AAQ center finished

I had promised myself that I would not rework this quilt which always makes me so slow so this is how it's going into the contest....I used the magic of Photoshop to show it with the border... I will embellish the border with black lace and sequin trim...

I believe it does fit the theme which is "Alliances: People, Patterns, Passion", celebrating cooperative relationships that work towards a common goal.

The very last and one of the most important embellishments were the chain and padlock... It was a prime strategy for the suffragette movement to attract media coverage and get arrested by chaining themselves to doors, fences and gates of important government buildings and facilities... and it worked.

It's odd to work with so many images but on the suffragette quilt there will be enough blocks to spread out the images... I was sorry to cover up most of my favorite patches of fabric... I'll start on the quilt this evening....hooray!!! January 4 and I can see I will attain a goal....

PS: I was considering some changes but left both images on the computer screen for about an hour and decided to go with it as is...... YOU MUST read Momma Bear's comment... her auntie chained herself to a building...

New Block and a Miracle!!

This is my newest block in the seams-only RR and it belongs to Jeanne in Switzerland... Whenever I send out instructions with my blocks you can count on two things being included.... NO ORANGE and no glue... so obviously orange is not my color of choice...

But that is exactly why I love doing RRs.. They make me think outside my comfort zone... When I run into an extra strong color spot I usually do one of two things... I either ignore it and bury it or I embrace it and bring it into the block... With this orange patch I have chosen to embrace it and have picked the threads shown using mostly the orange part of the triad on the color wheel... Jeanne also specified no beads and no lace but I did find some great braids that will work nicely and there I did look for purples...... The one with the paisley will lend itself to the new favorite template I mentioned the other day... If someone is uncomfortable choosing colors I strongly recommend learning to use a color wheel. If you get a good one they are really self explanatory... On the reverse side the wheel shows how to mix colors...wonderful for those mixing dyes.

Now for the miracle... this is how my letter from Carole Samples arrived in my PO box today... BOTH ends were open and only part of the top was attached. Obviously something has chewed it up and spit it out...
When I saw it I just knew the template was long gone...

But still tucked in the material scraps was my favorite template which Morris had chewed up and Carole so kindly replaced... Thank you friend Carole but bad marks for the post office...

What I'm NOT going to do in 2011

Well Cathy and Kerry have me trotting out my goals as well for 2011. Just as important though.... what I'm NOT going to do in 2011.

1. I'm not going to get sidetracked... well not too often anyway... But I did hope to start my hidden image quilt (secret or magic garden) this year but I will only let myself think about... I've decided that this will be a larger than just a block or two so will need lots of sketches and planning...

2. I will not worry about weight as it depresses me. My weight has been stable for about 10 years (albeit too much -but stable)... My blood pressure, cholesterol, and all the other numbers are normal. So as Morris and the farm keeps me outside a lot and exercising I'm just glossing over this issue.... And I can always use Photoshop to put my head on a better body..

4. Not forgetting last year goal of paying more attention to my husband...not only listening to him but making intelligent responses as well..... I must continue and he deserves it. He has been so supportive through all mother's movings and I am SO grateful... Of course I've slipped a bit on the only table in the house but he has been able to eat there more than usual even if he is surrounded by lace... I really could do better on that.

Now with that out of the way I trot out this meager list for 2011

1. Finish my suffragette quilt. At first I wanted to have it done by April in Connecticut but since this is a labor of love I want to stretch it out through the year....through the summer at least.

2. Crazy Quilts seams. ...this is #1 challenge to myself this year... I want to have so many seam variations in my brain that they just fly off my needle...

3. Put my stuff out there.... I admire people like Pat Winter and Cathy K. to name a couple, who think far enough ahead to enter things. .. like contests and magazines etc... I am going to enter the American Alliance of Quilts contest first and next I want to do one for the Alzheimer's group. And I plan to finish the year with the Hoffman challenge..

I always wanted to do the Hoffman when I was making dolls... When I had the time I didn't like the fabric choices and when I liked the fabric choices I didn't have the time... I think 1988 was the last time I really liked the fabric choices... but this year is the year no matter what the fabrics are and I even have a clever idea of what I am going to do....which helps...

4. Etsy.. I've committed to this and need to get a system and get comfortable with it... Painting is the easiest part for me. It is the photographing, uploading, and the technical stuff that is driving me crazy... learning to use my new camera will help.

5. Clean out two smaller side rooms in barn which store large folding tables, about 100 chairs and other stuff left over from the nursery business.. (craigslist and donate them) Also make a start on the large room in the barn where I used to sew smocks and aprons.... There are 6 different machines and racks and rack of materials... (large barn sale) I will need Wil to get that all out when the time comes... I 'll also have to replace the wood stove and fix the ceiling where it leaks so I can sew out there again in 2012.

6. This is not really a goal but this is something that just rattling in my brain and I want to start thinking through... I'd like to do a larger tutorial of sorts on ways to salvage CQ projects that are not quite working for some reason or another. I've not a clue where I'm going with this but it just won't go away. I can always think about this while I'm doing drudge things like cleaning out the barn.....

Carole Samples Dream-a-Seam Templates

I have received comments and emails asking "Where did you get the templates? Do you also have Carole Samples' book The Treasury of Crazy Quilt Stitches"

First of course I have this book... It is and always will be a classic "must have" for crazy quilters... Both the book and the templates are not found at your neighborhoods fabric store but they are still available through contacting Miss Carole herself... (who BTW has been using the word "retire" so I wouldn't procrastinate) and notice the words "dwindling inventory)

She sent me this message this morning:

"If the ladies who are interested will simply email me here at
http://us.mc636.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=fancwerx@inebraska.com,
I will email to them the Vendor-AD attachment with the color pixures & all of the specs. for the Templates (along with other print ADs for my eight Stitch Guides and for my dwindling inventory of remaining CQ books & patterns & notions). I prefer to do things this way because it gives me a chance to tell everyone how best to place an order with us. There are two little steps to take that are different for us living in the inner city Our full mailing addy and current pricing and posting rates are in the Vendor AD. It is truly safe to open as an attachment."

I have a "dream list" of legendary CQ artists that I would love to "sit and stitch" with and Carole is right up there.. I tried to arrange things to get to the Victorian Fancywork Retreat where she was teaching this fall but couldn't do it.

There's a comprehensive article about the templates by Sharon Boggon in CQMagonline Quoting Sharon: "For anyone who is stumped for fresh ideas when it comes to combining stitches on seam embellishments, Carole Samples set of 33 templates will provide enough inspiration to keep you busy for years! Just think of the math, in this there are 99 edges. Each edge can be duplicated, flipped and repeated in various ways. Each edge can also be combined with any other edge, which as a combination can be duplicated, flipped and repeated. More than two templates can be used together, which makes the number of available combinations endless."

There's a mouse in my house doing a happy dance!!

DH keeps the sunflower seeds for his birds in the wood shed... Today when he went to feed birds he discovered a mouse in his seeds.. He decided to dispatch it with a hoe...Since there is no light in the shed he brought the hoe and the can into the kitchen...

As you can probably guess when he put the hoe in the can the mouse ran up the handle and jumped out and ran under the kitchen stove... We are up to our knees in new snow and the temperatures are dropping below zero... I swear I can hear that mouse singing "Oh Happy Day" under the stove.... I just hope it's not pregnant.....