Category Archives: Scrap Happy Quilts

Childhood Memories, Drawing, Hand work, Kites and Flowers, SAQA Blocks, Scrap Happy Quilts, Sisterhood of the Scissors, Solo Butterfly Flight

Contrast

Hello
Mother Natures and old Man Winter are playing games wit the weather here. Wed I took the flower picture and it was a glorious day  sunny and warm. This morning I got up to cold, snow on the ground and all  over the trees. It is a time of contrast.

 

 

 

 

I spent a lot of time working on the Textile Artist stitching challenges this week. I did finish Sue Shane’s assignment from week one. I will work on creating more simple patterns using only strait stitches in the future.

The assignment for this week was from Richard Mc Vetus and it was to do four different ways of couching. I added it to the fabric piece from last week. This morning I though of one more thing I want to try so I drew another circle to fill.

I did more of the Sketchbook Revival projects.   Melany Rivers did a fun exercise where we drew with our left hand and then finger painted in the drawing. It was enjoyable.

 

 

 

 

Noah Scanlin gave us a challenge were we were to put 100 dots on a page and then connect them to create and image. The crazy clown with the deflated balloon came out of that. The we added to the image using the same blokish style. I good way to loosen up.

 

 

Ryana Campbell did a collage and paint piece with us. Her approach uses more paint on top to join the image and build it up then.  I normally do  not add much paint when  I  collage, so I learned a new tool to add to my   creative tool box.

 

 

 

Progress Report: Place Matts I have now completed all 17 of the place matts. They are all in a the bag that Joyce gave them to me in and I will deliver them to her front poach on Tue. The new rule that says I am ,as an even year birth date , only be out on Tue, Thur and Sat.   That does limit me. But I will use Tue to do lots of little errands like deliver masks and    go to the post office and mail some of my cowls to friends.

Solo Butterfly Flight This work is 22″ X 22″. The blue and pink background is from Regina and one of the completed it challenge pieces that she gave me.
I finished this free motion drawing part and added the butterfly yesterday.

I looking at it today I think I will add a bit to the butterfly as it seems a little dull to me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kites and Flowers This work is also a part of the complete it challenge. I am finishing up the facing part now and the yellow and orange on the right is that section. I did reflective quilting after I quilting around the kites and flower.

 

 

 

Agitated Aggie When I went to the Canadian Quilt show last fall with the Sisterhood of the Scissors group we created a challenge using the graphic fabric with the women holding the scissors. I am finally getting around to working on it and having a great time.

Marble This is my hand work project for now. I am just trying to mimic some floor tile that I took a photo of.

Drawing I only did one drawing this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scrap Happy This is the start of the assembly of this one  quilt. It has taken longer then I expected to put together the backs. That reflects the same problem I encountered before- trying to do three at one time is just a lot slower then doing just one. I will not do it this way ever again.

12″X 12″   The call came out this week for the Surface Design Quilt Association   auction entries.  This is my start on that challenge.

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories- Des Moines

The move to Carroll was made because Dad got a new job as Principal of the Public High School there. It was a much larger school with about 2 75 high school students. One of the new things that the job offered was his  participation in the Iowa Administrators Conference that happened in Des Moines every year on the Saturday  of the week following Thanksgiving. We went along with him and spent the day in the city while Dad went to the meetings. It continues to be the biggest city in the state and it seemed huge to me as a kid. Mom started her Christmas shopping at that time so we went to the big department stores, J.C. Penny’s, Sears and Roebuck and Gimbles. Mom let Gene and I pick out an ornament for the Christmas tree every year. The first one I selected was an orange Santa with a real fur beard and arms that were attached by springs so they wiggled. He could be separates at the belt to reveal a opening in the middle were Mom hid a special treat every year to be opened on Christmas morning. One year I selected a blown glass blue bird with a long tale that was like a paint brush. There were lots of shoppers, so to keep us together Mom always held Gene’s  hand, while I held onto her coral colored coat  sleeve and often carried a shopping bag. Mom gave us a few coins with instructions to donate to the charity buckets that were manned along the street. “ We need to be thankful for out blessings and share what we can,” she told us. Gene did not want to do that and I think he kept a few of the pennies, but he did put something in the pot too. As we walked from store to store, I kept looking at all the different people. We walked past two dark blue black men who were talking. They were the first live black men I had ever seen and so much darker then the brown King in our nativity set. Mom corrected me for my staring- but it was not the color  of their skin that captured my limited childhood mind- “ But, Mom they were talking in tongues!” In my world I had jumped to the conclusion that they were doing something religiously amazing sense the only time I had ever heard that one could not understand the words of another was from the Bible. She laughingly  explained to me that they were just from a foreign country not from the Bible. I was so  naive.
The last even of the day was a stop for dinner at a big smorgasbord, called Bishops. Mon carefully took me all though the line and Dad helped Gene. She let me look at everything before we started to fill the plate so I would not take more than I could eat or fill that plate with too much of one type of food and want some of an item further down the line. It was a very pleasant meal and we followed that ritual every year that we went to the conference. At the end of the meal a waitress brought Gene and I balloon’s that had  Bishop’s printed on them  and with   little cardboard feet so they sat flat. I remember bouncing the feet on my hands in the car as we started the long drive home.   The family followed variations on this trip for four years.

Stay safe and keep creating.

Carol

Drawing, Hand work, Kites and Flowers, Scrap Happy Quilts

Slow Spring

Hello,

I took this photo of the daffodils on Tuesday it has rained  every day sense then and then today it is set to snow.     The temperature has fallen from 50 this morning  to  29  this evening.    Mother Nature can’t seem to make up her mind.

 

 

 

I am still working on the Textile Arts Stitch Challenge. This week Emily Tull did a demo on how to stitch an eye. Mine is okay for the first try – but I think I need more practice. I am still working away on the week one piece from Sue Stone.

Sketchbook Revival is still giving me lots on stimulation. Nina Rycroft built an Easter Bunny wit us. It would be a cute card.

 

 

 

 

David Drazil worked with lettering. Lots of potential here.

 

 

 

Wendy Holler who works for the Botanical Gardens in NYC worked with us on how to paint a petal. I went on with the idea and did a flower.

 

With Stephanie  Lee one worked on personal responses to the meanings in quotes.   It is an usnusal use of a sketchbook.  I see it more as a note book myself.

 

 

A Wild Garden was the lesson that Karen Stamper lead one through. It is wild and very freeing.

 

Juliet Meeks did a floral display with us. I am having fun and it is nice to explore new ideas outside quilting.

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Masks I just keep making these. I passed on eight this morning to a friend who wanted to send them to her children. I have requests for more too so there will be more in my future.

 

 

 

Kites and Flowers  I finished the free motion drawing around the kites and flowers yesterday. Now I need to decide on a pattern for the rest of the quilting to finish this work up.

 

Place Matts I have finished five of these now. The rest all have there nylon netting on both sides but I have not done the stitch in the ditch quilting to bond the four layers together on the rest. Then there is the binding to do too. It just takes time.

Scrap Happy I am making progress on this project. I am building backs Now so I can do the assembly to the units.

 

 

 

 

Regina Challenge. I fused all the parts down last week and now I am doing free motion drawing on top to hold things all together. I plan to make a free motion drawing of a bird or butterfly to add to this work for a center of interest.

Drawing I have been drawing every time I spend time on the telephone. I had
Several long conversations this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cowls I did more cowls this week. Now I have made 23 of them. I am down to small bits of yarn now and I feel good about that.

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories– 3rd Grade
I went into the third grade the fall we moved to Carroll. The elementary school building was built in 1952 and seemed very modern and new at the time. It was a long low L shaped building with a wide hall that ran down the center of each the two levels with classrooms branching off both sides and stair wells at the ends. The short leg of the L connected to the high school building that was three stores high and much older. The new gym was attached to the north end of the high school and it had a stage on one side and permanent seating across the basketball floor in the center. In the elementary the kindergarten was on the south side and faced the playground. Gene was in that room in the afternoons and I picked him up at the end of the day
and we walked home together most days as my class was just across the hall. I do recall one Tornado  Drill in that hall where all the kids sat on the floor with our knees up, our heads down and are arms over our heads in the dark. I am sure it did not last long, but it seem like forever to me as kid.
The play ground was on the south side of the elementary building. It was a huge pea gravel lot.
A wide cement area was next to the building and ran all the was across the front of the building. Lots of jump rope space.
The swings were along the east side and the south side had two slides, several see-saws, and a double sized jungle gym. I spent a lot of time at the top of that structure in third grade. The west side had two  ball fields that overlapped a lot. One was used mostly by sixth grades and the second was for the forth and  fifth  grades.
My memories of third grade are few but I do recall some . I remember laying on the floor on top of a big piece of paper and the teacher tracing around me She did that for  all the students. We then drew in the details and colored our life sized selves to sit in our seats for open house in early October.     In Dec we made a class Nativity scene in ceramics. I made a very simplified figure( modern I though) of a Shepherd- my assigned figure.    When they were fired we painted them and set up the display.   When I brought the figure home, it became  a part of our family Nativity and appeared for years. Third grade was the first time I ate school lunch.    I had carried Dad’s old black round top  metal lunch pale a few times in second grade before we moved. The lunch room in Carroll,  was directly below my class room in the basement. I remember standing in line on the stairs waiting for the hot lunch many times.
I recall too the day when Mrs Fister , the high school art teacher came to our room to do Art Appreciation. The big reproductions that she showed us was Grant Wood’s “Stone City”. She told us he as a native Iowan.   The painting has a  corn field in the foreground with a farm behind and a huge windmill, a road that winds between hills to the horizon.   There are lots of round trees that are all uniformly green .    When asked what I saw in the painting I said” Pea Trees”- and got a lot of laughs from my peers.   I was embarrassed but  Mrs Fister did not make a fuss.   We had a similar lesson every year in elementary.  In Jr high when I had Mrs Fister for  seventh grade art  class, she rewarded my talent by doubling the time I got to come to her class  for art and so  I went every day.   I did my first stitchery in her class.  It was an underwater landscape with lots of fish and  bubbles that were cut circles of blue fabric with a pearl  button on top of each circle.

Stay safe in these trying times and keep creating

Carol

Childhood Memories, Exploring Blue, Scrap Happy Quilts

Evidence of Spring

Hello-

As these flowers show Spring is trying to make an impact here I New York, it is getting warmer too.  The walks we take daily really help break the feelings of confinement and lighten my spirit. Everyone’s life has and is facing a major shift in thinking and existing.     Being out and  seeing spring reviving its self helps me.    Working in the studio has become even more important to me  as well.   I have no destination for the work I am doing, but is  it does help me feel sane. I hope everyone is doing what is best for their sanity too.

I was a part of a Video chat this morning and that was a real positive event.   Just one example of how  I am practicing ” Social Distancing” and  one of the changes my life is going through.   As my Dad said “ It is not what happens to you- but what you think about what happens to you that counts.” Please keep looking for the positive view.

Progress Report:Exploring Blue    This work is 33.5″ w X 18.5″ t. It all started with me finally deciding to put the machine lace I had done over a year ago into a piece. I added stuff from the packet that Angela had give me too. It is the biggest piece  of hand work with add on’s that I have done.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Talisman Pouches These two little pouches are based on the instructions in Quilting Arts Magazine. I had fun building up the textures and stitching down the ribbons and beads. 

 

 

This is a shot of the bags open  showing the back and the flap.

 

 

 

 

Felt Dry  Balls I have created these four new balls this week. I have the cores started for six more so there will me more in the future. It is a fun way to use some of my roving.    I plan to give them as gifts.    My laundry is nice and fluffy as I have run them in the dryer once to make sure they did not comp apart.

 

 

Scrap Happy– I stated cutting 4.5″ strips and sewing them together and adding the scrap pieces I did last fall to the sides .  ( on the left) I think I have enough for three quilts here. This is a project that I know I can rely on to get me going when I am in a bit of a dry time. It pulls me into the studio and gets me sewing.

Place Matts These are a commission that I am working on. I have two quilts from Joyce.   ( the stay in the right)   Both  quilts  have some places that have bad wear places so she wants me to make them into place matts so they can continue to “live” in the world as apposed to setting in a drawer. It took me a long time to get past the emotional discomfort of cutting into them. They are cut to size and I will begin to fuse the parts together and move forward on this project.

New work- Regina Challenge I finally got an idea of where I want to go with this project. I was cleaning off a shelf and came across the rust, brown and blue fabric and though that they could work together and I am rolling now.

 

 

Cowls The News is so very stressful that I find if I keep my hands busy with these projects I do not get so upset. Some one will benefit in the future I am sure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

My collection of wild yarns is greatly diminished and I like that part too.

 

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories – Creative Mom

Mom  was  always very resourceful. I remember her spending hours in the sewing closet in the hall. She made clothing of course and lots of curtains for the new house. Gene’s room had a nautical theme. The  fabric had big three masted boats in a  large directional print on it.    I think it was really designed for skirts that were popular around that time. Mom added a green boarder on the bottom to make them long enough. She made the curtains for the basement in a diamond print that used red, orange, pink and black diamonds alternating with white. She also made a doll dress with the leftovers for my Mexican doll, Rosalia.    She made a silk screen of big leaves that she printed in dark green on white. From this   printed fabric she made kitchen curtains. She painted two murals in that house. One was in the bathroom in the basement. It was a picture with a lake in the foreground, pines and aspens in the middle ground and then mountains in the far background. The second mural was behind the kitchen sink. The double sink was set at an angle to the corner and a piece of bent Masonite was the paint surface. This painting was also a work featuring mountains with a tree in the foreground.
Mom stayed at home the year I was in third grade and Gene was in half day Kindergarten. One day in the spring I came home and came in the front door to see one orange leg hanging down from the ceiling over the piano. Mom had accidentally stepped off the pallet at the top of the attic stairs and come though the ceiling. She was in a position that she could not pull herself up to get out. She yelled for me to help. I could not do the job  either , so she sent me to the Annaberg’s house to get David( who was 18) and Mrs Annaberg . They all came running back with me and quickly helped her get the leverage she needed to puller her leg out from between the rafters. The only thing broken was the Sheetrock . After assuring them she was mostly embarrassed and a little bruised they went home. No one ever mentioned it again. Mom did make a fancy cake and took it to them as a thank you. Dad got lumber the following weekend and put flooring down over the whole attic space over  the next few weekends. The ceiling got patched and the front hall got a  new coat of paint. When ever Mom wore those orange wrangles I always thought of that leg in the ceiling.

Stay Safe

Carol

Birds, Childhood Memories, Collections, Creative Assistants, Drawing, Scrap Happy Quilts, Thread Painting

Thread Painting

Hello,
This has been a busy week. I went to Judy Hand’s opening on Sunday. She is an amazing painter. Tue was the Diva meeting. There were only three of us so it was a bit disappointing. Regina gave me this wonderful little stitch piece.

 

 

 

 

 

 

She and I also made our UFO exchange. I think I got the good end of this as two of the three are only fabric .      The ones I passed to her are farther along.

The FAB group meant today and it was good too. Always lively discussions.

 

Thread Painting.   I have been doing this and I thought I should explain   my process.   After I have selected  subject, I sketch it   in  my sketchbook.  That way I can trace it on the wash away.   I then make a sandwich that is one layer of wash away, a layer of  nylon netting as I tend to tear the wash away if I do not reinforce it.    In this case with the Kill Deer I have added a bit of brown roving too.   Then a second layer of wash away with the traced images on it.  This all goes into a hoop where I then do the thread work.    I outline the   one colored area I want to fill in first.  Then I fill in small sections until I am happy with the solid feel of the area.

 

  I change color when I need to and often times run  two different colors of thread through the same needle to get a richer color.   I continue until the total figure is filled in.  I tear away as much of the wash away as I can before I  pin it to foam where it is flat and I use hot water to remove the rest of the  wash away. ( Check out the Robins)   I let the project dry over night and then trim away the nylon netting that remains .( The Cardinals are trimmed and pinned to a background)   I hope this makes it clear enough for folks to follow.

Progress Report: Snow Dye

Here is the result of the was out that I showed last week. It is unique I think

 

 

 

 

Cardinals The Thread painting is going well. Now I need to build a limb for them to rest on.

 

 

 

 

 

Robins I finished this family yesterday and did the washout. I need to unpin them and trim away the  nylon netting next.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leaves I tried the machine drawing on roving with these leaves too. They worked well and are just pinned down here.   I’ll adds some birds and until I get that done I do not want to make the final decision about the leaf locations.

 

 

Collections- Memoirs of the Women  The women on this piece are  Grandma Butterworth, and Mom.   The pictures are from when both were about 20.   The bits and pieces are all from their lives. I only have a few more things to attach and this will be complete.

Creative Assistants I added the arms, hair and backs to these assistants this week. Then I turned and stuffed them. They were sewn shut and the pin backs added. Yesterday I added the squeezie paint embellishments.

 

 

Scrap Happy     I finished this work this week too.   It has been waiting for the return of the  sewing machine.    I  have been work with  one that only does strait stitches and zig- zag  so I could not apply the binding with the button whole stitch that I like to use.

 

 

 

 

Drawing –   

I was trying to work with reflection this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories- Junction Bed Room

My bed room in Columbus Junction was also the den. It was just to the left inside the front door. Along that south wall was a window and below it was a small book shelf that Dad built. Grandma Ruth had seven grand children by then and she gave us all magazine subscriptions for Christmas. Gene and I had subscriptions to Humpty Dumpty and Child Digest. They were stored in the book shelf and Mom or Dad would often pull one out to read to us at night. That was where I was first introduced to “Mike Mulligan the Steam Shovel and wonderful Dr Suess stories like “ It happened on Mulberry Street” and “ Mac Elliot’s Pool. “ On top of the book shelf was a lamp that Grandpa Howard made from wool that was cut and milled from the timber near the cabin he owned. The lamp was made of five blocks of walnut there were 4″X 4″ X 2″ stacked on alternating with 1 “ thick circles of a lighter wood. There were several other lamps like this in the house too. Next to the book shelf was a single bed. Mom made a cover that was gray on top with a long slightly gathered ruffle of 1″ strips of cream and black that hung to the floor. Along the back were two bolsters in red that Mom made and stuffed with rolled woolen blankets. There were two pictures above the bed but I don’t remember what were the subjects. I was sick with chicken pox in that bed. On the north wall was a door to the hall and the piano. Many times my Paper dolls were dressed up and lined up on top of the closed key board for a parade on that piano. On the east wall was a closet. I had a little dressing table with a bench and mirror in the closet. Sometimes I hid in the closet with the door slightly ajar and studied the shadows cast on my face in the mirror. Next to the closet was that chest of drawers that Dad and Grandpa built, and on top of that was a record player I had gotten for Christmas. It played 33.3s, 45s and 78s. I had a set of children’s records in red and yellow plastic that played such tunes as Poor Little Robin, Take Me Out to the Ball Park, The Rolly Poly Man in the Moon and Oh Susanna. I played them until I knew them by heart and can still sing them all.

I will be away for two weeks to help my friend. I know we will make art, but I will not be posting until I return so the next Bolg will be Feb 6.

Keep Creating

Carol

25 Million Stitches Project, Childhood Memories, Creative Assistants, Owl, Scrap Happy Quilts, small god

Happy Kwanzaa

 

Hello,
I hope the holidays are being filled with joy and delight for all of you. Kwanza begins today and for those who celebrate it, enjoy. This time of year one  takes stock of all the people who mean something to each one of us. As I write each holiday card I think of old friends and miss those who are on longer part of my life.

This week was full of many for me with lots of family events and for that I am truly grateful. I did finish Nick Quilt on Tues eve so I really meant my goal.


Progress Report: Owl quilt for Nick This queen sized quilt proved to be a struggle when it came to appliqueing the owl down. It is difficult to roll the quilt tight enough to fit under the arm of the machine and still be able to turn it to do the machine work. Nick and Haily did seem to like it however.

 

 

 

 

 

Small God      This work is 23″ W X 28.5 “ long. I found the blue woven fabric when I was pulling fabric for the back of Nicks ‘s Owl and set it aside.

So it did not take long to add it to the sides of the already stitched piece.  I did the drawing for this work over two years ago.   Sometimes I just have to wait for the fabric to show up to complete the task.

 

Scrap Happy I just keep inching along on this project. I surely will finish it soon.

 

 

 

 

 

25 Million Stitches Project

I am working away on the figures now and only need to add the work HOPE in the center of the circle and complete the figures.

 

 

 

Creative Assistants These little guys just keep rolling off the work table. I will need to stop and count sometime soon.

 

 

 

Childhood Memories: Yellowstone Critters
Mom was a continuous explore and   constant teacher. We learned the wild flowers in Yellowstone just like back in the Junction. I could quickly identify Bear Grass, Fire Weed and Shooting Stars. We walked up the high way one day and spent the afternoon exploring a lily pond. Gene just wanted to throw in rocks, something he seemed to driven to do with any body of water. One day we saw a solo Buffalo in a small meadow off the road. Mom charged us to take note of how high the buffalo was in relationship to a small tree there. On a later day we stopped the car and walked across the meadow up to the tree. I realized that my sense of scale was way off as I could only reach the branch that seemed to be level with the buffalo’s hump, if Dad boosted me a bit. They are very big animals!

On one of our outings we saw a Porcupine. He was very shy and ran away before Mom could get a photo.

One of our hikes revealed a Fire Ant mound. The nest was built of pine needles to help it suede water, Mom said.  The mound also made it possible for some of the aunts to weather the winter.  The mound  was so tall it reached about Gene’s waste and was three feet across. The bite of those ants hurt a lot too.
One of our outings  was up to a fire lookout station. The station was above the tree line and one could see across tree tops and peeks in all directions. There was a large brass device in the center of the room that cold be turned in any direction with a little window that the ranger then lined up with smoke so the fire could be pinpointed. The Range also gave us his binoculars and pointed out a Balled Eagle nest with 3 young all brown birds in it. They do not get white head feathers until they are three years old.   They were only six weeks old he told us.    Yellowstone  was a great experience for me as a kid.

I am stating to think about my goals for 2020.

Keep Creating

Carol

Childhood Memories, Creative Assistants, Jumping Off Place, Owl, Scrap Happy Quilts

Working Away

Hello,
With Christmas fast approaching there are always lots of craft fairs in our area. I went to one and purchased these wool dryer balls. They are a great way to speed up dryer time and fluff up the clothing just like lint sheets- but no waste. They work well.

Progress Report:   Owl   Quilt – Nick’s Christmas   I am assembling the base and quilting that part now. The quilting is all stitch in the ditch.

 

Scarp Happy I finished the back and I am now flip quilting all the rows together. Only have a few left.   I will do a diagonal quilting pattern on top to make even more connections.

 

 

 

Jumping off Place This work got berried under other projects and only came to light again this week. I want to add some buttons for emphasis and think I will finish soon.

Creative Assistants I did watch a lot of football this week so I finished up 25 more of these little fellows. More are in various stages too.

25 Million Stitches Project My good friend Cheri alerted me to this project to note and bring to the attention of others the fact that there are 25 million refugees in our world at this time. I continue to be worried about the children that our country has separated from their parents and this is my small contribution to  that  awareness  and to other aspects of this problem. I started my contribution last eve. If you are interested in participating the email add to find information is AQUinfor@comcast.net

 

Childhood Memories Base Camp in Yellowstone
Dad was stationed at the South Gate Ranger Station  in Yellowstone so that was where we parked the tailor for the summer. There were four families there plus a barracks full of young men who were the trail crew. They also tended the horses that were in the meadow in the day time and in the barn at night. Two of the families were permeate ranges. They lived in a three story duplex that the park service provided. There were three stories because the snow became so deep in winter that one could only escape from one of the upper stories through doors on those levels. The Children- all boys- five of them were home schooled. Across the dirt road on the meadow side sat our trailer and the smaller camp tailor  of the Jaquin’s .    We where  the  seasonal ranges families  and there was no housing provided at that time. We did not have electricity or running water.  (Welcome to how most of the world lived for hundreds of years.)    Mom had to hall water and the out house was down the road a bit and closer to the barracks. There was running water there and the barracks had indoor pluming so we never really crossed their paths. Mom had to use a wash board to do the laundry. With on way to keep food cold we only had real milk and fresh meat on the evening after we went to West Thumb and visited the trading post. We did drink a lot of powered milk though.  Because there was no  electricity and running water meant that Mom had to boil water on the Coleman stove for baths. We had a big stainless steel tub that we used for that. But I only remember doing that a few times . More often we went off to secluded section of the Snake River down stream from some geyser activity and went “swimming” there with soap. Mom often washed my hair there as well. It was great as it was warm and very clear. There was electricity available as Gene discovered the first night we were there. It was dusk and  he and I where catching June Bugs. He ran into the electric fence and it knocked him to the ground. He was more surprised then hurt. The fence was there to cage the horses and we had not noticed it when we parked the trailer. Later that summer we ducked under the single strand of wire and went into the bog part of the meadow. I was fascinated by the fact that one could find frogs in all stages of development from tad polls to two and four legged  little frogs with tails ,  all at the same time in the small horse hoof  pool wholes in the bog. The bog turned into a small stream just south of the barn. Jay, Gene and I played in it the first week or so. We built dams and such. No chance of getting lost as long as one stayed in the stream bed or next to it ,  so we did wander far. That all ended when a bear went through the camp area. Mom could not find us at that time and after that we had to be within hearing or eye sight of the camp for all our unsupervised play time. With only seven children and me the only girl,  it was a bit wild. We played hide and seek, tag and various other made up games. There was a big Marian of smooth rocks left by the glaciers that we used to play King on the Mountain on too. The rocks were all rounded so there were no sharp edges to get too badly hurt on. There was a big sand box near the big house and as kids we played there a lot. Gene had a toy we called a Trunner Rucker. It was a toy version of a road building bit of equipment. It was deep green and consisted of a cab unit with a trailer behind that had a crank on it so you could rise the bed and dump out the contents. It was a popular toy in that sand box and we played there a lot.    One day when Jimmy got angry with me and brook a glass jar on top of my head. I was banned from the sand box after Mom picked the glass out of my scalp. My first experience of “might makes right”. Dad tried to explain that even though it seems I was being punished –  sometimes it was better to avoid a conflict.     I just felt” wronged “and things between me and the boys were never the same. Mom did build me two tents- one out of a green army blanket and one out of a red Indian blanket to compensate.   It was fun but lonely.
We did eat a lot of peanut butter and canned meat that summer but we did get fresh fish too. One early morning the rangers took all the kids fishing on Yellowstone Lake. The kids mostly played on the rocky shore and only reeled in the fish that the men caught. Each child got the limit of 3- Cut Throat Trout. I remember being very proud. The eating was great too.

 

Hope everyone is preparing for the holidays and enjoying the time.

Keep Creating

Carol

Childhood Memories, Creative Assistants, Finger Lakes Fiber Artists, Owl, Scrap Happy Quilts

Busy Time

Hello-
As the photo shows I am still sorting my images of Australia.

I have been busy this week with a Finger Lakes Fiber Artist meeting. We added a new member to our group and I welcome her. Her work is very personal and this quilt is about her concern for a friends lung cancer.

 

 

Angela shared her second quilt for her brother that is constructed with fabric from her fathers old shirts.

 

 

Noel showed two baby quilts and her new excoriation work with pears. She is expanding her knowledge form her QBL class- one on the many qualities I like about her.

 

 

 

 

Pat just completed this big work.

 

 

 

I also spent time at the Quilts = Art= Quilts show. This was my second visit and I was attracted to new works this time. This work is by Shannon Costly  if Marco Island Fl  and is called Emerging.   The white words are “cut through”   the quilt and only connected with thread.    I love how used color and negative space to convey her message.

Progress Report: Bed For Kids- Scrap Happy I put in a lot of time on this to finish it on Tue.

 

I am glad I have done the build work with scraps so that this quilt only took two weeks to complete.

 

 

 

 

Pink Windmill This work was what I started at Sharron’s earlier this fall. It too went off to the Beds project on Tuesday.

 

 

 

 

 


Owl- Nick’s Christmas quilt I have built the back of this quilt and I am now assembling the rows. I hope to get to work on the owl piece for the top soon.

 

 

 

Creative Assistants These guys have served as my hand work for this week. It looks like I need to add the arms and hair so I can complete these guys.

 

There are two Childhood memories this week in my attempt to catch up.


Childhood Memories- 6th Birthday

In my family we always celebrated birthdays with candles and cake. One time Mom made angel food cake and inserted a little doll in the opening and made the cake frosting her gown. Mom did special parties when one was 6 and again when one turned 13. I’ll do 13 later. For my 6th birthday I had six guests all from the neighborhood- Billy, Susan, Sally, Doug, Anne and my brother Gene. The theme was Out of this World. The party hats were red vinyl with red crepe paper manes and two antenna with a ball on the end of each. The party favors were little forest green clothespin men with red ta-bards that sported a lighting strike. The were set in marshmallows to stand up.

Mom made a cake shaped like a space ship. The base was the usual cake tin and the second layer was baked in a domed Pyrex bowl. It had pink frosting with gum drops on it for lights. I got a big tricycle for my gift from Mom and Dad. It was red and white with a huge front wheel. I really loved it.   I spent many and afternoon  riding  it in the basement or up and down the driveway.

Childhood Memories – 1948 Ford 

As a kid, I did not pay much attention to cars until we got a used 1948 Ford. It was a ugly faded shade of dark green. My parents took it off to the garage and had it updated. The visor over the front window was removed and it got a new coat of paint. The Sunday before it came home we visited the car at the garage. The windows were taped with paper and the wheels were protected, the smell of paint was strong in the air and the ugly duckling was now yellow on the bottom with white on the top. It looked great! It was the car my parents used to pull a rented air stream from Columbus Junction,Iowa to Yellowstone National Park for that summer. I was seven. Mrs Mc Donald across the street gave  us a box of cookies the morning we left. Mom carefully dulled them out and made them last the whole trip. She also used the top of the box to keep track of the mileage. I recall smuggling down on the floor with my head resting on the lump- (drive shaft) and falling asleep on that trip. Later that summer we used the cookie box to create a diorama. Sand was on the bottom with short branches for trees, wolf liken for bushed and peeled corrugated cardboard became  the log cabin. Mom arranged a trip away from South Gate every weekend Dad had off from his guard duties. The car got a lot of use. On the first trip out of the park we went to Silver City- a soon to be tourist attraction. We walked the town and talked to the man who was running the press.    He was printing  hand bills for a show that evening at the opera house. We decided to stay . It was a Melodrama and great fun. I had never “Booed” or thrown peanuts shells at a villain before. When the show was over it was too late to drive home,so we stayed just out side of town sleeping in the car. Dad proceeded to pull the back up from the front seat and lay it down between the front and back seats. We were sort of flat and all four of us slept that way that night. In the morning Dad put the seat back in place and we drove away.
My only other memory of that car was going home. We were pulling the trailer over the centennial divide and the car did not like the work. The engine overheated.  Dad stopped the car and we all got out. Dad carefully removed the radiator cap -jump back just in time to avoid a scalding eruption. We had our own “Old Faithful” with lots of steam! After it cooled Dad filled the radiator with water from a canvas bag that hung on the front of the car. It was mostly down hill the rest of the way home so it did not happen a second time.  It was a good car that sure provided me with lots of memories.

I hope everyone is enjoying the season and is not stressed .

Keep Creating,

Carol

Childhood Memories, FAD (Fiber Art Dames), Quilt Exploration Group (QuEGs), Scrap Happy Quilts, Wool Rounds

Australia plus

Hello,
I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and enjoy the day. It has been a long time sense I have written and a lot has happened. The trip to Australia was wonderful. Wendy and I tried to do everything.
Melbourne was a beautiful city .  Wendy took a selfie of the two of us every day and this was our first.

 

 

 

 

 We did explore a small bit with our guide.   They have a great policy about art- a lot like Maine.    They have also cut down on graffiti by  designating special ally ways   to be used as such.

There were lots of wonderful ones.

 

 

 

 

 

Then we went off to Phillips Island to see Fairy Penguins with to stops on the way.

We went on an Animal park and got to see and pet koalas and feed our first Kangaroos.

 

 

 

 

 

We went to a surfing beach were the wind was blowing sand so hard one got a facial just stepping out of the bus.   Yes, those streaks are sand.

 

 

From there we went farther along the shore, checked out some penguin burrows and marveled at the crashing waves.

 

 

 

At sun set we watch the small navy blue Fairy Penguins come ashore to feed their young. No photos are allowed and the one shone here is form their free down load. They were very cute.

 

 

We   then flew from Melbourne to Cairns for more adventures. We went directly form the air port to a crocodile area. We saw emu and cassowary there. The Cassowary are very big- over 6 feet tall and a bit vicious. They are a very primitive bird with a finger nail type crown on its head. When she made a sound it traveled through the ground and we felt it in out feet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We did got to hold a three year old crock and have an experience with a anaconda. On the boat trip through the marsh we witnessed adult crocodile on that was 16 feet o long and was estimated to weigh over 600 pounds. He could have easily over turned our boat if he had wanted to the guide said. No swimming in that area!

We were still a bit messed up with time so we got up at 5 one day and went to the lagoon with four of our new friends and went swimming at 6 in the morning.

 

 

 

 

That day was also the day we went snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef. The fish were beautiful and the coral was as well. I swallowed lots of salt water as I tended to watch fish as they would swim under me and the snorkel would fill with water.

We also took a ride on a glass bottom boat. That is were my photos of under the water came from.

 

 

In Cairns we saw fruit bats that have 6 foot wing spans. This is a shot of them resting in a tree in the center of town. We also saw them in flight at night when we were watching a fire dancer.

We went on a train ride up ( 52 degree incline) to Kuranda, a gold mining town. It is now an Artist colony were art was every where.

This shot of the side walk was only one of many like it, There were murals all over town and every sigh post sported a welded insect of some sort.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We then went on to to Sydney and took a dinner cruse on the harbor. We visited the Opera house- it is amazing.

 

 

 

 

 

We went to a Animal Rescue Center were we saw many animals.   We got to feed kangaroos again .

 

 

 

 

This is my shot of Fairy Penguins that were there for help. There were Koalas there too and I was told that they were expecting a dozen more from the burn area later that day.

 

 

 

We had an aborigine experience that evening.  They even taught a simple dance. I learned a lot- mostly what I do not know about those peoples. Like the fact that there are over 200 different tribes that all speak different langues and have different practices. The only two myth’s they all share is the one about the Rainbow Serpent who is said to have crawled across all of Australia and in doing so sculptured the land. When you see a rainbow the Serpent is said to be going from one water whole to another. The other myth that is shared is that all creatures were born out of a Cassowary egg. Every area has a distinct type of painting and one can identify the tribe if one know the code.

These are the only pieces of fabric that I purchased and I learned that the artist gets a commission on the sale of each tea towel.

 

We walked the harbor one afternoon. There we took a photo on Santa’s large lap and were joined by another tourist from Russia, she is setting on my knee.

 

 

 

We went to the Chinese gardens and I got to have a wonderful review of all the different gardens I had visited with Mom on our trip to China 20 years ago.

 

 

 

 

It was a wonderful experience and I am glad that I did it with Wendy. We did celebrate her 50 birthday at the Harbor View Bar at the top of our hotel in Sydney.

 

There was a QuIG’s meeting on Tue this week. Susan shared her piece that she worked on at the retreat at the Schweinfurth that happened when I was away.

Liz also used the retreat to further her free motion quilting skills.

 

 

 

Yesterday was a meeting of the FAD group. Sharon shared her leaf quilt. She also showed us her new landscape , both she will be selling at the Plowshares Christmas show this week end.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Wool Rounds This quilt is 36″ w X 59.5″ l. I really finished this before I left. I really like the circular pattern building and hope I can up with a new variation to do again soon.

 

 

Little  Priest I finished the back outline stitching on this piece this week. I want it to be a bit bigger so I am considering boarders now.

 

 

 

 

Nick’s Quilt Nick asked for a new quilt with an owl on it. I built this graded blue background this week and will move forward with the bird when it is assembled.

 

Beds for Kids Project-Pink Quilt Liz V asked me on Tue to make 2 more twin quilts for this project a week ago Tue. There are over 200 children in this county who do not have beds. I though of this work that I stared at Sharrons earlier this fall and though some child would enjoy it. The top is all done and I am working on a back now.

 

Scarp Happy This twin quilt will also be a part of my contribution to the Beds project. This one is better suited for a little boy I think.

 

 

 

Scrap Happy Queen I have put this quilt on hold until the kids ones are done.  The rows are all done and the back is made so when I get to it it will go together quickly.

 

 

Childhood Memories- May Day

When we lived in Columbus Junction our house was at the edge of town in a hill. Along the east side and that the back of the garden was there were steep gullies that were fully wooded. Sometimes Mom would take us for a walk in the timber. The walk would begin at the back south east corner of our lot where we would climb a fence and descend the steep gully side that was well forested with oak trees. At the bottom was a little spring that produced a small flow down the center of the gully to the east. We would follow along the bottom and Mom used the trips in spring to teach us to recognize and name wild flowers. Yellow Dog Tooth Violets, along with the normal purple ones, Dutchman’s Britches, Trillium, Indian Pipes and Jack in the Pulpits were to be found there. They became familiar and we learned to recognize and spot them. At the end of the gully the stream headed South east along a meadow before it entered another wood and gully that flowed down to the Iowa River. We never went that way but instead turned south and east across the meadow to a large boulder about the size of a half sofa. It was pink quartz and Gene and I would race to it and scramble to the top where we would face West and yell” We have discovered America!” Because the boulder was know in those parts as Plymouth Rock.

In spring after my Birthday, I spent time making 3 construction paper baskets. Then after school on the first day of May I went to the edge of the wood and picked some wild flowers- violets mostly, and put them plus two hard candies, a piece of gum, and a lolly pop in each basket. Taking the baskets one at a time then I stealthy went to the front doors of three of my friends and hung a basket on the knob. I ran home hoping not to be seen ,and waited, hoping I would be fortunate enough to get a May Basket from an unknown friend. I got one in the two years that I did participate in this May Day ritual. We moved away after second grade and the new community did not follow this tradition. I still recognize all the flowers Mom taught us about though.

I hope all are doing well and enjoying the delights of the season.
Keep Creating
Carol

Autumn Leaves, Childhood Memories, Coral Sea, Curvie Cuts, Landscapes, Out the Window, Scrap Happy Quilts

Quilt Show

Hello,
Fall is really in the air as we continue to have cool nights and crisp days. I went off to see the Thompkin’s County Quilt Show on Saturday this week. It was fun and full of old friends.
Tracy had a wonderful solo show within the quilt show of some of her thread painted birds. She did the work from photos she took on her many adventures. They were wonderful. Kirsten finished her her project form the Rock class this summer. I think it came out great.

 

 

 

 

Donna had this fun little quilt as a part of the auction that was held. I got excited about the work and came home all revived.

 

Progress Report: Autumn Leaves-Past My Window

This work is 35″w X 29.5″ t. I got rolling and this piece went together quickly. I used leaves from my class with Betty Busby and made more in that same style.

Then I found a bag full of silk leaves someone had passed my way and they were added. The quilting is all free motion in a leaf pattern too.

 

 

 

 

Topographical This work is 39.5″w X 27″t. I enjoyed working on this project and learned a lot about how to couch yarns. I think there is potential for more exploration along these lines.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scrap Happy

This quilt is queen sized and will go off to the Ronald Mc Donald House some time soon. The centers for the Roman Strip blocks came from fabric that Angela gave to me. It has a fun feel.

 

 

 

 

Nick’s Quilt

I pulled all these blues and even started cutting some for that base of Nick’s owl quilt. It is early.

Jumping Off Place I just keep doing hand work on this piece. I am trying to use yarns and threads that are atypical for me as part of this exploration.

 

 

 

Coral Sea

I just added fish and starfish to the surface this week and started to stitch stuff down. It is colorful and fun too.

 

 

 

Mountain study I stared this in the Rock class this summer. Pulled it out and did a little work. I am unsure as to  where to go with this point, so it may need some down time for me to think on this one.

 

 

 

Wool Rounds I just keep stitching away with this project. I finished up 5 rounds this week and continue to button whole stitch down the last sheet of cut wool  circles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Childhood Memories- Chickens
This will be the last piece dedicated to Ainsworth as we moved in the spring just after I turned 5.  I have one more” Storied Memory ”  to tell here. My brother Gene was born in Feb before I became four in April. It seems that I was in Grandmother Ester’s care while Mom was in the hospital for 5 days. She says she was anxious to see me and according to her I disappointed her by being more interested in chasing chickens in the chicken yard then seeing her and the new baby.

I do remember her giving me a Toni perm though. It stunk and burned my head a bit. I also  remember helping her clean chickens in the sink standing on a stool. I was plucking feathers and I soon tired of the task.     Many days Mom  would ask me what I wanted to eat  for lunch. My response for many times  was “ Spinach again today.” I still love it.

Dad was going to school working on his Masters Degree at this time. He took a class in early childhood literature. I benefited by having lots of books read to me. Two that seems to have nestled in the back of in my young mind were Lois Linsky’s “Strawberry Girl” and “Cotton in My Sack.”   At Least the illustrations did because when I came across them later and asked Mom why they seemed so familiar she told me of Dad’s readings. Dad spent lots of special time with me because Gene demanded so much of Mom’s attention. I remember his taking me up to the high school one sunny day.     The librarian was culling the book connection. I was allowed to select one book to have as my own. I chose one book full of black and white photos of Japan. I spent hours looking and later drawing women in komons. I can still bring some of those images up in my mind as an adult.

I am off to a week quilting retreat in Chicago with my friend Sharron on Friday so there well be no posting next week.
Keep Creating
Carol

3X3, Childhood Memories, Collage, Creative Assistants, Finger Lakes Fiber Artist Group, Scrap Happy Quilts

Lilac Time

 

Hello,
As the photo shows the Lilac are blooming. The smell is wonderful. We continue to have warm days with lots of rain.
There was a Finger Lakes Fiber Artists meeting this week end. It was good to see the gals and the discussions were good ones.   I know I took photos but I can’t seem to put my fingers on them at this time.  Lets just agree it was a visual feast.

The Sketchbook Revival class ended and I did a lot of drawing / collage works to finish up. It was enjoyable to stretch in that way for a while.  It is always good to step out of ones routine and try new things every now and then.

 

 

 

 

Progress Report: Circular Thinking I am glad that I did the rework on this piece. The edges are square now and I like the flipped piece. It did mean some additional stitching across the seams, but it was well worth the efforts.

 

 

 

 

Tee Shirt Quilt 1 This work is moving forward now. All the shirts are assembled into the top  and I am building a scarp back in  shades of green and brown.

I would love to get this one completed in the next week.

 

 

 

 

 

Creative Assistants I got busy and made a new batch of faces for these little fellows this week. It is always a playful activity.

 

 

Prep Work I am going to the Surface Design Symposiums in Ohio the last week in May thanks to Susan G.   She can not go due to a join replacement she had last week. She is gifting me her spot with Rosalie Dace in Independent Studio for seven days. I am working on sketches of things to try with her guidance.
The this one is of an antique auto  that I took years ago. I want to do a few more before I limit my choices and then I will start to pull fabric to do the work.

This is my pencil interpretation of a shot I took in the car was.   I have several more from this adventure that I want to try.

 

 

 

 

Scrap Assembly   I  keep putting together my scarps and the box is now almost full of units to cut up. I have emptied one of my five bags of scarps too.

 

 

Purple Squares I had a good week and managed to finish off six new blocks this week. I want to complete three more and then I will build a nine patch by adding them to some of the blue squares that I excavated before the retreat.

 

 

Childhood Memories- Berrying Doubloons One of the summers that Gene and I stayed with the grandparents while my parents went to Iowa City to work on their Master’s Degrees, we where in love with the idea of pirates. Our great Aunt May had worked in the button factory when she was younger and she was allowed to bring home the button  seconds. There were buckets full of pearl buttons in Grandmother Ruth’s house. Gene, cousin Russell and I called them doubloons and decided to make a treasure map and bury some. We got a old cigar box from grandmother and filled it with the buttons. We even tried to make “ink” with some berry juice, used a chicken feather for a pen and drew a map of “ Cocklin Island” .   Cocklin was my grandparents name- and the map was our interpretation  of the yard.  We noted all the landmarks in the yard like the three Blue Pines and the dead cherry tree .  We  put an X where we buried the treasure of course.   It was in the garden near the old  stone encrusted  cement pillars that  great  grandfather Herman, had made when Mom was young.    We berried the “treasure chest”  there because  it was the only place in the yard that was soft enough for us to dig  successfully.   I do not know if anyone ever went in search of the treasure or what became of the map. I am sure grandmother dug up the box when she dug potato that fall. It was a great way to spend a summer day  and my memory of the day is a golden one.

Keep Creating

Carol