Prairie Woman Arts

Knitting, Quilting and Cookies!

2010-12-28T09:36:00.003-06:00

All I did was offer to drop Mom off at the yarn shop. I wasn't going to go in because the sweater/wrap that I purchased hand-dyed yarn for last year is still in the works...and hasn't been touched in months. So I left my Mom at The Yarn Shop in Lincoln, Nebraska and went about my errands. When I was done, I circled back to the store to pick Mom up. Well, she wasn't done with her lesson yet and wanted to finish just one more round on that sock! And I started to just browse around. The yarn shop had redone the store and it was a bustle of activity. Women knitting at the table, more men and women sitting in the little cafe part..smells of red pepper soup wafting in the air and if that wasn't bad enough, I found myself smack dab in the middle of the shop surrounded by the most beautiful yarns. I wasn't going to buy any of course. I was just looking. Then I picked up a kit for a cowl and hat. Wow..mohair and silk yarn? I bet that's warm. And this looks like something I could complete fairly quickly..not like a sweater, say. And wouldn't it be nice while the family is playing games at Christmas to have a little knitting to do by the fire. Oh...what can it hurt? I bought the kit, needles..and a ball of yarn that I just fancied. That's it. No foul. No harm done...wallet a little lighter. Step a little lighter!
I couldn't wait to get home and start knitting! It had been so long and while I've never been a 'lightening fast' knitter, I got my groove going. And after tearing out my project (after 7 rows) and starting over, I completed the cowl!
Yesterday...even though I'm only halfway done with the hat, I picked up more yarn..this time for a cool scarf I saw..another couple skeins "just because", more needles and the other kit that I didn't pick up the first time. Pictures to come! :)
So what else is going on? I have projects started in my sewing room for stocking stuffers and today I'll be making some cookies for our family Christmas this coming Saturday, New Year's Day! And here is the recipe. I don't make many cookies, but I make these every year. They are easy, taste great and ...easy!

Cranberry Noels

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons milk or cream
1 teaspoon vanilla, rum or almond extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped pecans
3/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add milk, vanilla and
salt.
Gradually add flour, cranberries and nuts until fully combined.
Divide the dough in half and roll each half into an 8 inch log about 2
inches
wide. Roll the logs in the coconut, pressing lightly to get the coconut to
stick. Wrap the logs in plastic and refrigerate for a couple of hours until
firm (I actually left them wrapped for a week!!).
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cut logs into 1/4" slices and bake on
ungreased
cookie sheets about 12 minutes until edges start to turn golden. Cool on a
rack.
Makes about 60 cookies.

Enjoy!

By the way... the Yarn Shop is in Sutter Place Mall in Lincoln, NE..and in that same mall are also a couple of quilt shops. :)

My very own bowl!

2010-12-19T17:21:00.001-06:00

I thoroughly enjoy shopping on Etsy for unique handmade gifts. Last year I bought some hand-blown glass balls and hand-painted fabric. This year, my niece opened up her own Etsy store for her lovely pottery. I bought this bowl for me. :) It's one-of-a-kind and I'm the only one who uses it! Sometimes moms just have to buy something very special for themselves! Rachel at Windfall Arts on Etsy just posted some new stuff. It doesn't last very long on her site, so don't wait if you see something you take a fancy to!


My new bowl!

Rule-Breaking Quilts

2010-12-19T17:06:00.005-06:00

Great price on Amazon!

This is the book I mentioned in the previous post that I'm working through. Today I finished the first project quilt top. It's not a stunner or a Wow! It was just an exercise in creativity and using up fabrics so I can buy more! I actually cropped the top of this photo on the right and may trim it down even further to balance out the added green strips.

The best part is... Six fat quarters are gone and I'm ready to choose another six for the next project which will be similar to the cover on the book!

New book

2010-12-11T17:46:00.000-06:00

I bought an interesting looking book at the Bernina store last week. And decided when I don't know what to sew, I'll go to the next project in this book. This is the first project.. And literally, I grabbed 6 fat quarters as suggested, paying more attention to light, dark, mediums than color. Here are a few of the other segments.

Ironing and folding!

2010-12-09T22:52:00.000-06:00

Sometimes, it just feels good to tidy up the sewing room. I didn't feel like sitting down to sew, so I just started ironing all the pieces of fabric that have been laying in piles from past projects last winter. As long as it's not clothing, I find ironing rather therapeutic! By the time the hour was up, I had a tidy pile of fabrics instead of mounds! Of course, it will only stay this way until I start digging again, but it's nice every so often to touch each piece and iron and fold them. I also went through one of my bins of hand-painted fabrics and ironed those pieces. Like a memory bin..some of the first pieces I ever painted. And still in one piece because I have a hard time cutting or tearing into those! All of these are older pieces that I fully intend to dispatch with this year! I've decided for every 10 fqs I get rid of..either cutting, sewing or giving away, I'll go replace them with new fabrics!

I found my cutting mat!

2010-12-09T20:29:00.001-06:00

It wasn't easy, nor pleasant, but I took time to clean off the table I use to cut fabric and found it...the table and my cutting mat! I hadn't really "lost" my cutting mat, but it's as good as gone when the table is so full of past project remnants that I can no longer cut on the mat! I took this picture as proof! This Olfa mat is nearly 25 years old. You can see some writing that one of my sons did with a colored pencil..some paint marks from my dollmaking days, cuts with batting in them from using a dull olfa blade to cut through layers.. and one thing you can't see is a crack that happened one year when I thought I could ship it in a big box by just barely making it a U-shape and padding inside and outside the "U." When we got to my in-laws, the mat had a big crack in it! Which, with some cloth tape on the back, we fixed! And I've used it that way ever since!

I've cut so much fabric with that Olfa cutter and mat. They are like part of the family! Although I've seen the more ergonomic cutters, I always stick with old faithful! I'm kind of surprised I've never lost it!

Funny how just looking at this picture brings back tons of memories for me! I think I'll go visit it right now and sew before bedtime!

Getting in the mood for snow!

2010-11-24T00:03:00.001-06:00

Add caption

Well, it took me some time, but I'm finally figuring out how to post pictures directly from my phone to the blog! Such a time saver...when you know what you are doing! :) It's been awhile since I did a project like this. Just follow directions! Cut. Fuse. Quilt. It's in a recent quilting mag I picked up at Barnes & Noble. My youngest son loved this so much, he's been cutting out fused snowflakes to make coaster gifts for Christmas. However he said.."Mom..I love your quilt, but I want my snowflakes to be more colorful!" He traced 8 snowflakes onto fusible while I was gone yesterday. Then laid out pairs of fabric across my sewing table..2 fabrics per coaster..one for the snowflake, one for the background. We are quilting tomorrow, so I'll be posting pictures of them soon! And we are serging around the edges instead of binding! Easy peasey!

Goodnight!

2010-11-23T23:51:00.001-06:00

Testing

Work in Progress

2010-10-31T10:10:00.004-05:00

From my new "168" series. I haven't started an 'art quilt' for over 3 years and it's just high time that I did. I've got all this glorious hand-painted fabric that I painted years ago, including some pieces that I did in my first fabric painting class with Virginia Spiegel. And I have some fantastic pieces that my uber-talented little sister, Mollie Spieker painted that I can't wait to cut into...or tear, as the case may be.

So why, 168? Well, we all have 168 hours in a week. No more, no less. How we use that time is up to us for the most part. I mean, obviously if you have a job you have to clock in. And we have church, school, eat and sleep time. But what about all the other hours?

I'll just tell you about my other hours! I started working, or thinking I was working, all the time. (Mind you my work is at home as I'm a Beachbody coach so I wasn't leaving to work..) However, when we watched movies, my laptop was on my lap! During birthday or holiday celebrations, I was checking my email every so often. Late into the night and early morning, I was on facebook, twitter and youtube trying to (I thought researching) figure out how to best market my business.

And I lost sight of all the other important things in my life. Not totally...but they definitely took a back seat.

For three weeks now I've been working one on one with my mentor and he asked me what my biggest challenge was and honestly it boiled down to 'time management.' The feeling of being overwhelmed and fatigued came down to this one part of my life. Time. And how I was using it.

Funny thing is...in 2 weeks of using my calendar and making myself write in specific family times (with no computer), 'office' hours, and finally 'me' time..I've been happier. Less fatigued. And my income has gone up. My house is more orderly. And I have more energy.

We've all heard it. Work smarter, not harder. And for me, using a calendar has been difficult to put it mildly. But at the end of the week, I could see all I had done for/with my family, business, friends..and it was good. :) I don't feel like the last 7 days were a blur. They had substance. And they were productive. And ... they included some time in my creative laboratory...my sewing room!

Be good to yourself. Love the ones around you! Tell someone you believe in them today.

Anne Dovel

Pictures Coming

2010-10-30T20:48:00.004-05:00

Have you ever gotten so focused on your job or business that you forgot to take time for yourself? You know what? That's what happened to me! I am passionate about being the best leader I can be and over the last 3 years in building my business, I put several hobbies aside so I could devote time to growing a business, but I got so focused that I ended up not taking any time to do the things that bring me great joy...such as working with cloth!

Luckily for me, I have a weekly leadership mentoring call now, one on one, with a great mentor and he told me I had to get my calendar working for me! He told me I had to make sure my family, church and business time were penciled in. But also, to actually write in when I was going to sew, if that's what I wanted to do with my 'free' time. And for you other busy moms out there, you will be a better mom, wife, business owner, leader...if you take time to re-fuel..whatever that takes for you.

So today, I scheduled only 1 call with a coach. Then, I started to tackle the upstairs...which includes 5 bedrooms and my sewing room. I got one boys' room (all the boys were gone today) cleaned up and moved his bed around and mounded it with beautiful quilts...it looked so cozy when I left it. Then, I went to my sewing room!..... more tomorrow...This typing is taking up my sewing room and it's in my calendar to sew, so you'll have to wait for the rest of the story!

Anne Dovel

Quick Gift

2009-12-08T20:35:00.003-06:00

Well..it appears from this blog that all I've done for the last year in my sewing room has been to destash! And that's about right. I've almost got the room down to a dull-roar. And the simplifying of my stash of stuff has really invigorated me.

Tonight I made a pillow. Pictures to come. Just a very simple pillow from a magazine on Christmas gifts. I love practically mindless sewing after a long day. I just had to feel some fabric moving under my fingers without thinking too much.

Even though I haven't had as much time to sew the past couple of years, I still like to make a personal gift for my boys and this year it will simply be pillows!

I think maybe what inspired me was the wonderful blizzard going on outside! We didn't even have a blizzard last year and precious little snow, so it's a winter wonderland out there. I canceled the boys' school lessons since public school was out, and worked some and then went to my sewing room!

Ahhh...

Anne

Destashing again!

2009-08-27T13:02:00.002-05:00

While there hasn't been a lot of time for my quilting and dollmaking, I've found that having a creative mind has helped me grow my business, so I'm being creative..just not with fiber and thread.

However, I have found much joy in destashing. I have a big pile of stuff to send on to Mollie so she can parcel it out on Etsy or use it in her artsy creations. And every time I fill another box or bag, I feel more free. Free of the old stuff that is holding me down. And to reward myself for that, I occasionaly go to Cosmic Cow in Lincoln, Nebraska~The best quilt shop in town, and treat myself to some yardage. I just grab some bolts and say..I want this! :) Then, I bring it home, wash it, fold it and put it in an empty place where previously there was stuff that I had looked at way too many years.

It does a body good to let go of the stuff and just replace it with a few really nice things. And instead of fat quarters, a large stash of which I have given out to sisters, friends and am currently trying to use up, I'm buying whole yards. Something I've always wanted to do! When you buy a fat quarter, you never quite have enough, unless of course you are using one of those fat quarter patterns.

And as much fun as I've had with fat quarters and as many memories are attached to them from my busier quilting days on Quiltswappers and other online quilt groups, I'm excited about being a yardage collector instead of a fat quarter collector! So, anytime I cut most of a fat quarter up, I throw the excess in a bag for Mollie, who uses the little bits and scraps! I used to keep them all. And every time I'd try to use them, the pile would grow bigger. So, now periodically, I get rid of the entire mess of little scraps and I let out a big sigh! Ahhhh....

Try it! If you don't feel energized when you go to your corner where your quilting supplies are or your quilting room or cabin... oh..the dream, the have a quilting cabin on the lake... Back to earth, Anne.. If you don't feel excited when you see your stash, then start trading it off or getting rid of it. No regrets! There is always more fabric out there!

Anne

Etsy

2008-12-15T11:45:00.002-06:00

If you haven't done so, check out Etsy! I've been doing some of my Christmas shopping on Etsy!

And..after a long hiatus from sewing and quilting, I'm back at it and made 5 purses yesterday for gifts..and one to post on Etsy. http://prairiewomanarts.etsy.com

If you love hand-painted fabric, check out my sister's site: http://monkeyshinedesign.etsy.com

Back to the sewing room!

Anne

Time to De-Stash!

2008-10-25T22:21:00.004-05:00

I've been absent from this blog for awhile, but have started a new blog using our iMac which you can see the beginnings of at http://web.me.com/dovels.

I'm really excited and had to post to this blog because I decided to totally de-stash my sewing room. I kept looking at all the cool things on Etsy and seeing artists de-stashing and realized..that's what I truly needed to do to start creating again. So, for the last 2 afternoons, I've been ruthlessly cleaning out my sewing room. I have piles and piles of fabric and itsy bitsy trimmings..schnibbles..odds and ends...even some quilt tops ... and I've called in my family to come take what they want. Everything I add to the pile makes me happier and makes me want to be in my sewing room more!
And I've only just begun! :) I would be up there now, but Dave got the movie "George and the Dragon" so I had to come enjoy movie night! It's a funny movie! Glad I sat down to relax a bit!
But, tomorrow afternoon... it's back to the sewing room!

Feeling overwhelmed and needing a boost to start creating??? I highly recommend de-stashing!

Anne

Painting

2008-02-16T21:15:00.002-06:00

Well, the owner of Monkey Shine Design, came and painted fabric at in my basement..so she'd have some pieces to work with, then turned around and sold them on her etsy site!
I was busy cooking, but managed to paint a few pieces. They were not nearly as stunning as my sister's! But, it makes my fingers itch to do some more! In the past, it has taken me hours to get in the painting mode and then about the time I'm really going strong, I have to clean up and call it a day!

Monkey Shine Design

2008-01-18T09:38:00.000-06:00

Monkey Shine Design happens to be my very own little sister's studio name! She posted 10 of her wonderful fused postcard designs on www.etsy.com and I just had to buy 2 of them this morning. What a fun site and how cool is it to be able to buy some of my sister's artwork!!

I've been making cinnamon rolls for the boys every morning. I'm working on getting up at 6 am to get my workout in so I'm done before the boys get up for school. It's been a real challenge, because I am such a night owl, but it's going much better. And I'm showered and refreshed by the time the boys wake up, instead of just trying to open my eyes!

It's also affording me a little more time and today I'm going to go play in my sewing room. I'm inspired by Mollie's postcard designs and have just a few postcards left to finish up the swap with Art2Mail fiberartists.

Today, at noon, I'll be taking some of my dolls and going with some members of our doll club 'Seams Magical Doll Club' out of Seward, NE to the senior center to give a program on dolls. I'll post pictures later!

Have a great day.

2007-12-26T11:12:00.000-06:00

Basil found himself a cozy place to nap while I was cleaning!

Stocking stuffers ready to go!

2007-12-25T20:40:00.001-06:00

Another Travel Tissue Holder Tutorial

2007-12-25T19:46:00.000-06:00

I love making these little travel tissue holders. They make a nice, small gift to stuff in someone's stocking or send in a Christmas card. I looked at all the various tutorials on the web, and combined a couple of my favorites to make this quick and easy tissue holder. Step 1: Cut 1 rectangle 6"x8". Cut 2 rectangles 4.5" x 6".
Step 2: Fold as shown, wrong sides together, press. Big rectangle, bring small sides together. Small rectangles, fold on the long side.
Step 3: Layer smaller folded rectangles on top of the larger rectangle, with folded edges overlapping the center. (note: What's inside, will be show on the outside when turned.)
Step 4: Sew 1/4" seam allowance around perimeter, trim off corners.

Step 5: Turn and press. Slip packet of travel size tissues inside. Voila! Done!

Time to Quilt

2007-12-25T18:25:00.000-06:00

My little sister pieced this wonderful little quilt from a kit, and I agreed to machine quilt it. Problem is, I can't decide how to do it! I have a King Tut thread chosen, that is more towards the earth tones..lots of mossy greens and browns. I'd like to get this done and into her hands, as I've had it longer than I care to admit! Any ideas?

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-24T09:12:00.000-06:00

Blessings to all at this special time of year.
Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy New Year!

Time to make time!

2007-09-13T22:44:00.000-05:00

Wow. Another busy summer already gone.

Every day, I promise myself I will get up to my sewing room and at least play with some fabric, but the day goes by and I end up too tired at the end to do much. So, it gets pushed to the next day. And so on it goes.

Today, was my youngest son's 7th birthday. I knew I should clean the entire day...get the laundry caught up...and so forth, but I just had to do something other than that.

I finished up some tea cups blocks that I was supposed to have swapped out months ago. Those are done and in envelopes ready to mail tomorrow. Then, I felt the need to make a postcard for my postcard group, art2mail.com

The background is from a fabric painting 'episode' earlier this summer where once again, I just told my family...I'm off to the basement. I have to do something creative. I took a stack of odd pieces of fabric. This piece is that curtain lining stuff with the kind of rubbery stuff on the back to make the room darker. It took the paint so strangely. The back side is almost more interesting than the front because of how the paint migrated on that surface before it dried. Looking at this picture, I realize it's upside down! :)

This is the first of my 30 day challenge to make one thing and post it every day this month. Of course, vacation falls in there, so I will take a something to make while I'm at the cabin and post when we get back. But that's later this month!

I realized as I immersed myself in the mess of my sewing room, how vital that part of my life is. I had a very hard time pulling myself out once I got started. This postcard isn't just amazing, but it's done! And I did it...instead of folding clothes! :)

New Postcards

2007-05-14T16:21:00.000-05:00

Mother's Day! My usual ritual is to go up to my sewing room for the afternoon/evening and just play. So, that's what I did yesterday.

I made 3 new postcards, titled Neutral Grounds 1-3. I used tshirt knit dyed with tea and coffee for the backgrounds. Cotton, wool, synthetic, metal, paint.

Not stunning by any means, but to me it was just so good to be back in my sewing room...making that machine hum for even a little bit!

Carol Anne Clasper's Postcard Box

2007-05-13T14:24:00.000-05:00

You know how much I love fiberart postcards.. Well, Carol Anne Clasper just put up a tutorial on her blog with instructions for making a box to hold her postcard collection. I thought you would enjoy seeing it. Click on Carol Anne's link in the side bar!

It's Mother's Day, so I am going to my sewing room for the balance of the day to mess around! :) No cleaning, do dishes, no laundry!

Have a beautiful Mother's Day!

Time for sewing!

2007-05-03T17:11:00.000-05:00

Well...kind of! Or there will be time for sewing. I've decided in order to get everything in I want to get in, I'm going to have to schedule my creative time. The day just gets away from me! I haven't figured out why, though...I never schedule laundry, yet...

I started cleaning off my table in the basement so I can get down there to paint some fabric. I have a huge stack of odds and ends from the thriftstore..some great texture pieces. One of my favorites to paint right now is linen. The texture of the weave just pops when it's painted. So, for that, I buy garments at bag sales. Last time I also bought a couple of shirts with tiny little pleats that I'm going to paint and put in my stash!

In 6 weeks, I'll be in Ireland! I am traveling with my folks on a 13 day trip! I am so excited. I hope to find some yummy yarns to add to my collection.

More later. After my trip to the sewing room!
Touch some fabric today! :)

Anne

2007-04-26T07:22:00.000-05:00

Wow! Has it really been since January that I updated my blog! Time really does fly! I haven't spent much time up in my sewing room, but I did make some cup blocks for a swap and finished off several postcards to mail to my online postcard group, www.art2mail.com .

So, what is the mess to the right? It's yards and yards of fun. When I am tired but I want to do something creative, I grab my sack of tiny scraps, dump it next to my sewing machine and start sewing it in layers until I have a long strip about 4-5 layers deep. It looks much more fascinating in person than wodded up on a tabletop for a photo! I'll scan a close up later so you can see the layers. It is fun and relaxing. I have several strips about 6 feet long now and I hang them over my sewing room door!

The boys have been begging me to get back to my sewing room more. They love to sew. My 6 year old came up to me yesterday and asked if he could go sew by himself so he could make a birthday present for me! :)

Besides that, I'm still helping people lose weight and learn how to eat right and exercise. I've started posting a recipe a week on my website, so check it out! And if you want to have a chance to win some cash just for working out, find that Play the Game button! :)

www.dovelfitness.com

It's cold and blustery again in Nebraska today. I'm hoping for spring weather to come and actually stay!

Do something creative today!

It's a New Year!

2007-01-06T23:20:00.000-06:00

Well, if you noticed from the picture below, my tie dye boys are getting bigger! I was looking back through the posts and found the last picture of them when they did their tie dyed tshirts for the fair and they look so much younger. It's only been a year!
Right after Christmas, my family was struck with the plague....okay...only the stomach flu, but it seemed like the plague. I haven't been to my sewing room since I finished the quilt I gave to my brother and his wife. I'm glad I forced myself to go ahead and do the quilting on it myself, because it made me realize that with the right machine, quilting a large quilt is not impossible! The last large quilt I free motion quilted, I did on my little Bernina 810. This is a portable machine and one that I have had since I was in 7th grade....let's see....that's ooh....well, it's too late to do any calculating, but suffice it to say, the machine is old now! The throat isn't that large. My current machine, a Bernina 153?....I'd have to look.... has a larger throat, so it was a little easier than I remember having all that quilt between the needle and the inside of the machine. Easier.....not easy! :)
I was at the fabric store today and the owner tried to entice me to take a class on her Lizzie long arm quilting machine because once you take the class, you can come to the store and rent the machine. Enticing....but now that I've done this quilt....which was 88x96, or there abouts, I don't feel so panicky about the next one! And I do have tops that would love to be quilted.
But...first things first. I'm designing some new postcards to send. I still love the 4x6 format!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2007-01-01T10:57:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Originally uploaded by DragonflyA421.

From my family to yours, I wish you a Happy, Healthy New Year!

I finished a quilt!

2007-01-01T10:54:00.001-06:00

Yes! I can finish a quilt. It's been so long since I made a large quilt I actually had to look up a few things to refresh my memory. I made this quilt from a pattern in the book, Stacking a New Deck. It was a lot of fun. This quilt was a Christmas gift for my brother and his wife.

PICT0043-1
Originally uploaded by DragonflyA421.

Wow! It's almost Christmas.

2006-12-18T21:41:00.000-06:00

I can't believe my last post was in September! So the grown-ups weren't lying to me when as a kid, they would tell me that each year goes by faster and faster. I didn't believe them then, but it's clear they were right! Which means, now that I say it to youngsters, I am right! Ahhh...finally!
I've been working on a large quilt. I abandoned, temporarily, the quilt I started last February...the quilt I was so excited about...then. I just got stuck once it got to the round where I had to come up with the measurements. I'm going to pick that quilt back up after the new year, though. It will look perfect in my bedroom.
The current quilt took me about 2 weeks to put together in the short little blocks of time that I had available. And after debating about tying or machine quilting and then putting it off for a couple weeks, I realized I had to get started if it was going to be done for Christmas. The quilt measures about 88x96. Once I started the machine quilting, it really wasn't as bad as I remembered working with that big a piece.
I did get some great advice from the fabric store owner where I purchased $28 worth of thread to quilt it with...Following her advice, I used monofilament and stitched in the ditch around the major sections of the quilt. This was the most time consuming part. But, once that was finished, it made quilting it so much easier! I could move the quilt around without worrying about smoothing the back every time and wondering if puckers were forming. I highly recommend this. I also used the Bottom Line thread for the first time. (I think that is what it is called.) I love it. A bobbin full of this thread lasts and lasts and it doesn't seem to want to pull to the top like regular weight threads. Also, it's fine enough that it kind of disappears into the backing.
I have only the outer border to quilt and then I'll be ready to bind it. I love finishing a quilt...it happens so rarely that it is quite a reason to celebrate when I actually accomplish it!

I must say, I am going to have to set up a sewing place in the main floor of our house. I set up my machine for quilting on the dining room table and although I do love being alone in my sewing room, I didn't feel like I had abandoned my family for the days I was quilting. I have a treadle machine that I think I will move to the dining room and will set a basket of scraps next to it. Then, when I have snippets of time, I can sit down and sew some little pieces together.
I'm excited about this, but first have to finish that quilt! I can't afford to get side-tracked this close to Christmas!

Merry Christmas, everyone. I've posted a few of our favorite cookie recipes at www.quilterscookiecollection.blogspot.com The raspberry ones and the cranberry noels are a must!

After you are done making cookies... :) ..remember to take some time each day to stretch or exercise. It's such a busy, stressful time of year and a brisk walk or exercise tape might be just what we need to make it through the stress! The busier and more stressful it is, the more we neglect our health. So, even if you can only squeeze in 15 minutes of exercise, do it. You'll feel better for it.

Until next time..which I hope is sooner than later. I'll take a picture when I get my little treadle set up in it's new location!

Postcards Battle Cancer-Fiberart for a Cause- At International Quilt Festival in Houston

2006-09-29T14:12:00.000-05:00

Fiberartists from around the world have donated more than 2300 fiberart postcards to raise funds for the American Cancer Society at InternationalQuilt Festival-Houston. Choose a wonderful fiberart postcard for each $30 donation to the American Cancer Society. Payment is BY CHECK to the ACS with 100% of funds raised donated to the ACS. The first 1000 patrons will receive a special ribbon,"Postcards Battle Cancer."
****The Fiberart for a Cause booth will be on the Main Aisle in Special Exhibits****
Fiberart For A Cause has already raised $53,000 and our goal for IQF-Houston is to raise the total to $100,000 donated to the ACS in only eighteen months.
Visit http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACSFundraiser.html

For my Coffeehouse quilting friends...a Postcard tutorial

2006-09-28T14:40:00.000-05:00

There are more ways to start a postcard than there are quilters. This is just one way to get your creative juices flowing. Here we have 2 examples of postcard backgrounds that I stitched up yesterday. I had 30 minutes before we had to leave for guitar lessons and I hadn't been to my sewing room in...oh....2 weeks, maybe. I felt the need to sew something, anything...but didn't have the luxury of sitting and pondering what! So I grabbed my sack of trimmings and just sewed them down to a background. Liking the results, I did 2 more and took pictures to share with you. No, you don't need pictures for something this simple. But, some of you are more visual than others. So, I took pictures. You can see that the green one, has a scrappy shape already sewn over the strips. It was green and sitting there on top of the pile, so I sewed it on. The goal is to add layers to create an interesting background.

Steps #1 and 2

2006-09-28T14:34:00.000-05:00

Okay....why 1 and 2 for such a simple beginning? Because, in order to do this 'tutorial' in order, I had to start with the last picture first, since my blog posts each new post above the previous one. Can I change that? Anyway....because I am pressed for time...I didn't plan this out. I just figured...5 steps and started with step 5. Oh, come on . Some of you do the same thing..please?
Of course, had I taken a picture of the actual sewing, there would have been 5 steps. I know my limitations as a teacher! :)
Here we are. Trimming a piece of muslin that is backed with Decor Bond. I just happened to have a large piece of this already bonded from a time when I practiced drawing some doll faces. Anyway....I trimmed it to a little over 4x6 so after I've sewn my strips on, and embellishing, I can trim exactly to postcard size. I really like raw irregular edges, but haven't been happy with my attempts to make a finished edge good enough to go through the mail and yet have it jagged. So there you have it. You are now ready to grab your scraps and sew!

Step #3

2006-09-28T14:31:00.000-05:00

Ahhh...a pile of scraps. These are mostly strips and selvedges from trimming the boys' 4H quilts and from the time I cut my entire scrap box into 2.5" squares! Yes...I think you ought to dump it out in a pile so you can really dig through it. This is a modest pile. I shared some with some quilting friends last year and it's gradually built up again. This is sitting right next to my machine, for the moment!

Step #4

2006-09-28T14:26:00.000-05:00

I sorted out a pile of oranges because I'm creating a background that will read...you guessed it...orange. I keep a scissors close by to cut strips if they scraps are too big. Otherwise, I use them, frayed or irregular edges..doesn't matter. I forgot to take a picture of the sewing, but I think you can figure that out! I kept it simple. Straight stitch. I didn't turn under any edges. I simply layed down a strip, stitched...then grabbed another strip and did the same. Some strips I used the wrong side to add texture/color. After these backgrounds are done, I'll add something for strong visual impact on the top.

Step #5

2006-09-28T14:25:00.000-05:00

Here it is. A completed background for a postcard. See how easy and how quick that was? This is all commercial fabric except for one scrap of hand painted that somehow didn't make it in my hand painted scrap bin!
Now what? That's up to you! Try something simple, like cutting a black swirly shape and fusing it right over your background. Or add some chiffon first.....or after! I think this one would make a good Halloween card if I cut a fused black piece out like a jack-o-lantern or cat.

New cards for American Cancer fund raiser

2006-09-21T12:31:00.000-05:00

These cards are in progress. Handpainted fabrics on commercial black batik. I'm not sure where to go from here so they've been sitting on my sewing table just waiting. The deadline is coming soon, so I've got to finish up my Cancer Society cards and get them off to Virginia. Last we heard, she was getting dangerously close to the goal of 1800 fiberart postcards for the Houston Festival this fall.

I've done my exercise for the day and am feeling better than I deserve! Don't forget to move your bod today....and then go and create something!

New card

2006-09-21T12:29:00.000-05:00

"Falling #1". Not a stunning fiberart postcard but I wanted to show it because I found the culest chiffon scarf. It is navy with white spots, which you can see I placed over the silk. The rest is commercial fabrics and threads from my sewing room floor!

And Basil too.

2006-08-31T22:58:00.000-05:00

This picture just happened to be in with all my dye pictures! Basil with his cuddly 'bone'. And he is sitting on our newest ugly couch. Not as ugly as the previous couch... This one is in great shape, despite the dull fabric... and for only $20!

More from dye day.

2006-08-31T22:53:00.000-05:00

If you read this blog last month, you might recall that on the boys' tie dye day, I took an entire washload of vintage fabrics and odds and ends to the basement with us and I spent a good amount of time after the boys were done with their tshirts, playing with the leftover dyes. This piece is part of a large yellow linen shirt. The label is Saks 5th Avenue. I got it at a thrift store bag sale. I didn't think the original shirt was that whoopdiebang....hence, the dye. I've found that linen takes the Procion dyes quite nicely.
I've already started a new stash of odds and ends fabrics. I picked up 3 more pieces from the thrift store yesterday. I passed up a crinkly natural muslin piece...almost gauze, but thicker. I may have to go back for it! lol

Pillowcase insert

2006-08-31T22:50:00.000-05:00

The fuschia piece is a piece of vintage lace surrounded by muslin that would have been used for a pillowcase insert...I believe. It dyed beautifully. It's draped over some hand painted linen that I frequently use as a small table covering. I've cut a piece out of one corner, though..so I may actually start using it in some fiberart soon.

Gradation all lined up..

2006-08-31T22:47:00.000-05:00

Here are all the pieces lined up. I used up leftover dyes from our tie dye day. And on that day I had mixed 8 or 9 different jars, all slightly different, but didn't write anything down.

More from my first gradation

2006-08-31T22:46:00.000-05:00

My first Gradation

2006-08-31T22:41:00.000-05:00

The following fabrics are from the day the boys did tie dye. I wanted to try a gradation so I set about to do so, in a rather haphazard fashion. I missed the adding salt part until I reread the instructions, so I added it later. Something distracted me and I had to leave the salt just sitting on top of the fabric bundles. When I got back to the basement, I stirred the salt in. I was pleasantly surprised at the results and can't wait to try it again.

Garden Spider again

2006-08-24T15:03:00.000-05:00

The garden spider continues to fascinate me. I was deadheading the flowers and accidentally jiggled her web and the garden spider skittered (what do spiders do?) up to the spent flower head. She sat poised there just waiting for whatever touched her web to land. She is at least twice the size she was last time I took her photo. Can you find her? This digital camera doesn't take a clear enough photo to really get a good close up. I'm going to rig up my other camera with a close up lens and take some pictures later.
I was sorry to disappoint her, but I just didn't have time to stay for lunch! :)

Garden Dance?

2006-08-24T10:32:00.000-05:00

I was out in my garden picking tomatoes, okra, squash...what have you... and having filled my bucket but still seeing more to pick, I pulled up my shirt front and filled it with tomatoes. I felt something crawling on me, and looking down, saw large black ants all over me. I didn't want to drop my tomatoes, so I spastically brushed off ants, stomping, shaking, dancing and calling for help. Somehow I knew help would not come. So, still feeling creepy crawly, I made my way to the house with one hand holding the overfull bucket, one hand holding up my shirt front, I pushed my way into the house and called for help; not crazy and uncontrolled, but with a definite sense of urgency. I could still see ants...I was stomping....calling.. Finally Davey calls from the book room rather annoyed, "What's going on?" In a desperate attempt to brush off yet another offender, I dropped some tomatoes. Splat. On the kitchen floor. Dave finally saunters up from the basement...Davey comes in from the bookroom. They just kind of stared at me blankly. And I let them have it, while picking up the tomato sauce from the floor. How many times have I ever come in the house yelling for assistance, in an almost, but not quite, panicked way? Never!
Dave still was looking on as I stomped the life out of the last of the black ants that had dared to hop aboard. He suggested I take a shower. Then, he went back to the basement...Davey went back to the book room. I took a shower. Booked my ticket to Australia. :)

Haiku

2006-08-24T10:03:00.000-05:00

I am always inspired by Virginia Spiegel's newsletter and in each 'issue' she shares a haiku. After reading the newsletter this time, I was reminded about how I get so busy with so many projects and thoughts that eventually I get nothing done. And I have to force myself to do something quiet to still all the busy stuff! When I can, I go to my sewing room and just sew. I pick up some scraps and sew them together. I started a quilt not long ago for this very reason. It gives me something simple to do, to calm down and regain some focus. It was relaxing to just go to my sewing room and cut 2.5 inch squares from scraps and sew them together. So, with that....here is my first haiku. Virginia said the more I write, the faster they'll come.

Busy thoughts all noise;
Rhythmic hum clears the way,
brings focus and life.

Fiberart For a Cause Early Bird Deadline

2006-08-24T08:09:00.000-05:00

Just a reminder that September 6 is the receive-by Early Bird deadline for the Fiberart For A Cause fiberart postcards for International Quilt Festival- Houston. The final deadline is October 1.
Why make the Early Bird Deadline? We have 85 great donated prizes including a fiberart postcard from our Karen Stiehl Osborn and over 40 prizes from Karey Bresenhan herself including tickets to IQF and the Bernina Fashion Show and copies of the new Journal Quilt book. All the details are here:http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACS/MakingFFACPostcards.html

Postcards will be available at IQF-Houston for a $30 donation to the American Cancer Society. Our goal is to raise almost $50,000 during IQF-Houston - $30 at a time. It is a crazy-ambitious goal, but since this is the fiberart postcards' last hurrah, I believe we can do it!

Garden spider

2006-08-13T23:43:00.000-05:00

My friend the garden spider. I wish this picture was clearer. The markings on these spiders is really something to marvel at.

The jungle we call home

2006-08-13T23:33:00.000-05:00

This is part of the garden. Right front, are the grapes. Back to the right are the tomatoes which have grown over their 6 foot tall cages. If you look closely, you'll see the top of the sunflower behind the tomatoes. It's at least 12 feet tall...or was. I finally knocked it over tonight because it was shading 2 tomato plants. Across the front is a perennial bed. In the back...climbing asian melons, japanese cukes and the zucchini in the picture below. What you can't see....winter squash, peppers, more tomatoes, beans, onions, beets, chard, flowers, herbs, summer squash, cukes, eggplant, radishes... And summer is almost over. Here in Nebraska we are pretty sure we'll have at least another month in the growing season. After the 30th of September, each non-frost day is a blessing to the gardener wanting to eeek out just a few more veggies. By the end of September, I'm usually ready to clean up and get ready for the winter. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Many days yet to come...lots of veggies to put up!

Zucchetta Rampicante-Tromboncino

2006-08-13T23:30:00.000-05:00

Or...Italian Trombone squash. This is my favorite zucchini. The neck is all squash, no seeds. And the leaves are quite handsome, if I do say so.

Tie Dye Tshirts

2006-08-08T13:04:00.000-05:00

These are the boys' tie dye tshirts. Davey is entering his in open class. Luke and Adam will enter theirs as a part of their Clover Kid exhibits. We tried some different designs from last year and the boys were really excited to see the results. I had 3 colors of procion dyes and I mixed up 8 jars of dye. I didn't keep a record of amounts, I just winged it. I put a scant T. total of dye per cup of water. At least I think that is what I did! :) I remember the day, though. It was over 100 degrees and very humid. And I went out to the garage decked out in long sleeves, gloves, head covering, goggles, respirator and shorts. I just couldn't stand the thought of also wearing long pants. I carried all the stuff out, mixed my dyes, carried it in, cleaned up the mess outside. Only then did I take off all the protective clothing. I was a walking sauna!
The rest of the day, however, was spent in the basement. First the boys came down and tie dyed, then I stayed to clean up the excess dye. It took me a long time to clean up. And by the time I was done, I had enough fabric dyed to fill the washer completely. Of course, I did it in batches, but that gives you an idea of just how much fabric I had fun dyeing.
The boys are going to tie dye underwear for their college age cousins for Christmas. Guess I'll have to order more dye! Well....if I have to.

Davey's Quilt

2006-08-08T12:37:00.000-05:00

Davey is 12 and made this quilt from the Bento Box pattern. He started by choosing a focus fabric from which to choose his pairs of contrasting prints. He used the focus fabric for the back and binding. He did all the sewing and quilting and sewed on the binding, all by machine.
He will be entering this quilt for his 4H Quilt Quest project. The quilt is 45x45. Davey also wants to make this pattern again and make it big enough for his bed.

Adam's quilt

2006-08-08T12:34:00.000-05:00

Adam's quilt is 28x28. He chose the fabrics and the pattern, Butterfly Flip. He thought it was really cool because I let him pick something with triangles. This is a great pattern for beginners..I'm going to use it to make some baby quilts. Adam wants to make a quilt big enough for his bed next. Adam machine quilted it using the walking foot. I applied the binding.

Luke's quilt

2006-08-08T12:30:00.000-05:00

Luke will be entering this quilt in the county fair. Luke will be 6 years old in September. Luke chose the fabrics, I cut them, and he sewed them while sitting on my lap. We started out only to make a small quilt, but it was going so well, we ended up with enough blocks to make a quilt for his twin bed. I think the size is about 48x 64. We tied it instead of quilting it so it would be more snuggly. The backing is a light green flannel with fortune cookies and sayings because he loves to collect the slips of paper from fortune cookies any time we eat at our favorite Chinese restaurant. I sewed the binding on.

August Dreams #1

2006-08-03T13:35:00.000-05:00

Well, I thought I had put the front of the card on my blog first! Must have gone down the internet Bermuda Triangle!
This is a piece that I sent to Sue Kelly for a Quilting on the Waterfront display and which will then go on to Virginia Spiegel for Fiberart For a Cause once the Waterfront show is over. Hand painted, hand dyed, and commercial fabrics.

Back of August Dreams #1

2006-08-03T11:12:00.000-05:00

Here is the back. This particular piece of fabric...a scrap of hand dyed pillow ticking retains it's crinkles...I like that term better than wrinkles. I like the extra texture.

Hand dyed lace

2006-08-02T22:47:00.000-05:00

I have several pieces of old lace just like this one, so I decided to see how it would take the dye. While the boys were tie dyeing their tshirts, which by the way, turned out awesome.. I played too! I think the rest of this lace will go into my "to dye" bag for the next play day!

Great day to dye

2006-07-30T21:43:00.000-05:00

Phew. The sun was incredibly intense today and our temps were over 100 once again. I didn't even want to go out to turn the hose on the garden! But I did, lest it perish. Since I couldn't work outside, I decided today was the day to do the kids' tie dye for the fair, which is 9 days from today. Before I set up for that, I tied Luke's quilt. Only the binding and one more project will be done! Yeehaw!I have a stack of fabrics in my sewing room that I pick up at the thrift store for little or nothing. Most I intend to paint on. But some were all cotton, or I'm hoping so, and I gathered those and threw them in the washer along with some old bits of laces, tablecloths, vintage type stuff. I have a whole basket of vintage stuff, like trims off of pillowcases and portions of blouses that were saved. Well, I decided I'm more likely to use them if they have color and so I threw those in the washer too. I felt brave and daring! :)
I thought I could sneak in a little painting before the boys came down to tie dye, but once they discovered I was missing, they quickly found me and decided they were ready to tie dye. They tried some new things from last year's tshirts, so I am looking forward to rinsing them out and seeing how they turn out.

I had a bigger stack of fabrics than I thought and I was in the basement for probably 5 hours? Could it be? It was wonderful.
Now, in reality, the 4H projects would have only taken 30 minutes! I sure stretched that project out! ha.
While I was luxuriating in the cool basement, Dave and Davey were out making a bird bath. We found online instructions for a hand cast bird bath using a rhubarb leaf. They used vinyl patch concrete stuff and smoothed it over a rhubarb leaf that was vein side up and laying over a pile of sand. I hope it turns out as cool as the picture on the website! That's another 4H project. I let the boys sign up for too many projects, but it has been fun and we don't always get to projects like this until the fair rolls around each year. So, I'm trying to stay positive as we are in the final week and trying to wrap up each project.
Time to walk Basil. He is our little Shih Tsu. He has been missing me today as he doesn't come to the basement. I could hear him part of the day whining at the top of the stairs! Good thing he didn't come down. I am looking at my clothes and noticing that my clothes captured quite a bit of flying dye! And I finally have a real green thumb....(and index finger).Wonder how long it takes for the dye to wear off?
Another searing day tomorrow, and then hopefully back to some more comfortable 80s and 90s.

Anne

The old procion dyes

2006-07-30T21:42:00.000-05:00

I should add that the year old procion dyes that I had mixed and in the fridge were only water and dye. I didn't add anything else. I know that makes a difference.

It worked!

2006-07-04T15:59:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it! I've had the Procion dyes mixed and in my fridge for nearly a year since the kids did tie dye. I soaked my fabrics in soda ash and very quickly used up what was left in the squirt bottles.
I just rinsed a couple of pieces after only letting them sit for 3 hours. The poly/cotton piece took the dye, albiet lightly, as expected. The crinkly cotton looks awesome. I'm glad I decided to use those dyes! Waste not, want not! :) I'll rinse the rest of the pieces tomorrow.

This is a good day!

2006-07-04T12:04:00.000-05:00

Today is a holiday. And even though we have a family meal this evening followed by fireworks, I am not slaving away in the kitchen! I bought 2 dozen ears of sweet corn for my contribution to the family meal! How easy and wonderful is that? I provided fresh cream so my brother could make ice cream and then I mixed up a small batch of sugar free ice cream for my Dad. But that's it for cooking today! Weehaw!
I set out to use up some old procion dye that has been sitting in my fridge. The kids are going to make tie dyeds again for the fair and I want to mix up fresh dye for that. But I didn't want to waste all the dye currently in the squeeze bottles. So, I grabbed some pieces of fabric from my sewing room and will see just how well that dye holds up in the fridge! I know I've had it in there way too long, but nothing ventured, nothing gained! I have a sack full of odds and ends (fabric) that I've picked up at the thrift store with the intention of painting on them. I also use PFD Kona, but like to variety and fun of using other fabrics as well. However, I'm cheap...so I pick up what I can at next to nothing in cost. So, if the dyes don't take....oh well! It was 20 minutes of fun anyway.
Dave took the boys to an airshow today and will be home soon. I stayed home so I could have just a little creative time today. Hope you too can squeeze in something fun and spontaneous today.

2006-07-03T16:02:00.000-05:00

I finished a baby quilt! And the baby is only 4 months old. This is a close up of the quilt. It is the YBR pattern once again. When I want to make something quick and without thinking too much, I choose a pattern like YBR. I pulled brights from my stash, which makes me feel great because then I can replace them someday with new stuff! :) The boys and I ran errands in town today. I stopped to pick up some paint chips as I'm ready to finish the kitchen. I love the color scheme and idea on the cover quilt on the newest issue of McCalls Quilting. I think I'd like to do my kitchen in that color scheme and I am anxious to get it started while I'm excited about it! I stopped in at one of my favorite thrift stores...Bag sale day! Yeah. I bought some fabrics...I mean, clothes..hehe. I bought a sweater that is kind of a granny square pattern and a coordinating dress to make a couple pillows for my bedroom. Last week, I found 5 yards of purple silk for next to nothing. I'm going to incorporate it into a window dressing for my bedroom. First, I have to buy curtain rods....bother.. But at least I have some ideas. That's a plus. It never ceases to amaze me how many ideas I come up with when I am the busiest and have the least amount of time to actually do anything with those ideas. I really should get better at journaling during those times.

2006-06-22T17:36:00.000-05:00

Well, "Jake" is coming along. I decided his shoes are too small for the size of his body, so I'm going to make another pair. A few more embellishing touches and he'll be done.

2006-05-14T22:51:00.000-05:00

"Jake" in progress. Notice a recurring theme here..In progress..in the making....? I haven't made a big doll in quite some time so I chose Jake, a pattern by Ute Vasina (www.enchantingdelights.com) that I happened to have in my pattern stash. For the past 2 years, my mother's day has consisted of lunch out and a plant buying spree. But best of all, I have gotten several hours of time in my sewing room..complete with delivered meals and snacks.
I have been making so many postcards and actually quilt tops lately..well, many for me anyway,..that I haven't really had the extra time to make a doll. And dolls are so much fun.
So, my Mother's Day project was Jake. I had most of his body pieces prepared ahead of time. I did the face sculpting today and assembled the body..or at least what I could. I ran out of pipe cleaners so his other arm and ears will have to wait until later in the week. The ears really change his looks, so come back next week...when Jake will have his ears and maybe even his clothes! I think I've created enough chaos in my sewing room over the past couple of months that it's about time for...a finishing spree.
I discovered some time back, that despite the fact that I would like to be able to start one project and finish that one before moving on, I work best with several projects in the hopper....just on the edge of chaos, but not quite. Then, at some point, I get in an energetic frenzy and finish a bunch of things....or pass them along to some unsuspecting friend...And during that crazy time, I usually tidy up my sewing room to get ready for the next wave. It's a recurring cycle and I'm glad I'm finally at peace with that. :)

2006-05-11T17:43:00.000-05:00

Another postcard in the making. I prepared the backgrounds for several more today. This will be Prairie Winds #2.The background on this one is also more of a navy blue.

2006-05-11T14:26:00.000-05:00

A new postcard in the making. I textured a plain piece of navy fabric..It's got a lovely sheen to it, which isn't visible on the scan. I'm calling this Prairie Winds #1, because the winds are blowing a gale today.

2006-05-01T09:42:00.000-05:00

"Fading" #1....altered just a tad. I burned off a little of the chiffon just now. I think it is an improvement...I can't do much more because I didn't stitch over it, so the threads will be loose if I burn any more. Of course...I think it needs the darker blue on the right, so maybe I should burn it off and do something else in that space. Technically the card is 'finished'. Perhaps I should stop on this card and just start another!

2006-05-01T09:20:00.000-05:00

"Fading" #1. I have some images that I transferred to fabric years ago and never used. So, I thought I would start using them. I wanted to give the image an even more faded look, so I fused a chiffon scarf over the top. I should have just fused it over the face and not the blue because now the blue area looks dusty...or something. The "Fading" series is in honor of my father in law who suffered with Alzheimers. I felt as if we were fading away. There would be times when we felt there was a spark of recognition, but he was unable to verbalize anything so we never really knew. He reached out to my boys once and tears started streaming down his face. I really feel at that time he may have thought he was looking at his little boys many years ago.

FFAC Invitational Reverse Auction....Coming Soon!!

2006-04-25T09:27:00.000-05:00

Last year's reverse auction for FFAC was a rousing success and it's back again this year. I love the pieces available. Take a look now because the "buy now" option is for one day only on May 15th! The auction then opens on the morning of the 16th and goes to the 23rd. What a cool way to support a great cause and own some wonderful fiber art!
The link is under websites to the left!

2006-04-18T13:43:00.000-05:00

We need lots of quality postcards for IQF in Houston!

2006-04-17T12:23:00.000-05:00

Fiberart For A Cause is an international group of fiber artists
raising funds for the American Cancer Society. 4" x 6" fiberart
postcards are needed for the FFAC booth at International
Quilt Festival - Houston. For a$30 donation to the ACS,
patrons are able to choose and take home a smallwork of art.
Please visit
http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/NewFiles/ACSMakingFFACPostcards.html
for information about making and donating the postcards.
The deadline isOctober 1, 2006.
Fiberart For A Cause has raised $50,000 in just over a year
for the American Cancer Society. If you have questions, please contactVirginia@VirginiaSpiegel.com

2006-04-14T08:52:00.000-05:00

Close up! I just knew you'd want to see it. :)

2006-04-14T08:50:00.000-05:00

I cut off the ends of 6 bananas to make bread this morning and thought it was so cool! ha. It's early in the day so I'm easily amused. You can't see all the details in the banana peel, but it's pretty neat. And the way the stems all come together... Well, I had to share something today and this just may be it. Now to wipe off my scanner!

2006-04-09T23:20:00.000-05:00

Seeds #1. I challenged our doll club to make a pindoll using a seed packet. I encouraged the members to use glue and make this a quick and spontaneous project. Well, doll club is this Tuesday, so I had to get on the ball, even if I anticipated it being a quick project! I collaged bits of the sugar snap pea packet under that wonderful super fine scarf I found. The face is from a mold using paperclay then painted. The hair is a trimming from Scrapings #1 below! I love this fabric!

2006-04-09T23:17:00.000-05:00

Crossings #1-- 4x6. More of that interesting fabric that I picked up at the thrift store. I pulled some apart today and embellished a doll with it.

2006-04-09T23:16:00.000-05:00

Plum Beet #1. I actually made this piece to cut up into little pieces, but I liked it well enough as is. It probably should be in the Scrapings series as it is basically stuff I pick up off the floor or cutting board. In this case, a bouquet of 'silk' flowers that I couldn't throw away, but am ready for them to move on!

2006-04-07T16:53:00.000-05:00

Scrapings #1 -- Fiberart postcard, 4x6. Made from the fall off from the last 8 postcards! Literally....scraping it off my cutting board. The background is some cool wool/something fabric I picked up at the thrift store. I've been wanting to see what it would look like with machine quilting over it...so I used it as a background today to try it out. I couched itty bitty scraps for the binding edge. Wierd...but fun.

2006-04-07T11:42:00.000-05:00

This was the beginning of the snowstorm a couple of weeks ago. You can tell by street that we hadn't gotten our 15 inches yet!

2006-04-03T00:28:00.000-05:00

Adam's first postcard. And this one is by Adam, age 8. He very carefully cut out his favorite pictures from the scraps in the scrapbox and layered them just so. Then he was especially thrilled that I let not only choose which stitches to use..but gave him free reign to do as he wished. Luke has to sit on my lap. I don't trust him with the machine yet!

2006-04-03T00:26:00.000-05:00

Lest I forget....This is Luke's (age 5) first postcard. He and Adam started off making fabric collages on a piece of ticking that I had ironed fusible to. When they were done, I suggested they make postcards and see if they could swap with someone. Adam mailed his last week. Luke is hoping I'll get his mailed to someone this week. Both boys loved using the fancy stitches.

2006-04-03T00:07:00.000-05:00

Windows #3. I have a pile of clothing tags that I cut out of sweaters when I felt them..or from clothing that I take buttons off of or simply clothing that has seen better days. Speaking of buttons..I was at the thrift shop a couple of weeks ago and they were getting rid of all the winter stuff. You could fill 2 bags for free. Well, I picked up some wonderful jeans...but best of all, I found a dress with gorgeous mother of pearl buttons. I threw that dress in my bag and as soon as I got home, clipped those buttons off to add to my little collection of mother of pearl buttons. They are so delightful...the sound and feel of them is so ...wonderful.
Anyway, back to the tags. I've been in a spring fling frenzy in my sewing room. I'm trying to actually use some of the stuff that I've collected in there. I also have been sorting through a little at a time and getting rid a just enough things that my room feels refreshed without the burden of the stale stuff....and stuff that really shouldn't have been in there in the first place! Of course, the boys were given a chance to remove any Legos....before I threw them in my bucket of toys to take to the painting table! I think Legos would be fantastic! (she says with a glint in her eye.)

2006-04-03T00:03:00.000-05:00

Windows #1. This was the first window that got me started. I cleaned out my scrap box over the course of the last couple of weeks. Every time I went past my sewing room, I'd iron another scrap and cut 2.5" squares from what I could. If I could get another 2" strip from the piece, I'd cut that. Then the little pieces and strips went into a bag or shoebox. I sat the box next to me at my sewing machine today and just reached for pieces that I felt worked with the background. I didn't labor over each piece, which is painfully clear in most! :) To begin with, however..a couple of weeks ago, I prepared a long strip of fabric about 6.5" wide and 50" long, or so. It was just a scrap of pillow ticking that I picked up at the thrift store. I tore more scraps and sewed them to the strip. Then, I painted one piece very thickly and pressed the other pieces to it until I couldn't get any more paint off. I poured water on a couple of pieces to change the texture, somewhat.

2006-04-02T23:55:00.000-05:00

Windows #9-12. I really meant to title this series, simply....Window so as not to conjure up Windows as a computer thing.. But alas..I was halfway done labeling, when I realized my mistake. Oh well. Perhaps the rest of the series will begin as Window #1.

2006-04-02T23:48:00.000-05:00

Windows #9. The purple window in #9 is dryer lint felt. I found a super fine scarf at the thrift store. When fused over threads, you can barely see it. If you look closely, you can see a slight orange haze, just a small rectangle, over the yellow thread and into the purple window. I really am going to have to look for more scarves like this. Unlike tulle, you have to look to really see the scarf. I'm guessing it is what is referred to as chiffon?

2006-04-02T23:45:00.000-05:00

Windows #5-8. More postcards in the Windows series.

2006-04-02T23:44:00.000-05:00

Windows #1-4. A series of postcards using textured then painted fabric, commercial fabrics, found objects, ..and stuff off the floor of my sewing room! A couple pieces even have stuff I pulled back out of my sewing room trash can!

2006-04-02T23:41:00.000-05:00

Blatant #1. This postcard is a combination of cheesecloth, handpainted fabric, silk and threads. I think this piece would be more dramatic framed with a dark..maybe blue/purple background. What do you think?

2006-03-01T17:36:00.000-06:00

I was pretty sure I was quiet when I tiptoed up to my sewing room late this afternoon, determined to sew, if only for a little bit. Luke, age 5, must have sensed that I was all alone in my quiet room as he followed me not more than 5 minutes later. Ah, how fine tuned the boys' senses are. Luke wanted to make 'something' with the scraps, so I gave him a piece of muslin and told him to arrange the scraps and I would sew them down. The fleece scraps were from his own stash, as he saved them from the trash one day. So, this is Luke's finished piece. He's going to hang it in his room. Not to be left out, Adam, age 8, is now up in my sewing room designing his own collage. So, as it's that time already, I'm off to the currently quiet kitchen to whip up a tasty meal. I won't be alone for long!

2006-02-19T15:54:00.000-06:00

Had to put in some couch time with the flu, so I finished this washcloth today. The cluster of grapes isn't quite as visible with the variegated yarn.

2006-02-19T15:51:00.000-06:00

This is a dishcloth that I'm working on with my monthly dishcloth knitalong group.

2006-02-17T15:30:00.000-06:00

I love Sprees. I scanned my last 4 before I popped them in my mouth. Aren't they pretty? I've issued a challenge to my quilting group to use this image as inspiration to make a quilt block...pieced, fused..whatever. If you feel compelled to do the same, and want to share your image, let me know. I'll add it to this post. Now back to the sewing room. I'm trying to figure out what to do to the quilt posted below..

2006-01-29T22:45:00.000-06:00

Okay....this is my quilt in progress. I bought the blue fabric recently and hoped to draw from my stash for the rest of the quilt. It's been interesting. I had picked another color for the dark color in the 3rd border, but didn't have enough fabric, so had to choose another. You might notice that I changed the 2nd border's corner squares. This is nearly a first for me. I don't take out stitches very often! I live with it or start over. Mom used to do the ripping out when I was a girl doing my 4H sewing. She'll rip out and rip out until she gets something exactly the way she wants it.
Me? Well...I trim to make it fit, cover it up, make do.. hehe I figure if the quilt doesn't turn out just the way I want it, I'll know what didn't work and can try to improve it the next round.
Speaking of improvements... Those triangle borders are not piece of cake for an inaccurate quilter like myself. That doesn't sound nice....Creative solutions quilter..Ah, better. I didn't think about those borders being tricky until I pieced the first one.
First, I tried trimming the points before piecing. Ah. They fit like a charm on the cutting table. I would sew them together and despite my painfully accurate trimming of the points, the triangles would be a little woppy jog one way or another. It was really annoying. I did pick out a few of those because you can only straighten so much with the rotary cutter. Those that I didn't pick out and sew over, were carefully trimmed before applying to the quilt. Because of that, I lost a few points on one side of that 3rd border. So on the next side I did some judicious maneuvering so that the points were not lost! And...believe it or not..it lays flat.

Where was I? Creative solutions.. Well, I got pretty frustrated with my triangles and I finally did another thing that I don't often take the time to do, and in the end, it saved me loads of time and frustration. I made a sample of the 2 triangles sewn together..made sure it was perfect (well, as perfect as it gets for me, anyway......) I laid that on my table and used it to line up the rest of the triangles. No more point trimming. And almost all of them turned out fairly respectable.

This might be the beginning of something new here....Picking out stitches, actually sewing a sample....What could be next?

For the record...even though I'm a self proclaimed non-accurate piecer (piecer...my spellcheck doesn't like piecer. I can understand woppy....but piecer?)....Well, I can piece accurately...and intricately even. It's just not that important to me in the grand scheme of things. Well..yes and no. I'm particularly proud of a quilt block that turns out perfect. But it's always accidental and not likely to be repeated unless I sweat over it. Plus, there is the time issue. The time I get in my sewing room is not as broad a time span as I used to get, so when I'm up there I really want to accomplish something! If I sew two pieces together, I like them to stay that way so I can sew another two pieces! :)
Okay, back to the record part . Even with my creative piecing, this quilt is actually square as of this moment. I cropped the photo to try and remove as much of the curtain as possible. I just wanted to make that clear!

Comments welcome, as usual. Currently, all the fabrics are Hoffman batiks. Oh to have a budget to replace them all! :)

Fundraiser Links

2006-01-13T13:08:00.000-06:00

I've updated my toolbar to the left to include a couple of fiberart fundraisers for this spring. Take a look, mark your calendars and participate if you can!

Changed my mind

2006-01-12T18:16:00.000-06:00

Well, I've had the previous piece up on the curtain for a week now and I think I'll start over! Back to the drawing board!
I have decided I need to change out the 4 corners, and I hate picking out! :)

2006-01-07T19:22:00.000-06:00

Quilt in progress. This was the center for a queen size quilt.....but I've changed my mind! It is 24" right now. I bought the blue in the border for the main fabric. The rest will be pulled from my stash. The white triangles are actually a batik with some blue and a little yellow. I will continue this by adding another 4 borders, just like the 2 already surrounding the center square.
My question is...do I bring back the lightest triangle for the next round? I will need it somewhere else in the quilt, won't I? Opinions welcome.

2005-12-29T17:23:00.000-06:00

I pieced this 36" square top today. I just had to sew something, having come from several weeks of thinking only Christmas presents! This is from a book on making Welsh quilts. I plan on machine quilting it using traditional Welsh quilting designs. I wonder if I have backing...I could start tonight!

Update: 1/24/2006. I found some black batting last week. It's poly by the makers of Warm & Natural. I'm not thrilled about it being poly. I really prefer cotton for machine quilting because poly moves around so much.
Someone commented about the transparency. I was so thrilled when I noticed that too! I didn't think much about it before piecing. (Theme here:..Anne never thinks much before piecing....) I love that effect in quilts. The striped fabric is a Hoffman batik and the smoky blue is a Kaffe Fasset shot cotton. I love the shot cottons and have a few little pieces. I may have to buy some bigger pieces!

2005-12-21T22:04:00.000-06:00

"Fences" #1. I worked on this at the same time as "Fives" #6. While we were traveling through Wyoming and Colorado this summer, I started noticing how many different kinds of fences there were. I started sketching them in my journal. I haven't referred to my journal lately, but this piece reminded me so much of the tall snow fences. This piece is 6x8 and will have a frame of some kind. I haven't ventured that far yet.

2005-12-19T13:55:00.001-06:00

Or this way? I've sent this picture through picasa several times with the 3 bars on the bottom, and it keeps flipping it back! If you stand on your head you can see it the other way! :)

2005-12-19T13:55:00.000-06:00

"Fives 6" turned another way. Which orientation looks better?