day I walked around the farm collecting images of all the places we use the stuff.

One of last summer's CD Scarecrows

Parts of an irrigation system, and a spare roll
Ladder hangers

Temporary pull-back hose hanger to keep them out of the way of a project. Since set free as we are cleaning up this Centennial year ('52 or '53) Ford tractor to sell.

Keeping spare light bulbs from going walk-about.

Axe hanger.

Twine central. These are the bare naked nails the twine is gathered on as we open the bales.

I think this is FIL's welding dealiebob. Or something.

FIL couldn't remember what this was for at all. I finally figured out the only thing this long we might need to cover was the tomato growing area. Yes! This is twine in it's natural state, on a bale.

Twine that has lost it's way.

Ah...I spy some screening for another secret project....

hoses anyone?

or chain?

or wiring?

Keeping the baby chicken nursery warm.

Keeping the lids on the garbage pails when going to the dump. Currently housing chicken feed.

Anyone ever watch Red Green? Their duct tape episodes have nothing on my FIL. We took this off a broken faucet the other day, there is about 40 layers of tape and many many wraps of twine here.

In the cow's trough.

And you thought it was staples and wire that held up fences.

On the grapes.

Hey...another backup roll.

How to garrote your DIL...FIL has put this strand across the path between the strawberries and the blueberries to keep the bird netting off the blueberries. You think after running into it 2-3 times I'd remember it was there.

A back up supply to the back up supply

Some kind of past project.

Another past project remnant.

Last year's string bean effort. He thought he could out wit our goats. Not hardly.

This lilac has a near death experience a few months ago. With the help of twine patient is doing well.

A rutabaga (?) tied up for seed.

Garden tools tied up to keep DIL out of them, and lo and behold, another back up to the back ups.

Pretty sure these dishes must have tried to get away at some point.

Yikes...a back up in our pump house. This is spreading faster than swine flu.

Lining out the garden rows.

Tying up the lilies

My orange doorstop.

Temporary leash material.

This one I'll talk about another day. It's a tear-jerker.I'm sure there are more twine incidences but these will have given you an idea of why I think baler twine is the farmer's best friend. And if you've ever uploaded multiple images to google blogger you know what a pain this post was to make. Anything for you guys...

Saturday Thankies

My Rob is home!

Baskin and Robbins

Swiss Chard

Diva Farmer

My sister in law fell over laughing when she saw me mucking out the barn a few months ago but she much admired my diva gloves after I told her how tough they were.

These are ladies-who-go-to-luncheons gloves in their former life. I've picked them up for years at garage sales for a dime or so a pair. Way harder wearing than the $3-6.00 pairs at the garden centers, more comfortable to wear, and a lot easier to work in. Try it, you'll like it!

In my ever so handy beautician/farmergirl apron please note the red thing sticking out of the second pocket from the top. A $2.00 pocket knife; yes, I'm officially a farmer now. Also note the ubiquitous orange baler twine making it's second appearance here...much more to follow!

Friday Thankies
Wells
Smart Blog Readers who reminded me of camera card readers
Screen doors

So near, yet so far

OK.

Got laptop, love it.

Got Verizon wireless, love it.

Got USB connector for camera, won't work without camera driver.

Got driver CD from home yesterday, won't work with Vista.

Camera ten years old, Canon has no updates for A10 since early 2007.

FUBAR.

Camera has paid for itself many times over 7 years of doing Ebay.

Will get new digital camera next month.

In the mean time I'm holding camera up to monitor.

See? Aren't there some good blog subjects in there?

I hardly know anyone up here at the farm, but I thought when I'm in town tomorrow I'd ask a computer place to download my images from my card and email them to me...where there is a will (and chutzpah) there is a way?

Tuesday Thankies

Laptop

Wireless

Ways

I have about 50 images on my camera to blog

and guess what. I've set up my wireless computer connection so I can be here at the funny farm and still be with you all...and my camera card doesn't work with my laptop. I know there are some workarounds and I'll shortly be back amongst the living...in the mean time you can wonder what baling twine has to do with the world of quilters. Not much I'm sure, but it is an upcoming post.

Thursday Thankies
MIL finally went and had her ears tested
Clothes Lines and clothes pins
Goldfish

Balls Anyone?

Chores. Everyone has them. A chore is something we have to do, not get to do. Picking golf balls is one of mine. Nine acres of our pasture abuts a golf course. At least seven of those acres fill up with mis-directed golf balls. Someone has to pick them up...and that someone is me.

Since I have a strong accountant vein (sounds nicer than a compulsive counter) I've decided to keep track this year; how many, what kind. I haven't a clue what golf balls cost, except a friend who visited last year said his are five bucks each. Some of these I can look at and guess they were probably about 50 cents each.

This week's pick: Titleist 47
Pinnacle: 28 (also had the most brights, 15)
Top Flite: 62
Wilson: 24
Callaway: 27
Noodle/MaxFli: 17
Nike: 26
Alien: 6
TiTech: 6
Bridgestone: 11
Oddball: 36
Broken: 4
Week's total 307.
Last week I gave six grocery sacks full to a man having a garage sale :) Saved me driving all the way to the Goodwill. I'll update my totals occasionally~

Sometimes golfers on the other side of the fence will offer to purchase what I'm picking up. Those are great days. Since I don't know what they are worth, and they don't know what they are getting I say how long I've been picking that day and what is their time worth an hour. I've gotten anything from $5.00 to $30.00. One guy gave me a beer.

Saturday Thankies
A sense of humor
That I have land
That I can walk, bend over, and carry heavy sacks

After; Or The Case Of The Cobwebbed Duck

Just in and back out for a few hours, back to the computerless wasteland I call home this summer. It is starting to get on my last nerve. As a result of the project in my sanctuary this week, I got to thinking we really need some Koi in my little pond. No computer to info-dig, arrugh!. My M-I-L has a set of 1950's Britannica Encyclopedias, but no joy there, apparently Koi didn't make the grade re: information in those days. As a side issue I did learn a lot I never knew about Korea. From a 1950's viewpoint mind you.
Last year I had three gleaned duck decoys in my little pond. In December we had a flood and one went walk-about to points north, one tried and got tangled in the fence, and one rode the storm and 20 foot flood waters out serenely. Just like people, those little decoys. A few weeks ago I relaunched the one that got caught in the fence trying to escape and she now glides the pond. Except yesterday I noticed she has grown a cobweb between her head and back feathers. Now I'm eyeballing the little boat my F-I-L has hanging upside down in the barn with the idea of getting to, and doing a makeover on the poor thing.

Here is the duck that rode out the storm, all clean and in possession of all her marbles. Perhaps I need to glean a boy decoy, maybe that would perk the other little miss up? Xing-Xing doesn't know what to make of her, I expect shortly he will launch himself off the end of the dock to have an up close and personal conversation.

"What dock?" you say? You have been paying attention! In February I showed the pond in this post and where is the dock? I only thought of the idea recently, and my big brother likes odd ball projects so he came down last weekend and built it for me. I'm $500.00 in materials poorer, but I LOVE my dock! All three sections will float, and the topmost section is heavily anchored to a 600 pound block of concrete. It should stay, should another flood come...
So I stopped by my friendly Ace Hardware and got a lounge chair, and took down my book and spent a lovely late afternoon relaxing, and thinking of Koi...but when you have three doggies, doggies like to be with...so pretty soon my lounge chair was full and I was thinking about running up the hill fast and hiding inside the 5th wheel for some me time.

Oh well, we love each other unconditionally, most of the time, and they never eat my last Popsicle without asking so what better companions could there be?

Wednesday Thankies
It didn't kill me to learn to drive the riding lawn mower. They will never take my diva gloves away from me though...
Chinese restaurants and a pot of tea
(((Neighbors who water plants without being asked)))

Selvage Envy Part II + Whaambulance

Somebody call the whaamblance! Ok...I have about 8 minutes to make this post and then head back to the farm...you can see where my priorities lie..I MISS BLOGGING AND MY BLOGGER FRIENDS! The rest of the computer I can live without.

My contribution to my stitching peace time this week? I used some more selvages! Remember this post about a successful idea for a working wall in our 5th Wheel RV? Well I needed an old fashioned roller shade pull to roll it up and down. I took a plastic heart shaped cookie cutter and wrapped it with selvages from some of my beloved 1800's reproduction fabrics. Sweet!

Friday Thankies

That I even got home for 8 minutes

Hobbies and Interests

I fixed a Brush Hog this week, all by myself!!!!

Aloha!

Praise be, I got some time to sew yesterday...looky what I did! Somewhere sometime I got the idea from someone's blog to use a old t-shirt as a clothespin bag. Our old t-shirts aren't fit for anything when we get done with them, but I've been mulling the idea in the back of my mind anyway.

Yesterday when I passed a children's resale store I thought, hey, might be something cute in there. And there was, this little boys Hawaiian shirt was too scrumptious to pass up.

I just turned it wrong side out, stitched the bottom shut, figured out where I needed to sew the sleeves so the hanger still fit and eureka, the cutest clothespin bag. I had to borrow my mother-in-laws clothes line, I haven't got mine put up at the farm yet. Those peg pins were my grandmothers, I've been using them for 38 years and she got them with ration coupons during World War II. Cool beans!

Saturday Thankies
Fresh mowed lawn
Garden that is weeded
Legs Up The Wall/Viparita Karani

I'll Show You Mine, If You'll Show Me Yours

Just stopping at home for a few hours and then back to the computerless farm, but I'd thought I'd show you what feel like the state of my mind and life at the moment. I got to thinking about junk drawers. The first image is what has grown into the junk drawer in our 5th wheel RV. It cleverly uses the waste space around the kitchen sink. For quite awhile it just held an old drinking glass with some nails, screws, and rubber bands. It is rapidly becoming the go-to place in the trailer.
I asked my mother in law this morning where her junk drawer was and she didn't have a clue what I was talking about. Imagine the concept, someone with NO junk drawer. My father in law now, that is a different story. He is super handy with electrical, plumbing, carpentry, mechanics...so he has all kinds of junk containers, weighted heavily in the five gallon bucket style. He is 91, been retired for 25 years and these great bins are something he has been planning to 'get around to' for all that time.

This is my junk drawer at home, which still reflects in a small way my journey with FlyLady. It is moderately organized and a few minutes would straighten it up. Perhaps when I retire?

I'm not the only one with junkdraweritis, a Google image search brings up a plethora for our perusal.

Friday Thankies

Utterly sublime weather

Things that didn't work out, which do in the end

Red Licorice

Pile 'O Cells

Many of us are making a real effort to live greener but the way so many of us plow through technology gadgets and discard them is mind boggling. I've owned 6 computers since my first in 1996. Three are still working, the other three are long gone, including those massive monitors. We got our first cell phones in 1999 and I think we've both gone through six phones. I have had two digital cameras, one of which is DOA on the bookshelf, I haven't a clue what to do with it. Little calculators? Recorders? Land phones?

If that isn't worrisome enough many of these outdated items are shipped to China where the workers live right in the midst of their work scrapping them out for the gold, mercury, lead...and getting pennies for their time and nothing for their health.

I ran across this GreenPhone site and would encourage you to think about using it if you don't know where to donate them locally. The world will thank you for it.

Can you tell I've haven't had any time for quilting lately? I've been so dizzy yesterday and today...I think it is fabric withdrawal, in fact I'm sure of it.

Wednesday Thankies
Responsible Recycling
Thoughtful Buying
Use it up, wear it out, make do, do without

1st Air Cav, 'Nam, 67-69

Thank you to all our veterans

War is asinine, but those who serve aren't.

Memorial Day Thankies

Doctors and staff at Veteran's Hospitals

M.A.S.H. units the world over, all sides

Those That Remember and Those Who Can't Forget

Ok You Hula Hoop Slackers

You asked for a youtube, here it is, try not to hate me too much, I can't help being beautiful.
Click here >> Sharyn Hooping after two weeks. The sage bruising really is pretty now, almost looks like an outfit.

See ya'll soon~

Orffing Up

Just to let those of you know that keep in touch with me here, or keep tabs...I'm just here for clean clothes and then back to the farm. My FIL (91) had a 911 emergency and transport this week and things are really up in the air at the farm. I am so blessed that I know how to do everything on his farm just the way he does it!

You are blessed that I didn't have my camera in the ER. The high point was a young man Orffing Up, first juicy and then dry, for about 3 hours. I was so tired and hungry I just closed my eyes and drank my hot cocoa. I'm a hard woman but most of you know that already.

I MISS my reading and writing blog time of the day.
See you all Tuesday. I think. Sharyn

Friday Thankies
Paramedics
Ambulances
ER

Escher Sewing

It is one of the first really beautiful days of mid-spring and I've been out on my little office deck making the most of it. Sewing time has been in short supply lately and I feel that lack of centering acutely. Today I decided to make weighted eye bags for my yoga classmates. There are about 18 of us and I've noticed I'm the only one with an eye bag for Śavāsana शवासन, our last pose of each practice. Of course I had a little yoga material, semi-serious, and serious fun. What quilter worth her or his salt doesn't have fabrics that are a reflection other passions?

What does that have to do with Mr. Escher's mirror images? I'm making something for someone else, to be given anonymously, and I'm the one getting all the benefits from the task. I've filled each bag with a one cup mixture of sifted Mount St. Helens ash, flax hulls, and lavender buds. Next I'll move into the glorious sun and hand stitch the bags closed. And life is good.

And about my hooping? I'm no long beating the carp out of my shins, and I've set a record of three minutes of keeping the hoop up. I hoop better to the left than to the right, and you would indeed love a youtube of me hooping sideways, or without one or the other foot forward. See, if you all had your beginners package you'd know what I was talking about. And my shin bruises are a lovely shade of sage green now, my favorite color...elsewhere.

Saturday Thankies
Rob will be home in about an hour!!
That he has a job to come home from even if it does keep him away all week
That our new insurance has kicked in

I will be away at the farm all week, no computer

RV and Small Space Quilting: The Working Wall

I have a 5th Wheel RV set up near my in-laws because we are up there a lot. In these posts I've shown how I've adapted my sewing and quilting needs to the sort of restrictions a small space requires one to work within. I junked the honking huge TV and made a nice storage cabinet, I donated one of the easy chairs and in that space put a vintage featherweight table adapted to set in my beloved Janome 9000.

A usable working wall has been the sticking point. In the link above you can see what seemed a bright idea turned out to be a bust. That is OK though...gave me time to think of an even brighter idea. As you enter our RV, to the right is the upstairs bedroom and bath. As seen here we can pull a sliding door across if needed.

The space is 71" tall X 57" wide. Now that is a whole lot of available wall space isn't it? I purchased a roller style window shade, rolled it out on the floor and spray glued a nice piece of flannel to it. Rolled it up, hung it up and joy of joys...space to tinker with setting ideas. Cool beans, happy camper, joyful quilter~ The blocks shown are from the stack of disappearing 9-patch blocks that turned out to be one of the ugliest projects I've ever done. They will probably end up in the round bin when I get over how much time is into them. Putting little uglies together to make a big ugly doesn't seem too zen to me.

an addemdum to my hooping post below: Yes my lower legs are bruised, but they aren't sore and tomorrow I'll get the hoop out again and practice some more. Who knew exercise could be fun?

Tuesday Thankies
Yoga practice in a little while
Spring sprouts pushing up in the garden
Visiting Nurses, what a Godsend

Hooping and Carding

This is part of the results of my afternoon card making earlier this week. There are a couple of lame ones in the bunch, my May mother's day cards not to put too fine a point on it. The good news is I'm all caught up on my owed mailings and I have cards left over. Making cards is just like starting a new quilt...a lot of time goes into auditioning papers and colors and samples and thinking. Once a good card is designed 2 or 3 more of the same style don't take any time at all. Then like quilting, there is the clean up...

I got time this morning to break open the Hoopnotica training DVD and spend some time with my lovely new hula hoop. (see posts for April 29 and May 5) Way fun! This first DVD is about 50 minutes long and the production quality is great. There is an introduction, how/where hoop suggestions for safety (you will need about eight square feet) and a 5-ish minute warm up. I had no trouble with the warm up moves, they are simply abbreviated versions of many of the yoga poses I do all the time. Then the teaching sections are broken into five or six divisions. I got through the first three, had fun doing it, and stopped at twenty-five minutes. A great extremely do-able workout that was fun.

They say to wear cotton rather than synthetics for its clingibility or a cropped top. When I got warmed up about 1/2 way through I folded my T-shirt up a bit and hooped against my skin which worked really well. The hoop clings to skin too, and is cool and refreshing. That is a tip you won't hear on the DVD, but those of us who have warm power surges will appreciate it. And did I say I love my hoop? I do! I think I've given myself a very special gift. And if I can do it anyone can! And guess what, exuberance in body movements is a plus :)

Friday Thankies
Rob will be home in a few hours!
Family to see Saturday and Sunday!
Spring Green everywhere~

PS: To the multitudes :) asking for videos; I long ago left my ego and dignity at the door, but I don't have moving picture equipment. I stopped at 25 minutes not because I was tired or hot but because I'm not sure how badly I might bruise...mainly my ankles, that must be the sure mark of a noob. Stay tuned, no film at 11.

Selvage Envy, Or You Saw It Here First

I'll Fess Up. The subject of quilter's fabric selvages and projects is like a smashed thumbnail that I keep bumping up against. It's all I can do to get my own blogs tended to before I dash over to Selvage Blog and see what Karen Griska has unearthed this week. Because I've been a passionate quilter for nearly 40 years and until I saw her blog it never once crossed my mind to save all those literal miles of selvages I've cut off and pitched.

Now, I am glad I haven't been that kind of pack rat, that way lies madness and probably divorce. But...if only...sigh.

On the same subject but in a different vein, today I've been making cards, I owe about ten people thank yous and birthdays and just becauses. I'm in a funky kind of mood today, the kind of day when you don't comb your hair and might possibly be seen in the post office with your bunny slippers on. So I've been using a kind of aged and distressed packet of paper...and look what I found!! Paper selvages!! My mind is boiling with ideas!

...so Dear Cindy, my long time Facets Friend, and baby of our group, our star that has lost about 100 pounds, is a primo quilter, and is now sending out book manuscripts to editors that I expect to recognize her talent; Happy Birthday and here is the very first paper selvage card, tea dyed even. It will shortly be in your mail box. Quilter's drool envelope and all~

Wednesday Thankies

I'm not too old to have brain farts

Afternoon sun

The American Goldfinches are back (Think Snoopy's friend Woodstock. They really do fly like that.)

It's Here! + Post Script

My very own beautiful hula hoop! My eyes must have gone like saucers when Alice our Postmistress brought it out. It comes like this, wrapped in bubble wrap, and it is enormous! That is a yardstick leaning against the fridge.

I haven't cracked the DVD's that came with the package yet, but I can definitely get this bright puppy a spinning! This is not your basic $3.00 childhood hula hoop!

edited to add: Numismatist asked what makes this hoop so different from our $3.00 childhood hoops.

#1, we are bigger so to get the right spin-zing the hoops need to be sized for adults.

#2, these weigh 1.5 pounds, a child's hoop is about 6 ounces, that weight is what is going to help keep our momentum going easily. A friend gave me a child's standard hoop yesterday, I could barely get it going and couldn't keep it going, or move it up and down my body; the adult one spun right off the bat and just a small adjustment of stance moved it up and down. You could though, add rice or bb's to weight one.

#3, Hooping is popular so if you are handy do a search and you'll find the directions for making an adult hoop. I think the keys to the above hoop are: No lumpy connector, which equals smooth spin, and the wraps with gaffer tape which is cotton, not rubber or latex like electrician or duct tape and makes the hoop cling as opposed to slip and slide. And beautiful...I can envision this silver hula with selvages covered with clear gaffer tape...

Now you know as much as I do, if I tell you more I'd have to make it up.
Try it, you'll like it! (see post below)

Tuesday Thankies
Healthy Goats
Small town phone company
Small town post office...where everyone knows your name.

Hula Babe Anyone?

I've always thought of exercise as something weird that other people do...I'll sit in the porch and watch thank you. But then I discovered yoga last year and it felt like coming home, and gave me a new point of view. Exercise does not have to equal a stinky noisy gym, or running until pants wetting is imminent, or any of the other associated memories I have.

So I've been thinking about what else a 50-something could try that would be fun first and exercise second. Did you know that hula hooping has come into the 21st Century? So I've ordered a starter kit from Hoopnotica and am looking forward to owning my very first hula hoop of any kind. I also joined FaceBook yesterday...but I can't see that developing into anything interesting any time soon. There were only 26 people in my graduating class.

Edited to add the next day: I made Hoopnotica in the second paragraph a link for those that has asked about getting their own hoop. I ordered the beginners kit which comes with a well recommended set of DVD's, a hoop, and a ebook. It is 20% off plus I also did a web search for Hoopnotica coupon and got another $5.00 off.

I do have a yoga instructor but I do most of my yoga with DVDs and it works very well for me because it isn't very often I can make a specific class time. So I figure hooping will be the same. Hope that helps! I'd love to have a hooping buddy.

Wednesday Thankies
The World Wide Web of information at our finger tips
Jade
Paper

How the Mighty Hath Fallen

I've been so busy, when a client asked if I'd redo the buttons on her beautiful silk blouse I lept at the opportunity to get needle and thread going, even if for a humble project.

On my hope-to-get-it-done list this week is trim the edges on my One-Block-Wonder and get started on the borders, and definitely get my new-and-improved working wall for my 5th wheel installed. Surely I can eke out that much time? Think?

Sunday Thankies
Popping in on the last two hours hours of a three day yoga retreat...better some than none
Seed Packets
Quality time with people I care about

Hey chick, what's your sign?

Springtime and the young farmer's mind turns once again to ... baby chicks! Ten little black sex-link chicks, home again home again in their little Del's Farm Store donut box; now ensconced in a marvelous 60 year old brooder chamber.

One cool beans improvement is we now have the option of chick feed that has their medicine in it, rather than the messy business of stirring it into their water each day. That will make things a lot more simple for my dear FIL with his short term memory problems.

Wednesday Thankies
Getting to see my Seattle sister-in-law for awhile
All the lawns are mowed
Mark the RV repair guy who does honest work for honest pay

WhereYaBeen, WatchaBeenDoing?

Spring has sprung and my commitment to keep my in-laws in their home means the farm goes into full tilt...but the weather has really been glorious for the work~
White wash the fruit orchard...my FIL planted this when he was 80. Quite optimistic the family said as they smiled behind their hands... he is now 91 and his 30 fruit trees and honey bee apiary there in the back are the pride of his days. And he still gets up on the ladder to prune and trim and thin.
Paint fencing...here I go around the orchard on the driveway side.
Their little front yard needs mowed of course...and my little doggies love the big Douglas Fir tree for shade.

The asparagas spears are coming up like mad...along with the weeds.

Rob gets a head start on spraying the driveways...weeds are what all farms grow best.

I did get three more candlewick blocks finished in the early mornings and late evenings~

Sunday Thankies
My Health
My Brain
My Legs

Looky What I Found!

A picture of the very first results of my virginal immersion into quilting, circa 1970. Way back in my first two blog posts I mentioned The Magazine Page that got me started. Still haven't found the page...but here is the yo-yo pillow, plus a Roman Stripe with feather stitching, one with appliqué work on it, and a green one with a piece of variegated crochet stitched to it. Humble beginnings but like the seed of an apple tree, the fun and wonder have colored my life ever since.

Sharing the spread, may they rest in peace and be waiting for me, Smoky, my first cat as an adult homeowner, and Little Grey, her son. They were both such marvelous clever intelligent companions...

Sunday Thankies
A full table
A full heart
Freedom of thought

Faux-Embroidery, or Life Is Short

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, I've been trying to explain pen embroidery in an email, much easier to put some images up! These are a couple of chickens from my Maggie Walker Country Garden quilt. The quilt was such an odd size I choose to finish the blocks individually, each with a different quilting method. I think they look gorgeous this way.
This is a set I tacked together and embellished with western belt buckles, the type that were used on little boys belts back in the day. The Hamburg was hand quilted, the Polish was tied with size 8 DMC floss.

The Japanese Grey Bantam was bound with red and white chicken fabric from a friend in Austria, so I machine tacked with Mettler red machine embroidery thread. I think it came out great and I'd be perfectly happy with a quilt done like this.

Anyway, the point of my post was to show the pen work I did for the breed names. I taped the pattern on my light table, and then traced the lettering with Pigma Pens. For a project like the pen work appliqué embellishment on Little Brown Bird, I used a ultra fine sandpaper under the block so it wouldn't slip and just had at it. Some of the other blocks are shown in this post last spring.

Friday Thankies
It's Friday!
Multiple signs of spring, it really is here!
Fresh oranges and apples year around!

Candlewick Summer Spread

My summer candlewick spread is progressing nicely! In fact I've finished three more blocks since I took this photo last week. As designed, these are 17" blocks but there are another couple of inches of muslin around the registration marks for trimming and I may trim them to about 18.5".

The summer candlewick spread this will replace shown in this post last July was done on whole cloth so when the candlewicking was finished the top was ready to use. As mine will have inner seams it needs to be backed so I'll make a quilt back in lighter/neutral colors so they don't shade through and then quilt the layers. I will have to do some samples...the quilting may look very odd to the eye with no batting, but since the point is a summer spread batting is the last thing I want to introduce.

I may also introduce some companionable sashing to the candlewick side. That part is still on the working wall of my mind. If it is successfully executed I think I may do a number of top/back no batting combos. Saves space and money and rather than just one spread for the hot months I'd have a variety. After all, my quilts are intended to be used. Used up is even OK, I can always make more and I have lots of cold weather quilts.

Palm Sunday Thankies
My Rob will be home for a little while today!
70 degrees!
Someone to eat a meal with!

Cat Quilting

I was trimming blocks on the dining table at our 5th wheel...and our beautiful cat Conway was the recipient of some of the fly away Orts. I cringe when I see Eleanor Burns throwing scraps over her shoulder. I wonder if she really does that away from the camera...

Looks like he was working up the energy to think about doing something when he went to sleep doesn't it.

Are there any two more go-together things than cats and quilts?

Friday Thankies
Work is finished for the week
Our clean clear safe water that shows up at the tap like magic
Anticipations

Orter Make a Four Patch

Or I Orter clean my working wall with a lint roller more often...But these 4 sticky tapes of Orts were so pretty I had to sew them into a block. After all, who thought we'd all be making items out of selvege edges? Stay tuned, I have a neat one of those coming up soon.

The curiosity is how all the greyish background pet hair gets up there. Do they pin themselves up at night while I'm dreaming sweet dreams of finished quilts?

In truth I roll the wall every time a project comes off of it. Quilters are certainly stringy people~

Tuesday Thankies
Yoga Tonight!
Aleve
White kitties with blue eyes