not just stitching

Just to prove I don't just sit and stitch, here's a photo I took Saturday at Bailly near the Indiana Dunes. While we know the Bailly homestead and the area was occupied and farmed for years, we always attribute the garden flowers (iris, hyacinths, Narcissus) to Mrs. Bailey. So these are Mrs. Bailly's Hyacinths. We also saw many, many of our favorite spring beauties, some early violets, trout lilies, trilliums about to bloom, and a white flower. The trout lilies' coloration was very subtle and beautiful. May apples are coming up, too.

The color gradations of the grape hyacinths were just wonderful and, of course, the photo doesn't capture it. It does capture the memory of it for me.

We also changed the oil on my car Saturday (I use "we" quite loosely there--I help haul stuff to and from the garage and then sit and kibitz) and we stopped the the Century Plant which still hasn't bloomed. It's become a weekly pilgrimage. It was cloudy all day and the rains began in the early evening.

On Sunday it rained all day. We visited my sister and her husband and my brother and his wife came up. It's really cool. We have our own show and tell. I love seeing what everyone is doing. And it's great to get feedback on ongoing projects (like my Japanese paper pieced quilt in the works).

It's been raining since Sunday--Monday night snow was predicted but I haven't seen any. One evening I went through a pile of books. Found some things to discard or recycle (yay!). I found my wildflower field guide (which is why I began on this pile) and learned the white flower I saw Saturday was bloodroot (I thought it was that or hepatica, but I wasn't sure). I haven't picked up a needle since Sunday. Maybe tomorrow night.

International Quilt Festival

As usual, the quilt festival was wonderful this year. I went on Friday with Marge and we met my sister there. It was very crowded, which was nice to see in light of the economy. The quilts in the shows were awe inspiring and we spent a lot of time looking at some going "how did they do that?". The displays have done a lot to educate my eye and mind over the years. I always learn something new. (Missed it? Click on the ruby slippers here to check it out!)

As usual, we shopped. And as usual, I came home with a load of goodies that had not much to do with quilting at all. This show and market are definitely not just for quilters. (just a sample: beading, kumihimo, felting, sari yarn, crochet, painting, stamping, felt embroidery, ribbon embroidery...it's endless--they even had Cham-Wow!)

I did a bunch of shopping and had a great time, but I'm going to focus now on what I did. The image at the top is two ATCs made in a class I took at the end of the day. The ATC on the left is mine, the one on the right is one I traded for. The class was part of Make-It-U sponsored by Quilting Arts Magazine. The class was Bristle ATCs and was taught by Belinda Spiwak.

I think these classes are the best for inspiration. I've gotten to try all sorts of things I never would have on my own. (Last year I did fabric painting and made a mixed media beaded pin.)

We used a wide variety of materials in our ATCs--paints, distress stamp pads, regular stamp pads and stamps, and a variety of papers, pens, and goodies. I came away with some new experiences, two ATCs, and a little baggie with leftover papers, fibers and a new gel pen. We laughed and had a really fun time as we worked to beat the clock (we had an hour to learn all of these new things and make two ATCs!). Well worth the $10 price tag.

I find that the show is a huge energy and inspiration boost. There are so many creative and wonderful things to see. I got the t-shirt above in the Maeda Importing booth. I also got some lovely Japanese fabrics there. The T had the sashiko design lightly printed and came with a skein of sashiko yarn (a matte cotton about the size of perle 5). After going all day, I came home Friday night and had the shirt about 2/3 done by bedtime. (Years ago I did a lot of sashiko, but it's a no brainer--running stitch. See this tutorial at the Purl Bee.) I finished it up Saturday morning (and wore it to show off to my sister on Sunday!)

Another goody I got was a freebie (love freebies!) at Paper Pieces. It was a little kit to try paper piecing--to make a flower like in a Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt. It came with paper pieces and fabric. We didn't look at them there (but I did get some really tiny hexagons to try and piece a really tiny quilt). When I got home and began piecing, the fabric I got looked Japanese-ish to me (the blue diamond pattern for the center and the "Japanese coins" for the petals). So I pieced up my flower. (I like paper piecing, it's quick and very portable.) I pressed it and removed the paper then I was going hmmmm and still inspired, so I pulled out my Japanese fabric.

I decided I liked the flower on this piece and so I appliqued it on. Now I'm going hmmmm again, but I'm back into the work week and all that entails. I did bring it by my sister's so we could all consider it. It needs something. I have decided I'm going to quilt it and I think that's the next step. I laid a few different handy laces on it and liked one of them so it will likely get a stripe of lace. But I'm still auditioning the next step.

Saturday night I went "awk!" when I realized the deadline for Pat Winter's Pieces of Friendship exchange is coming up fast. I only have 3-1/2 pieces done. So I set all the goodies from the quilt show aside and worked some on my last piece. I need to get the beads out and add some.

Finally something to show...

Sun has come back to Chicago--at least for a day or two. So, while the sun was out I took a couple of photos. This is what I did last weekend. I learned how to make this pendant at this month's EGA Chapter meeting (NeedleArtisans of Northwest Indiana). It was taught by Mel and Debbie. Mel had found these large, plastic bicone beads for us to practice on--mine is turquoise above. Once we did that, we had the techniques needed to make the pendants.

I'd been puzzling over the model of this pendant for a few months, since the programs were announced. Once we got the pattern and Mel showed us what to do, I had this lovely "aha!" moment where it all clicked into place. (to find a local EGA chapter near you go to http://www.egausa.org/)

The pattern is 3-D Dazzle and is from Funky Hannah's Beads and Art and it's available online at their site along with a whole slew of other cool patterns. Go check it out!

I've also been knitting away on my birdies for Cooper's Flock. Read about this project here. I have these three birdies done and one more about 2/3 of the way along. (they're all the same size but the photo angle really has them looking quite different!)

I had a brother who died a few days after his birth, so this project feels really good to do. There wasn't much I could do when I was five, but now I hope to spread some cheer to other babies and their families. More in previous posts here, here, and here.

Next Giveaway

This time it's a book. This book has long been a major reference in my library and I recently received another copy, so I'm going to pass it on. Don't be turned off by the rather funky 70s cover. This is a treasure. It is Needlelace and Needleweaving by Jill Nordfors Clark and it will keep you busy for ages with all of the ideas and inspiration.

If you'd like this book, please leave a comment for this post. Please be sure to include a way for me to get in touch with you (i.e., your e-mail address). I'll generate the random number for the winner on May 4.

Quiet Days

It's been dark and cloudy and still windy and chill here and my mood has kind of followed. I'm struggling to think spring. It shouldn't be this hard--flowers are beginning to bloom everywhere. The front of our building has a mass of bright red tulips--and one lone daffodil.

You'd think these lovely ribbons sent to me last week by Lula would help--and they do. I took a "group shot" of them last week but this weekend decided to explore them a bit closer. The first image really brightens my mood. The one here, with the green, gold and velvet, immediately made me think Elizabethan dress.


I don't yet have specific ideas for the others. It'll come. They're just lovely.

We went back to East Chicago to see the Century Plant. It still hasn't bloomed. Poor thing is probably frozen! I didn't take another picture, we went in the late afternoon and the light wasn't good.

I do have things to show and I've been busy but the light's been bad and I haven't been able to get good pictures (I've been beading and sparklies and camera flash don't always work well together).

Last weekend I went to a memorial service for my friend Pat. She'd been battling heart problems for about a year. Pat was one of my mentors when I joined the Homewood Embroiderer's Guild--she was always practical and plain spoken and made sense. She also was very funny and had a ready laugh. Most important to me was that Pat taught me to tat.

My Grandmother tatted. She and her sister would sit and tat and talk, fingers flying. I have tatted trim they made, wound on cards.


My Mom tried and tried but never "got" it. My Grandmother tried to teach me when I was about 10. Let's just say neither of us had the patience (my Grandmother was a doer but not a teacher, much to my Mom's frustration). I'd tried off and on but never could get it until Pat took me (and several others) in hand and with great patience and humor led us so that we all "got" it.

Now, I'm not good at it, but that's my fault for lack of practice. But, for me, it was magic to be able to follow in my Grandmother and Aunt Addie's footsteps even a little bit.

Pat will be missed.

Tax Day Giveaway Winner

The Winner of the April Giveaway for A is for Acorn is comment #15, Jennifer. Congratulations to Jennifer and thank you very much to all who stopped by and entered.

Happy Easter, a bit late

We had a lovely, quiet Easter. I hope you did, too. I stayed home and stitched and did weekend chores (minimal) and made an Easter pizza.

I tried coloring some muslin I had handy in the Easter egg dye. The dip and tie dyed cloth pieces came out beautiful until I rinsed them to remove the vinegar. The blues and greens were all fugitive. The tie-dye below was originally bright blue and purple. I think the pink could grow on me, though. (muslin folded and wrapped with twisty-ties and rubber bands before dipping into leftover Paas Easter egg dyes)
My dyeing was very, very casual. I'm pretty sure (but not positive) that the muslin was washed. I probably should have pressed them with a hot iron before rinsing but I couldn't stand the vinegar smell from the dyes. Much more interesting was the rag I've been using when I painted or stenciled in my journal. When I was pressing my pink muslin, I gave this one a press, too. I think I'll retire it to use as a background for something and start a new "paint rag" for the journal. (acrylic paints, stencil paints, medium and gesso on muslin)