Friday, July 6, 2012

Learning to go with the flow...

I mentioned that this week has been totally different for me than last. I am learning to go with the flow of the energy that is available to me. Yesterday, I was able to clean the house and do the laundry in preparation for DDIL and DGD's arrival. Once that was done I started working on that little tree wallhanging again. It is coming along rather nicely. I have the center swirls completed around the tree and 3 sides of the inner border done. This has been a learning week all around, as I used a new design in the border. The inner border sides are not the same size so this design had to be customized for the difference in sizes which really only affected the corners where the 2 different sizes meet. I found a great blog that has several great tutorials. I tried out this one The simple diamond sash motif. It is a lot of fun and adds an extra level of complexity to the design even though it is very easy quilting motifs that are used. That is one thing I am learning too, something doesn't have to be difficult in order to be complex. You need to break everything down into doable steps. A lot of repetition of smaller components makes it look much more difficult and more impressive. Several of the quilting motifs I have learned this week use this simple idea of combining 2 or 3 simple motifs to create a more complex design. Another thing I am learning to do is to add the links to take you elsewhere for additional information such as the tutorial above. We are never too old to learn new things.

Today will be spent trying to keep up with one very smart and very active 2 year old. She is so adorable, and she amazes me. Last night she was counting and she counted to 100 by 10's. You know ...50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. Just before bedtime (mine not necessarily her's) she decided that we needed to have a party and we needed to get party hats, balloons, and decorations. She didn't know who would come to our party but we needed to get those things. Later on she decided we needed a birthday cake too.
She speaks so clearly and advanced for her age. She and papa went out last evening to catch lightning bugs. She had him all over the yard searching for bugs.

Well, I am going to go get myself ready for the day because as soon as the little one wakes up I don't think I will have time to do anything else but entertain her and be entertained by her.

Have a great day, I will try to get some fun pictures of our activities today to share with you tomorrow. Remember to love on the little one's that are in your life as they don't stay little very long.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Different kind of week...

This week sure has been different for me, especially after last week. I have not accomplished much. Tuesday was pretty much a bust for me and yesterday was not a whole lot better. I did get into my studio and quilted some. I finished this art piece that I started during an online class probably 2 years ago.
I had the top and about 1/3 of the quilting done so when I was cleaning up the studio (which still needs to be done) I came across this and decided to play with the quilting again. I wanted to try out some new techniques I have been learning. So I finished it up and used the escape hatch method of applying the backing and finishing the edges. This rolls the edges under so there is no binding needed.

I also started the quilting on this piece.

Tina and I had a fabric dyeing day that included applying drops of dyes on top of shaving cream that was smoothed out in a tray, racking the dyes together and then laying the fabric on top of the foam surface to pick up the dyes. It is a variation on fabric marbling. Once the dyes were picked up from the tray there was still plenty that could be salvaged and used again, so we picked up the foam, place a stencil on a piece of fabric and applied the dye colored foam over the stencil with a squeegie. This tree is one of the images we got and I created a small wallhanging with it. Here is the detail of the quilting motif I am doing in the background.

Note to self. The thread choice was not ideal. It is too dark and stands out too much. A lighter thread color, even white would have looked better. I wanted to see the texture but not have the color of the thread change the background color. It is ok for a practice piece. This is good knowledge to have so I don't make the same mistake again. I do think it is detracts a little from the tree itself.

DH and I headed out to Joann's so I could pick up some batting yesterday afternoon and ate our lunch out at Appleby's, which is pretty amazing as DH really does not care for Appleby's. We ended up having a nice lunch and by the time we got home I was ready for another nap.

My plans for today are to get the laundry done and clean up the house as DDIL is coming with DGD. They were here when we were in Hawaii and since we didn't get to see them, she is coming back for a short visit. We are going to make stepping stones for the flower bed and I will be sure to put DGD foot prints and hand prints in them. It will be lots of fun. So there are my plans for today. Once again, I am open to them getting changed at any time for any reason. This is the day the Lord has made and I will be glad and rejoice in it, no matter what I am doing.

Have a great day and enjoy all your many blessings.

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

blissful ignorance

I did not anticipate not posting anything yesterday, but the truth is I simply did not have the energy or mental capacity to write anything. The activities of the day before just knocked me off my feet a little longer than I had anticipated. I did not do much of anything except go to the plant/produce auction to see if they had any plants that I wanted for my new soon to be flower bed. Nothing in plants although they had lots of beautiful fresh produce. I got right back in my car to come home. I decided to run up to a local nursery to see if they had anything, once again, no luck. This whole trip took about 1/2 hour and when I got home I crawled back into bed for a nap. The rest of the day was spent in bed or on the couch except for the 2 hours or so I was at the eye doctor's for my exam. By the time I got home I was ready to take another nap on the couch. Not such an exciting day. Perhaps today will be a more productive day. So far I managed to get up when the alarm went off.

It rained pretty good through out the day yesterday, so I won't be able to do any work in the flower bed. It will just be mud. So I think I will work in my studio. I don't promise any big completed projects but at least I will give it the good old American try.

I want to thank all those who have served our country in war and in peace time to keep our country free from oppression and domination. I am thankful for this great country in which we live. I know the sacrifices that have been made by many a person and family to keep this nation great. I pray for the safety of all who are serving now. I pray for those who are away from their families today, who are doing there jobs so that I can live in blissful ignorance of the all the work that is being done to keep us free in our "land of the free." I created a quilt for a challenge named Thread Tails to Vapor Trails that travelled around the U.S. last year. It is named Blissful Ignorance, after the quote by George Will. Here is a photo of the quilt.
You can click on the photos for a larger image.
You can see more about this quilt in this post

I hope you can read the quote.

Have a great Independence Day and if you have the chance, or perhaps make the chance, to thank someone for the service they have given to their country, please do so. It is what keeps our country strong and free.

Monday, July 2, 2012

Treatment day..

Sorry there is no post today as it is treatment day.
Have a great day.