Woo Hoo!

Somehow or other,  I was able to get a background again.  I am not sure just how I did it but it's done.   Marvel of marvels - just could not leave it alone and finally got the right combination.  Need to figure out how to get the picture in the middle but that's minor.  Now, I can get my suitcase and start packing to go see that little doll in Colorado.  So no more posts until after Labor Day - I hope you all have an enjoyable holiday maybe with a great bbq!   See you later. 

Having Blogger Problems - Highlight post to read

Much to my dismay, so far I have been unable to fix whatever it is that has messed up my blog background.  Unfortunately, I have lots to do today and tomorrow so this may just have to wait until I get back from meeting my sweet little great grandson.  Will try to remedy it when I can, but don't want to drive myself up a wall!!!!  

Laurel Wreath

I think this is what I will use for the stems and leaves in the wreath for this quilt.  Will work with the 30's reproduction fabrics and was going to do all the leaves in different greens (will still give that a try) but rather like this dark green on the background fabric.  My thinking is that I can put a pretty stitch for a vein down each leaf with the Sulky thread that I use for the buttonhole stitch to applique the leaves.  Also, I think the plain leaves may make the designs in the wreath stand out.   I am shy one leaf in this picture and everything is just temporarily stuck on since I am using some Steam A Seam Lite that I have. 

The color is awful here (I took this on the lighted light box) but you can see how the appliques will fit in the wreath.

A cute bird - one of four or five.   I think this will be fun to work on even though I will probably be getting a little weary of leaves since there are 25 blocks!  Do love to work with Aunt Gracielike fabric.  Then again, I love working with all fabrics. 

Since this is not particularly a pretty post, I will add a picture I found on Pinterest which originally came from http://loubuttons.tumblr.com/page/7  .   You could get lost on Pinterest - great stuff.

Isn't that a beauty?



 (Click to enlarge)

Vintage Magazines

I have been lazy since my big weekend and this afternoon have been surfing the net just looking at all the fun stuff out there.  Vintage magazine covers appeal to me so that was in the search box.  Then I added "needlework" and there were a lot of the old McCall's Needleworks and Crafts that I started taking back in the 1950's and took for a lot of years.  I had impressive stacks of them.  Each time we moved, they came along.  The Santa Fe paid for our moves (even had the packing done for us in the later ones) so no need to worry about getting rid of anything.  Another bunch of magazines I kept for years were old National Geographics.  Well, anyway, I finally did get rid of the old Mc's N & C's when we moved back to Illinois.  Of course, Ray was retired and Santa Fe was not about to pay for that move.  Put them all out in a garage sale and think someone finally did take them.

I really don't wish to have them back, but it would be fun to look through them again.   I used to make projects from them which don't seem to be nearly as cool as things are nowadays, but I have always enjoyed making things.  Case in point--

Here is some of my craftiness back in the mid 1960's.  The Madonna was from one of those old magazines and was gold felt on a white wicker window shade with gold sequins.  She really was rather pretty.  I think I had two clay flower pots painted gold with white spray painted branches and little ornaments hanging on them.  On the coffee table, is a cone with cotton balls and ornaments.  You can barely see the red felt stockings lying on the floor that I had made when the kids were really little.  This was taken the year Bill got his new bike.  Exciting Christmas for him.

Behind Bill who is deep in though with the game you can barely see my toothpick tree!  What a wonderful piece.  I stuck hundreds of toothpicks in styrofoam balls and piled them in the shape of a tree.  Stupid woman did not put glue on the toothpicks so that baby didn't last long.  Fun to see these old pictures again. Wow, where did the time go.  These were taken in our home in Topeka, Kansas.  (Click to enlarge)

What a Great Weekend

What a great weekend with my family for my 83rd birthday.  My son and his wife came in Thursday night late after having driven from KC to Michigan in one day.   My middle granddaughter and her husband came from Portland, OR, and stayed with Sherry and Barc.  Saturday we had a dinner here and then all went to the Loons ball game - a farm team for the Dodgers that is based here.  Dow Chemical is the big employer in Midland and they were responsible for the absolutely wonderful stadium that was built a few years ago.  Great place for families and baseball fans to go have a fun evening.  Sunday was a steak cookout at my daughter's home.  Missing and missed were Hannah and Norah and family.  However, we all talked to Hannah on the phone over the weekend and she sounds wonderful.  She was telling us how she has added electricity in each room now from the one hanging bulb she had.  We are amazed. And she has painted all (probably 3) rooms different colors and all have pink doors.  What a girl!  We also skyped with Norah, Chad and Henry on Sunday and got to watch the little baby funny faces and hear some of his little sounds.  Labor Day weekend Sherry, Barclay and I will fly to Colorado and meet Henry - so looking forward to that so much.  Aunt Molly will fly in from Portland, too.  

All in all, I had such a happy birthday.   I enjoyed the birthday comments so much.  Blogging and quilting keep me busy and moving along.  I did, however, have two naps yesterday and did not get much done.   I have days like that every once in a while anyway!  Thank you, my dear family, I love you all.

83 Today

 

Today this little girl turns 83 years old.  The years have flown by so quickly.  I am so very blessed to have such a wonderful family, good health, and most of my mind still functioning.  Now, on to 84 "be the good Lord willing and the creek don't rise" as Arthur Gordfrey used to say. 

Ready for the Laurel Wreath Quilt

This is one of two quilts I want to put together this fall and winter. I sent for some very pretty background fabric (you will be able to see it if you enlarge the photo) and also more reproduction fabric from two different sources.  No one in Midland sells 30's reproduction fabric and you are pretty sure to be able to get what you want when you order it on line.  I bought the background and one set of reproduction fabrics from Fabric Shack in Ohio.  Their shipping is $2.50 for up to $75.00 and they were quick in filling my order.  I read about them on  The Polka Dot Chicken - there is a link to her blog on my sidebar.

I have posted this picture before and only do it to show the way the wreath comes together with a bird or flower being inside each one.


Bill and Ann are coming from Overland Park tomorrow evening and my middle granddaughter, Molly, and Doug are flying in from Portland tomorrow, also, so we will have some great family time with most of the family.  (Click to enlarge)

My Beautiful Pillow

Sunday afternoon, my friend, Leslie, and her beautiful young daughter, Elle, stopped by and brought me this pillow that Elle made for me.  It is gorgeous!  And what a sweet surprise.  The petals of the flower are done in felt and sewn on individually.  It will have the place of honor on the red quilt.    Elle and I have kind of a mutual admiration society.  She is an ice dancer -  I think that is the right term.  Leslie takes her to Detroit to train and I know she has been working with various partners.   Mom and daughter are both cute and lots of fun.  In my quilt group, I am probably the oldest with  most of the gals being an age to be my daughters or granddaughters.  It makes me feel really good that I am included in their fun outings and their  creativeness.  I think  it helps to keep me feel younger and keeps me on my toes.

 To you, Elle, thank you so much for this beautiful pillow you made for me.  You touched my heart!

(Click to enlarge)

Pinterest

I love looking around on the different blogs looking at all the loveliness out there.  As I do, I usually "right click and save as" things that strike my fancy and put them in folders in My Documents.  I have a file there called "My Good Stuff" which is full of many files of all kinds of great inspiration, ideas and just eye candy.
The other day when I was on one of my favorite blogs, http://beeinmybonnetco.blogspot.com/, Lori did a post on "Pinterest" which I had not heard of before.  She explains it and gives examples in her post on Wednesday, August 10th.  Pinterest is kind of like "My Good Stuff" in that it has many, many files of pictures that many, many people save and you can share theirs and they, in turn, can share yours.  I am still trying to get it all figured out and I will eventually.   You can go to http://pinterest.com/caroldb/  and see the little bit that I have there.  Somehow, I have listed quite a few people that I "follow" and I don't know exactly how I got some of them.  When you look at other files, you can repin and put ones you like in your own. What is great is that there is credit for the original poster beneath each picture. 

I think this is going to be great fun.  The little sampler above is something I spotted that I would love to make as a gift. According to the the girl making it,  (http://nanacompany.typepad.com/nanacompany/)  it is only about the size of a sheet of paper. I would make it a little bigger.  Wouldn't that be a nice gift for a new baby?   This time it would be for another little baby who is to be born this month.  Maybe one for Henry later! 
(Click to enlarge)

Tummy Time

Tummy time on his train quilt - subject of the e-mail I got from Norah last evening with this adorable picture.  I am super smitten with this little fellow - and he is such a spiffy dresser!   (Click to enlarge)

What a Nice Way to Start the Day

The phone rang this morning as I finished eating my breakfast.  It was Hannah - what a wonderful way to start the day.  All excited about being an aunt for the first time, she was congratulating me on my first great grandchild.  Hannah sounds wonderful - bubbly and happy with her cute little giggle.  Her next call was going to be to Norah to ooh and aah about the new little one who is doing just great.  Mommy and baby will be going home either today or tomorrow.

It's all  together now - put the last two red borders on this morning.  I started paper piecing the first border but that was going to be a slow go so I did some figuring and came up with the size to cut the little squares and fuse them on the strip.  Took a while but not as long as paper piecing.  The actual piecing the original way is not my favorite thing to do.  I will have it quilted and then have a new quilt for my bed.  It's certainly red, isn't it?  (Click to enlarge)

A Beautiful, Wonderful Early Birthday Present

This evening my beautiful granddaughter gave birth to this eagerly awaited adorable little fellow, Henry Ryan, and mommy, baby and daddy are all doing well!  This picture, as I understand it, was taken within an hour of his birth.   Sherry, my daughter, the new grandma, said they put the baby on the mommy's chest for skin to skin contact for about an hour.  How sweet is that?  Norah and Chad are certainly a perfect picure of proud, happy new parents.  There will be pictures flying through the internet and some skyping going on tomorrow.  Christmas will have the magic sparkle again that only little ones bring to the holidays.  We're so glad you are here, Henry, and welcome to the family.  You have grandparents, aunts, uncles, great aunts and great uncles all anxious to hold and cuddle you.  We love you so much. xxxxxoooooxxxxxGreat Grandma

A Really Old UFO

Way, way back in the late 1980's, I taught a little class in machine applique at Needle and Thread, the little quilt shop in Chillicothe, Illinois.  This was the block I used for teaching.  Actually, I only got about a fourth of it done and really don't remember a lot about the class other than one woman had a machine she didn't know how to use.  Awful!  I think the few others in the class did get something out of it---at least, I hope so.  Such a shame when that happens.  This little block was done in satin stitch which was my main method for many years.  The secret to pretty satin stitching is how well the thread matches the fabric.  One day a few years ago, I finished it - then another time I stipple quilted the piece and made it into a pillow.  It has been lying around here waiting to be stuffed for a long time, and I finally did that.  Only thing that was left to do was hand sew the opening of the edge closed. 

Today is the day that this pillow top started probably 22 or 23 years ago is finished, done, complete!!!  Someplace I have a cathedral window pillow top that is almost done.  Maybe I will search it out.  Have a fun weekend!  (Click to enlarge)

Here's Hannah

Hannah has been on a break and vacationing with some of her friends.  She tells about some of it in her last post on her blog which you can go to by clicking on her picture at the right on my sidebar.  Also she posted some pictures on Facebook and I thought you might like to see a couple of them.  She is looking so cute and happy here and from what she is posting and what my daughter hears when they talk she is happy and truly enjoying her time in the Peace Corps.  The plans are in the works for Molly, her next oldest sister, to visit her at Thanksgiving time and then Hannah will be coming back to Michigan for Christmas.  The time is going quickly - but it makes all of us feel so good that she is a happy camper. 

Here is the coach and her soccer team.  Sher was able to get some deflated balls and needles and pump to  send over to her.  Thought you might like to see how Professor Hannah is doing.  We are so proud of that very dear young woman!  (Click to enlarge)