Hello,

This is my shot of the Harvest Moon this week.  It was almost as bright as day light out side that night.

We were talking of Halloween, and speaking of our memories this week in the Pixies group..  It was  was a fun event in my childhood. I recall Mom making an elaborate ballet costume for me and a matching one for my Toni Doll. I wore it in a parade and for the evening event as well. One year I was a nurse as I had been one in the 4th of July parade in Grandview,  and it was fine for Halloween too. I went as a miner one year and wore mom’s fringe leather jacket an old hat and jeans.   I wore a back pack and carried  Grandfather’s  gold pan.   I used a fur wrap that was for my Shirley Temple Doll as a beard.

I dressed in Dad’s Range Uniform one year after I quick stitched up the pant’s legs so they were short enough. I stuff the hat with tissue paper so it would work too.
There were  also consume parties when I was an adult.   I made a flapper costume for the Society Dance.    That was apple green with rows of white fringe.    The first year of Eric’s teaching in Marion Indiana, his principal threw a party were one was suppose to hide their identity at the start. I was pregnant so I created a “great Pumpkin “ costume with a chicken wire cage inside and a green felt hat. I wore a fake face mask. When I was teaching at Onondaga Hill we had several falicty costume parties too. I wore Mom’s pink taffeta three tired prom dress one year. I wore a consume from the schools’ growing costume closet one year and went as Annie Oakley in a cream  outfit with  metallic shoulders and long   pink fringe. Several other teachers used costumes form the that source too. The year after Mon went to Switzerland and Norway I wore the Lederhosen that she had brought for me. I went as a Belly Dancer the year I was taking that class at church. One year I made chain mail out of pull tabs from soda cans. I crocheted the rows together to make it.   The pull tabs no longer come away so it would be more difficult to do that now.   The thing was very heavy even though it was aluminum. We later used that on stage when we did our version of “King Arthur”.  The years that I went to the New York Art Teachers convention and it meant on October 31, I wore costumes as many others  did. One year I was a White Wizard in a robe that was covers in layers of blue organza with suns, moons, and stars all over it. I had a pointed hat of course. I went as a Court Jester in a red and black split front costume one year. I added bells to the big zigzag bottom edge and wore black tights. I made and elaborate three pointed hat in the red and black with bells on the tips. There was also a dolls head on a stick with a small version of the hat that I carried. I made a similar jester costume in apple green and light purple later. They both ended up on stage at Onondaga Hill.
Mixed in there were also costumes for Wendy as she grew up. When she was seven she insisted on going Trick or Treating as May West. I made her a white dress with red spirals in sequins on it. They curved around her and down her hips as she requested. I also made an enormous brimmed white hat with red lining and a red bow that went under her neck to top it all off.    She walked the walk of course. One year she wanted to be a blue dragon. I made a paper mache’ head with a horn in the front. I made the body with spikes in metallic silver down the back and stuff the tail with plastic bags. She loved that one.
My scariest costume was for the Haunted House we did as a part of the Halloween event at Onondaga Hill. I wore a dark pair of pants and an old leather jacket. I made fur ears that I attached and mixed with my own spiked hair. I added makeup  and fake teeth to completed my costume as a werewolf. I went off to school and took my assigned place in the haunted maze and proceeded to scare kids. I hated it!   In half and hour I was ready to quit. I thought it would never end. I made suer I did Roller Scatting parties as my extra curricular event s after that. Eric had not seen me before I went off to school as he was not home from work at that time. I must have been very convincing as he said when I came into the living room-”If I’d had a gun- I would have shot you as an intruder!”    This year we did not have even a single child come to our door.   The nationhood seems to be devoid of kids now.

My class with Fleu  Woods is over now but I am still finishing up the projects.   This one s called Rocky Tide Pool .  I started out with one of my rock pieces from years ago as the base.  It is big, so I will be at it a while.   I think the class has given me permission  to add more stuff on the surface and I am loving that exploration.

I started a new class on Sunday.   It is called Finding Fragments with Shelly  Rhodes.    It should be fun as I am a collector of stuff without her encouragement.

Progress Report: Blue Sea  This work is  35.5″ w X 29.5″ t.     It stared as felting play and  it suggested sea to me.  So I made the little blue fish at the bottom and added the sea weed.  The blue brain coral came next.   The seahorses are from made in the style that I learned in Amanda Mc Caver’s class at QBL last summer.

 

 

Nine Play Two   I am still quilting away on this project.  There are only three more blocks that I need to tackle so I am sure I will complete it soon.

 

Lap # 19   I finished the quilting on this lap quilt this week.   It will be finished quickly too.   I sure am enjoying the play they offer me.

 

 

 

 

Lap#20  I can’t help myself as I have laded out the solid blocks for the next lap quilt already.  I see by this photo that the dark green needs to be repeated or dropped.

 

 

 

 

Judy’s  Banquet    This work is also a part of the Joyous Embroidery  class.   I am adding beads to the lace now.

 

 

 

 

Felted Dryer Balls    I need gifts for the Sisterhood of the Scissors  retreat that is later this month and so I am making these as my contribution.

I hope that fall is treating you well and you too are enjoying the wonders of the season.

Carol