Puppy Update

 There's not much going on in my life except teaching and preparing to teach, and grading papers, and well, you get it.

I did get to do a bit of sewing this week, but that's a minimal bit.  I'm still stitching on the signature wedding quilt blocks.  Thank goodness for string piecing!  I'd never finish otherwise.

The only other goings-on in our area are the heat and the puppies.  Little Miss Little is one nosy little stinker.  This is one of the few photos I have of her actually being good.  It's a bit like having an ADHD kid and giving him lots of soft drinks and sweets.  

But look at how cute she was when we named her Little.  I said (maybe too many times) that she looked like a battery operated toy.  Of course, now that her battery is always fully charged, I'm looking for the Velcro to open so I can rip that battery out!

In these photos, she managed to climb to the top of a pile of quilts and almost made it on top of my dresser.  She found, though, that she couldn't go any farther.  Yep, stuck right there.  She was afraid to go all the way to the dresser and to get back down.  An occasional yelp alerted me to her problem, so I was able to save her little white hiney before everything came tumbling down.

 Even someone else's shower is something of great curiosity to her.  


I think we got used to Cotton, who at almost 11 years old, is quiet and wants to be left alone.  The most he asks for is peace and food, although a ride in momma's car will make his entire week!    

And poor little Candy is shy and ignored.  Cotton gets momma's love, Little gets everyone's attention, and Candy is just somewhere in the corner taking it all in.  I don't even have a recent photo of her.  She refuses to sit while I figure it out and focus.  No surprise, though since her real pleasure and self-appointed job is to find things that may pose a threat to her family.  

She is especially concerned about her own reflection, any flutter outside the French door where she stands on guard for hours, and of course, soft knocks and bings from appliances.  You just never know what danger you'll find in those sounds.  Do not fear, however, because this little momma is on the job!

Pin It Wednesday #31

What could be more inspiring than a beautiful, old covered bridge surrounded by fabulous greenery, country quietude, and crystal clear water?

Time for quilt pins....enjoy!

Lola Pink, Please

I had an appointment in Lafayette, so I visited one of my favorite fabric stores.  No, I do not need fabric!  But, well heck, Richard called me on the road and suggested that I go by "one of those quilt places" and get something.  He also suggested that I get a pedicure.

I ran in for a few minutes and found only three pieces to purchase. Are they just lucious?  I passed on the pedicure because I spent enough money on these fabrics and one pattern.  (And I need to shave my legs.  Can I hear an lol?)

So the plan for these pretties is to make a couple of skirts and maybe even a cute top.  

This last piece is beautiful but also very loud...screaming loud!  It may have to be a skirt just because I could not wear it as a top: I'm a tad too heavy for such big print in such loud orange.  I don't want to look like I'm wearing a mu-mu. 

The pattern I purchased for the top is an Amy Butler tunic that can also be made into a mini dress, dress or cami.  The salesgirl at Lola Pink had a calm version of this tunic on and it looked fabulous.  She's way smaller, but I'm thinking the comfort is worth something. 

I don't like sleeveless tops but it's so hot in my classroom since the air conditioner is not working correctly.  I have some polka dot fabric that I intended to make into a top last year.  I guess it's time to put it to good use and try out this pattern.  I'll keep you posted.

Happy sewing,
Mary

Une tête à tête

I was very disappointed last week that my design submission was disqualified and didn't make it into Connecting Threads' contest, but I've had a sit-down with myself.

In Cajun French we call that a tête à tête (literally, head to head) meaning a low, private conversation between two people, but it can also mean a face-to-face discussion in which one person comes to understand something important.  Generally that person deserves the tête à tête.

So I'm facing reality now.  I really needn't have been so disappointed.  After all, I didn't give myself enough time for research or planning.  I surely did not consider that what is a great design to me may not be from another point of view.  And I didn't get much input from others.  

Basically I made an interesting discovery about the contest, had a whirl-wind romance with my ideas and in a week submitted my design.  Disappointed?....well, I hadn't considered that I might be!  

I should know better, but every now and again the wild artist persona splits and runs, and the rest of my persons can only sit and watch.  I know, I know, take the meds already, right? 

So, now that I've over it and am moving on, I thought I'd share the artwork I created before the disappointment started: alligators and lotus flowers.  My intent was to sprinkle the alligators across bright yellow and green solids and the lotus flowers on orange and muddy browns.   Ah, maybe next time.

Sunday Quilt Inspiration: BIRDS

Today's quilt inspiration is a focus on birds and aviary scenes.  Before really looking at the birds, thought, check out the berries on this painting.  They seem to extend off the canvas, while the bees are floating in air.  The thing that amazes me most in artworks are the finest lines, like these bluish flower wisps.  How does an artist pull such fine lines?

Here are a few more bird artworks that I discovered today. Some are unbelievably realistic.

And in case these bird prints inspire you, here are a few bird quilts to help you get going.  Some are serious works, some fun, and some just quirky!

Happy Quilting,
Mary

A Finish! — Chevron Quilt

The red and white chevron quilt is complete!  The label on and the photos snapped—the two chores that I am bad about getting to.

This is one that I really, really like.  I've avoided making a chevron quilt because I just didn't think I'd like the jagged design.  Well, it's not so bad after all. 

Plus, I really like that I used scraps for the red sections.  To use the scraps efficiently I stitched then into relatively square sections of fabric, then cut those down to the right size so that I could add a square of white.  Two seams later, I had two blocks of half-square triangles of red and white.  

The only thing left after that was to put the half square triangles into the right configuration to form the zigs and zags.

The quilt went together relatively quickly since the blocks are so large.  

The most fun, though, was the quilting.  First I quilted large, loopy scrolls in the white areas.  Because I had added white strips between the zig-zag strips, there was lots of room for the scrolls and a small ribbon just off the red.

The red sections took a little more time because I wanted to set off the different red scraps.  To do that I quilted 1/4 inch from each seam following the inside of the fabric pieces.  The flowing circles of the scrolls contrast beautifully with the squares and rectangles in the red.

The red checked fabric and a couple solids were scraps from my mom's stash.  I can't explain the reason for using them quite yet, but it's important that I included them in the quilt, so to counterbalance the white, I used some dark reds from my stash.  The quilt sparkles with the mix of the darks, lights, and solids.  Did I say I really like this one?