A Free Vacation to Italy

I wanted to post a blog about a quilt today. And, so I will, but if you follow my instructions, you will get a free vacation to Italy. Well, ok, it may only FEEL like one, but I guarantee you will enjoy it. I will begin by telling you that the quilt pictured here is one I made because I loved the fabric with the little houses stacked up and down the hillside. I imagined myself in a foreign country looking out the window at the scenery. There is a postcard in the window, waiting to be mailed, that says "Wish You Were Here." I had a lot of fun making this quilt. Fast forward to this week......I was reading one of my favorite blogs ("Dispatch from LA") belonging to my new cyperspace friend, Mary Ann Moss. She is in Italy on vacation. Her photos are to die for...go look. You may click on the name "Dispatch from LA" on my favorite blog list here on the right, and go straight to a free vacation. Or, you may go to www.dispatchfromLA.typepad.com. The photos are so good that you will really feel as if you are there yourself. If you click on her post "The Sirens" (Monday, May 5, 2008), you will see some houses stacked up and down the hillsides in Positano, Italy. It's a mini-vacation through Mary Ann's eyes. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Now, really, my quilt doesn't compare to the real thing.....but isn't it neat that I have never been there and this quilt is well, kinda like the real thing? Pat

It's Monday...A Heart's Wish

Well, today is Monday....I can't seem to get motivated this morning...lots going on around the nest and it's not helping my mood. I had intended to have a spiffy little quilting post today....but my mind just isn't on it.....so, instead, I am hoping you are having a good day and I'm sending you those wishes by way of these photos of hearts I have made. Well, I did not make the two on the upper right (in the basket)....but that's obvious. In the next couple of days, I'll be posting again.....til then, my heart's wish is a good day to your and yours. Pat

Addendum to "Red Clover" or, Boy, Is My Face Red!!!

Last week I wrote about my husband going for a drive to find some red clover for me to photograph and why I wanted such photos. The post had a lot of meaning for me and I was pleased to be able to show some red clover to illustrate my story. To help you understand today's particular post, you need to know that we used to live out in the country on forty acres, but in 1997 decided to move to town. We didn't want a tiny lot, so eventually, we found this place which consists of two acres....a lot that is really just a long rectangle, with the house and my "nest" on the front fourth or so. We do nothing to maintain the back part of the lot....we prefer it to remain "natural." Sometimes we have someone come and cut it for hay. The guy usually gets around six of those big round bales from it. The land is secluded from the view of other homeowners, except for our immediate next door neighbor, whose lot is the same size as ours. They treat their backyard virtually the same as we do. We go back to the end of our property a couple times a year to have a look around and that's about it. I consider it my "view" rather than a place I go to. Wierd, huh? Just so you know....I also have terrible vision.....and can't really see anything in detail that far away. Bearing that in mind, the other day (after the Red Clover posting) Richard decided to mow...but only to that big tree you can see in the photo. When he got to the tree he laughed and came to get me....there, ALL OVER the place, is the prettiest RED CLOVER!!!! In one photo you can see where he stopped mowing, in another,Richard and our grandson, Tyler, having a good look and then some closeups of the clover. Boy, is my face red! So, we have learned a lesson.....you know......the most wonderful things in life are right in front of your face if you only take the time to SEE them. Pat

Quilt Sampler Update

As promised in my last post, here is "something about quilting." This is a small quilt approximately 24" square and one of my UFO's. For some time, I have meant to finish the quilting on this little "sampler." My original thought was to applique a quilt resembling a cross-stitch sampler. This is what I came up with. There is a cow, as we used to live out in the country and raised cows. There is a cat, because Ethel, our cat, allows us to live in his house. (Yes, Ethel IS a male...it's a long story!) There are birds because this is Bird Nest on the Ground! And, there are chickens...well, I am deathly afraid of them since I was attacked by a large rooster when a small child....I guess I'm trying to face the fear! It is a combination of applique and embroidery with yo-yos used as flowers. I made the alphabet using my own handwriting. The tree has an appliqued trunk and embroidered branches and leaves. I mixed the strands of DMC floss to help give the leaves some light and dark color. Notice that I quilt on a Grace Quilting frame...my favorite way to quilt. This frame was purchased when I received a commission from the Dept. of Arkansas Heritage to design and make a 10'x6' quilt for their office reception area. The quilt would never have been finished without this wonderful quilt frame. I love the quilting process and would have had this sampler finished long ago, if not for a couple little things such as eye surgery, a hysterectomy, and other things making the water a little rough around here. But, as happens if you are patient....the waters smooth out. So, with any luck at all, the quilt should be finished just in time for the guild quilt show this fall. Ya think??? Pat

A Good Week Wish Tonight...Stitching Later

It's Sunday night and I feel like I should post something......and it should be about quilting, embroidery, beading or all of those things, but I've nothing ready at this moment. So, I am sending you a "good week wish" and posting some gorgeous rose photos I took this a.m. while it was lightly raining. I promise there will be stitching shown here in the next few days...so please come back soon. Pat

My Red Clover Story

My friend Sharon and I both shared a love of red clover......anytime we were driving somewhere we'd always have to admire it and wish we had a camera to take some photos. For those of you who have no clue what red clover is......it grows in pastures and along the roads and highways here. When it blooms and covers large areas...it is just gorgeous! My husband and I used to raise cows and they loved to eat it....however, sometimes they would overdo it...not a good thing. (Sort of like people!) Red clover grows wild and Sharon and I saw it at it's best when we would drive to Paducah every spring...it would be so thick along the sides of the road. Sharon passed away last year, so this weekend, when I noticed that the red clover was blooming, I mentioned to my husband that I'd like to take some photos of the clover because, at some point, I want to make a quilt with dogwoods and red clover to remember Sharon. He left to go on some errands and was gone quite a while. Later, he came into the studio and said "Look what I brought home." He brought his hand from behind his back and showed me a handful of red clover, roots and all! He had driven down by the river to get a "sample" for me. He's a pretty good guy, don't you think? I immediately put the clover in a glass of water as it had already started to droop as you can see in these photos. I took some pictures, as best I could, then decided the clover might actually grow...so I planted it in one of the galvanized tubs I have planted some daisies in....doubting that it would live. The next day I looked and it had perked up considerably...who knew? If you look closely, you can see the dew on the leaves. I took that photo early this a.m. Sharon would get a good laugh out of all this for sure...and me, well, I'm remembering all those great drives we took! And, really, I don't have to make a quilt to remember her......who could forget? Pat

Knot Crazy Beaders/Quilters Monthly Meeting, April

Thought I'd show you all what goes on at a typical meeting of the Knot Crazy Beaders/Quilters group. A great bunch of folks who enjoy and learn from each other. We have a great time and hope you enjoy seeing some of what we do. Be sure to check out all the photos (there are a lot), plus my post describing this meeting. More to come in times ahead, I hope. Thanks for looking! Pat