A customer contacted me last week requesting a black/white polka dot garment bag.  I got right on it thinking I didn't have enough of the fabric in my stash.  I was right, but a quick trip to my favorite LQS, and in no time I was quilting the fabrics.

I wanted to practice feathers and McTavishing.  I taught myself both using youtube.com tutorials, which are just long enough to keep me interested. Karen McTavish on youtube.com

So I feathered and feathered and feathered.  It's amazing how long it takes to fill two yards of fabric with feathers.  Although it works for Karen McTavish, her beautiful fillers simply don't work for me.  I spent way too much time ripping the crooked lines out, then refilling with feathers.

No stippling on this baby at all.  I'm so proud!  I'm a stippling pro and it's my go-to filler, so the challenge was to fill without stipples.  Yea!  I succeeded in that at least.  You can find it here:  Fleur de Lis Quilts and Accessories





Then on to the zipper.  Even Richard had to work on adding the zipper head to the zipper tape.  I could not get it on and although he tried for a while, it was a struggle for him.  But smart guy he is, he figured it out for me.

So now when I'm ready to use this brand again, I'll be able to apply the head myself.

Stitching the zipper turned out much easier than in the past.  I think it has something to do with the wider tape.  There's more room for the machine foot.

It all went off without a hitch, except that I took a longer nap than I should have yesterday.  By late this afternoon I was ready to snap photos and contact my customer.

Tomorrow is graduation at the high school, so I'll be very busy all day preparing for that and packing up my office.  I hoped to finish all the packing today, but there's lots of cleaning to do and tossing out the junk I've collected over the last eight years is so much more work than I anticipated.

It takes time to go through boxes of stored prom, Beta, English, graduation, library, and goodness knows what else.  But it's happening quite steadily and in no time I'll be moved out of MHS.

It's bittersweet to leave a school where I'm really happy, but it's time to move back home to my old school.  Apparently it's where I'm needed right now and it's the one school in our parish that is offering a full library position.  So, that's where I'm headed for the next school year.

Thanks for visiting.  By all means, leave a comment and let me know what you think of the garment bag.  I'm thinking that she'll like it, but I'm curious what you think, too.  Gotta love those comments!

Peepers, Quackers, and Quailers

Oh My!  Have you ever suggested something reasonable to your husband then discover that he took your reasonable suggestion to the next level?  My husband either goes with NO or takes a reasonable suggestion to about the 10th level.  Here's one example:
Remember the Fuzzy Peepers?  The little chicks that I was so proud of?

I got seven about a month ago and they are doing very well--growing, putting on feathers, requiring more food and water and space that we were not prepared for.

So we borrowed a bigger brooder, bought larger feeders and water containers and prepared to move the seven peepers to their new home. This photo on the left is the same peepers--now not so fuzzy, but way bigger, feathered-out, and happy.

So what do you think I suggested?

Get a few more chicks...we have everything we need now and it's the same work whether we're tending seven or 15.  Besides, 15 is my favorite number and with that many we'd occasionally have enough eggs to give some to the kids.


Oh, yes, Richard agreed.
Readily.
With enthusiasm.
My first clue, of course, but I tend to miss clues and, get this, trust my husband to have good sense.
Go figure, 32 years of craziness and zany lives, and still I do.
Oh well, life goes on.
Right now it goes on with another 20 chicks in the small brooder,

and 12 Peking ducks in another small brooder,

and 40 quail (white and brown) in the big brooder with the original Fuzzy Peepers.

Yes, this is my life!  Ask for something small and reasonable and get something big and outrageous.......

or nothing at all!  Guess, I can live with outrageous......

Have a great week!
Mary

Weekend Cleanup

While others are preparing for the evacuations that the coming high water will likely cause, I'm spending my evenings trying to undo what the puppies did over the weekend.  While the kids and grandkids are here, we put Cotton in the sewing studio.  He's getting old and grumpy and doesn't like the hair pulling that all those little hands are capable of.  

Growling really doesn't mean much to a couple of one and a half year olds.  They think he's playing!  He is not.  In fact, he will go so far as to try to move the hands, but little hands don't let go so easily.  For one thing, there's less control of gross motor skills, and for another the girls tend to squeeze harder when we try to move the hands.  It's got to be some automatic response.  Regardless, Cotton's growling and teeth have no effect on their little paws.  That means he's had to be separated from the hands, and the one place le grandbebes can not go is the quilt studio. 


Then we added another puppy to the fold.  That means le grandbebes can chase both Cotton and Candy and they love it!  Cotton gets tired of it in about 30 seconds and climbs into his bed where they really don't bother him too much, unless they find one of his toys.  Candy is only four months and has much more energy but even she wears out eventually.  After all, it's two little sets of sticky paws on strong little toothpick legs who are chasing her.  

Out to the studio the puppies go!  Now Cotton has NEVER gotten into trouble when he was sent there alone.   But add a rambunctious little female and you're bound to have some kind of mess upon your return.  Well, guess what?  It turns out that Candy likes to shred stuff, especially paper, especially gift tissue paper, especially lots of gift tissue paper!  She found a box that I'd set down in a corner (I'm so bad about doing that) and just had a heyday.  

Check out the mess in these photos, a bit like a New Orleans street the day after Mardi Gras, but without the liquor smell.  Of course, there was that puppy playing too roughly smell.   




The silly little girl thought she'd get away with it! The nerve of her.  She tried to pretend she had no idea what I was fussing about, but it's hard to get away with murder when there's blood on your hands.  In her case, trash fabric strips caught in her scraggily fur. Silly girl!  


I'm thinking Cotton was the real culprit and knocked the waste basket over, and she was caught in the crossfire.....or joined the fray once he started the party.  But he was lying quietly in his bed, and she had thread and fabric strips flowing from her back AND shredded paper caught in her teeth.   
It took a while but the studio floor is in much better condition.  Now to tackle the worktable!  Thank goodness they are such small pups.....who wants to bet the party would have been kicked up a notch if they could have climbed to the table top!   I have no doubt Candy would have danced till I turned off the music!

Trying to be a Big Girl

A photo from before she became Momma.
Everyone's favorite because she's so beautiful.

It's the day before Mother's Day and naturally I'm missing Momma more than usual.   Just wishing she were still here with us isn't enough, however.  I really felt that I needed to do something to honor her.  Sid sent flowers for her grave, Angie is having a family dinner in a couple of weeks, the other sisters are doing various things, although I'm not sure just what.  

From their 50th Wedding Anniversary
party, dancing the night away!

I still can't bring myself to visit the gravesite very often, and there's little else I can do.  Ah, the tests we "doers" put ourselves through!  I really feel most comfortable when there's a chore or activity to keep me busy.  It's my way of being "a big girl," as she so often said.  I heard those words a few times, since she said them when we cried, and I cried.....and cried.....and cried!  Must have been about 12 when I finally figured out how to be a big girl and slow the waterworks.  Today, in an effort to be a big girl, I decided to collect photographs of mom.  

From 2009 at Rory and Meggan's wedding reception.

So natural.

There aren't many of her without daddy.  But then she was always with daddy, especially after the Alzheimer's made her feel lost.  He sort of grounded her.  Gave her someone to hold onto.    

From 2009, rehearsal dinner....just the way they always were .

After stealing several from sister FaceBook pages, I went through my digital photos.  There aren't many in either places. I don't think I can go through any "real" photos....meaning the developed kind.   But I have a good start.  

These are some of the better ones, with a little caption below.  And because I think of mom's mother often and miss her as much, the final photo is of her.   

Happy Mother's Day!

Ma-ma, or Volcie, who passed away in 1991.
I miss her still and will love her always.

Quilt Campus

Several months ago I inquired about becoming a teacher for Quilt Campus an online school for quilters.  According to their website, QC is "an online campus where you can take a variety of classes from quilt teachers, meet quilt students, share experiences, ask questions, and share photos of class projects - all from the comfort of home. Our teachers and students come from all over the world. Taking classes online is easy and fun and one of the bonuses is the people you will meet."   


They invited me to submit a project and some information about it, which I gladly did, and after discussing some of their needs and my interests, we decided that I would teach a class on stained glass quilts.  I created a simple wall hanging and began working on an idea that I hoped would simplify the process so that the end result would look better and the work be less frustrating for the quilter.  


Well, hallelujah!  My idea works!  I'm so pleased!  Of course writing the lessons for a process that I came up with has been a little difficult. I've had to find ways to explain the new process to new quilters who are learning both quilting and my process.  To do that, I've spent hours and hours drawing, drafting, writing and rewriting, and taking photos and more photos. 


 I've completed two small quilts thus far and plan to complete another when the class begins.  I want to read and follow the directions as my students do so that I'll be able to experience the process with them.  The photos on this page are of the two wall-hangings.  


I'm hoping that several students will take the class with me, and I look forward to the summer weeks when we'll share our works in progress and our thoughts on the class.


I hope some of you will join me.  If you're considering taking the class, you might want to go to the Quilt Campus website and check out their policies, teachers, and classes.  You can see photos from other classes in the gallery.  They also have a live chat and blog, and a forum on which students can post questions for the instructor and other students.  


If you have taken online classes in the past and want to share your experience with the rest of us, please do so.  I am anxious to get some feedback from those who really know what online courses are like from the student's point of view.  I hope to use your comments to improve my class and to support my students as they work on their projects.

YEAH! Retreat!

I am so excited about the possibility of our guild having a retreat in July.  I decided that my experience as the La. State Beta Sponsor would be enough to plan a three day retreat.  I figure that putting on a convention for 5,000 teenagers should enable me to plan a retreat for 10-15 quilters!


I spoke to Cotton Quilters' Guild president, Donna Mayeux, last week through email and we settled on a date--July 27-29, 2011 at the Palmetto Island State Park just outside of Abbeville, La. 


After our guild meeting, I called the park service and booked one cabin and the meeting room.  We'll have time on the way Wednesday for some shopping at Borne Quilter and some lunch.  We should arrive at the park around 2 or 3 and take some time to unpack and take a walk.  Thursday will our day of sewing.....I expect that we'll fill the meeting room with lots of fun and laughter and quilting.  


Friday we'll head home with a stop along the way at Ginger's and perhaps another LQS if we're able to find one.


I suggested that we bring WIP's and UFO's to work on while there are others to give advice and suggestions.  I also hope to have a new table runner designed so that each person can complete a small project to take home.  











If you have suggestions or ideas for fun games, please share them.  I'm open to all suggestions since this is my first quilting retreat.  Please leave a comment or email me at mary.marcotte@gmail.com. 


The park photos on this page come from 
the La. State Park website at http://www.crt.state.la.us/parks/ipalmetto.ASPX

New Surprise

Mother's Day is next Sunday and Richard had the opportunity to get me (him) a surprise that we've talked about on and off since Cotton, our Maltese, came into our lives.  We've considered getting a little girl and raising puppies so that others will have the chance to enjoy such sweet, devoted little pets as much as we do.  I must say that despite Cotton's many bad habits--he believes that everything belongs to him and should be marked as such--he's been a wonderful puppy.  He seems to have a sense for my needs and loves nothing more than to sit in my lap and love me.  That's his life.....love his momma!  Sure, he likes chasing a ball or any top that's tossed away, he loves to mark everything in his path with his own personal perfume, and he will jump for joy at the thought of a treat, but love his momma is his job, his passion, and his hobby.  Richard can open the door when we arrive home, but Cotton will race right past him to me.  Richard may feed him every day, make sure he gets his meds and tick/flea treatments, goes to the vets, just about anything Cotton needs he gets from Richard.  But he loves his momma.  

Well, now he has another girl in his life....meet Cotton Candy Kisses, Can-can for short.  She will be the new momma in this house.  If Cotton is half as devoted to her as he is to me, she will have a pretty good life!