There's No Chair Like An Old Chair

 

 I know I have too many old chairs in the house.  Some of them are way past their prime.  Like this one.  Gosh, I have a chair here from my elementary school (long torn down), and that is pretty old.

They come to me from various places and people and I can't seem to say no to them.  However, Bird Nest Cottage is reaching it's chair maximum.  I could be talked into more....but some would have to go and that is where there is a problem.  I just hate to see them go.  This one is one of my favorites.  When I bought it, I thought I'd try to re-upholster it in a sepia color with lots of lace and trims and such.  Have I?  No.  So, I thought, just for fun, that I would just add a few things here and there and pretend I was getting ready to actually do that little chore.  So, here is the chair....undressed.....

 

 And, then "Dresssed."  A plain pillow, an embroidered pillow, a crocheted and embroidered panel, and then, a tatted linen doily over top.  Gee, I love it just like that!

 

 By the way, this chair used to be covered with green upholstery.  Now, it looks like a rather dusty gray green and there were flowers in there too, but hard to see.

 

 Here it is with a crocheted doily over top.  Even over top of that tatted piece.

 

 A close up.

 

 And, here with a table runner over top.  Battenburg lace.  Really pretty.

 

 Here it is with a different crocheted piece over top.

 

 And, again, a different one over top. 

  

 

 Some kind of feed sack ... well, it says Texas, how could I not?

 

 A Home Sweet Home embroidery I bought for just a couple of dollars.

 

 This a pansy crocheted apron I just draped over the back of the chair.  

 

 This is some lovely embroidery on the center of that panel in the seat of the chair.  

 

 And, then, an embroidered linen doily over top.  Quite nice.

 

 The chair has as soft and smooth a finish as there could be...probably worn by the touch of many hands.  I do love it.  But, what will be it's fate?  I don't know, but I'll probably be playing with it for some time to come as I can't seem to decide just how I will finish it   You can bet you will see whatever it is though. And, it will be white or off-white for sure.

❤️

from

Bird Nest Cottage

until next time,

♥️♥️♥️

Simply Astonished

 

 "Instructions for living a life.

Pay attention.

Be astonished.

Tell about it."

Mary Oliver

So what does the dictionary say about being astonished?  I looked it up in my newest Dictionary.  Purchased just today.  (More about the book further in this post.)

Astonish:

To surprise; to amaze; to confound.

I realize that probably each of us would have our own opinion of what makes a thing or event astonishing.  My own astonishment level goes up when there are certain facts present...such as viewing items  from long ago made by hand,  by a person I never even knew...which is why I have a collection of old photos, other people's sewing tools and the actual sewn items themselves, old baby shoes and clothes, letters, books, etc.  And, it's even more astonishing to me when items like this are being GIVEN to me by a relative of the person who made or owned the item.

 

 And, what am I astonished by here?  Well, it all began last October while I was in Texas visiting my sister.  She and I had lunch with our good friend, Jackie.  And, true to her generous nature, Jackie brought me gifts.  See that pretty bottle here?  With a delightful bird stopper.  Well, that is one of the gifts she presented to me.  Well, I was astonished....because wrapped around that bottle is lace from Jackie's grandmother's sewing box.  There are buttons from her box and also a length of tatting from the same box.  OMG!  Having nothing from any grandmother, I was so pleased to have something from a friend's grandmother.  Yes, I would call it astonished!!! 

 

 Another astonishing thing shown here...is the hand embroidered cloth beneath these sweet birds.

(No, the birds have nothing to do with the story...I just think they are cute!)  Just look at those stitches....beautiful Satin Stitching, collected on one of my hunting/gathering expeditions. Astonishing!

 

 Also, something else....this beautiful print.  It's 8" x 10."  A label says...."PEONIES" by Albert Williams, printed in England.  ©️ Stephen Selby Pictures, Ltd.  And, oh MY!  My maiden name is Williams!   Love that!

 

 Another peek at that stitching.....beautiful!

 

 And, another!  Plus a closer look at the lace, the buttons in the bottle along with the tatting.

 

 And, here are the buttons poured out of the bottle...old, simple, beautiful!

And, here is the tatting.  I LOVE tatting.  The only needlework method I decided I loved, but could never do.  And, I sure tried.  So, I love tatting done by others...and in this case, Jackie's grandmother.

A precious thing to be gifted.  And, astonishing!

 

And, here is the 'new' Dictionary I purchased today.  I love old books.  And, here's the title page...I love

this --"containing EVERY USEFUL WORD to be found in the English Language and in a compact 5" x 7" size.  Very hard to see, the date here....1880.  Another astonishing thing!  

So....some folks need a really important thing or event to be Astonished.  Me, no.  I can be very Astonished with very simple things and as Mary Oliver says to do....I am telling about it!!!

And, Thank you, Waco friend, Jackie....I love my gift! 

 Jackie also gave me something else completely astonishing which I will show you as soon as I can find out more information about it.  I've been looking and hope to find out more about it so I can tell you ALL about it. 

from Bird Nest Cottage

until next time,

♥♥♥

 

Generosity

 

It's always nice to hear from friends and family....and it is amazing to me that these days, some of my friends and family have so much kindness and generosity directed my way as to "make my day" on exactly the day I needed a kind word or deed.  What you see here is that kindness and generosity made visible....some gifts from those I love and who evidently love me too.  I am grateful for having them in my life.

 

My dear sister, Debbie (as I like to say...my 'favorite sister') sent a box of goodies....she is so much more thoughtful than her older sister...me.  She knows I am crazy about the birds, so these delightful things came my way...a hanging jar with a lovely bird, holding a candle...nice to hang on the porch, or any place I fancy.  A bird nest sign...so nice and don't we all love that color!  More from her box further down this post.

 

 My dear brother-in-law, Don, who lives in Alabama, painted a lovely watercolor of a bird's nest and sent it via his daughter when she came to visit.  When I find the proper frame, it will make a glorious addition to my bird nest collection.  Wasn't it nice of him to think of me?  I do believe so.  THANK YOU, Don!'

  

My good friend, Sherry, sent a lovely card with this lace inside.  Sherry and I love a lot of the same things and we are currently gifting each other, on occasion, with bits of lace and lovely ecru and brown fabrics...planning on someday creating our own versions of our friend Brian's crazy quilts.  He was here recently for our guild's retreat and left with many wanting more.  Always a good thing.  Anyway, Sherry and I are building our 'stash' of items that will fit Brian's example.  Maybe one day you will see what we do with these beautiful things.  THANK YOU, Sherry, for always knowing what I love and sharing!  And, YOU, Brian, for inspiring us!

 

My friend, Bibi, sent me this little token of thanks, which I consider a precious gift.  The tag inside says a nice thank you, while the outside is decorated so daintily (as Bibi always does!) and in pink.  We share a love of pink and take great joy in sharing bits and pieces of 'pink stuff' whenever we can.  And, it's hard to believe but this started off life as a lowly toilet paper roll.  One has never looked so good! 

 

This is a close up of the tiny rose Bibi made from fabric...it's about the size of a dime...so very sweet.  Everything she makes is tiny and dear!  THANK YOU, Bibi, for your generosity in saying thanks to me in such a pretty way.

  

Now, the rest of the story of my sister's gift.  She also sent me many of these tiny tatted flowers.  She was enjoying an estate sale and found them there.  There is a house in my home town (McGregor, Texas) that she and I have always admired.  The estate sale was there and she was wishing I was there with her.  Me too, it would have been great fun to not only find a treasure there, but to see inside that house.  She came across a tiny box filled with these little tatted flowers and wanted to share...so here you see them.  The one thing I could never do is tat.  I tried and tried...once a tatting teacher told me to "go home and make a quilt" as I'd never be able to do it.  So, I appreciate tatting and whenever I find some, I buy it.   Now I know my sister is going to to the same thing!  

  

I can't imagine sitting and tatting hundreds of these tiny flowers.  I will have to use them for something very special!  THANK YOU, dear sister, for always being the thoughtful one and remembering your old sister!  (I think these are about the size of Bibi's rose.  A dime!)

  

Last Thursday, my good friend, Jean, who is also my good friend Susan's mother, gave me this blue and white pillow top.  I forget what she called it, but when I was younger, I knew it as embroidered 'chicken scratch.'  I actually made one like this way back when.  No idea where it ever went to, but this one will receive a new pillow form and go on the blue and white quilt on the bed in my NEST.  Jean is dear, and I appreciate knowing her and spending time with her.  She has a great sense of humor and always makes me laugh.  It's not easy to do either.  THANK YOU, Jean for being YOU!!

  

Here is a close up of the embroidery.  I never tire of seeing embroidery...always amazing to me how some strands of thread and a simple needle can make so many zillion different patterns and designs.  I'm so glad embroidery is one of my favorite things to do!

So, I hope you enjoyed seeing my pretty new things.......and knowing that there are these very nice people in my life.  I always want to share with you what comes into the Nest and also what goes out.  My birthday is coming up and you know, I love to have a giveaway for that, so sometime in October,  I'll be posting some photos of what I'd like to send out to one of you.  Meantime, enjoy the beautiful Fall weather...my favorite time of the year!  Take care, pat

 

THE Visit, A Story, A Gift and a GIVEAWAY

As you can tell from the title of this post....I'll be talking about THE visit, a story, a gift and a GIVEAWAY.  So, bear with me while I try to cover these subjects.  (By the way, sorry to have been away for so long...can I just say 'time got away from me'?)  If you remember, in my last post, I mentioned that my favorite son was coming for a short visit.  He did.  It was.  But, I did get to spend a little time with him.  It was NICE!  Thought you might like to see just one photo taken...this one on his way out the door to go to the airport in Little Rock and back to San Francisco.  So, here we are:
that's the old navy man (Richard) on the left.  My favorite son, Scott, me, and my favorite grandson, Tyler.   Daughter, Kelly, was the photographer.  Aren't they cute?  And, by the way, thanks for waiting for me to post again.

Now, for the 'story' part of this post.  Before Scott came to visit, I received an email from Holland.
It was from "Barbara W. from Holland."  Something about that name rang a bell and I remembered that she was one of the twenty-seven people I wrote handwritten letters to last year on one of my "handwritten letters to blogging friends" episodes.  Maybe you were one of the twenty-seven?  I was pleased to hear from her and after reading her letter, knew immediately that I should share it in a future post.  Here is what she said:

"Hi, Pat, You probably don't remember me, but last year I received one of your handwritten letters! Life got in the way and I never did get around to writing back to you (so sorry about that) - we moved house a month or two ago after nearly a year long hunt for our dream home, and most of my time has been taken up with that.  Anyway, I was just going through some old quilting books and I discovered the most amazing thing.  Background info first.  In 1994, my husband and I had our first vacation in the US.  We went to Maryland where an old friend of hubby's from the UK lived, and one day we visited an Old Country Store, where I saw my very first quilt - a small Dresden Plate wall quilt.  I bought it and decided on the spot that this is what I wanted to do - make quilts!  I hadn't a clue how to, so the very first book I bought on quilting, in 1994, was called "Teach Yourself to Quilt," written by one Patricia Eaton!  I searched for your beautifully written letter - nowhere to be found - oh no!  Then I remembered the name of your blog, and a quick look at your profile confirmed what I had suspected - You are she!  Is that incredible, or what?  I have been quilting and collecting books ever since, and I love it.  Nowadays I do lots of mixed media work as well and love to try out new products, but my first love will always be quilting.  Best regards, Barbara W.  in Holland"

Well,  yes, I DO think that is pretty incredible!!!  So, some background on that book.  It came out in 1988 and has been for sale by Leisure Arts, Inc., ever since.  That's a pretty long time for a book such as that.  Earlier this year, I was informed by Leisure Arts, that when the remainder of the copies on hand are sold, it will not be reprinted, but goodness, who could complain as being sold for the last twenty-four years is a pretty good deal.  And, the fact that a person from Holland taught herself to quilt from it, THEN years later, unbeknownst to her, began to read the author's blog, then received a letter from her practically by chance is, yes, INCREDIBLE!!  

This is the quilt featured in that book.  It's all hand appliqued, pieced and quilted.  The background fabric came from the old navy man's aunts' estate and was purchased by her in 1944, the year I was born!  I taught a "Teach Yourself to Quilt" class many times using this quilt and that is what prompted the book so long ago.

Here's what the first cover looked like way back in 1988.  The quilt on the cover was made by someone on staff at Leisure Arts.......because they didn't think my quilt would sell the book because the background of my quilt is green, so they put my handmade quilt on the back of the book.  I had to work on getting over that at the time.

Here is the second version of the cover, redone after several years of being in print, I guess for a 'newer look.'

And, here is my actual quilt pictured on the back......remember, at the start of this post, I showed you this very quilt hanging in our guest room!   It is amazing to me that the book sold for so long and a million more times amazing to me that someone in another country used it to actually teach herself to quilt...and I know of this because I wanted to write some handwritten letters to some of my blog readers.  Yes, Life can be very exciting.

Barbara, my friend in Holland, mentioned to me in subsequent emails, that she had found my book but misplaced my letter.  I'm sure because of the move, so I asked her if she'd like another letter.  She said yes, so I wrote one for her and sent it away to Holland.  Meantime, she wrote again and mentioned she had read my blog post on the vintage baby clothes a new friend had given me. (You can read about them in my August 20th post.)  She asked if I would like to have a vintage baby bonnet she had found in her late aunt's home and of course, I was thrilled to have it.  So, imagine, my letter was crossing the Atlantic to go to Holland and her aunt's baby bonnet was making it's way over here at practically the same moment!  Another simply incredible fact.  She received the letter and copies of two of my other books and I received her fantastic gift.....

When her package arrived, I opened it to find several items....first was this absolutely lovely fabric postcard she made just for me.  I was so excited I had to show the old navy man....even he got excited!!!  Isn't this postcard fantastic?  Beautifully hand embroidered!!

 Here is the back of the postcard!  Well, I will always treasure it...wouldn't you?  It's just dear!!!

Barbara also sent me some crochet and tatting.  She said the three medallions she purchased at a flea market and the long piece of tatting is actually a collar that was given to her long ago.  They are all so delicate and gorgeous!  I can crochet....but never have I been able to learn tatting.  I tried to take classes and my teacher said I should stick to quilting and embroidery.  I think she was right, but I do LOVE tatting and will certainly treasure these pieces!!

I couldn't get a really sharp photo of these pieces, but hopefully, you get  the idea.  They are so small and delicate and quite beautiful!

 This is a portion of the collar.  So delicate!!

And, now, the precious bonnet!!!!!  Barbara said she found this in her aunt's home after she died and she thought I should have it.  What an honor!!!  Although Barbara lives in Holland, she's from England and so was her aunt.  This beautiful piece of handwork, YES, it's all hand made, well, except the ties of the bonnet were hemmed on a sewing machine.  All the rest is hand stitched and you know how I feel about that.....I always immediately identify with the maker and appreciate all the time involved.  It's so very special to me.

 The bonnet is gathered and has beautiful lace on the front edges.  It's just amazing how much work people put into this type of baby clothing.  And, this bonnet is rather large, so Barbara and I think it was made for an older child....perhaps three or four.  I just simply LOVE it!!!

 More views of the bonnet.........

Hope you can click to enlarge and tell more about this wonderful work.........

So, I hope you have enjoyed this beautiful gift I received from a blog reader with connections to me since 1994, but we never knew until now.  Isn't this blogging thing fantastic?  THANK YOU, BARBARA!!!!!!

Now, for the GIVEAWAY...yeah, it did take me a long time to get to it, but you know how I am when I'm telling you a story!!!  IF you would like to receive a copy of my book "TEACH YOURSELF TO QUILT," kindly make a comment on this blog post by Thursday, September 27th, and I will choose THREE people, each to receive ONE copy of this book.   Yeah, it's been in print for twenty-four years, so it has no current information in it on how to make a quilt "of today", but, it's the way I would still make a quilt, so maybe you'd get something out of it....well, you'd get a free book anyway.  So, let me hear from you.  And, please remember to be sure I will have a way to get in touch with you too.

So, there we are....a vist from my favorite son, a story, a precious gift from Holland, and a Giveaway.
Look for another post on Thursday...probably late that night.  I'll announce the winners then and there is no telling what else I will be showing you.  Til then, take care out there.  pat