HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

The wall hanging on the left I finished several months ago. Thought it would be nice to share it with you now though since Halloween is here. Its named "Witch's Delight".

I do love the fall. In the Adirondacks, the air is crisp and aromatic. The colors seem so intense. Usually the sky has a more formidable look. Perhaps a warning that cooler, wetter and whiter weather will soon be here.

With witches all around for the Trick or Treat season, I thought it was appropriate to share a couple photos of 2 of my grandchildren. This is PGS#2 who is age 12. Preteen years are a troublesome time usually, but he can be so nice. Just look at the photos to see the attentiveness he gives to his cousin, PGD#1 who is 3. He is actually acting a little goofy trying on her hat while playing with her. She was on her way to a Halloween party this past Sunday, so her Mom thought it would be nice to stop by to "scare" Meme and Papi with the little witch. We are so blessed.







PGS#2 age 12
with
PGD#1 age 3








PGD#1 with her full attire!
PGD#1 at her preschool Halloween Parade.











I just love this photo. It makes me think that she's envisioning her future and the fine woman she will become.
The family genetics are amazing . Her look reminds me of her Mom, My youngest sister, and 2 different nieces besides of course a little of me.






Hmmm.... I too wonder.

Jane

Stitcher's angel gifts are off!

I've sent off the 3 finished stitched items to Tiel in the Netherlands yesterday. The chicken pincushion on the left also has a saddle called wings, that holds a small pair of sewing scissors, which I also was able to find, so I sent them in it. (Of course they were blue and purple colored sewing scissors too.) A spool of thread, package of needles or a tube of beads also could be held safely in the pockets of the wings. What ever a needlewoman would want. It was really enjoyable to make this pincushion and not too hard to complete. I loved sewing the beads on and was surprised on how the chicken gained it's personality when it was finished. I also sent the 5/4 apron in the blues and purples that I pictured in a previous post. Cuny, the stitcher's angel friend, mentioned she loved blues and purples, so I was able to stitch that apron for her too.

The candy dish I was able to do relatively quickly and I also filled it with my favorite chocolates.... REISEN. I actually purchased this container when a local department store was closing their doors forever, and it may well be at least 15 years that I've stored it so I get to continue my stash busting as well. Glad to finally have a purpose and to give it to someone who loves blues is even nicer! I don't think I've ever completed 3 items so quickly or not since I was in my 20's anyways. It seems like all the projects I do now are so large that it takes me months if not a year or two to get them completed. Of course I won't mention how many UFO's are about 10 years old or so!

Yesterday I was really hurting because of my back injury. I vacuumed my house but boy am I ever paying for it. Was able to get DH to help carry and lift things, but even with a transmission on my Kirby vacuum helping with it's movements it still bothered me. I know if I left it for DH to get done, he would find no fault in using the hand held vac and do spot vacuumming (which he usually does) but this has been getting me twisted each time I see it, so I had to do something! Some things a man can't do the same, no matter how he tries!

Now that I've met that deadline for the angels gifts think I'll either continue making the woven star table runner that was started as you can see by the pics, OR pull out a pre- kitted item I've had boxed for years. I purchased the pattern and fabrics when the Quilting Bee in Glens Falls was still open about 6-7 years ago. Some of the fabrics are more clothing style of fabrics with polyesters and blends which I picked up in the local Joanns when this area had one. It should work out perfectly since the pattern is of Dracula in a coffin. Perfect if I could get it completed by Halloween! I'll probably do that one. The style is similiar to the santa wallhanging by Debbie Mumm that really pushed my addiction into quilting......the rest is history or so it's said!

Well, have to run, DH and I are going to visit our PGS, age 14, this afternoon. He's away at a school for autitstic children and I promised we be there today with the requested Burgers from a fast-food place that he's been craving besides some other goodies he wants us to bring. Enjoy your day, I know I'll enjoy mine (even with the aches).

Jane

Your Thinking is Concrete and Sequential

You are precise, orderly, and realistic. You tend to get to the point and get things done. Difficult, detailed work is easy for you. You take things step by step. Time limits aren't a problem for you either. You work well with deadlines. What does drive you crazy is any sort of task that isn't precisely laid out. You don't like anything to be ambiguous. You prefer to deal with the facts at hand.

What Kind of Thinker Are You?

Whirlwind of a weekend!

It was a very busy weekend. But it really started last week! We have the youngest grandchild here 3 days a week since she is in Nursery School. Her Mom works at the local hospital and as a supervisor, had to work this past weekend too. The Operating room was being moved into a newly constructed area. SO we had PGD stay Friday night with us. Not too bad, she was only up twice in the night, and yelling, MEMEEE, MEMEEEE! Obviously my name. SO up and got her settled. Next morning, she has Dance class at 9:00 am 1/2 hour away. And of course pancakes are what is wanted for breakfast (It's the usual request from all the grandchildren). So make pancakes, breakfast and then to get the little one dressed. She thinks it's a game! Running around saying I can't catch her. Finally dressed in her leotard and tights, Ooops! The tights are suppose to go first. Undo all and get her to the bathroom, then to redo the dressing. Game all over again. By this time I'm exhausted! Finally dresses, off to dance class. Such an angel. Does everything the dance instructor tells her. I'm complemented on what a wonderful child she is (and she really is!, but this morning I'm not so sure. Maybe it was the sleep that was interupted in the night?) ANyways, off to Walmart to get a couple of items needed. Then home. We are going to make cupcakes, have lunch then a Nap is what I have planned. She had other ideas. Cupcakes, lunch, play dollies, play grocery store. go outside to play, DH is in garage changing the oil on truck, going to the recycle center and making something in his garage. Hmmm... I still haven't done one thing for me yet today! He's read his newspaper, read his email and I haven't had time for even a simple bathroom break. I start resenting this. SO, it's now about 3:30 pm and still no nap for PGD . I talk PGD into going to play with Papi. My husband looks like he is a deer in headlamps. Watches her for 7 minutes and then has the audacity to ask me to watch her so he can go to the bathroom! At this point I'm ready to pull out my hair. Enter preciuos grandson from next door. He starts giving me his input on what I am doing, that I need to go watch PGD on the swing. Just what I wanted to hear at this point! Well I survived the day and was glad when daughter came home to pick her up. I think I went to bed by 7:30pm.


Sunday was much better, spending time with friends and traveling to a neighboring state to attend a small bead show and have lunch in a little bistro. Now this is a much smoother day and just what the Dr. ordered.


I do love my family and the grandchildrens' input in my life. I think I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed and really needed MY Nap.


I'll close showing you a picture of PGD with a "pumpkin shirt" we made on Friday.





Jane

Another Glorious Fall Day

Well, I've only recently redone another initial blog post. Not sure how I've offended the bloggods, but I guess I must have. This is all new territory for me and a lesson being learned.


Some recent finishes for me are dyeing some fabrics that a friend, Trudy taught a few of the local quilters at "The Big House" on Lake Champlain. What a wonderful day: fabric, friends and great scenery and weather. Who could ask for anything more? The process is relatively simple but also a time consuming process. The technique was initially seen in Quilters Newsletter Magazine back in the 90's. We started by soaking the fabrics in a soda ash solution for 30 minutes. Then after wringing out the fabric, place them in one of 24 jars that had the dyes already mixed in them. Since I wanted a darker palette, my jars started with 1 Tablespoon of salt. The salt was plain salt with out the iodine added. The dyes were combinations of just 3 procion dyes, of course in the primary colors, red, yellow and blue. The photo at the top of my blog are the dark set I dyed, I'll also include a photo here too, just in case I change my header. Just gorgeous and very deep tones.




Since I had some dyes left over in the jars, I thought I'd try to use it up by using 2 fat eighths of fabrics. Just to see how they would respond, I used a white on white fabric and also the PFD (prepared for dyeing) muslin type of fabric. The latter had an ecru coloring to it and I wasn't sure how it would react. BUT, I really like the PFD fabrics in the finished affects. The colors have a deeper tone than the WOW fabric. I wonder how the initial dye would have been if I had used that one there too. Here is a picture of the second batch. I folded the fabrics by pairs so I could actually see the difference in the finish. The column of fabrics on the left shows the top fabric is the WOW while the fabric just below it is the PFD fabric dyed in the same solution. See what I mean in the deeper tones being evident in the PFD. While looking at all the fabrics, it is apparant with every color. I was surprised that the red lost it's vavoom so soon. The yellow and blue seemed to hold it's coloration factor longest. Of course it wa about 1 month in between the 1st and 2nd batch, so maybe if I had been able to get to the 2nd set sooner, the red might have been there.



Yesterday was the best day yet this fall. To celebrate, I went on a little hike at the Point au Roche nature trails. It is such a blessing to live in an area as gorgeous as this. Especially during this season. There were Canadian Geese flocks all over heralding the passage of the season. Probably as many as 300 geese were floating in the lake not including the numerous flocks that were honking and flying overhead.



A recent finish of mine is the 5/4 apron. I took a class that the guild offered and it was to use 5 fat quarters. Using only two fabrics I altered the pattern of course, and did a liitle embroidery and applique making the best use of the fabric and machine appliqueing them onto the apron's pocket. I joined the "stitcher's angel swap" that is headed by Helen Stubbings. While dealing with my back injury, many nights are too uncomfortable to sleep, so I'll surf the web to keep the noise down and my movements at a minimum. So, after stumbling upon the swap site, I thought why not, So I joined in. The only stipulation is to complete 3 projects by October 18th and mail them to your stitcher friend. I have a lady in Holland. So far I've finished 2 of the projects and the third I've done the needle work, now only to finish with the assembling. I'll post a picture of the other 2 at another time.
Well enjoy your day, I know I'll enjoy mine. Perhaps I'll do another hike or maybe get to try out my kayak that's never been used. (too long an explanation to go into now). Looks to be another great day.

Jane

DO OVER

Well as a child, everyone was quick to yell, Do Over, and you'd get a chance to do exactly that. Well, Blogspot, literally yelled, Do Over, because all 4 or 5 of my previous entries are gone. Not sure what happened. But since I am doing this blogging to cultivate my desire to create, eliminate and organize my life, well I am going to do just that. This do over will be done over. BUT since all of it was gone at the blink of an eye, I think I'll be printing out and journalling of what I post for a while. That way, any completed projects will be documented, as well as other parts of my life. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.





Quick review of previous post, I've always acquired more than I'd really needed to complete whatever topic holds my interests at that moment. Many interests of family, quilting, needle- works of all types, beading, reading, movies, hiking, biking, dancing, traveling, cooking, and Life. "If a little was good, than more was better" was one of my mantras. Even going as far as a self-claimed title of "PRINCESS OF QUITE ALOT, and QUEEN OF WHATEVER!" But enough! My passions are running into all parts of my house and I realize that I need to pare down this stuff. Especially if we will ever move to a warmer climate as we continue to age. So besides working on UFO's, my Weight, organizing my house and my life it'll be posted.







The photo added to this entry is my "AUTUMN SONG" quilt. It was recently on the home page of http://www.stashbuster.com/ since all the fabrics were selected out of my "fabric library"(aka:stash) HeHeHe . I actually ran out of one of the fabrics, but luckily I remembered a friend bought some at the same time that I did and she generously donated it to my quilt. This took a little over a year to complete. I designed it on EQ5 after looking through my quilt book library. My inspiration came from It's Okay To Sit onMY Quilt Book, by Mary Ellen Hopkins.