Have a Lovely Thanksgiving!

In the morning, I fly to Kansas City to spend Thanksgiving with my family. Sherry, Barclay and Hannah are driving and Molly is flying in from Portland. They will all stay with Norah and Chad and I will stay with Bill and Ann. It is always so good to be together - it's always fun when we're together. I am so thankful for my family and for the fact that I have been blessed with good health and still able to get around quite well for my age. Have a wonderful day, eat lots of good stuff and I will be back in a week. Hugs, Carol

To the Art Fair

Sherry picked me up this afternoon and we went out for a nice lunch then over to the art fair at the Center for the Arts that is held every year at this time. The artists are juried in and all of the booths are filled with lovely goodies to buy - I am sure much Christmas shopping is done there each year. There are lots of ceramics, jewelry, wood carvings--and some of the most beautiful felted wool articles in the way of tams, flowers, vests, scarves, jackets, etc. If I were young and wealthy and thin (I don't think that's going to happen!) I would love to wear things like that. However, I can still enjoy looking at them and dreaming a bit. I usually don't buy much of anything, but today a booth with this beautiful candle holder and other great items caught our eyes and I really just thought this is one of the prettiest things I have seen in a long time. I love candles and especially ones that twinkle through mosaic like exteriors. Can you see the real flower that is integrated in the holder somehow? Isn't that just the coolest thing? Sherry wanted to buy it for me, but I will let her find something else and call this a Christmas present for me from me. Merry Christmas, Carol! (Click to enlarge)

The Tote Bag

The "icicles" totebag is finished and hung on the knob of the old chest of drawers to have it's picture taken. (When I enlarged the picture, I could see that the old drawer pull is loose and I need to get a screwdriver and tighten the screw!) It went together pretty well although I would not ever do the lining again as they instructed. It was different than the usual way of making the lining and the bag, taking the darts in the bottoms of each, sewing the tops together with the bag inside the lining and tucking the lining in the bag. Of course, top stitching comes after that. They had you take the whole flat bag and flat lining and sew across the top, then open it out, fold in half and sew the three sides, leaving a space for turning. The darts had to be made before turning. That was the awkward part. After the paperpiecing was done, I stitched in the ditch around each icicle and just the wavy running lines on the bands. Also made a bottom for the inside by covering some rigid cardboard with the lining fabric. I am very happy with it. (Click to enlarge)

Fashion Friday

Nelle and her friend, Ruth, in their finery ready for a lovely day. Ruth's lovely outfit consists of a dress or skirt of taffeta with a double ruffle around the bottom and she is wearing a pretty belted three-quarter coat. Her shoes are white as are her stockings. She carries a lovely metal purse with a pretty chain handle. A really pretty high crowned hat that has a flower feature on on the top completes her ensemble. Nelle is looking very stylish in what seems to be a two piece dark suit that has button and piping trim on the sleeves and pocket. She, too, is wearing white shoes and they are the high top button style. More ornate than Ruth's, Nelle's hat is the same high crown type with a lovely floral cluster on the side. Two very pretty ladies on a lovely day in Peoria, Illinois, way back somewhere around 1920. Were they on their way to Glen Oak Park? (Click to enlarge)

What a Disappointment

Did you watch Dancing With the Stars tonight? I am soooooo disappointed and so surprised that Joanna and Derrick were voted off. I was sure the finals would be Joanna, Maya and Kelly - and
not Donny. He was okay but certainly not as good as Joanna. Bah, Humbug!

A Pretty Evening Sky

I enjoy the little condo I live in a lot, but there certainly is not anything in the way of scenery to look at. All the little houses are painted a brown that I never would have picked out and the carports have no doors. I am by no means knocking this place, though, as there are some really nice people here and the board takes good care of everything. I was on the board for a long time and this is a unique little complex and it's really the perfect spot for me. I digress, as usual, since what I wanted to do was comment on this beautiful sunset I photographed a couple of evenings ago. I held the camera high to get as little of the buildings as possible. You can't see a lot of the sky here but that evening what you could see was so very pretty. I loved the bare tree silhouetted against the pinks and mauves of sunset. Digital cameras are such fun and the photos so clear and beautiful. (Click to enlarge)

Icicle Totebag

This is a pattern I found on the RJR fabric company website that I thought was pretty cute. I have one side paperpieced and the other ready to go. Using oriental fabrics that I already have.

This is what it will look like - when I printed out the pattern I did it on draft so the color isn't good but you can still see what it is. I needed to start something else, right? You can find this pattern at http://www.rjrfabrics.com/patterns/patterns_search.cfm. All of the fabric companies have lots of pretty free patterns that you can download. Moda, Hoffman, etc. all offer lots of great projects. And Moda Bake Shop is another really cool website. (Click to enlarge)

Fashion Friday

Here is a rather unusual picture and I am trying to figure out where Maggie and Leah were when this was taken. As always, someone has written on the front of the picture and, although Leah's name appears to have been misspelled, I think that something has eradicated part of the L and taken the "h" away. Back to the photo--I don't think this was taken in downtown Peoria since it doesn't make sense who would take it. More likely, this was in San Francisco when they visited Nelle although it doesn't seem likely that Nelle would run ahead and take a picture either. Regardless, the two Pearce ladies look lovely. Leah is wearing a beautiful plaid coat over a simple dress. Her hat is worn at an angle and has a ballcaplike brim. Maggie wears a skirt and pretty blouse under a very nice coat with a wide collar. Pinned on her shirt collar is the cameo she always wore. The outfit is topped off with a cute hat featuring a little cluster of flowers on the front and on her feet are some really cute shoes. Maggie wore shoes with little heels way into her later years. The lady walking behind them is very fashionably dressed, also. Wonder who she was? A photograph is a moment in time. (Click to enlarge)

November ATC's

I have written about Mopsy in the last paragraph and wanted to put in a picture of her. She is out of place, but I have never figured out how to move the pictures around!

Theme this month is Paper Dolls - which were a major part of my childhood, probably even into the eighth grade. At that point, it was more drawing around the dolls and designing clothes for them . I had a friend, Fern Davis, who was just as enthusiastic as I was when it came to these paper playmates. We would spend hours drawing, designing, coloring and creating pretty things for our paps. I did four different cards - all featuring cutouts from the Sunday funny papers. The first is Jane Arden - and that one was probably right at the peak of my interest. She was in the paper often. Next was Tillie the Toiler and I think the particular doll on that card would have been before my time a little - and the chubby cutie below was when I was really little so I probably never had one of her. Boots and her Buddies were during my paper doll days.

I tried hard to find an image of a Brenda Starr paper doll, my second favorite. Mopsy was my very first favorite. However, I think with Mopsy, it was more the comic strip since most of the paper dolls I found of her where at a later date when I would have given them up. I do recall loving to try and draw her with her wonderful curly hair. I am going to add a picture of her to this post, but it will be at the top of it since I don't know how to move the pics around. Anyway, hope you enjoy this little "piece of the past". (Click to enlarge)

Seminole Piecing

Here are two out of the four bands that I worked on yesterday in the class taught by Carrie. What a nice day and how fun to see the fabric everyone picked out to make their strips. I will be posting pictures on Pass the Tiara later today or tomorrow so you may want to check out some of the cool piecing that was done in the class. I am still thinking I may do a tote bag using one or two of these strips.

The top band is called Flip Flop and the lower one is Box Kites. Carrie did a great job in getting everyone going and keeping them on track. There were seventeen pupils and everyone was enjoying the process and getting a lot done. Thank you, Carrie! (Click to enlarge)

I Have Done My Homework

On Monday, there will be a class in Seminole Piecing that will be taught by one of our guild members, Carrie. I just finished cutting my strips for the four different patterns we will be doing. So much fabric is down in my basement - and I figured I will use it and not buy more for this class. Thought about Oriental or African and the African won out. Also thinking that these bands would make a really cool totebag so that's what I am going to shoot for. Have never done any piecing like this but it does look like fun. Now to gather the rest of the stuff to take along and have it all ready for Monday morning.

And, good grief, here's another red block that is ready to applique. Hope your weekend is as pretty as ours is here in Michigan! Kind of windy but sunny and 63 - can't beat that!

(Click to enlarge)

Fashion Friday

On this Fashion Friday, I am posting a picture of a very pretty young lady and her husband who were my husband's Aunt Leatha and Uncle Frank, aka Chubby. Leatha was my husband's mother's sister and a really sweet lady. She is wearing a two pieced outfit that looks to be made of taffeta and features a double ruffled peplum and long sleeves that flare out gracefully at the wrist. The square neckline was embellished with buttons and a small collar completed the look. Her skirt is a darker shade than the top. Chubby is looking dapper in his three piece suit and white shirt and tie. (Click to enlarge)

Selvages and Birds of a Feather

For some time now, I have been kind of saving selvages from my fabrics ever since I found a blog dedicated to selvages - http://selvageblog.blogspot.com/ - and when I was looking on it today I saw these potholders. Aren't they neat? Might be an idea for something for the quilt show bazaar. So many of my pieces of fabrics are fat quarters or half yards or less that I don't have long pieces of selvage. However, if I get to rooting around through my stuff, I will have lots of short pieces!! You might take a peek at the blog and see all the cute things there.

I have been seeing so much red lately - and thought I would change colors and do a little bit on my birds of a feather. However, I am in need of some thread so can't finish stitching it. I did one of the twigs in a varigated thread - did the entire thing - and hated it. So I got to play the game of taking out the stitches - my next favorite game to spilling the box of straight pins and playing pickup. Got them out without making any disasterous cuts and without shagging up the narrow stems. Now I will find a color that looks nice with them. Sometimes I feel like a flea - flitting from one thing to another, but from what I can gather in reading blogs that seems to be a common trait with some quilters. I also think it comes with growing older so I probably have a double dose of - OMG - is it ADD? (Click to enlarge)

Some of My Little Doodads

Here are some old book holders for the backs of church pews that I found in an antique warehouse in Bay City. I really like them - they look pretty with the other oak things I have in my house. Below them is a little chest that I just love. I have always been drawn to anything with lots of drawers.

This little fellow with the basket and grapes is so pretty - it was in with Ray's mother's things. It has a chalky like finish and is quite delicate.

I just love this little lady - found her with Clemie's things, also. It, too, is matte finished and I have no idea what it is. She hangs under one of my motto pictures - Joyce Kilmer's "Trees".

This would have been a piece of toy furniture for a little girl. It came from the Flea Market in Lawrence, Kansas, which was a veritable treasure trove. I think Sherry bought this for me as a gift one time. I have lots of little old pieces sitting on it including the little freight car which was from a little wooden train that was Sherry's when she was really little (daughter of a railroad man!). Can you imagine giving a little one anything like that in this day and age? It has wooden wheels, wire axles and couplers - what a no no! She knew all the cars - the reefer, caboo and engine. There is also a little cup and saucer I bought at the dime store when I was in high school on the top shelf and an old cold cream jar with flowers in it. Isn't good old junque fun?
(Click to enlarge)