Birth Signs and Quilters

The banner by Kim Hambric is entitled Pisces I. Her gallery is at http://www.kimhambricart.com/Gallery_IV.html I don't know the artist but love the dreamy quality of her work.

Check out the November 9th entry at http://quiltingwithragdolls.blogspot.com to view your quilting profile by zodiac sign. My birthday is March 12th and so is my husband's. I read my horoscope and he thinks its all nuts. Who knows? This profile captures me though - except I have many many projects on the go and am not managing them - or is that me lacking self confidence and they are going to get done??? LOL I am a Pisces.

Pisces - February 19 and March 20 Pisces are dreamers. When they quilt they usually are creating poetry. Although they are kind and make projects to bestow on friends and family they are most likely envisioning themselves snuggled beneath the very quilt they are working on. Although they can lack self-confidence, their imagination and intuition makes them artistic quilters. Their sensitivity can lead them to shy away from displaying their creations. Generally you will find that a Pisces has more than one project on the go and can easily manage both. Whatever they choose to work on they need a project that requires plenty of variety. Patchwork that includes embroidery or other needlework is well liked by them.

Does your zodiac profile capture your quilting interest and style?

Let the ADVENTure begin!!

We bought a 1915 arts and crafts style home and it got me into blogland. Here is what happened. I did a google search on arts and craft houses and up came Dear Daisy Cottage, which is so uplifting. On Kim's blog was a link to Allsorts and through Jenny's also fabulous blog on design and fabric crafts I found Club Little House and Inspire Co by Amy with doll house and pretty things. It was a revelation that there were so many women out there interested in things I loved and living their dreams amidst all the craziness of living in these times.

Jenny re posted her advent calendar and a pattern and I thought I could do that. I want to do that. I will do that.

I hunted through my stuff for the felt I must have had for decades and started. It was "sew" much fun cutting out the envelopes and stitching them together. But I relearned a lesson about myself. I just cant follow directions without thinking ohh why not try this and change things and I cant do the same thing too many times over and over. Having started other advent calendars that languished into nothingness I really wanted to finish this one. Instead of making the packets all the same I did groups of colours. Somehow doing five pinks, six whites and 3 sets of different greens is way easier than doing 25 of one colour - Why is that? So I hit a bit of a snag facing sewing on 25 buttons until I did 1 pink and 12 little and 12 slightly larger buttons. The ties were hard for me - all 25 of them - even though they were easy peasy to do. I found green and white checked ribbon but the envelopes did not stay on flat and I could not get the ties between them to look nice like Jenny's do. Inspiration - I cut 2 little slashes to thread the ribbon through and the envelopes lay really flat and don't need the ties between them for spacing so a little of the checked ribbon shows thorough the spaces.

It feels great to be nearly done - there are just two green envelopes to finish off. Oh and the dangles - and they all different so I am safe there and then getting the little numbers and the treats and then mailing to Cait. A little more work so wish me luck. The boys will want them too - wish me lots of luck.

Thanks Jenny for this great advent calendar and the adventure its taking me on. I also want to make your elf clogs too - but I want to make a seven year old boy size (and some for me too)

Fall Continues

Where does the time fly? Lots has been happening.
























I really enjoy the weekend walks with Softie and am appreciating the autumn beauty. Caitlin came home for her commencement last weekend and we went shopping together which was fun. We bought a darling little Christmas tree and some decorations for her to take back with her for her dorm room. I also bought a few red and white and Christmas things which I want to post about.

Good Morning, Good Night

This morning started with a sunrise walk with Softie down by the water. The day was filled with ups and downs. Bed looks good about now.

Pat's Quilt

This quilt represents joy rediscovered. I found myself in Quilter's Garden in 2000 not having sewn for years, touching the fabric and loving the colours and wanting so much to make a quilt for the baby growing in me. I signed up for a course to make a quilt with wacky hearts and found this teddy bear fabric with a different bear for our five kids and baby to be. AND I FINISHED THE QUILT!!! I loved making it - now my technique leaves lots of room for improvement but it re-introduced me to making things from fabric. Since then I have gone a bit crazy buying fabric and have way too many projects in my mind and on the go and I need to work on the FINISHING PART but I love it. And I especially love that Pat loves his quilt. It feels like I am hugging him whenever I see him wrapped in it.

FAIRY TALES

Pat starts a new theme at school and its Fairy Tales. I found this wonderful book "The Fairy Tales" for his school. It has amazing silhouette illustrations by Jan Pienkowski and lovely translations by David Walser into English from the original French and German 200 year old stories. The images remind me of old European papercuts. Lucky Junie Moon got some fairy tale paper cut silhouettes from Speckled Egg - eggsactly what i am talking about.

And another feature of the book is its large type-font. Perfect for an emerging reader and also his mom who keeps misplacing her reading glasses. Pat and I are sharing the reading of the stories and its heartwarming to cuddle up as the stories unfold.

The stories include Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Hansel and Gretel, and Cinderella. My one little sigh is over the portrayal of stepmothers - wicked. As a step mom it would be nice to find some positive examples in literature. But don't let this dissuade you from borrowing the book from the library or purchasing it. Its published by Penguin Books.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Getting Ready for Halloween

Pat and I made orange tinted sugar cookies to make jack o lanterns and they disappeared ....Devon? ...Ian so then we made plain sugar cookies and made cats sprinkled with black sugar and white ghosities with currant eyes. Pat made sure every ghost had a different face - all were scary!! I wish had taken photos of them but we were in a rush to get of to school so we have the jolly pumpkins featured instead.