Under the Sea is Finished

I finished my workshop project. Yea! We tried many new products in the workshop, and you can see some of the different textures we obtained mainly from using heat sources and both machine and hand sewing. I am especially fond of Tyvek, Misty Fuse and the beads. Fiber on a Whim sells the products we used, and you can purchase them on their website. I highly recommend taking an "art quilt" workshop. The techniques expanded my ideas of what is possible.
Here are those strawberries I referred to in my previous post. Once again, this project is "resting" while I work on others. It has been in the making for more than a decade, so what is a few more months?

I am so not cool.

Yeah, send a needle through your finger during a workshop (see above project-Under the Sea, Over the Top, not complete), so NOT cool. My table mate, Betty, was so kind during my time of need. Here is a hint if it ever happens to you: when you feel a needle go through your finger, resist the impulse to rip said finger away from the needle. Tough to do, but you will suffer less damage. It was a top stitch needle for goodness sake. I should of had a little respect! The finger is mending quite well, but the doofus feelings will take a while to dissipate.

So the little pink cross stitch (another button roll) I have been working on while watching TV will have to miss getting stitched on tonight. Danger of blood stains. (see Stacy Nash for vintage cross stitch projects)

Here is the linen thread I need for my long-in-coming sampler. I have dragged the poor project through airports for about 10 years without putting a stitch in it. I got "over the hump" so to speak with encouragement from the Silver Thimbles Group in Grayson last Friday night. I finally finished all 6 pesky strawberries, and have moved on to try the bit of drawn thread work, but I had a hard time finding the proper linen thread. No excuses now (except for the finger). The thread came from William Booth, Draper.

Organizer Giveaway

The more entries a contest has, the less chance you have to win...Hum, well even though it is not in my best interest to tell you this, Twiddletails is giving away a wonderful gift to celebrate 500 posts. Five, zero, zero, not even kidding! Go see..

Here is how I feel about my work week:

I am back to bed with my tea. I started Augmentin. Doctor says I have a sinus infection. I simply must be better by morning to attend "Under the Sea, Over the Top" workshop sponsored by Spirited Quilters in Duluth and Fiber on a Whim.

Connectivity....

Has been a problem around here, but I think we are finally "on" our AT&T DSL line. My "housemate" doesn't understand that when you switch cable service, it affects the computer too. He is heavily invested in tv time while I prefer computer time. We only come together for Jeopardy, and if he starts getting more correct responses than me, there could be a war right inside my home. But then again, he always forgets to phrase his response in the form of a question, so technically, none of his responses are ever correct. I win, I win! And no, I don't think I am too competitive.

My version of Renee Plains "Flower Shop" is ready for me to decide what to do about quilting. My borders didn't quite go on the same way as her original quilt's did, so I am having such an inner battle about what to do. I was in such a quandary about it, I had to go to Patchwork Cottage to partake of retail therapy. Sandy is such an enabler!

Here is yet another gift from "Simon at work." I hope he is out of gifts. It is starting to feel a little funny, and "housemate" is especially curious about what's up with the generosity. But I do love the quilts! And I don't think Simon means anything by it at all. I think he is a good guy.

This lovely piece of fabric (5 1/2 yards!) was given to me by a student of the college where I work. I love it! It matches the thread I bought in the Ozarks at Saltbox Primitive Woolens. Mom had asked me what I needed the gold thread for. Well, here you go.

And finally, here is something new I have started. And boy is the progress S L O W. Does the end of summer do this to ya'll too? My sewing room and it's Kitten attendant are getting lonely for me.

Ladies Garden Club and Sewing Circle

The pattern for this quilt is in Mom's "Miss Jump's Quilt Album" by Star Quilt Company 1996. And now Mom has made it into a hooked rug (above). Isn't it delicious? Disregard the hooked-rug-holder-person (me). My Aunt Katie took this picture when I was in Warsaw, Missouri visiting. You can visit Aunt Katie's blog (she is a quilter/rug hooker) at Primitive Woolens.

Treasures from Mom's House

Star of Hearts by Linda Brannock 1991
You never know what treasure you will find....
This little gem is by Marguerite Shewbert for the Quilter's Guild of Kansas City.
This black kitty looks a little like my Kitten, doesn't it?

One Oh One!

(Another quilt with curves. This one at Harpers in Kansas City. The picture is from my previous trip home.)

This is my 101st post on this blog! It sneaked up on me, so I'll just have to celebrate by patting myself on the back and saying "yea" to myself. I had two other blogs before: "Karmen's Page" and "KarmenSunshine." There are some good pictures on those blogs. I like to look at pictures when I blog surf, and plus I am not much of a writer, so I rely heavily on photographs.

On Saturday, Dad and I drove from Independence to Warsaw, MO. Along the way we stopped in Sedalia (known for the State Fair) at the Wagon Wheel Restaurant, "Home of the Guberburger." I will have to tell you what a guberburger is, since it may not be an intuitive concept. When they are grilling a thin patty of ground beef, they drop a dollop of peanut butter on it. When you get your burger, it looks suspiciously like a cheeseburger except that is not cheese, it is melted peanut butter. I had them hold the mayonnaise on mine.

Next, when we got to Warsaw, Mo, we crossed the Truman Dam. So we could go to Saltbox Primitive Woolens where my Aunt Katie works. She was not working, but met us there. The greeter who was on duty had a particularly charming smile and took a liking to my dad right away.
When we left the shop, we beat Katie back to her home, and I snapped this picture of her front porch. I tried to get a shot of the dozens of hummingbirds at her feeder, but it is so hard to get those little guys to slow down for the camera. And here we are at Grandpa's house. Uncle Ben, me, Dad and Grandpa. At 98 years old, Grandpa drives a golf cart twice a week and plays bridge twice a week. He really keeps busy, and his sense of humor is as sharp as ever.

Quick! I have to go to work.

Mom pulled out an old project from a class she took a few years ago (like 7 or so years ago), and the Robin Pandolph fabric was just so beautiful, and Mom had done so much of the paper piecing already, so we got to work adding the background pieces to the blocks. The pattern is called "Rattlesnake." We got four blocks done before I had to pack and run to the airport. I will write more later. I have to get ready and go to work. My grandfather looked marvelous! He still tells great stories and has a wicked sense of humor. I can't believe he's 98!

Grandpa is 98!

Here is Grandpa Stockton with my Aunt Katie.And in the 50s with his chinchillas.
And his parents (about 1940?). I am flying up to Missouri tomorrow, and then driving with Mom and Dad to the Ozarks to visit Grandpa on Saturday. He (Grandpa) is healthy and a lot of fun to listen to. He has a million stories and a great sense of humor. If time permits we are also going to visit the shop Katie works in. I hear they have quilting fabric now.

Happy Mail

I have started collecting my mother's books by purchasing them off the internet. These two came in the mail today. Well, I bought two copies of "Free Spirit," but no reason to photograph it twice. It turned out I had a copy here at home too, so I am flush with "Spirit." I am having a hard time locating an affordable copy of "Miss Jump's Quilt Album." I would love to hear from someone who would like to do an exchange or offer me a copy at a reasonable price.

Then, from Cathy in Tasmania(!) a lovely thimble and postcard. Doesn't Tasmania look like the most magical place? You can see that wrascally Tasmanian Devil in the middle of the card. Thanks Cathy!

And finally, because I don't see my son, Andy, often, I have to include the postcard sent to my address (Andy's former address), by Te (accent on the e) from Iceland. I am thinking Andy, since he checks Facebook often, would see the card on my blog before he will actually come pick it up. So, Andy, if you are reading, this card has a lovely stamp, and Te wrote a great deal on the back, but you'll have to come pick it up, or call me and I'll read it to you.